Month: October 2020

Tips for being Baby
Pebble, a baby
https://www.storenvy.com/stores/1042727-chicken-collective

Tips for being Baby is a one-page black and white mini-zine full of baby tips for babies. From a baby.

This is a short and sweet review for a short and sweet zine – extra on the sweet. Tips for being Baby is a cute, text-only zine of baby tips broken up into sections like ‘eating food’, ‘making friends’, and ‘excellent things’. Each section has a number of fun little snippets to fit the category.

I’m not a parent, but I enjoyed this zine and found it quite adorable. I could see this sort of mini-zine being such a fun way of documenting your child growing up. It certainly have me a smile, and I only had the pleasure of meeting little Pebble once.

There are no socials or contacts on this one, but the cute wins the day. Plus I almost missed the secret inside and got an extra smile when I found it.

I think you’ll have a good idea of whether you’ll like this zine. It was a very cute little pick up in my day.

Healing – Musings From a Mental Ward
Sian May
https://www.instagram.com/dad.party/
https://www.depop.com/dadparty/

Healing – Musings From a Mental Ward is an A6 read and white zine of art and word musings.

This is one of those zines I have a hard time reviewing because I know I like it, but I struggle to find the words tell you why.

In a combination of few words and uniquely detailed drawings, Sian takes a journey of thought. ‘Musings’ is the perfect word. I felt like I was wandering with Sian as they processed being in a place that creates a lot deep thinking and complex feelings.

This zine reminds me of poetry – it presents a lot, but my interpretations from my own experiences bring a lot to the reading experience.

I think Healing is a zine to check out (if wards are not a sensitive topic for you). I’m looking forward to looking into more of Sian’s creations.

Drivel #1 – The New Issue
Gina Sarti
https://antiquatedfuture.com/artist/gina-sarti
https://www.instagram.com/okaysurefinewhatever/

Drivel #1 – The New Issue is a US-sized half-fold black and white zine full of a variety of pieces all around the theme of ‘newness’.

A zine with a dedication! Can we do more of that? It’s such a lovely touch.

Drivel is a cut and paste style zine with handwriting, (primarily) type, drawings, and (patterned) backgrounds. It’s the kind of zine a casual flip through will tell you is packed with plenty to read in an aesthetically pleasing way.

Gina opens with a dedication, a thank you for reading, and even a PO box for getting in touch if you’d like. How friendly is that? From there we go into plenty of fun new things like new treats, new romances, new words, and more. Interviews are involved as well – adding a bit of collab-ish flavour as well.

I’m a big romantic softie at heart, so of course I loved the ‘new romance’ part in which Gina asked two friends who recently started dating to both answer a series of very sweet questions.

Gina’s interview with their friend Rachel is very interesting. Wow is Rachel an interesting person! Plus I love the idea of friends – new or old – interviewing each other. There’s always more to learn.

Drivel is a fun zine full of variety, spice, laughs, serious moments… I enjoyed reading this a lot, and I hope there is another Drivel in the zineverse or it’s on its way.

Check it out.