Genre: Belle Epoque

Genre is visiting the Belle Epoque this month; that glowing time before the first world war shook most of Europe to its bones. In a time of almost undreamed of violence, the previous few decades gained a rosy glow which wouldn't soon fade. That's often the way with the past during times of trouble; thirty, even fifteen years ago seems like a balm to the soul when confronting a world full of the evils that people do. This is an individual thing which becomes magnified through shared experiences - and when all who experienced it have gone, we who remain remember their stories and make our own, imagining and re-imagining times we can never know first-hand.

Much of that glow is exquisitely brought to the grid by the creators of Genre this month. Starting with my skin, a glowing base for my look from Lumae, the style is clean and clear with soft lipstick, just pink enough to hint at applied product, with blush at the edges of the cheekbones and temples. If comes with an astonishing number of brows - six in total! - in freckled and not; I'm showing freckled, and it's a fun, full-bodied pink freckle. It comes with a ton of appliers - Maitreya, Belleza, SLink, Omega and TMP for the body; Lelutka, SLink, Omega, Logo (Alex, Chloe, and Sadie), Catwa (Options 1-3), and TMP for the head; Loud Mouth, Nyam Nyam, Sweet Lips, and Soul Kissers for the mouth; and Bentbox, Leevi, and Soul Uni appliers for the ears. Astonishing! I paired it with a hat hairstyle from The Stringer Mausoleum - a Gibson Girl updo with a gloriously wide and wildly decorated hat. I love it extravagantly, from the shine of the hair to the enormous flower holding down half a brim. There are six shades of hair to pair with three styles of hat in a total of nine shades - so there's sure to be something to suit you. I went with cranberry and flowers to maintain a similar color palette with different textures and patterns, but this could also be a striking conversation piece worn on the head.

My eyes are also from The Stringer Mausoleum - one of the ten colors in all with a variety of hue combinations. I'm wearing soul, a seemingly straightforward blue with an unexpected ring of gold around the pupil. The whites are very clean and the colors are very clear. They come with system eyes as well as prim, mesh, and petite options; the mesh ones are rigged, which as one of the wide-eyed set I really appreciate! Resizing eyes can be a trial. On another note of elegance, I've always adored the effect of cigarette holders in drawing and moving the eye, and Oddfish's telescopic cig is a wonderful example of the type. Gently patterned with silver and ivory accents, it's just the thing a modern woman might sport while out on the town. One key effect is the puffs of smoke streaming from the tip; another is the included animation HUD (set priority3) to give you realistic puff and watch movements to go with your stylish smoking accessory.

My outfit, a high-square bodice with a sweeping accent to the waist, is a lovely riff on the late-Belle Epoque ball gowns when a slimmer silhouette was more popular. Adoness did a lovely job with the cut and texturing, rich and soft with realistic flow that moves smoothly between the shape and colors added to it. The rigging is, like all rigging, much more of a challenge It moves really well - the main issue (when paired with a body instead of using the invislayer) is clipping, and given the limited bones in us on the SL mesh is all but inevitable. I love the layering of the dress over the corset bodice, and both of them move extremely well and adds to the sense of fabric laying over fabric of a different stiffness. The included accessories are also worth a second look - black velvet ribbon and simple chains with large pearl accents both ramp up the drama and add a bit of evening charm. It comes designed for fitted mesh, standard sizes, and both SLink bodies so you have a lot of options! There are seven total color options, all of them muted but rich. My variety of poses from Black Tulip are also a Genre find, five elegant poses with their mirrors, including one seated pose, which show off my entire ensemble with great aplomb. All of them are poised and deliberate, perfect for the Belle Epoque aesthetic. I particularly like her use of hands, from the over-the-head arch in one pose, to the delicate curves to either side of the face in others - fantastic for portraits as well as long shoots, as you can see!

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Lumae, Eirtae (Genre)
Tattoo: Folly, Tintable Rainbow Sheen
Hair: The Stringer Mausoleum, Operetta Hat and Hair (Genre)
Eyes: The Stringer Mausoleum, Belle Eyes (Genre)
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Ears: .:Soul:., Uni
Wings: Atomic Faery, Clockwork Swallowtail Wings
Body: SLink, Body, Hands & Feet
Prop: Oddfish, Telescopic Cig (Genre)
Nails: La Boheme, Shelter Set1
Outfit: Adoness, Lilly Lavinia Gown (Genre)
Feet: Bliensen + MaiTai, Shimmy

Poses: Black Tulip (Genre)
Location: Ile Sainte Marie-les-Bains
Windlight Settings: Sim Default
Water Settings: Sim Default

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping