  I show that a model for the interaction of magnetic domains that includes a
short range ferromagnetic and a long range dipolar anti-ferromagnetic
interaction reproduces very well many characteristic features of
two-dimensional magnetic domain patterns. In particular bubble and stripe
phases are obtained, along with polygonal and labyrinthine morphologies. In
addition, two puzzling phenomena, namely the so called `memory effect' and the
`topological melting' observed experimentally are also qualitatively described.
Very similar phenomenology is found in the case in which the model is changed
to be represented by the Swift-Hohenberg equation driven by an external
orienting field.
