This copy of Retro Magazine arrived last week. It was sent by the lovely people at Hus & Hem as we’d supplied an image of a yellow Finel coffee pot for them to use.
Hus & Hem (and this off-shoot publication) hails from Sweden so we did have a slight problem to overcome with regards to the language barrier. We should be fluent in Swedish judged by the number of Scandinavian crime dramas we watch – but alas not!
It didn’t stop this magazine being a very enjoyable “read” for us though. We could pick up on the general gist of the articles, but we mainly let the pictures do the talking.
There’s certainly no shortage of them with lots of vintage retro gorgeousness to peruse.
Scandinavia is of course home to many great designers both past & present – and the source of many pieces so sought after by collectors. So it’s no surprise that they should have some excellent publications dedicated to the subject.
The magazine crams loads in. There are some inspiring house tours, vintage fashion and features on classic design.
As you can see from the article on Mari Simmulson & Upsala-Ekeby pottery for example, these articles are quite extensive and make great source material for identification or collecting.
There are also current product pointers and a location tour with an eye to vintage design & retail opportunities.
In this issue, Helsingfors (Helsinki in Swedish) is the destination – it’s gone onto our list for when we do that much longed for Scandinavian camper van tour.
The photography is excellent throughout. There’s also much use of vintage magazine articles & advertisements to display products or show items in situ.
It costs about £5.00 per issue.
It’s definitely worth giving a try – you might even learn a new language!