September Issue Reveals The Vogue Cover Lies Creative Process

This clip from the September Issue‘s DVD bonus footage perhaps explains why Vogue cover lies are always so, well, daft. They’re made up by a bunch of women who sit around, tossing out cliché after cliché, until something sticks.

“Bigger and better,” says one editor. “Bigger and bolder.” Anna Wintour has moved on to another meeting — her strictures are “Keep it fun” and, as she’s leaving “That layout is terrible, change it” — and the September, 2007, cover is inching towards completion. If only the team could come up with one bit of cover text to qualify the phrase “Our Biggest Issue Ever.”

“Biggest and best,” offers one. “Supersize Me,” says someone with a sense of humor.

It might seem unfair — or against the spirit of things — to critique a brainstorming session, but given the indignities Vogue foists upon womanity (portraits of turkey necks, gold-dipped $64,000 furs, Plum Sykes) I was curious to see how the sausage was made. (Especially a sausage we have such fun cooking with, ourselves!)

“To The Max,” says another editor. “Sounds like ‘T.J. Maxx,'” shoots back another. “Oh. T.J. Maxx. No.”

“Fighting weight.” “Heavyweight Chic.”

“Can we do a fashion, fun? Fun with fashion?”

The meeting grinds on.

They settled on EXTRA-EXTRA LARGE.

The September Issue