Fashion magazines

   The first publication to feature fashion was France's Le Mercure Galant in 1678. Fashion illustrations, in the form of fashion plates, depicted the latest in fashion trends and listed suppliers' names. As interest in fashion steadily increased between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, other French, English, and German fashion publications emerged, such as Lady's Magazine, La Belle Assemblée, Godey's Lady's Book, Ackerman's Repository of the Arts, Le Cabinet des Modes, Le journal des dames et des modes, the Gallery of Fashion, Journal der Luxus und der Moden, the Englishwomen 's Domestic Magazine, the Queen, and Myra 's Journal of Dress and Fashion. By the mid nineteenth century, as literacy levels increased, more women bought magazines, as they now included information articles, poems, stories, and, on occasion, paper patterns. In 1867, Harper's Bazaar became the first fashion magazine to be printed in the United States, initially in newspaper format but, by 1901, as a monthly magazine. Vogue magazine followed, first as a weekly fashion publication and then as a monthly magazine in 1909. By 1913, archrivals Harper's Bazaar and Vogue began featuring fashion photography. Both magazines catered to an affluent reader and over the years launched numerous careers in the fashion industry, from illustrators, designers, models, and photographers to their own colorful and sometimes controversial, editors-in-chief. Carmel Snow, who began her career at Vogue, defected to Bazaar in 1934 and, as editor-in-chief, was credited with revolutionizing fashion magazines. She made stars of Parisian designers Cristobal Balenciaga, Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Yves Saint Laurent and fashion photographers Cecil Beaton, Edward Steichen, Louise Dahl-Wolfe, and Richard Avedon. She is also responsible for being the first to promote American designers. Vogue on the other hand, represented a more European high-fashion/high-society point of view. Vogue Paris, Vogue Italia, and Vogue United States are arguably the most influential magazines of the fashion world. As early as the 1930s, Vogue created the concept of the supermodel. In 1940, they began coverage of American designers. Famous Vogue editors, such as Diana Vreeland (1963-1971) and its current editor Anna Wintour, enjoy colorful, sometimes infamous reputations. Today, Condé Nast publishes sixteen editions of Vogue throughout the world with circulation figures estimated at more than 1.2 million. Harper's Bazaar, owned by the Hearst Corporation, is published in 18 countries with its circulation in the 750,000 range. Most magazines survive largely on advertising money and therefore it is not uncommon for the September issue of Vogue U.S. to contain more than 700 pages, mostly advertisements. Other magazines specializing in women's fashion include Glamour, Elle, Marie Claire, InStyle, and Cosmopolitan. Magazines for men include Gentlemen's Quarterly (GQ), Esquire, and Men's Vogue. Fashion magazines aimed at teenagers are Teen Vogue (U.S.), Vogue Girl (Australia), and Cosmo Girl (U.S.). Even babies have their own fashion magazines, such as Vogue Bambino (Italy). Today, fashion magazines are more than just aspirational trend sources for fashion and beauty; they provide thoughtful coverage of current social, economic, and health issues, travel information and other useful information for the modern working woman. Magazines such as Vogue and Harper's Bazaar are going beyond the printed pages, using their influence in a number of ways to help new designers get started, to promote health awareness, and to support philanthropic causes. Thanks to the Internet revolution, fashion magazines are offered online as e-zines.