Chromat, Issues 1, 2 and 3
By Becca McCharren (and Emily Kappes)
I found this little full-colour zine by searching for “fashion” in the zine section of Etsy. Not a whole lot came up. But this little gem was one of the few. CHROMAT zine #1: what is chromat gives you the introduction of the fashion line Chromat. Its’ two designers, Emily Kappes and Becca McCharen, met in architecture school and now make wonderfully interesting and beautiful clothing out of “raw materials salvaged from local thrift stores, friends, relatives.” They also work on garments by mailing them back and fourth, since one lives in Lynchburg , VA and the other in Portland , OR
Becca McCharen puts together the ¼ sized full-colour zines of each collection with photography by Kim Raff, Ashley Florence and the duckduck collective. The currently available collection zines are Fall 2008, which features denim, stripes and plaid, Spring 2009 which has many florals, and Fall 2009, titled “Cities and Cages”. The zines give a bit of a background of the concept for each collection, followed by photos of the finished pieces. My personal favourite was the floral Spring 2009, since I loved the cute girly-with-an-edge dresses. Oh, and the zines only cost $1. So check them out!
The zines can be purchased at: etsy.com/shop/chromat
For more information about Chromat you can visit: chromatgarments.com
Some of their garments are available here (search for Chromat): internationalplayground.com
Erick and Laura-Marie Magazine #45
By Laura-Marie
I always enjoy Laura-Marie's zines. They are neatly put together and full of non-fiction prose, poetry and reviews of books and zines Laura-Marie has read. I usually highlight a few things of interest in each zine to check out later. It was through this issue that I found out about We Make Zines! J
By Laura-Marie
I always enjoy Laura-Marie's zines. They are neatly put together and full of non-fiction prose, poetry and reviews of books and zines Laura-Marie has read. I usually highlight a few things of interest in each zine to check out later. It was through this issue that I found out about We Make Zines! J
Email: robotmad@gmail.com
Erick and Laura-Marie Magazine #47
Another great issue by Laura-Marie. She is definitely one of the most prolific zine makers out there today and I am happy to be on her mailing list. This issue is quarter-sized and 32 pages. She talks about quitting Facebook and she also writes a lot about her years as a musician. As usual there are also interesting book and zine reviews. I also liked the part about her cat’s recent names…since I tend to do that with my cat…
An excerpt from this zine is included on the next few pages.
Email: robotmad@gmail.com
Fact or Fiction #2
By Amanda and Janell
I find this zine really fun. There are several little stories in here. They are grouped together in fives and you have to guess which are fact and which are fiction. At the end of each group of five, the truth is revealed. The true stories come from the writers’ own experiences and news stories. This is the second issue I have read and look forward to more.
Contacts: Amanda, wtpp@hotmail.com, wtpp.etsy.com
Janell, me@janell.tk, www.janell.tk
The Heart Cave
By Dennis Pomales
The Heart Cave is an art zine of illustrations. I found out about this zine through the “Science Fiction, Fantasy and Comic Book Zines” group at We Make Zines. It is a 20 page ¼ sized zine full of illustrations of weird creatures. It’s the kind of zine you can flip through once and then go back and revisit later for another interesting viewing.
Web: www.minotaurelab.com
Narcolepsy Press Review #4
Written and published by Randy Robbins, with Wormless Comics by Tanner Robbins.
I enjoyed this perzine where Randy writes about his stay in the hospital and then reviews many books and zines he has read. I thought it was a well written, easy to enjoy zine. I found a few zines in the review section that I'd like to check out.
I enjoyed this perzine where Randy writes about his stay in the hospital and then reviews many books and zines he has read. I thought it was a well written, easy to enjoy zine. I found a few zines in the review section that I'd like to check out.
Email: narcolepsypresszine@hotmail.com
Narcolepsy Press Review #5
This issue of Narcolepsy Press Review features an extensive letters section. Randy receives a lot of fan mail! The second half of the zine is dedicated to zine reviews and there are also some comics by Tabitha Robbins and Tanner Robbins. Narcolepsy Press Review is a good place to find out about new and interesting zines.
Email: narcolepsypresszine@hotmail.com
One Year of Love
By Star Blanket River
This is a cute little zine about Star Blanket River Child’s kitten named Kama . It tells the story of how she came about adopting Kama and their first year together. It is quarter sized with eight pages and has full colour photographs of the cute kitty.
Email: starblanketriverchild@live.ca
Potential Mode, Number One
By Jeremy Scott Nichols
Potential Mode is a comic litzine by the talented Jeremy Scott Nichols. The zine is “an anthology of various works”. Every few pages we are introduced to a new and equally engaging story, mostly with a science fiction theme. Presumably the stories will continue on through the next issues, which should make for a new and exciting zine series.
Email: potentialmode@live.com
Silly Little Song, Issue 6: “Dedicated Follower of Boys Fashion 2”
By Ariko Kitsu
Ariko Kitsu runs the Etsy store INOMI, which is where I found her extremely cute zine Silly Little Song. I traded for issue 6, which is all about boys’ fashions. Each two page spread has a male character with his chosen style and illustrations of key pieces in his wardrobe, including his accessories. This zine is so sweet it’ll give you cavities. I have chosen to reprint Ira’s “Vintage Marine” two page spread. Other issues of Silly Little Song include titles such as: Jump Boys featuring illustrations of boys skateboarding, Last Night which is about a detective, and Tonight is Party which is about a teenager’s party.
Ariko also makes cute little crafty items, such as silhouetted animal felt pins (which I couldn’t resist ordering two of, one is a fox, one a squirrel!). There are also adorable little change purses I am very tempted to purchase.
Etsy: etsy.com/shop/INOMI
She also has a blog here: silly-little-song.blogspot.com
And her webpage is adorable as well: pureandeasy.michikusa.jp
Violet, premiere issue
By Andreanne Gervais
This is a classic little perzine from a Canadian girl named Andreanne. It is quarter sized with a pastel pink cover and inside there is a perfect mix of cute illustrations, cut and paste art, non-fiction writing about her trip to Paris, about her cats, a check-list of non-toxic plants for pets, some recipes and a bit about African Violets. It is a sweet little perzine and I hope there will be more issues.
This is a classic little perzine from a Canadian girl named Andreanne. It is quarter sized with a pastel pink cover and inside there is a perfect mix of cute illustrations, cut and paste art, non-fiction writing about her trip to Paris, about her cats, a check-list of non-toxic plants for pets, some recipes and a bit about African Violets. It is a sweet little perzine and I hope there will be more issues.
Email: punkolique@hotmail.com
What Did You Buy Today? volumes 20 and 26
By Kate Bingaman-Burt
These are cute little 1/4 sized zines I found on Etsy. Kate draws a little picture and writes a few sentences about an item she buys, on a daily basis. I thought it was a very interesting idea for a perzine - it is a quick little peek into Kate's life.
By Kate Bingaman-Burt
These are cute little 1/4 sized zines I found on Etsy. Kate draws a little picture and writes a few sentences about an item she buys, on a daily basis. I thought it was a very interesting idea for a perzine - it is a quick little peek into Kate's life.
Website: obsessiveconsumption.com
Worn, Issue Nine
Worn is a fashion (maga)zine full of interesting and intelligent articles. It is one of those publications that feels like it falls somewhere in-between bookstore magazines and the world of zines. I enjoyed the fashiony articles that kicked off the issue about denim menders Kill Devil Hill and Everything I Know About Fashion (I Learned from my Mother). Some of the more in-depth articles about Valentina, beauty in World War II and the keffiyeah seemed to drag on for a bit. However, the interview with fashion collectors Jonathan Walford and Kenn Norman was entertaining and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about Marchesa Luisa Casati and the article about “the gender-fication of pink and blue”. There are two fashion spreads, “FutureNow” and “Nancy Drew and the High Park Hideout” which was quite cute and features the blonde, brunette and red head trio I loved reading about in grade school.
The zine comes to a close with a back cover of street style snap shots by Vanessa Jackman and a letter from the editor Serah-Marie McMahon telling the back story of the hard work and efforts that get put into making this stand-out fashion zine. This is the kind of fashion (maga)zine for people who love clothes for their personal aesthetics, stories and history, not for people searching for the next season’s trend in the glossy pages of overpriced advertisement booklets.
This zine can be purchased at: etsy.com/shop/theHouseOfWorn
Young Adventurer’s Guide to Inanimate Creatures
By Awkward Stage/Alana
I thoroughly enjoyed these cleverly funny little zines. Young Adventurer’s Guide to Inanimate Creatures is a series of three mini zines by Awkward Stage/Alana. One is about the payphone, one about plastic bags and one about shopping carts. The mini zines consist of text and a few little illustrations. They are written as if the inanimate object is a living creature as seen in this introduction of the Shopping Cart:
Email: awkwardstage@hotmail.com
Etsy: awkwardstage.etsy.com
You’re an angel, You li’l Devil, Issue 4
This is a little quarter-sized zine with 40pages chock full of devil girl artwork and photos. Randy Robbins of Narcolepsy Press Review puts together this zine because of his fascination with devil girls. He includes all the pictures he finds and also has contributors specifically drawing devil girls for his zine. I liked browsing through the pages even if I’m not a huge devil girl fan. The favourites included the devil girls by Sam Kostka and the back cover artwork by J. Sumii.
Email: narcolepsypresszine@hotmail.com
Erick and Laura-Marie Magazine #47
Another great issue by Laura-Marie. She is definitely one of the most prolific zine makers out there today and I am happy to be on her mailing list. This issue is quarter-sized and 32 pages. She talks about quitting Facebook and she also writes a lot about her years as a musician. As usual there are also interesting book and zine reviews. I also liked the part about her cat’s recent names…since I tend to do that with my cat…
An excerpt from this zine is included on the next few pages.
Email: robotmad@gmail.com
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