Magazine Review: Ply Magazine

Ply Magazine
Available in print and digital formats

Yearly subscriptions range from $36-48 (depending on where you live in the world...the digital subscription is $36 for everyone)

Published Quarterly

Okay, I have to be one hundred percent up front here...I'm pretty sure I have a crafting crush on Jacey Boggs Faulkner, the publisher and director (amongst other things) of Ply Magazine.  What a great journey to what I view is a great, quality publication that adds immensely to the fiber community!  This magazine was crowd-sourced by a successful Kickstarter campaign, which is an impressive accomplishment in itself.  But "crowd-sourced" does not mean it lacks in any of the polish and refinement of more traditionally funded publications. (And really, what is traditional in the publishing world anymore?)  Printed on high quality paper, filled with quality articles that advance the craft of spinning, and beautiful art and photography on every page, this magazine has become an instant favorite of mine.  

I think the thing I enjoy the most about this publication is that, while a professional magazine, it still manages to feel like a community endeavor.  The small staff that run the show at Ply do a wonderful job preserving the unique voices of those who enjoy spinning.  Whether you are new to the craft or a seasoned pro, I feel this magazine is an open invitation for everyone...there is a lot to learn in its glossy, well thought-out pages.  They want people to contribute no matter their skill-level because there is something for all of us to give; that is a really wonderful thing.  

And you know what, it is interesting.  While I love a good how-to book or magazine, and I drool over beautifully photographed weaving and knitwear patterns, this magazine really connects me with the journey of how and why in spinning.  It respects, however, that with many ancient handcrafts (and newer ones, too) there are many ways to approach the same thing and that we are artists.  With the framework of a common language brought together by this magazine, it is great to see all the different ways people spin...and they are all beautiful.

Bottom Line: If you spin, you should buy a subscription.  If you don't spin, you should buy an issue because the sweet siren song presented in its pages might lure you to spin.  Either way, you should buy this magazine.
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