The allure of Allure

First of all, let me get this out, this is a magazine about beauty. Period. Not about working, boyfriends (or husbands) or other issues. If I wanted that, I could've subscribed for Cosmo.

Allure is a magazine for the woman or girl with beauty on her mind. It talks about issues such as liposuction, trichotillomania (obsessive hair-pulling), breast implants and looking good as you grow older (aging gracefully, I suppose).

In every issue there are articles such as Beauty Reporter, Insider's Guide, Fashion, Health, Features, and the Regulars. I will go into slight detail about each one.

Beauty Reporter: takes new makeup, hair care products, skin care and tells you the pros and cons of it. It also has a nifty "Beauty 101" which tells you how to do a certain thing: the correct way to use self tanner, apply eyeliner, get curly hair, etc.

Insider's Guide: this section gives you details and tips about ordinary things: giving toasts, how to look good when after your flight, taking a good picture, giving a pose for a good picture, things like that. The Directory is like a yellow pages for boutiques that give the best manicures, facials, pedicures for major cities.

Fashion: is about, you guessed it, fashion. Spreads on latest trends, finding good stores, how to shop (yes there are tips on that).

Health: gives you information you might not have know about or cared on certain things such as effects of birth control pills, exercise on your self-esteem, water weight. This section gives you about a paragraph of at least 15 different subjects.

Features: this is the place for the essays which I love so much. The essay is usually on an interesting topic, is well written and has a catchy ending sentence, it also has the trend du jour, yet more how to's, and something written about a person who impacted beauty as we know it.

The Regulars: contains mail from the readers, contributers such as photographers, and writers, the editor's letter, a section called Beauty and the Beat which is usually an ironic or sarcastic view on beauty, horoscopes and questions to celebrities.

Pros: If you are looking for beauty, this is the it magazine. It also has a $12 for 12 issues deal that comes about every two months and is pretty much an interesting magazine.

Cons: It doesn't give you advice about sex or relationships, so if that's what you're looking for, steer clear. The fashion is a bit too risky for us normal people, and seems pretty silly sometimes. Also they mainly talk about expensive makeup (face cream at over $60, manicures for $70). And like many magazines, one page of substance equals seven pages of ads.