Reviews For Marie Claire Magazine

Marie Clare is my favorite woman's magazine on the market today. It even surpasses the love I hold for my beloved Cosmopolitan.

Marie Clare focuses its readership towards intelligent, humanitarian, beauty-conscious women (yes, women can be all three!). A typical month's article listing may include the horrors of female genital mutilation, what your significant other loves most about your body, a day-in-the-life of Russian Mary Kay saleswomen, and how one woman got off of welfare.

I bypass the fashion pages (luckily, there aren't many of them) because they do not interest me. I have no desire to learn how to wear a tangerine-colored cashmere tank top with a strategically wrapped watermelon-colored pashmina around my shoulders. But tell me which AHAs work best on my skin or which black eyeliner has the creamiest texture for a soft, subtle look and you've got my attention.

My attention is held for hours each month with the myriad array of humanistic articles. Yes, Marie Clare has too much of a feminist/liberal slant for some people's tastes. If you generally hate the vacuousness of most fashion magazines and crave something with intelligent, thought-provoking articles on humanistic subjects then I urge you to check out Marie Clare.

It's the best of both worlds--the girly stuff like makeup and clothes, and the woman stuff like making the world around us a better place.


Recommended:
Yes

This is another rag in the "shameless indulgence" category -- like all women's magazines, Marie Claire is a lot of fashion, sex, random horniness, horoscopes and make-up. Which is fine, since they don't do a bad job of any of these -- unlike competitors with glaring flaws in some areas. That they can spread out so thinly and still come out even says a lot.

Added bonus: nine times out of ten, it is worth buying Marie Claire because there is invariably some sort of give-away -- assuming you've gone grocery shopping early on enough in the month, and can mail in the little coupon on time, there is some sort of beauty-oriented freebie, usually quite generous. All the mindless fun of a woman's mag and then some.

To its credit, MC seems to go out of its way to not be 100 per cent fluff; most issues will have a reasonably lengthy article of some political significance. These are usually neither left nor right but just faintly feminist; female genital mutilation how-you-can-help essays are a standard. Another round of applause for Marie Claire, please.

This is, of course, only after you've suffered through yet another article on the trauma of bulimia (anorexia, depression, alcoholism, post-partum depression; name your female-friendly ill). It remains a girly mag, but at least unashamedly so. The clothing and articles aren't vulgar like Vogue, its editorial content/cohesiveness is on the upswing rather than the down (qv Glamour), and it manages to find that little niche between the man-hungry college party girl and the staid, settled Ladies' Home Journal reader. (I like LHJ, really, but there are only so many cooky recipes one needs...)


Recommended:
Yes

I didn't purchase this magazine becuase I had wanted to, I was in my dorm and someone asked me to help them with their trip to Cancun. I had never really heard of it and it was pretty cheap for a years subscription. After more then two years I have become a regular subscriber. I enjoy reading all the articles. I love reading about what fashions are in and the various knockoffs you can get off of the original. At the same time there are great articles on the various lifestyles of all women. Even though I am in college I feel that there is a place for me in this magazine as much as for people that are well into the older ages.

I can't say that Marie Claire is like any other magazine. It is a great blend of fashion, stories that reach women, advertisements and a sense that is a forum for all women. Most magazines geared towards women are skewed to just interesting stories about family or exotic fashion. marie Claire is a well rounded magazine for the woman that wants to be knowledgeable about all types of things going on in her world.

My favorite article was one that focused on Sara Jessica Parker in Sex and the City. In this article they talked to her about men and how to get them. Instead of just asking her they had her take a few women out and show them how they can land a guy. If any of you saw the third to the last Sex and the City you have an idea of what I am talking about (there is a scene where she takes what is left of her class and has them learn by doing to get a guy). It was great to see that this show months later incorporated this into their story line. This is my favorite article because not only did we hear from her but we heard the backgrounds of "real women" and how they felt after being with her for a night.

If you like Marie Claire you will always have a subscription to it because I literally can not put it down. It is also a magazine that I rarely skip over pages. I do not think that there is any other magazine like Marie Claire out there. If you want something that has a lot of quizzes and takes a lot of focus on the issues of men and women and the performance with them, read Cosmo. It is one of my favorites.


Recommended:
Yes

From the outside, it looks like a close Cosmo imitation with it's bright monochrome backgrounds and beautiful women on each cover. But inside, it's a shrewd smart publication that presents a fun and intelligent alternative to other women's mags on the market.

The articles are a mix of fashion, human interest and social issues, Hollywood profiles...The fashion pages are a relief in comparison to other women's mags as the clothes shown here are actually within readers' price ranges and all kinds of combinations, that real people might wear, are clearly laid out with a blend of the latest hemlines and styles for readers to draw from. The human interest and social issue stories can sometimes be a bit heavy but they are a thought-provoking change from most of the drivel masquerading as articles in many women's mags. If you like horoscopes, these are more in-depth and interesting than most magazines. I think horoscopes are silly but that didn't stop me from getting a kick out of these. The celebrity profiles depend on the celebrity...Charlizse Theron is featured on and in the January 2000 issue making profound comments like "I was an astronaut for a day..."

Aside from the occasionally silly celebrity profile, the only duds are Marie Claire's yearly insistence on "guest editor" issues where an actress supposedly heads up an issue. This has produced features like Susan Sarandon's [the 1998 guest editor] venturing out into New York City to dare men to do silly things and Demi Moore's insipid account of how challenged she was being head of the magazine for a day. Who cares.

So skip the guest editor issue and buy all the rest!


Recommended:
Yes

Good-bye, Cosmopolitan. We had a great relationship, but at thirty, I'm just too old to be a Cosmo girl now. Time to move on.

I have been a subscriber to Marie Claire since its debut, but I used to just skim through it, think that it was alright, and then recycle it. When I was placed on bedrest for a difficult pregnancy last November, I was bored out of my mind. I was sick to death of television, and began to read anything and everything I could get my hands on.

Marie Claire is now one of my favorite magazines, and I can honestly say that I now read it cover-to-cover. For starters, it's not an insult to its readers' intelligence. It doesn't contain those ridiculous and most-likely fabricated letters that are supposedly sent by readers looking for advice on love and sex. It contains real stories for and about real women. Sure, it does contain occasional articles about sex, but they're well-written and aren't silly "fluff" pieces like the ones you find in Cosmopolitan and Mademoiselle magazines. You also won't find any teenybopper quizzes in Marie Claire, so if you want to find out if the man of your dreams loves you by answering questions about what he's wearing, how he styles his hair, or how often he calls you...you'd better stick with Cosmo.

My favorite sections are CHALLENGE and FIRST PERSON. Each month, Marie Claire "challenges" a woman that we know from the entertainment industry. For example, Ashley Judd wanted to join the Peace Corps when she was younger, so Marie Claire signed her up for it. Ashley then wrote about her experience. Last month, Brooke Shields wrote about her assignment. She spent 3 days in the Arctic, and wrote about what it was like to have to build an igloo to stay in, eat caribou meat, and what the days and nights are like in 35-degree-below-zero temperatures.

FIRST PERSON contains interesting and informative stories told by everyday women that readers can relate to. For example, one woman wrote about the controversial issue of freezing her eggs for future use. She was 33 years old and single, and although she wants a child, she wants to wait until she has met the "right" man to be a father. The stories in FIRST PERSON are great, regardless of whether or not you share the same beliefs as these women.

If you're looking for a magazine that's both interesting and informative without insulting your intelligence, give Marie Claire a chance. I'm sure glad I did.


Recommended:
Yes

Most of my magazines are of the parenting variety being that I am a mom of 2 young children. My splurge is on Marie Claire though. I really enjoy disappearing for an hour or so and pouring through this magazine!

The thing I like most is that they have very interesting articles! Each month they have a celebrity on the cover and she is also featured in a story. It is never just any old story though, no bio that you have heard a thousand times! It is often a story about something quite unique. For instance one issue featured Brooke Shields and the article was about her spending several days in the arctic. This was cool to read about how she braved the elements and what she did while she was there! A different look at the celebrities we usually see all dolled up and perfect!

They also feature articles that I find quite relevant and interesting to today's woman. There are stories about women's rights in countries all over the world, pro life vs pro choice, women fighting for their causes, etc.

There is also fashion. Not only do they show you what the stars are wearing but also where you can buy similar things at prices that fit your pocketbook! That is nice! I always hated looking through fashion magazines and only seeing clothing for several hundred or thousands of dollars! Not realistic in my world!

They have fun articles too. They will do things like have a really conservative woman spend a day with a really wild woman. Have her dress her, take her to the places she hangs out, meet her friends, etc. Then the other does the same. It is fun to read how they each fare in each other's worlds.

I would highly recommend checking this magazine out for women's fashion, interesting, timely articles and lots of fun too!


Recommended:
Yes

This magazine I read all the time.
It is always the magazine of my choice.
This magazine has everything you need to know to feel beautiful. you willa lso learn a lot just by reading it. I love the horoscopes in the back, and of course i love the fashion and the sex secrets.
There is nothing that you can not find in this magazine. I have read a lot of magazines, at home, in the doctors office, my mothers home, or at the store flipping through the pages, and it seems to me as if this magazine is addicting. You always want to read more and more. Even when this magazine is out of date I still like to go back and flip through the pages just to read it all over again.


Recommended:
Yes

I am a magazine fanatic and I got hooked on this magazine a few years ago. It has it all; fashion, beauty advice, celebrity interviews and even vouchers in every issue for free beauty products! My favorite thing about this magazine is how they take a celebrity and put her in an unusual situation to see what happens. For example, there was the blind date with Julia Roberts, Brooks Shields' arctic adventure and Ashley Judd spent some time in a third world country. I love these articles because they show celebrities in a different light than we are used to seeing them in and it makes them all more "human".

The free beauty product offers are great. And these are for high dollar, department store brands not my usual drug store makeup! It also has a section which I love called 101 Ideas which gives you 101 ideas on how to mix and match items in your closet to maximize your wardrobe.

The photography is excellent and the articles and not only fun to read but informative and useful. I highly recommend this magazine to all women!


Recommended:
Yes

Almost all women's magazines are about sex, beauty, and insider secrets, but Marie Claire is one notch above the others. Not that Marie doesn't share in her portion of know-it-all answers to curing every problem in your life (including, but not limited to, the Ultimate Sex Life), but the gag reflex strengthens when Marie is more willing to speak out on topics more meaningful than finding the crease of your eye. I was particularly won-over when I read the issue featuring Demi Moore as guest editor (and kudos on THAT decision because it allowed Demi to flaunt her mind); imagine a whole article on intuition and a workshop that helps women develop this inner-laden talent. *gasp!* Fab-U! And a first-time guide to palm reading (which fascinated me to no end). I highly recommend checking out Marie and finding not only what you'd find in every other women's magazine, but also a positive attitude and a finely picked writing staff.


Recommended:
Yes

Marie Claire is a woman's magazine with TRUE style. They cover everything from Politics to Lipsticks. I consider MC to be my favourite magazine next to Cosmo and they are polar opposites as far as women's magazines are concerned.

MC will often cover important issues such as self-esteem, STD's, Women's Rights. They usually cover 2 serious topics and each article will last serveral pages. They are, dare i say, BOLD enough to cover issues, that are hard to stomach at best, attrocities against women in our land and foreign lands, that some people may never know about, and certainly not in the depth told in these articles.

Then they usually have an article about women's perception of self. That is rare for a womens magazine for the obvious reasons of needing to sell poor self-image in order to sell products advertised between the pages. Past articles i remember are men drawing their womans' bodies and them women drawing their own so much bigger. They usually write articles in a very non judgemental way and that is important in relation to sense of self, b/c a lot of women are extrememly judgemental of their bodies. They also feature women of different body types throughout the magazine, and we know how rare this is.

Then they fill the rest of the pages with a variety of fashion and makeup and hair. That is also done very tastefully, sometimes too tastefully if you ask me (like boring), but i love it nonetheless. Their 101 section of clothing showcases 101 pieces of clothing on friendly looking models and there's usually a couple of things i really like, i would say the fashions are geared for the mid20's to early 40's in a range of prices.

The hair and make up are slightly conservative, the layouts are very nice and well constructed.

They do have a really good freebie everyweek. I remember when they had the calvin klein contradiction body wash scrub, and i bought 3 more after my subscription and took the coupons to the department stores around NYC. Awesome. It was last year and i still have one left.

They also feature a contest every week that is affiliated with a charity and they often have other ways to raise money inside the magazine and this is a really nice feature, b/c i think it gives the magazine a certain reality that we are still living on planet earth, and that not everyone is worried about the size of their pores right now b/c they have other problems.

This is a great magazine. Even my hippie girlfriend who always complains that i subscribe to too many horrible disgusting girly mags has nothing to say about this one.

Great articles, great insight into womens esteem, interesting political articles, forward thinking, and of course how to wear your hair, keep your pores small while having good sex. What more could you ask for.


Recommended:
Yes