Thursday, October 8, 2009

The Replacement


Little known fact: One of the first things I ever really, truly wanted to be was an interior designer. In middle school, I'd labour over Ikea and Pottery Barn catalogs and plan out my first house with a similar enthusiasm to the way some girls plan out their ideal wedding.

In my opinion, the best interior design magazine ever was Domino. Packed with inspirational photographs, they always had a knack for mixing trendy and classic pieces perfectly. Unfortunately, the publication became another devastating victim of the crumbling print industry.

Which is why the recently launched online publication Lonny will probably be the most exciting discovery for the entire month of October. The magazine was started by former Domino editor Michelle Adams and Patrick Cline. It has a similar aesthetic to Domino and features all the great design and fashion stuff you'd expect from their editors.

It's interesting to see a magazine in this format. Similar to the way Nylon stores their archives and some clothing companies load their catalogs online, Lonny is viewed just like a regular magazine--only it's completely digital. The pages are turnable, but also clickable. See something you like? Click on it and buy away.

Lonny makes me a little less worried about the future of the magazine industry, though I wonder if this format will take off. Will all magazines eventually become entirely digital?

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