Magazine article - 1st draft

 This is my first draft for my magazine article.

Spruce up your style: Tips from the hottest teen icon!

Lately, I’ve been seeing many people my age dress tastelessly. Like what are you trying to do? I’ve even heard many fuss about not having the budget to dress up well, be for real. This one’s for the guys and gals who don’t even know the concept of styling clothes. It's the 20th century, let's step up your game.

Okay, let's begin with the basics. First of all, fair advice, ditch the tight jeans. Tight jeans tend to have the effect of making everyone look uh… a little bit older. We don’t want that, do we? Exactly. As the great Oscar de la Renta once said, "Being well dressed hasn't much to do with having good clothes. It’s a question of good balance and good common sense.". Now, when teens think about fashion, they often tend to think that colors are the most important element of their outfit. I’m here to tell you that shouldn’t be your priority when you’re putting together a look. The real game-changer is the silhouette of your attire.

What do I mean by the silhouette of an outfit? The overall shape of your outfit will help to determine whether it is flattering or not. A flattering outfit aims to emphasize the best qualities of your body instead of hiding it. For instance, a corset could help to give your waist a slimmer look if that's what you are looking for. Varying shapes in the silhouette of your outfit will help your look more interesting. Many individuals nowadays pair small tops and oversized bottoms or vice versa. This allows for more dramatic silhouettes, creating a more intriguing look. If used correctly, shapes and silhouettes can draw the attention of people to where you want them to see.

Even so, I’d like to mention that even if it isn’t the most important aspect of an outfit, choosing the right colors for your clothes still needs to be considered. Although the choice of color itself is subjective, it is important to remember that not too many varying colors should be used in one outfit. If you do so, it might cause your outfit to look cluttered, messy, and distracting. The easy way to make sure you don’t use too many colors is to stick to using 3 at most. 

You might still want to know what types of colors you should pair up in an outfit, right? A general rule of thumb is that when you’re in doubt, try to stick to monochromes. Since monochromes are the same colors in varying values, this means that it would be hard for the outfit’s colors to clash with each other. Even if this approach is safer, this doesn’t make for a very interesting looking outfit and might even look quite plain. We don’t want that, do we?

Now, let's take it to the next level.You probably want a look that tells people “I’m here”. Well, if you’ve dipped your toes in a little bit of color theory then this should be fairly simple for you! Although it may feel risky, using contrasting colors that are opposite from each other will make your outfit pop out more. Besides that, it also helps to separate the different parts and layers of your clothes, subconsciously drawing people’s attention immediately. 

Well, now that we’ve finished talking about the slightly tedious process of color picking, let's get to the fun part! Although your outfit might look well…good enough for now, we can’t forget to put the cherry on top. What is it? What could possibly make this outfit look better? There’s one last step to this styling situation, let’s adorn you with accessories! 

The power of accessories must not be underestimated as it may literally make or break your entire look. When I say accessories, I’m not just talking about jewelry, I’m talking about accessories that will subtly change the appearance of your regular outfit like fashionable belts, stylish scarves and dashing bags. Still, like all things, it's crucial to remember that you must use them in moderation, don’t go out looking like a Christmas tree! Accessories are important because even if they might not be expensive, they have the power to transform your basic, average clothes into those that might even be worn by celebrities! 

Where to buy them? I’m glad you asked! I personally purchase my accessories from Shein and Shopee but most online stores usually have great prices. If you want to learn more about how to approach the world of accessories, I’ll be releasing another article soon! Until next time, XOXO.

Reflection:

This article was slightly challenging to write. I couldn't find and examples that fit what I wanted to convey however I wanted to make it seem more entertaining and interactive for teenagers like me. The writer of this article is also a teenager (celebrity) who has an attitude, I believe that is important for the article to have some form of "personality" so that is could be relatable to teenagers like me. I am trying to evoke a sense of "sisterhood" and a form of intimacy. Unfortunately, during my research I couldn't find any magazine article examples that fit this type of writing. Even so, I am conforming to the usual conventions of teen-fashion magazines by talking about fashion tips. Another usual convention of teen-fashion are discussions about gossip, meaning that informal text should be "in-theme". Although I believe that the concept of this article is already good and solid, I think it still needs a little bit of retouching and changes. 

Technical Skills (Online)

Here are some technical skills I have acquired during this project.

I have learned how to use CamScanner to take better quality pictures of my magazine pages.

This application is fairly simple to use and here are the steps:

1. Take a picture using the app.

2. Make sure that the borders of the page(s) are lined up so the image quality is better.

3. Choose a filter (I default to the filter “Lighten”).

4. Get the finished product!

Without CamScanner:

After CamScanner:

Chat GPT:

I have used the Chat GPT tool in order to generate some ideas for this project (Disclaimer: I only used it for pointers and tips, not directly copy pasting from it!). Here are the steps for how I did it.

1. Open the Chat GPT website (https://chat.openai.com/)

2. Type what you are trying to find in the text box.

3. The A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) should generate an answer for you.

Canva:

I used canva to make my entire magazine! Here is what I learnt to do throughout the process of using it:

How to set up margins and columns?

Open the page you want to use!

Click onto file, view settings and then add guides.

Choose the option to customize the guides.

Next, click out of that view and drag the margin from the top of the screen.

And you’re done!

But if you want to be extra safe there’s one more step and that is to lock the margins and guides so they won’t move around!

Reflection:

Making this technical skills post was great as I got to track the progress of how I navigated through the different obstacles to achieve the best results for my project’s blogger posts. I think that reflecting on how I solved the problems and putting a step-by-step will also help me just in case I forget how to do certain things in the future.

Terminology

Here is the list of terminology that I have learned and understood in the course of the project period.

Masthead	The name of the magazine, in its typical font, on the cover.
Selling line	The short description of the ‘identity’ of the magazine under the masthead,
Main image	The image which fills the cover – a model, celebrity, animal, artefact.
Coverlines	‘Teasers’ for the contents of the magazine on the cover.
Typography/font	The shape, style, size and colour of the letters used.
Drop cap	The enlarged initial letter of the first word of an article – an aesthetic feature which is designed to engage the reader.
Pull quotes	Enlarged quotes from an article – these may be included in coverlines, but are also used in the body of the article to break up the page and to attract the attention of the reader.
Byline	The name of the writer of the article, usually found at the beginning. Simply, it is the ‘line’ which tells you who the article is by.
Main cover line	The most important article featured, grabs the audience’s attention (featured article)
Mode of address	The way the magazine/article addresses the audience. Formal, casual, direct (for images too)
Barcode	Used for retailers
Skyline	A list of keywords featured at the top of the cover
Thirds	The upper and left third are the most important. why?
Prop	An image of an item
Puff / Boxout	A smaller image/text to stand out from the rest of the information (puff=circle. boxout=square)
Buzzwords	Exclusive, free, new, special edition
Banner	A block of colour with info inside, usually stretches the width of the cover
Caption	Information about an image.
Spread	Pages of a magazine that should be viewed together (usually two)
Border	Empty space around the edges
White space	Empty space in the spread, used to break up the content (negative space)

Reflection: 

The terminology was quite a hefty load to learn and understanding the terms took quite a while. It was especially difficult to understand the difference between typeface and font because I always thought that they meant the same thing. After it finally clicked however, it was much easier to do my research as I was able to refer to specific elements of the magazine by their respective names. Learning the terminology definitely helped made me more knowledgeable about magazines and will continue to help me with my magazine creating process.

Inital Double Page Spread: Research + Development

This is my inital research and development of double page spreads for my magazine project. The research is not completely genre accurate as I still was pinning down what I wanted to do.

Before Reading
Magazine:	Dior
Issue:	Date of Issue/ Issue No.: 40 Andalusian Grace
Publisher:	Olivier Bialobos
Genre:	Does it fit into a sub genre? Fashion
Images:	How many images? What are the images of? There are 15 images on this double page spread, 14 coming from the collage. The images are almost all centralized around the models themselves, all wearing the signature look, California couture. On the first page, the image was shot using an extreme long shot, allowing all the models to be visible, along with the background. The image itself is very creatively composed, featuring a solid color background, similar like the usual, however it also shows a playful peak into the californian sky that is full of palm trees, contrasting the bland vibe of a photoshoot studio.
Layout	What is the layout like? Is it heavy or light on text? Where are the page numbers? Does it have lots of negative space? Does it have a drop cap? As the pages are mostly image-dominant, they aren’t too heavy on text. The text is on the bottom fifth of the page which implies that the main focus should be on the images. The page number is very small but is placed on the bottom right of the second page. There is very minimum negative space as the page is filled with images, the negative space is filled with the text. Subverting the usual fashion magazine convention, there are strangely no drop-caps on these two pages.
First impressions:	I think that the page itself is very colorful and eye-catching. I like how the page is centered around a singular color, blue. The blue itself is saturated enough to grab the attention of the reader but it doesn’t cause any eye strain. I like the use of the collage on the second page and how the images “pop out” of the image box. However, I slightly dislike the image on the first page as it seems quite boring. I would’ve personally enjoyed it if it was also a collage as the image seems a bit underwhelming after the amazing display on the second page. The placing of the text itself is very pleasing as the images dominate most of the pages. This allows the reader to not be overwhelmed by huge chunks of text.
After Reading
Heading:	California Couture
Subheading:	For his Dior Spring 2023 Men’s show, Kim Jones brought his silhouettes from Paris to Los Angeles. The singular energy of this extraordinary location, caressed by the ocean and steeped in boundless creativity, gave Dior style an irresistibly Californian allure.
Author:	Is there a byline? Is a photographer mentioned No.
Article:	What is the article about? What is the message? The article discusses the articles of clothes worn by the models in the images. The text uses a large array of adjectives to describe how iconic the pieces are. This text doesn’t have a particular message however it does seem to imply that the readers should be impressed with the fashionable accessories and clothing that are being displayed.
Mode of address:	Does it address the audience directly (you, your etc). Is the writing style formal/informal, friendly/serious. The text does not address the audience, its purpose is only to explain the intention of each accessory or clothing. The text is written in a formal writing style.
Pull Quote:	Does it include a pull quote? What does it say? Why has it been used? It does not.
Audience:	Who is the audience for this magazine? How were they targeted? The audience for this magazine are most likely those who are passionate about fashion. This is because in the text, there are many terminologies that may only be understood by those who have advanced understanding of how clothing materials work. Many of the descriptions of the materials and clothing also seem to have underlying connotations which the text explains in detail. This further supports the idea that this text is targeted towards fashion enthusiasts as they are most likely to care about the meaning of fashion.
Impression:	What did you think of the article? Was it fun, interesting, boring? Why? Personally, I think the article was not very interesting to read and is definitely not engaging. However, this is justified as the purpose of this article is to inform about the clothes designer’s choices.
Inspiration:	What did you learn? How can you apply it to your own magazine design? I would really love to apply the collage technique to my magazine’s double page spread. I would like to display my images in this manner as it looks quite “messy” and “incomplete” which I think seems to capture the teenage vibes perfectly.

Before Reading
Magazine:	TeenVogue
Issue:	Date of Issue/ Issue No.: January 2016
Publisher:	Condé Nast
Genre:	Does it fit into a sub genre? Fashion Sub genre: Teen-Fashion
Images:	How many images? What are the images of? There is only 1 image in this double page spread. The image is of a female subject with pink hair. The image is taken with a long shot angle, displaying the background environment which the subject is in. This background almost contrasts the subject as the subject is captured in a seemingly cuter, bubbly vibe while the background shows a more “boring” view of the environment.
Layout	What is the layout like? Is it heavy or light on text? Where are the page numbers? Does it have lots of negative space? Does it have a drop cap? The page is mostly filled with the 1 image, allowing some limited space for text. It is quite heavy on text, the writing seems cramped, it almost seems like the text is being forced into the page. No page numbers are visible and the double page spread has very little negative space. There is a drop cap for the letter “I” at the start of the article.
First impressions:	At first glance, I immediately feel a bit overwhelmed with the amount of text on the page. The small font of the text also adds the feeling of tediousness while looking at the page. I definitely feel like reading the text would be more of a chore. However, the image used is very attractive as it is quite high in contrast. The colorful but not eye straining nature of the image is very pleasing to look at and definitely saves this double page spread. I especially adore the use of harsh lighting and shadows in the image.
After Reading
Heading:	No heading.
Subheading:	No subheading.
Author:	Is there a byline? Is a photographer mentioned No.
Article:	What is the article about? What is the message? This article talks about the rise in fame of the model Fernanda Ly in the world of fashion. She grabbed the attention of many people due to her uncommon pink hair as well as her quirky style. Due to this rise in fame, she started to work with famous figures, eventually receiving many opportunities to work with reputable brands such as Louis Vuitton. This article doesn’t have a particular message however, it is more of a personal anecdote from Fernanda Ly which may inspire others who are aspiring to be models too.
Mode of address:	Does it address the audience directly (you, your etc). Is the writing style formal/informal, friendly/serious. The text does not address the audience, as this article mostly shares Fernanda Ly’s personal story, only referring to herself. The writing style is seemingly semi-formal.
Pull Quote:	Does it include a pull quote? What does it say? Why has it been used? It does not.
Audience:	Who is the audience for this magazine? How were they targeted? As mentioned earlier, this article may inspire aspiring models. This most likely implies that the target audience is those who are looking to be models. This is supported by the fact that the article contains many of Fernanda Ly’s personal experiences, showing a more in depth perspective of how she became successful. This may be interesting to those who are looking to start their modeling careers as they may find tips helpful.
Impression:	What did you think of the article? Was it fun, interesting, boring? Why? The article was definitely a lot for me to read and was almost overwhelming. This was mostly because the article was laid out very poorly and didn’t really engage the readers in any interesting way. The text was also quite small, making me strain a bit to read it..
Inspiration:	What did you learn? How can you apply it to your own magazine design? I learned that I should never put too much text on the double page spread as it may cause the reader’s interest to drop drastically. Some negative space should be also present so the reader doesn’t feel like they are drowning in text and content.

Reflection: 

This double page spread research definitely drained a lot of my time and energy since I had to constantly force myself to read the articles. It was quite a tedious process especially since one of the double page articles had a very chunky, small font article which was not engaging and very hard to read. However, I knew that it was crucial to do the research as I needed to know what I should have in my article as well as what would kill the audience’s interest. Ultimately, I found out that in my article I must interact with the audience and avoid using too much formal language as my main target audience is teenagers. I think I’ll have a lot of fun writing my magazine article.