Impossibly dapper Jim Nelson once again left New York’s Marriott Marquis clutching an elephant—the coveted yet unwieldy Alexander Calder stabile pachyderm that signifies a win in the American Society of Magazine Editors’ National Magazine Awards. The GQ editor-in-chief picked up his publication’s second consecutive Ellie for excellence in magazine design, triumphing over a finalist field that consisted of born-again Bloomberg Businessweek (which nabbed a general excellence award), Fabien Baron-ified Interview, New York, and always-on-its-game Wired. We’ll have to wait until Friday to see if GQ‘s double-header will extend to the Society of Publication Designers’ “Magazine of the Year” award. Meanwhile, back at the Ellies, Vogue was honored for overall excellence in magazine photography, although its spooky Steven Klein-lensed “Lady Be Good” portfolio, singled out as a finalist for best feature photography, was bested by those “Vamps, Crooks, and Killers” at The New York Times Magazine. Harper’s won for news and documentary photography with “Juvenile Injustice,” a photo essay by Richard Ross. Other victories of note: TIME was named magazine of the year, Newell Turner‘s freshened-up House Beautiful took home the Elllie for best lifestyle magazine, and the work of the late Christopher Hitchens earned Vanity Fair the award for columns and commentary.