To Read Or Not To Read?
December 13th, 2007 @ 5:15 pm by Ms. Dahlia
This may have come through in my last post regarding a certain article in a certain magazine, but just in case there was any ambiguity-
I don’t really like bridal magazines. Yes, that even includes you:
Image found here.
I just don’t get it. Nearly all of the information found in the magazines is available online- even the projects that aren’t officially published find their way into the blogosphere. I must confess that I have purchased a few magazines (3 in total; two Martha Stewart and one Bride and Bloom- the latter which actually had very few ads), but haven’t really found them to be particularly useful or inspiring.
Maybe this is because of the non-traditional nature of much of our wedding day. No need to worry about the veil, since I’m wearing my mom’s; no need to worry about cake since we aren’t having it. Poofy dresses were never really my style, and the bridesmaid dresses are from J Crew, so that right there eliminates 90% of the magazine.
I can’t count the number of times that I have picked up a bridal mag, only to put it down, trembling in fear, and reached for the nearest Vogue instead- although it has just as many (or even more!) ads, the photographs are much more stimulating.
I’m a DIY kind of gal for a lot of things, but so many items in the magazines are really expensive, and that just doesn’t fly with me. I’m also pretty against a lot of the “wedding industrial complex”, which means that if a company advertises items that are absolutely necessary for getting married, it makes me want to run away as fast as my heads, waving my hands and shrieking in fear. For a translation:
Items like this:
If you must, inflatable wedding arch available purchase here; originally spotted here.
Like this:
Original images found here and here.
Seriously. Does anyone else feel this way?
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21 Responses to “To Read Or Not To Read?”
I used to buy them like there was no tommorow. But now I read Weddingbee and I don’t need them anymore 
(Plus my wonderful hairstylist saves all of the bridal magazines that her hair salon receives and gives them to me each time I visit; I just love her)
My fiancé and I jokingly nicknamed all Bridal magazines “Wedding Propaganda”. But then, once we got into the heavy planning, I realized that the magazines were just that…propaganda. Yes, they contain inspiring and helpful articles, and Martha has great DIYs but really… if you work a full time job, who has the time for it all!?!? And once you start adding up what all these ‘cute’ and ‘must-have’ ideas are going to cost you (in time and money), you realize that your life would have been much simpler and less expensive before the propaganda.
I actually like martha stewart weddings magazine a lot more then her website…it’s probably the most poorly designed site out there. The search engine returns too many results, the pictures are microscopic, and I can basically never find anything when I’m looking for it.
I also think that a lot of the DIY ideas are great if you already have the equipment but if I went out and bought all the cutters, stampers, scissors, etc. it would cost me a lot more then just getting the stuff premade.
About the ads, being in print production, that’s the source of income. Editorial space is entirely dependent upon how many ads are sold. Most publications function on 70 percent ads. Otherwise, it’s almost impossible to make money and support staff.
I think magazines have their value, because most brides I know aren’t web savvy.
But I think you’re just seeing through the marketing. Oftentimes–not always–they’re out to make you buy something. They are a business just like any other. Websites, on the otherhand, have low overhead costs and more variety by nature of the medium.
Like it or not, most of this wedding stuff is just a marketing ploy. Look at other blogs, they usually just hype other businesses.
All that said–I found books at the library to be more helpful than magazines. But the magazines helped me get inspired. In the end, a researcher by default, I get most of my info from the web.
I have to agree with BaghdadBride- the MS site is poorly designed (suprisingly enough). I like being able to cut out something I like to show my vendors. Plus most of the magazine subscriptions are not that bad in cost. I’m doing pretty much everything that you find untraditional- so maybe… it’s not? Miss Jasmine- I can’t wait to see you rock the burgandy lehnga!
Not into the magazines. I inherited many from friends but have yet to buy one of my own. I have decided not to look at them anymore (w/ 5.5 months to go) b/c I feel as though I get sucked into some vision of what the day is “supposed to be” instead of how we’d like it to be. I have found blogs to be a wonderful source of comfort and inspiration.
I can relate to your statement “I can’t count the number of times that I have picked up a bridal mag, only to put it down, trembling in fear…” Glad to know I’m not the only one that feels that way!
nope, i think you are the only one 
You can also download books online…but I perfer a hardcopy of those (and would love to see a weddingbee mag one day too!)
I feel that way all the time Miss Dahila. I think the bridal mags are worthless, and although I did buy a few, just to give it a shot, I felt cheap and used afterwards. I love the fact that there are so many unique and non-traditional things about our wedding; things that may not seem appropriate or “classy” according to the etiquette police and the industrial complex. Good for you for being a bee who speaks out against it!!
Miss Dahlia, you are funny! I agree w/ a lot of what you said…I picked my dress before I found a husband, I was having dresses made by a shop a friend worked for, and a LOT of the stuff seen in magazines was unavailable to me (types of flowers or venues) or unaffordable b/c of shipping due to where I live…so in a lot of ways, yeah, most of the magazines were useless. And I totally agree that a lot of the articles are really lame. (In particular, I felt a little — I don’t know, let down, suspicious, maybe? — b/c we live in a “destination” area, and so mags would highlight vendors, etc. that they thought were oh-so-great — like here are the top people to go to…and I’d never heard of them at all! And the ones I’d heard of…ewww…very few of the real top local vendors were even mentioned. Made me wonder about the quality/reliability of the rest of the content.)
But I was still somehow addicted. What I liked was seeing the styles and elements used, and going out and finding those things myself either locally or DIYing them. For some things, I had no clue! How WAS I going to do our programs, etc.? (I did not know about Weddingbee, and the wedding sites I came across just weren’t doing it for me.) Also, as jfs noted, it was helpful to tear pictures out and use them to show vendors, etc.
I also agree w/ BaghdadBride & others who commented on lousy sites that seem great, but it’s so hard to navigate or see pictures. One thing I looked for in the mags were pictures of hair styles, and I had a hard time. I went online and still had difficulty finding good shots — I didn’t have time to spend 2 hours at TheKnot.com going through photo after photo one by one of hair styles — the thumbs were too small, and the search stank.
As I said in the comments for post that triggered this discussion, I like Martha Stewart Weddings, InStyle Weddings (forgot that one before), and Town and Country Weddings because they have tons of large photographs to inspire me as not only a bride, but a graphic designer. Most of the other magazines make me crazy with the ridiculous articles and the way they feel like 90% ads, not the usual 70%. The ads are also a lot uglier.
However, I am biased, because I love magazines (I subscribe to tons: Vogue, Lucky, House Beautiful). I suppose I’m inclined to go not only to the web, but also to hold something concrete like a magazine or book in my hand.
You’re so right, although I must confess that I read them every time I visit Barnes. There are only two magazines I bought thus far - Martha and Bride & Bloom, and I agree the B&B is a great source for design inspirations with very limited amount of ads. The rest of the magazines are filled with pages after pages of the same gowns and rings. Especially the rings. There are so many ads for designers of engagement rings, which the readers, aka bride-to-be’s, should already have. As for the dress, I didn’t know any of the designers (except for Vera Wang) when I stepped into a bridal shop for the first time and just went with it and found THE DRESS.
Oh, PLUS, the same ads are in every single bridal magazines, so that makes the magazines so NOT unique in contents, of course, except for B&B, which I adooooore!!! So ladies, if you haven’t seen Bride and Bloom, definitely grab a copy!
the one reason i like bridal magazines is cuz i can tear the pictures out. for instance, when i went dress shopping, i was able to show the salon what i was looking for. otherwise, i prefer internet as well. =)
lol, i’ve stopped buying every magazine I see because I have dusty piles of them and have finally come to my senses so I totally agree with you…find it on the world wide web!! =D
Most women that read online wedding blogs are also into wedding magazines. Surprise? Not really. I am getting married in a few months- and been engaged for a year. I *love* this blog for its variety. (inspired me to do DIY STD- luggage tags for a destination wedding!). But I agree 100% with you about the mags! Hate them. But then again- I am not planning on including the usual suspects at my wedding- no white dress- no bridesmaids- no veil- no big tiered white cake-etc.
Honestly I hate the bridal mags other than MS Weddings. I only like MS Weddings because I’m a nut for all things MS! I have a subscription to Modern Bride and Bridal Guide and I usually rip out 3-4 pages and pitch the rest of it. Especially after I bought my dress I haven’t had a need for 90% of the ads in the magazine.
Plus a friend gave me a huge box of them when I got engaged - I was shocked because in the span of two years I could count on two hands the number of unique articles. There were even re-used “real weddings”! I know how you feel Miss Dahlia!
I wish I had waited to snap up a subscription deal for two bridal mags. They’re fun to look at, but I do get tired of flipping through ads since I have my dress and BM dresses. I’ve done almost all of my planning via online resources, including making an inspiration board and printing it out to show my vendors so they “get” my theme. The mags were almost more fun to look at before I was planning a wedding!
When I was first engaged I bought a bunch of wedding magazines and I have to be honest with you - it’s part of the reason I’ll have a two year engagement. The magazines and biggie wedding sites made me feel like it would never happen. They make it seem like everyone does and SHOULD spend a gazillion dollars on their wedding. My fiancee and I just can’t do that. I kept thinking it had to be done “their” way. I would buy wedding magazines and just sob over them - how could I afford the $10,000 Melissa Sweet dress that I loved so much from the picture? How long would it take to save up for the fancy getaway vehicle and wedding planner and cute parasols for the guests…
Finally, I discovered blogs and realized that not everyone does it that way and that I can do something unique and very DIY.
Granted, MS Weddings promotes DIY, but did you see their piece on calligraphy cakes last issue? Sure, just pipe the icing onto parchment, stick your left leg in and your right leg out, your right arm over your head and your left arm through the icing bag and into your dining room, slide the icing off the parchment onto your cake and voila!
I think you’re just not using the idiocy to your advantage. Whenever the groom looks at you like you’re insane for getting the Pantone color of the BM dress in order to perfectly match inks, you hold up the inflatable arch and say “Yeah? Well at least we’re not doing THIS!”
Worked for me.
I’ll admit that I read them, but they freak me out at the same time. Has anyone seen the cover for the Feb/March issue of Brides? The model on the front looks like she is maybe 15 years old. It is disturbing!
I admid I have quite the collection. Although I do realize they are ( as was stated before) filled with propaganda, I must say I just enjoy looking at the photos !
I also have gotten some good ideas and don’t want to lose them, yes I can get them online, but ya know, somehow, if I see it in the mag just seems easier to buy it and mark the page, then to remember to go search online for it later…
Ms. Dahlia, Detroit/Cleveland
Age and Occupation: 24, PhD Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 24, IT System Administrator
Engagement Date: December 31, 2006
Wedding Date: May 2008
Blogging Since: September 19, 2007
Venue: United Methodist Cathedral & historic downtown hotel in Cleveland
About Me: I enjoy cooking, dancing and swimming. I am a geek and apply game theory to my everyday life. Winter is my favorite time of year, especially when spent curled up with good coffee and a book by Madeleine L'Engle.
I wish I could say that I didn’t like the wedding magazines, because at least it would save me some money. But I love Martha Stewart Weddings and In Style Weddings. Most of the stuff inside doesn’t apply to me: I’m not having bridesmaids, I’m not wearing a white wedding dress, or having a traditional ceremony. But it somehow appeals to my super girly side and I get a kick out of reading about the different styles, approaches, and trends, even if they are continually recycled and reused.