Rusting in the Swamps

I've always loved the image of an abandoned doll.

There's something haunting, sweet, creepy, and profound in it for me - something which tugs at my heartstrings and makes me pause for a long moment, as if listening for the tinkle of classical music.

This face of the rusted doll comes courtesy of Fallen Gods, and went round-ear for the experience - the texture being too difficult to match effectively. It's a gorgeous skin, both for the base texture and for the delicate carvings laid on top of it. I particularly liked how it frames the face with delicate curls along the edge of the cheek; with my KOY hair, it looks like the fringe on the wig edges is simply continued in metal. Rust is a gently tumbled skin with a greenish-brown cast, and the sort of shadow-defining edges which really make it unique. Appliers can be bought separately, and if you've already gotten the Materica appliers HUD then just ask for a re-delivery at his store, and Rust shows up there like magic! Now to just convince someone to make ears and ear appliers... The wings I'm wearing are also from Fallen Gods, and were a freebie during the recent Clockwork Spiral event. I love his thematic add-ons deeply, and this is a really awesome melding of key and wings.

My FATE eyes are another awesome release, but no where near as new. When it came out I spent a great deal of time playing with all of the options and am really blown away by how unique these eyes can be. Firstly, the number of options is jaw-dropping - from tinting and adding additions to the sclera, to multiple layers for the iris, to additions on top like the circuitry I'm showing here. There are also multiple iris shapes, though I went with a round to match my clock-face rims, so you can be human, animal, or something completely alien. Each layer is tintable, which means the sky really is the limit, and the HUD comes with a selection of pre-sets to give you a sense of just how wide the variety is. It really has to be played with to appreciate - I firmly believe you could match just about any requirements with this single set of eyes.

My hair is a tight skullcap from KOY which isn't my usual, florid style but which works gorgeously with the rest of my look and is very well made. I love how he is using smaller bits of hair to add verisimilitude around challenging areas like bang-openings and along the nape of the neck - and how the bottom edge of the bangs is unified enough to look like a hairstyle, but has distinct edges and pieces so that it doesn't look too perfect. It's also good hat-and-tall-collar hair, which I think everyone needs in their inventory.

My outfit is a hodgepodge of different stores and times. The bulk of it is a series of editable gacha wins from Remarkable Oblivion, and you really don't want to know the lengths I went to get all but one piece of this particular gacha set. None of the pieces are rigged, which means they can be moved and resized around every body. I ended up scaling the top hat down to a fascinator size, but it and the collar would work as well on a man as they do on me, and with a similar level of Gothic panache. I love the oversized effect of the collar tips, and how they curve over the individual feathers twisting this way and that. The cage skirt is a lovely example of the type, complete with a variety of different bows which makes it seem less uniform and add some whimsy to it, and the garter is simply a fun touch for any look - I think a version should be added in blue for all of the Second Life Weddings out there!

My top a Spring Bunny hunt prize, from Ambrosia, and a lovely example of what quality can be found even from a free event. The checkerboard is very Alice through the Looking Glass, and I thought the shift in texture worked well with the remarkable stripes on Remarkable Oblivion's collar and skirt. It has a fantastic curve along the bust and is cut high on the hips so that a little metal peaks through along the waistband of the cage skirt, giving my whole look a burlesque edge I'm rather fond of. Under the cage skirt I added a set of very cute, rigged shorts from G Field, and then tinted them slightly gray in order to match up the blacks. I've been wearing these shorts on and off since they were released just after the advent of mesh, and they're as solid as they ever were.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Fallen Gods, Materica RUST
Sparkles: Folly, Rainbow Sheen
Hair: KOY, Hanni
Hat and Collar: Remarkable Oblivion, Melancholy (September 2014 Arcade)
Eyes: FATE, FATEeyes 3.0
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Wings: Fallen Gods, A Fallen Clockwork Aid (Gift - A Clockwork Spiral)
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: Fallen Gods, Materica BLACK MARBLE
Corset: Ambrosia, Bunny Girl
Skirt and Garter: Remarkable Oblivion, Melancholy (September 2014 Arcade)
Shorts: G Field, Frill Shorts
Shoes: SLink, Quinn Boots

Pose: HelaMiyo

Location: The Green Mire
Light Settings: Phototools, Build 005 Light
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only