Monday, March 31, 2014

Fit for a Princess: Teaser

Who, Me?

Fit for a Princess starts tomorrow at 6AM, which is not soon enough if you ask me. There are tons of things available, from dresses, to furniture, to lovely accessories and even a bunch of poses, so make sure to check it out when it opens!

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Truth Hair, Lagertha
Crown & Collar: Evie's Closet, Nimrodel (Fit for a Princess)
Diadem: Keystone, Vaika's Jewels (Fit for a Princess)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyshadow: Mock, Dk Green (light ice)
Lipstick: Mock, Red Berry
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: A:S:S, Tiara (Fit for a Princess)
Dress: Fission, Diana (Fit for a Princess)
Shoes: Hopscotch, Dorothy (Fit for a Princess)

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Skyrah: Timeless Woods
Light Settings: TOR, SPECIAL Light Thru Veins
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday Meme: The Spring Season

Trellis

Strawberry is asking us about Spring this Monday, a few fun questions which can point us to other places for taking pictures. This is my favorite season of all time, so I'm more than happy to share a few thoughts with everyone.
  1. What is the spring season like where you live? – It gets a bit warmer and rainier here, and all kinds of things bloom. It's a good time to plant things, or go to the beach, or just spend time out in nature because it's warm without being too hot. I particularly like all of the color in among the green. My favorite flowers are the scented ones - heliotrope, rose, hyacinth, lilac, and magnolia. I love an air heavy with the scents of spring, traveling on the mist of a spring drizzle.

  2. What’s the first thing that pops into your head when you think of spring? – Flowers. I love the flowers of spring as they bloom, and the way the evenings become warm and pleasant to be out in. I am also particularly fond of warm spring rainstorms, and the rainbows they bring. I have a vivid memory of walking home from school as a child with rain falling from the sky so warm it was like swimming through the air.

  3. Which spring-themed sim in Second Life is your favorite at the moment? – Spring is a particularly common season for sims, at least judging by flowers. I think my favorite of all time is Ode, with the season-changing sim Oubliette right beside it. Ode has been around for a very long time and passed through many hands, and I'm always glad when I see it's still around, even if the butterflies no longer give you jewelry when you catch them. I never got to meet Random Calliope, and sometimes I'm rather sad that is the case; from all accounts he was a lovely man.

Bathed in White

( More pictures here. )

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Rainbows from the Shadows

On the Edge of Mysteries

I love rainbows. This is something most people know about me fairly quickly - I own a lot of rainbows, use rainbows in decorations, and keep crystals and brightly colored things handy in most circumstances.What I love most about them is how ably and immediately they demonstrate the true value of harmony; there is no uniformity in a rainbow - rather each shade stands out as itself - and yet each color cooperates with the ones around them to make a glorious, divergent whole. Every half year or so I pull together a new rainbow outfit, and this time I decided to go full-on Lolita, combining together a variety of clothes from across a great deal of Second Life time. On the older end of the scale is this amazing dress from Psych0, which is entirely made out of prims and textures. I chose it in part because I was showing dances, and I wanted them to have more movement than mesh allows for, and in part because Lolita in rigged mesh is fairly rare. I have loved this dress for a long time, though, and I was please to bring it out and jazz it up with a part-mesh, part-system-layer shirt from Violent Seduction. She released a ton of these in a ton of colors for layering under lowercut, otherwise Lolita style clothing, and the big bonus are these rigged mesh arms, which keep the poof and the frills of the Lolita look perfectly. The nice thing is, since it has a system layer, I can keep the older rainbow top of the Psych0 dress while still having all the advantages of mesh sleeves. The dress comes with a separate collar and bow as well, but I switched out the included black bow for a rainbow bowtie from Remarkable Oblivion, which carried the rainbow effect up toward my face. It's meant to be a hairbow, but I shrunk it down and tucked it in against my collarbone and it works beautifully.

Flower Lolita

My hair is fromt he middle of the mesh era, a lovely tousled Lolita style from Curio Obscura which has her characteristic thick, full texturing and shape. Even as she's embraced mesh, her style has remained fairly consistent and she's an example of someone making Lolita in rigged mesh, even mesh which could fit a male body. I tucked in a new headband released by Adore & Abhor which I simply adore - though sadly it didn't have rainbow textured flowers. It's a little spiky, but given the creepy Mlastina de Moarte I was wandering around in, a felt a little preparation was in order. The wings are from a Deviance gacha and are, unlike a lot of rainbow things in gachas, once of the commons. I adore her shading here, especially at the points where the colors meet; overlapping colors can become muddy, but she keeps each of them distinct and beautiful. And finally, I pulled up my skirt briefly to show off my lovely bloomers, something I picked up a long time ago from Scribble, and these amazing rainbow boots from Epic which I fell in love with as soon as I saw them. They had been mouldering in my "To Be Opened" folder since I picked them up, and I was all too happy to tug them out and prance around the marshy downs with them. They are, as the store name implies, completely epic and gorgeous, with subtle colors and patterning that move beautifully. I simply adore them and can't say too many good things except... I wish they came with white detailing in addition to the black and other colors.

Stolkings

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Curio Obscura, Princessy Hairstyle
Crown: Adore & Abhor, Princess Headband
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Silver
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Dark Passions, Koffin Nails
Shirt: Violent Seduction, Lolita Blouse
Dress: Psych0, Rainbow Cupcake
Bow: Remarkable Oblivion, Briar Bow
Bloomers: Scribble, Bloomers
Shoes: Epic, Neo-Trekker's Goot Gear

Pose: Exposeur

Location: Mlastina de Moarte
Light Settings: TOR, DUSK Vision of Something
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

A Duchess in the Court

Catching the Proper Light

I found a new roleplaying sim, and I think I'll fit in well there. This was what I wore for my introduction, which barring the ripped skirt and terrified King, went pretty well.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Ploom, Flick
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Silver
Lipstick: Beautiful Freak, Liquid Metal
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Dark Passions, Koffin Nails
Jewelry: Elemental, Ariadne Set
Dress: Evie's Closet, Nimue (We <3 RP)

Pose: Don't Freak Out

Location: Skyrah - Fantasy Role Play
Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Green whirl (modified)
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday, March 24, 2014

Monday Meme: Dance in Second Life Challenge


Strawberry has another meme for us, and this time it includes trying to make a video of dancing, and then answering some questions. The questions - those are easy. The video - not so much, but I'll give it a go.

  1. Which dance are you sharing in the image/video and where is it from? - "Too Much Fun" from Sine Wave Dance is my dance that really seems like it's me in a way few other dances ever have. I bought it ages ago and it's one of the two dances which I regularly use when I'm out and about. The other dance I use, and one of the oldest I own, is "skyBORN_fly3" from the BORN Uber Store, and it's one of my only flying dances. I would probably shell out some Linden for more and different flying dances, to be honest; most of SL dance is reality based and I'm not really a reality based girl.

  2. Which is your favorite dance in Second Life? - Either "Too Much Fun" or "skyBORN_fly3", the latter of which I was handed early on when people saw me with wings. I ended up picking 2 in the series for Linden when I found it because I was so glad to have gotten 3 for free, but 3 remains my all time favorite and I think you can see why. I tend to use skyBORN when the venue is packed and lfy above the crowd.

  3. What are your favorite dance animation stores in Second Life? – I honestly don't keep up much with animations in Second Life; "Too Much Fun" is Sine Wave Dance, and I picked it up after seeing it in a club and falling in love. The BORN Uber Store mostly has other things; last I looked the skyBORN three were the only dances there. I also have the HUDs for Burlesque and Belly Dancing from Animazoo. A while ago a bunch of friends and I went to another store and played around, but I have no idea which it was - I was teleported there and I didn't buy anything.

  4. Are you a frequent dancer in Second Life? – I never really have been. I went to a club a friend ran and spent a little while practicing taking motion pictures of dancers, which was fun, but the conversation was a little lacking and I was weirded out by how men who I agreed to dance with would suddenly act like it was the equivalent of agreeing to have sex with them - I remember one guy I danced with, who accused me of being forward, and then when I said I wanted to know someone longer than a night before I dated them was suddenly pissed at me. He showed up at the next night (it was a weekly event) with his new love of his life, and I have never been so glad to avoid a relationship. They lasted maybe a week or two more, and shortly after he ran one of those "send me an IM and beg for your slot on my friends list" things, and I defriended him.

    The longest period of time I danced was while an RPing sim named Wood Bourne was open, and I was the Regular Donor of the Second in Command of the city; he and I danced a decent amount - couples dances. There was also a Friday night theme night in the club which was fun. That was also the only time I ever worked at a club, when we tried to make it more "professional" and bring in outsiders, and when I realized I wasn't suited for club life; I loved being bubbly and friendly at people, but I hated the shilling for Linden aspect, especially when some of the dancers would get really shirty because they weren't getting paid. Sometimes I tipped in, but since it was a strip club people would then get all sexual at me and it just made me flustered and uncomfortable. These days, I mostly dance at social gatherings and musical events when they're associated with something else I like - like I'll go to the Bare Rose Balls sometimes, and the last Fallen Gods Anniversary I took pictures of all of the attendees. 

  5. Are you a frequent dancer in the real world? – I really am, mostly of the Victory Dance type. I'm a slob, and when I clean an area of my house that has been full of crap before, I often dance in it. I'll also dance when my clients successfully do something they're struggling with, and I do a lot of wriggling in general to music and the like.

( Pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Curio Obscura, Princessy Hairstyle
Crown: Razzberry Ink, Lolli Crown
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Silver
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Dark Passions, Koffin Nails
Shirt: Violent Seduction, Lolita Blouse
Dress: Psych0, Rainbow Cupcake
Bow: Remarkable Oblivion, Briar Bow
Bloomers: Scribble, Bloomers
Shoes: Epic, Neo-Trekker's Goot Gear

Dance 1) Sine Wave Dance, Too Much Fun
Dance 2) BORN Uber Store, skyBORN_fly3

Location: My Platform
Light Settings: TOR, FOGGY Das Fog
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Sunday, March 23, 2014

City Lights and Strangers

Look Up At Stars

I rarely wear pants, especially now that mesh alters our silhouette so radically, but this jumpsuit from Asteria Creations was so striking I simply couldn't resist. The jumpsuit part is all rigged mesh, but the bow for the back of the neck is resizable and editable, and this came in handy when I was shifting it to go around, rather than through, my wings. I think that can serve as a reminder to creators of the importance of not necessarily rigging everything - often vagaries of style and body additions (like my wings) can make being able to edit something a blessing. The shape of the jumpsuit remains a big change from my regular shape, and I have to admit I'm looking forward to the mesh upgrades with allow more variety; I'm not used to so much booty, and Deoridhe's shape in general has a small bubble butt and an hourglass figure, something not really supported in current mesh shapes where the pear shape is the ideal - sometimes with cartoonishly exaggerated hip and butt shapes.

This jumpsuit is on the tame end, with a smooth line between the legs as well which sometimes seems a little too rounded to be natural, but in most posts you won't notice. I'd imagine it's an aspect of mesh making - you need rounded and curved shapes to approach a natural look. The lines along the breast and back areas are also smooth and rounded, and look good under a variety of lighting from the soft to the sharp. The alpha layer is mostly well cut, but I found it wide along the bodice line and ended up grabbing an alpha from another outfit with a similar low back, sizing my breasts to be under the curve of the jumpsuit. This does have a downside, however, in that it leaves me topless to anyone for whom the mesh hasn't rezzed - an issue which came up when I was approached by an impolite newb who wanted to know why I was naked. I may start to get in the habit of putting on some kind of subtle nipple cover to partially correct for this, even if the shape is still visible. All in all, though, I'm glad I stepped to far outside of my usual style - it's a striking look, goes well with the city, and even works beautifully with my wings - check out how amazing they look in the low cut back!

Dark Corners Bring Out the Pervs

The rest of my look is fairly straightforward; I combined eyes and lips from different stores to make a sparkling but subtle look where the lips are the star. Fantastic Advent freebies like this eyeshadow from Musa - and the myriad of cosmetics which came with them - are why the holiday season is so wonderful in Second Life. The lips are much more recent and less free, though - on sale from Adore & Abhor right now at the Skin Faire, which has removed it's script limits for it's final days - they are part of a full rainbow spectrum of a variety of styles and levels of pastel. The glasses are another new release, this time from Sax Shepherd Designs. It's part of the 80's set that I've already tried out - the earrings I was wearing a couple of days ago - and they're totally adorable. My hair is from Wasabi Pills and is in a loose style at odds with the rest of my glam look, which is actually what I was aiming for; a bit of tousled casual is enough to make a polished, glam look natural, instead of contrived. And finally my shoes are another in a long line of special items out for Adore & Abhor's anniversary - in this case a set of pink and blue shoes from tea.s of various configurations; I'm wearing pink shoes with blue bows, but the inverse is available as are all pink and all blue versions. The double strap design isn't as visible under my bell-shaped pants, but it's a lovely, simple design for medium SLink feet.

The encounter with the noob earlier reminded me of a thousand other encounters - only this time with the added creepiness of someone claiming I was naked because they didn't see my mesh. It's the type of snafu which happens semi-regularly, and yet somehow this person commenting on it was both disturbing and embarrassing - I think because he commented on it, and because it was a cold contact. It was another time when a newb guy asked what I did, then showed no interest in it - a pattern that is as depressing as it is predictable. It's also a marker of the oddity of a virtual world like this, though; offline, people can't see you naked because your clothing took a while to phase in, but online it happens - especially when a sim is overloaded. Feelings of modesty and a wish to conceal remain in place even when the world conspires against one.

Stepping on my Own Shadow

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Kelly
Crown: Krystal, Miss Imperial
(Adore & Abhor Anniversary)
 Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Glasses: Sax Shepherd Designs, 80's Glam Pince Nez
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Musa, Advent Gift
Lipstick: Adore & Abhor, Princess Festivit

Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Necklace: Krystal, Bird Cage Necklace
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: A:S:S, Superglitter
Outfit: Asteria Creations, Fabian Jumpsuit
Shoes: tea.s, Adore Heels (Adore & Abhor Anniversary)

Pose: Diesel Works

Location: Metropolis City
Light Settings: Phototools, Moonlight 4
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Adore & Abhor Anniversary Magic

Lilypads

Adore & Abhor still has awesome stuff out for their anniversary.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Pink Fuel, Sora (Adore & Abhor Anniversary)
Hair: Ploom, Camille
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Lolapop, Adore Nails
Outfit:Bilo, Party Dress (Adore & Abhor Anniversary)
Shoes: Mango Cheeks, Recherche Heels (Adore & Abhor Anniversary)

Poses: Uncertain Smile

Location: Emerald Green
Light Settings: Phototools, Meni Light
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Friday, March 21, 2014

An Interesting Question

Split Nature

For a while now I've been considering slipping in some simpler posts - just a single picture and the credits - as part of having both a more regular blog presence and getting through my inventory faster - as I often stall at an outfit until I feel up to typing up a more elaborate copy and sending out notecards to people. I've gotten a lot of feedback that creators love my copy, and I definitely wouldn't stop writing - dear gods no way could I - but there are times I want to pull together a look, take some pictures which might or might not be good, post them up, and call it a day. I'd love to hear other opinions, though - one interesting thing about blogging so much with intermittent feedback is that it's hard to know what really works, so I'd love to hear what anyone reading this thinks.

This is a fun look that I mostly pulled together to show off some amazing stuff people sent my way, and to serve as a contrast to all the pastel I've been mainlining recently. I think I ended up looking like a hooker - Charlie assures me I look like an expensive hooker, but I'm not so sure. Speaking of Charlie, he's just recently opened a sim for gathering Roleplaying Shops and Information in one place - the sim Imagine. I have a small spot dedicated to rainbows which has a few links to my website and a bunch of items I really like; the bulk of it is a little mysterious, so make sure to look around for nooks and crannies. There are a bunch of spots for affiliate stores, and events which will come later on, and hopefully it will be an excellent resource for roleplayers of all ilks. I particularly like how Charlie combined multiple genres smoothly throughout the sim. I stuck mostly to what I call his "Roman" section, because the shadows were a lot of fun, but believe me when I say the sim has a little of everything.

Around the Corner

Anyway, back to my new attempt to support my Gacha habit. The shirt is a new release from a rename old favorite of mine. What was once Rue is Devae, and while the name has changed, the awesome textures have not. It's a delicate, wispy sort of thing, which reveals a lot depending on the angle. Pairing single pieces of clothing is always a challenge for me, and in this case I was helped by an old Rue miniskirt which has come to my rescue before, and which pairs beautifully with her new release. I added panties from Adam n Eve simply because the alternative was flashing everyone, and I ended up with a pretty little lace line along the top of my skirt that I rather enjoyed. Around my neck is a new I <3 RP release from Eclectica so that my allegiance to Death that Rises from the Deep can be demonstrated. To top it all off, I added an old crystal-style hair from Wasabi Pills which I really love. The crystal hair colors are ones she sometimes releases of Fifty Linden Fridays, and they are a wonderful addition to the spectrum of colors she uses. I also really enjoy the delicate hair strands of this style and how well they're rigged to move when my head turns.

Light Steps on the Stones

I added in a bunch of new releases from Sax Shepherd Designs to my basic building blocks, some of which are meat to go together and others which are clearly not. The petals waist cincher and mules (available at The Theme Park) match beautifully and added a bit of pastel to my look - what can I say, it's a weakness. I was amazed at how well the cincher in particular fit; it's rigged mesh but it fits like a second skin and tucked easily under my shirt. The earrings - huge and fun - are in high contrast but really fit my anything-for-Linden aesthetic. They (along with a series of monocles) come with a HUD to change the colors of just about everything, which is a Sax Shepherd hallmark. The wings are also a new release, and I am so thrilled I can show these off. I got a lucky chance to see them a little early and simply fell in love; they manage to be at once metallic and delicate, and now that I have color changing you will likely see them flutter in and out of my life at regular intervals. The final touches were my cosmetics. My bright and rich eyeshadow from Souzou Eien was just released and comes in a variety of soft fades and heavy eyeliner that I think really make my De La Soul eyes stand out. I added an orange tinted shade from Pink Fuel - one of several shades of metallic lipstick which I simply fell in love with. I echoed it in a fun polish from Flair which has the same saturated shade of orange to contrast with the soft pinks in the rest of my look. I had a ball putting this together, and I hope you enjoy looking.

Long Rays of Evening

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Ivette
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Earrings: Sax Shepherd Designs, 80's Glam
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Souzou Eien, Fairy Eyes
Lipstick: Pink Fuel, Metallic Lipsticks
Wings: Sax Shepherd Designs, Filigree Wings
Necklace: Eclectica, Octopus Neckpiece (We <3 RP)
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Nails: Flair, Applier 178
Shirt: Devae, Threads / Poet Cami
Corset: Sax Shepherd Designs, Petals Waist Cincer
Panties: Adam n Eve, Ana Lace
Miniskirt: Devae (Rue), Threads / Artist Miniskirts
Shoes: Sax Shepherd Designs, Petals Mules

Poses: HelaMiyo

Location: Imagine

Light Settings: TOR, DUSK Siennarel
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Retaking a Picture

For a recent contest I decided to retake a picture I'd quite liked from the past, and I thought you all might like to see the changes that resulted from enhanced graphics and slightly different aesthetics. Some of the other details were changed as well - I'm using a new skin, though my skintone tends to remain fairly consistent; I am a pale girl. I chose a different, more dynamic hand for the second shot - looking at the simple curves I simply wanted more - and the advent of skin appliers for hands means that there isn't an obvious join between hand and arm. I had also upgraded to mesh wings since the first picture - the angle didn't work for flat image wings, but a dynamic, curving mesh wing worked beautifully. I'm on the fence about other dynamic changes - limiting the frame to just a house, for example, and not sowing as much of the background. While I managed almost the same angle, the framing is very different. I was trying for something more intimate and arresting, and I'm not sure whether I managed it. The biggest difference is the addition of shadows and the lighting choices - going for a cool, rather than neutral, palette.

I'd love peoples' opinions on the changes - what worked and what didn't. So often Second Life photography is thrown out into a vacuum of non-response or favorites without much nuance, and while I know I'm changing over time, I'm not sure if I'm improving as such.

Long Road Home

Second Long Road Home

Credits for Old Picture:
Skin: De la Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose

Credits for New Picture:
Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe


Both:

Hands: SLink, Mesh Hands
Dress: Lassitude & Ennui, Naiad sundress
Boots: G Field, Long Cuff Boots "Will"

 
Pose: !bang, stand 223
Location: Hazardous
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Down the Rabbit Hole - A Hunt, Lolitas, and Me

Bright Smiles, Big Garden

The RMK Bunny Hunt has about another two weeks in it, so there's still time to get some of the awesome prizes available. In this case, I'm wearing the outfit and shoes from the two Flagship Shops of the sim, which were made both charming and to match. RokumeikaN offers a single size outfit, but I found it fit well out of the box and hopefully it will for other people as well. I love the pale pastel blue of it, the frills on the shirt - even the shorts, though I'm not normally a shorts kind of girl. This is a distinctly Prince Lolita look with some girly frills - the bow, the purse - to frill it out. The shoes, made to match and also available in other colors, are from Theater Chain and seamlessly meld with the outfit. I took my ensemble further Prince-like in my styling - removing the bow and the purse and adding on this adorable tophat from katat0nik, which is a reminder of why I love her Lolita styling so much. It is a gatcha prize from the Arcade Event, which means that it's a gambling to get the one you want, but all of them are so inventive and adorable that even a few should settle you well. I paired it with a short, boyish hairstyle from Wasabi Pills, and otherwise kept the look very basic and neutral - sticking with a bare skin and simple nails from Pulcino - a final RMK Bunny Hunt, and an awesome set of striped nails - metallic and colorful. I used the white and gunmetal, but there are bunches of different colors included in the set. The pose sets I use, with their accompanying props, were an old purchase from Uncertain Smile, and are part of why that store is a growing force in my inventory for sims which don't allow scripts to be run (which is a distressingly high number of them for a HUD-based poser like me). The props are well-made and suite the poses, and my only complaint would be how few are in a set; it's hard to do a full set of six pictures when I'm working off of under ten poses. That problem will be best served with time, though, as I see a lot of Uncertain Smile in my future purchases.

Bookworm

The following is a little dark - so if you want to leave everything on a sparkly note, read no further.

One of the interesting things about the Lolita style and community is that while it started in one very proscribed place - and some of the tendency for rigid classification remains in the bones of the style - it has branched out incredibly far in terms of what is possible and considered Lolita. I rarely go full on, though my favorite style of all is Hime Lolita, the girliest and frilliest of the lot; if I were to make a dress offline, it would be in a rainbow Hime Lolita style with hair to match. My relationship with Lolita is not without it's quirks, though; one of the common critiques of Lolita is that it is about the sexualization of cuteness. Another is that it's about infantalizing women. Both have their valid perspectives - while Lolita is culturally about modesty, the name is most closely associated with the book by Vladimir Nabokov about the systematic predation of a stepfather on his stepdaughter, which included the common inaccurate rationalization of her seducing him (one which is often repeated by people who don't read the text closely - this is one flaw with unreliable narrators) and the subsequent damage to her which is observed but not understood by the society which surrounds her. There is a dark irony to the fact that so many people blame Lolita for what happened to her - an echo of the thousands of children who are still blamed for being targeted successfully by sexual predators. There is another irony to a subset of women claiming the same title for a community based not only around women, but also women as non-sexual but still attractive people.

Captured

In the end, the charge of infantalizing has more teeth than a double irony of a name - making Lolita into what she should have been, an innocent girl who became a woman without the predation of a man. There are definite issues with women retreating into a false innocence, and while the individual reasons may vary widely, the cultures they are responding to are disappointingly similar. One of the twisted aspects of societies in which sexual abuse is used as crowd control over people is that the history and identity of the victim is more relevant to whether they are blamed for being abused than any actions on the part of the predator. So, pre-pubescent, white children are the most innocent, prisons in jails pretty low on the list, and the culpability of a woman based on her life, even if the predator had no way of knowing about it; young, white, virgin gives one a decent chance of not being blamed, but every step away from that - even a perceived step based on dress - and the more likely people will blame the victim for what happened to her or him. Within this twisted trap, it's easy to see the appeal of a non-sexual, infantile presentation - it is simply safer in terms of the level of blame one will happen if anything "goes wrong" (see: if a predator targets you). Innocence may not be a defense before an attack, but it might serve that after if one is very lucky.

The Chase is On

This is a very dark place to go, especially in the context of something so bright, colorful, and lovely - but I think the motivations of adults are often much more complicated than we initially believe. On the one hand, I cannot deny that part of my draw to Lolita style is the flow, the ruffles, the pretty hairpins, the refined behavior, the white gloves. I have a crown I wear sometimes when I feel down in an echo of a character I read about long ago, who kept her crown in her bed room. I have pretty, work-appropriate clothing that I wear that receives many complements, and crystal-embellished hair clips that I wear as much as I can. The light, sparkling, giggly, fun aspects of the world simply appeal to me on a profound level, and I consider that a basic part of my nature. However, I can't deny that some of it is an escape on a variety of levels from a society which objectifies me and those like me; some of it is an escape from experiences of sexual predation and abuse that I've had; the brightest things in my life often cast very dark shadows, and even as it's in my nature to be drawn to every rainbow that ever was, I'm simultaneously driven to stare into every shadow I find to see my own reflection within it.

We are made up of light and dark, rising and falling, sun and shadow.

Hiding a Smile in a Flock of Butterflies

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Katie
Hat: katat0nik, Cameo Hat (Arcade)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Pulcino, Coffee Time
(RMK Bunny Hunt Prize)
Outfit: RokumeikaN, Alice (RMK Bunny Hunt Prize)
Shoes: Theater Chain, Alice Lolita Shoes (RMK Bunny Hunt Prize)

Poses: Uncertain Smile

Location: RMK Gothic
Light Settings: Phototools, Huffepuff 2
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday, March 17, 2014

Monday Meme: Book Cover Meme

Meme Monday: Forgotten Beasts of Second Life

Images for Strawberry's Book Cover Meme based on the book "The Forgotten Beasts of Eld" by Patricia McKillip found at this link. I took a number of liberties, mostly based around the limitations of Second Life and aiming for a more dynamic image -I started closer to the original book and moved closer to my final product. I included all of my breedables long gone, which I no longer breed because it simply wasn't financially sustainable, but which I love nonetheless - Meeroo up front, one of my favorite rainbow eyed Amaretto Horses behind, and a KittyCats behind. I also have a few different pets, one from Silent Sparrow and another pair from Tokushi Avatars. In the book, Sybel lives alone in the mountains with the mythical creatures that her father summoned; he had also summoned her mother in a similar manner - demanding her presence without regard for her wishes. When she is sixteen, a baby is also left with her, and she learns to love him despite herself, and despite having very little experience with people. When his family comes to reclaim him, she is pulled into a world she has never known and learns how to hate and, finally, how to love.

( More pictures here. )

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Adore & Abhor's Sixth Anniversary

Adore & Abhor is having a sixth anniversary, and she's throwing a party where the Special Releases are all for us.

Windmills in the Water

Adore & Abhor was one of my first stores, back when it was very small, used a lot of system skirts (remember skirt shapes?). I was almost tempted to wear one of her fifty linden friday purchase in bright pink and blue... but then I remembered this amazing Valentine dress she made in mesh based off of one of the first dresses she ever made, and I simply couldn't resist. The overall color scheme is more 'mature coral and teal' than 'brilliant hot pink and neon blue' this year, but that doesn't mean I've abandoned my hot, neon roots - and neither has Alice Project, who released three ombre hairstyles for the party, shiny and sparkly enough to make me a very happy faerie. They really are a throwback to oldskool Adore & Abhor, which makes me so happy. I found then initially through a hunt and was drawn to the bright colors and cheerful setting - and ended up chatting with one of the owners before I realized she was the owner. It wasn't until much later that I became a blogger for the store and got a better idea of little things like... there being two owners; I had met both Airedine and Sileny - in the context of Adore & Abhor even - and somehow just been continually confused about who owned the store, instead of sensibly thinking there were two of them. I can be a little bit of a slow study - ask them about the couple of months where I sent each of them complements about something the other had done!

Bubbles and Colors

A lot of the rest of my look is either from Adore & Abhor, or being released in honor of the sixth anniversary - like my really cute skin from Pink Fuel. I picked it up and the SLink appliers to match - you spend about a hundred linden per skin tone and limb, and there are appliers for just about everything else under the sun. The shade is a lightish-medium one, and comes with a panoply of rainbow colored eyebrows; I'm planning on keeping it handy for any future improbable hair moments. I embellished it with some cosmetics from Adore & Abhor, but please believe me when I say it's adorable on its own as well. Pink Fuel was actually on the short list of skins I was considering when I did my skin change. My shiny little crown is another Anniversary Special, this time from Krystal, and it reminds me so much of Adore & Abhor's crown theme that it simply makes me wriggle all over with glee. I finished the look with bright and sparkly things form elsewhere - a mismatched pair of heels from Boom which caught the colors in Alice Project's hair perfectly, and lovely wings from Una which I managed to mismatch even though they're gacha; lets call that proof I have a problem, hmmm? I had such fun dressing up in pink and blue; I can't wait to do it again soon.

Into the Rainbow's Heart

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Pink Fuel, Sora - Sugoi
Hair: Alice Project, Steph for A&A
Crown: Krystal, Miss Imperial
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Blush: Adore & Abhor, Princess Star Blush
Lipstick: Adore & Abhor, Princess Arisen Lipstick
Wings: Una, Steampunk Wings
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Dress: Adore & Abhor, Valentine Lolita
Shoes: Boom, Locale Heels

Poses: Don't Freak Out

Location: Mysterious Wave
Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Lilack
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Seeking the Depths of Sundarya Lahari

Falling In

It's not always easy to combine fashion photography and art sims, but I do my best - though it does result in a lot more distance images than my usual. In this case, I thought the effect of shadows, lights, and some sincerely bizarre backgrounds as I explored the The {Lost} Garden of Sundarya Lahari and plumb the depths of its unusual story. I dressed appropriately for exploring a strange and ever-changing land - spike heels and a slashed micro-mini. Isn't that what everyone wears for a hike among vines and pentacled cephalopods? My dress is from Asteria Creations, and while it isn't my usual style, I simply couldn't resist it. I'm an enormous fan of cutouts, and this dress was covered in them while still mostly maintaining my dignity. It's an amazing, smooth curve on the hips, and a lovely fall of ribbon at the shoulder. It also moves well, especially for something which has so many gaps. The spike heels to go with it are a recent release from Felicity with some lovely rings which go down the front of the foot. I went with a contrasting color, bright and shiny yellow, setting off the rich dark blue of my dress.

Sweet Curves

My hair was a present from a dear friend, a gacha prize from EMO-tions which combines a hairbase and a lovely and simple hairstyle, decorated by narrow braids over the shoulders and from the hair pulled back on the sides. This is actually very like a style I used to wear offline, sleek and simple and sweet. The fade into the hairbase is a little rocky, but that's pretty standard for combining mesh and texture bases, and the hairbase makes it that much more realistic in appearance. I added enormous steampunk wings to finish the look, also gacha prizes, these come from Death Row Designs and combine a common - the large wing with the chain and bolts - and a smaller "flutter" wing which can move. In some shots I have it stab;e, and it others I let it go so I could play catch-the-perfect-shot. I wanted something heavy and metallic to balance out the rest of my look and offer up contrast, like the contrast of the large, strange creature in The {Lost} Garden of Sundarya Lahari and the enormous metal frame allowing her to continue to have children even after her death.

Drifting Upward

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: EMO-tions, Legolan
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyeshadow: Mock, Gunpowder Indifference
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Mock, Glasside Lip
Wings: Death Row Designs, Steamflutters
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Elephante, Ice
Dress: Asteria Creations, Niege Mesh Mini
Bracelet: Earthstones, Flower for Sway
Shoes: Felicity, Whitney  Stilettos

Pose: Grafica

Location: The {Lost} Garden of Sundarya Lahari

Light Settings: TOR, MIIDDAY Why So Blue
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Friday, March 14, 2014

Rokumeikan Bunny Hunt

RMK Hunt Bunny

The Roukumeikan Bunny Hunt happens every spring, and it is ingenious, tricky, and sometimes frustrating as can be believed - and a great deal of fun as well. Combining hunting with the randomness of gacha, tiny terrifying bunnies - or terbunnies - lurk all over the RMK sim with their cute little hops. They are physical, which means they bounce off of walls and sometimes get stuck in the floor, and sometimes they lead you on a merry chase across a field, and now and then - just as they are leaving to make mischief elsewhere - they drop a ticket. The tickets, like gacha items, are no copy and transferrable, so a great deal of exchanging goes on in the official exchanging area and in the group. Once dropped, the tickets may also be picked up by anyone within a 10 meter radius, so ticket sniping is possible for fun and profit.

RMK Gothic has a set landing point high in the sky with a disclaimer you walk through about the hunt; this concerns basics, like cooperating with others, being kind and limiting your scripts so that everyone's experience is enhanced.

Beyond the disclaimer is a set of stairs around a wall upon which Humpty Dumpty sits, handing out low lag costumes to wear if you want. They are rather clever, and there is some variation in which costumes are available; some are also more rare than others.

Once you're set with your low-lag outfit and lowered graphics, walk up the stairs around Humpty Dumpty and you'll find the rabbit hole without any difficulty. It's a very long drop, so enjoy the ride and see if you can pick up any marmalade as you're going.

Once you land, you are looking for tiny grey rabbits who hop around all over the sim - including in the Castle / Mall area where Roukumeikan's Main Store is. After a while, the bunny vanishes and leaves a touchable ticket behind; if you manage to touch it before anyone around you does, the prize ticket is yours. The drops are fairly random, so you will end up with extras of some and not enough of others, which is where trading and sharing with friends comes in. Very rarely there is a drop of a golden ticket - that can be used in any store which has a storybook prize in it.

Finding the book when you want to redeem your ticket can be almost as challenging as finding the bunnies. A few of the storybook redeemers are in the RMK Gothic Sim, but most are back at the store's Main Stores. I've linked to the location of the book for each name below; when it's on the RMK sim I've included that in brackets, since you can't teleport there but instead have to walk. 


1. RokumeikaN (RMK)
Outfit with bag
RMK Hunt 1: RokumeikaN

2. Theater Chain (RMK)
Hair and shoes
RMK Hunt 2: Theater Chain

3. Likka House
Dress
RMK Hunt 3: Likka House

4. WTG
Wonder Cards Short Boots
RMK Hunt 4: WTG

5. chocolate Atelier
Bra and Panties with Phat Azz Appliers
RMK Hunt 5: chocolate Atelier

6. ni.ju
Wearable / Rezzable Pocket Watch
RMK Hunt 6: ni.ju

7. Down Down Down
Wearable / Rezzable Elephant
RMK Hunt 7: Down Down Down

8. Room of AMO
Secret Secret Lingerie
RMK Hunt 8: Room of AMO

9. La Petite Fleur
Off the Shoulder Dress
RMK Hunt 9: La Petite Fleur

10. Blue Blood (currently in prep)


11. Ambrosia
Dress, Stockings, and Hat
RMK Hunt 11:

12. Ayashi
Queen of Hearts Hair
RMK Hunt 12: Ayashi

13. MotiAme
Rigged and Unrigged Bikini
RMK Hunt 13: MotiAme

14. AIR (RMK)
Hair Ribbon
RMK Hunt 14:

15. Caco's Greenhouse (RMK)
Hat and Teapot Purse
RMK Hunt 15: Caco's Greenhouse

16. Insaya
Bunny Watch Necklace
RMK Hunt 16: Insaya

17. Kyoto Couture
Dress and Stockings
RMK Hunt 17: Kyoto Couture

18. LoLo
Dress and Wand Clock
RMK Hunt 18: LoLo

19. NuDoLu
Necklace
RMK Hunt 19: NuDoLu

20. Poptart
Tea Set
RMK Hunt 20: Poptart

21. pulcino
Nails - SLink and Standard
RMK Hunt 21: pulcino

22. Tentacio
Bunny Ears with Tea
RMK Hunt 22: Tentacio