I am the oldest living subscriber to Glamour magazine.
Our relationship started in my freshman year of college, when receiving mail was like winning the lottery. I renewed without hesitation year after year. Other magazines came and went. I had a fling with Parents magazine for a few years, until her expectations became too high and I just couldn’t measure up. Shape magazine promised me the moon, but didn’t deliver. Never one to be exclusive, I also enjoy other publications that fulfill me in ways that Glamour cannot. Entertainment Weekly is a no strings attached fling, and I’ve recently hooked up with Oxygen because I like her tough girl attitude.
But Glamour, I just can’t quit you. I’ve been tempted to stray, especially when I was propositioned by a new magazine. This one promised it was just for me, and that it knew what I wanted and needed.
Maybe I should act my age. While I’m still in Glamour’s target audience of women ages 18-49, what do I really have in common with a young woman only two years older than my own daughter?
My new suitor More, however, is a smooth talker. She says she’s for “women of style and substance.” My style is certainly no longer short shorts and bikinis, and in addition to having more substance in the tummy and derriere, I’d like to think I have more in the brain and heart too.
I took the plunge and subscribed to More. It was a bit awkward when both magazines arrived in my mailbox on the same day, but I kept them separated and spent equal time with each one.
More has its good points. I can begrudgingly relate to many of the articles, and I appreciate beauty advice that I can actually use. But while the articles may be meatier and more age appropriate, I just can’t get past some of the ads and the fashion. Perhaps I’m clinging to my youth, but isn’t age a state of mind? These ads aren’t helping:
Fortunately, I am not yet dealing with these issues, and these ads make me feel like I’m reading an AARP magazine. Which may be all well and good for Anita, age 66 (in the top right ad), but I am Dana, age closer-to-21-than-66. Barely, but still.
Beyond the ads, I miss the snark of my Glamour. Where are the memes that make me laugh? Where are the Do’s and Don’ts columns, complete with the black bar over the faces of the fashion Don’ts? I’m dating reading a magazine, not the Wall Street Journal. I want to be entertained!
It comes down to this: Do I want to be one of the oldest fish in the pond, or one of the youngest? I can skip over the dating/wedding/early career material in Glamour, or the retirement/hair regrowth material in More. Because on the pages in between, both magazines give me what I want and need.
So maybe I do want More, although I’m not quite ready to commit on a permanent basis. I’ll stick with my long time love, because I’m not old enough to give up Glamour.
I am going to look into getting a senior citizen subscription discount though.
Do you subscribe to More or Glamour? I’m still dating around, so if you have any magazine loves, please share!
Wow this has me thinking….. I understand your feelings totally. Truthfully I have always been more of a PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly gal 🙂 I do enjoy snarkiness.
I think it is the fashion part of Glamour that maybe leaning towards the college years demographics, but you are DEFINITELY not ready for AARP 🙂
Thank you for saying that, Jodi! I agree; the fashion part is usually not for me, but I do get ideas about trends that I can wear with some tweaking for age appropriateness.
The only magazine I subscribe to is Writer’s Digest. Perhaps this explains why I’m not the most fashionable mom at the PTA meetings. Stick with Glamour- I’ll need your help.
And I had the same problem with Parents magazine- she always made me feel guilty.
I say keep them both! I dont’ subscribe to magazines, but a few of my favorites are Better Homes and Gardens, Parents, and Good Housekeeping! I love reading magazines! I am lucky that someone from my job subscribes and when they finish, they pay it forward by leaving it in the break room for the rest of us to enjoy! No subscription needed!
This is a debate I just recently started on. I really want to subscribe to a magazine but I can’t decide what one is right for me. When I was younger Seventeen was my magazine. But now I realize that magazine is too young for me and I need to find something a bit older. However, I don’t want anything boring and devoid of fun. Its really hard to find the right fit. I would say stick to what you have found works. Screw how old you are, you are only as old as you feel!
Exactly! Give Glamour a try, and tell them I sent you 🙂
I don’t subscribe to either, but I do have a favorite, one that you tried but didn’t re-subscribe to: Shape magazine. I have been reading it for about 14 years, and I love it. I even had a letter to the editor published once. 🙂 More on that in a future blog post. I keep meaning to write about it because it was hilarious when it happened–I was so excited that the guy at the grocery store thought I was actually IN the magazine when what I meant was my letter was IN the magazine…anyhoo. Good to connect with you again, Dana. I hope I have more time to blog hop over the summer!
Hey Shay! I did like Shape, but when I had to cut subscriptions, I held onto Glamour instead. Now I read Oxygen for the strength training workouts, even though the rest of the magazine is a little too hard core for me. Can’t wait to hear your story – you always make me laugh!
Oh Dana, that is HILARIOUS that you still read Glamour!! Oh did I used to read that one ALL the time and of course I subscribed for YEARS!!! Where do you even find the TIME to read a magazine?
You are too freaking CUTE. NOW…
Next step?
WRITE FOR GLAMOUR MAGAZINE!!!
Yup.
GO FOR IT!
Then…
I will surely subscribe again.
🙂
Oh, if only I could…how awesome would that be?
haaHa.
Dana, as long as you like the magazine, it doesn’t matter a damn how old you are! Perhaps 80 year olds read it, too.
I only subscribe to Oprah Mag. It has everything I want: book reviews, fashion, Bren Brown, & good writing!
xx Happy Saturday.
You are right, Kim – if I like it, I’ll read it! And skip the old people advertisements.
I have gift subscriptions to People and Real Simple. I don’t always get to them on a timely basis so often have to binge read. I “cheat” on these subscriptions when I travel. I’ve tried all of them – including More – but just can’t commit to any others. Now if you were to start a magazine as has been suggested, I’d be on board immediately!
So you would be my third subscriber, Mo.:)
Dana, perhaps you’ve uncovered a hole in the overcrowded magazine market! Perhaps your calling is to start a magazine for women at the top half of the Glamour age spectrum/bottom half of the More spectrum and provide them with content that is both snarky AND relevant! You could totally do it.
I appreciate your confidence in me, Katie. I think I’ll stick to providing that content on my blog for now 🙂
Perhaps someone should start a magazine called 42. (Seventeen worked so well.) the ads could be about hair dyes and stray black hair growing like it was fed with miracle grow removal. Throw in some articles about raising teens and covering up the new wrinkles and one would have the perfect magazine. Get on it, would you?
Yes! I’ll get right on it after I pluck those grays and apply my anti-wrinkle cream.
First of all, I love this title because I was very intrigued to read and see if you really wanted More. Now I get it! I totally see what you mean though. Too bad they don’t have a magazine that is dedicated to women who are “in the middle” or middle-aged. Not that you are middle-aged, but you are closer to what most people believe this is rather than the oldest in More and the youngest in Glamour if this makes any sense. 🙂
Oh, I am technically middle-aged, Brittnei, but I appreciate your kind words. I don’t feel it though, and I certainly don’t feel like the target audience for the ads in More.
I haven’t read Glamour in years but clearly remembered the black bar over the Do’s and Don’ts when you mentioned that! As for other magazines. . . I often tell my dentist the only reason I like him is because I get to read People when I visit.
I read People at the dentist’s too, Lauren! That’s one magazine I’ve never subscribed to…hmmm.
Such a good point that we’re in that awkward middle time. Maybe that’s why blogs appeal so much!
Maybe you’re right, Nina. We can pick and choose what we read based on its relevance to us. Or sometimes its irrelevance – I love that about the blogging world.
Hmmmmm I think maybe you should start a magazine for us inbetweeners! I have not pick up a glamour in years. I am always reading my esthetic trade magazine so I can keep up with the new technology. I love Oxygen and Muscle and Fitness Hers! I have been lifting weights for years so those two have always been my staples!
I’m not a big weight lifter, but a few instructors at my gym recommended Oxygen for workout ideas. I bring the magazine into the gym and follow the routine if I can’t take a class – love it!
LOL at “spending equal time with each one.” This takes me back. I used to get Glamour and Cosmo. Now I get Bust and Parents and have a big stack of both I know I’ll never get to! Oh well. Does Modern Maturity still exist? I suppose I’m glad I don’t know the answer to that.
I don’t know either. Maybe More is the new Modern Maturity? If it is I need to cancel my subscription NOW>
I never end up reading my magazines when they arrive. However, you might have inspired me to delve into the stack sitting next to the couch tonight!
I flip through magazines when I’m eating by myself at home. It doesn’t require as much concentration as a book, and I don’t get sucked in. And they are perfect for the beach!
Hey at least it’s not “Seventeen” magazine! I used to subscribe to Oprah magazine. She has exceptional writers, but the ads took over and it was usually for a product I either couldn’t afford or was not interested in. So now it’s just quilting magazines!
I used to get Seventeen! Then I switched to Glamour when I aged out of it. And I refuse to age out of Glamour for at least another decade.
Oh I love magazines, but in terms of subscriptions, I am only receiving “O” at the moment. Depending on my mood, I’ll just pick whatever suits me at Target or Costco – sometimes that’s Women’s Health, Real Simple, a travel mag, Shape … I have not read Glamour though for years. I say stick with what brings you joy!
I agree with you Kerry. I’m still in the target age range, after all!
I used to subscribe to Marie Claire and gave it up because I got to old for it. I just can’t relate to the articles on what to wear for your first job interview. I do miss it, so hold on to Glamour for as long as you can. Fight the good fight!
I will, Carrie. Some of the articles are irrelevant to me, but there are still many that I read and enjoy. I will not go peacefully into old age!
Oh dear no. Those More ads just shut me down which I am quite sure was not their intention. Although on closer inspection perhaps that overactive bladder one is exactly targeted at shutting down … Hmmm.
I used to be a regular Real Simple Fan. However the huge difference between the American and Canadian dollar had me do a rethink at subscription time so I didn’t renew. Lately I just get my magazine fix when I fly. Bonus – my daughter picks up mags for her flights home so I can read those too!
I like Real Simple too, but I can’t get another subscription unless I give one up. Maybe I’ll let More lapse – but never Glamour!
You crack me up! Once you need reading glasses to read/date your magazine, then ads for bladder incontinence don’t seem so odd! Here’s hoping for a summer filled with enough time to read all the magazine’s we want!
Yes! We definitely have to hang out this summer, Laura. And bladder incontinence is much older sounding than reading glasses…
Nope I don’t subscribe to anything – never heard of More. I do like People but I never buy one. I am more likely to buy a Tech Magazine. Isn’t that nerdy? I don’t think age has anything to do with my choice on that one, I just like to read about technology and gadgets. 😉
You’ve never heard of More because you are not OLD. I’m insulted that I was solicited for it, but then I subscribed anyway. Duh. And a tech magazine may be slightly nerdy, but nerdy is cool.
I think it’s perfectly reasonable to two-time your magazines! I won’t tell them that you’re not being exclusive with either one. I go through phases myself – for a while I got tons of them including People, Glamour, Vogue, some techie Mac ones, um… thinking… anyway, I used to get a bunch. Then it seemed that I was no longer staying on top of them so I no longer subscribe to any but every time Angelina Jolie or Steve Jobs or somebody I like is on the cover of one at the grocery store, I buy it. I also refuse to buy them if there’s somebody I can’t stand on the cover like Miley or Stupid Jessica Simpson!
HaHa – I love this!! I never really got into Glamour – not sure why because I LOVE magazines. I know that it is cheaper to subscribe but I don’t subscribe to any these days – I just buy them when they catch my eye at the store (and sometimes I buy the same one 2x because I’m old and can’t remember!!).
I’ve always had a subscription to Country Living and always will. I occasionally make some of the recipes but that’s just about it. I think I love the magazine because it brings me to a place I want to be: living in the country making jam. Unfortunately I have to read about overactive bladders and butterflies in between all the good stuff.
I only have magazine subscriptions right now that were gifts, but I have always loved Glamour. I have loved it while also reading Cosmo, and even some of the sassier ones that pretended to be modern and feminist but had just as many, if not more, ads for youth and beauty.
Glamour always keeps it real.
I’ve always thought it was superior to the others.
Thank you for understanding, Tamara! I do love my Glamour. And as long as I keep paying they’ll keep sending it to me. Oh, that didn’t sound good, but you know what I mean.
You crack me up! Keep them both! I don’t subscribe to either. We get Inc and the Mac magazine, neither of which I read except occasionally. I can’t break up with them though, and my husband does read Inc. I bring them along when I travel and catch up on months at a time! Clearly I am not up on the fashion or beauty world!
I will keep both – sometimes I’m in the mood for a magazine instead of a book. I’ve tried to read them on my Nook, but there’s just somethings about flipping through the glossy pages that I love.
Totally made me laugh when you said you were dating your magazine. I used to love Lucky and In Style, but I just didn’t see to have enough time to read them anymore after I had the girls. I have been toying with getting one of the again, but also was wondering if I was too old now, especially for Lucky, but now you have me rethinking it again. And I also read Parents for awhile, but like you just couldn’t couldn’t keep up with that either.
I like Lucky too – you’re not too old for it! It’s a fun magazine and I like to keep up on the trends, even if I don’t (or can’t) wear all of them.
I love how you say you are dating a magazine, that made me chuckle. I don’t have any magazine subscriptions, haven’t had one since I got out of elementary school. It was a kid’s magazine distributed through the school itself but not actually made by the school.
I just haven’t found any magazines I would subscribe to. If I did it would probably be something along the lines of BHG or anything interior design related.
I subscribed to BHG for awhile, but that was just a phase. Glamour is the only one I’ve been loyal to, and I just can’t give it up!