Gosh, If we’re not busy prepping up for seminars here, we can be found on other people’s websites boldly forecasting trends. I only bring this up because lately, we announced that the future was online mags and that takes me seamlessly to the point of this post. Have you seen Curio yet? Issue 1 launched last month with an Owl on the front and the promise of ‘Interiors, People, Life, Style’ inside. Here’s a slice of it…

The mag proffers the idea of that couch colour being ‘Grello’. Just want to say, I’m down with that.

Below, a shot from one of the real homes featured (a stylist’s place) and a chair that I’m also in complete agreement with.

The magazine sets out to be ‘premium yet friendly’ with thoughtful writing and a greater lifestyle element running through its interiors features. I think that means reality, really – and there are some nice lived-in house shots that offer the aspirational-but-attainable feel.  

A few details though, which I find untraditional for a magazine, include the contents page, where words are so stripped back you sometimes don’t know what the feature is going to be about. Also, the lack of picture captions – I wanted to know where some of the interiors were from in the profile feature about Mr & Mrs Smith founder Tamara Heber-Percy.

The main thing that interests me about the future of online magazines like this one, is how they might evolve to transcend their glossy forefathers. I think people are going to want a few bells and whistles, like embedded videos, clickable contents and really anything snazzy that you can’t get from a trad printed alternative.

Curio mag update: I meant to add that the mag has a great blog too.