FFC July - My inspiration: The Dothraki from Game of Thrones

One thing I love about SL modeling is the abundance of styling contests...regardless of whether or not I win, it is an opportunity to be stretched and to push myself to new heights.

A unique contest is Flora's Fashion Contest, put on by Flora Raven.  I entered months ago and didn't win, but had a lot of fun.  It's an "on the spot" styling contest where contestants are given one hour to style a look and present it to the judges.

It's terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

The first round of auditions are by submitting photos to a Flickr group for judges to look at and decide upon. The guidelines for this first round is Jewelry and accessories only. No clothing allowed.  Because finances are a bit tight, I decided to go with only items I currently had in my inventory.

Here's what I came up with.  My inspiration was from the Dothraki from Game of Thrones.

The chest piece was part of a very sexy outfit from Soedara - I had purchased silks maybe a year ago for a styling I was working on and I loved it.  It's a bit risque for every-day wear...but it works for styling challenges.  The bottoms were a bit trickier.  As clothes weren't allowed, (not even panties!), I had to get creative...so I found this feathered belt....with a few strategically placed feathers, I was able to cover up the most important area.   I didn't want to pull a Britney!

The earrings and shoes are from this month's round of Collabor88  --- and since I had purchased them prior to the styling challenge, it fit into my goal of not buying anything specifically for this challenge.  If you haven't been to this month's Collabor88 event, you should go...lots of really amazing tribal/earthy looks.

I used an arm henna tattoo from Bilo and a face tattoo from White Widow.  I knew I wanted to look tribal so instead of adding hair, I just used a shaved hair base from Lelutka.  My goal was to make the look both feminine and masculine with a bit of warrior goddess thrown in for good measure.  The Dothraki was such a rich culture created in the novels by Martin and really came to life in the tv series on HBO.  If you haven't watched it, I encourage you to subscribe to the channel and catch up. There's plenty of time before season 5 airs!




SLurls coming soon!

In the meantime, here is my style card:

Chest Piece - Soedara - Gold Delight Exotic Sang Penari

Belt - Trident Tribal Huntress III -

Earrings - MG -Vallari Metal Hoops (Collabor88 July 2014)

Arm Tattoo - Bilo - Full/bridal Arm Henna

Face Tattoo - White Widow - Earth

Hair base - Lelutka - Shaved

Shoes - Hucci - Hampstead Sandal - Beige - Collabor88 July 2014

Long time, no blog. Let's remedy that!

So it has been several months since I've blogged...mostly because I wanted to try my hand at a life long SL dream - Clothing designer.  As much as I loved the creative process, I HATED being a business owner and was feeling burnt out, so while I'll keep designing on occasion, and posting those to my marketplace store, I have decided to re-focus my concentration on my blog and following designers who I absolutely love.

So that is why I decided to showcase one of my favorite designers in SL with my return to blogging....Loovus Dzevavor, who also happens to be having a major sale with 50% off of EVERYTHING.  Yep, you heard me right, so make sure you head on over to the store and get your favorite pieces before the sale is over!

One thing I love about LD is there amazing ability to utilize prints.  Many try, many fail.  Prints are not easy to pull off, and they do it right every time.  This is a flirty mini dress with a structured fabric around the shoulders.  I've paired the mini with a cute pair of shoes made for SLink High Feet from Esque.  The hair is from Fab-u-lous.

I'm glad to be back, and I will try to post at least once a week if not more. Looking forward to diving headfirst back into SL fashion.

Dress - Loovus Dzevavor
Shoes - Esque
Hair - Fab-U-Lous
Necklace- Paper Couture - Only available on Marketplace

Opening weekend for The Partyculars!

I haven't been on SL much lately...I've had a lot of RL stuff going on that's kept me from coming in, with the exception of prior commitments.  One of those commitments is the opening weekend for The Partyculars.  It's going to be a grand event with many different theatrical components.

As a RL lover of Broadway and all things "the stage," I am super excited to be a part of this as a dancer.  No credit goes to me however for any job well done....I am completely astounded at the talent of the choreographers.  It's really going to be amazing.

The photo is a just a teaser, and one of the outfits for one of the numbers, but that's all I'm going to say.  :-) Make sure you come on down tomorrow to The Partycular Theatre at 8AM SLT for the grand public opening! It's one show you will NOT want to miss!

Just call me Miss Cranky Pants.....

I've kind of been out of SL for the last week. I've been dealing with a boss/work bully in RL and it's left me feeling down and emotionally depleted. 

So last night I watched one of my favorite movies in the whole world. Grease! And today I took one of those silly Facebook quizzes, (that I'm completely addicted to by the way), to find out which Grease character I am. Lo and behold, I'm Rizzo, which suits me just fine. She's always been my favorite anyway, but with all the stress going on in my RL, I've noticed my tongue has become a bit more blunt and sharper than I really mean to be. I've always thought of Rizzo as an endearing Miss Cranky Pants.

 She is tough on the outside, but on the inside, rather vulnerable and soft. This gave me the opportunity to blog a jacket that I bought a couple of weeks ago from Pure Poison. It's a Pink Ladies Jacket and I absolutely adore the soft, shiny textures.

 Azlyn Vaher of Yasum designs makes amazing casual wear. Everytime I wear something by her, I feel like I've upped my cool factor a few points. These pants come with a HUD and lots of fun textures. I chose basic black.

 Finally, the shoes are designed for SLink feet and are from Esque. All I can say is A-MAZE-ING!


I can't seem to get links to work today on this post and I'm in a bit of a hurry, so I'll edit later and add links with SLurls.

Pretty Hurts - The Digits

I took a few days off of SL for RL stuff but I'm back again.  I had the lovely Flora Raven over to my SL apartment a few days ago and she posed with me for a post on our digits.   We both are involved in the SL fashion world but look very different.  I think Flora is breathtakingly beautiful. And as vain as it sounds, I think I am as well.  And so it got me to thinking...

What is beautiful?  As models, we are told that we have to be a certain height, we are told what a good hip size is, breast size, butt size.  But why is that beautiful?  Can the avie whose height is only 65 be considered for a modeling career?

Why is it that even though I tower over all of my non model friends like a damn amazon, that I'm still considered short for runway at a height of 85?  Where did these standards come from?

I was reading through different SL forums about shapes and saw so many comments from so many different people that don't understand why SL models are so tall. I also saw a lot of comments about the really short girls with crazy huge hips and teeny tiny legs.  If we are happy with the avatar we created in SL, that's all the matters, right?

I think all shapes, all sizes, all curves, or lack of curves are sexy and beautiful.  I think it's time we all embrace a new definition of beauty...a new standard.  Otherwise, the modeling world in SL will soon alienate many of the other residents of SL who don't fit a specific shape.

I am not sure if any of these jumbled thoughts are coming together cohesively or if I sound crazy...but I needed to get these thoughts out....

And as Queen Beyonce says:

Pretty hurts, we shine the light on whatever's worse.
Perfection is a disease of a nation.
Pretty hurts, we shine the light on whatever's worse.
We try to fix something but you can't fix what you can't see.
It's the soul that needs the surgery.

Fabulous on a budget

Sometimes, I just want to go discount shopping.  I love The Dressing Room for this reason.  Everything is priced at 40-70 L$ and as a result, it's easy to get many beautiful things without breaking the bank.

I also had to get this hair and blog about it...it was not from The Dressing Room.  It's from Magika.  I saw the 'do on Miaa Rebane's blog this week and I fell in love, instantly!   Miaa is my style icon here in SL...her fashion is just inspired...she can do no wrong in my book and so I had to go out and get this hair.  I just had to!

See below for style card.

Style Card -

Dressing Room Items:

Ricielli - Yellow Leather Coat

[Glow]Studio - Raven Necklace

[Zoom] - Old but Gold Sunglasses

Non Dressing Room Items:

Jeans - Liv Glam

Hands, Feet, Shoes - SLink

Hair: Magika

 

Simple Elegance

I have to say that this month's collabor88 has been my favorite in a very long time.  There's something about the theme, "Raw Nostalgia" that is just pure magic this month.  The decadence of yesteryear, the glamour of pearls, the clean lines, the soft draping...I could go on and on....but in one word, it's perfection.

I had an excuse to wear one of my finds today.  I made it to round 2 of RadarSL Magazine's Spring Casting and I needed to wear something that defined my personal style.  I'm a minimalist at heart.  I like basic, simple, and understated elegance.  I'm not one for a lot of "froo froo" or over-styling.  I want people to see me when they see me, and not be bogged down by layers of clothes, jewels, and other accessories.  Don't get me wrong.  All of that has it's place.  But the heart of who I am when it comes to fashion is just simple and elegant.

For me, this dress was absolute love at first sight.  It's just so stunning.  The design is by House of Fox and I chose it in a rich plum shade, called Oxblood.  There are not a lot of "bells and whistles" to this gown and I think that's why I love it. The way the material gathers at the waist, above a sexy thigh high slit...gives me goosebumps.   In case you can't tell, I'm super duper in love with this dress!  I would put this on any RL starlet on the red carpet this awards season, and they would be a best dressed nominee for sure.

It really can speak for itself and does not need any accessories, but I did choose a necklace to accompany my look.  A statement piece from Paper Couture.

For my interview, I wore a short pixie cut, but for my blog post, I wanted to vamp up my look so I chose an old favorite of mine.  A big curly hairstyle from Likeli.  I also did a dark lip in plum from Pink Fuel and a sexy smokey eye from Nuuna's Skins. I love my SLink hands and feet and the nail color is from the basic SLink nail HUD.

Style Card:

Dress:  House of Fox - Collabor88

Necklace: Paper Couture

Hair: Likeli

Hands and Feet and Shoes:  SLink

Lipstick: Pink Fuel

Eyeliner: Nuuna's Skins (Part of Kati Skin Set) (Skin not shown in photos)

Shaved

Sometimes, I just want to shave my head.  I would never do it in RL...it would take much too long to grow back.  But in SL, I can do anything I want and it's only temporary.  I loved this shaved hair base from Lelutka.  It's realistic and I feel so strong and amazing when I wear this and nothing else.  

These awesome army fatigues are a Peace On Earth gift from Shabby Chic that I didn't even realize I had.  I had visited so many stores during the hunt this year and hadn't opened half of the gifts I had picked up yet.  I love finding cool things in my inventory that I didin't even know I had.

The skin is a real minimal pale skin from my favorite designer in SL, Nuuna's Skins.  I just love every skin and makeup ever put out by this store.  All are amazing and unique.

Scroll below photos for SLurls and Style Card.

Style Card:

Military Uniform - Shabby Chic

Skin: Nuuna's Skins

Shaved Hairbase: Lelutka

Boots: Leverocci (only on MP)

Hands: SLink

Second Life Helpful Tools Meme

One of my favorite blogs to follow is Strawberry Singh's blog.  She came up with a Meme for the week to have everyone take a photo of a screenshot showing the HUDs that make our second life easier.

Here are mine: 

1. Anypose Expression HUD - This is my MUST HAVE!  I take photos all the time and I use it to move my eyes and it also allows me to control the eyes of any person I'm taking a photo of.  It's also free so go to MP and get yours!

2. My Huddles is on the top of my screen and has a set of 20 poses that are random and general and if I need to pose quickly, I have some to choose from.

3. My DV C for runway shows which I don't really need every day, but it's so small, I typically don't even notice it and it's always up and ready to go.

4. My top right is just one runway walk that I have set so when my ao is turned off, I don't walk around like a noob.  :D

5. Bottom right is my tried and true Gaeline Animations AO which I've had so long and I should really get a new one, but this AO feels so much a part of me that I can't really part with it.

6. My bloodlines HUD which I don't use or haven't used in years, but I like the radar on it, so I keep it.  I'm sure there are better Radars out there, but I'm a creature of habit, so I've kept this one around.

7.  And finally, I don't use this all the time, but when I'm taking photos, phototools is essential for me to set the sun position to get the shadow effect I want in world.  This photo is untouched, and uncropped, but thanks to my phototools I am able to get a pretty good photo that doesn't need too much touching up.  I use firestorm, so I'm not sure if this feature is available in other viewers.

What HUDs can't you live without?  Take the challenge and make your own meme! :-)

Feeling Casual

I love getting dressed up in SL.  It reminds me of how much fun I had with my barbie dolls as a little girl.  But in second life, I'm the barbie and there are literally limitless options to what I can put on and wear. It's fun to go all out and crazy sometimes, but it's also just nice to sometimes throw on a big baggy sweater and lounge around in something comfy.

I love Liv Glam and was able to get 3 great outfits from them yesterday at the discount event, The Open Closet Event.  These particular looks will only be available at the discounted prices until tomorrow, so hurry over if you can and then new looks will take over.

The look I've decided to blog is one of my favorites. It's still elegant and simple and feels like me, but it's oversized and fluffy and is perfect for a chilly winter day.  Paired with a simple pair of black leggings, this look will stand the test of time for sure.

I'm a little bit late to the party when it comes to SLink feet, having only purchased my first pair in the last two weeks, but I do love them.  I love the realism they bring to my avatar. And the skin matching HUD is very simple to use if your skin designer hasn't yet come out with a skin applier. The shoes were purchased from SLink as well and are super simple and very beautiful.

As for the hair, I'm loving Lelutka's new fairytale hair styles. They are absolutely gorgeous and really do look like all of our favorite Disney Princesses.  They are beautiful. They have all the styles, everyone from Jasmine and Pocahontas, to Rapunzel, and Belle from Beauty and the Beast.  I'm wearing Belle in the Dark Grayscale tones.  I plan on going back and purchasing all of the different character's styles as time and my wallet allow.

See below for style notes and SLurls to stores and to the Open Closet Event.

Leggings and Sweater : Liv Glam or The Open Closet Event

Earrings:  Soedara

Hair: Lelutka

Hands and Feet/shoes: SLink

Lady In Red

I probably won't make more than one blog post per day very often, as I don't want to experience burnout and quit blogging.  I am very much enjoying feeding my creative side with photography and beautiful fashions in SL and it seems that 2014 is going to be another great year for styling in Second Life.

I've had two exciting things happen today.  One exciting moment happened when I was approved to be a BOSL blogger and these photos and style notes will be my first post for it!

The other amazing moment happened when Sofia Corleone of Celestina's Weddings asked me to blog for her and of course, I was extremely honored.  In SL these days, mesh is everywhere...and I for one am grateful.  One of the things I love the most about Celestina's Weddings is the use of flexi and other embellishments to add to the mesh creations, giving each piece a totally unique look.

This gown is one such example.  It's called Locuala Inspiracion and is a beautiful sexy red gown that made me feel like a bombshell from the moment I slipped into it. I could imagine RL star, Sofia Vergara wearing something like this on the red carpet.  It's just that beautiful.  I'm pretty sure my photo doesn't do it justice.  The train is beautiful layers of lace and tulle and absolutely breathtaking.  It's a real statement piece.  Heads will turn when this dress enters a room.  The gown comes with beautiful jewelry pieces as well that you can mix and match with other outfits.

If you are looking for pure elegance, this is the gown for you.  See style card below for landmarks to store locations.

Style Card

Gown and Jewelry:  Celestina's Weddings -Locuala Inspiracion

Hair: Dura

Lipstick: Pink Fuel

9 Aspects : Part 2 What do Witch Kings and Disney have in common?

The 9 Aspects, Finesmith Muse Project Event has been going on for nearly a week now, and will continue until the 20th of January, 2014.  If you haven't gone and taken a look at the designs, I highly suggest you do so before it's too late!  All proceeds are being donated to Samatata: A place of equality -An orphanage in India that is run adminstrated by women.

Please click here for SLurl to get your designs before it's all over!

The two designs I'm blogging today happen to be two of my favorites.

The first is by Celestina's Wedding and is a beautiful and victorious depiction of Woman as a Protector.  The dress is an absolute work of art, from the sculpted trains to the beautiful elegant wings.  It's partially mesh as well and is made to fit your avie like a glove.  It's absolutely brilliant.  I couldn't stop camming around myself.  The zillions of little details are just astounding.

Style Notes:

Dress, jewelry, and wings - Celestina's Wedding

Hair - Dura 51

When I first put the dress on it reminded me of that scene from Disney's Frozen, with the song, "Let it Go." Coincidentally, I also heard the song this morning whilst in SL. The triumphant melody of the song matched the dress so well,  I decided to link you all to it for your listening pleasure.

Don't believe me?  Take a listen!







The Second look was from Pekas Designs and portrays Woman as a Warrior.  When I put this on, I feel like a total badass!  The armor is tough, but has a real air of femininity to it as well.  It's just absolutely amazing!  Seriously.  I felt all "I am woman, hear me roar" in this.  It's sexy.  It's fierce.  It's a real show stopper.

Style Notes:

Full outfit: Pekas Designs (See link at top of page to purchase)

Hair:  Dura

I love female warriors.  I have a special place in my heart for them.  Probably why I love the movie Lord of the Rings.  Women in this movie aren't wimps.  They are warriors who have an irreplaceable role in the full outcome of the story.  They are strong, and they are my heroes!  Below is my all time favorite scene, featuring an example of a woman warrior from The Lord of the Rings; Return of the King.  It's not long.  Why not have little watch?  You know you want to!

New Years Resolutions and Radar Spring Castings!

My 2014 New Year's Resolution was to stop second guessing myself and just go for things that make me happy.  I have let my terrible shyness and self doubt stop me from going for an exciting career in fashion in Second Life.  But no more of that!  I'm going to just put myself out there and do it...and if I fail, I'll fail knowing that I at least gave it my all.

That being said, I decided to take part in Radar SL Magazine's Spring Model casting and submitted 3 looks that matched 3 assigned genres.  The genres were Street Chic, Avante Garde, and Minimalist. My personal style and aesthetic in SL has always been minimal.  When I try to go Avante Garde, I feel I fail miserably. I like simple lines, classic draping, and understated elegance.

But I decided to give each of these styles a go and here is what I've come up with. I squealed with excitement when I found I made it to round 2!  If I don't make it any further than that, it's okay.  I am learning that "going for something" does not always mean succeeding at it.  It's all about the process...and I'm becoming more and more excited by it.

Now as far as styling these looks, I got a bit lucky.  I love Collabor88 and thanks to the amazing theme this month, I was able to put together the following looks.  See below each photo for my style notes.

Avante Garde Look

Dress :  Junbug - Via Collabor88 - Instant Crush in Night

Collar and Pearl Necklace - Maitreya via Collabor88 - Vintage Collar and Pearls

Headpiece - Miamai Black Label -Titania in Black

Minimalist Look

Dress - Color Me H.O.F. via Collabor88- Victoria dress - Grey

Hair - Lelutka - Inverted (Black)

Street Chic Look

Boots/Pants - LeeZu!  - Helena High Heeled Pants - Cream

Top - LeeZu! - Mia Corset Pants - Corset Dress - White

Hair - Likeli - Black Curly Fro 

Glasses - Ladies Who Lunch - Diva Glasses - White

9 Aspects

I was honored to have the opportunity to be a part of The Finesmith Muse Project Event, 9 Aspects yesterday.  Its a week long event that opened yesterday with a fantastic fashion show which I was able to host. Nine Designers came together and created an outfit representing an aspect of woman's life which will be sold on the sim for one week. 100% of the profit will be donated to the orphanage in India, Samatata (A place of equality) ran and administrated by Women.  The looks were fantastic and everyone should go and check it out.  Buy your favorites here.

Because the show benefits an Indian Orphanage, I decided to wear something for the show that had a bit of Indian style and flair to it.

Style Notes:

Dress -  Mirage Arabian Treasure Company  Sarie Gown - Forest (includes head jewel)
Earrings- Soedara  Hoop Earrings Large
Hair - Catwa  Mesh Selena Hair
Arm Henna Tattoo - Bilo
Lipstick - Pink Fuel Glossy Pout Lipsticks