Thursday, June 25, 2009

Once Upon A Time — by Guest Mom Stacy



Magazines became a part of my being at age 11 when I decided I wanted a haircut, a short one. My mom is a beautician, but trained in the 60’s, she was more comfortable with beehives & back-combs. So she bought me my first fashion magazine ever. Seventeen magazine. I was hooked. At eleven. So many things to see, to learn, to want to be. And I found a haircut.


I craved every new issue—I think I still have the one with Whitney Houston (as a model) on the cover, eating a giant ice cream cone & wearing a sweater dress whose pattern was in the magazine (did I mention this was like 1982? And no, even though I begged, my grandma would not knit me the dress, as I was only 12, not 17).

By high school, it was Seventeen, Teen, YM (sometimes, not a huge fan), & the queen of teen mags, Sassy. How unbelievably crushed was I when it disappeared. How could I go on without Sassy’s witty commentary & solid advice? But go on I did.




To college, where I had now enlisted the likes of Details, Elle, Vogue, Bazaar, Interview, & Mirabella. The occasional splurge of British or Italian Vogue might cause me to skip a meal or two, but it was so worth it. I lived through those pages, shaping my world, what I would someday surround myself with, after this collegiate journey. Then, no Mirabella. Gone. The way of Sassy. It’s existence as ethereal as the images by Paolo Roversi. I was sad.


Then came Martha. Martha Kids. Martha Baby. And Real Simple. And Country Living. And Domino. Blueprint. Cookie. Wondertime. I had a lot of reading to do! But each one brought something different, something essential. There were piles in the car, while I waited at preschool. The reason my purse is as big as I am—to carry mags, of course. Oh, I must mention here that I also keep many of these. Forever. Not in a weird, stepping over piles in my house way, but in a necessary, these magazines contain a world of important images, articles, and inspiration that I might well need someday way.


And thank goodness I did. Because so many of them are now gone. And I can honestly say that for a time, like after I realized there would be no more Blueprint, no more Domino — ever — I wondered how I would ever find that collection of visual inspiration in my life. It felt like something was dying.

Enter blogs. Without realizing it, they had slowly begun to take magazines’ place in my world. First, Design Mom. Then Oh Happy Day. Then A Cup of Jo. Black Eiffel. Bloesem. Inchmark. Katie did. Simple Lovely. Twig & thistle. Heather Ross. Simply Photo. The list grows every day. All of these amazing visionary women. To you I must say: thank you. You have given back a part of me.

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17 Comments:

Blogger M said...

You could have written that from my life. I remember that exact issue of Seventeen (the one you have on your post pic) and I couldn't have survived small town Idaho life without my Sassy making me feel like I was part of something much bigger in this world...like blogs do for me now that I'm back in my small town Idaho. Thanks Stacy.

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 5:35:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Lindsey Michelle said...

Stacy,
I loved reading this. I am a self confessed magazine-aholic. My tastes have evolved over time (like yours did) and blogs have moved in to fill the void some magazines have left (Domino, Blueprint, etc). But I still have to say that nothing beats the tactile pleasure of a good magazine arriving in the mail. Or scooping it up in the store early even. Thanks for a beautiful piece!
{ Lindsey }
http://greatfullday.blogspot.com

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 5:41:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Liz said...

I also had the same Seventeen magazine back in high school. I like blogs now more than magazines, since I'm raising 5 daughters, and Seventeen's content has changed dramatically. My daughers are also online and reading my sister's and friend's blogs, which is even better reading. Blogging can connect our minds and hearts in some great ways. Here's one I recommend adding to your list: http://dailygrapefruit.blogspot.com

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 5:43:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Deb @ inner compass designs said...

thaqt is my story too. my husband laughs a bit at my 2 addictions - magazines and handbags! the great thing about blogs becoming the next step is that they are available to all - since i moved to australia i have had to rely on Borders for a fix of some magazines as I am not paying $12-18 for 1 airfreighted issue of a magazine.

As much as I love my 150 blogs that I follow, they can never truly replace print for me though. Just as I still use a paper and pen planner i refuse to give up turning the pages by hand and carrying magazines with me. I would be upset if magazines went all digital as it is nowhere near the same experience as the print format.

And thanks for taking me right back to me "Sassy" days - loved that magazine (I was born in 1972)

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 6:07:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Miggy said...

Sassy. It was an elite club...to this day it's sort of a "oh you read sassy? me too..." and an exchange of a knowing glance.

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 8:09:00 PM EDT  
Anonymous laura said...

I echo that entire post, wholeheartedly.

I just realized, right now, how early my magazine obsession must have started. I remember that exact Sassy magazine cover. I don't know what was in it, but I know I pored over it for days/weeks/months. Wow.

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 8:21:00 PM EDT  
Anonymous stacy said...

it is comforting know i am in the company of such wise & stylish women! and as for that seventeen-- i am bidding on that very issue on ebay. what a trip that will be-- for me & my 12 year old daughter! please let me wiiiin!

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 8:37:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Tanya said...

I forgot about Sassy -- that was my favorite as a teenager!!

Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 11:10:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Amy said...

I loved this post! I really miss Blueprint, and did not even know Domino was done for until I read this! Too bad! I remember loving the Martha Stewart Baby magazine with my first daughter. And yes, I still have a box of Seventeen and Sassy magazines. Good times.

Friday, June 26, 2009 at 12:17:00 AM EDT  
Blogger Amy said...

By the way, if I remember correctly, most of the writers of Sassy went on to Jane magazine, right?

Friday, June 26, 2009 at 12:19:00 AM EDT  
Anonymous Barchbo said...

My first love - real love - was magazines. I wasn't into boys in junior high the way I was into fashion, accessories, and dreams of moving to NYC one day and working for a glossy mag (preferable Seventeen.) I studied the names on the masthead as closely as the names of the models, designers, and celebrities.

About 10 years ago, one of my college friends called me from her new job to tell me that she worked with Jane Pratt's brother - she didn't know who she was, but when she found out she had worked for Sassy, she knew I would know!

Thanks for a wonderful walk down memory lane - and for the comfort of knowing that there are others who feel about mags (and now blogs) the way I do. You put it beautifully.

Friday, June 26, 2009 at 10:50:00 AM EDT  
Blogger Unknown said...

I feel exactly the same. I remember the first issue of Seventeen I ever bought and how I wore it out reading it over and over or inspiration. And yes, Sassy was pivatol and so was Mirabella and then all those lovely shelter mags, so many that have left us. The blog world has helped to soothe the pain of loosing so many great publications. Of course every now and then I have to get out a stack of back-issues, my very favorites and hold them in my hands and thumb through them over and over because as much as I love reading and writing in Blogland, I still am a magazine lover at heart.

Friday, June 26, 2009 at 5:30:00 PM EDT  
Blogger JoLynn said...

Ohhh...I remember reading all of those magazines!

Friday, June 26, 2009 at 8:11:00 PM EDT  
Blogger Kelly said...

I think we're about the same exact age, and God, I had that Seventeen, too. Whoa, that takes me back! Remember "Teen" magazine? Remember that thick yellow page in the back with the "beauty contest" photos that girls could submit?

Good times! I'm still a magazine addict, but now it's nearly 100% shelter mags -- I don't really do the fashion ones anymore.

Saturday, June 27, 2009 at 2:03:00 AM EDT  
Anonymous wide open spaces said...

well said! hoorah for blogs! endless free magazines!!!

Monday, June 29, 2009 at 6:26:00 PM EDT  
Anonymous erika at delphine said...

I loved Mirabella. I still have some issues squirreled away. I totally get your magazine addiction--it's so bad for me that I will even buy shelter mags in foreign languages (Danish ones are particularly lovely).

Thursday, July 2, 2009 at 9:58:00 AM EDT  
Anonymous Kathleen at Twig & Thistle said...

I too have an unhealthy addiction to magazines! I can't seem to toss any of them and I fear that my collection will put me in a bind some day. I thought about selling my set of Martha Stewart Livings at one point but nearly went into a panic attack thinking about it! Silly, I know, but glad that I'm not alone...

Blogs are also a new obsession and I love being inspired everyday and not having to wait a whole month. I can't thank you enough for including me (Twig & Thistle) among your list, what an incredible honor! I loved reading your posts and thank you for the new blogs to check out.

xoxo,
Kathleen

Thursday, July 2, 2009 at 1:00:00 PM EDT  

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