As a subscriber I am saddened, working in magazine publishing myself, I am not surpised. The February issue was the latest in a series of a huge disappoinments.

Since all the good mags are now dead, I wonder what piece of crap they'll fill out my subscription with.

noooooooooooooooooooo! its the only mag i get anymore!

will their website stay up?

NOOOOOO this is such a bummer! I love that mag

Ouch.

The last few issues had really been disappointing, so I'm not surprised. Angry I renewed, but not surprised.

Boo! So many good publications down in the past year. House and Garden, Blueprint and now Domino. What a shame.

hmmm.. wonder what magazine I will get in place of it.. I just sent my check off to pay for my subscription 2 weeks ago. Ugh.

I've never had a magazine close on me before - do you think they WILL send us another mag, or just refund?

This is so tragic. I don't know if I'll ever recover!

Noooooooooooooo!

I was afraid of this. I've been buying shelter mags at newsstands instead of subscribing lately. I'm going to miss Domino.

noooooooooooooooooooo. domino was the only mag i get anymore. while their latest issues have been dissapointing i was hoping they would turn it around and take a cue from the economy that people cant afford all the stuff they advertise.

does anyone know if their site will remain up?

Phk. Phk. Phk.

By the way, anyone else get the offer from Elle Decor for an ENTIRE YEAR for $5 this week? That kinda freaked me out.

terrible news on a day like this! i was about to go check for the March issue at Universal News.

Extra shame about the website. That is a great resource.

What the hell? It always seemed to have plenty of ads.
Yes, it has sometimes been disappointing, but what is left?
Aren't we likely to be home centered during a recession, or at least escapist?

sorry for the double comments. my first one didnt post right away and im impatient.

Noooooooooooooo! I need shelter!

Oh no. It's the only magazine I subscribe to. I was not so much disappointed by the recent issue but strangely, this one made me angry because here were these highly polished-looking homes inhabited by people much younger than me. And somehow, using all their "tips" I was supposed to be able to create such interiors in my own home. I hate that feeling of envy and fatigue creeping up inside! And that's when it hit me that Domino long ago stopped featuring "real" apartments where computers had wires showing and there were dirty dishes in the sink.

Ok, maybe I won't miss it that much then.

wait house and garden is gone? i subscribe to that and domino. disappointing.

A little tear came to my eye.

Damn you, Conde Nast! First you take Jane (one of the only intelligent younger-woman magazines) and now THIS??

I'm never reading anything produced by Conde Nast again (because everything else they've got going on is junk).

Unless Domino gets absorbed back into the pages of Lucky...I'd start tearing it out again...

i just bought the book of decorating yesterday. can i still send in and get a refund for the free year of domino? i hope so! otherwise they just took $10 from me for nothing!

yea, so i was wondering... what about the rest of my subscription??

Tar and Violets do they really do that? sub in a different mag? if thats the case, im also wondering if itll meet my fancy.

bummer.

*falls to knees, fists in the air*

NooooooooooooooOOOOOOOoooooooOOOOOOOooo!!!!!!!!

I heard that the website is coming down too. What kind of MONSTERS are they?! I let my subscription run out, then I bought the book of design and got the free sub that comes with that.

They should have taken Teen Vogue or Cookie magazine instead.
Anna Wintour, I hate you!

this is sad... and frustrating - my subscription ended this month and yet i still got tons of notices encouraging me to renew, and i did - ugh

and i also got that offer from elle decor! except it was for $7, not $5 - i threw it out, but now i wish i hadn't...

Not definite yet, but a friend in-the-know says the subscription will most likely be folded into Lucky because it has a home shopping section.

Not sure about the future of the site...

When I saw $1000 sheets in an issue a few months ago, I knew the magazine was doomed. So out of touch and unbearably smug. I used to feel so inadequate about my own lowly apartment (much in the way one can be depressed by viewing skinny model bodies in a fashion mag). But fun to flip through for ideas, nonetheless.

i'm incredibly depressed!! and so disappointed. i honestly think domino is one of the few decor mags left work subscribing to. such a great range of high and low, simple inspirations and well done layouts. not stuffy like elle decor whose pieces are completely unaffordable. *sigh*. this is SO SAD!

I knew this was coming. With a diminishing number of advertising pages and Rita Konig as basically the ONLY contributor in the last issue I knew the end was near. I've been a subscriber since day and find this really sad. I thought Domino really did fill a gap in terms of offering an alternative publication that wasn't too stuffy and still appealed to a younger, stylish demographic.

It's a good thing I kept many of my issues. It's also sad that I JUST renewed my subscription with them >=/

I wonder what kind of publication they will offer subscribers in it's place.

This is a true down point. It's the only magazine I look forward to getting every month, and yes the February issue was out of touch. I will miss it.

I read about this early this morning, and having JUST renewed my subsciption, I called to cancel it. Unfortunately, the woman didn't know. And put me on hold, to come back and say that no one in the office had known, and we were the first to call. :( Crappy.

You should be able to get a refund.

i feel like they should give us some warning that times are tough, so we could rally and do something to save them. i would have thrown a fundraising cake walk.

is saving out of the question? bail out? can't rita take it over and just rephotograph every room in her house, and tell us what she's eating, wearing, thinking? oh wait....

really - can't they scale down the expensive shoots, or whatever costs them money, and just print a magazine for a few months to get by until things are better?

Nooooooooo... I was just really getting into their "My Deco File." Fingers crossed that they at least keep some of their online operations going. Sadness.

This is disappointing because I wasn't down with Domino in their early years! I totally missed out. Is there some gentle, compassionate soul out there who saved every issue and wants to scan and post them somewhere?? Just kidding. Or am I?

It is a dark day! I am going to come up with inspiration all by myself. Yuck. I just purchased the book too and sent in the subscription card in the back.

I haven't even read the last issue yet, it's still sitting on my coffee table unopened. Eh.

Now Blueprint, that's one I really miss.

I guess I'll have to subscribe to Dwell magazine.

Im rather annoyed. I got so many great ideas from Domino. My place is coming along fabulously..

It just makes me so mad. I feel like there isn't that many decorating magazines with the kind of style Domino has. I look forward to each issue for inspiration. AHHHHHH this economy is driving me nuts! haha.

i have every single one, and usually two of each issue. (i got one to tear up, and one to keep, for times like these)

Perhaps if Domino actually listened to readers' complaints about the direction it has been taking for the past year (e.g. featuring furnishings that no mere mortal could ever afford), then subscriptions and sales might have gone up.

They JUST took $10 from me for my renewal today. Ugh.

I'm subscribed to way too many magazines, but this is one that I actually enjoyed. Boo.

I'm not surprised. Magazines are folding left and right. Newspapers are downsizing or disappearing. Bookstores are disappearing.

Print media can't compete with on-line resources. The wave of the future will be on-line subscriptions that cost a few dollars a year to access. Think about it. Would you pay $3 a year to be able to access Apartment Therapy or other favorite websites? I would and it's a greener way to go.

magazines really need to knock things down to an approachable level. i kinda thought domino was supposed to be more for the younger, don't make as much money, demongraphic, but i agree with some of the other posters. things like $1,000 sheets make me want to throw the mag across the room. but now, i won't have to.

Jamie - Wanna be my BFF? I bake...

No wonder you could get a two year subscription for $7. They sent me the last issue free and it went directly to the recycle bin. I was a subscriber at one point, but they couldn't hold my interest, and I couldn't afford 90% of the stuff they listed in their magazine anyway.

I saw this coming.

yes, let's do something. like the domino archival project. it will rival george bush's library.

First Blueprint, now Domino?

Great! I can't wait till they substitute my remaining Domino subscription issues for Southern Living. Ack!

I forget which magazine I subscribed to that went under, but they started sending me Marie Claire in its place. I hate Marie Claire but it just keeps coming. And it seems soooo looooong ago that I started receiving it...I wonder when it will finally stop?

Anyway, am very sad about Domino as well. I always really enjoyed it. True, I couldn't afford 99% of the stuff in the magazine, but I was still inspired by the mix of colors and patterns and the layout of the rooms and really did learn quite a lot from it. *sigh...*

Maybe now is a good time for Budget Living to be resurrected. I loved that magazine too. The book is great too (Budget Living: Home Cheap Home). If you haven't seen it, it's definitely worth seeking out.

i have almost every issue. might have thrown one away. even a few that i've been trying to toss for over a year. they just keep stickin' around.

Great. Even more editorial freelancers flooding the market. I'm never going to work again, am I?

and you can buy back issues. see the website.

I'm not at all surprised. When you look around, magazines are folding left and right. Newspapers are downsizing or disappearing. Bookstores aren't making it financially, anymore.

Print media can't compete with what's available on-line. I think that the day will come when we see the equivalent of on-line magazine subscriptions. For a few dollars a year, you get access to the website on-line. It's less expensive to produce and greener.

I don't spend but maybe 25% of what I used to on books and I'm letting my magazine subscriptions expire, because so much of what I like to read is available on-line or as less expensive downloads.

although, I couldn't afford a damn thing in its recent issues, one of my biggest joys was flipping thru this magazine for ideas. so sad.

Has anybody thought of subscribing to Metropolitan Home instead? I had a subscription for years but somethin' had to give and I let it lapse--too many magazines, so little time.

Met Home interiors are pricey (but so are Dwell's in my opinion) and there isn't the same focus on sourcing like Domino but they are mostly modern and done by designers (not supermodels or other people I've never heard of). As an architect, I found Met Home's interiors inspirational and that's what I'm looking for--not which IKEA table is in the shot or where to get a picture frame or fabric I can't afford anyway.

BTW, I just renewed my subscription to Domino and I am bummed out but now I may have an excuse to get Met Home again.

Giggit, I loved it too! When my dearly departed Budget Living closed down, they sent me Self instead. Dude. Not even CLOSE.

I actually subscribed to Domino to fill the Budget Living gap, but found the greenwashed smugness and high-end prices off-putting. I'd already decided not to renew, and I think my subscription is set to run out in the next few months anyway.

Maybe I'll subscribe to ReadyMade instead.

Does anyone think Conde Nast would let you choose which magazine you received in place of Domino?

you can't buy back issues. i tried about 4 times to get an extra, and they said it would take about 3 months, and then they would always end up refunding me.

i say living etc is the way to go now. the homes they feature are the best, hands down

Why not start an archival site for Domino, Blueprint, House & Garden, etc.? Those of us with back issues could scan and post...pesky copyright laws be damned.

Yeah the last few mags have been super boring. I have a 2 year subscription down the tubes. I have about 3 years of Domino stashed away.

God speed.

I will miss Domino! I couldn't afford most stuff in there but it was great for inspiration. I saved every single issue from the beginning. I always looked forward to finding it in my mailbox. I do miss the Domino early days, they had great regular features like how to transform a tiny bathroom with accessories. And I always liked "can this outfit be made into a room."

I've recently started buying British Homes and Gardens. It's a little pricey at the magazine stand, but it is total eye candy.

Awww, that's too bad. It is my fave. :-(

I know the writing's been on the wall for a while though. They were stretching and doing a lot of fashion-related stories and the advertisements were going waaaay off-topic.

I'm a little depressed about this. Yes, some of the stuff is a little expensive but I don't think I've ever actually gone out and purchased something just because I saw it in the magazine. I like it because it helped me narrow down my tastes and opened me up to new color and shape and pattern combinations.

Oh well, at least I have my issues from the past 2.5 years and later this week I'm going to make sure to head out to the bookstore and buy a copy of the book.

I don't want print to go away! I like my paper magazines and books. The Internet is just for wasting time at work!

I was just vaguely starting to get interested in Domino, and now it is no more! Sad.

Lucky has turned to crap and could stand to be thinned down to 40% of it's content (and that's being generous). Hopefully Conde Nast will Merge it with Domino in the near future and make it more of a woman's lifestyle pub.

Then again, hope was the only evil left in Pandora's box upon its opening.

domino always made me feel old - not so much the interiors (which were occasionally great but too often middling), but the starlets and young entertainment wealth that it obsessed around.

i didn't know who these people were (without googling them) and didn't care for their overwrought digs with touches of thrift store grunge and "irony" (and little in my home is retail save a sofa and mattresses).

there's a reason shelter mags focus on older readers / homeowners...their incomes. also, in the homes highlighted, they've exorcised their design demons through apartments unseen. there's value in this filter of time and experience.

youthful design, it's freshness and exuberance AND it's inevitable mistakes and follies, has a lot to offer but it's best left for the blogosphere.

ooh, i so miss Budget Living -- it's the only kind of living I do! :) And I just renewed for Domino, O at Home and Cottage Living a few months back - now they're sending me Vanity Fair (WTF?!?) and who-knows-what else. Going to the bookstore right now to grab the latest Dwell, Met Home, and Living Etc to calm myself down ...

so sad. maybe my subscription is the kiss of death. First Jane Magazine, which I'm still sad over. And now domino. I'd better save all everything from "My Deco File" immediately!

Domino website still has subscription promos. So people who don't know about the shut down can still go and subscribe to the mag. This is terrible.

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiil!

Sigh. In the midst of packing last night, I sorted a whole bunch of magazines to recycle/give away. The only ones I kept were Domino, because those were the ones I liked the best. This bites.

I was just about to renew my subscription. I really liked them. I loved those sticker tabs. I didn't know O at Home is gone too.

It's a sad loss. I was about to send in the check... oh well. I really *want* to like Met Home but it leaves me a bit cold. ReadyMade is really good but obviously not for everyone. I adore Living Etc. but paying 8 or 9 bucks a pop for a British magazine that shows items I can't always get here in the U.S. isn't ideal.

It would be great if they'd put a Domino section in the back of Lucky. Well, one can dream...

well i guess that means that i can stop asking them if they planned on ever publishing through zinio now...

healthyhome hit it on the head.

d'oh, I just got a free subscription from West Elm yesterday... and they just had Zooey Deschanel (sigh) on the cover....

jesus god.

i just ordered a subscription a few weeks ago, and have yet to recieve my first issue. i wonder what's going to happen.

ugh.

i heard the sub-in magazine is CatFancy. just kidding. i too am sad, i give subscriptions to friends for christmas. it has been going downhill and the website doesn't offer anymore than the mag. i have always felt a website should be kind of like a supporting piece providing updates, etc. i will keep all mine to show my children someday what "magazines" were.

This is extra heartbreaking to me.

My mother-in-law, who passed away very suddenly this past October, gave me my 2 year subscription as a gift last Christmas. I loved getting each month's new issue ever since, because it was a sweet gesture of something that we both enjoyed talking about and had bonded over. When we bought our house, she gave that to me because I had mentioned that I needed lots of ideas for our new home.

It's sad. And I do have to say that I cancelled my subscription last summer SPECIFICALLY b/c I was getting all the same sources and inspiration from sites like AT and design*sponge and many others.

I'm a subscriber so this is sad (and sad for those now unemployed at the mag), but Domino wasn't living up to expectation (not by a long shot). Living Etc. is really my favorite shelter mag, so import prices be damned, I might start buying it more often.

What's next to go, Met Home or Elle Decor? I haven't cared for either of them in years, so they'll probably both survive.

Oh mother effer! That's the ONLY magazine I actually enjoy reading. Does anyone know if they're going to send a replacement mag or do I need to try to get my $10 back. I really don't want to try to hassle someone for $10. :/

The website is going away too? Time to start saving all my favorite galleries and pictures!

sad!

i say tell them to forgo sending us a sub-in and send our money to Martha (god save me for saying that) and get Blueprint back up. i think it picked up where Domino departed from thrify, affordable home styling...

well, i guess i'm happy that i didn't renew my subscription! i really can't muster up a lot of sadness...i didn't renew b/c i agree with the people above who commented that it was a little too high end/had lost its way. it's hard for me to get enthusiastic about $1,000 teapots. as sydney said a few comments earlier, however, it is unfortunate for those who were employed by the magazine.

How is Domino folding but Lucky stays in business? I had a subscription to Lucky for a time but stopped because it was too overwhelming; it was like being in a high school clique and every time you finally had assembled the right outfit, the rules changed and now there was a completely DIFFERENT set of accessories you needed to go out and buy. Is anyone really doing that right now?

I was in the recent February issue, and Domino magazine approached me after having seen my home in AT: Los Angeles. I agree that some of the homes had become too Kelly Wearstler, blabla, rich girls and fancy crap but I can say that my house, for whatever you may think of it, really embodies Domino's spirit: inexpensive, exuberant and done by me and not a designer. I will really miss the magazine and i'm sorry for all the staffers who suddenly just lost their jobs. They were wonderful people. Things are just BAD ALL OVER!

I could weep right now. Not kidding. Regardless of some of the comments above, the images and articles were an inspiration for me - not just for my home by in my artwork. There was a lot of great talent featured in those pages...

This just put the cherry on top to a downright awful day. I have three years left on my subscription. I am so bummed.

well, that sucks extra because West Elm is offereing $10 off your order or a subscription to Domino. I took the subscription.

Oh no! I just renewed for me and 2 of my friends. This is the only mail I look forward to receiving! I don't care if it is full of things that cost too much- it was still inspiring!

Noooo!! I have two years left of my subscription. I love Domino. This is so depressing. First Blueprint (loved!) now Domino.

I am so going through all the galleries and uploading inspiration pictures! Good idea natalie.c!

What a shame they're shuttering the web site, too. I'll miss Nick Olsen's Deal Hunter blog. We don't really share the same tastes, but he had a real knack for ferreting out new places to buy affordable versions of high-end stuff. Here's hoping he keeps blogging somewhere, somehow...

RIP Domino
I used to get budget living, and then blueprint. I loved living etc, but only when it was free.

WTF am i going to read on planes now?

Also, sheltermags need to start putting in a few sheets of graph paper in the back for doodles.

I read Dwell, sometimes readymade and now MAKE & CRAFT
... make might be better written than craft honestly.

This is heartbreaking. I've been a subscriber since the first issue and have loved each and every one.

As much as I enjoyed the early issues the last few, quite a few have been very disappointing. For me it was like a bell curve started great and when down hill fast. I found myself wishing my subscription would end earlier that it actually did. I think the thing that turned me off the most was that they no longer has a great economic range. Everything they featured just seemed to be so astronomically unreachable it wasn't even worth browsing it anymore. Then I found AT!

It's a shame that Domino is folding. I used to be subscriber, but I stopped it at the end of last year. Unfortunately for those who do subscribe, they will probably send out something to replace it that you won't like as much. When Blueprint was cancelled (I really liked this one), they ended up sending me Martha Stewart Living magazine instead...thankfully it was only for 2 issues before my subscription ran out.

I actually subscribed to Domino because of blogs like Apartment Therapy, Design*Sponge, and Style Court.

I think I have more than a year left on my subscription and am bummed. The last few issues weren't stellar, but I still enjoyed flipping through them.

At least I didn't give a gift subscription to my sister, which is something I was thinking of doing. I would've been extra pissed then.

Domino was my one and only mag subscription, too.

Dwell is not the same as Domino. Much as I love Dwell, it's so modern and minimalist that it just didn't fit my lifestyle (I'd have had to have a custom home built and get rid of my kids). Domino was great for inspiration in putting together lower cost, eclectic rooms. Sigh. I really don't want Lucky.

I guess it will be Living, Etc. from B&N from now on.

what i will really miss is "The Adventuress" I loved each and every one of her adventures (although the last one was pretty weak)

I just died a little inside...
sigh.

Well, that is just downright depressing. Domino, you did great things, made many people happy, and I am sad to see you go.

(Note to Conde Nast: That's it- I break up with you! I'd rather you use the rest of my subsrciption dollars to help the people you just sent to the streets rather than you sending me a stand-in magazine that I have no interest in. Thank you.)

That's lame, but their layouts have been getting sloppier and advertisements have been taking over.

I've been a subscriber since issue #1 also, but it's been months since I've looked anywhere other than the internet to fulfill my design needs.

all my fav mags die- domino, budget living, organic living, shop etc, blueprint, jane, cottage living..i know there are more... ugh.. what the hell am i supposed to look forward to reading now. apt therapy, if you ever leave me....

Not surprised. The rooms they presented were always way out of most people's budget. The last article that intrigued me was the remake of the editors small apartment. Most of their rooms were too cute and too expensive.

You are kidding me right?! Tell me you are kidding! This is a huge joke... ARGH!

A magazine that smugly and shamelessly promoted the most conspicuous consumption in the name of inspiration folds? Great. I'm happy for the trees.
These reactions are pretty amazing to me. Do y'all get this worked up over poverty and genocide?
...Yeah, didn't think so.

actually, i do. much much more worked up. especially when i was poor reading Family Circle and Woman's Day and fantasizing about all the delicious looking meals.

hi brownbaby, yeah i DO get upset about larger problems. in fact, i work everyday to change things in more ways than i can count. as do many other people right here in this community. maybe thats the reason i enjoy a little escape in the form of glossy pics of nice things and beautiful places. so thanks for trying to offend everyone who enjoyed something by suggesting that they are jerks. does that make you a jerk?... yeah i thought so.

"Perhaps if Domino actually listened to readers' complaints about the direction it has been taking for the past year (e.g. featuring furnishings that no mere mortal could ever afford), then subscriptions and sales might have gone up."

In fact, Domino is (somewhat embarrassingly) the only magazine that pissed me off enough to inspire me to write a letter to the editor - complaining about just this trend. The greenwashing - the idea that spending an absurd amount of money on pricey organic sheets, chi chi laundry detergent and handmade wicker bowls made by children in Third World countries could save the environment made me retch. Domino was eye candy but hasn't published something relevant to how anyone I know really lives for at least a year, if not longer. I cancelled my subscription a few months back and won't miss it at all. Of course, the economy is dreadful and many a great magazine is folding, but I definitely look at this as partially a case of the marketplace dictating change for the better.

Dear Apartment Therapy-

I adore your content, but could you every now and then post something Domino-esque? I can't exactly put into words what makes something Domino-like, but I'm sure you can figure it out.

With as much as I adore AT, I'm not sure it can fill my Domino void. This is a sad and heartbreaking day for all.

Love, MCH

Surprised that pretty much most of the people here subscribed to domino!!!

I'm a shelter magazine junkie and they're all being taken away from me. I was saddened by this news. And surprised they didn't shake things up with the editorial staff before shuttering it completely. There must have been a formula that could have worked. House Beautiful seems to be hanging on since Steven Drucker took the helm. However I stopped subscribing to magazines in general b/c their delivery systems were unbelievably slow. I shouldn't have to wait 2 and half weeks for my copy after an issue hit the newsstands.

oh, i'm heart broken! :(

I was just about to sign up for a subscription. Guess I won't know. Bummer!

DAMNIT. I was just going to subscribe this week! This is the one home design mag (after Blueprint RIP) that I feel I can relate to, being in my 20s and not in the highest financial bracket... thank God for AT still.

I have been a subscriber from the beginning and have saved EVERY SINGLE ISSUE (I even ordered one off of ebay once when I threw it away by accident). Sure, it was mostly too high-end for me, but I loved reading it and always managed to get great ideas out of it.

This bad economy thing has gone too far.

KaynEm: Um, The New Yorker is junk? Hardly.

Damnit. I just renewed after hearing in November that all is well.

That's the third subscription I've had that folded. I don't think I'll be subscribing to anymore mags. :(

I was with it from the first issue, this is sad news indeed.

Strangely, I saw current issues of Domino in a bin near the checkout at T.J. Maxx a couple of weeks ago going for $1 each. I've never seen periodicals for sale there before. I wonder if they knew the mag was going to fold a while ago and decided to start dumping extra issues?

I never read this magazine, but I think people who think it is being canceled because of declining quality of its editorial don't realize just how very grim things are right now for print publications. There will be many, many more to go, this is the tip of the iceberg.

Yup, this sucks.

heartbroken. my love for Domino is unconditional. RIP.

Sadly, I'm not surprised. I was outraged when Nest shut down, years ago- does anybody else remember that one, in the days before blogs? It was so arty and brainy.

Then I was truly saddened when we lost Blueprint.

Domino basically became "Blueprint Lite" for me. Now they're taking that away too.

I can't bear to move down one more notch to "Real Simple" (we call it "Real Stupid" in my household).

Thank god for blogs.

Ah phooey - yeah, it was inceasingly shallow and pointless, featured too many overpriced things and vacuous barefoot Gwyneth-Paltrowesque zombies, but i still looked forward to it because occassionally, it did something delightful and made my brain go a little gooey. I originally subscribed purely on the power of a Royal Tenebaums style interior and since then, I have looked forward to its long journey across the Pacific to my door.

Poor Domino.
Hmm, I (am, er, was) a subscriber too - will I see my money waft its way back to me or not?

I just picked up my mail a bit ago today. There was a letter from Domino that my subscription was up and they would charge my credit card $10.00 if I did not respond by 2/20. I called right way & said "cancel" since they were not in biz anymore. Their customer service person canceled it right away.

I left a comment on the earlier AT post on this topic, just saying I'm not a fan of Domino or its aesthetics. This is just a PS. There were many comments on the Decorno blog recently about a Domino magazine feature that demonstrated its lack of ... well, all the things that it lacked.
http://decorno.blogspot.com/2009/01/regarding-page-76-of-this-months-domino.html

I live for the shelter rags! Subscribe to Met Home, Elle Decor and Domino, dammit, and I buy every other one that's out there - including Trad Home and Southern Accents - because, oh golly, I just can't get me enough design and product info. The blogs are terrific filler, but for me, they just don't take the place of the glossys.

Goodbye, Domino! I've loved you from the beginning and I will miss your smiling face.

Love,
mm

First Home & Garden... then Blueprint... now Domino???

what is there left?

I'm seriously thinking of discontinuing my other conde nast subscriptions out of boycott.

I love Domino more than anything. What am I supposed to look forward to?

I'm done with print -- not green, content too skimpy/unsatisfying and their customer service depts are the dregs.

Anyway, whatever you want is on some blog, likely this one.

It's going to be weird in 20 years when we're telling our kids (for those who have them) that there used to be these things called "magazines". :(

i'm so saddened by this news... i've been subscribing to domino since day one. i love the website - such a great resource... i hope that stays active.

i already lost cottage living...

those were my only two subscriptions...

So sad, I loved Domino!! Has anyone seen that new mag LoftLife? It could have some potential.

oooooh gooooooooooooooooooooooodddd whhhhhhhhhhhhhhy? I will miss you Domino. and uhm, will I get my $5 renewing subscription fee back?

i've got all but three copies. and i'm pretty sure i bought those three and eventually threw them out.

With a cover like the one displayed here, I'm not surprised.

i always looked forward to the arrival of my domino magazine. i loved the mag. i was a subscriber from day one. hope they'll replace the remaining issues of my subscription with lucky mag.

Domino was the one magazine I've voluntarily subscribed to in my adult life (its first year). I enjoyed it mildly, but found it much less inspiring, insightful, and articulate than the majority of blogs. Coupled with the environmental guilt I felt at what seemed to be an unjustifiable use of resources, I didn't renew my subscription. The internet for me, please.

Honestly, perhaps my problem is never knowing and loving magazines, but I can't imagine one that would be able to rival the internet (blogs, flickr, the world) and justify itself to me. Unless they wanted to print up that many full color pages for that price of exactly the images and text I wanted them to each month...

Bleck... they keep closing my favorite home magazines, yet there are still like 50 bridal magazines on the market. Why won't some of those go away instead?

In spite of the internet smorgasbord do people still want print? If so it's the advertisers who need to hear it. I work for a small local monthly magazine and advertising is our sole source of revenue. Paid subs barely cover the cost of postage. I love the internet but mourn the loss of variety and quality in print.

WHY is there no info on the FRONT page of Domino site about them folding??? And why are they still advertising suBscriptions??? And WHY have they not said anything on front page of this site how we get refunds or alternatives???? And why can ANYONE still subscribe?????? I just tried it and it is working!!!

You know it's getting bad when the good magazines can't keep afloat. I guess we'll just have to rely on good ol' free Apartment Therapy.

Why are they doing this to us? Why? Why? Why? I hate Conde Naste. I will never get another publication from them again for doing this to me. What will I read, where will I go for resources? While I love the blogosphere, there is nothing better than picking up a glossy mag and getting inspiration from it. I feel like I'm mourning the loss of a good friend (I know...I'm so dramatic).

I've lost just about every shelter mag I subscribe to -- Cottage Living (which they subbed with Coastal Living, not at ALL my style), then O at Home (they still haven't acknowledged the demise), and now Domino. If they fold subscriptions into Lucky, I'm requesting my money back.

I've always felt Domino was wildly out-of-touch with their prices and products, but enjoyed copying ideas in a less expensive way.

Domino started out strong but has definitly went down over the last 6 months. I recycled all my back issues as part of my own "apartment therapy."
Oy. Guess I'm back to reading Martha Stewart Living. :)
Maybe I'll get ReadyMade.

How sad. There was always something fresh and fun and innovative in Domino. I'm sorry for those who are out of a job if they couldn't be transferred to other publications.

I'm crushed! All the good ones are dropping like flies. What does this say about the magazine tastes of the general public? I, too, bought the Domino Decorating Book and wonder if that coupon is going to be good for anything now?

i vote that conde nast give the ax to lucky magazine instead of domino. lucky is terrible. domino is fantastic, and will be sorely missed.

I, too, have been a subscriber since the very first publication and am heartbroken about the demise of one of my favorite magazines. I just checked my bookcase to have a look at my collection and it seems I am missing the JUNE 2006 edition. AHHHH. If anyone is willing to sell his/hers copy, that would really make my day! I can be reached at yumitx at hotmail.com Thanks.

Not surprising:
1) Stuff too pricey
2) Layout NOT beautiful (i.m.h.op.)
3) Free and better sources online.

Brave New World…

Someone should pick up on the zeitgeist, and make a DIY-oriented, low-cost, stylish (it IS possible) site which can turn a profit… (Or how about AT puts in a new section for this type of thing?)

as much as it did not thrill me recently as it did in the beginning...this still sucks rocks

I just recently subscribed and only received one mag. Will I get a refund?
Gabriella1

If magazines are anything like newspapers, it's all about money, and I don't mean $1,000 sheets and whether most subscribers can even afford to think about such things. It's about advertising, how much of it you can sell and how much you can sell it for. When that drops and drops and drops, you fail to earn money enough to publish the magazine. It's a very simple equation. Subscriptions? They represent pocket change next to advertising. The economy hit advertisers in the pocketbooks, too. I doubt it was about content or the quality thereof and more about not being able to keep the ad vs. editorial content at an acceptable balance.

I'm an overseas subscriber and will be royally pissed if they offer Lucky as a replacement. Lucky is a cheap knock-off of InStyle and I want a HOME magazine, not a fashion mag. (I work in fashion so that's a bore to read during my free time.)

That said, I would prefer that they give us all an OPTION of which mag they'll roll our subscription dollars into. I guess Vogue would be one option but for the last few years it's gone downhill.

I suppose that Conde Nast is figuring out what to do about all of us subscribers. I think they'll answer some of our questions in the March issue--since, if you've noticed, the subscriber service inquiry links on the web site now go nowhere. :-(

So if the website is going too, I guess I need to save all my Deco file images to my computer? That will be so time consuming - I've saved a ton of images! And this was the last U.S. magazine that I really liked! At least I have Living Etc., though I can't buy most of the stuff featured here. :(

Maybe it will come back after the recession is over? Please? God?

Reading the news of Domino's demise has ruined my whole weekend; I, too, like AphroChick, am taking this very badly. Like many of you, Domino was my absolute favorite shelter mag. Incedently, #2. Blueprint (canceled!), #3. O at Home (canceled!), #4. InStyle Home (canceled!), #5). Budget Living (canceled!). Yes, I love Living, Etc, but most of the items shown can't be found here in the US. And while I do read Elle Decor and Met Home for inspiration, those are fantasy mags to me because the editorial spreads and items featured are way out of my league. Apt Therapy is my favorite blog, but nothing compares to lying in bed late at night with my favorite magazines.

What is wrong with this picture? Rather, what is wrong with the major publishing houses? I don't think any of the above mentioned titles folded because of lack of readership. As everyone mentions, it's because of lack of ad revenue. There seems to be a real disconnect here. Magazines are published to be READ by an adoring subscriber base, no? Why, then, does it's existence depend on ad sales, for goodness sake?

AND, now that the above 5 magazines are gone, there is really NOTHING left for the urban, stylish, design-loving, apt-dwelling, flea market-shopping diy-er of limited means to refer to or read. Apartment Therapy, you people should publish a magazine with the same content featured on your blog!!! Revolutionize the industry! We NEED a magazine that represents our demographic. Seriously.

Now that I've gotten this off my chest, I'm going to continue reminiscing with my stack of Dominos. (I have every single one since the first issue!) Boo hoo...

Advertisers pay typically in the thousands for a single ad. Take that multiplied by the number of ads in an average magazine and divide that by the number of subscribers, plus the part they already pay now for delivery costs and such. Passing that cost on to the Joe or Judy Schmoe is going to be just about as hard as keeping and getting new advertisers to advertise.
Part of what I've seen from Domino is it's sort of upscale but its readers seem like overall they tend to be taking its ideas and ripping them off, using lower-cost furnishings, rather than buying the higher end ones. That concept is probably hard to sell to advertisers, because if it's subscriber base isn't in a certain income bracket, they can't get high-end furnishers to buy ads. So get lower-cost furnishing advertisers. But if they have the impression that the magazine is showing high-end furnishings, why would I want to buy into that as easily?
I'd think it would be a lot easier for a magazine like Architectural Digest to sell ads because it's subscriber base is high end and what it shows is high end. But I have no real idea what their advertisers are like or their numbers right now.
The economy and costs right now are a big factor too.

"What is wrong with this picture? Rather, what is wrong with the major publishing houses? I don't think any of the above mentioned titles folded because of lack of readership. As everyone mentions, it's because of lack of ad revenue. There seems to be a real disconnect here. Magazines are published to be READ by an adoring subscriber base, no? Why, then, does it's existence depend on ad sales, for goodness sake?"

If not ad sales, then where get the money to produce these publications? As I mentioned above, average readers can't afford to have ALL the costs passed on to them. Subscribers are dropping print magazines now and they only cost $12 to $25 a subscription. If you can figure out that question, you can probably get a high-powered job at some big media companies ... This is the same conundrum that the newspaper industry is facing.
What some people are doing, is charging for online editorial content and putting more stock into developing their Web sites. I'm not sure how successful this is as a business model or not. Associated costs tend to be lower with the digital medium because you aren't subjected to the high costs of paper right now. But you can only cut costs so much.

AT is a great example of what the "new" shelter magazine could look like more and more in the future. People submit pictures of great looking homes for free. Costs are much lower, there is a defined readership of sorts, and advertisers like it because they can track who is clicking on their ads and what sort of response they are getting.

i think your understanding of domino readership is off.

I didn't know Cottage Living died, too! Oh my gosh! I actually had decided against renewing Domino for many of the reasons described here (too much high-end stuff, etc). I'm also getting annoyed with Atomic Ranch. Not everyone can own an Eichler! Why not focus on everyday mid-century gems?

Budget Living was the very best. I still have all my old issues. I was devastated when it folded.

I am really disappointed about this because Domino was my favorite magazine.

However, I'm even more disappointed that their website does not tell you they are closing and still accepts subscription renewals. Seems very dishonest.

I have been feeling annoyed with Domino for a while. It's not JUST that it is high-end, but also that it seemed like it was all about the design world. I started to feel like I was getting a periodical for industrial professionals. It just wasn't fun enough.

Of course, most publications aren't doing well (I still weep over Blueprints short life) but I think they were losing readership . . . and if you can't get readers, you can't get advertisers.

Like many of you, I deeply miss Blueprint. The design and layout were impeccable and had a bit more of a DIY slant, and I think it was far better than Domino in many respects.

Domino served as a relatively good substitute, although in the past few months it DID seem to become Rita Konig's own personal magazine.

I think many comments are very insightful and I agree with elements of varying schools of thought. But these are a few of my own reflections.

Domino's circulation at the end of last year was 850,000. They were delivering advertisers a base of 800,000. Sales were still growing through 2008 when the country was technically already in recession. Renewals were very strong. Brand awareness was growning. Demographics were very very good. All in all, after 3 years Domino was the most successful Shelter magazine launch in publishing history.

People speak of the demise of magazines and the rise of online content. But I believe that the two often can co-exist in mult-media streams (print, online, tv programming, down load, product tie-in etc...).

This was aided by Condé Nast's big spending business model but as many thought at the time, a different publisher might have been a better fit long term. This proved to be the case. Condé Nast likes big budgets, large sales, and great demographics but has very little flexibility to nurture a non core title.

Domino quickly provided all of these and a very loyal readership too. From the outside there seem to have been pressures to reconcile the unstuffy editorial philosophy with the publisher's demands. By all accounts the publisher for the first 3 years had a poor grasp of the magazine and it's market. Strong advertising relationships should have been developed from the outset but the weak publisher failed to do so despite the great launch.

Contrary to some people's assertion, the magazine paid close heed to blogs comments and readers letters. However they were also under competing pressure to position the magazine to appeal to advertisers. There were afforable price-points, lots of Ikea and similar accessible items mixed in with different levels of expensive pieces. However to appeal to the advertisers that make up the majority of Condé Nast's advertising profile, the magazine had to come more into line.

For the same reasons. editorial wishes for TV content both on morning shows and stand alone segments would generate new advertising streams and raise brand profile. However corporate seemed to think this would limit it's own possible TV ambition - and this avenue wasn't explored.

My real point is that Domino was very young - 3 years old and finding itself. The medium exists for feedback and forums and the magazine was listening. It was also trying to balance out the needs of it's publisher to produce a Condé Nast product and appeal to the kind of advertisers that could afford the corporation's ad rates.

It's a shame Domino wasn't given the chance to dramatically restructure, resolve these issues within a different imprint with a less intense business model.

There was an immensely talented young staff that could have streamlined & settled in and produced a great US magazine like Living etc... and Elle Decor (UK) the way it looked in the 80's when it was searching for stability and identity. The sales for them was tiny in England but they're slowly matured into solid books (as much as anything is in this market). I feel in a different publishing house, Domino had a future with sales of half what they had.

What a waste of a brilliant brand. What flat footed bumbling by Condé Nast (again).

Could this explain am suddenly recieving Sunset magazine? Endless articles about gravel landscaping and cooking with rosemary is no substitute for Domino. Sigh.

Domino-philes: Check out the blog We Love Domino, where you can see what others love and share your own thoughts.

-Kate, founder of We Love Domino

Lucky blows too. I would have rather they axed Lucky than Domino but it's all about the advertisers and they support Lucky.

"However to appeal to the advertisers that make up the majority of Condé Nast's advertising profile, the magazine had to come more into line. "

I think sometimes that the editorial staffs of print products are much more equipped or willing or able to help make their products meet their audiences needs, than advertising staffs are to work to make their ad sales fall in line with the various products they sell for.

Did any domino subscribers receive a weird email/survey on Domino/CondeNast letterhead from "Beth Fuchs Brenner/vice president and publisher" tonight? The subject line reads: "Important survey from domino - we need your help to get 100% participation." And the body of the letter asks for my completion of a survey (about recent purchases, income, what brands I use -- a marketing survey) which will enter me in a contest to win $50,000 and enroll me as a member of something called the Preferred Subscriber Network with benefits including "invitations to special events, private sales, and new product announcement." The press release last week said she would be leaving the company along with editor, Deborah Needleman. Two weeks ago they put someone in to oversee operations and the papers said Ms. Fuchs would be answering to him. Is something fishy going on? Did anyone else receive this email? Did you complete the survey?

I created a blog to try to save domino - join me to help save my favorite magazine EVER! Tell your friends, tell your love ones - tell everyone! Love, savedomino.blogspot.com

Good riddance...They were so out of touch. Really people in this economy i could not afford to make any of the alterations and purchases they suggested. I am back to Real Simple. God be a stimulous package.

Yeah, GREAT thinking - now that we're all staying home because of the crappy economy. I'm sure no one would be interested in reading an inexpensive magazine or getting ideas and inspiration for DIY stuff around the house.
Now we'll just sit at home and watch tv I guess.
STUPID!

Oh no! I love this magazine, and I'm a guy! I did notice it was getting a little weak in the past few months.

Oh well, I am glad that I didn't renew my subscription early this year.

At least Readymade is still around, that one is my favorite.

i really like Domino.. maybe they'll be able to come back...

every time I found an issue in my mailbox it was like x-mass :) I would curl up on the couch with a cup of tea and the issue and use the stickers to mark good ideas... i'll miss that :( as much as i like real simple, it is just not the same magazine nor the same message... i'm very sorry to see it go

This is SO sad! I hate seeing all these great magazines go under. Dwell isn't in trouble, is it? I have every issue of Domino ever published. Their online galleries were a great resource, I've got to go save the good pictures to my computer! I agree though that AT has become more and more of a go-to spot for ideas as opposed to thumbing thru all my old Dominos. The thing is, there's just something about the feel of an actual papar magazine that websites can't replace. Hopefully Lucky will join up with Domino again.
Am I the only one who loved that Domino gave us stickers to put on the pages and items we liked?! I have to say that even though they didn't always succeed at it, I appreciate that Domino tried to create a magazine for all of us style-obsessed non-millionaires!

i just received my country home mag with a letter stating this will be the last issue-domino ,O@home, cottage living,country home----they want to send me better homes and gardens -not my style @ all

While I'm sorry to see the magazine depart, I will not, however miss the tone of the editors - using the magazine like their personal society column. How many times did they need to feature one of the Chantecialle heiresses? Did we need the soppy article about Allegra Hicks and her daddy problems? I'll miss the real articles about design, but not the self indulgent tripe detailing the personal exesses of Domino's editors....

I stopped getting domino for about a year in 2006-2007. I saw an issue at a friends house and started subscribing again. I loved the last page- the 10 things that make me happy page, the makeovers, the color ideas. Sure, $6000 for a sofa is a bit pricey for the average person and I think toward the end there they may have been reaching a little. I just bought the book and it is a great ditty composed mostly of my fave articles and makeovers. I saw the comment about Jane- another great mag to bite the dust. I didn't know about Cottage Living or the other ones, but I had a subscription to Blueprint and I loved that. Martha has her hands in too many things I guess for them all to be successful. A few years ago I was sent a new mag called Living Room that I loved too, but I think it just lasted only that one issue. What to do now???? Any other good decorating/style magazines that anyone recommends?

As you can see, I am late on the news. I only found out yesterday, when I received the official notice via postcard. And I kinda had an incling (feeling), because I had been waiting for my next issue to arrive, and I didn't see Domino on the shelves at Target, or the local grocery store. I am soooo upset. Domino was, IS, my interior design library!! Although I couldn't always afford some items they advertised, the writers had really good information on how to get the same results, inexpensively. I have redesigned my bedroom based on what I've learned from Domino!!!! There were always fresh ideas, cool tricks, and valuable information that helped me live a better life. I am really, deeply, saddened! And highly frustrated as well!!! I hope that somehow, Domino's readership can ban together and start a movement (amongst many) to rescue them in some way!!!!! There needs to be an uprising of sorts!!! Any takers???? Joine me! We can do this! Come on You Commoners!!!! You Workin' stiffs. You hard workin' Josie's (and Joe's)!!! Those of us who learned at Domino's feet and transformed our spaces from a "Remnants of College" theme to one that really makes us feel like we are the Queens and Kings of our humble castles!! (The "Look at how Fabulous I Am!!" look) Show the big corporate machine our moxy, our voice!!!! WE WANT DOMINO!!!! WE WANT DOMINO!!!! WE WANT DOMINO!!!! (SAY IT WITH ME!!! )

just got news finally from the postcard from Domino saying its subscribers will get Arch Digest instead...oh dear!

does this mean they'll revive the $5,000 apt re-do, or have they?...will they make it one room, $1,000....? yah, sure.

Domino (high end for us lower earners, or this clerk at least), you will be missed !!

No! I loved Domino! I was wondering why I hadn't seen it on the shelves lately. The magazine was so great, I didn't imagine that it would fold! As soon as the economy gets better, maybe it'll come back. I guess I'll hold on to my old issues.

No wonder why I couldn't find it anywhere? I just bought the home I dreamed about for over 20 years. ...a little shabby chic gem... I just came on board a year ago...Any back issues?

The "knees on the ground,Fists in the air comment" was hilarious

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
I am sooooooooo disappointed.
First, I lost HOME magazine and now Domino.
Where are the publishing angels?
Forget Architectural Digest...it's for the rich.
Where am I going to to get decorating for for the middle class budget?
This is so frustrating.
WE WANT DOMINO....WE WANT DOMINO !!!