Top 10 magazine covers of 2014

by Steve Watson in October 2014
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What’s the best cover you’ve seen this year? Most mornings I post a picture of a magazine cover on Instagram, and over the course of the last few months some clear favourites have emerged.

Of course this whole ad hoc voting process is far from scientific, but as a finger in the air it does offer an interesting take on the never-ending debate over what makes for successful magazine covers.

So here’s the current top 10 for 2014 so far, as voted by Stack Instagram followers, and watch out for a big end of year round up in December, complete with statistical analysis (sort of), general conclusions (kind of) and free Christmas gifts (loads of them).

10. Cercle
French science magazine Cercle is hanging onto 10th place with this abstract take on the solar system.

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French magazine Cercle takes a considered look at science fiction with its second issue

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09. Gratuitous Type
A recent addition to the top 10, Gratuitous Type stormed in last week with its lovely acetate overcoat.

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"A pamphlet of typographic smut" – see the full two-minute video review of Gratuitous Type, fresh on the Stack blog today

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08. Honest Blog
A magazine made by Kingston College student Bethany Baker, Honest Blog caught imaginations with its obscured cover star.

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Made by Kingston College graphic design student Bethany Baker, Honest is dedicated to showing student life first hand

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07. Makeshift
“A field guide to hidden creativity”, Makeshift became the latest magazine to join the Stack roster this week thanks in part to its lovely clear design, as seen in this cover layout.

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A field guide to hidden creativity – issue nine of Makeshift explores the theme of navigation

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06. We Are Dublin
The latest incarnation of Conor Purcell’s We Are Here publishing experiment, We Are Dublin makes great use of simple photography snapped on an iPhone.

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Another of the magazines picked up from Printout this week – the first issue of We Are Dublin. One for Instagram fans – the entire issue is shot by founder Conor Purcell using his iPhone, and it looks great

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05. Fin
One of the stars of the summer, the current issue of Fin came out in June and has been going strong since then, staking its claim to a place in the top five.

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A small and perfectly formed package of Norwegian cool – issue two of Fin

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04. Cereal
Another recent addition to the Stack line up, Cereal is the undisputed master of the simple cover image.

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@cerealmag editor Rosa Park turns Saharan cover star for volume seven

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03. Butt-er
More cover simplicity here, with a coffee pot elevated to artwork on issue one of Butt-er.

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Issue one of Butt~er – a beautifully poised new magazine of food and kitchenware

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02. Tusk
I love this image by illustrator Rob Bailey on the cover of Tusk‘s second issue, and so do the Instagram masses – it has been in second place overall since July.

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Lovely summery cuddles from the northwest, courtesy of @tuskjournal

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01. Cereal (again)
But nothing so far can compete with the minimalist majesty of Cereal’s early summer issue. Will any magazine knock it off the top spot this year? We’ve still got a few months’ worth of magazines to come… Use your vote wisely!

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Sunshine in the fronds can only mean one thing: summer is here, @cerealmag style

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