Grand Designs... for whom? (Grand Designs Magazine)

Name: LadyAudley

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Product:	Grand Designs Magazine
Date:	09/01/08 (34 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: colourful, good coverage

Disadvantages: Jack of all trades

Grand Designs Magazine accompanies the Channel 4 TV series anchored by Kevin McCloud. However, the relationship between the two is loose and fluid. Inside, you'll find features on the houses shown on TV, but there's plenty of other content in here also: spotlights on new products, editorial and opinion pages, features on interesting architectural projects, and free handbooks giving advice and information on how to do up a kitchen or a bathroom. Every quarter, they send out a 'Self-build update' which is crammed with products that might interest enterprizing architects and enthusiastic DIYers. Though the whole thing is glossily illustrated throughout, this is more than just a 'Homes and Gardens' style lifestyle magazine - it's a guide to architecture and design, with an emphasis on sustainability and green living.

However, I do have reservations about this product. It's positioned awkwardly in the market, aiming to attract general readers, but having quite a specialist subject area. As a result, you tend to get articles that are a little wishy-washy. They provide some architectural detail, but not too much, some design principles, but nothing too challenging, a little bit of celebrity, but nothing too flashy. Personally, I wish they would drop the 'dumbed down' approach, and devote more serious time and space to heavyweight articles about design and architecture - a beefing up of the current features on architects to include more analysis of their aesthetic philosophy and position within wider design movements. As it stands, this mag is beaten hands down in the hipness stakes by Wallpaper, is thrashed by proper architectural journals when it comes to design features, and is trounced in the light and fluffy lifestyle stakes by a plethora of 'interiors' magazines (from Elle Interiors to Homes and Gardens). As far as the coverage fo the TV projects goes, it would be nice to see more technical information about them (how does that eco-friendly heating system work? How hard it is to install?), rather than gumph about the personalities involved.

The reason I am still a subscriber is that with Grand Designs you get some spectacular discounts, most notably 20% off at Habitat. Using this card over the past year has saved me hundreds and hundreds of pounds - far more than the £40 price of subscription. So ultimately, I'm still a happy bunny!

Summary: Worth buying for the bundled discounts!