Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Groups, Groups everywhere and not the Space to Think

Askance

Clover has an interesting post about her manner of doing group invitations, and the differences between Groups (of which we have 42 in Second Life now, up from twenty) and Subscribos (of which there are a couple - Hippo being my favorite for reasons I'll outline below). I'd comment there, but I have neither of the accounts required to comment, so I started a reply here and it rather spiraled out of control. You see, I am in a constant fight with managing my groups and balancing what is difficult to rejoin versus how I want to spend my time.

I roleplay, which often has a number of extemporaneous groups (usually an IC, an OOC, and then race or class groups; staff groups if you're on staff). I also have become a Fashion Blogger of sorts, and stores usually have official groups for releasing items (I'm in four or five of them, I believe, and I've dropped the main groups for all of the stores I blog for where I had been in their main group due to needing to free up spaces). I also started taking part on the Fantasy Faire and SL9, both of which have groups; the former I'm hanging onto but it may be dropped soon to free up space. In addition I have easily a half dozen groups where I had to do something extra or pay linden to join them - store groups all which give good group gifts or which I enjoy the chat of. And I'm in one midnight mania/lucky chair group aimed at goths. Finally, I have a land and friends group I'm in, which I need to rez things at my home.

Beam of Light

Groups have a number of capabilities: 1) easy communication through group chat; 2) sharing of objects and notecards through notices, 3) sharing of cost and money for land, 4) voting on proposals, and 5) controlling who is in the group with stipulations on group membership. Purposes for groups are more variable, and often don't require the full capabilities of groups. The following is a list of how groups are often used, in my experience:

Land/Event Groups - for rental properties, events with land, and sharing with friends; needs the ability to share tier and cost of land, proposals might be useful depending on how the land is governed; easy communication and sharing of objects could be useful but may often be neglected. Group addition may be open or need to be controlled. This kind of group may also be used to set up land moderators and widen who can, for example, return things left by people on shared land under the authority of the land owner.

Roleplaying Groups - for roleplaying sims, used to build community, allow building on the roleplaying sims, share information and objects. Some roleplaying groups may also share teir, making some roleplaying groups also one of the few groups which utilize the full capabilities of Second Life Groups. Often there are multiple different chats and threads of information sharing needed, though, for sub-groups within the roleplay, leading to anywhere form 2-10 group slots - only one of which allows for building access.

Store/Club Groups - for communication and sharing of gifts, and sometimes custom titles. Do not need the ability to share tier and cost of land, and sometimes those abilities cause problems when a group owner sets them wrongly. Needs a reliable way of sharing objects and notecards through notices. Some allow group chat, but that can become a beacon for drama depending on the people in the chat, which means appointing moderators (which can be its own source of drama). Group addition is often a free-for all and/or has an associated cost to help the owner keep people in his or her group (I've seen costs range from 10$L to 500$L). May also be used to restrict access to things like Midnight Manias, Lucky Chairs, and Costume Contests to serve as perks for group members.

Advertizing Groups - Much like store groups, but a much more limited number of people and usually no associated cost; group addition needs to be controlled by the advertiser. No need for ability to share tier and cost, and group chat is usually of limited use.

Bookworm

The bulk of group abilities are things which often aren't used, though - the land and property management abilities. I have maybe a handful of groups I'm in which afford anything of the sort and yet all 42 contain all the code and requirements of the rest. Most of the groups I'm in are centered on the sharing of objects and notecards - contrary to Clover, I love notecards because they let me manage notices of things when I want to, rather than whenever they come in; I'm often busy, be it with roleplaying, photographing, or just chatting with friends. These uses became so central to communication in Second Life that subscribos popped up; free for small groups, they begin to cost the owner at certain levels (usually around 500 people), and so can be unpopular on the owner side. The subscribo I like the most, Hippo, allows for management of your subscriptions through a website, which means it becomes easy to resend items to yourself and leave groups. Other systems work through in-store centers, which also are reasonably easy to manage unless you're banned from the sim in question.Subscribos are only a delivery service, and since one can be added to them manually, there are some instances of people building up spam directories - I personally haven't dealt with that much, though. I am part of a couple dozen subscribos, though, some of which I may be removing as time goes on.

The second most often used thing is Group Chat - but many people become annoyed with them. I'm part of one group which chats frequently, and we would easily get one or two people a week complaining when it was really busy. I tend to keep my groups with active chat to around two or three; more can become very spammish and difficult to follow. Some of my groups mention free items, which can be useful if I'm free to pop around hitting midnight manias and catching lucky chairs. There is no substitute for group chat that I'm aware of, which I think is a shame - if things were more piecemeal, then the complains might be cut down on since people would have to opt in for chat, rather than having it set automatically and often unnoted.

Warming by the Fire

I've long thought Second Life might be better served by a reorganization of groups around how they are currently used in Second Life, but I'm not quite sure how that would come about. Perhaps making the group settings more modular might work - store owners could pick what purposes they wanted for the group, and group limits could be reset accordingly to allow for store owners to have simple subscribo-like groups - but maintain the requirement that residents agree to be opted in, to correct for some of the subscribo abuse. My guess is they're moving toward trying to make item delivery more fool-proof; the delivery section of the inventory seems to solidly point that way - if there were some sort of mailbox available even when an account was logged out to stockpile what was given, that would go a long way to solving some of the problems with communication in Second Life. I know Direct Delivery ended up being a nightmare for the marketplace, but I have hopes that one it's bug-free it might solve more problems than it causes.

Front Door

Quick note about the clothing - The Sweater Dress (with leggings, rigged mesh) and the Anais Boots are both on sale at Aleida (a new to me store), which is sadly closing and has her considerable and well-made inventory on sale; I've spent a mint there. The green sweater dress is currently mis-set to sell the blue, but I anticipate that to change very soon; the store creator was simply lovely in IMs but very busy. The Rainbow Hat (unrigged mesh) is a group gift from De La Soul and is anticipating a broader release in less rainbowtastic hues; join now and find it in the past notices. The glasses are a new release from Eclectica, and the hair is a new release from Wasabi Pills.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes: *X*plosion, PrimLashes
Lipstick: Mock, Micare LipGlimmer - Beautiful Froly
Glasses: Eclectica, 50's Glasses - Scrolls and Pearls
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Mesh Cookie Hair - tinted to match shoes (promotional item)
Hat: De La Soul, Witchy Hat - Rainbow Draong (Group Gift)
Wings: Illusions, Chibi Angel Wing
Jewelry: Eclectica, Pearl Mixables - Deco
Dress: Aleida, Johanne Long Pullover - ocean (Heavily Discounted - Closing Sale)
Shoes: Aleida, Anais boots - plum (Heavily Discounted - Closing Sale)

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Alchemy Immortalis
Light Settings: TOR, FOGGY Das Fog
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday, May 28, 2012

2012 Color Challenge: Week 22 - Cobalt

Off Time

I love the color Cobalt! The funny thing is that it turned out to be three different colors in my inventory - which is testament to the variation on how colors are perceived. Is Cobalt the rich dark blue, or the bright blueish green? I think the former is more accurate than the latter, but I love all the colors so I can hardly complain! The names for colors are an interesting thing; many companies will trademark colors, not the color itself but the unique name for it. As things have become more and more divorced from nature, so have our colors become more and more separated from their sources. Cobalt is actually an element, one used for centuries to make blue pigments for various purposes. The element itself is a silvery gray color, but oxidized for use as a dye or smelt it becomes a rich blue color - closer to the blue of my gown and eyes than my hair! I'd be inclined to place the "second" cobalt as closer to Azure, which is a separate color in some languages but not in English. It refers to a certain shade of sky seen in Southern Europe, once again pointing us back to color's historical rooting in nature.

Shrooms Behind Me

The hair is from the source of my hair addiction, Wasabi Pills, dyed to match my G Field shoes; it's rigged mesh, which means no adjustments, but you can still tint it and while I found it snuck through my ears a little, I love the curves of braid too much to let that dissuade me. The cosmetics are a mix of a very old Rue lipcolor, which may not be available anymore, and one of Mock's Faerie Punque set (I bought the fatpack); they look made for each other - and in particular I like Punque and the set of lipsticks I got from Rue for the richness of their huge; a lot of cosmetics try to match reality, but these safely fly above it - which I where I prefer to live. I added on a cameo-style jewelry set from Eclectica (check out the delicacy of the connections - I love how unique it is!), and built it all around this amazing gown from Sublime Shroud Kreations, which shares it's store space with De La Soul (who supplies my eyes and skin).

Ghostly Blocks

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyelashes 2: *X*plosion, PrimLashes
Eyeshadow:  Mock, Faerie Punque in Cobalt
Lipstick: Rue, Painted: Lip Service - Nightshade
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Anais Hair - tinted to match shoes (promotional item)
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Eclectica, Rococco - Cobalt
Dress: Sublime Shroud Kreations, Lady Xith - Cobalt
Stockings: Unknown, Cobalt Carter Stockings
Shoes: G Field, Ribbon Slingbac Shoes - CobaltFlower Pumps "Eve"

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Cloudchasers 'Tomasik'
Light Settings: Riverrock Night
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Friday, May 25, 2012

Paths and Pilings

Lost Home

I was going to be good, review Further Along the Path in order, and then I hit the three windlights in Bryn Oh's section and fell in love with seeing the same place in three different lights - as well as how the house would build and unbuild itself as I moved closer and farther away.

Half Built

So I took pictures in my pretty frock, posing with various states of house. The full effect is hard to capture in static images, though - it moves as you moves, responds to what you respond to, and occasionally drops you underwater in a pile of pilings.

Something's in the Attic

The additional change of light to light to light through different hues and brightness is also impossible to capture as well as impossibly lovely.

Reflecting on a Broken Past

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyelashes 2: *X*plosion, PrimLashes
Eyeshadow: cheLLe, Tropical
Lipstick: L.Fauna, Lipstick Black
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Monique2 mesh Hair (promotional item)
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Dress: Evie's Closet, Ellora II - Black
Shoes: G Field, Flower Pumps "Eve"

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Further Along the Path - Bryn Oh
Light Settings: Sim Defaults
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

LEA 2: Core Sim Grant

Shakespeare's London: created by Ascended Masters

Location: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA2/60/213/32

Dates: January to June 2017

Related Links:
  • Announcement by LEA




Past Events:


Cinema City: created by Giovanna Cerise, Lexi Marshdevil, Moewe Winkler, Noke Yuitza, Particle Tom and Ataro Asbrink
"Cinema City built by Ataro Asbrink is a city dedicated to important aspects of cinema and movie making." There are two floors and installations by a bunch of people.
Location: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA2/128/128/22

Dates: May to July 2016

Related Links:


Bauhaus Museum: created by RJ Kikuchiyo
The Bauhaus Museum was specially built in LEA2 to showcase 2D and 3D works from the historical Bauhaus school. The start of a wonderful resource for artists, designers, educators and librarians... or simply a lovely place for art lovers to wander and step into a bit of art and history.

Dates: February 2016

Related Links:


The Night Theater: created by Aelva
Dates: January 2016

Midsummer Mischief: created by Aelva
Dates: September 2015
Related Links:

History of the Vehicle in Second Life curated by Sapphire "Sapph" Hotaling
Location: http://primdolls.blogspot.com/2012/05/lea-2.html
Dates: April 1st to May 31, 2015
Related Links:

Further Along the Path: Is a sequel to "The Path," a collaborative project brought together last year. In the words of Bryn Oh, it "is an immersive project based around the exquisite corpse concept sometimes used by the Surrealists.  Essentially, each artist adds to a composition in sequence." Windlight is central to the displays, and a notice in the beginning area encourages people to view it via the Firestorm viewer so the Windlight changes can be seamless. The teleport between different displays is the telephone in each scene, but a notecard containing links can be gotten at the beginning area and I have added links to each one after the names of the artists. The artists involved are, in order: Glyph Graves, paramparamm Papp, Alpha Auer, Bryn Oh, Oberon Onmura, Eupalinos Ugajin, Ux Hax and romy Nayar, and Ub Yifu.

Dates: May to September of 2012

Related Links:

Thursday, May 24, 2012

But Is It Art?

Street Art in a Gallery

The advent of Conceptual Art started putting into question what art was. Really, though, the question of what art was predated that by a bit; long ago, art was less about self-expression and more about ornamentation. Now, art is less about ornamentation (in fact, I remember my Studio Art teacher being offended by the insinuation that someone might use colors to match a given decor) and much more about self-expression; in a way, though, this has devalued ornamentation even when that ornamentation rises from accurate self-expression. Sometimes those two values get layered, though, and the Gallery at Fruit Islands Art could be seen as an example of that. Set up as a traditional art gallery, a lot of the concept behind it rests on the fact that this normal situation exists in a virtual world. Also, the paintings keep changing; I have to say I found that caused me to pay less attention to the paintings and art, and more attention to the figures looking at the art.

Voyeurs

The figures (except for me) are all NPCs, unmoving NPCs at that, so the Gallery is simultaneously populated and not; there are the shadows of figures without any of the animation or awareness of figures. I was also struck by how normal everyone looked - which I have to admit was probably part of the point, but it disappointed me; one of the often ignored capabilities in Second Life is to look very strange and different, and the extent to which people reproduce normal appearances always makes me a bit sad. On the one hand, the very virtuality of the art display is itself a message about the nature of art - that it is often hollow, meaningless, a series of things going through motions for the same reactions of looking and murmuring. On the other hand, part of me would have loved to see what an Second Life gallery could be - winged voyeurs, tinies and animals living together, walls which no longer have to be walls in the conventional sense but rather can be mere representations without weather to keep out. That would be a very different conceptual art piece, though; perhaps sometime I'll see if I can take what's in my head and bring it into the world - even if that world is virtual.

Sunset

My awesome outfit is from artME Fashion - another example of art - this time as fashion.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyelashes 2: *X*plosion, PrimLashes
Eyeshadow: Mock, Makeup Faerie Punque
Lipstick: L.Fauna, Lipstick Black
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Sybille2 Mesh Hair
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Dress: artME Fashion, Absinthe Fae
Shoes: G Field, Mesh Long Cuff Boots "Will"

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Fruit Islands Art
Light Settings: Free's Sunset
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

I LOVE Drama

Just a Little Bent

I have a shameful confession to make - I love drama, both my own and the drama of other people. I know, I'm supposed to be all "no drama," but the hint of the complexities of human interactions make my ears twitch with interest and my inherent nosiness comes out. Whether it's the complicated interactions like the loss of a friendship, the ins and outs of setting boundaries and negotiating vulnerability, or the expectations and demands of people on other people which result in immense complexities! I've documented a bit in my How NOT to... series, including some personal drama; I don't consider myself above the drama - I can snipe and snarl with the best of them. I joke with a couple of my clients that I became a therapist at least in part because I adore knowing things and nosing into the details of peoples lives. I have no real desire to share the actual secrets I have (no, I don't consider most IMs secrets; they're interactions, and often semi-public), but I often just like to know things. It's unstylish to admit it, especially in a culture of public politeness - but bring the drama on, I love it!

Dancing Over Kimono Walls

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Cosmetics: Mock, Taste the Skittles Rainbow
Hair: Exile, Violetta - Vanilla
Flowers: LaGyo, Anemone headpiece
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: LaGyo, Sachin necklace
Dress: Likka House, The Name of the Rose
Shoes: G Field, Flower Pumps "Eve"

Poses: Long Awkward Pose

Location: Lavanda Square
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Cheery cyan

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Sunday, May 20, 2012

2012 Color Challenge: Week 21 - Lemon Chiffon

Blowing in the Wind

Much as I love the clothes I pulled together for Lemon Chiffon week, I really think the poses - several from Studio Sidhe - take center stage in the full effect of the pictures. I wanted something sweet, a little flirty, and naturalistic, and Studio Sidhe is one of the stores to go to for those. I don't spend enough time talking up the poses, even though they are so deeply integral to pictures turning out; I'm going to try to do better in future posts. I was aiming for childlike (but not childish), and I think that Studio Sidhe really did well in giving me that sweet, innocent air. It would be nothing without my adorable dress from Hal Hina, though, which I bought especially for this look. I didn't have any yellow chiffon in my inventory, but I did have some chiffon and after a few stops at other stores, I found this semi-recent release from Hal Hina which fit the bill perfectly, and added in the hints of black which I think offset the pale yellow so well, as well as making it a bit more unusual. It also set the style at Sweet Lolita, which is a style I adore but don't do often - due to my addiction to cleavage! Cleavage and Lolita never go together. My hair from Honey Hair set the color in stone, though sadly the store seems to no longer be around. 

Resting on the Brick

One other aspect of Sweet Lolita culture is very minimal, natural cosmetics, so I just used a pale lipstick from Mock and only my thinner eyelashes from Flugeln Brise. The jewelry from Alienbear is a bit of a deviation, being modern, but I was trying to balance out the black from the dress style. I thought the simple style suited the look, though - even if it doesn't have the ribbons and lace a pure Lolita prefers. I moved the earrings out to perch on the tips of my ears; I'm really falling in love with being able to show off earrings this way - it ends up looking so amazing! I finished off my look with bracelets from Dark Mouse which were part of their Spring Fling release - it comes with a necklace and earrings as well, but they didn't work quite so well with my dress. Capping off the look, and my feet, are these Rose Booties from G Field, which are a longstanding purchase of mine. The color is actually beige, but I tinted it slightly yellow to match the lemon chiffon and I think it turned out really well.

Birdie

Amerie's Main Store sim is a good reminder that beauty can be anywhere we want to make it. Set out like an old fashioned town, and blending into other sims with different styles in a smooth manner, it is a work of art. Exploring the LEA sims recently, I've been putting a lot of thought into what art means and how one can know it. Historical art often was centered around being beautiful and transcendent; decoration to be admired by all and to give homage to the gods. Modern art, however, became much more about causing strong reactions and exploring interior realities and struggles; which some of that is apparent in art of the Christian martyrs, for example, the rendering of it was still to be pleasing to the eye; as dramatic as Rembrandt's Lucretia might be in the moments before her suicide, it is also sincerely beautiful. Some modern art walks the same line, but often the ideas overtake and overshadow attractiveness - and often not being attractive is part of the point of art. I find myself torn; while I do enjoy the cognitive stratospheres, I am primarily interested in the pretty and the beautiful when it comes to art.

Taken for a Ride

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Flirt
Hair: Honey Hair, Bowtie Bella - Lemon Chiffon
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Alienbear, Bubble Dream (Chic Gift)
Bracelets: Dark Mouse, Spring Fling
Dress: Hal Hina, Chiffon One Piece - yellow
Shoes: G Field, Rose Bootie "Diva"

Poses: Studio Sidhe

Location: Amerie Main Store
Light Settings: Places Las Legunas
Water Settings: Murky

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Saturday, May 19, 2012

LEA 1

Hello, My Name Is: Created by LaPiscean Liberty

Location: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/LEA1/164/59/25

Dates: January 2017 -

Related Links: 
  • Announcement by LEA





Old Events:

Unknown: Created by Kimika Ying - currently under production
A giant sinkhole has opened, enlarging the lake, and appears to have been caused by the opening of a portal to another world. Living things are beginning to come through and roam about.
Dates: March 2016 - Unknown

Related Links: 
  • Announcement by LEA



Safe Night: Created by 1 Billion Rising in Second Life
2Lei in Second Life is a collaborative project between some groups in Second Life, which began in 2010 with the aim to raise awareness and disseminate events related to the “International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women".
Dates: October 2015 - January 2016



"Obedience" - The Binding of Isaac: Obedience - Jewish Museum in Berlin
An artwork by Bryn Oh, Jo Ellsmere, Peter Greenaway and Saskia Boddeke.
You will need to adjust your settings to No Light and run Shadows and Projectors - instructions are at the landing point.
Dates: June - October 2015


Related Links: 



Black Elk

Dates: September 2014 to May 2015

Related Links: 


Ctrl-Shift-R: Created by Wizard Gynoid

Dates:
July to August 2014

Related Links:


Oscar Niemeyer Tribute: On December 5, 2012, Brazil lost one of its most illustrious sons. All grieved, the news was subject in all world's medias. He left this life with 104 years old, one of the greatest architects and artist the world has known: Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho known as Oscar Niemeyer.

Dates: December to July 2014


Related Links: 


A Rusted Development: Curated by Rowan Derryth and designed by Haveit Neox. Featuring the work of Rose Borchovski, Artistide Despres, claudia222 Jewell, Bryn Oh, Scottius Polke, Ziki Questi, PJ Trenton, Blue Tsuki, Stephen Venkman, Eliza Wierwight and Trill Zapatero. Rowan Derryth's writeup is here, with quotes from some of the artists involved about their process, as well as pictures.

Review: http://primdolls.blogspot.com/2012/07/rusted-development.html

Dates: May and June of 2012

Related Links:


Survey of Hyperformalism 2011:  "Hyperformalism is a neologism that names something, distinguishes some observable social and cultural phenomenon. The term suggests a use for the word to describe formalist abstraction created in a hyper medium such as abstract 3D digital space or pure mathematical space.

Postmodern wisdom would have it that culture has fractured irreparably into a multiplicity of niches and that the metanarrative is passé. While I believe the former, the latter is still not true. The metanarrative is immortal, vulnerable only to another more contemporary story. Even the most pernicious and despicable narratives suffer memetic bit rot in deep historical time. [Source]"

Dates: October 15, 2011

Related Links: 


How NOT to pick up a Guy in Second Life - Episode 2

Hoof

[19:32] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: I don’t need to know your fanatasies do I???????
[19:32] Charlie: My.. fantasies?
[19:33] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Not mine
[19:34] Charlie: I admit to being confused
[19:34] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Keep on
[19:34] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: beeing confused
[19:34] Charlie: O.o
[19:36] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: I am talking chat language
[19:36] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: not
[19:36] Charlie: Typing is like talking in real life. I don’t see how you cannot be doing it.
[19:37] Charlie: Either you are trying to flirt with me, or insult me. I am still trying to figure out which.
[19:38] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: I have to say, I don’t really care what you think after  I saw what you offers
[19:39] Charlie: What.. I offer?
[19:39] Charlie: What do i offer?
[19:39] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Took a screen dump ….want to see it?
[19:40] Charlie: uh.. sure?
[19:40] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: in public
[19:41] Charlie: I didnt realize I offered anything in public
[19:41] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Now you do :o)
[19:41] Charlie: What did I offer?
[19:42] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: You must know
[19:42] Charlie: Actually I am fairly dense. I admit that readily. I miss subtleties. So you have to slap me in the face with it lol
[19:43] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Sorry I miss what you are saying
[19:43] Charlie: I don’t know what you are talking about me offering in public.
[19:44] Charlie: So you will have to tell me.
[19:44] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Sure
[19:45] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: Nope, you know it’s wrong
[19:46] Charlie: No. You will have to tell me. cause i have NO idea what you are talking about
[19:46] [1. Confuse; 2. ??? 3. Sex!]: lol

Really, it's entirely possible this chick wasn't trying to pick up my friend - with how she used language it's not clear what she was saying - but talking about "offers" and fantasies, it seems likely something is sexual. I really wonder about how much things like this accomplish... well, anything! Just a bit of a heads up; it's not just the men who are inappropriate in Second Life! Women suck, too!

Rusted Waves

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, On butterfly's wings - Monarch
Lipstick: Mock, Opal Lipcolor Mocha
Hair: Exile, Ramona - Hollywood (dressing room)
Crown: Kyccie's, CA-05 SweetHeart Petite Crown
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Donna Flora, Moon Set
Outfit: Falln Angel Creations, Andromeda Gown - Golden
Bracelets: kraftika, No 300 Bracelets
Shoes: Sanu, Yellow Cuppie Ballet Flats

Poses: Glitterati

Location: A Rusted Development
Light Settings: Places Greed2
Water Settings: Murky

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Sprightly Summer in Amras

Magical Well

This is a combo outfit which I thought of almost as soon as I saw the second piece, this awesome top from Apple May Designs. It comes in three colors (cream - shown, pink, and black), and when I picked it up a few days ago it was 25$L, though the price may have gone up since then. The shorts are a special release for Culture Shock by G Field, and I love them to bits (I'm also wearing her shoes)! There is also a limited edition blue, plus the entire fatpack - which I totally splurged on. The large, which I'm wearing, is wide enough to accommodate my round belly, and I love how the ruffles move with my legs. The entire outfit seems loose and springy, which is what I was aiming for - I even like how things aren't an exact fit, so that it looks like real clothing over the surface of my skin. Both items are rigged mesh, which means no resizing, so make sure to try a demo before buying them. I'm a pile of rigged mesh, too, since my hair is rigged mesh from Wasabi Pills. I love the curve of the pony tail over the shoulder - these are some of the reasons I'm becoming increasingly addicted to mesh, even with it's downsides, lie how rigged mesh is only linked to a few skeletal dimensions and not all of my curves.

Sassy Falls

My ears are also mesh, but not rigged, new from Illusions. It took me a while to fit them; if you do it right, and use the included alpha to remove your ears, they can look absolutely seamless into your skull. There is a mesh shadow which is included, but I ended up moving it into my head and going for the seamless look instead, because I couldn't make it work with the curve of my skull (I have a rounder head than many). The ears are double-layered, meaning the shadows are on separate mesh right above the mesh of the skin tone. This means your choices for skin tone are infinite, and can be put in through the standard Second Life editor, but that the shadows won't ever become muddy. My lipstick is from Mock, one of a fatpack I picked up ages ago and have been steadily using since. You can see I'm smiling in most of these pictures; I ended up modifying my Flugeln Brise and *X*plosion eyelashes for a smile, narrowing them down. It was a pretty quick job, but I think it gets the effect across! I think I love Tomoyuki forever for convincing me to try on lashes. I layer alpha lashes under a set of prim, and it really brings out my eyes. My jewelry is a new release from Elemental which will be on sale for 60$L over the weekend, so hurry by for some amazing pieces!

Blowing a Kiss

I've been thinking a lot about who we support and are friends with recently, both in the context of blogging and outside of that. I have a lot of dear friends, and a lot of creators I like, and sometimes those two groups collide. Sometimes also, designers can believe that I don't really like their work, I'm showing it because we're friends. Speaking with a dear friend recently, he claimed my addiction to one of his creations was as a result of bias; it took some work to convince him that yes, I liked him, but no liking is enough for me to wear things I don't like! On the other hand, some of the stuff I love is created by people who my friends don't always like, and I've had to wrestle with the issues of whether one should pass money to people who behave badly, or if the bar is set way too low for avoiding or boycotting people because everything in Second Life feels so immediate and critical (even though it really isn't). It's easy to have strong emotional reactions to people and things in a walled garden like Second Life, where there is no real effective power for anyone on the grid except for Lindens, and the Lindens are virtually absent. These sorts of oddly closed systems, where social influence is the only means of gaining influence (and by extension power) lead to some predictable results which aren't always showing people in their best lights. Maybe if we all extend a little compassion and understanding, things might ease a little.

Into Town

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeliner: Adam n Eve, Hepsut
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Blush
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Shiki Mesh Hair (promotional item)
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Elemental, Butterfly Kisses (promotional item, 60$L weekend deal)
Undies: katat0nik, Gift Wrapped
Top: Apple May Designs, Hazel Mesh Top - Cream
Skirt: G Field, Mesh Shorts - yellow
Heels: G Field, Ribbon Slingback Shoes - mustard

Poses: Adorkable

Location: Isle of Amras
Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Oyster Bay
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Snippets of Relationship

Beneath the Surface

I've spent tiny chunks out of the day talking with a couple of very dear friends over text messages, waiting for the small sound of my phone to indicate they'd replied. I often talk to my friends online in little sentences, squares of conversation at a distance even within a virtual world. I don't like facebook or twitter, but I realized it wasn't the format - it was the audience. I like my audience to be small, handpicked for a message, and for our subsequent conversation to be private, not public. Neither twitter, nor facebook allow for this, nor do most online communications allow for this exclusivity. Email can, but only if the other person doesn't "reply all." I deeply value my increasing contact with my friends through text messages, though; with luck, I can expand it to other people who I have let fall by the wayside due to my own inadequacies.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Elymode, Brown B & Gold
Eyedeco: Adam N Eve, Eye Tattoo - Hearts and Stars
Lipstick: Mock, Micare LipGlimmer Sante Fe Gold
Hair: Truth, Kirby w/Roots - strawberry
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Eclectica, Manhattan
Dress: Purple Moon, Marlene Gown (13,000 Member Gift)
Heels: G Field, Bow Strap Shoes "Kate" brown

Pose: Glitterati

Location: Crimarizon
Light Settings: TOR, EUPHORIA Hello Gaia
Water Settings: TOR, Eyeballin'

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

How NOT to Pick Up Two Chicks in Second Life - Episode 8

Dead Wood

I made a mistake. I went out in public, hanging out next to a female friend and chatting about boots (and boobs and stalking, but that's a whole other, fun, thing).Before I knew it, an IM opened and I got the below.

[20:00] [I EAT PASTE]: hi
[20:00] Deoridhe Quandry: Hello.
[20:01] [I EAT PASTE]: nice to meet u
[20:01] Deoridhe Quandry: Nice to meet you as well.
[20:02] [I EAT PASTE]: where are u from
[20:02] Deoridhe Quandry: Second Life.
[20:03] [I EAT PASTE]: lol
[20:03] [I EAT PASTE]: i know
[20:04] Deoridhe Quandry: ^.^
[20:04] [I EAT PASTE]: but  need know ur country
[20:05] Deoridhe Quandry: Why?
[20:05] [I EAT PASTE]: ok
[20:05] [I EAT PASTE]: no problem
[20:06] Deoridhe Quandry: O...kay.

See, this is where I get confused, because he made a statement, I asked a question, and he... just went away. It's like by having a functioning cortex capable of language rendered me oh so scary~!!

Dandilion Death

Me being me, I complained about it in chat, only to learn that while he was chatting me up, he was also chatting up my female friend. Witness the amazing Lothario moves below!

[20:00] [I EAT PASTE]: hi
[20:01] Lovely And Gorgeous Woman: hi
[20:01] [I EAT PASTE]: hows u
[20:10] Lovely And Gorgeous Woman: im good and yourself ?
[20:13] [I EAT PASTE]: fine ty
[20:15] [I EAT PASTE]: can i kisss u

How could we ever resist him? (My friend responded to the last question by ignoring him, which appeared to work as a deterrent.) Part of me hopes someday some of these expert move-makers in Second Life show up with enough vinegar in them to actually explain exactly what they want to accomplish. Is it fun to contact every woman you see hoping one of them will respond with 'take me, take me now!'? I can say from my side that while I used to dread these sorts of contacts, now I look forward to them because I know I have an easy blogpost in the making; something about sharing and dissecting them removes a lot of the sting from what amounts to catcall whistles when I move around Second Life at large.

Island Reflection

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Hair: Analog Dog, tangled
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Dress: Ambrosia, Rose Fairy
Heels: G Field, Flower Pumps "Eve"

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Immersiva
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAy Nostalgika
Water Settings: TOR, Negative Ultraspace

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday, May 14, 2012

2012 Color Challenge: Week 20 - Deep Pink

Checking My Shoe for Germs

Deep Pink is the color for this week, and happens to be a favorite of mine. I've mentioned before my love/hate relationship with pink, but the rich pink of deep pink is so vibrant that there is no way I could possibly dislike it. I love bright, overwhelming colors and this one, beautifully rendered by Indigo Oddities. This is actually one of her lucky board prizes; pretty regularly she puts up amazing outfits on the lucky boards, with them set for sale for a while (for only 10$L!) after they go off the boards. I've been collecting for a while, but haven't been photographing because they've gone into my enormous "to be opened" folder. When I saw this outfit and the theme of the week, though, I simply couldn't resist. I love the curls and combination of darker pink and bright pink; the lacing across the chest is really striking, too. My one, tiny wish is for a double-looped bow mid-chest; I think it would have been that final touch to make the outfit sing. I added a jacket and stockings from Silent Sparrow which I hadn't ever found anything to wear with before, but I was glad I'd kept them in my inventory. One of the reasons I often keep things which aren't quite "my style" in my inventory (thus bloating it) is because of moments like this, when I'm looking for something more on the top of a look, and a previously unthought of piece really shines. I was amazed how well the colors match, though; they look made for each other!

Reflected in Milk

I'm wearing two pieces from Eclectica this week - something old and something new. The amazing shoes are the old - they are a vibrant pink and an amazing set of gems layered on in true style. She has a number of other, equally vibrant shades available. The hair piece is a little more subdued in shade, but really fun in design. It comes fit for the back and side of the head, but I adjusted this one to my forelock and renamed it to "front" so I can find it again; thankfully, Eclectica is always modify-ok, which means making multiple copies, fitting them, and renaming them so you can actually find them later is a breeze.My jewelry is an old hunt prize I think, from Ginza Jewelry. I love the little birds (which are fullbright) and I hadn't had a chance to wear them until now! I moved the earrings out on my ears; one advantage of these more outer ears is that I can showcase earrings outside of my hair. My makeup is a combination of Mock for the eyes (look at the glow of that color!) and a very old lipstick from Skinthesis which I still love to wear. Both stores earn my eternal love by releasing things in a wide variety of colors, which means I can pull them out to go with any look. The hair is from Wasabi Pills and is available at Culture Clash; now that the crowds have died down, it's a good time to swing by and check it out. They've set up the sim so you can walk around and catch all the stores as long as you focus either right or left; it took me about two evenings and a lot of Linden!

Step Above the Germs

Windlight has become central to how I take pictures, altering the views in places radically. This is especially in cases where there is a lot of water, where you can almost completely alter the shades of a sim. In this case, Symbiont Host started in shades of blue and green with hints of other shades, and now is in shades of pink with purple and blue hints. I'll have to head back sometime with other shades to view it in other ways; one of my long-term plans is to photograph and make blog pages for each of the Linden Endowment for the Arts sims, so I can track what pictures I've taken where and what artists I've seen (and maybe even figure out their change over cycle between artist and artist). I'm really fascinated by the art scene in Second Life. On the one hand, people are doing amazingly creative and innovative things. On the other hand, it often seems to pass without notice, names known to a handful of others. I know I was deeply frustrated when I started looking at art sims to figure out who was where and when things were happening; there didn't seem to be a comprehensive guide. With any luck, I may eventually create that guide. Thought, given my other self-goals and the whole fashion blogger thing, I may be biting off more than I can chew!

Ballet Disease

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Totally Hot Peenk
Lipstick: Skinthesis, Liquid Heat - Fussy Biatch
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Shiori Mesh Hair (Culture Shock, promptional item)
Hairpiece: Eclectica, Vintage Barette Gold (promptional item)
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Ginza Jewelry, Kohime slice of summer bird cage
Dress: Indigo Oddities, Twirls n Curls Pink (Lucky Chair Prize)
Jacket: Silentsparrow, Rose Krai Short Jacket
Gloves: Silent Sparrow, Rose Pidgeony Nemu Suit Gloves
Stockings: Silent Sparrow, Lust Beloved Stockings
Heels: Eclectica, Hollywood Shoes - Fuschia

Location: Symbiont Host
Light Settings: TOR, SUNSET Blue Inspiration
Water Settings: TOR, Negative Ultraspace

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Crying to take Pictures

Weeping Rivers

This photoshoot has been a royal pain to take. After several days of effortless pictures - which resulted in a slew of blogposts - this one completely hung me out to dry. There's a mesh body glitch where your eyeballs become enlarged, covering up the area around them and looking very strange - I had that in all these pictures, hence no closeup. It was so incredibly frustrating! I finally just took these pictures and called it a day. Luckily, even if I don't look my best, the stuff I'm wearing is unparalleled in cool.

Reflection in Heels

These awesome boots are a new release from Vanilla C. Designs; they're mesh and completely awesome - down to details like the zipper up the back. The heel is tall but well formed into the sole of the shoe, and I love how the boots are slightly but not extremely pointed. I have fairly fat calves and was able to fit into the S/M set, but as always with mesh - try the demos first! My outfit is a gorgeous dress from Fallen Angel Creations. It's a tabard style robe with long, swoopy sleeves also tabard cut, and comes in a huge variety of colors. I couldn't resist it in teal, even with a plunging neckline that makes me blush! I put some stockings from PixelDolls underneath, which matched the color perfectly, but it can also be worn bare for an even more revealing look.

Heart Out to You

My hair is a very fun updo from Tribal Soul Designs, complete with a long flexy ponytail. Since there's a significant prim part to the hair, it stays up and poofy more effectively than flexi alone, and I was easily able to modify it around my new and shiny, yet space-taking-up ears. I love the little wisps in front of the ears! Details like that really make an updo look. The jewelry is a repeat from Elemental, this time with the matching bracelets. Don't those look amazing? There is also a matching hairpiece. I ran out to pick up this in teal after showing it off in blue - and I think I own several more colors. I have more to show off from her, but it'll take my shape cooperating! I finished off the look with this awesome lip shade released from A. E. Meth from the special ice cream event last month at Motif.

Doll Partner

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

 Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Heterochromia eShadow for Blue and Green
Lipstick: A. E. Meth, Matte Lip Tints - Slushie
Hair: Tribal Soul, Kahl - Platinum
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: Elemental, Audrey Set - Teal
Outfit: Falln Angel Creations, Tittli Dress - Black Aqua
Stockings: PixelDolls, Leggings Teal Lace Webbing
Heels: VC Designs, M-001 Black Leather Boots - mesh (promotional item)

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Neva River
Light Settings: TOR, SUNSET Blue Inspiration
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday, May 7, 2012

I Can Haz Promoshunz: In the Pink

Fluff and Wonder

I got lost in another person's world, a world of high contrast and novelty - one place white-lined and stark, the other almost offensively cute. I came to meet them with my best Mock cosmetics - a bright lip color I've worn many times before, and a new brownish group gift. My hair is a braided glory from Analog Dog which I simply couldn't resist; it combines sharp-ended locks of hair with sweetly curving braids. It's not mesh, but it is a double-prim, here one set of prims is on the shoulders and the other is on the head; I can't wait for Analog Dog to tackle mesh - they're already as good as already.

The Way Out?

My dress is an awesome release from SLC Couture - a low backed confection of a gown, complete with ruffles around the hips and fluttering skirts. I ended up shrinking it a great deal and re-aligning the skirt; the skirt is actually two pieces, one tied to each leg, which means that without being mesh it still manages to follow my curves and move with me. Since everything is modify ok, its easy to move things around and make them fit my smaller, rounder stature. I especially love the low back, but I'm rather sad it didn't have more shadows drawn into the back; I love the style, but it can be hard to see on a lighter skin like mine. I'm tempted to try a different shade of gown on a darker ski to see how it would work out. The skirt also can have some alpha occlusion issues, depending on the angle and background, but the multiple layers seem to mitigate that more than increase it. The hairpiece is included with the dress, by the way; I love the froth of lace over the face which really sends this look over the top.

Flowers on my Feet

My shoes are a fun set I've shown before from Felicity, complete with brightly spiked flowers and delicate lacing around the ankle. Felicity has an editable means of setting the skin, which makes matching pretty easy (as you can see I did an imperfect job above - that's my fault, not her system!). The toenails are recolorable through a similar system, which means you can make them fit any look you'd like! The heel is very high and stylish - all white and black and pink all over. They're the sort of heels I could never pull off offline, and so doubly enjoy online.

Buzzing Garden

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion, Seelie Ears
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Morrocan Indifference Eyeshadow (group gift)
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Lepore Red
Hair: Analog Dog, Enchant
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Outfit: SLC Couture, Grand Madame Rose
Heels: Felicity, Gianna Stilettos - Pink

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Fae Varriale
Light Settings: Places Sand

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Charlie Shoots Me

Promo 1

Sometimes, Charlie asks me to be a second body for his petite shoots, since I make an awesome girl. He always molests me during it, though, and today he said I look like I have a bad attitude! Store creators can be so MEAN~! *pouts*

At least he gives me cool clothes.

( More pictures here. )

Bodies: Yabusaka, Fallen Gods, and De La Soul
Clothing: De La Soul
Attitude: Bitchy and Superior

2012 Color Challenge: Week 19 - Pueblo

2012-05-06 Pueblo_001

I've been really enjoying how much easier it is to go out and about since I fixed my computer settings so that Second Life runs well - these pictures in Pueblo were a dream to take, even running at high. I also got a chance to enjoy a wonderful display at the Linden Endowment for the Arts, which I'm making a page about and will likely be posting about more in the future. I reached far back into my inventory to put together this Pueblo look - all the way to one of Silent Sparrow's limited edition releases, which she used to put out every few months. Her store's been mostly quiet for a long while now, but I think you can see why I hold out hope of her returning in force in the gorgeous detailing of this outfit. Silent Sparrow was the first pay group I ever joined, and I can remember stalking her lucky chairs for hours to get the glorious contents. This outfit came with two skirts, and also a set of matching arm warmers I'm not wearing - I love the warmer cuffs, though, and the longer skirt allows for a much more decorous, less garter-flashing style.

I added on a jewelry set from artME fashion in simple wood to match the browns, and hunted out this gorgeous cinnamon hair from Wasabi Pills to match. It's mesh, but not rigged, and based on some time spent this afternoon trying to work around my new ears, non-rigged mesh is as customizable as their equivalent prims. The ears are my newest purchase, and mark a shift from me in my ears - I moved from faerie ears in the prims to these gorgeous, layered Seelie ears from Illusions. They don't yet come with the attached jewelry, but on the plus side they are completely tintable (on a HUD) and customizable (yes, also non-rigged mesh). I still have some work to do to make these fit perfectly, and I have some layered shadows to mess with, but I think I did pretty well at setting them up. Finally, my shoes are my favorite Flower Pumps from G Field, one of the only shoes in my entire sizable inventory to match the reddish-brown of Pueblo.

2012-05-06 Pueblo_005

One of my recent frustrations - wanting to have a handle on what's going on at the LEA Sims - has led to my latest project - a review of the sims, their functions, and hopefully eventually details like how long they are in the hands of each artist, maybe some more details about the artists, etc... I may at some point expand it to include a few other art sims I like outside of the LEA sims; I love Split Screen, for example, though they do pretty well at sharing what's going on in their land. I have an internal drive to try to explore art, and Second Life is perfect for that; not only can art be made relatively easily, but also it can be experienced in three dimensions. My favorite art is when sound and self-incorporation (poses in different art things) are included; someday I'd like to make art of my own - true art, not just combined photographs.

2012-05-06 Pueblo_002

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Aestali - Cream Rose (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow MESH (promotional item)
Ears: Illusion,
Eyelashes 1: *X*plosion, Prim Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Morrocan Indifference Eyeshadow (group gift)
Lipstick: Mock, Bella Vetro Gloss - Lepore Red
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Annette2 Mesh Hair (promotional item)
Wings: Fancy Fairy, Azarelle
Jewelry: artMEfashion, Driftwood
Outfit: Silent Sparrow, Rustnoir
Heels: G Field, Flower Pumps "Eve"

Poses: Glitterati

Location: Fae Varriale
Light Settings: Places Greed 2

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Saturated Critique

2012-05-05_005

I recently got a resizing script that modifies prims so hair (and other things) can be shrunk down even smaller than usual, which means my awesome Miriel Artist hair can now be petite sized! Miriel closed years ago, but I've never regretted picking up a bunch of her jewelry and hair before she vanished forever. It really stands the test of time in being a chunky, stylish updo with it's own style and flair. I put it on top of the Draco Inferno petite from Fallen Gods, and proceeded to have a lot of fun with high contrast colors - scarlet and purple go so well together, don't they? I love the scaling on the skin, and the delicate shading in the face. The scales continue all the way down to my hands as well. I'm wearing an awesome new release from Sublime Shroud Kreations (located in the De la Soul Store), his first petite and full sized dual release - yes, I have successfully perverted a skin maker and a furniture maker into making me petite outfits; what can I say? It's a gift. It's also a fun, frothy, frilly gown in an elegant medieval style. I sized down the collar quite a bit to fit my hair, but otherwise everything fit beautifully out of the box.

2012-05-05_004

I was reading through interesting discussions on metafilter today about managing being critical versus being kind - something which resonated with two posts from Juicybomb regarding skin reviews and how critical a reviewer should be versus how aggressive fans should be in objecting to critique (Post 1, Post 2,). I've had my own experiences with a creator objecting to a post I made and claiming I was a bad journalist for not reviewing every instance of the mild critique I gave to her outfit. The friend of the creator in the Juicybomb example was more than reasonable, responding to the critique in the spirit in which it was meant, but the creator in my example became hugely defensive and rather insulting because I mentioned a well known Second Life glitch.

The balance between critique and kindness is a complicated one, and in many ways being a creative person means also being able to take and incorporate critique without taking it personally. However, the easiest way to improve is through consistent and clear critique; I had the experience of being under a glass (literally, since there was a one-way mirror and I would be observed more closely as well) in my profession of choice, and I found the minute feedback and critique on my strengths and weaknesses to be hugely useful. A large portion of my job is engaging in continuous self-critique as well; not a negation of myself as an individual and a clinician, but rather clear eyes on what I do well and not so well on my job so that I can do better in the future. Being able to accept critique is a skill that I personally think should be encouraged in all of the creative fields, whether it is therapy or art.

2012-05-05_002

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Body: Fallen Gods, Petites Draco Inferno (promotional item)
Eyes: De La Soul, Luminus Rainbow Eyes (promotional item)
Hair: Miriel, Artist Hair
Outfit: Sublime Shroud Kreations, Petite Lady Beatrice (promotional item)
Boots: KaiAna, Vinyl Boots

Poses: Glitterati

Location: LEA 11 - More Sea of Aley
Light Settings: Ana Lutetia Avatar Opt
Water Settings: Meridian Verde

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only