Publishing a Magazine and Loving Life.

THERE IS A young, creative vibe in the East End of London, with so many things happening under the radar.

So Elizabeth Barrett and Luke Edge created a magazine, STATION, to show off the scene - as well as their own talents. They've published four free, bi-monthly issues so far and they have big dreams.

Elizabeth (in the center of the above image) is a trained journalist who previously covered fashion for the conservative newspaper, The Daily Mail ("After a while, I quit telling people where I worked," she said. "People hated it.").

Luke (in the hat) is a designer. They do the majority of the magazine themselves, with the assistance of unpaid columnists and family members forced into a variety of tasks - proofreading, babysitting, distribution, etc.

They had considered doing a website but they like print.

"With a website, you can change things anytime," Luke said. "It's not real. Holding a magazine is like having your balls in your hand. It's permanent."

That has its ups and downs. With such a small crew doing so much work, minor little details often get messed up along the way.

"When it comes back from the printer, I don't even read it," Elizabeth said.

The mag focuses on the arts, music, fashion and lifestyle. They try not to thrust their opinions on people, saying this or that is the cool new thing. Instead, they just highlight interesting people doing interesting things.

It is beautifully designed - simple, with great use of images and white space. They have evolved their product with each issue. For instance, they no longer print the publication date on the cover, giving every issue a feel of timelessness.

They print and hand-deliver 6,000 copies. The publication is financially supported by advertising, though they have yet to make any profit worth noting. The couple, who have an 18-month old son together, do other contract work to support themselves. They recently produced the magazine for the Lovebox music festival. They are currently negotiating a deal to produce a magazine for a major UK retailer.

After they celebrate their one-year anniversary, Elizabeth wants to expand the mag from it's current 64 pages to more than one hundred. One year after that, she'd like to take the magazine monthly. And it will always be free to readers.

Ultimately, the magazine is a labor of love.

"It's lovely just to be able to do something I really like," said Elizabeth.