Style Before Social Media: Fifteen Fashion and Beauty Magazines from 1985 - 2005
Transformational Beauty
By the 1980s to the early 2000s, beauty magazines were already a hot commodity for young women. These magazines were teaching young women the information they needed to enhance their natural beauty. The magazines that have been curated have a focus on beauty trends, tips, and information around body transformation. Each magazine carries informative editorials and features discussing the power of confidence, finding your unique style, latest beauty trends, and wellness.
Attitude and DIVA emphasized more entertainment aspects within their magazines. These magazines featured popular celebrities with features about their understanding of beauty and personal style but also discuss societal issues of the time. Attitude magazine was intended for a younger female audience by sharing advice columns, teen interviews, and pop culture trends. DIVA magazine puts more emphasis on high-class fashion and beauty but also discusses the latest trends in interior design and travel destinations. NewBeauty shares more of a focus on the beauty industry, cosmetic procedures, trends in beauty technology, health, wellness, and other medical information concerning women’s health. Articles written by medical professionals are peer-reviewed and fact-checked before being published in an upcoming issue for tranparency and honesty.
All three issues mentioned in this section are premier issues. There is not much information to backup what happened to Attitude and DIVA magazine; however, NewBeauty magazine is still popular among young women, and has received attention from renowned news publications, media outlets, and more.
ATTITUDE. Volume 1, Issue 1: Spring 1987
ATTITUDE Vol. 1, Issue 1 (Spring 1987)
Attitude magazine is a New York-based teen magazine focusing on fashion, beauty, music, and fun. The magazine aims to empower women through articles that focus on gaining confidence, discovering their unique style, and reclaiming power through individual beauty and style. Pilot Communications of New York, publisher of popular music magazines such as Stars Hits and Metallix, printed out a single issue of Attitude magazine in 1988 without any marketing or promotion. Publisher Felix Dennis told the Los Angeles Times that the first issue did not incur any losses, and he planned to produce another issue later that year.
This issue delves into teen culture, discussing different topics about nightclubbing to budget-friendly swimwear, to interviews with teen heartthrobs. There has not been much information found about this magazine since. This could be the only issue ever published during this time. Cover: Cheryl Pollak.
DIVA, premier issue cover
DIVA Premier Issue (February 1988)
DIVA is an Austrian fashion magazine that focuses on high-class trends, products, and services for readers who have a passion for living an extraordinary lifestyle. The fashion and editorial that are published in DIVA are exclusively produced by big fashion capitals like Paris, Milan, Berlin, and New York in cooperation with top photographers, makeup stylists, and fashion stylists. Top designers and labels are seen as more appealing to the readers because of how eyecatching the finished editorials look.
This magazine features renowned photographers, authors, and experts from the art and fashion scene in every issue, which adds to the workload for the editors. In order to do it justice to the high demands and ever-evolving trend landscape, it is done on time. DIVA also reports on contemporary design, fine jewelry, and travel destination ideas.
New Beauty Magazine: The Ultimate Cosmetic Enhancement Guide premier issue cover
New Beauty: The Ultimate Cosmetic Guide Premier Issue (Winter-Spring, 2005)
NewBeauty Magazine was founded by Adam I. Sandow in 2005. NewBeauty presents itself as the definitive authority on beauty, health, and fitness. The magazine intends to educate consumers with in-depth insights on the latest products, cutting-edge innovations, and breakthrough technologies. The content takes a deeper look into the beauty industry, empowering its audience with extensive information to help others make the best decisions for themselves.
NewBeauty asserts that it carries the most reliable information for all beauty concerns by professionals who are certified and experienced in their specified field (hair stylists, makeup artists, plastic surgeons, dermatologists, and more). As stated on NewBeauty’s website, “We make sure the doctors quoted and highlighted in our magazine and online are board-certified, practicing within scope, and reputable and ethical. All NewBeauty medical professionals are peer-reviewed and vetted to ensure their training and qualifications are valid” (NewBeauty, n.d.). The NewBeauty subscription is sent out quarterly; however, the website updates its information content regularly.