Home and Interiors Magazines You Need To Know Now
Some of these you might know well, others will be a new experience – but I couldn’t have a home interiors blog without rounding up my Top 10 design reads (in English) for the sartorially-minded – plus a few more thrown in there for good measure!
While there’s a host of other magazines that also hold a special place in my heart (if you haven’t already checked out Adore Magazine, Elle Decoration, Belle, Real Living, House Beautiful, House & Garden, Inside Out, Marie Claire Maison or Lifestyle, Harper’s Bazaar Interiors, Country Living, Traditional Home, and that’s just scratching the surface! – you should) – sometimes it’s nice to step outside the accessible and dream a little.
The following listed are probably my Holy Grail and can always be found sprawled around the Kahli Jayne Designs office, for good reason.
Some are considered in the Top 10 around the world, others are a little more obscure and thought-provoking – most have a contemporary slant that’s always avant-guarde.
So without further adieu, and in no particular order…
Design Anthology
Design Anthology is just that – a curated dossier of day-in-the-life accounts and business reviews profiling Australia and New Zealand’s (but there’s also other editions) “creative communities” – think makers, artists, photographers, architects, industrial designers and stylists from around the globe, and the things they’re creating, doing or coveting. You not only get a glimpse into who to stalk more on Instagram, but where to find the wonderful (often local) artisanal things that make up their urban world – for this considered bowerbird, that’s simply magic! Bonus points for its clean branding that would look at home in any interior’s magazine rack.
Sanctuary
The home of modern green homes, Sanctuary is Australia’s premier magazine dedicated to sustainable house design. From small footprint, off-grid prefab and modular designs, right through to inner-city oases, Sanctuary profiles Australians pushing the boundaries in highly-efficient, resilient, sustainable, and safer home design that still maintains a sense of place – so don’t for a second think they compromise on aesthetic! While they’re not the only magazine providing floorplans, they’re one of the few that disclose total project costs – and in a world where budget dictates design choices, it’s a great resource demonstrating just how far your money can go, often proving sustainable design can be achieved on smaller budgets.
Home Style
Home Style is actually New Zealand-based, and there are two things that come from NZ that I love – wool, and environmentally-conscious designers – the by-product of which is organically minimalistic, timeless homes. Pared back, simple, geometric Nordic-style forms, it’s also not uncommon to see elements of contemporary cottage core on occasion. Needless to say, it’s always nice to see what’s happening across the ditch.
Houses
Houses is Australia-based featuring true blue homes – last issue I saw a house four blocks from us! So if you’re wanting to keep up with housing design trends in your neighbourhood (also complete with specs and floorplans), this one’s for you. Oh and don’t miss the annual HOUSE Awards issue – a must.
Artichoke
Endorsed as the magazine of the Design Institute of Australia, Artichoke pays homage to the national talent that often make up its membership, and is highly regarded and respected in interior architecture and design worlds. Published quarterly, it’s just as much for industry professionals (think design fairs and debates debunked), as it is for design-savvy consumers (floristry designer feature anyone?), and I’ve never once come away not feeling inspired by the creative excellence on display.
Vogue Living
Just like its sister fashion title, Vogue Living is a round-up of everything home and lifestyle a la mode. It’s not uncommon for the internationally-acclaimed to feature in its pages across every interior design genre imaginable. High-profile designer projects and exclusive celebrity home tours – yes please!
Habitus
I particularly love the Habitus ‘Portrait’ profiles of architects, interior designers, industrial designers and creatives to whom as they say, “we often find ourselves looking” – in their own words, they “curate the stories behind the stories”. Asia-Pacific based, it’s got all the ingredients of an in-situ interview alongside project spotlights from authentic, industry-leading visionaries – and if you get your hands on one of their special features (the Kitchen and Bathroom is a goodie) you’ll also be connected with the product and finish specs included in these masterpieces.
Domino
Domino is US-based and to be honest, not purely design-focused but more a mish-mash of all things lifestyle (fashion, travel and design). But man do they feature some fabulous locations and creative personalities worthy of design envy – and there’s a whole section dedicated to decorating: WIN. Note to all the achromatic colour scheme lovers though – probably don’t pick up this one. Same goes if you’re a minimalist at heart – eclectic, considered, maximalist spaces blending anything from Provincial, Modernist, Hamptons, Cottage Core, Art Deco, Scandi to Contemporary Farmhouse and more, is what you’ll find in these pages.
Dwell
US-based but certainly not location-specific, Dwell brings you into homes across the globe from suburban Melbourne to the Finnish woods, uptown Ontario to the Californian Sierras, and doesn’t discriminate by building type either. In any one issue you could be transported to a tiny home, prefab family construction, penthouse apartment, or even treehouse – we all like to “dwell” differently, and the pages of this magazine certainly celebrate that.
Frame
Frame is considered the world’s ‘barometer’ for design showing you what’s happening and where to find it through a blend of art, architecture and interiors – so while she’s listed last, she is certainly not least.
Wallpaper*
And look, this is cheating a little, but I couldn’t leave you without also mentioning Wallpaper* – you know it’s going to be good when it’s penned by the Architectural Digest, the longest standing architectural publication, which has grown to include nine international editions since it launched in 1920. So basically, you really do need to give it the respect it deserves, particularly if it’s described as “the global design authority”.
And on that note, I’ve also left off Coveted and Design Milk – I told you this was hard for me!
Don’t even get me started on blogs…