Is There Room On The Shelves For .....

A couple of new magazines? Browsing through the gardening mags last weekend at our local  branch of a well known high street newsagents, I came across two new titles - 'Landlove' and 'Landscape'. Neither are gardening magazines as such but are a potpourri of items on gardening, cookery, nature and wildlife, country heritage and crafts as well as regional perspectives. Both publications apparently are aimed predominately at women over the age of 35 and are starting off as bi - monthly publications. Pricing is very similar - a difference of five pence between the two. Both contain introductory subscription offers. It will be interesting to see if either of them gives the well established 'Country Living' a run for its money.

Did I buy them after flicking through the pages? 
Yes - well the weather forecast was abysmal so little in the way of outdoor activity in on the cards and besides I've always had a weakness for magazines.

What I liked?

• I greatly appreciated the fact that neither showered out a deluge of papers advertising all sorts of no interest to me, which go straight into the recycling bin.
• The relative lack of adverts. I suppose though that this and the above point may well change in time.
• The range of articles from wood crafting to owls from the Jurassic Coast to May Day festivals. Although I enjoy reading gardening magazines some of them become very repetitive, especially if you have read them over a number of years. Both these titles still delivered my gardening fix but it was supplemented with a welcome variety of other topics. 
• Excellent photography in both magazines.

What I didn't like?

• There was some duplication - both magazines had features on bluebells and lilacs - not that I have got anything against either plant but I didn't really want to read about them twice. I suppose that some duplication though is inevitable with magazines that have a seasonal focus. 
• The reader's letters in 'Landscape' - how can a brand new magazine have established readers? The postbag contained some rather contrived correspondence.
• 'The Village Shop' in 'Landlove' - featured products with prices but did not have full details of stockists on the same page, or any direction to the glossary at the back of the magazine which contained this information.

Will I buy them again? 
A definite maybe occasionally on this score particularly if they remain bi - monthly but only one title at a time. Of the two I preferred 'Landlove' but why I find it hard to pinpoint. Has anybody else come across these magazines yet and if so did you enjoy them?