Bright colors, affordable, stylish clothes and fashions created by local designers are just some of the characteristics found in Athens new fashion magazine, blvd. Published by Athens Magazine, which is a branch of the Athens Banner-Herald, blvd began distribution this week and celebrated its launch by exhibiting clothing featured in the magazine.

Local fashion businesses and lines such as Dillon Rojers, Toula’s , Flaunt, and Red Speckled Frog displayed and sold merchandise while fashion enthusiasts toasted the beginning of the quarterly publication.

John Robert Thurmond, fashion and style director for blvd., said the magazine was geared toward helping people have better choices from local merchants, enabling them to be fashionable without sacrificing affordability.

“The magazine’s all about a younger demographic and people from about mid 20′s to early 30′s,” said Thurmond. “Our generation has never experienced a time when economics played such a part in fashion. So we want to give our readers all of their options, from a $600 Betsie Johnson dress to a $40 dress from Angora’s.”

The magazine features designs by Thurmond and camera work by Abbey Lindsey, a photographer based in Athens who runs Dylan Blue Photography. However, most of the articles that the magazine features were written by interns, said Miranda Cook, an intern on blvd. and senior from Cumming, Georgia. Cook described her excitement of getting to work with the magazine after the decision to launch was finalized in January.

“I work for Athens Magazine and that’s how I got on blvd. I had no idea they were going to launch this magazine, so it’s really exciting getting to work on it,” said Cook.

Cook said in addition to writing articles interns found material for the magazine, such as going to stores to get ideas and taking inspiration from styles that people downtown wore.

“I went out and found shoes for the article that I wrote,” said Cook.

Amy Stillwagon, assistant editor to blvd. and senior from Brunswick, said there were many instances of collaboration between interns in order to get the magazine ready.

“I’m the assistant editor for [blvd.], so I had to tell the interns what to do and to cover, mostly. We had to fact check it. I sort of had to organize it. We all had to decide what to name it since it was a new magazine.”

Stillwagon said the name is meant to reflect the magazine’s centered look at the fashion of Athens.

“[The magazine is] actually [named] for a historic section of Athens,” said Stillwagon. Stillwagon said the magazine went through many proposed names before settling on blvd. “It was actually a long collaboration. We spent a long time deciding on the name. We wanted something unique to Athens, because everything in the magazine is centered around Athens. Fashions in Athens, people you can find in Athens, stores in Athens, just everything Athens.”

Copies of the spring edition can be found downtown in many clothing stores.