Levi KeswickIn an era where the “digital” has taken over the “physical”, the simple pleasure of holding the latest issue of your favorite design magazine in your hands, slowly opening it for the first time to unravel the glossy pages filled with visual inspiration and value-rich content, is still unbeatable. For sure, the web has become our primary and daily source of information. This doesn’t mean the print is dead.
High-quality design magazines that still publish their issues in print versions don’t seem to be losing the interest of their readers. Right on the contrary! Such design magazines strive to offer more and more quality content in order to keep their audience inspired, entertained, and informed.
What Is a Magazines For Designers?
Designers should be inspired by what we see around us. We need to understand the present by analyzing the past and applying all we have learned from it. The present becomes exciting because of what it’s leading towards, so we need to keep our eyes on what’s happening around us. Moreover, designers should constantly be in a search for inspiration by exploring different dimensions and fields.
Design magazines are the most efficient way to do this. A wide variety of design magazines are available for the readers—there’s one for everyone.
What Do Design Magazines Offer?
Every designer is guided by a set of values, principles, and a vision of what the world needs. Magazines serve as guides in the uncharted territory of the design process, when you need different points of view and new perspectives. Design magazines are a source of inspiration for designers interested in experimenting. They give designers new tools to see projects differently, which is directly connected to their ultimate goal—to make the world a better place by providing people with something that brings them joy and makes their lives easier.
What To Look For In the Best Designers Magazine?
1. The best design magazines contain fresh ideas that will inspire and motivate you.
The world is changing fast, and this changes our attitudes and preferences. The designers are the ones who make the world a better place. Their design is improving the way we live every day and is bringing joy to the people. Thus they make our lives easier and make us want to live in a better world.
Design magazines are one of the sources of inspiration for designers as they contain fresh ideas of how the world can be made better through better design. They can influence the designers to think differently and see things differently. The best magazines include a platform for new insights and ideas from the world of design, which the readers engage in and learn.
2. The best magazines are a place for valuable content.
Readers of digital platforms can access design magazines on any device and scroll through the content quickly. The value of one online page is less than the value of a printed page. Design magazines should aim to ensure that the printed page is of more value and delivers a higher quality experience.
3. The best magazines are immersive worlds where you have a chance to really dive in.
A good design magazine isn’t a simple collage of visual designs, but rather it’s a place to get lost in and have a moment of seclusion.
4. The best magazines are a source of diverse perspectives.
Design is all about communication. Communication is a dialog through language, gestures, and images. Design magazines need to offer increased possibilities for a dialogue between content and its creator, for a dialogue between the ideas explored by different authors.
5. The best design magazines have a clear direction.
The art of creating a quality design magazine is all about knowing your audience. Designers are a part of a greater community. Design magazines need to know its customers and their interests. It’s very important to direct the experience of the special niche audience of a design magazine towards a specific direction. Thus, the magazine will become a special experience for the audience.
6. The best design magazines are a window into the vast community of design.
Good design magazines serve multiple audiences and can identify with specific genres and forms of artistic expression.
7. The best design magazines have a strong point of view.
The audience can connect to a magazine that stands for something. Every magazine needs to have a unique point of view and it needs to stand for something and present a fresh angle for the viewer.
8. The best magazines are for serious design thinkers.
A quality design magazine should be a serious design publication, considering the history of the whole design discipline, reporting on current trends, and exploring the future of design.
9. The best design magazines look amazing.
A great design magazine isn’t just about the words and images, but about the overall experience from page to page—the interaction and experience.
10. The best design magazines explore the depths of the design process.
Good magazines go beyond. They dig deeper, they don’t just satisfy people’s passing interests, but they explore the depths of every subject.
A good design magazine shares stories that provoke and inspire. Good magazines encourage people to rethink their pre-conceived notions and challenge boundaries.
12. The best design magazines are about people.
A good design magazine is one that shares stories, quotes, and visuals that connect people to their world and experiences.
13. The best design magazines are personal.
Every genuine magazine has its own style. A magazine should have a style and vision, it should be passionate and creative. The magazine needs to be personal and real.
14. The best design magazines look like they have a soul.
A great design magazine isn’t just about graphic design and illustration, it’s about writing and ideas. It’s a place where editors don’t just edit and design but they add their voice to the magazine.
15. The best design magazines aren’t afraid to take risks.
Magazine editors are in a constant search for new topics, ways to present content, and fresh perspectives. A good design magazine overwhelms the reader with the amount of content and all the possibilities it can offer.
Design + Decor
This product was recommended by Lisa Davenport from LDD Interiors
Design + Decor Magazine is a marketing partner for luxury designers who are savvy promoters. Each issue is filled with quality stories, the magazine is regional with a national feel each article is presented well by writers that spend the time to dial in on the heart of the story. Probably one of the most appealing elements of the magazine is it remains small and doesn’t fill the book with so many ads the editorial becomes lost, readers want to learn about the luxury estates, not read ads. Not to mention the presentation of the magazine itself is a high quality, glossy book that is available on line and through large books stores such as Barnes and Noble
Net Magazine
This product was recommended by Jase Rodley from JaseRodley
Net is a fantastic resource for web designers and developers. It includes tutorials in multiple languages for those just starting out, but can also be helpful if you want a quick way of implementing something efficiently. It also includes what the latest web trends are, allowing you to keep up with what’s going on and what you should add to your sites to get more views. A lot of people may overlook it, either because they believe it is too basic for them or too advanced for what they’re looking for, but both sides are wrong. Using this magazine can be a fantastic way to learn what to change to further your advanced sites as well as being the perfect starting point for aspiring web developers.’
Wallpaper
This product was recommended by Melanie Musson from QuoteInspector
This magazine covers a variety of design specialties. It’s one place where you can not only keep abreast of design trends in your area of expertise but also be inspired by design ideas in completely different subjects. They highlight different cultures, innovations, and stories from around the world that will push you to create outside your box.
Disegno Daily
This product was recommended by Joe Flanagan from 90s Fashion World
It’s a quarterly design magazine from the UK. It features fashion, architecture and graphic design so it covers all the bases. The layout tends to be quite innovative, fun and unique. If you are tired of seeing the same old layout, this is definitely for you!
