The Unofficial Second Life® Fashion and Shopping Blog

I sometimes forget just how mood-altering a drug Second Life can be. Take this past week for instance - in RL, it appears that my home town has decided to start importing our weather directly from Ireland. Though I’d like to say that it doesn’t affect me, I can’t deny that my mood quickly started to get gray, dreary, and soggy like the weather. But that was before Aden Breyer of Aden dropped a folder of hair on me to try out. The minute I did, I was snapped out of my funk.

Can you see why? There’s something just so darn fun about Aden’s hairstyles, my dour mood never stood a chance. This style is called Sarah, which I’m wearing in Hazel. It’s a basic pony with some long bangs falling forward, parted above your right eye. The ponytail itself has a great fullness to it, and there are some flexi strands woven in to add to the realism. Yes, it seems like every hair designer on the grid sells a ponytail hairstyle, but this one from Aden just works for me. The overall look is just so flirty and young, it’s quickly become my favorite ponytail style.

I think I’m also becoming addicted to this style, named Annyka. I typically shy away from really long hairstyles like this in SL, because the prims always seem to fall into your shoulders or trunk unless you’re standing just right and don’t turn your head. Well, Aden solves this problem by dividing the style into two attachments - there’s one shoulder-length traditional hairstyle that attaches to your skull, just like normal prim hair. But there’s also an extension attachment that goes on your spine attachment point, that makes up the strands that fall over your shoulders and down your back.

The upshot of this two-attachment construction, which I’m seeing more and more hair designers starting to adopt, is that no matter how you turn your head the longer strands stay put and don’t do weird things with your body. Because nothing kills a look like the end of a strand of prim hair sticking out through your stomach like something out of Alien, does it?

One word of caution - it may have just been my avatar (I’m a little on the short side), but I had to adjust the individual prims of the spine attachment a little. As sold, there were a few prims that poked out of weird places on my avie, like my cheek. It’s not difficult to fix in any event, but if you’re averse to moving prims around, you might want to check out a demo first before you buy.

Finally, if you’ve ever wanted to take your Girl Power fandom to new and scary heights, Aden has a line of hairstyles that are modeled after the five Spice Girls, as well as famous hairstyles worn by other celebrities. I am not a Spice Girl, nor do I ever aspire to be, so instead I went with the style I’m wearing above, called Rhianna. Presumably it’s named after the beautiful singer, and it does in fact resemble a style I remember her wearing at one point. And, since I haven’t gone anywhere recently without my umbrella (…ella, …ella, …ella), well it just seemed to fit.

My only real issue with the Aden stores is the lack of color demos. I typically like to see a texture rezzed on a prim before buying, because no matter what it always ends up looking different than on a vendor. You can work around this problem by picking up one of each of the style demos Aden has out, that should give you a fairly good sampling of the colors that are available. But it would make things a lot easier if there was a way to get a pack of a single demo style in all available colors, as is done at most hair designers on the grid.

You’ll notice that below, I have listed links to more than one SLurl location within Second Life. Aden’s distribution of hairstyles among its several locations is somewhat idiosyncratic, and some locations seem to have slightly different selections than others. For example, most of the celebrity hairstyles seem to be concentrated at the store on the DollyRock sim. If you go to a particular location and you don’t find what you’re looking for, I’d recommend trying at least one other. Chances are, you’ll eventually find something you like, and maybe even something that will get you out of a funk.

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Seize the moment. Erma Bombeck says “Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart.” So, SL designers, bring it on! On another note, I slog through hundreds of blogs every week. So many are going stale, I’m gonna start weeding to save me time. But, I’m always looking for those I may have missed or new designers who want me to check them out. So drop me a note inworld if you’d like to be added to my favs.

Designing Nicky Ree, put the frosting on this week’s cake with her early release of her Jacinta Beachwear Collection. Ravenlynn Templar, Liquid Velvet Studios, has some cute summer dresses that are a treat. Camilla Yosuke’s, Insolence, embroidered tulle Melanie Lingerie Sets should sell like hotcakes.

Speaking of tulle, Betty Doyle, Ingenue, has a 50’s cocktail dress that looks good enough to eat. Neferia Abel, Ivalde, got stuck in the 60’s this week, and here’s one, a very cute mini outfit, Ranka. Nyte Caligari, Nyte’n'Day, has several new outfits to tempt your sweet tooth. Myllie Writer, Persona, did a sweet babydoll dress, Nola, whose flower-up-the-back tights are worth the purchase alone.

Lucas Lameth, Earthtones Boutique, has made some luscious Grazia Jewelry Sets, in both gold or silver. Kazue Voom, Muism, did a straw summer bag that is so real you want to dig thru it for the goodies it holds. Aphrodite Outlander, Aphrodite Creations, added some great bracelets to her collection, so, look for them, especially if you love bangles.

Tesla Miles says we can have our cake and eat it too. If you loved her Leather Vixens, and her Shiny Vixens, now you can have her Pearl Collection Vixens -II, improved and pearlized in lovely colors.

Onyx LeShelle, Maitreya, redid more of her hair in her great new textures, and is finally selling the updo that was her demo. Natalia Zelmanov, Sirena, added another scripted hairstyle, this one with a treat of a flower that sweeps your hair back. Rei Gully, Zero Style, has several more hairstyles, check them out. Laynie Link at Savoir Hair blogged Vixen’s newest hairstyle, Minerva. Looks worth checking out.

Off to order just the dessert cart, and

Signing out for now, I’m…

Benjamin Disraeli once said “The choicest pleasures of life lie within the ring of moderation.” Well, if he were still around, I’d beg to differ with him. At least about shopping pleasures. Bong, chime, knell, peal, strike, and toll your bells for SL shopping excess!

Shai Delacroix, Casa del Shai, rings in spring with a delicate lingerie set, Malena, inspired by the movie. Rosemary Galbraith, Rosemar, also threw her hat into the ring with her Classic Lingerie Sets. I think Maria Gherardi, MG Fashions, grabbed the brass ring with this one, folks. Her Rita Denim Dresses, in 10 colors, will give you a great ride on SL’s merry-go-round.

Designing Nicky Ree threw yet another gown collection into the ring, and Anastasia is lovely. You’ll not suffer from anything a plebeian as ring-around-the-collar in Neferia Abel’s, Ivalde, Margot gown. Inspired by Bette Davis’s dress from the movie Something About Eve, it’s retro special.

Lucas Lameth, Earthtones Boutique, made no rings, but makes up for it with his terrific Kamoana Jewelry Sets. Savannahann McMillan, Spirit, just rand my doorbell with her Spring ‘08 Ballet Collection, and it’s sweet and feminine.

AnnaH Whitfield has released a number of pieces, among them some great swimsuits-bikinis, with an assortment of things to wear over them. Zen Deledda, House of Zen, also has swimsuits, and you’ll love the prim side ties on the panties! Draconic Lioncourt, Draconic Kiss, made the most delicious looking Gothic Lolita dresses I’ve ever seen.

I picked up this tip on the Bonnie & Clyde blog about some wonderful (free until Tuesday) Victorian pumps by a new designer. Tabitha Ninetails is her name, and her store is The Laughing Academy. Not only were the shoes scrumptious, but while there, take a look at the gorgeous Victorian gowns she’s got. It was a lucky stop for me, because there I met the partner of a new shoe designer, Elven Dreamscape, whose store is Juicy. Well, so are his sculpted shoes. Only 1 style so far, Juicy Classic Pumps, but they must come in at least 3 dozen colors.

Phaylen Fairchild, Diva Designs, does spend a lot her time making those great Diva videos, so, ring my chimes, I’m glad to see her new Spring ‘08 Asian-inspired collection.

Signing out for now, I’m…

Lyra Muse of Jaywalk fame (and previously of Last Call’s Covet and Vamp lines) IMed recently to tell me she’d named a pair of boots after me. Which immediately made me nervous, because the last thing I think I had named after me was a hopelessly complex playground game I came up with way back in grade school. (Please, don’t ask.) Though after that, I figured that no matter what a pair of virtual boots has to be an improvement, right?

But before we take a look at the boots, let’s get one thing straight. Believe it or not, I do have some standards, and I’m not going to review something just because a designer plays to my considerable vanity and names something after me. Really! I don’t care what you name Kit, unless it’s something that is well-designed and textured and would have caught my eye anyway even if it were named Ralph, I’m not gonna feel obligated to say one nice thing about…

…oooooh. (drools) Nevermind.

These are the Kit boots from Jaywalk, shown in Buttercream with the optional black straps, and I love them. Some of you are no doubt asking, “Boots? Really? You do realize it’s spring, right?” Yes, I do, and I don’t care. But if you’re going to make a stink about it, fine, we’ll come back to the boots, and I’ll find you a more springlike shoe from Jaywalk first.

Here we are. These are the Lissana in Black, and are actually from Lyra’s old Vamp line at Last Call, but have been brought over to Jaywalk with her. The sole and heel are sculpted prims and have a really nice shape to them, and the wood texture just makes me think of warm weather. It’s such a cute shoe that it makes me overcome my revulsion to how truly awful my avatar’s toes look.

I really like a lot of things about this shoe - the little bit of a platform, the line of accent color running down the back of the heel. But the one thing I absolutely love are the cute bows on the ankle strap, from which two adorable flexi prim ribbons hang down. Yes, it’s a small accent, and no, you probably won’t see it from far away. But you never know who will be camming around the room examining your shoes when you’re out and about. What, you don’t do that? Oh, well then, neither do I.

All right, back to the boots. Jaywalk is selling the Kits in an array of twelve colors, but there are way more options than that, because each color other than Onyx comes with either same-color straps, or black straps. So you basically get two pairs of the boots for the price of one. The Onyx boots, on the other hand, are sold individually or in a fatpack with twelve different strap colors. So, for example, below is the Onyx boot with Onyx straps, as well as the same boot with Pink straps, which you can wear if you’re feeling a little more daring.

After the jump, more pictures and a little more about the boots, because I apparently have no shame. None at all.

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Last weeks pick, “Industrial 2″ is a great example of urban grrrly punk, by Flanner March:

One of the things I noticed when I took a closer look at this picture was the Nylon Pinckney skin. I don’t see too many hand drawn skins on the grid anymore, which is kind of sad in a way, since hand drawn skins have their own charms. The Minnu hair is simple and looks like it has just blown a bit in in Flanner’s face which I find very natural looking.

The fur trimmed jacket from DP is girly, but somehow it also says “Don’t mess with me, I can kick your ass.” The skirt is what first caught my notice; it is a simple windowpane pattern, but it pulls all the other elements together. The final element are the Shiny Things boots — a very common sight on fashionistas — but that’s because they’re classics on the grid. Overall, Flanner looks like she’s giving a head motion to a friend and saying, “Hey wanna head to the Donna’s concert?” Uh huh, yeah, let’s go rock the grrlpower.

Industrial 2 on Flickr

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This year for my birthday, Gracie girl got me some toucans for the Freudian Slip to go along with the herons, pelicans, squids, and music monkeys that hold watch over the decks while no one’s dancing.

These toucans, like everything from Duggy Bing’s Cartoonimals, are drop-dead adorable. Their style is more exaggerated than realistic, which is an aesthetic I find I’m drawn to more and more within our virtual habitat.

The flying toucan model allows you to set a number of locations after rez so that you can program in a flight path for those who might want to give chase in hopes of fruit loops. The seated version remains perkily in place, opening its beak from time to time and giving a slight tilt of head.

There is a happy zoo at the Cartoonimals store, from door-scratching kitties to big ear-flapping elephants to small skittering turtles and even flying aliens in mini spaceships. I can’t speak for the entire inventory, but the selections I brought home were well adjusted to havok4 living and operated from low-lag scripts. This was a delightful change over some of the more lag-heavy wildlife I’d encountered in the past.

Unable to be contented by just toucans, I hurried over and begged another friend for some flamingos and treated myself to a hug-tastic monkey for the Slip. Then I discovered a few wearables lingering amid the funky critters, and it was all over but the shopping.

Yes, that’s right. Jammies. Could you die? These pjs come in kitty cat, skunk, elephant and monkey style sets that all include boy and girl friendly pjs in different color options. The tops and bottoms are nice, but pretty basic and uninspired. They’ll do the job for any pajama party you’ve got to crash, however, and no one’s really going to care once they catch sight of your slippers - which are just about the most squee-tastic novelty slippers in all SL. I am ALL about these tail-wagging, sweet-faced kitty slippers. The bottom prim is white and tintable so you have a little bit of leeway when it comes to matching ‘em up and THE EYES BLINK. Seriously. Can you live without a pair? No, I didn’t think so.

The next “oh my god, I have to have that!” is the Carmen Miranda hat. Over 350 prims in 2 pieces, this work of art is prim decadence. The minute you put it on, you get this flamboyant need for bright red tango dresses and feel the irresistible urge to wiggle a la Copacabana with Groucho Marx. I cannot defend how often you’ll have use for it or why it’s so damn necessary. It’s just…so damn necessary. From the pineapple crown to the dangling grapes and peeking monkey, I cannot imagine anything that has tickled my little-girl dress-up monster more than this hat. He gives you three sizes to choose from for the base and they all flawlessly work with the upper attachment.

I may have to beg for matching fruit themed jewelry, but I haven’t stopped squeeing yet.

Last, but so far from least, are these little pet carrier backpacks, complete with baby animals you can wear and adore. When I first got to tinkering with these, I was disappointed because the backpacks only came in a really large size that took me the better part of half an hour to fit - and even then, it wasn’t a good fit. After I explained to Duggy that most of us girls weren’t amazon women from the moon, however, he quickly obliged and made small and medium carrier straps that provide a much nicer fit with a lot less tinkering.

You know you gotta have one, and let’s face it - don’t we all sometimes crave a reason to shout “keep your damn hands off my monkey!”

Run over to Cartoonimals and you’re bound to find something that is your cuppa. If I’m wrong - I’ll eat my hat. *grin*

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I realize you’d be doing a lousy job at being a social butterfly without the proper clothing to do it right. Not to worry, there’s plenty out there to feed your fashion frenzy:

Vamp every guy there in Ninja Petion & Zoey Pinkdot’s, Digital Dragon Designs, range of baby doll dresses, Flirtatious. You can go right from work to the party in one of Designing Nicky Ree’s Milly Business Collection outfits. Ravenlynn Templar, Liquid Velvet Studios & Co., has opened a new branch, Enchanted, specializing in fantasy cinema items and clothing. Her Royal Fae gown is gorgeous:

For that upcoming barbecues party, be sure and check out Nephilaine Protagonist’s, Pixeldolls, new top sets. Tuli Asturias has a new dress and a great highwaisted pants outfit for more casual gatherings. Miko Omegamu, Icing, will bring out the devil in you with her Diabolique halter dress. It’s red and stunning.

Jackal Ennui, Lassitude & Ennui, is back with sculpted shoes and jewelry for us. You’ll honest to good ness paint the town red in any of the 9 colors of Fallingwater Cellardoor’s, Shiny Things, new sculpted Supernovas wedgies. I absolutely adore slingbacks, nothing makes me feel more dressed up. And Tesla Miles’ Shiny Felicity Slingback Stilettos are right up my alley. Lucas Lameth, Earthtones Boutique, has just what you need for a garden party: lovely Butterfly Frolic jewelry sets.

Camilla Yosuke, Insolence, known for her lovely lingerie, has come out with a new collection, The Misty Line, all spectacular black latex and leather, what there is of it. It will be a party of a different sort where you wear these. Daequix Scarborough, Daeskins, released her lovely Kharisma skins and shape.

Aleri Darkes, Diversity Hair, has a new top, Quilla, that’s 50% off during her storewide clothing sale. You’ll stand out at any crowded party in Neferia Abel’s, Ivalde, colorful summer jacket, top, skirt outfit.

The party’s over, and,

Signing out for now, I’m…

If you were to take a random sample of the hair worn by women in Second Life, I bet you’d find that one kind of hair is vastly under-represented. No, I’m not talking about the hair on your naughty bits, though that does tend to be under-represented in SL too. I’m talking about curly hair.

The curly hair on your heads, you perverts.

I’m not sure if it’s just a grid-wide conspiracy against curly hair, or if the constraints of traditional prims have just made it easier to make hair that is straight. But whatever the reason, if you’ve decided that your ideal self absolutely must have curly hair, for the most part you’ve been out of luck. And if you specifically wanted curly hair that doesn’t look like you’ve just been the victim of a bad 80’s perm job, then you’ve really been out of luck.

This is the reason why I absolutely lost my mind when I ran into someone at a concert recently who was wearing this wonder of a hairstyle. By which I mean that I immediately began sending her annoying “where? where? pleeeeeeze tell me where” IMs until she gave up her source. (Yes, I know it’s a bad habit. Yes, I do it more often than I should. No, I won’t stop.)

Turns out my IM victim was wearing a ‘do called Page from Zero Style, I’m sporting it in Chestnut in the picture above. I’d been to Zero Style before and have always admired Rei Gully’s work with textured hair and alpha channels, but the Page simply takes everything to a new level. It’s a head full of layer upon layer of tight spiral curls that parts above the left eye and slightly covers the right. The movement on the prims is almost perfect, too - it’s got that slight bounce that curly hair will have, without it flying away on you with every move.

The prims on Page are textured so that you can see individual curled strands, it looks amazing from almost every angle. Yes, I said “almost.” Since this is textured hair, it’s subject to problems with alpha conflict, and at times when rotating the camera around the back of my head, I swear I could see through to my scalp. (I’ll also note that the conflict tends to happen more with lighter shades such as red - which is why I’m making a rare brunette appearance here.) But conflict problems were the rare exception, and you have to be looking very hard to see it - for the most part, this hair looks and moves wonderfully.

While at Zero Style, the Pompadour also caught my eye, I’m staying with the dark shades and wearing it here in Black. I’ve decided that I don’t wear enough messy hairstyles in Second Life, and messy is another thing that textured hair does well. The Pompadour is a beautiful mess with a bun in the back and also a crazy pile of hair up top. No, it’s not curly the way Page is, but there are plenty of curly wisps sprouting off the bun and hanging down around the face and the back of the neck.

If I had to critique anything about the Pompadour, it’s that it isn’t quite flexi enough. Except for a few long strands hanging down from the bun, none of the hanging prims move when you do. It’s a quibble, but it detracts a tiny bit from the realism of what is otherwise a very realistic-looking style.

I’ve reviewed two textured styles here, but Zero Style has a lot more than these, as well as traditional prim constructions too. There’s also a freebie style called You located just to the left of the store’s main entrance, available in eighteen shades which should permit everyone to find something that suits them. So if you’ve never made it by Zero Style, or like me you just haven’t been back in a while, I’d recommend a visit.

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