Saturday, December 31, 2011

Valkyries: Life and Death

Green Fields Again

Violent Seduction is currently having her yearly 50% off sale, and it is awesome! These two dresses can be gotten for only 250$L, and I hope you agree they are worth every penny! It's a matching set, and the two dresses share many of the same characteristics - including headwings and backwings, the winged shoes, and the staffs. The "Life" version also has a delightful pearl crown included that I simply fell in love with. You can see "Life" on Deoridhe Starr, and "Death" on Deoridhe Quandry, though now both of me have both dresses since they're sold as a set. The headwings really remind me of Gaia Online, where they are one of the early donation item gifts (before they were monthly collectables!). The heels are pre-alpha, but everything included is modifiable (a real gem when I hit the torsos and needed to accomodate my rather sizable chest!), which means you can easily shrink the invisiprim and add a basic heel alpha. I actually didn't get to that yet on either of the Deoridhes, but it will take a fraction of a moment when I do - I ended up doing something similar on a lot of my pre-alpha shoes that were modify-ok. Besides the chest, the biggest pieces I ended up modifying were the armguards; since I'm short, my arms are correspondingly short and since my fat percentage is much higher, they are correspondingly large, so I ended up enlarging all the arm guards then shrinking the lengths of the three pieces involved and moving them together. Again, since the outfit was modify-ok, this was both possible and reasonably fast.

Sighting Civilization

The hair is from the new Alice Project group gift, in the blond shade (her group gifts offer one of each of the standard hairshades plus some more rainbowlichous colors). On Deoridhe Starr I used the white tips and added some white streaks to make her a bit more angelic. She's also wearing the very sweet group gift skin from Curio, which has very delicate features and a sweetly pink mouth. Both Deoridhes have the same shape, so you can see the effect different skins have; in contrast to Deoridhe Starr, Deoridhe Quandry has wider and more defined, less pouty lips on her De La Soul skin and lipstick. One of the things I like about photographing Deoridhes together is how these skin contrasts can really clearly show up on the same shape. Deoridhe Quandry, as you can see, is using black tips and black streaks in her Alice Project hair - yes, both of them are in the group! Booyah! One added point on the hair - it is mesh, which means the pony tail is rigged to stay behind the shoulder no matter how the head moves, but the hair itself has no movement - which I know is a downside to a lot of people.

What?

At this end of an old year and beginning of a new one, I'm really struck by how much the last year has taught me about high contrasts - about the dark and the light and how they are both evermoving and ever-entertwined. Like twin ouroboroses,they rise and fall with each day, each week, each month, and each year. Within every sour there is a core of sweet, and within every sweet there is a core of sour. The older I get, the more I find my loves and hates evermore tightly bound, my joys ever tempered by sadness and my sadness evertempered by joy. I find this contrast, this reality, to be one which suits me and on the whole leaves me content to stay on the wheel of time, within the bounds of the world with everyone.

May the new year bring you what you want and also what you deserve.

Smelly Fish

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Quandry:
Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Hair: Alice Project, Sunye (group gift)
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Dress & Shoes: Violent Seduction, Valkyrie - Death (Promotional Item)
Bloomers: Sn@tch, Bloomers - Black
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Talisman
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet

Starr:
Skin: Curio, Petal - Angel (group gift)
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: Flugeln Brise, 09-cup
Hair: Alice Project, Sunye (group gift)
Dress & Shoes: Violent Seduction, Valkyrie - Life
Bloomers: Sn@tch, Bloomers - White

Poses Quandry: aDORKable Poses
Poses Starr: Glitterati

Location: Fehu Isa Heimat der Asatru
Light Settings: TOR, NIGHT Bright Blue Horizon
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Friday, December 30, 2011

Scarlett

Black Rock Rising

One of the downsides to being an inveterate hunter is the temptation to buy along the way.

I know that's what vendors hope for, but honestly with an inventory the size of mine, each new temptation just adds a little more on top of the pile! In this case, I'd been eyeing this dress for a rather long while when I came across it again during the Falln Angels Winter Hunt... and couldn't resist.

Damn you Az!!!

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Lipstick: Mock, Mizu Venetian
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Hair: Calico Ingmann Creations, Isis 1
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Jewelry: G Field, Rusty Rose Set
Dress: Falln Angel Creations, Amanda Gown - Red
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Talisman
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: G Field, Lady Rose - Red

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Cape Elim

Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Sailor Moon
Water Settings: TOR, Atomist

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Sunday, December 25, 2011

How NOT to Scam in Second Life

Ornaments

I get hit on more often than I get attempted-scammed, and I don't get hit on often, so this gem on Christmas Day blew me out of the water. I've renamed our contestant today Idiot Scammer, but her user name actually did begin with an H (this becomes important later).

[16:38] [Idiot Scammer]: Hey Deo  Really Sorry To ask this but , Can i just lend you 200 l$ please ? Promise i'll give you this Back Very very soon , It's really not in my habits to ask for money  =S
[16:39] Deoridhe Quandry: Who are you, exactly?

At this point I open up my area scanner and find she's about 53 meters away from me in a fashion sim. She's over four years old, so she should know better. The name is not at all familiar.

[16:40] [Idiot Scammer]: I play the IA RP , We met There

Side note - I've been very reclusive in the rp, so I can count the people I've rped with on one hand and I'd remember most of their names - the rest would be familiar through my watching the group chat. This name was not at all familiar, and the Display Name was full of those weird characters that I'm inclined to remember. I then checked her profile, and she's not in any of the roleplaying groups. Also, we don't call it IA RP; the phrasing is definitely off and my scammer senses are tingling.

[16:40] [Idiot Scammer]: Sorry to ask
[16:40] [Idiot Scammer]: Really
[16:41] Deoridhe Quandry: That's odd. You seem to not be in any of the groups. Odd behavior for a roleplayer.
[16:42] [Idiot Scammer]: I hide those groups cause i'm a Fashion Blogger Too , I don't want people to judge me with this

She is, in fact, a fashion blogger - one of the tiny eyes & big frowny mouth set with the characteristic t-rex arms. I won't link, but suffice it to say I would have remembered the look even with as careless as I can be with paying attention to my surroundings. I'd snark on the blog, but since you can't see it that's kind of unfair.

[16:42] Deoridhe Quandry: Though that pause DID give you time to check my profile and come up with a more plausible lie to cover the fact you are 53 meters from me.
[16:42] Deoridhe Quandry: Right. What's my character in IA, since you remember me and I don't remember you?
[16:43] [Idiot Scammer]: You're mean !
[16:43] Deoridhe Quandry: You're lying.
[16:44] Deoridhe Quandry: That's a bit MORE mean.
[16:44] Deoridhe Quandry: Especially since you're trying to swindle me out of money by pretending I know you.
[16:44] [Idiot Scammer]: Anyways
[16:44] [Idiot Scammer]: I'm just Lending , You can add me in your contacts
[16:44] [Idiot Scammer]: Wasn't lying about that
[16:45] Deoridhe Quandry: Right. Shoo. Go try to swindle someone else.
[16:45] [Idiot Scammer]: =/

Since she insisted she wasn't lying, I went to check the group for the roleplay she supposedly knew me through - even if you have hidden your group in  your profile, you still show up there. I prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt, even when their story sounds as rotten as month-old moose meat. Shockingly, she wasn't in the group.

[16:47] Deoridhe Quandry: Wow, FOUR H names in Amras Roleplay and none of them are you!

Oddly, she didn't have anything to say after that. Wonder why.

Fragile

A few notes about the outfit, because several of the items deserve note. The katat0nik top and skirt are actually separate pieces and include a game card for the new Ozimal's Stamp Collection event. What event you ask me? The Pufflings Present Pursuit, says I. At 100$L and under each, they are a steal to get yourself some stamp cards. Also, don't be worried if your stamp card isn't full; once you've hit the last store, you are set. The skin is a special holiday makeup from De La Soul, available for only 99$L at her store for the holidays! The shoes are a delightful new design from Grim Bros, and the red set were actually in her midnight mania recently and may return soon again. The most awesome thing about them, though, is that the butterflies actually move!! It's like a little bit of Harumagari on my feet! Also, the poses were all Advent gifts from aDORKable poses; she still has a couple of hunts on, even if the Advent season is over, so go! Go! Go!

Castle Under the Tree

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Beatrice - Barley (Caroling Makeup)
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Sachiko Mesh Hair (Promotional Item)
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Dress: katat0nik, Snow Day - Light Blue
Ring: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Grim Bros, Butterfly Love - turquoise

Pose: aDORKable Poses

Location: Old Europe Winter Village
Light Settings: TOR, EUPHORIA Sleep Warm

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Monday, December 19, 2011

I Can Haz Promoshunz: Anatomy of a Blogpost

Bridge Over Icy Water

With I Can Haz Promoshunz posts, it all begins with the blogger gifts, also known as the Promotional Items. There are a lot of terms for them, and attitudes range from "why should I give you free advertising" to "why should I give you free stuff" to everywhere in between. In my case, I'm grateful for the free gifts (which is why I think of them as gifts) but I am also aware of the unspoken - and sometimes spoken - expectations. In all honesty, even though I'm on the blogger side, I think the store owners have more to lose. They are offering out free items and there are a lot of people who seem to get into blogging so they can accumulate free things. I can't imagine trying to figure out who I can trust and what "trust" should look like when I give away free products. In the area of gifts, there are a few people who give me things where I know there is no expectation - where we have a relationship beyond and outside of our sometimes relationship as Store Owner and Blogger. I still sometimes blog their things, but I don't feel quite the same invisible strings of expectations as I do with Store Owners who I don't know.

I'll also be honest and say that the biggest downside of Blogging is these invisible strings, and my own desires to have Second Life be more about responding to my whims and desires than the demands and expectations of others. I know no relationship can exist without expectations, but sometimes I can find myself running from those expectations. That's part of why I started the I Can Haz Promoshunz series, in fact - to differentiate between the 'you have given me fantastic things and here are the ones I like along with some color commentary on them' and the 'I take pretty pictures and babble a while about whatever's on my mind' posts that are the mainstay of my blog.This post will be a little of each - an amalgam, if you will.

Inventory Search 1

In between my other activities today, I get some gifts from a couple store owners I'm becoming friendly with; one is explicitly a blogger's pack, the other is more ambiguous. I hit the last midnight mania and teleport in a few alts who I think it will suit; I'm fairly confident it will lock without me bringing out the full force of my alt army. "Chores" taken care of, I hop back home to begin to plan out my outfit. Every ICHP post starts in the same folder - my "To Be Blogged" folder. In it I put things which are given to me, or things I have ideas for so that they're set apart. Every couple of months it becomes unruly, and I spend an afternoon opening old boxes, sorting through offerings, organizing and deleting. Things given specifically to me tend to rank a little higher than things which come through the blogger groups I'm in, but I try to do one Fashion in Pixel's post a month (if not a week).

I catch a midnight mania I wanted to hit and I swing by (too late), only to find the Store Owner there to switch out the lucky boards (Pinkmares is a totally generous store!). She turns many of the boards into question marks - briefly unleashing a swarm of clicks as people try to pick up what they hadn't managed to get yet. Even though I have "Do ICHP: Anatomy of a Blogpost Pictures tonight" on my brain, I get totally distracted as I wait to see what the new offerings are, all the while trying hard to not thing of the wave of unopened boxes waiting for me in my inventory. Timely I am not. Finally dragging myself away to lock down a midnight mania, I head for a friend's sim where I can rez objects that take up loads of prims - more than my tiny little house can support. Nothing like friends in high places (literally, in this case; we have islands in the sky).

Inventory 2

Back home, I strip down to see if one of the review items (a set of skins and an outfit I'd been eying when the notice came through my inventory) suits me. The face is most critical, since I tend to wear fairly covering clothing, but I like to see the all over in case it will affect both whether I'll wear it and what I will wear it with. For example, I love wearing low-cut in the back things with De La Soul skins because there are little butt dimples and the cutest butt cleavage ever; highlighting the unique and fun aspects of a skin is part of what I enjoy. I rarely show skins because I don't like the change my shape, but Fallen Gods is one of my most likely exceptions, and it proves to be the second addition to my look (the first being my hair, which like I said in my last post I'm not taking off for a while) for the blogpost - as does the included, group gift tattoo. I simply adore the built-in iridescence; it's completely gorgeously tempting. The shadows continue the same theme beautifully while maintaining the illusion of translucence.

I set the included dress aside for another day, though, thinking I'd like to diversify to a different outfit and cover more ground in this blogpost since I do multiple pictures of the same outfit instead of single pictures of multiple outfits. Now the immovable pieces - hair (Wasabi Pills), ears (Illusions), wings (Fancy Fairy) - are all recolored to match the skin - in this case I go for a white shade for the hair and make the ears and wings match the skin tone as closely as I can using a tint. The hardest recolor is the ears; I shift to one of my recolorable ear sets so my usual set don't lose the tone of my usual skin, and select just the ear part so that the jewelry remains unchanged.This really sets the pallet for the rest of my look - I can either aim to match it with shades of white and blue, or I can try to make it "pop" in the current vernacular using orange shades, but whatever comes next will have to work with the base already in place.

Inventory 3

So I'm back to my "To Be Blogged" folder in the clothing subfolder (I organize by type of thing so that I can find what I'm missing). I already have a backlog of boxes to open that I've tossed in here, but I focus on what's already open primarily. I'm tracking what wears well on me - where is there alpha occlusion and how much does it interfere? Does this work with the skin, the hair style, how I'm feeling today? If there is alpha occlusion (which is very common), is it something I can work with or will I be glaring at my legs through multiple layers for the rest of the night (note to designers - if you can put a slightly smaller layer of non-alpha but the same colored prims underneath, that can correct for a lot of the alpha occlusion; sometimes, if I like a dress enough, I even make one myself).

Tonight it's a wave of alpha layer options that leave me peering at the included picture and wondering how they managed to conceal; wishing the alpha was due to a transparency setting, so I could make a second, non-transparent level. After some more searching and some box opening, I finally find it! The first color I try on, blue, is to close to my skin color, but the second color is perfect, and so an outfit from SLC Couture joins the rest. I adore the texture - all those little flowers flowing smoothly over the pieces.

Poised

Fitting it is next; I'm a shorter, rounder avatar than most, and fashion tends to be made for the tall and the skinny, so fitting has become a necessary step when going through my inventory. I've become good at it, too; in this case, there's lower levels attached to the legs and an upper level for the skirt which require the most fitting. I take the top level off to fit the legs (temporarily confused since they're resizable through a script, not editing), then fit the top level (which is resizable through editing). Then I tilted the hairflower to fit my hair, which was simple as cake. I've sometimes fit outfits prim-by-prim if it were particularly complicated and worth it, but this is a relatively simple design, which makes things easy.

Likewise, selecting accessories - in this case an amethyst set from Elemental Earth Designs - was really fast I saw amethyst, tried it on, and it fit the overall mood perfectly. I love when outfits begin to come together like this; there's something magical about adding each element and seeing the cohesive and attractive whole. All I have left is selecting a pair of shoes, which most likely won't be seen. I have a whole folder from Duh! waiting to be tried on, and even though the chances of these shoes being seen are near nil, I put them on. Poor Duh! I need to do a shoe-focused shoot sometime soon. At the last minute, I remember the other gift I got earlier in the evening, and take a second look - finding a tiara from Eclectica which will go perfectly with my princess-pretty look. I actually had picked up the dawn version of the tiara, a lucky break for me since this pack includes the noon! And the noon is silver, which fits the coolness of the overall template. Recoloring it was a snap - it recolors on touch, and the purple, in a fit of synchronicity, is almost identical to the purple of my dress and shoes.

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

So that's the dressing half of my photoshoot! I hope you enjoyed it! Sometime in the future I'll have to share how I find a place to shoot and pose my shots, but I think this post is long enough already~!

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Fallen Gods, Ice Crystals (Promotional Item)
Face Tattoo: Fallen Gods, GROM (Promotional Item)
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Cherry Mesh Hair (Promotional Item)
Crown: Eclectica, Regency Tiara - noon (Promotional Item)
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Jewelry: Elemental Earth Design, Kiowa Set - Amethyst
(Promotional Item)
Dress: SLC Couture, Lovely Flower - Lilac (Promotional Item)
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Duh!, Mary Janes - Violet
(Promotional Item)

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Dimrill Dale
Light Settings: Places Astryls Wild
Water: TOR, Yung buk

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Lost in the Caves

On the Way Out

At some point in the past I got on Wasabi Pill's reviewer list - and I have to admit, almost every time I get a knew hair I'm in heaven. Occasionally she does a style which really isn't my style - sometimes that leads to fun outfits, and sometimes it leads to the depths of my inventory (I have a hard time tossing, since the quality is so high) in wait for some future time when it might be perfect for a new outfit or look. This time, though, it's liek she reached into my brain and pulled out the perfect Deoridhe style of all time. I put it on, intending just to take a look then switch into non-mesh hair so that I don't look like I have a box on my head to most people... and I was lost. It's soft, and bends slightly with me, and is such a striking silhouette that I'll be hard pressed to take it off for a while. This is the sort of style that mesh seems made for - the weight of the hair down at the bottom would pull the hair to stay in place, and so it does. It bends slightly with my body, as you can see in a number of these shots, and is just overall so amazing that... I've said I'm in love, haven't I? I even love the heavy bangs with their air of mystery!

Twitch and Flick

The dress is an old impulse purchase from Tainted, a store I don't normally buy for (and that I couldn't find an landmark for the store), but I have to admit I find the look very striking even in dresses-with-tails are fairly common. The texturing is superb and stands up really well to close shots. The mini skirt has the usual butt-and-crotch flap, and that has the problems attendant in the design, but the stark patterning means that the texture-mixing which often occurs is not a problem at all. What I love most about this outfit, though - something which is not easily captured in pictures - is how it moves. The layers flow smoothly, the flex is enough for movement but not so much that it feels like gravity is gone, and the effect is lush and striking.It's gloveless and fairly simply along the neckline, so I added in some very old gloves from The Black Canary which really fit the formal punk style of the dress. I also added in a couple of necklaces from Eclectica, both very simple but curving designs which I think I got on a 60$L Weekend Deal. The crowning touch was something I love to do with short skirts - I added a pair of stockings with the garters showing (from Vextra Fashion). I know garters are very old school, but I love the look when it's as painless as adding a layer on my clothes.

Watchful

The location is one recommended in passing by someone on some blog, the reference of I promptly lost. The entire series of sims are part of Calas Galadhon, though I ended up in the caves on Mirromere, and they are absolutely gorgeously striking with panels of teleports regularly placed if you're looking for somewhere specific. I took these pictures along a very short set of caves by the waters, and I can tell you that even in the minutes after finishing I found half a dozen other gorgeous places to explore. I anticipate coming back here often.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Bubble. Electro Pop Eyeshadow 2
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Carmen
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Cherry Mesh Hair (Promotional Items)
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Jewelry: Eclectica, Victoriana Blue Agate
Dress: Tainted, Seven Deadly Sins - Sloth
Gloves: The Black Canary, Seri Corset Gloves
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Stockings: Vextra Messing, Opaque Stockings
Shoes:

Poses: pda

Location: Mirromere
Light Settings: Places Abracadabra
Water: TOR, Meridian Verde

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Friday, December 16, 2011

Transparent Glow

Highlit

I fell in love with this dress from katat0nik (I can't lie - I love most of what she does - but this is so sweetly sexy that it took my breath away!) and like the perfect synchronicity, the Alice Project released a new Alice-style mesh hair and put it on massive sale (500$L for all the colors!) for the space of the weekend.

So, total splurge and my new folder got no attention, but don't I look awesome?

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Elymode, Coal & Red 2
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Lipstick: L. Fauna, Red 1
Hair: Alice Project, Wonderland
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Dress: katat0nik, Blackheart Dress - red
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Alice Project, Faelin Pumps - Vibrant Glossy

Poses: STaTUS

Location: The Looking Glass
Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Hong Kong Planet
Water: TOR, Glaznost

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Feathers

Dance

I watched the movie Heathers again last night. It's a very darkly comic movie with a high body count, and predated Columbine for quite some time. Its the sort of movie that I doubt could be made today, in a time when teenagers have, in fact, cut a bloody swath through their schools. Two things stood out for me on this watch through.

The first was the ubiquity of rape - the "bad" guys tried (and often succeeded) at raping (in the background of Veronica kneeing a man who tried to rape her, one of the Heathers was unsuccessfully trying to struggle free of the other man), the "good" guy did the same (as well as trying to push her to suicide/murder), and it really went unmarked that to be attractive and female meant being semi-regularly pinned against a flat surface as a much larger male tried to win his sexual assault beanies.

The second was how ineffectual the adults were. I'm on the other side of that divide, now, and I think what stood out the most was how much the teenagers didn't bother trying to say anything - simply showed their disgust and moved on with the business of living (or killing). The combination of fatalism and isolation - that really stood out to me.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Cosmetics: Style By Kira, Violet Fantasy Makeup 1
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Chloe Hair - Golden
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Dress & Shoes: The Looking Glass, Crystal Feathers
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet

Pose: Adorkable Poses


Location: Pasquale
Light Settings: Default for Sim
Water: Default for Sim

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Ttly Gawthy

Skull Tree

One of the reasons I love hunts is because they lure me into trying on things, or even give me things I never knew I wanted. The key tattoo from Montagne Noire is a good example of the latter - I ended up pairing it with a key that really brought home the illusion - and I have to admit I'm totally in love with it. Most of the rest of my outfit is a series of hunt prizes from Lethe from a long-over hunt (I'm always late on these things - I admit it!) that I fell in love with as soon as I put it on! The corset is a combination of prim and texture which works together to make a seamless design. I love the secret finds in my inventory, waiting for me quietly until I have a chance to unearth and enjoy them.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Elymode, Coal and Purple
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: LaLa Moon, Vamp Rose
Hair Flowers: Lethe, Gathering Memories Headress
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick: L Fauna, Black
Dress: Lethe, Gathering Memories Dress
Keyhole: Montagne Noire, Marionette keyhole
Key: Leo-NT, No Strings Hunt
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Lethe, Gathering Memories Shoes

Poses: Olive Juice

Location: Crimarizon
Light Settings: TOR, NIGHT Brighter
Water: TOR, Glaznost

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Monday, December 12, 2011

I Can Haz Promoshunz: Winter Wonderland

The winter is a good time to get all bundled up and play with snowmen! Snowballs, warm toast with butter, and fleeing for your life - all of these things make the winter season into the glorious thing it is!

Scary!!!

It was hard for me to find an outfit to go with this awesome Brrrrr mesh hair from Wasabi Pills - most of that folder has slinky, even if it's slinky with fur attached. Then I found this awesome dress from artMEfashion (I've been wearing their stuff a lot, I know!) which was frilly and came with these awesome tights and gloves. My upper arms and chest are still pretty bare (Eeee! Frostburn!) but I love the layers of ruffles and the dress actually comes in ankle-length and empire waist versions, still with frost-burny shoulders. The fur isn't the usual explosive, full bright fur on a lot of outfits - it's ruffly and looks like it's very, very soft.

The outfit actually started with the hair (which has been around the fashion feeds a while and is totally charming and comes with the scarf wrapped snugly around your neck) and the Anymore pillow I'm hugging made of TOAST! It's a smiley toast plushy that I simply adore! Then I filled in the boots, which are part of a whole series by Apple May Designs - they come with white or black fur in a bunch of different colors.

Pointsetta

The skin is from Dulce Secrets and has a lovely face with subtle artistic cosmetics. The shading is subtle and feminine with the noses shaded to suite a small-nosed girl like me. It comes in a variety of shades, from very pale to quite dark; this is a tan toned skin, which is darker than my usual color. I finished off the whole flirty fur look with a set of poinsettia horns with snowflake accessories from Hal Hina - part of the special event at Petis Pas Village.

All in all, halfway through December I feel very festive - and the boots give me great traction when I'm running away from meese!

Moose

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Dulce Secrets, Naemi Sangria Bikini (Promotional Item)
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Brrree Mesh Hair (Promotional Item)
Antlers: Hal Hina, Reindeer - red
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Dress: artMEfashion, Xmas Dress (Promotional Item)
Plush: Anymore, Plush Toast Pillow (Promotional Item)
Jewelry: G Field, Rusty Rose
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Apple May Designs, Snuggies - Red / Black (Promotional Item)

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Oh! Studio Mainstore
Light Settings: Places Annamarie

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Ballet and Tophats

Unison

I am totally falling in love with the texturing of artMEfashion. This is the third outfit of hers I've put on, and I really like the patchworky, mottled styling of it. Previous skirts had a level of alpha layer mixing which made my teeth itch a little (I'm a sensitive soul), but this one is perfect. I especially like the little ruffles around the waist and I adore my mini tophat! Squee~! New shoes from Alice Project (500$L for a fatpack of 24 - I am in serious love) were highly modifiable enough that I could match the variegated colors of my dress - the heel has several options, and the heel, platform, shoe, and strap are all individually recolorable. It seriously brings out the obsessive matching side of my personality. I added the newest hair from Majika, complete with shiny lights, and finished it off with a set of rose jewelry from G Field for the perfect outfit.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Elymode, Autumn - rust / golden
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Magika, Safe with Christmas Lights
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick: Mock, Mizu Venetian Red
Dress: artMEfashion, Steampatch Dress - Red
Jewelry: G Field, Rusty Rose
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Alice Project, Faelin Pumps - Vibrant Glossy

Poses: Just A Pose

Location: Kohime Foundation
Light Settings: TOR, DUSK - Siennarel

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Reflections

Berries

I've been thinking a bit about identity and the internet - especially in regards to our reputation. I've been Deoridhe for a long time, and have a significant chunk of history behind me - I'm invested enough in the name that I have a bunch of Deoridhe's with different last names because yes, I am that much of a geek. I'm actually pretty comfortable with my reputation - even the less savory bits like the Gaia account made to mock me by one of the resident trolls (a badge of honor from my days as a moderator). I've even had a few of my Second Life conversations reproduced, and by and large I'm comfortable with most of what I say being passed around to different people.

I'm a bit of a spazz, and a lot of a vapid floozy, and I have a temper on me that I can sometimes ward off but which has a tendency to wash over everything. I'm idealistic and cynical by turns, and I have a tendency to get really snarky fast. I'm ok with people knowing that I sometimes have difficulty tracking people over multiple names (evidence of this is all over the recent drama) and that if a fight is over a few months I'm likely to have forgotten about it (except for some major fights, but I can seriously count those on one hand and often they don't actually count as fights). My work leaves me drained - something that picture taking really recovers me from. I sometimes have a tendency to stick my nose in, and I adore adore adore drama - even the ones I'm involved in (with a few notable exceptions).

So Cool!

The recent bruhaha with a former acquaintance being really upset when his thoughts on women became public-ish made me reflect on what I say, when, to whom, and how I would feel about it being reproduced. There are some things I think and say that I don't want to be general knowledge - but I'm generally pretty careful about who I talk to and usually what I don't want shared is the more personal, weird things which lurk in the Deoridhe-interior. My thoughts about other people, well honestly I expect those to become public sooner or later. I hold a few secrets, and I have a few guesses at secrets, and part of my job is being a sort of black hole into which experiences fall and occasionally get regurgitated as far from the form of their original source as they can be.

I'm not perfect, I'm a work in progress. I like to think I'm worthwhile as a friend, but I've had several people walk away shaking the dirt off of their feet. I've also walked away from people, and had to consider my reasons why. Reflecting on what amounts to six months of a slow-speed fight, I can't honestly say I'd do anything differently except hide the names of the women unfairly quoted by my ex-acquaintance. I am unsurprised he's unwilling to stand by his words, but it wasn't fair to them to simply be drive-bye victims of his dismissal.

Reach Away

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Elymode, A Little Drama - Frost
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Exile, Lady Versailles - Honey
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Lepore Red
Dress: Hal Hina, Chiffon Dress 03
Jewelry: Little Boy Blue, Clara Yule Jewelry
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: Alice Project, Faelin Pumps - Vibrant Iridescent

Poses: Pffiou!

Location: Willowdale Estates
Light Settings: TOR, FOGGY Catastrophe
Water Settings: TOR, Coral Reef

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Monday, December 5, 2011

Past Events

A short while ago - maybe a month or month and a half - I got IMed by someone throwing a fit over her name being on my blog. This was the first Second Life Convo I'd quoted, and before I started giving people imaginative nicknames, so I'd left all the avatar names as is. I honestly didn't remember her at all, and she was actually insulted by another person in the course of trying to educate me on how vapid and insipid some women are as a fun topic of conversation! You can read it here if you want to be up on the drama.

I tossed her valid request in the 'wish I'd thought of that' column, made the changes, IMed her to say I'd done so, and left his name intact since it honestly seemed like a dead issue. Tonight, I was shown just how wrong I was, and so he has now gotten a nickname as well being able to vent some of his spleen by lecturing me and kicking me from his totally awesome philosophy group! Man am I schooled. You can see what a childish person I am below, since I'm continuing to be childish (and share the drama!) in this post. Fair warning, everyone - if you go into an extended, sexist rant then bring it up five months later after calling me childish... well, truth in advertising and all that.

Welcome to the Cafe!

[18:12] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: You have been ejected from 'Philosophy Group Without An Event For Months' by [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.].
[18:12] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Deo, please don't be a child about minor disagreements. Thanks.
[18:12] Deoridhe Quandry: Minor disagreements?
[18:13] Deoridhe Quandry: I'm not the one defriending over apparently... nothing.
[18:16] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: That's why you were removed from the group, not because of our disagreement.
[18:16] Deoridhe Quandry: What was why?
[18:17] Deoridhe Quandry: Wait, nevermind. Honestly, I don't care. If you want to be an infant, go for it.
[18:18] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Why-- getting friends involved in a minor dispute.
[18:18] Deoridhe Quandry: What friends? What minor dispute?
[18:19] Deoridhe Quandry: As far as I know, you and i haven't spoken for months. I'm not sure who any of our shared friends are.
[18:20] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Who is [Name Redacted]?
[18:20] Deoridhe Quandry: Urm... I don't know?
[18:20] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: They specifically mentioned you.
[18:21] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: And some kind of dispute we had, and apparently me being some kind of a scumbag or something to that effect.
[18:21] Deoridhe Quandry: Um, what?
[18:21] Deoridhe Quandry: Who is this [Name Redacted]? I don't remember that name at all.
[18:21] Deoridhe Quandry: What disagreement?
[18:21] Deoridhe Quandry: I don't even use scumbag as an insult.
[18:22] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Mhmm, interesting.
[18:22] Deoridhe Quandry: Who is this person and how am I supposed to know them?
[18:22] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: They sent me logs of our discussions.
[18:22] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Did you post it on your blog or something?
[18:23] Deoridhe Quandry: If you're also [Childish, Sexist Asshole], yes.
[18:23] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Very mature, Deo.
[18:24] Deoridhe Quandry shrugs. "You made claims about what we said. I quoted the text. Not against the TOS, and I redacted the names of the people you quoted to me as soon as it was requested."
[18:24] Deoridhe Quandry: Have a nice life. ^.^
[18:24] Deoridhe Quandry: http://primdolls.blogspot.com/2011/07/marked-as-spam.html
[18:24] Deoridhe Quandry: There, if you want to complain on my blog again. It's a few months old.
[18:24] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Then why was a particular avatar messaged directly?
[18:24] Deoridhe Quandry: You quoted her.
[18:25] Deoridhe Quandry: I redacted her name as soon as she requested it.
[18:25] Deoridhe Quandry: I'd redact yours too, if you ask nicely.
[18:25] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Why wouldn't have you? It would be common decency.
[18:25] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: I don't really care to complain on your blog, it's more about decency right now.
[18:25] Deoridhe Quandry: Ok, well her name is gone. Has been since she messaged me.
[18:26] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: I don't write people's names into my blogs.
[18:26] Deoridhe Quandry: You can apologize to her for quoting her name if you want to.
[18:26] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: So, she prolly googled her avatar name, came onto your journal, and saw that log.
[18:26] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Real mature, Deo.
[18:27] Deoridhe Quandry: I'm so sorry, Daddy! I won't do it again! Please say I can still have ice cream!
[18:28] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: Mhmm. Redact the names.
[18:28] [Childish, Sexist Asshole Jr.]: ....
[18:29] Deoridhe Quandry: Now, since I'm so immature and awful, I'll save you the trouble of having to deal with me ever again and block you! Bye.

Since he doesn't want to complain on my blog, the only time his name will show up is when he comments (which he did on the first post in this chain of shame)! Whew, I'm sure shown.

Arising

Me, me, and me

Nighttime Glow

Sometimes, I just feel beside myself.

( Shared hair, Exile; Shared dress katat0nik; shared eyes De La Soul. )

Friday, December 2, 2011

Chairs!

Windows Into Souls

I'm not an art critic.

Which is to say, sometimes I can analyze, say, the effects different things might have in art, but when it comes to those gasps, those moments of ooh and ahh, or even just quantifying why I like Rembrandt's Lucretia better than, like, anything else in the whole world (that and Michelangelo's Pieta).

I gasped at some of the confluences of light and shape in this art piece, though. I think you might, too. Some of the fun is all the hidden sitting places - sit on random things and see what happens!

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Sachiko - Mesh
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick:
Dress: Evldva, Lotus - Gilded Royal
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet

Poses: Alchemy Immortalis

Location: Shadowfield
Light Settings: TOR, EUPHORIA Smokey Blue

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Winter Chill

Night of the Dead

Sometimes I have fun just shaking my inventory and seeing what falls out - like this dress from Silent Sparrow that I bought... sometime! And fitted, and oohed over, which disappeared into he depths of my "teal" folder unphotographed. Somehow, I find the joy in plumbing the depths and emerging with treasures almost as enjoyable as lurking through pictures and picking out the ones I want!

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow
Eyelashes: Flufeln Brise, Eyelash 5
Hair: Exile, Dragonfly - honey
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick: Mock, Micare LipGlimmer - Hypoxia
Jewelry: Primalot, Paradise Bird
Dress: Silent Sparrow, Moonchild - Wintermoon Suite
Ring 1: Alchemy Immortalis, Nestling Finger
Ring 2: Earthstones, Eternal Blossom Ring - Bouquet
Shoes: G Field, Bow Strap Shoes - teal

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Shadowfield
Light Settings: TOR, NIGHT Wuxia
Water Settings: Pond

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only