COVER STUFF

March 10, 2017

    Today I thought of the most exciting idea for my cover! I researched information on the fashion and lifestyle magazines in today’s world and I learned that the majority of the headlines on the cover should talk about things that relate to “saving” or “changing” different aspects of your life. Magazines such as Vogue, Lucky, and Elle, implemented this change which was seen between the December and January issue. The difference between both issues was that the December one focused on purely fashion while the next issue was mostly about saving money while being fashionable. This trend seems to be what many magazines are doing and are very successful. I want to make sure to include this on my cover. 

     I am also really happy since I already figured out what I want to do for my cover. I want to have a close up of one of the girls from the double page spread since fashion and lifestyle magazines typically use that tactic to intrigue their audience. 

     I also researched a lot about what specifically goes into a fashion magazine and now know that I have to constantly be aware of the trends that are happening each month. I’m also going to have a bright color scheme, but keep it modern and minimalist, since that’s what’s most appealing to my audience. 
     I also sketched out a cover idea... take a look!

     Next comes the fonts!! I know that the magazines in my genre usually have a thick font that catch the readers eye, however, a think that a thinner font, just enlarged may have a more engaging effect on the reader. It will also look better against the main photo of the magazine since the color contrast will really work well together. I went onto the website dafont.com to see the fonts they offer. I’m still browsing since I’m really indecisive lol. But I know it will turn out really well because of all the research I am doing and inspiration I am finding. 

Stay tuned for the next post… I’m coming up with a name for my magazine!!

-Sami <3

Some Citations:

*"How to Design a Fashion Magazine like Vogue." N.p., n.d. Web.

*Voltolina, Vanessa. "Fashion Magazines' New Target Audience: 'Recessionistas'." Folio:. Folio:, 20 Jan. 2009. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

I KNOW WHAT I WANT

March 8, 2017

     This morning I woke up with the best idea ever: making my double page spread based on hair styles and makeup. It sounds simple, but when I was looking through the most recent issue of Cosmopolitan, I saw this amazingly minimalist, clean looking spread that incorporated a large main photo of a someone with messy hair and a quick tutorial. Although I don't want to copy it completely, I really gained an idea that can potentially lead my entire project. Instead of doing the entire double page spread on hair, I want to make half of it about makeup products in order to incorporate my overhead shot that I want to include. This would also really entice my target audience since they are majority females and in the age group of around 18-late twenties. 

Here are the magazine pages I want to pull inspiration from:

     Today, I also decided on what I want to implement in my Table of Contents and really just how I want to organize my magazine to suit my audiences wants. I also did additional research on what aspects the top fashion magazines include in their content. After reading an article with points on the way Elle magazine (the #1 Fashion magazine) and other top magazines organize their content, I discovered a pattern each have. They split up all the content into categories that fit their genre. Yes, I definitely want to do that, however, I need mine to be unique. I want to of course focus on “Beauty, Style, and Life,” but I decided to add in two new categories, “Gossip” and “Self Love.” The purpose of my magazine is to make they reader know how beautiful they are and the power they have in society. “Self Love” is extremely important to me and is a message I feel all females should be fully aware of and should become a huge part of their life. I know that my audience will love this addition since it will make them feel so much more empowered, especially in the present time.

I’m going to include the double page spread under the “Beauty” section of my magazine. I feel both hair and makeup together would find really well there. 

Going a little off topic, I recruited the models I want to use for my main photo on my double page spread. I wanted to showcase a blonde and a brunette to have diverse hair colors. I’m envisioning two girls sitting next to each other with beach wavy hair looking into the camera which half smiles. I want the page to look very chic since that is a very large part of high end Lifestyle and Fashion magazines. The only downfall is that the girls I am photographing may look too young because they are 16 and I was going for a mid twenties look. I’m going to take those photos ASAP just in case I need to find someone new to be photographed.

This has been so much fun so far! I can’t wait to see what the page will look like!

-Sami <3

Some Citations:

*"Top 10 Fashion Magazines." Top 10 Fashion Magazines - Elle, Harper's BAZAAR, Vogue, Marie Claire and More. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

*"11 Ways to Shop and Support Women." Www.elle.com. N.p., n.d. Web.

MY FIRST THOUGHT

March 6, 2017

     Today was the first day of the project… that means BRAINSTORMING!! I need to figure would what I want my magazine spread to look like and want genre I wanted to focus on. Prior to even receiving this assignment, I have always wanted to work for a fashion or lifestyle magazine, whether it is Vogue or Cosmopolitan, so deciding on my genre was really simple. Since a lifestyle/fashion magazine would be what I most enjoy reading and what I am most passionate about it, I would be able to easily convey my message to my audience most efficiently. 

     Regardless, I really wanted to make sure my target audience to be young adults, specifically female since I can relate to them most. I did some research on double page fashion/lifestyle magazine spreads for inspiration via Pinterest. I wanted to start by creating my double page spread before my cover since I’m not 100% sure of the topic I want to cover. I felt that once I perfected my ideas for my double page spread, the idea for my cover would come easy. Here are some of my inspiration photos. 

     For my double page spread, I am debating between two different layouts. I was thinking either some sort of overhead photo (similar to the first inspiration photo) which would allow for my text to loop around it. That way, I would be able to have my images intertwined into the background and I think that would allow for a cooler effect and make it more interesting to read. 

     I also am an avid reader of Cosmopolitan (well, I mostly look through the pages and photos lol), so I get most of my ideas from that magazine. I really love how they use bright colors against very light backgrounds and close up shots on people’s faces. 

     My other option would be a cutout of a person and completely base my article around them. I’m picturing more of white or blush pink background behind the person to make them standout. The text would outline one side of her. I would need to play around with the layout since I’m not sure yet what my other half of the spread would look like. 

     I’m so excited to create this magazine!! Stay tuned for more updates! :)

-Sami <3

Some citations:

* Pinterest. N.p., n.d. Web.

* Shunatona, Brooke, Braelyn Wood, Kelsey Stiegman, Taylor Branson, Carly Cardellino, Deanna Pai, Maya Allen, Laura Capon, Jennifer Tzeses, Gina Mei, Kristina Rodulfo, Jenna Rosenstein, Maddie Aberman, Zara Kenyon, Baze Mpinja, and Kelsi Zimmerman. "Brooke Shunatona." Cosmopolitan. Cosmopolitan, n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2017.