CHICTIONARY by Clare Press

(I speak, you speak, we all speak...FASHION)

They say (sigh?) that regional dialects are dying out, thanks to Hollywood creep and the ever-expanding tentacles of the World Wide Web. But as every serious fashionista knows, they be wrong (note: that works best if you say it in a bumpkin accent like an extra from Midsomer Murders). There might be fewer Yorkshire souls yapping on about putting wood in t'ole and there being nowt so queer a' folk, but clique-alects rule okay in elite circles.

It's nigh on impossible to understand what the f’row is saying half the time ("f’row" = front row...don’t you read Grazia? Hello?!) but happily I’m here to help by acting as interpreter via this regular new post for GWAS. I’ll be decoding le fashion speak for readers each week in the hope that karma's gonna get me…a Phoebe Philo for Celine jacket for Christmas. Capiche? Stay with me. I hereby launch, Chictionary. Ta-da!

F’row Word of the Fortnight

Nonvin (non-van) adj., Derog. 1. Denotes a fashion crime; something ugly, hideous, shockingly off trend. Literally, to be a long way indeed from the work of revered French fashion house of Lanvin [currently headed up by one Alber Elbaz, A.K.A. le chicest homme alive].

In conversation. Hints and tips for daily use:
On seeing a short and scary frock covered in alarming plastic bling as sewn in Bali, Fashionista 1 says, "Ouch! Plastic, c'est pas chic!”
Fashionista 2 replies, “Eiuw! I know. That is so Nonvin!"

CHICTIONARY CREDENTIALS: In case you didn't know, Clare Press is a former fashion director for Vogue Australia and has her own fashion label, the wonderful vintagey Mrs. Press. Pretty and witty, she's also a really lovely lady, so I'm delighted that she'll be gracing this here blog on occasion to impart some words of sartorial wisdom. Visit her frolicking new blog here.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: Goodwin Glossy Goodness

Oh, my glossy goodness!

This morning I got the same feeling when I entered the newsagent and eyed off the women's stand as I did the Christmas morning when I unwrapped my first Cabbage Patch Doll (Sally-Anne, where did you go?). Because there, nestled amongst all the gossipy weeklys and show-offy fashionies, was a fresh new Australian Women's Weekly glowing with all the joy of Christmas.

I really don't know what to be more excited about – Ellen on the cover of O The Oprah Magazine or MasterChef's Julie Goodwin resplendent in red and glowing like a superstar (with perfectly arched eyebrows, may I note), her diamond earrings a-sparkling and bountiful bust a-heaving, for the Weekly.

Then there's the Weekly's bonus bag to consider, which comes lovingly plastic wrapped with the words 'This Bag Is Not a Toy Made in China.' The Weekly had a little joke (see here to get my drift)! A gift AND a little humour. Oh, it's almost too much. I need to sit down like nanna after a few too many Christmas sherries. Someone fetch me a cold face cloth.

Let's take a quick peek inside this festive tome: lots of ads, of course; personalities posing in their festive finery; Penelope Cruz (bonus!); stories of love and giving; David Leser reporting on Jerusalem; Joe Hockey on being a dad; Serena Williams sizzling in a swimsuit; Del Kathryn Barton fronting the new 'Inspire: Women we admire' section; Santa in a fashion shoot; a 12 Days of Christmas Diet Plan; psychologist Kati St Clair on 'Keeping the peace at Christmas'; Kathy Lette on festive fun (see 'Inspire Laughs'); Wendy Squires on A-list parties; Pat McDermott's 'yule rules'; pages and pages of Julie's festive food; Maggie Tabberer and Monica Trapaga setting the Christmas table; a 12 days of Christmas giveaway; DIY decorating ideas; AND a book of Christmas carols.

Naysayers may pooh-pooh the return to airbrushing the cover after Sarah Murdoch's sans Photoshop issue, but I am blinded by all the goodness on offer here. Bless you, Helen McCabe – you've totally hit the right note.

Yours truly,
Girl With a satchel

Mags: 12 (Commission Free) Reasons to Get Glamour

Warning: this blog post contains unashamed use of sycophancy. Because this issue of Glamour is pure magazine magic. And not just because I'm featured on page 198. Though that does help the cause (see point #10).

Leaving aside Rihanna's revelations about becoming the unwitting poster girl for domestic violence, Michelle Obama's sound dating advice, five assorted covers (ooh, it's like Christmas!) and the annual Women of the Year love-fest, all which have garnered the mag the most media attention, there are plenty of other highlights to celebrate, ultimately culminating in a fantastic finale issue for 2009.

While Jezebel has taken the glossy to task for tokenism, the virtual impossibility of living up to its body diversity promise and sex article abstinence in the presence of the demure Mrs. Obama, I once again felt myself high-fiving editor Cindi Leive for producing a very excellent magazine. But since I couldn't contain my excitement within five points, I've extended the virtual applause over a more festive and highly visual 12....

1. Miranda Kerr with a teddy bear in 'It's your day off. Dress Like it!, eight gorgeous pages of Kerrness...
2. Woman of the Year Amy Poehler in a prom frock. Applause, indeed...

3. Liz Smith, thank you for the hilarity of your A-list advice...

4. Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi starring in the food-porny ''Eat! Drink! Enjoy!', six pages of recipes and tips for keeping on the trim side when your plate's full...

5. The world needs more Hilary Duffs. Enough said.

6. Investigative journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling who were arrested while reporting on human trafficking in North Korea being celebrated for their work...

7. Travel epiphanies are not just unique to Elizabeth Gilbert. See 'The Trip That Changed My Life'.

8. Festive altruism, Glamour-style, includes "Help get PJs to kids in shelters so they won't have to sleep in their clothes by giving just $10 at pajamaprogram.org."

9. I have an enduring girl crush on Jemma Kidd thanks to my stint as a beauty ed...

10. I also have a huge girl crush on actress Rashida Jones and am absolutely gobsmacked to be sharing this page space with her...

11. Stella, Stella...!
12. Goldie Hawn, Tori Amos, Jane Goodall, and five incredible women changing the world... almost too much female awesomeness in one page!

... and a partridge in a pear tree!

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: Girlfriend Model Search 2009 winner

Glossy Talk

Red-headed 15-year-old South Australian schoolgirl Karri Pledger has beaten out five other beauties to win the Girlfriend Rimmel 2009 Model Search, the competition which launched the careers of Abbey Lee Kershaw, Catherine McNeil, Pania Rose, Alyssa Sutherland, Sarah Stephens, Ruby Rose (who lost out to McNeil in 2002) and Samantha Harris.

Pledger, whose look has drawn comparisons with fellow Perth model Gemma Ward but more closely resembles successful Brazilian model Cintia Dicker, has won a two-year contract with Chic Model Management, a meeting with next Model Management in New York and will also feature in a fashion spread in the December issue of Girlfriend, on sale next week.

Editor Sarah Cornish says Pledger was a stand-out thanks to her red hair and "fresh, healthy Australian look."

Ursula Hufnagl of Chic Model Management (the Australian super-agency which currently represents Victoria's Secret girls Elyse Taylor, Miranda Kerr, Abbey Lee Kershaw and Sarah Stephens) said the quality of entrants this year was "sensational". Rebecca Downes, a fellow Barossa Valley girl, also made the list of six finalists.

More than 2500 girls entered the nation-wide competition, which celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2010 and each year garners the magazine more than a few column inches. Congratulations, Karri – your parents must be super-chuffed.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: What are Aussies reading?

All's not been well in the land of the women's mag, according to the latest Roy Morgan readership figures, with eyes going off the lady glossies like a stinky cheese plate that's seen sitting in the sun too long. Speaking of cheese, publishers of food titles can, however, thank the MasterChef effect for their lustrous new numbers. Herewith some handy comparative tables: I hope they don't hurt your eyes, Kitty.

THE GLOSSIPS
In short: not good news. Ghastly results for NW and Who, in particular. What we need is a royal wedding. Get your act into gear, Prince William! Yes, less skinny celebrities, more Queen Elizabeth; that should do the trick.


THE WOMEN'S FASHION & LIFESTYLE GLOSSIES
Not usually one to buck a trend, Vogue Australia increased its readership numbers thanks, in part, to the anniversary September issue that went on sale August 5. Cleo said good-bye to 27% of its readers and SHOP Til You Drop lost 18%, while InStyle quietly retained its 239,000 readers. Girlfriend gained 12% as Dolly lost readers. Perhaps the adverse effect of competitive cover-mounting is creating a product that teen girls are reluctant to share? A small note on lovely Notebook:, which changed cover tactics to become more AWW, less homey, and took away the perforated separators back in April: ick!

HEALTH TITLES
Pacific Magazines' Women's Health continues to be The Business in this category as other titles eat her running-shoe dust.

HOMEMAKER & INTERIORS TITLES
Better Homes and Gardens is out of control: it's the third most read magazine in the country. Appalled that the beautiful InsideOut is getting no reader love: let's hope the makeover works for the December quarter.

FOODIE TITLES
Last but not least, the category that got a boost thanks to Australia's infatuation with Matt Preston and his MasterChef cronies.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Girl Talk: Cheap, old-school Christmas cards

It's a bit of a visual candy day on GWAS, but I wanted to share my moment of greeting card enlightenment with you and also use the word "fungible" in a sentence (thank you, Dictionary.com!)...

I am usually the type who will spend hours in David Jones labouring over which Christmas cards to buy for my nearest and dearest and associated persons, spending some hideous amount of money on stationery that will be appreciated for a fleeting minute before being discarded or drowned in a sea of other Christmas cards, depending on the popularity of the recipient.

Now, while I'm all for scoring presentation points and pride myself on the ability to coordinate gift wrap with cards (which is right up there with diagnosing diseases in small children), as per the interiors mag instructions, the absolute absurdity of my yearly perfect-card-hunting/much-money-spending ritual hit me yesterday when standing in line at IGA.

In my line of impulse-buying sight were a rack of assorted greeting cards in packs of 10 baring a 0.95c price tag! I was immediately taken back to primary school, when you bought stacks of these cards to give to classmates, reserving the prettiest ones for your friends and the popular girls and allocating the ones featuring the Three Wise Men or boring baubles to people who didn't rate as well on your terribly superficial social radar.

Now I'm MUCH older and more mature, I see these cards in all their retro glory as a more Christian and democratic way to do Christmas... even though they're made in communist China, which also sort of rubs against my feelings about commercialised junk produced at cut prices. But, you win some you lose some. Looking at the cute traditional illustrations on these cards, I couldn't help but smile for a while: they're a fine fungible proposition, indeed. It's going to be a cheap and cheerful Christmas in the world of GWAS.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Girl Talk: Dear Gemma Ward...

Dear Gemma,

I don't want to be a conduit for the type of discussion that speculates about a young woman's weight, so apologies for bringing up the subject, but as you're in the public eye right now, you make for a good point of reference for something that's been on my heart (gawd, that's such 'Christian speak', sorry) and mind for a while (yet another media hack using you to generate content – yay!).

Really, I'm just tired of ALL talk about weight and body image and the media, as you would be, too. Because the sad thing is that the more we talk about it, the less room there is in the media/public forum/online for talking about all the OTHER great things that women are doing... that don't include losing weight or putting it on.

It is so frustrating being a female media consumer right now: what feminism gave us in the way of equal rights, we're sabotaging by giving unequal attention to stuff that really doesn't matter (nobody ever got to their death bed and wished they were skinnier). We are absolutely developmentally stifled – on a creative, intellectual, emotional, relational and spiritual level – by the superficial discussion that focuses on our bodies.

I have put on 6-8 kilos in six months (let's celebrate that for a second – whee!). One of my biggest frustrations in this process of recovery and weight-putting-on, as my mind has gained back clarity relative to each extra kilo, has been the media's celebration of weight loss, but I've also been disenchanted by the way discussion about diets/body shape/exercise permeates almost every conversation I have with another woman/women. What the frig?

My sister has battled her own body demons, but has also been one of my saving graces. She put on a little weight (she's still on the small side, like my mum) as I kept losing and losing and losing it, defiantly loving her new body shape and giving away her little-girl clothes after being a super-skinny mini during her teens and young adult life. She finally relaxed and her body naturally took the shape it was meant to be, still exercising (not madly) and eating well, but not punishing or denying herself in the process.

And, you know what? She has become the most vibrantly exciting person to spend time with – her conversation alive with witty observations; her lust for the new insatiable; her creativity unstoppable; her beauty glowing from within. Her glorious personality has come into full fruition. She is more caring. She cooks my dad lovely meals. She has more to give because she is feeding and nourishing herself on every level.

One of the things I love about picking up my copies of Good Weekend or The Age's A2 section, flicking through an interiors mag, reading a new work of fiction or non-fiction (or returning to an old one I love), visiting a beautiful crafty blog, playing at the markets, trying a new recipe, seeing a film with a friend, dancing around with my nieces or hearing a church sermon on a Sunday is that they are devoid of all the toxic drivel that stifles my spirit and recovery. In fact, I often find I spend my weekends fuelling up on these things, only to feel depleted of all inner resources by the week's end. Big BOO to that.

Really, I should be allocating time every day to fuelling up on the good stuff of life. Some people do that naturally; some of us have to learn to do life properly, while operating within the economic/cultural forces that dominate society and say you're only as good as the work hours you've put in or the pay cheque you've earned or the number of blog posts you've written or the number on the scales.

So, Gemma, don't worry for a second about your weight. Developing your character and interests and relationships are a far worthier pursuit. Defiantly ignore the crap and, as with my sister, everything will come into a lovely alignment as you start to become the beautiful, three-dimensional Aussie girl you were designed to be – the post-Vogue Gemma is sure to be just as lovely.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

P.S. I'm thinking about having a 'no body talk' month on GWAS. What think you? Is it even possible given the blog's context? For further inspiration, let's revisit India Arie's wonderful "Video".

GWAS Notes: Oh, Christmas tree, oh, Christmas tree...

I feel like I've well and truly milked the glossy media cow this week, so in lieu of Playlist here's a visual Christmas treat care of my favourite local cafe, Spice of Life.

I want to buy every single one of the decorations they have on display, but then that would make for a rather bare looking tree – and I don't want to be like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas. Mrs. Claus with a latte is more my gig.

The Word for the Weekend: "I ask God from the wealth of his glory to give you power through his Spirit to be strong in your inner selves, and I pray that Christ will make his home in your hearts through faith." Part of Paul's letter to the Ephesians (3: 16-17). Encouraging, no?

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: Inaugural AMA Magazine of the Year Award winners

Julia Zaetta and her Better Homes and Gardens team have received a lovely pre-Christmas gift: the Pacific Magazines' publishing behemoth has taken out the inaugural Australian Magazine Awards (AMA) Magazine of the Year Award, owing to its full-hearted embrace of the multi-platform glossy branding approach.

With the winners announced this morning, the Awards, hosted by industry rag Ad News (Yaffa Publishing), are a supplement for the now-defunct Magazine Publishers of Australia (MPA) awards. An impressive panel of independent judges, including Fusion Strategy's Steve Allen and Mediacom's Nick Keenan, shortlisted 67 finalists, from which 15 category winners were selected.

Unlike the MPA Awards, the AMAs did not call for cumbersome entries from publishers, rather the onus was on the panel to select winners from across the Australian magazine spectrum – the only prerequisites being that the titles be ABC audited, with Roy Morgan readership figures. Judging criteria included sales figures, advertising volume, covers, content, layout and design.

Better Homes and Gardens stood out from the competition – including fellow Magazine of the Year finalists and winners of their respective Women's Lifestyle and Food and Entertainment categories Shop Til You Drop and Delicious – with its June 2009 audit 10.4% year-on-year circulation increase (sales of 370,000 per month make it the third-best selling title in Australia). The magazine also posted a 2.3% readership increase and 19% year-on-year increase in advertising volume (Nielsen AdEx).

"Arguably the most successful multimedia brand in the country, Better Homes and Gardens has enviable reach via its TV program on the Seven Network, its website through Yahoo!7 and its radio program," says the AMA. "With advertisers increasingly seeking cross-platform opportunities, Better Homes and Gardens is well positioned to continue its success in the future."

In a category that "relies heavily on strong covers to tempt readers", News Magazines' Delicious stood out in the Food and Entertainment category for its "stellar food photography with strong layout and design" as well as its canny use of celebrity foodies Jamie Oliver and Matt Preston "in a year that saw interest in cooking intensify, thanks partly to the success of TV programs such as MasterChef."

Pacific Magazines' Women's Health won the Health and Family category award for its "smooth transition between the lifestyle and health categories and its consistently strong cover design and editorial content" in addition to healthy circulation data.

After a tumultuous year, which saw a controversial change of editor, The Australian Women's Weekly, now in its 75th year in print, won the Mass Women's category title, beating New Idea, Take 5, That's Life and Woman's Day. Despite experiencing a circulation decline (-7% year-on-year as at June), the nation's number one selling glossy still "boasts the most powerful front cover in its category" and a "breadth of content and value for money".

Marie Claire won the Woman's Fashion award for its "strong balance of editorial and well-shot fashion features, delivered with consistency", as well as a half-yearly circulation increase and use of cutting-edge content delivery technology, despite a 10.6% fall in advertising volume (the glossy still boasts more ads than the other finalists in the category, including InStyle, Madison and Vogue).

"Consistency and clarity of focus" got ACP's Shop Til You Drop over the Women's Lifestyle category line in first place. The judges applauded the title's "clear point of difference and focus on delivering exactly what it promises readers." Mid-year circulation growth of 7.7% also stood Shop apart in a category including Cosmopolitan and OK!, which made only nominal gains. Fellow finalist Who lost sales, while the judges felt Famous' record 20% jump was "assisted by a sizeable drop in cover price."

However, this week's rather fortuitous back-from-the-brink assessment of Famous on GWAS has been matched by the magazine's 'U Turn of the Year' AMA award. "In 2008 Pacific Magazines was faced with plummeting circulation for Famous," says the AMA. "Gereurd Roberts was appointed as editor-in-chief in May 2008, charged with reinvigorating the magazine, and national advertising manager Laura Kleiman came on board in October. Just over 12 months ago, Famous updated and refreshed its editorial and cut its cover price by $1 to $3.50, which has helped drive an overall increase in sales for the celebrity weekly magazine market."

The BBC/ACP collaborative effort Top Gear, which was credited with "raising the bar in the motoring category", took out the Launch of the Year award, beating out Grazia and Good Food. Dolly was awarded the Youth/Kids top gong for being "a good all round package with consistently strong front covers", as well as a healthy June 2009 circulation gain of 4.1%. "Dolly is not just a print product," according to the AMA's assessment. "ACP Magazines has created a strong multimedia brand in Dolly over the past year, creating added value for advertisers. It delivers up-to-date editorial, video content and a What's On guide for readers of its website, which is housed under the Ninemsn portal." The judges also made note of Dolly's interactive advertorial 'Wish List' and airbrush-free June issue /Heart Your Body campaign.

In the Newspaper Inserted Magazine category, The Age (Melbourne) Magazine came out on top, standing apart from the competition for its "strong imagery and flair for features" and "a balanced package of trends, food, people, shopping, fashion and entertainment", in addition to an impressive 9.9% year-on-year rise in readership in the June Roy Morgan survey.

See the full list of winners at Ad News today. Congratulations to all of them on a job well done in a tough year.

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: Sarah Murdoch sans Photoshop

Sarah Murdoch's female approval rating is about to go through the roof: the already girl-crush worthy supermodel, Australia's Next Top Model host, face of Bonds, actress, mum and wife to Lachlan has gone decidedly sans Photoshop for the November cover of The Australian Women's Weekly. And she looks stunning... tiny sunspots, laugh lines and all.

Weekly editor Helen McCabe tells us that despite her determination to go airbrush-free, Sarah, 37, did find it difficult "to look at the few minor imperfections that would have been easily erased by our experts" but that "she decided to take a stand after joining a committee established by federal Youth Minister Kate Ellis to tackle body-image issues among our children."

This vulnerability and humility – a willingness to show us her physical flaws, despite having built a career on her looks – is a gift to women. Sarah's spirit of generosity, which extends from her work with the Breast Cancer Foundation and Murdoch Children's Research Institute through to her new show Sarah Murdoch Hosts the Pride of Australia, is worthy of national recognition – perhaps The Weekly will catapult her to OA status? She's certainly worthy of a Covergirl Of The Year award. Some may cynically suggest that a supermodel without airbrushing is about as novel a concept as giving up chocolate for Lent, but when one's career is based on her looks – and celebrities are filtered down to an inch of their 'real selves' – this is so refreshing.

Sarah has been interviewed for the magazine by author Lee Tulloch, while next month The Weekly will be relaunching with a promising new focus on "more women, from more diverse backgrounds... artists, musicians, authors, scientists, teachers and more who might make interesting reading."

However, don't expect airbrush-free covers to become a standard at The Weekly: "I can't possibly commit to that, I'm a realist," McCabe told AAP. "There are real business imperatives why magazines have gone this way, it's a very competitive industry and I'm at this stage just taking a little baby step and seeing how this goes for now...The one point I have to make is that this is possibly one of, if not the most beautiful woman in Australia that I've done this to, so the risk is not that high."

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

GWAS Glossy Vision: Meet Lady Melbourne!

Glossy Vision

As I'm currently either up in the air, being held up at customs, lugging my excess baggage through the arrival hall, or recuperating after a cramped night's non-sleep, it's likely that I won't get to my MacBook in time to bring you Short & Sweet, so instead I'm giving you the next installment of GWAS Glossy Vision.

During the Nuffnang Blog Awards, I took the opportunity to chat to Phoebe Montague of Lady Melbourne who secured herself the Best Fashion Blog award – her equally lovely friend Amelia used my nifty little Flip HD video camera to record the occasion (no, not on the payroll – I love my Flip!).

I'd like to preface the 5-minute clip by saying: a) I sound drunk but am not (just deliriously tired); and b) I am fully aware that I have been shot from a most unflattering angle given my, um, prominent nose. Thankfully, Phoebe is aesthetically captivating and a dream interviewee. I hope you enjoy the interview.



Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel

Mags: Crazy covermounting culture

During a Mediaweek podcast earlier this year, Mia Freedman shared an hilarious anecdote illustrating the crazy heights covermounting had risen to during her tenure as editor of Cosmopolitan.

Cooky girl she is, she put on all the freebies she'd collected from British magazines over the period of one week, including a sarong, bikini and thongs, then presented herself to publisher Pat Ingram, who assumed her crazy attire was just another passing fashion trend. Her point being, of course, to demonstrate just how out of control the practise of affixing freebies to the covers of magazines had become. Freedman remains staunchly anti-covermount, as does Cosmopolitan.

"Covermounts are the crack cocaine of magazines," she told Mediaweek. "They're the fastest way to erode your brand. It's an absolutely farcical way to prop up your circulation... so that you can keep your ads up. But you don't know what your readers want; you don't learn anything about what you've put on the cover... it's like, what they want is a hair straightener. Okay, are we a cosmetic company, are we electrical goods manufacturers or are we a publishing house? Covermounts are something I fought against all the time. I hated them."

All this talk yesterday about ACP Magazines getting back to basics with a renewed focus on producing quality, sustainable editorial rather than resorting to artificially boosting quarterly sales figures with tip-on freebies has got me thinking about covermounting culture. Is this a death knell for the one-upping competition that sees newsagents turn into glorified Crazy Clarks stores and editors become sideshow spruikers? And will publishers be able to ween readers off covermounts now they've become a normalised part of the magazine purchasing experience?

In stark contrast to the recession and eco-friendly mentality pervading the glossies, which tells us to be more thoughtful shoppers in response to the rabid global consumer culture that brought about the GFC, over the past six months I've acquired more than a few bags (tote, beach, duffle, shopping), cosmetics purses, a notebook and pencil, mascara, lipgloss, nail polish, a mini hair straightener, a scarf, a t-shirt, chocolate, a pedometer and sticky notes, all thanks to the generosity of our mainstream women's magazines, including marie claire, Harper's BAZAAR, Madison, Cleo, InStyle, Dolly and Girlfriend.

"You can go into a newsagent and you see who's not selling: every magazine with a covermount isn't selling," Freedman told Mediaweek. "Everyone's addicted to it but, ultimately, it's terrible for the industry and it's terrible for the brands because suddenly nobody wants to buy Dolly unless there's a hair straightener or an iPod... At a time when staff are being laid off and budgets are being cut and editors are doing it so tough... it's insulting to the very talented journalists and people who work on magazines."

Indeed. I've likened magazines who use covermounts to the girl at school who has to buy her friends with gifts, so lacking in confidence is she of her ability to secure a loyal, authentic relationship by just being herself. To my knowledge, Vogue, RUSSH, Frankie and SHOP Til You Drop aren't in the habit of covermounting, yet their circulation figures are relatively healthy.

In the U.K., where covermounting is even more rampant, using tip-ons can lift magazine sales of some women's monthlies by up to 200,000 additional copies an issue. According to Mediaweek, Cosmopolitan registered sales of 647,796 for its July 2009 issue, thanks to a cover price reduction (from £3.30 to £2) and a free chick-lit novel, while average sales for the first half of 2009 were 441,683. The July issue of U.K. Glamour gave away a free mascara, which boosted issue sales to 745,133 copies and average monthly circulation for the first half of 2009 to 526,245.

But not all covermounts are created equal. Tip-ons run the gamut from advertiser product sampling to worthy charity collaborations, sample mags, cheapie branded items from China, and in-house produced one-shot books, magazines and calendars. Over the years, I have enjoyed Vogue's bonus business style magazines and Harper's BAZAAR's L'Oreal Paris sponsored fashion supplements. I also adored Frankie's gift wrap book, containing paper designed by the magazine's arty collaborators, which felt like a real bonus and further extended the magazine's positioning as the quirky creative title du jour. Though these projects mean a lot of extra work for the editorial and design teams – if not the in-house creative services department charged with producing them within the magazine's style guidelines – it's these covermounts that have the ability to enhance a brand and create consumer loyalty – the kind of loyalty advertisers love.

This month's Inside Out magazine comes with a mini 'Decorators' Secret Handbook', which has been lovingly compiled by staff in-house. The book taps into the magazine's little black book of design industry contacts and invites readers to share in the knowledge. The layouts are in keeping with the magazine's style, no sub-editing expense has been spared and there's something new to learn or discover on EVERY page. Freebies like this one, created in a spirit of generosity and excellence, leave you with a warm and fuzzy feeling about the magazine – and the covermount sponsor, Yellow Pages.

It is immensely disheartening to slave away on what you believe to be a stellar issue of your magazine only to be trumped at the newsstand by a competitor with an amazing freebie. Because consumers are time-poor and likely to be lured by what seems to be a value-for-money gift, they may be missing out on a truly rewarding magazine reading experience because of the crazy covermounting culture created by publishers.

There's definitely merit in the idea that a freebie might encourage a mag-stand browser to trial a title and return to it the next month because they enjoyed the content. But if magazines are to create the kind of genuine, meaningful relationships they pride themselves on (and sell themselves to advertisers and media buyers on), while staying true to the eco-friendly values they espouse, they need to allocate more time, effort and resources towards marketing themselves from the inside out, creating the kind of intimate, exciting, rewarding reading experiences that draw people to them every month, rather than cheapening themselves with pointless tip-ons. Covermounts need to become the icing-on-the-cake exception rather than the rule. But will mags be prepared to suffer overall circulation drops to correct the topsy-turvy tip-on craziness?

Yours truly,
Girl With a Satchel