Formal Turquoise

Across my bow came an interesting challenge - to pair up this turquoise set from Elemental with formal wear as a way of re-imagining what is often viewed as a "casual" jewelry set. I had it as a vague thought, fitting the jewelry and then leaving it on as I tried on the wide variety of things in my 'new' folder when this group gift from Purple Moon Creations came across my deck and I absolutely fell in love. I'm not sure what it is about the color combinations of ivory, black, dark crimson, and turquoise, but it really appealed to me. The belt of the dress isn't editable in separate pieces, so I ended up making two of them and overlapping them so that I could keep the slenderness of the silhouette while still surrounding my entire waist - sometimes being thicker and having a belly leads to some odd fixes.

I find the challenges of combining things which don't immediately seem obvious really fires me up -I like when things are slightly tilted off, slightly strange. Turquoise itself is a stone with a fascinating history, found in the Southwest in the country I'm from, it's strongly associated with the Navaho, Zuni, and Hopi tribes. One of the symbols found in various styles in the Southwest is something called the squash blossom design - different tribes and individuals have different styles - and part of my inheritance from my grandmother was a full set of necklace and earrings purchased from a Navaho craftsperson. There are laws in the United States now which forbid people outside of the tribes to sell tribal symbolism, crafts, and ritual creations - but it still happens, so whenever purchasing something from a native tribe, look for the indication that it is being sold in accordance with the law, both out of respect for the rich culture such beauty springs from but also as a point of honor - to honor those who should have been honored all along, and who even now are not given even a tenth of their due.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes - Rainbow (mesh)
Eyeshadow: Mock, Gunpowder Indifference
Eyelashes: *X*plosion, PrimLashes
Ears: Illusions, Mystic Ears
Lipstick: Mock, Micare Lipglimmer - Mandarin Sparkle
Glasses: Air, Cresta
Hair: Truth, Eden - golden
Jewelry: Elemental, Panache - Turquoise
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle Wings
Dress: Purplemoon, Spanish Lady (12000 Member gift)
Gloves: Eclectica, Swoon - ivory
Shoes: G Field, Lady Rose Shoes - wine

Poses: Ks2cool

Location: Foul Whisperings - Strange Matters
Light Settings: TOR, EUPHORIA low saturation
Water Settings: TOR, Claira

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping only