Editor's Letter October 2011

Look at us Now!

Steven Biller

Magazines redesign for many reasons: to modernize their look, to refine their content and accentuate new editorial features, and to make themselves more attractive to read. We’re hopeful the makeover we introduce this month accomplishes all of the above.

The new format retains the popular departments and features that Palm Springs Life readers expect and adds a Style department, which this month reveals the latest in elegant and daring Erickson Beamon masquerade masks. Next month, we’ll look at new additions to the Rolex Oyster collection of fine watches. We’ll introduce more content refinements throughout the season.

Perhaps the most exciting change to the magazine is the transformation of the Desert Guide under the leadershi of its editor, Mona de Crinis. The new-look guide was designed with the same typefaces and graphic elements as the rest of the magazine, creating a seamless flow into and out of every section.

The collaboration by longtime Palm Springs Life Creative Director Stuart Funk, Design Director Pete Ivey, and Art Director Richard Vaughn allowed for a wealth of thoughtful, forward-thinking ideas that affect the entire magazine.  

Our new typefaces are the serif Miller for story text and the sans serif Neutraface for headlines and other display copy. Miller is Scotch Roman — a style that originated in types cut by Richard Austin at the Scottish type foundries of Alexander Wilson and William Miller in the early 1800s.

Neutraface is based on the geometric minimalist lettering that architect Richard J. Neutra used on his commercial and residential buildings. The Neutra aesthetic seems like a birthright to Palm Springs, where the architect’s famous Kaufmann House remains a popular stop on so many modernism tours.

So read, browse, drool — and let me know what you think. Send your feedback to me at steven@palmspringslife.com