US versus UK: Magazine Covers, July 2011

Sorry this is so late in July! I always tell myself it needs to be done before the end of the first week of the month, but I failed this time. Enjoy the compiled covers!

1. VOGUE

Vogue US: The associate publisher of the magazine I'm interning at has a subscription to Vogue, and when he brought this Emma Watson issue in, we both spent a good amount of time admiring how FANTASTIC Emma Watson looks. We gushed, looked through the editorial, and pretty much concurred that we love her and this cover. She honestly is a model, isn't she? There are so many different textures and complementing colors. It's just so bright and vibrant!

Vogue UK: Also a very bright cover with lots of texture. However, I'm just never a fan of a straight-forward face for a cover, unless there is something extraordinary with the wardrobe, make-up, or hair. I still love the colors- bright gold, for summer. 

WINNER: Vogue US. Emma looks incredibly beautiful. Everything about it is just stunning!

2. COSMOPOLITAN

Cosmopolitan US: Is anyone else kind of over the red hair? I thought it was a really great temporary thing for Rihanna to do, but I'm not sure about it now... But regardless, she is a bombshell. For me, this cover might be too dominant of red, purples and pinks. It sticks entirely to that side of the color wheel-- and also reminds of 80s/90s Barbie sets for some reason. And yes, I've seen Rihanna in ethnic fashion a hundred times now. 

Cosmopolitan UK: Oh, here we go. Look familiar? It's Cosmopolitan US's cover from last month except with different background and text colors.

WINNER: Like always, I'm never a fan of a reprint. Who is? By default, Cosmo US wins, though I don't love either of them.

3. GQ

GQ US: Like I said in my super-special GQ post, GQ recently won SPD's Magazine of the Year award, and I mentioned how I now have very high expectations for them. Now, though it's nothing ground-breaking, this is a really solid, clean, classic cover. Even his outfit is so simplistically sleek. It's all American color-coordinated and what not with it being July (Independence day, of course), and him being "Captain America". It's just perfect without being in your face AMERICA! You know what I mean?

GQ UK: Apparently Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is the new hottest thing on the face of the planet, so British GQ took that perspective of her and ran with it. This is a very sexual cover- but from their past issues I can sense that's what they're good at and comfortable doing. I mean, the angle of the photo, the silk dress in between the thighs, where the eye immediately goes.. Personally, I prefer the Rosie from the Fall 2008 Burberry ads-- with the beautiful black and white, moody photographs. It may not have been "sexy", but they were (and she was) just beautiful.

WINNER: Both of these covers, I think, are extremely successful. Design-wise, how eye-catching they are, two beautiful people... I mean, how vibrant are these photos? I can't decide! I suppose I'll go with GQ UK- it's just more dynamic, angular, and intriguing I guess I should say. It isn't the magazine "norm" by any means.

4. GLAMOUR

Glamour US: It's really really hard to make Blake Lively look bad EVER. So why do I get the feeling that she has been photoshopped or altered in same way? Not even her body, but her face. It looks like unnatural and plastic... and maybe it's the make-up, but her eyes seem really small. Then you look at her legs and forget all about it... because I want legs like that. 

Glamour UK: Oh Adele, it's about time they put you on a women's fashion magazine cover! She's covered Rolling Stone, Billboard Magazine, Q Magazine, and other music periodicals (as she rightly should), but she is a talented musician and a powerful woman, not to mention ridiculously popular and well-known. A lot of women probably want to read about her and get to known the woman behind that powerhouse voice! No one cares that she isn't a size 2, put that woman on more goddamn covers!

WINNER: Anyway, back to the actual magazines. Glamour US takes it again. The fonts, the colors, the vibrancy- it all just works. Glamour UK is, much like Cosmo US, too dominant in the pink color palette for my taste. And I think some more playful fonts could take it up a level!

5. INSTYLE

InStyle US: What. Is. Up. With. Eva's. Face. Can we discuss this please? She looks old... the cheekbones, the mouth... it's just not natural. And who did her hair? There is nothing desirable about that! And the Easter colors with the rainbow "SUMMER!"? What a crash and burn cover for me.

InStyle UK: Huge Daisy Lowe fan. I love her personal style and especially her HAIR. She has this rocker chick hair cut and just rocks those bangs better than ANYONE. I think this is a great cover-- the bright gold is very summer, and complements her red dress and lipstick very well. It's just pleasant to look at, you know? Unlike another cover I could mention... It's bright, fun, minimalistic, and I would grab it in an instant! 

WINNER: InStyle UK. Is this even a question? Just look at them side by side.

6. ELLE

Elle US: Don't you just kind of want to be best friends with Emma Stone? I do. She's gorgeous, hilarious, talented, and has an emerging sense of style. When I look at this cover it just exudes warmth. Perhaps it's the beach background (right?), the bright sunshine dress combined with her golden hair, but it's just lovely. So summer and so friendly! 

Elle UK: Here's Rosie again, in a very differently-styled shoot, going more into the high fashion route. Still playing on her sex appeal (with the no undershirt thing), but is still classy. I don't know about you, but I feel like this look has been done a lot, especially for magazine covers. Maybe I'm imagining it, but the blazer + cleavage thing is getting a little old for me. Still, it's sexy in a menswear way, and the peachy tones are lovely.

WINNER: Elle US for me. I just get this happy vibe when I look at it, and surprisingly Elle UK has a lot of text just floating around, all over Rosie... I keep wanting to just brush it off of her. 

7. ESQUIRE

Esquire US: Apparently, Esquire did a June/July cover last month... so no new cover for us. I didn't realize magazines could do that, and I'm surprised Esquire did, considering their readership must be very high and people expect a new mag each month. But I suppose they are busy preparing for spring. Here is their cover last month. Yup, still that horrid Bradley Cooper one.

Esquire UK: Here we go, delving deeper into the Esquire UK redesign. Just like they promised, it's brighter, more sleek, and action-packed. I think they are doing well so far, though I'll need to do a Barnes & Noble run soon and actually flip through it myself. I'm enjoying that low opacity orange circle, arrows, (mankles?) and the speech box. Little icons like that make it more fun, I think.

WINNER: Even if this wasn't by default, Esquire UK would still win if stacked up against US's June cover. For obvious reasons. 

8. HARPER'S BAZAAR

Harper's Bazaar US: Why are all these US covers taking a summer break while the UK ones are not? Is there something I'm missing? Here's a look back at the June/July Britney Spears cover.

Harper's Bazaar UK: Lovely cover, as usual. Harper's Bazaar UK just knows their stuff, they are very impressive. Month after month, beautiful covers are produced with amazing photography and minimal text, which is just the best. I love the striped hat, kohl-rimmed eyes, and sunshine just peeping through.

WINNER: UK, of course. 

9. MARIE CLAIRE

Marie Claire US: I've noticed Marie Claire is very good at keeping cover looks simple and classic. I think it really appeals to the MC demographic and will appeal to more people. On that note, Jennifer Aniston is doing the whole blazer with no undershirt (à la Rosie, three magazines up), or pants for that matter! But I think it's a great look for her since she looks amazing at her age, and the whole look just seems playful and fun. As always, love the fonts and the orange accent color.

Marie Claire UK: Check out last month's cover again. I mentioned how the Olivia Palermo cover had a weird dull quality to it, and I thought it was because the background was grey. But look! It's back again. It's like a strange photo filter was used on it, perhaps to make it look more vintage-y? Jennifer Lawrence looks great, but there MC goes again, cutting off the top of the head an uncomfortable amount...

WINNER: Marie Claire US. It's clean and classic, while the UK one seems muddled down in comparison.

Final score for this month of July:

US: 5

UK: 4

Another close one, but the US inched forward this time, despite the no-shows of Esquire and Harper's Bazaar. 

And here is my personal favorite for the month, plus the full editorial!

Yup, it's America's, Britain's, Hollywood's... um, basically the World's favorite Harry Potter/new fashionista favorite, Emma Watson. It would be a sin if I didn't chose this as my favorite! It's stunning. 

Which one is your favorite?