Prima – a magazine name known to many, and quite rightly so because Prima means first or leading and I feel it is a leading magazine in the area it covers and it certainly covers lots of areas.

*PRICE*

*CONTENTS*

Fashion – there is always several articles on this popular topic. It tends to be in a set order and the first part of the magazine has ideas about fashion for a certain season or holiday. How to cope with a certain problem , like disguising a small bust, finding the right pair of trousers whether you have long legs or large tummy, there is always a solution. A page under the name of fashion notebook, brings the latest news of High street and catwalk fashion with perhaps a competition to win a giveaway item.

Home – most of us have to work within a budget, so ideas how to transform our homes on a budget are helpful. Tips and wise buys are added with this article. For instance first impressions last so your hallway needs to be stylish – important if you are selling your home, one idea was that a mirror can make a pokey hallway look bigger. Paint rather than wallpaper in your hall as it easier to touch up scuffs from family and pets. Other rooms are also covered, with fresh ideas in the kitchen, glamorise your bathroom by livening up your loo seat or relax in a beautiful bedroom. Lists of stockists are given with telephone numbers. There are always lots of pictures and prices making it easy to decide what you would like to do in your home.
Easymakes – instead of the patterns which must have been expensive, prima now gives clear instructions on how to make an article and lists all the materials you will need and easy instructions how to make it. On the Home Solutions page every month an expert rounds up the latest decorating tips and offers advice getting the best for your home. The Home notebook has short articles on different subjects, perhaps cheap and chic bedding, or unusual crockery. Five of the best vacuum cleaners, a giveaway and you can win £25 for a reader’s tip!
Gardening comes under the title banner of Homes, and there is a section to interest the gardeners amongst us, or even give ideas to those who hate gardening! There maybe an easymake section here too, with instructions how to make a bouquet or a simple floral arrangement. The garden notebook also has a reader’s tip and the winner gets £25 – I wish I had read the tip of putting sponges in the bottom of hanging baskets as they retain the moisture and need less watering. Too late now, but I will try it next year. Again the notebook page is full of ideas, tips and has a competition. Tip to stop slugs eating your Hostas, is transfer to containers, daub Vaseline around the rim and mulch with a thick layer of gravel.

Cookery – my favourite pages! There are always delicious recipes with mouth watering photographs. I find it helpful that they include the cooking time, the cost per portion, and especially the calories breaking it down to fat and carbohydrate content. The recipe is in bold print and the instructions are clear. There even may be a tip on how to make something simpler or how to vary the taste. The step by step cookery page is good for the novice cook and leads you carefully through each stage. I like the cut-out-and-keep cookcards, there are 4 pictures on one page and the recipe and instructions are printed on the back. There is a Reader’s kitchen page where the readers can ask a question, share a recipe or give a tip. There is a competition for a favourite recipe with a prize of a set of saucepans worth over £300! The Cookery notebook page shares tips and advice on new products, what is in season and sometimes compares similar products to rate which one is best.

Prima promotions – some pages are under this heading it may be look like a cookery page but is clearly labelled so you know they are advertising but the information is written in a helpful form, like how to roast a joint from the English Beef and Lamb Executive, or raising awareness about Freedom Foods, stepping out in style in Hush Puppy shoes. I was actually surprised that there were about 56 pages devoted to adverts apart from these promotions, I hadn’t realised there were so many, but I’m sure some of the really expensive glossy magazines must have more adverts and I know the adverts do keep the cost down.

Treat yourself – has a page of offers you can enter to win, perhaps a Luxury weekend or a camera, which you can enter by telephoning or writing.
After a few pages of adverts there is the last page “Spoil yourself” – a page full of indulgent treats guaranteed to make you feel good about yourself. There is even a recipe in this edition to treat your body to a boost. If you can’t afford a visit to a salon, then give yourself a body polish. Mix 1 tablespoon of Demerara sugar, and one of caster sugar with 4 tablespoons of honey, a couple of squirts of lime juice, a teaspoon of ground ginger and a pinch of cinnamon. Rub it in circular motions over your body before rinsing off in the shower. You’ll smell and look good enough to eat!

One interesting fact I noticed was that prima is available on CD or floppy disc for blind or disabled people from TNAUK (The Talking Newspaper Association UK), there is a charge for this. They supply most magazines and as I am a voluntary reader and presenter of our Local Newspaper (which is supplied free) for the blind and partially sighted in this area I can recommend such a magazine as a gift for people who used to enjoy reading and are no longer able to do so.