Every chance I get when I am by a magazine section in a store I stop by and look for Mary Engelbright's Home Companion. I flippin' have loved this magazine for years... and years and years. There are a few that I always especially love to pick up and although Martha Stewart has a great one, I prefer something a little more vintage and offbeat.
Anyway, on Saturday I remembered that they sell it at Keepsake Cottage Fabrics in Country Village so I walked on over to pick up a copy, only to be informed it is no longer in print. Julie, the owner, told me she read about it on the the M.E. site so I went to mine and took a peek. Here is an excerpt from the letter Mary Engelbright wrote to explain:
A Note From Mary
Well, friends, by now most of you have heard that Home Companion magazine is not being published. It was a business decision by our licensed publishing partner based purely on the lack of advertising income, certainly not on circulation or subscriber numbers, both of which remained very strong thanks to all of you!
You may have heard of other home magazines closing - Cottage Living, Domino, O at Home, Home, and Country Home, among others. The sad fact is that home magazines are being hit harder than others because of the dismal housing industry - people aren't able to sell or buy homes, so fewer people are buying flooring, wallpaper, furniture, etc., so those companies don't feel they can afford to advertise. It's a vicious circle.
That is just a little bit from her letter, but I read like three or four of those magazines! Cottage Living was another favorite.
This is so disappointing.