Americans Rush to Buy Titles That Sell the Simple Life

Americans have spent decades reading glossy magazines telling them how to look good, get fit, stay young, wear the right clothes and cook the best food while holding down a high-paying job with stock options and hefty bonuses.

So when a group of publishers launched magazines devoted to simple pleasures - making a wallet out of duct tape or transforming supermarket flowers into a Valentine's Day bouquet - they were dismissed as 'simple'.

But budget titles are enjoying record circulation rises. Real Simple and Budget Living (motto: 'Spend smart, live rich') are the fastest-growing magazines on US newsstands. Their covers may feature $5 fruit bowls rather than celebrities, but their circulations have more than doubled since their launch. Budget Living is Adweek magazine's Start-up of the Year and Advertising Age's Launch of the Year, while Real Simple has won Advertising Age's Magazine of the Year.

They represent a reaction against the work-and-spend frenzy of modern American life. Whether it is because of the prospect of recession, job losses or the threat of terrorism, they have a huge following among consumers who regard being thrifty and decluttering their out-of-control lives as smart.

Critics said upmarket advertisers would never buy into a 'downmarket' title, but Real Simple's latest issue is the largest ever, with 165 pages of advertisements, including Mercedes Benz, Ralph Lauren and Chanel.

Real Simple and Budget Living have been joined by Budget Travel, Chic Simple, Organic Style, and a host of new titles. They contain a mix of features from 'How to throw a bash for not much' and 'A patio for £50' to the bizarre 'How to knit a beer cover so that your hands don't get cold while sipping your favourite brew'.

Don Welsh, a former associate publisher of Rolling Stone magazine who launched the budget titles, says it is a backlash from Americans 'fed up with being told to spend a fortune on the latest this or that', then finding it does nothing to improve their lives.

'Anyone with a credit card can buy nice wine or jet off to an expensive place, but these days it is much more fashionable - and fun - to find a great bargain wine or go on holiday in a place where you have a great time without feeling ripped off.'