Grace, You're No MODE Magazine
Written: Oct 18 '02 (Updated Dec 29 '03)
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Pros: Another one bites the dust...not really a pro, huh?
Cons: Almost painful to look at. Bad editing, bad design, bad execution.
The Bottom Line: Don't bother - for a better read and a better look, dig up back issues of MODE.
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| SusanHopr's Full Review: Grace Magazine |
Update: It is my understanding that Grace has now ceased publication as well. No surprise here, unfortunately.
First, forgive me for stating the obvious - anyone who knows the category will understand the endless comparisons to MODE. I reviewed MODE in early 2000, and my passionate gush holds true beyond its end: the standard to which every fashion magazine should aspire. It was the best experience a plus-sized woman could dream of at the reading rack.
Not so with Grace. I just purchased the second issue in hopes of giving it a fair shake, crossing my fingers that it would pick up where MODE left off...and sighing in despair when it failed, miserably.
My first problem: It's badly edited. I admit that I'm a writer and editor by profession, a battle-worn Grammar Queen; I would allow for some working-out-the-kinks shortcomings. But text errors (and flat-out bad writing) run rampant and unchecked in Grace, glaring misuses of language and punctuation that they should be ashamed of missing.
If that weren't enough, most of the writing is flat and colorless; only Wendy Shanker, an excellent all-around writer, manages to acquit herself well, despite the problem editing.
(UPDATE note: as you'll see in the comments, I accidentally confused Wendy S. with Wendy M., another great writer who contributes to similar venues. Check out Wendy M.'s weblog at poundy.com, or her recaps and reviews at Television Without Pity. My apologies to both Wendys for the mishap!)
As for the design and execution...ouch. Only a few pages achieve a sense of order and flow; the rest are cluttered and crammed with gimmicky elements. Grace spends far too much time trying to be everything, and ends up being not much of anything. Their idea of continuity is to tag almost every feature with a word or phrase beginning with the letter "g" (as in goddess, goodies, glamour...) - and then to scatter them, almost like 52 pick-up, in no discernible order. Fashion and beauty clash with features and entertainment, and the high-end prices of some featured products made me feel faint. Even other "regular" fashion publications have enough sense to publish these pricey examples side-by-side with more-affordable options.
What Grace does have in common with MODE: models and advertisers. There's plenty of plus-sized supermodels Kate Dillon and Mia Tyler, and a handful of other beauties are a full-figured relief. Without mentioning advertisers by name, they are a nice mix of "old guard" and new names - it's nice to know that the fashion industry continues to grow and adapt, even if its publications don't.
I'm truly at odds with myself to have such negative feelings for Grace. Too many equal-opportunity women's magazines have disappeared lately, and plus-sized women still need a strong voice in the media.
Potential? Perhaps - if writers like Wendy Shanker are given more of the work, and the designers remember that there's nothing wrong with true elegance. But Grace is only a mediocre effort, with content and looks that completely belie its name.
If you want a real magazine for "real women," make a trip to Half Price Books and grab back issues of MODE. And pass them on...lest too many women think that Grace is the best they can get.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
SusanHopr
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Member: Susan Hopper Kollmorgen
Location: Texas
Reviews written: 13
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
Creatively inspired, personally joyful. :)
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