Marie Claire (1-year auto-renewal)

This magazine has really grown on me of late, for a lot of reasons. Glamour and Cosmo don't appeal to me as much, partly due the the drop in their quality, and partly just due to the fact that I'm not in their target age group. Marie Claire has far more articles that are in line with my interests. They attempt to cover real issues that have an impact on women's lives. They are able to write stories about the status of women in the world (i.e. their Taliban articles) in a way that makes the information accessible without treating the reader like you are stupid and totally oversimplifying. I also like that not all the models look anorexic, and they don't inundate the reader with diet advice, or articles on sex and how to find/get/keep a man. This is still a light beach read compared to a hard new magazine, but it's far better than most other magazines in this genre.

I'm disappointed with the new direction that Marie Claire has taken. I remember reading this magazine just a few years ago, and it was full of fashion advice that I could actually use.

Not anymore. I suspect it's fashion director Nina Garcia's fault, but unless you are the kind of person who can drop $650 on a sweater or a couple thousand bucks on a dress, there isn't a whole lot in this magazine that you can use, nor is there very much that you would actually WANT to use. For example, my latest issue highlights floor-length tulle skirts paired with denim jackets. Where am I supposed to wear that? The "101 Ideas" section in the front is full of very pricey designer clothes; many items are so expensive that the caption simply reads, "Price Available on Request." Seriously, how useful is this for the majority of Marie Claire's readers? Marie Claire focuses on clothes you could probably never afford, with only a few "bargains" thrown in.

Marie Claire has turned into a snobby, useless imitation of Vogue/Elle. Its editors need to revisit the old axiom "know your audience." I will definitely not renew my subscription. If it had cost more than five bucks, I would be very angry that I had wasted my money.

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Whenever I'd finish reading a magazine like 'Cosmo', I'd feel guilty for indulging in a magazine so obsessed with sex. But whenever I'd finish 'Marie Claire', I felt like I'd read something with quality without loosing any of the fashion and beauty advice (and even a little dating) that I love. The articles range from lingerie to skin care to guns to third world countries. It's the one magazine I can always read cover to cover. I feel as though I've actually learned something about life in other places and at the same time learned how to apply eyeliner more easily. While some magazines pride themselves on featuring models who are (gasp) size 4, 'Marie Claire' shows women with real bodies (there was a woman who was size 20 and proud) which makes me want to appreciate my body that way. The bottom line is the magazine has class and intelligence and plenty of it. If you get this magazine, you're not only getting fashion, dating and beauty, you're also getting a magazine with mind, soul and heart. And isn't that what we're all looking for?

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Unlike Cosmo, Marie Claire is not only about how to please your manit's actually written for women. Of course magazines like these are not literary masterpieces, but that's not why we read them. Marie Claire is great for reading on a plane, bus, train or anywhere else when you want something light and entertaining. the fashion tips are fun to read, the love/relationship advice is really aimed towards women's problems. of course there's the obligatory human interest piece which often seems out of place among pages of expensive clothing and mascara tips, but overall this is a great magazine.

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I love fashion, so I have to keep up with my magazines. However, the last issue of Marie Claire was the bloody limit. The magazine has morphed into the classic trifecta of women's magazine articles: relationships, self-flagellation, and exposes/fear factor stories. Marie Claire ups the ante by having the hubris to declare social justice a topic (hence, this issues's three-page pictorial about rural Brazilian prostitutes). Don't forget aspirational articles about entitled multi-millionare businesswomen (look in their purses!), as well as a puzzling juxtaposition of articles about plastic surgery/eating disorders, etc. followed by an article on what 800-calorie diet is the next best thing, or the latest cosmetic surgery procedures that will change your life. Their nod to "real women" is a pictorial usually quizzing college students across the country "What is your best feature?" ...and you can hear and see how Jade from Ottumwa, Iowa, loves her freckles and perfect bicuspids. Fashion has taken a severe back seat, there are very few articles about the fashion industry or designers. The fashion pictorials are uninteresting and many are straight-from the runway shots haphazardly curated throughout the magazine. Slap a female celebrity on the cover, and you're good to go. A bubbling cauldron of self-loathing, greed, envy and aspirational desperation awaits youdig in!

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