inspirational investment

Dear trusted friends and associates, 

I am writing to you today with an amazing investment opportunity! First, let me assure you, this blog has not been hacked by a Nigerian Prince offering a generous inheritance and a deal on a timeshare. Rather, I'm here to tell you about a gorgeous magazine that *could* be seen as an investment. 

Kinfolk. Now in its seventh volume, it is an example of what seems to be an emerging trend of book-magazine hybrids. At first glance, the format suggests its a magazine. But once you thumb through its sparsely designed, thick matte pages, you quickly realize that it is far more than your average periodical.

Kinfolk's tag line is "a guide for small gatherings". According to its manifesto, the Portland-based magazine's selection of recipes and entertaining ideas serves as a "blueprint for a balanced, intentional lifestyle". Each volume is chock full of features meant to inspire you to gather your loved ones around a rustic wood table and bond over your shared love of small-batch ice cream and freshly-gathered wildflowers. The features are so achingly hip and the writing is so precious that you may sort of hate yourself for liking it, but in the end, you may go on liking it anyway. And you certainly won't be able to stop yourself from admiring the genius styling and beautiful photographs.

Sure, that's all well and good, but how does that make this an investment? Well, I'll stop you right there. Can you put a even put a price on the vast amount of hip inspiration rolled up (or maybe flattened) into  this one slim volume?

It just so happens that you can put a pretty hefty price on it actually. If you were looking into purchasing the previous volumes of Kinfolk, you would find that several of the back issues are sold out on their website. If you were to then look on Amazon, you would discover that many of the back issues are selling for far more than the original purchase price. I can only assume this is because the magazine is printed in a small, limited run (though I haven't yet figured out why Volume Four is currently listed for close to $900!).  

So, my friends, if you were to purchase this magazine now (and handle it very carefully, maybe wear gloves, or get like a plastic sleeve?), you could be looking to earn tens, possibly hundreds, of dollars once this volume sells out! Why invest in your IRA when a stack of these puppies is like money in the bank! Think of all the artisanal ice cream you could buy! 

And if Kinfolk doesn't turn out to be a profitable investment, at least it'll look good on your coffee table...


[All images from Kinfolk Magazine Vol 7. Images 1, 3 and 4 via Kinfolk. Images 2 and 5 via Trendland]