The (skinny) Domino Lady has sung

Things do feel like they are crumbling down just a little bit.  So the fat lady has sung for Domino and I'm wondering what to think.  Am I mad or glad or sad?

I have a love hate relationship with Domino and all those gorgeous magazines.  Of course there is the obvious.  I love the feel of my fingers on those glossy images. Part of me wonders how i will survive in dentists's waiting rooms (did I mention I had five cavities?  Don't be like me:  floss.) But another part of me  is sick of paying 4 bucks for an arm-full of advertisements where airbrushed creatures who no longer look human sell products I neither need nor want in exchange for the token article that is beautifully written, styled or  photographed.   The system is broken.  Magazines in order to get subscriptions have no choice but to take as little risks as possible so they can appeal to the widest audience.

And then there is the low and petty part of me who likes to see the establishment bleed just a little.  Do you know how near impossible it is for a writer to get an article published in a magazines? But the point is that--besides talent-- it takes a huge measure of luck and shmoozing for a writer to get articles in. Sure most of us don't get paid to write on our blogs, but at least we now have a voice.  No glamorous editor decides if we are worthy of publication. We are published every time we hit the publish button, yes we are.  

In the end reporting might become more a niche thing.  People might come to this blog for white floors, pink and ruffles, and go to another blog for animal prints, art deco or zen style.  

Blogs might not define trends like magazines do now.  the fading away of  magazines might allow for each of us not to be defined only by what magazines decide is acceptable, in, or cool in terms of decor, writing, opinion, body image or clothing style.  Let's not forget that the media is in the hands of a very few, and is focused almost exclusively on the bottom line. Whereas blogs are cheap to make and to run.  Bogs are out of anyone's control but their creators.  Blogs are disobedient, unrestrained and uncensored like little children let loose on the play yard.  How can this not be good? Maybe we're on a path to greater freedom. Maybe this is the dawn of an era when become less manipulated, less treated and behaving like sheeps.

Ah the loss of jobs you say, and that is true.  There will be the blow to the printing and paper industry, but I think that talented designers, writers, models, decorators, or photographers will go on to thrive elsewhere, in another medium. A medium where there might be less editors, publishers and rain makers perhaps. What is that medium?  Not sure.  I hope Obama can figure that one out for me.

It's the end of an era and the beginning of something else.. but what. What do you think?

Comments

[Stefanie]

Nothing beats though snuggling up on the couch with one of my favorite magazines. So many magazines are biting the dust, it is really an end of an era, one that I am not ready to let go of!

[Cat]

I am incredibly sad that print mags will be NO LONGER. Domino was going way down hill but what is left??? I am not gonna curl up in bed, at the beach, in the car, on vacation, anywhere with my computer! or Kindle for my books. I do not want to search all over the web for inspiration and op ed pieces and good short stories etc. even though I do not necessarily like the stuff in every issue. I go back and look at old issues of mags. I understand the frustration and bias of editors etc but give me something I can hold in my hands and savor or throw away.

[So Lovely]

It is sad but I feel that Domino was becoming slightly elitist. I think the next one to go is Metropolitan Home. It has the feeling that "no-one's home" anymore - just going thru the motions.

And at the end, editors and writers were relying on bloggers to hip them to the groovy places, trends etc. in their blogging cities. And as you say, bloggers were and are doing it for free!

[Cat]

AND I forgot:
This is TRUE! All over the net today. Conde made the announcement. BUT WHY do they not post the folding info right on their site??? I was there late in the day and nothing! And why can one STILL SUBSCRIBE to the magazine? And why do they not post refund info or alternatives. Conde did the same thing with House and Garden and I had just sent in my money for new sunscription and CLEARLY they knew they were closeing down. I am sick of being ripped off by Conde. And NO, I do not want Lucky mag!

[La Belette Rouge]

I am sad to see Domino go. I think my sadness has an undertone of fear. Yet, like you, I do believe the end of something is the beginning of something else. Since I started blogging I rarely read a magazine other than Vanity Fair or the New Yorker. I hope those magazines stick around. I would hate to see them go even if they won't publish anything of mine.;-)

[betsy]

I think it's very hard to see so many places/things disappear. I do agree that it is the beginning of something because that is what every ending is. What that something is, I don't know. But it sure does feel like the playing field is being leveled and that is a good thing. I love going into the blog world to find inspiration but I also love the smell and feel of magazine paper. I love the feel of a book in my hands. It will be a very sad comment on who we have become if everything becomes electronic. I will come undone if Vanity Fair goes, too.

[Lynne]

I liked Domino but actually I think there wasn't much content. Maybe in recent months this was because of ad downturn, but in the UK Living Etc is much thicker - although am getting bored with it too, even thought of cancelling my subscription for the first time in about 7 years! There are much more creative ideas on the internet.

[anrosh]

oh ! the media driven hype of a perfect house .

wabi sabi is the way to go
- beauty in imperfection. .
a book by robyn lawrence makes a good read. -i heard of this term when you first posted on your blog and went looking for what it actually means.

[karina]

I think it is sad.
I agree with you in some points but I truly love mags,as much as I hate photoshop excess and I think that domino is kaput is bad news.

[Isabelle]

OMG I thought Domino Pizza was going bankrupt, you scared me for a minute...
I am kidding. I do still love magasines and I cannot relie on something happening on my computer because there is always something wrong with it and when my computer is down I feel shut out of the world and isolated. I just want both, magazines and blogs, is that too much to ask?

[Irene]

I missed Domino when it seased its publication in Greece. It was the only Greek magazine I bought every month. (Which makes me the owner of collector's issues, I suppose). I could not subscribe to the American issue, because the site kept redirecting me to the Grek one, and the American wasn't available at the international newsagents' even when I ordered it. Funny publishers.
In a sense I agree with what you wrote. Blogging is far more democratic and I've seen many trends for real people emerging out of the blogging world. And of those trends I believe many were initiated by Domino. That does not necessarily mean that I want magazines to close. I like leafing through the printed paper, be it newspaper, paperback, or magazine (coffee table issues are harder to navigate).
So where does that leave us? I am inclined to look for less publicised issues, magazines i hd never bought before, eventhouh they may be more expensive over the pond.
Why not? Let's give a magasine we can't read a chance.
(I so much appreciate your stopping by and commenting on Taki. Thank you).

[Cat]

I forgot: House Beautiful is still around! And I like it, they have become much less high designer oriented. Here is what I read in the NY Times. Advertising down more then 50% at these mags b/c the companies that advertise are losing so much money and shutting down right and left. Notice how skinny these mags are getting? The last thing anyone buys when the economy is so terrible is home stuff and furniture/lighting/rugs etc suffering the most. HOWEVER, I wld be DELIGHTED if "to the trade" went public!

[Di Overton]

Yo make me howl (in a laughing way). Well those editors didn't know what they were missing. I would print your stuff in a flash.
Sell a magazine for $1 (which was their latest offer) then lose your advertisers 'cos there's a recession and you are f**c*d.
Actually you can still subscribe on their website which seems a little suspect.

[muralimanohar]

I just posted a comment about this very topic over on M21. While I am sad to see Domino go, truth is, I very rarely buy magazines anymore. I have, in general, found them to have become stale. By the time the magazine go to print, all of their content has already been blog fodder for months. I am already saturated.

If magazines want to continue and survive in this changing world, they are going to have to adapt. They have to give us something that we can't get elsewhere. It's up to them to step up to the plate and deliver.

[Tara]

I definitely agree with you about the "fewer risks". Yesterday I was pondering that my go-to design/lifestyle magazine was originally Budget Living, which was quirky and felt relevant to my life. Then Budget Living folded, but Blueprint started around that time and even hired some former BL staff. Blueprint was a little more mainstream, but still an interesting mix of information and it had the occasional affordable item. Then Blueprint folded. So I turned to Domino, which was fun to look at but *barely* relevant to my actual life. And now.... Here we are.

[alis]

Now, I do not like the content of Domino, and they send me the magazine pretty inconsistently, and they took the liberty of renewing my subscription without asking me(why, if they're closing?!) so I regret subscribing, but I understand it must be sad to see a favorite mag go down. Just like books are never the same when reading from the screen, magazines would never feel the same without those glossy pages. I used to buy 5-6 magazines a month before blogs, now I buy only 2, and although I am very satisfied by reading my favorite blogs, I would be very upset if I didn't have those two magazines every month!

[Natalie]

I am a little sad that Domino has folded - I really enjoyed the Editor's cravings pages, and the Domino book will remain a firm favourite for a while (the cover is pretty gorgeous), but the last few issues seemed heavy on advertising, light on articles ( but at least they didn't head down the 4 page constipation / pms / pmt advertising route as other US home mags have). There are a couple of lovely home titles still surviving quite well here in Australia (I hope), Real Living http://realliving.ninemsn.com.au/, and http://www.insideout.com.au/. Fingers crossed....

[nikki Hardin]

Domino was cute and it's sad it's gone, but even sadder is that magazines are disappearing at an alarming rate. A computer, Kindle or blog will never take the place of the printed page for me. I love getting on a plane and pulling Vanity Fair out of my bag or coming home to find New York or More in my mailbox, or going to Barnes and Noble for Elle Decor UK or Vogue Living Australia. Big sad sigh here.