Raschel magazine review

She’s here. Long awaited, but certainly worth that wait. Issue 1 of Raschel magazine has had a rocky road from the Kickstarter being fully funded to shipping, but these things happen with Kickstarter campaigns, especially when they’re run by one person with their own full-time life instead of a team. And this review isn’t about that – it’s about the content of the magazine and what it delivers for our community. So let’s dig into it together!

One disclaimer is that whilst I do have an article featured in this magazine, for which I was paid, the opinions below are entirely my own and from the point of view of a reader.

Entirely community-led

Like many lolita zines that continue to pop up these days, Raschel consists entirely of pieces written specifically for and selected from community members’ submissions. My memory isn’t what it used to be, so if I misremember anything about the process, the mistake is entirely mine. However, I do seem to recall there being a submission stage followed by a selection stage, meaning that not everything that was submitted necessarily made the cut. Having the final copy in hand, I think it shows. Whilst there are multiple pieces that are similar in the broad subject, no two are exactly the same and each one brings something unique to the table. For example, the interview with The Black Ribbon has a much heavier focus on the events the brand puts on compared to the interview with Haenuli, which is much more personal about the designer, compared to the one with Belladonna that puts the spotlight on the evolution of a brand that’s been around for so long. Every page offered something of interest and I haven’t found any bits that made me feel like I wasn’t the intended audience for it or like I was “too advanced” for something. The selection delivered a magazine that’s not rehashing the same old tips for newbies, though at the cost of some broader thematic repetition.

A sneak preview of what's inside.

Western visuals

That was the first thing that struck me, even once a few pages were previewed to backers shortly before shipping began. The inside of Raschel looks a lot more like some of the crafting or women’s magazines that I’ve flicked through in the UK and in Poland than like any Japanese-produced fashion magazine that I’ve ever seen. This doesn’t detract from its visual appeal: every article is laid out in a very clear way that guides the reader through the pages and how to read it, making the important information jump out. In contrast, I have in the past found some Japanese magazines prioritise the aesthetic over readability, e.g. with not enough contrast between the text and the background or by favouring a more “cluttered” look. As much as I appreciate GLBs and the others for their look, it brings joy through sentimentality, I highly appreciate that Raschel is not a strain on my eyes and that I can comfortably read every word. I also imagine that this will make it easier on any non-English speakers who pick up a copy, as Google Translate and other translation apps should have no problems with picking up the text from the page. Aesthetically the choice of colours may be divisive, I’m unsure myself how I feel about it from a purely aesthetic point of view, and I agree that sometimes the desire to make it clear and readable kind of went the other way by leaving a lot of empty spaces where there might not be much need for that, e.g. the coord photos pages. Whilst overall the magazine looks a little less than what I expect from EGL magazines, it’s also distinct from every other EGL zine that I’ve ever seen, making it more memorable. But I very much see how this could have people divided.

Oh look, it me up there. What a line-up of contributors as well!

All that you’d expect…

I’ve touched on the content already, so this will expand on that very briefly. Raschel offers everything that you could reasonably expect and want from a fashion magazine. The issue is relatively heavy on interviews, there are pages spotting indie brands, which I personally found great, and reader-submitted outfits, you’ll find some craft-related tutorials, an event report, a quiz, and even a one-page short story. Some of the features, very likely because of who they were written by (i.e. Western lolitas and not professional journalists or editors) feel like reading someone’s blog posts in the best possible way: comforting, cosy, and entirely relatable. Raschel’s look may be less kawaii, but what’s actually on the pages feels familiar to what you’d see in a Gothic and Lolita Bible. I wish that the paper doll, a cute idea in and of itself, was either a separate insert or on a single page with nothing on the other side, as this way forces people to either photocopy it or cut it out straight from the magazine. The paper is of great quality, glossy without being reflective and shiny, which makes it easy to turn the pages over. It has a higher end feel to it, which in turn makes it feel like the magazine will be a memento for a long time to come.

All the things that bring magazine readers joy.

… and keeping the reader on their toes

What I mean by that is that where I might have expected articles with similar themes to be grouped together, the magazine has instead opted to spread them out across the whole issue. Whether you like this or not will come down to personal preference. I can see how someone might want all the crafty/tutorial-esque features to be grouped together and for indie brand previews to be grouped together and so on. However, I lean more on the favourable side because it made my reading experience varied and made me less likely to skip a feature or to flip past a few pages. Raschel invites you to make reading this an occasion, not a hasty flick through what interest you the most. And once you sit down to fully delve into it, the surprise of the next page not being “more of the same” keeps you engaged and absorbing even more. That really worked well for me and I imagine (hope) that it will for many others too.

An important reminder for both the sewists and the readers.

Issue 2?

I have no more information on this than you do. The editorial pages don’t give any clues as to future intentions, no matter which way you may slice the words in search of a hidden meaning. Truth is also that things are different now than when the Kickstarter campaign launched. If another crowdfunding campaign were to be done for Issue 2, it may need to raise its funding goals due to the rising costs of materials and production, to cover a bigger team, to potentially account for some drop in US print orders with people over there still figuring out what their new tariffs mean for them, and many more factors. That’s all before we even consider whether the final product is enough for people to forget about the unexpectedly long wait and if Raschel fills in a niche that no other community-created zine has filled before. Hype can rise and fall at the drop of a hat and needs to be cultivated for a successful crowdfunding campaign again, which is always different when there is a previous one of something to compare it to.

No crowdfunding without the community behind it.

I’d personally love to see another Raschel come to life and to see it grow. Issue 1 was a great snapshot of our community at that specific moment in time, and I would love to see how the magazine evolves. Obviously now that there is an issue to read, it will bring with it more reviews and direct feedback that would shape the look and feel of Issue 2. Maybe I’m the minority in enjoying my content ungrouped. Maybe someone new would join the team whose creative vision would steer it into a different direction. Maybe another artist is commissioned, so that with each issue Raschel’s feel evolves, not unlike how themes made each GLB volume unique. There are so many possibilities and options, all of which rely entirely on the lolita community putting their money where their mouth is and backing Issue 2 if one were to be announced. And, of course, on Kate as the chief editor to have it in her to put out a call for another one.

A magazine to perfectly encapsulate fond memories of a wonderful event <3

For now, all that I can say is that if you haven’t been able to back Raschel when the Kickstarter was live and want to see it all for yourself, then you should keep an eye out on their Instagram page. Leftover stock is due to be sold on Etsy and it may be possible to purchase digital copies too. And if nothing else, you’ll find out when an Issue 2 is in the works the moment that it’s announced.