| Product: |
Family Circle - Magazine |
| Date: |
10/01/03 (100 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: ..
Disadvantages: ..
Despite not have the requisite family or, for that matter, circle, I’ve been a reader of this magazine ever since I was a little girl and used to pinch it from the collection in my mother’s bedroom, sitting on her bed having my hair dried. I read the same issue week after week for ages, never tiring of it. Times changed, I had my hair cut short and stopped reading this magazine, but re-discovered it a decade or so later when I started uni and began to take annoyingly long train trips.
It’s called “Family Circle” but in my mind that “Family” could be replaced with “Mothers’”. I don’t mean this in a sexist way, but I do believe that no matter how many house husbands there are out there, this magazine is read by very few men. The first page of the issue in front of me (it’s an advert for L’Oreal Anti Aging cream) reinforces the idea that I’ve been hatching that I’m pretty far off their target audience. I’m not wrinkly, I can’t afford L’Oreal and I don’t have any kids. I’m nearer in age to the readers’ children than to the readers themselves, and yet top of the list of things I need my mum to bring to Rome for me is the latest issue.
The magazine is published monthly and costs about 1.85 GBP although occasionally they have cheaper special offer months. Each issue has the same basic structure but with different articles, offers and so on.
ooo YOUR HEALTH
A mixture of traditional and alternative approaches, this section has articles, problem pages and A-Zs on topics appropriate to both adult and child health. This is one of my favourite sections, not least because compared to the case studies presented, I’m remarkably healthy :-) It often includes summaries of latest studies too, a bonus since, apart from a moment of madness a few years ago, I don’t read the Lancet. My latest discovery? That you sho
uld put honey on cuts as it offers 4 times the antibacterial activity of normal antiseptics.
ooo YOUR FAMILY
A mixed bag of reader interviews (typical topic, a non alarmist “Why I love being an older mum”), debates (whether or not children should wear school uniform) and panel advice articles (an expert’s view on how to deal when your kids fall in with the “wrong crowd”)
ooo YOUR HOME
Another section I like, this has Changing room style makeovers, solutions to common problems e.g. how to fit in more storage space when you’ve no visible room for it, and the latest news from the world of home improvements.
ooo YOUR LOOKS
The only section I don’t love, I usually end up skipping 99% of this as it’s the one part I find totally irrelevant to me – beauty tips for middle aged skins, and the best clothes for toddlers don’t really apply.
ooo REAL FOOD
Another part I like, quite surprising considering the fact I won’t eat most of the dishes they offer. This is a pull out mini magazine with the emphasis on life savers for busy mums – quick meals that are nutritious, food that you can prepare in advance and freeze, but which also appeals to the little ones and so on. Each month they offer a guide to one specific food too, for example a look at the different types and shapes of pasta, and how each should be served.
As well as all these the magazine offers horoscopes, letters pages, travel guides, crosswords, film and book reviews and special reader offers, though I’ve never been tempted by their “super hard wearing multi purpose all weather garden furniture” and the like. Though there are a lot of adverts scattered among the pages, these are usually well placed – bacofoil in the food part, varnish in the home section – and so don’t seem as intrusive as in some other publicati
ons.
It’s an interesting, intelligent read and gives those 65p / week women’s mags a run for their money. Not only is this better written, but there’s less repetition since it’s only published once a month, and it works out cheaper. You’ve just missed one of the best freebies of the year, but look out next November for their free diaries – packed full of useful info, and cheaper than buying one from a shop, plus you get the magazine included in the price. Definitely worth a try.
Summary:
|
|
