Do White Magazine Covers Sell better than Colour?

I subscribe to both Style at Home and House & Home which are the two best national shelter magazines in Canada. I judge a magazine to be great if I get to the end and I’m inspired or I’ve learned something new (much like how we feel about blogs) and I must admit the cover is a huge draw as well. In the past year I have noticed a lot of white covers on Style at Home so just for fun I thought I’d do a review of both to see if that was true:

January 2010

This cover is very pretty and showcases a white kitchen (my favourite). White Cover #1

February 2010

Here we have dark ebony floors and white furniture, and I noticed this cover introduced small photos at the bottom, but that look only lasted for 3 covers.  White cover #2

 

March 2010

Ahhhh, Carrara Marble tiled floors with a claw foot tub and gray walls. The hottest trend in bathrooms right now. White Cover #3

April 2010

Here a black and white kitchen with a very white-on-white colour scheme in the great room. White Cover #4

May 2010

I was in their May issue with a small mention here. Notice how the two chairs are still white even though I do think this is the prettiest cover of the entire year.

June 2010

This issue also has lots of white but it does have a sunflower yellow chair so I can’t call it a totally white cover.

  July 2010

This issue is almost completely white  and it came up in this article in a google search which stated that this issue sold 6,110 more than the same month in 2009. In went on to say this was a risk that paid off with record high sales (which are usually lower in the summer). And it brings our white tally to cover #5.

August 2010

Here the walls AND the floor are white with barely a hint of colour so I still consider this white cover #6.

September 2010

Another white kitchen; white cover #7

October 2010

Here the loveseat in my master bedroom is featured on this gray and white cover.

November 2010

White and gold dishes round out this cover for the holiday.

December 2010

And no surprise that the official holiday issue is gray and turquoise the two hottest colours of 2010 and certainly seen on many trees as the holiday decor of choice this Christmas. So that brings the total to 7 out of 12 although you can see that the covers that were not primarily white still had plenty of white left over on furniture or walls.

So lets see how much white is on House & Home covers in 2010:

January 2010

I loved this cover which featured the home of Victoria Webster, read more in my post here.

February 2010

I was surprised to see this cover as--to my knowledge--magazines like to be first with photos and this stunning staircase had already made the rounds in the blogosphere months before this came out.

March 2010

I would classify this as a white cover because of all the millwork in white. Cover #1

April 2010

This one too is borderline but the charcoal upholstered chairs are the ‘colour here’. Very trendy look with white and gray, however as you know it’s saturated colour that brings gray to life, I think an area rug and cushions with colour would really make this room wonderful (and of course I would say that).

May 2010

This cover gives the illusion of a spring green issue but showcases a white interior. Cover #2

June 2010

Again we have white walls and a white sofa. This cover is cleverly designed to pick up the pink and orange colour scheme amongst all the white.

July 2010

Another space with white floors, outdoor furniture and a white house. I’m calling this white cover #3 in spite of the accessories in colour as the second you remove those you have a white-on-white look.

August 2010

I loved the feeling of this room, I mentioned it in this post. Notice the white chairs and the white rug. It’s an interesting balance of rustic and fresh (which is how you would categorize white).

September 2010

Another room with white walls and 2 white chairs.

October 2010

I loved this cover.  With the orange wood in the back room drawing you into the image almost like a fire.

 

November 2010

I thought this cover was also very pretty, traditional Christmas colours.

December 2010

The only thing that makes this cover ‘holiday’ is the masthead and the wreath. But it’s a great way to showcase the second hottest trend besides a white kitchen – gray or charcoal. Masthead online also compared both competing December issues. Officially, House & Home had 3 white covers out of 12 which makes Style at Home’s tally come to more than twice the amount with 7. And as noted, many of the covers still showed plenty of white.

So there are two observations to make here:

1.  It’s not necessarily that white covers sell better, it’s perhaps more a sign of the current trends. White is needed with the strong bright colours that are hot which takes us right back to the 50’s. And since black and gray have replaced brown and beige, white keeps those neutrals crisp.

2. White covers do sell better because we secretly wish for white furniture, floors and walls but just don’t create this look in our homes because it’s soooo not practical with kids and pets.  Do we buy the magazine for the dream?

Which camp are you in? Love the trend or you just love the idea of white period. I'd love it if you'd post your opinion in the comments!

If you would like your home to fill you with happiness every time you walk in, contact me for on-line or in-person consultations.

Related posts:

White Kitchen Cabinets

What’s Next in Colour & Design for 2011

Top 2 Trends from High Point

Can White be a Lonely Colour?

When is Gray the right Background for your Space?

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When is White just Right?

I consider white to be just as important as any other colour. However, I do draw the line at white-on-white walls unless it’s a contemporary space and you plan to repeat the colour in your decorating, see my White is a Snob post for more on that.

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Here are my 10 tips on when you should choose white over any other colour:

1. White Textured Towels

Usually the plumbing fixtures [sink/toilet] are white so even if your tiles or the walls are not white, the towels relate to the fixtures which creates a ‘spa’ feeling.

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Just make sure they have a texture in them. I have white towels with a daisy texture, stripes and squares, even paisley. They are the only colour I own [besides my favourite Martha Stewart Beach Towels]. Same with the shower curtain, I like it white as well!

2. White Molding in Bathrooms

Even if your woodwork is creamier throughout the house because your colours are richer (which works better with creamier trim) or you have finishes that are cream which dictate the trim, if the plumbing fixtures in your bathroom are white along with the tile, I like the trim painted white. Otherwise the only cream sometimes in a bathroom is the moldings.

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3. White Sheets & Duvet Covers in the Bedroom.

I love the hotel look in a bedroom. Upholstered headboard, bed skirt and two decorative pillow shams with a white [cream fits in the white category too] duvet cover.

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4. White Vinyl Windows

Generally the ‘standard’ colours for vinyl windows are white or greeny beige (that is the undertone by the way, some people call it tan). Inside the house you should always choose white or suddenly you are forced to coordinate your moldings and woodwork with a dirty beige window!! Exterior windows, beige works if you have enough contrast on the exterior colour. Otherwise go with white there too.

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5. White Shutters

Any other colour cuts out more light, so unless you have a dark space anyway go with white.

6. White Dishes

Before my designer days I chose white for my wedding china. Today I think they are too traditional for me but I still like them because they are white and go with everything!

Country Living

7. White Kitchens

Well we already know how I feel about White Kitchens!

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8. White + Black

There’s a reason why black and white are always together, because they are both just as crisp.

9. White + Fresh Colour

In January’s Newsletter I wrote about Which Colours you’ll be Decorating with Next. And White is perfect with all of them!

White + Turquoise (credit)

10. If you simply adore White in any shape or form but you have kids and pets? Get the Ektorp sofa from IKEA. It’s an amazing price and the slipcovers alone are under $200.

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What about you my lovelies? What do you own that MUST be White (I feel like I’ve missed a few)?

Related posts:

White Kitchen Cabinets

The Best Trim Colours—NOT Cloud White

5 Steps to a Kitchen you will Love

New to this Blog? Click here ; Subscribe to my Monthly Newsletter; Become a True Colour Expert

Vancouver's Colour Expert Advice; White is a Snob

The following is an excerpt from Janice Lindsay’s book; All About Colour;

Good white rooms always meet three demanding criteria. They must have Good Light:

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Harmonized Proportions

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and a Few Attractive Objects artfully arranged:

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This is why white rooms are a challenge, not to be taken lightly by those not up to aesthetic discipline.

Adding colour to a sunny room is like putting makeup on a beautiful face, totally unnecessary. Besides, why have paint’s one colour when you can have lights many? It is poorly lit spaces that need colour. White will look grey. White is typically used in basement rooms or in windowless or dark rooms in the misguided hope that it will make light but it won’t, so get out the colour.

White is a snob that likes it’s own company best. Interest comes from a variety of textures and sheens and from natural or uncoloured materials – wood, stone, fur, metal, glass. It likes other neutrals and finds black, it’s colour complement, incredibly exciting. If other colours are pale enough, white considers them part of the family. If they aren’t, the white tries to make them look bad: bold and boisterous, like vulgar intruders. Colour gets blamed for being loud but white is the mischievous culprit.

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White walls offer no place to hide, no camouflage. They create an art gallery effect, spotlighting attention on every object so each must be worthy. White walls highlight shape and colour and tolerate no chaotic mess. Each object is part of the composition and so has to be selected and positioned with a curatorial eye for arrangement. White walls are not the avoidance of colour. They are the embracing of the most demanding colour of all.

Bad white spaces are those where white is not used as a colour but in the misguided notion that it is the avoidance of colour. This is when white looks bald and empty, cheap and unfriendly. Or it can look unfinished, a beginning still waiting for something to happen! Janice Lindsay

Anyone serious about the colour business, should definitely own this book!

Related posts:

A Light Colour will never come to Life in a Dark Room

Interview with Colour Expert; Janice Lindsay (Washington Post Blog Watch, July 9)

Is White a Lonely Colour?

White; Messages & Meanings

White-on-White-on-White

My two posts on white:  White Kitchen Cabinets and The Best Trim Colours—Not Cloud White are still the most read on my site!  Why is white so big?  Perhaps because it’s so easy to transform the feeling of a space just by changing art, pillows and objects—and the wall colour! 

This is Met Home’s – Home of the Month [January].

Putting the staircase opposite the front door added drama but ran the risk of blocking a view. The architects engineered the dramatic stair to be as thin as possible, using oak treads to dampen sound and instill warmth.

The dining area features stiletto-legged Liz_b chairs from Poltrona Frau and an Urban Hardwoods table topped with a craggy slab of black walnut.

Art is everywhere in the home. Here, an architectural fragment hangs in a basement hallway that doubles as a gallery.

Love the row of sleek, identical cabinets with the book-matched Carrara marble.

A 19th-century gilded chair mitigates the contemporary look of the bedroom sitting area, which is oriented around an existing fireplace reclad in Carrara marble.

The following images are form Orrick & Company, a design build firm in Connecticut:

In this dining room, all you’d have to do to change the feeling is paint the walls above the wainscoting.  This is the perfect solution to NOT having your decor boss you around!

How great are these beachy bunk beds?  The built in shelves are perfect for books and a glass of water!

I’m styling a kitchen this week for an interior designer that is having it photographed.  I fell in love with this silver bowl on a pedestal with the grass and grapes!  Maybe I could figure out a way to incorporate this look into that kitchen (stay tuned for photos).

I just love this room with the zebra rug, forced flowering branches, and organic elements such as the stumps and green glass on the bookshelves!

See the white roman shades?  I did white linen roman’s for a client last year and when the south/west sun came shining through them, they had a yellow cast to them!  Has anyone else ever had that happen?

Here the windows have so much architectural detail that they don’t need drapery!  Love the white coral and Ralph Lauren hurricane lanterns on the coffee table!

Just a little white-on-white patio off the living room, next to the water to finish off your Sunday with a glass of  wine!!

The meaning of white: Clean, Hygienic, Simple, Safe, Purity, Enlightenment, Idealism, Indecision, Optimism, Clinical, Joy, Innocence, Hope.  Cool, Refreshing, Sterile, Stark, Open, Expansive, Reflective. 

Related posts:

Beige-on-Beige-on-Beige