Monday Meme: My Blogging Journey Challenge

In an epic example of patterns, Strawberry has some more questions about how and why we blog - something which I always think is very interesting. There are a lot of blogs about Second Life, and each of them have their own mood and tenor.

1. Which electronic devices do you use to blog with? I use my laptop for everything, up to and including correcting errors. While I do read blogs on my phone, I don't usually read mine because not much happens without me.


2. Do you have a mission statement for your blog, if so, what is it? I don't really have a mission statement as such, but my focus is expressing myself and trying to share my sense of beauty and emotion. I also want to record different events as they happen, from MadPea Hunt Stories, to art displays, so that I and hopefully others can enjoy them even when they've inevitably vanished into the past.


3. How do you feel about blogs that use their platforms to spread negativity? Depends on what you describe as negativity. I am a fan of a well done critique and I often learn from them. I enjoy hearing about the gritty and emotional lives people have, and to get to know them as flawed individuals. I'm bored by some specific areas of conversation, however, and people who are simply slinging insults back and forth bore me as well. I have an artists appreciation of an expressive meltdown, though, even when it's my own. Is this spreading negativity? I'm not sure.


4. Are you a grammar junkie? Do you thoroughly check your blog for errors before posting and/or do you judge other people’s posts if they contain errors? I do double and triple checks, and go back to fix things, but I'm not particularly judgmental about others' errors, and I'm a fan of an expressive misspelling. My focus on proper grammar and spelling is so that when I deliberately break the rules it is more apparent that it was not an error, but rather a stylistic choice. I completely adore  the playful edge of how malleable English can be in terms of inventing new vocabulary, creating new and meaningful grammar rules, and in general offering up a thousand shibboleths for every sub group.


5. If you could switch blogs with another blogger who would it be? Emerald. I really miss her enthusiasm, and I wish I could be as honest and raw as she sometimes could be. I also miss her, full stop.




6. Has your blog/blogging style evolved over the year(s)? How? I've actually been going back and trying to clean up my tags, so I know I've improved on that end. I know my pictures have also improved, though I'm sure I still have loads of room for improvement on that front as well - right now I'm working on achieving good lighting inside of Second Life without blowing out my skin tone too much. I think my copy is more interesting, too, but I'm honestly not sure; I still get very few comments, but I get a decent amount of views.


7. What is the most extraordinary thing that has happened to you because of blogging? I've gotten to know some people I wouldn't have otherwise, creators in particular. Many of them have become friends, which is really nice.


8. When it comes to Second Life blogs, there are different styles: Fashion bloggers, Lifestyle & Travel bloggers, Informative bloggers, and more. Which style do you prefer and where do you feel your blog fits in? I like all of them and follow all of the different types plus people who don't fit into any type. I also have a pattern of following even people I disagree with - I think it's important to try to remember people can disagree and have valid points and perspectives, and this is one small way of maintaining that mindset. I think I'm an artsy lifestyle blog mostly, but I also think I don't easily fit into any category. I most admire the very small number of bloggers who engage in actual critique in Second Life, but their posts are necessarily rare and often hotly contested. 


9. What has blogging taught you? Blogging has taught me so much about my own worries and insecurities. I've learned about some of my insecurities and so many of the more negative sides of my personality - or sides I see as negative, like my desire for positive acclaim and my jealousy and envy when I don't get what I want. It's been a curious exercise in vulnerability and fear given how low the stakes are.


10. Share your top 3 tips for new bloggers. Try to find your own voice - it's ok to start out inspired by someone else, but it's your own voice that we want to hear. Always aspire to improve your skills. Try to keep a sense of perspective - you may not get the views, responses, or fawning hordes that you hope for, but that doesn't say anything about you as a person.

( More pictures here. )

That Hole Inside of Me

It's been an interesting, hollow week for me. Fantasy Faire starts in two days, and for the first time in three years I'm not part of the giddy, giggling chatting in the official group; I was removed from it a couple of months back, and didn't make the cut to be let back in. This had been the first year I stayed in the group - we were encouraged to at the end of the last faire - so being removed was tough. I'm not completely sure why I reacted to strongly to it, though; it's not the stuff - I've built enough relationships with people who are active in Fantasy Faire over the course of doing different events that I'll be more than busy item-wise - but it felt rather like being forcibly removed from a community one thought one would be an integral part of for some time to come. Fantasy Faire was the first event I ever applied to, and the first I was ever an official blogger for, and the first time I ever got review copies of anything. Despite losing a number of people to cancer, I've never felt emotionally connected to fighting it; I think the issue seems to abstract, or perhaps it's lost in the background noise of general wishing that the world were a kinder place. I do feel connected to the Faire itself, however, and the amazing worlds which came out of peoples' minds and spoke so strongly to the optimize and beauty found in people coming together for a cause. I'm also sad because it loses me a couple of days in reviewing the sims themselves; Fantasy Faire is astonishingly brief and astonishingly beautiful, and so having the extra time to really sink myself into it was a blessing. I'm feeling the lack of it now, like an ache.

I've been debating writing about this since I was removed from the group and didn't seem to receive a response from the Fantasy Faire staff (Second Life can and does frequently eat things); it seems so petty, and I don't want to be seen as petty and self-centered. I want to be able to throw myself into experiencing the faire wholeheartedly, though, and being honest about my emotional responses seems like the best way to sooth the sting of rejection I feel. I've been reading Brené Brown's work on Shame and how it deadens our emotions when we try to hide our honest reactions under a façade of perfection. I am someone who has deeply internalized shame and a lot of judgement about how I should feel and what I should do in order to be even remotely acceptable as a person. There is no way to face up to ones shame other than honesty - accepting myself as a flawed person who is worthy of love and care despite sometimes being selfish and petty. Being honest means being vulnerable and opening oneself up for censure, but weirdly, having typed this out, I feel a lot better. Even in the absence of any remedy, being clear and honest offers some relief and I think now I can throw myself enthusiastically into my favorite event of the year - Fantasy Faire.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Discord Designs, Robyn
Hat: Node, Oreor (The Fantasy Collective)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Pin Me Down, Soft Shadows
Lipstick: Beauty Freak, Liquid Metal
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: A:S:S, Superglitter
Top: Sassy, Bliss Halter Top (Hunt Prize)
Corset: Sassy, Gramercy Leather Corset (Hunt Prize)
Pants: Sassy, Tribeca Leather Pants (Hunt Prize)
Anklet: Sax Shepherd Designs, Fairy Tale Tease (Fantasy Gacha Carnival)
Shoes: Sax Shepherd Designs, Fairy Tale Tease (Fantasy Gacha Carnival)

Poses: Grafica

Location: Black Spot
Light Settings: Phototools, Horizon Building Light
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday Meme: Strike a Pose Challenge

The theme of the week is poses, and in that vein Strawberry asks us to do a pose challenge - where we talk about our favorite pose stores for a while. I actually keep my poses organized alphabetically in a HUD, so I'll be sharing my top movers and shakers in that order. I rarely use rezzing poses because I'm usually taking pictures in the field, so I'm going to focus on my most used and why I use them, focusing on stores which are still open. Like many people, my gateway store was Long Awkward Pose, and I have an extensive collecton of poses from her that I still use to this day, however I've branched out into a wide variety of pose stores, and keep collecting more all of the time.

Unlike many photographers, I do short "photoshoots" where I use a single pose store several times in a row in the same location. A lot of the structure of it is due to ease of recording exactly what I'm doing - jump location, windlight, and pose brand enough and you just get confused - but it's led to me categorizing a lot of stores by their general feel, and then selecting based on the mood I want to have for my images. I'll be discussing these impressions here, but keep in mind they're just one person's opinion - I highly recommend you check out the poses yourself to see hat you like best.

Adorkable Poses: Currently available on the marketplace; she closed her in world store a short while ago. What I love about Adorkable is how sweet, natural, and enthusiastic her poses are - they really aim to be cute and bouncy without the stiff, posed style of a more modelesque pose store. I also like the flowing nature - the head movements are interesting and the arms and legs are interesting. When I'm doing a cute, bouncy, "all around the sim" photo set, Adorkable is where I begin. ( All Adorkable Poses used here. )

!bang: With a wide selection of stands, one of my go to natural pose stores is !bang. I came to the store late, so it took a little while to build up my reserve, but now I have an astonishing range of poses to suit most occasions. I tend to think of !bang as my casual store - when I want something that seems breezy and effortless, I start here. Note in particular the delicate yet realistic placing of the feet above. ( All !bang poses used here. )

Don't Freak Out: I honestly don't remember where I ran across this store, but I know it was love at first demo.This store is one of the newcomers to my stable of choices, but they have quickly become a go to store when I want something moody and sly. Many of the poses have a playful vibe to them, and I love the attitude they have. ( All Don't Freak Out poses used here. )

Elephante: She is a bit of a dark horse and one I don't see as often, but I really like how dynamic and interesting her poses are. There are a lot of leaps, and arm reaches, and in general a sense of movement. I started picking up Elephante poses when they were largely prop-driven, but I've been really glad to see her show up more in just stand alone poses, and I hope she keeps expanding and creating her energetic poses. ( All Elephante poses used here. )

Exposeur: Is another dynamic pose creator, but what I adore the most is how well made her poses are, especially in the area of head-clipping. I have unusually long arms and a wide head for a Second Life Avatar, so I've resigned myself to a certain about of hand-in-face actions, but as you can see from the sheer amount of "hand next to face" poses in my images with Exposeur poses, not only do my hands not clip my head, but they also don't clip my hair. ( All Exposeur poses used here. )

Flowey: I found Flowey through Whiskey Monday's exclusive use of her, and what I like most about her poses are their expressiveness. Flowey poses are evocative of a wide variety of emotional states, from sadness to anger to grief to happiness, and that makes them compelling and fun to use for photoshoots. ( All Flowey poses used here. )

Glitterati: Closed in world, Glitterati also maintains a presence on the Marketplace, and was my go-to pose store from early on. I'll be entirely honest here and say a big part of it was her group sales; they meant that I could expand my collection of available poses without spending hundreds of thousands of Linden. Her poses are also wonderful, elegant, slightly modelesque without being stiff poses, and she would make categories of poses for specific purposes, like showing off jewelry, or to be worn with a wide skirt, which made difficult to pose outfits and images easier. I still return to her regularly, particularly when I have something refined to show off. ( All Glitterati poses used here. )

Grafica: Is a much smaller store than the ones I regularly use, but the poses are of such high quality and so dynamic and expressive that I simply can't resist. Grafica is particularly good at shoulders - SL Avatar shoulders and elbows are fraught things, but Grafica manages to bend them in awkward, unusual ways with panache. There is also a lot of leaping, leaning, falling, and floating, and all of it is awesome and fun. ( All Grafica poses used here. )

Hopscotch: I used Hopscotch early on in my blogging career, left it for a while to focus on other stores, and then was bitchslapped by awesome when I ran into her again. For a long time I had thought of her as largely a prop and rez pose store, but her stand alones have become completely off the hook and fun, and cover some rare areas of interest like stretching before a run. ( All Hopscotch poses used here. )

Olive Juice: She has only a tiny satellite store open now, but Olive Juice has long been a favorite for quirky and silly poses, and I still use them regularly when my mood is on the giggly and silly side. Her poses always seem slightly off kilter, and I particularly like the tripping and falling ones. ( All Olive Juice poses used here. )

I hope you enjoyed this short, pictoral travel through my pose collections. In a very real way, poses add the dynamic element of pictures of people, and I couldn't do what I do without them.

Lost (Remake)

Maxi Gossamer is having a 50% off sale for Easter Weekend. Asteria Creations has an awesome dress with a shelf effect of the shirt over the skirt that I really like. I was pointed to a new sim, Santaurio, that somehow manages to combine a tragic plain accident with a Caribbean Vacation, and I'm not sure how I feel about that..

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Analog Dog, Tootsie
Crown: Elephante, If I Can Dream Tiara (Fit for a Princess Gacha)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: A.E.Meth, Cheetah Liner
Lipstick: Izzies, Fuyu Lipstick
Wings: Illusions, Apsara Wings
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: Wicked Peach, Bedtime Story (MadPea Hunt Prize)
Dress: Asteria Creations, Du Diamond
Necklace: Maxi Gossamer, Filigree Oval
Bracelets: Half Deer, Painted Rustic Bangles (Oz Hunt Prize)
Shoes: Eclectica, Swing Shoe

Pose: !bang

Location: Santaurio
Light Settings: TOR, DUSK Somber Rose
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Ozimals Spring 2014 Hunt

Every now and then Ozimals makes us all very happy campers by holding a rather unique hunt, more along the lines of RMK's Bunny Hunt than your standard Second Life "find the little object in the store" hunts. There is finding small things involved, but it's more complicated than that. It started on 4/16 and goes until 4/23, so you have some time but not a ton. The starting point is here, and Ozimal's official blog is here. There is a sign for you to click at the landing point which will give you a very important folder, which contains instructions and a basket for you to wear as you hunt. Sonya Marmurek made a wonderful post about the event as well, which includes pictures of two rare bunnies available during the event as hunt prizes.

You start with this basket - in this case a pretty Easter Eggs basket that has room for six eggs - and then you go looking around the sim to find eggs for this very special basket. They can be just about everywhere, but I found the spots which went unnoticed the most were ones high up - like on top of fences, or tucked into lighting fixtures - and the hidden ones, like several inside of various flower bells. Sooner or later you'll find six, though, and when you do my favorite part comes up - it asks you what store you want a prize from. Each store chosen gives you a stack of eggs for your head from each of the short list of stores. Most of the stores offer one prize, but katat0nik threw a wrench into all of our plans by having three different dresses available; what I did was get six different katat0nik stacks, to hedge my bets at the prize gathering point.

You can choose how you want to time things; I gathered all the stacks I wanted and then went through the stores because that area had the most people, but there are eggs which pop up near the stores, so you can fulfill your stack making tasks while getting your prizes as well. The prize gathering point is when to be the most careful; I ended up trying to trade in a stack while the sim was struggling with all of the scripts, and ended up not getting a prize the first time (easy enough to make another stack, though; yay!), so try to wait untilt he sim is running well before you take this step. Wear the egg stack on top of your head and find the store you want - they're all in one area, so it isn't difficult - and go near the in-store basket. Then, once in place, click the egg stack on your head and soon a prize will be rolling its way into your inventory. Since katat0nik offered three different prizes, you'll get one of the three options each time; it took me five tries to get all three, but they are so gorgeous it was well worth it.

And that's it - all the steps. Simpler, now:

1. Wear the basket.
2. Find eggs.
3. After six eggs, select a store from the menu.
4. Wear store egg stack and go to store.
5. Clock egg stack.
6. Profit!

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Marin
Head Ears: Adore & Abhor, Lovely Forest Bunny
Bird: Silent Sparrow, Boi Bird (Hunt Prize)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Adore & Abhor, Princess Blithe
Lipstick:  Mock, Fruitilicious Gloss
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: A.E.Meth, Tie-Dye Nails
Dress: katat0nik, Cheeky Bunny Dress (Hunt Prize)
Bracelet: Intrepid, Weapped Bracelet
Basket: Oz, 2014 Easter Basket
Ring: C.C.Kreations, Rose ~ pink
Necklace: Zenith, Nude Pearl Stone Egg Necklace Bag
Stockings: Schadenfreude, Splatter Watercolor Tights
Shoes: Sax Shepherd Designs, Button Mules

Pose: Grafica

Location: Santaurio
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Londonesk
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Hoofing It

Sometimes I make a look from odds and ends, and after events close, and I really like it, and this is one of those times, so apologies for anything you can't get yet. I put on the dress from katat0nik, which came out of the last collabor88 event (we've already started the new one - nope, haven't been there, yet). It hasn't made its way to her Main Store yet, but her other collabor88 outfits have, so it's just a matter of time. This is a cute miniskirt with color matching collar and necktie, something which can be dressed up or down depending on your mood. I did both; to dress it more casually, I added this ponytail style from Wasabi Pills, a release from during the Cutie Moon Faire that's now at her Main Store. See what I said about everything being a little late? It's gorgeous, but one of the effects of all of these events is that I feel like I'm perpetually behind the eight ball. But I look so pretty when I'm scrambling to catch up! In light of the scramble, I kept my cosmetics casual - a nice eyeshadow from Mock dark enough to make my eyes stand out, and a double layer of lipstick from Blacklace in an orangey hue of my symbol of power.

I dressed this look up with said symbol of power, this awesome crown from Alchemy, one of many I got when I did my casual drive by of her Gatcha at the Secret Affair Event, which goes until the end of the month. I did one of those, "Oh, just passing by give me a rare" walks a couple of times and hit the jackpot - but you'll have to wait a little to see the fruit of that particular luck. The Iron Crown is lovely in platinum, though, and I love the jewel in it - though I have to admit, my color obsessive soul really wished the jewel was color change. I know, I know, common in a gacha, but it would have been cool. How it fit in with the bangs of my Wasabi Pills hair, though, is as accidental as it is awesome (and a big part of why I kept the hair even while I was dressing my look up), and I really love the boldness of the design. The final bit of formality for this look is these amazing shoes from Lassitude & Ennui, which I have been trying to match with a look for ages because they're simply awesome. Reminiscent of Seventeenth Century France, at least to me, they come in frosty shades and fit beautifully on a standard foot. I especially like the large buckle across the front.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Bunny Mesh
Crown: Alchemy, Iron Crown
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Less of a Blues Girl
Lipstick 1: Blacklace, Beauty Pout Gloss
Lipstick 2: Blacklace, Beauty Pout Clear
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: A:S:S, Precious 2
Dress: katat0nik, Working Girl
Shoes: Lassitude & Ennui, Versailles

Pose: HopScotch

Location: Miskatonia
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Herr Gracken
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Fit for a Princess: Under a Full Moon

The month is over half done, which means we're nearing the end of the first Fit for a Princess Event - and the theme for next month has already been announced: Floral. I'm looking forward to seeing things made more around a theme, rather than the grab bag which was the first month. This is my first time of doing an event of this scale, and I have to admit I really loved it - the opportunity to try new things, to try a lot of different outfits and hair, and to try to present what at first blush seems like a singular idea in a variety of ways was really fun. The sheer volume of things was both exciting and a little overwhelming, though I think I did a pretty good job of covering most of my bases - and my stores. It was interesting to try to keep up the pace of a post a day for a while; I managed fifteen days before I stared into this box and simply didn't have anything to say at all, or any pictures to show. The featured item for this look is this gorgeous gown from Kouse's Sanctum; she has largely shifted over to jewelry - now and then she wows us with something bigger, though, and I'm really glad she did. This dress features a low cut bodice and layered skirt - a style of dress seen in a few different textures, but gleaming and glowing in the moonlight. The one flaw to the gown is the leg rigging; the dress is rigged to the waist and hips, but not at all to the legs, which means it floats wide for most poses but can move awkwardly with an AO. I adore it despite this, though, especially with these amazing textures.

My hair is from Tableau Vivant, and was sold at the Cutie Moon Faire and isn't currently available at the mainstore, but it is gorgeous and fun and the stock there definitely deserves a second look. The hair and the head fluffy bits were sold separately, and the fun thing is that you can mix and match the hair ring things and the longer, elegant base hair. I ended up picking up a couple of different color combinations, and they were all set up to match the various Sailor Scouts - an awesome, unique addition to any inspired look. The jewelry I'm wearing, including the tiara tucked in between the headdress loops, is from Krystal, which is the jewelry brand for Kouse's Sanctum. It's color changing on touch, which offers a lot of options, and it comes in silver or gold base. It's also available at Fit for a Princess, and it goes perfectly with the gowns she released. Keeping to the same clear, pastel shades as the gown, I added a set of nails from A:S:S which have a lovely tiara edge to the colors. I added in a very simple lip to finish the whole look - one of the many shines from Mock which I have the pleasure to have in my inventory. It has a sparkly edge to it which stands out despite only being the texture. The eyeshadow is from MiaSnow and looked a lot brighter on the ad. I was very glad to try it on and see how clean and simple the colors are in it, and how it added to the shine of my whole look.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Tableau Vivant, Moon Hair (Cutie Moon Faire)
Headdress: Tableau Vivant, Moon Headdress (Cutie Moon Faire)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: MiaSnow, Blurr 3
Lipstick: Mock, Micare LipGlimmer
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Jewelry: Krystal, Purity Set
Nails: A:S:S, Tiara (Fit for a Princess)
Dress: Kouse's Sanctum, Anna Gown (Fit for a Princess)

Pose: Glitterati

Location: Kats Beach
Light Settings: Phototools, Moon Light 02
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Tardy

Don't you hate it when you put together a look from an event, and then the event ends before you blog it?

Me too.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Underscore, Lana
Headdress: Naminoke, Sakura Head / Mouth
Crown: Epic, Sparkle Pop Queenie Crown
Flowers: Intrepid, Rose Halo
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Earrings: Naminoke, Sakura Pierce
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Adore & Abhor, Princess Blossom
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Bracelet 1: Snugabugs, Chunky Bead
Bracelet 2: Intrepid, Wrapped Bracelet
Fan: Silvery K, Metallic Folding Fan
Nails: A:S:S, Royal
Dress: Sakide, Ailis Dress
Stockings: Izzie's, Heart Tights
Shoes: Reign, MaryJanes

Poses: Don't Freak Out

Location: Oubliette
Light Settings: Phototools, Dream Book Light
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday Meme: Flat Ebbe Linden

Strawberry made us another flat CEO, this time of poor Ebbe Linden, who hasn't done anything which would deserve all of us carting him around the grid, and yet here he is. CEOs never get any respect in Second Life, huh? In any case, it took only a little while to download him and take him to my current favorite spot on the grid - Deo's grove - and then I had to think of three suggestions or things I'd like him to know. I actually made a Wants and Wishes post a while ago which had seven things I'd like to see changed, so this is a more general thing focusing on what I hope will give him an appreciation for the sections of Second Life I know. Anywhere you go as Ebbe Linden you're likely to be mobbed, so if you find a place you want to just linger in (ah, I wish World's End was still here for you to meet) I'd recommend taking an alt the second time. You can pass folders of landmarks to alts.

1. Check out the art. Not just LEA, though their offerings are awesome, but also Immersiva and Split Screen and other art sims (Immersiva in particular is cutting edge in terms of reallly using all aspects of Second Life beautifully). Then take a flip through the destination guide. Whenever I can't find a place to take pictures, I'll flip through the offerings and try anything which seems appealing.You mentioned trying to figure out Second Life and our long time branding issue, and here is part of the problem - diversity beyond even reality. How do you brand that?


2. Check out some blogs. If you actually make it to my blog (which seems unlikely, but who knows?), check out my blogrolls. I'm very fashion leaning, but it won't take long to get to a wide variety of stuff, and I recommend the Locations and Events lists in particular, and the personal blogs. The sheer variety of experience and expression is jaw dropping, from people who have all but abandoned SL but still circle around it like it's their dying flame, to people running pell-mell through everything SL has to offer.


3. Check out some roleplaying sims. It's a huge, active population and a lot of land in Second Life, and it's one of the fairly odd niches which is easy to ignore, but an awful lot of people are engaged in a variety of different kinds of roleplaying, and the sims are often breath-takingly beautiful. The people also cover an enormous gamut, from amateur writers to people trying to fulfill offline needs online to people who want to remake themselves.

Also, welcome to our world. We hope you like it.

Mermaid Princess

There was a lovely set of poses among the many princess things at Fit for a Princess, from Uncertain Smile. It's an enormous oyster shell, quite large, with a wide variety of poses set around it and it's enormous pearl creation. It also comes with a few lovely accessories for different poses - like the gorgeous mirror so I can admire my pretty face, and a lovely shell with pearls spilling forth from it. Each of the poses is interesting and unique, and the shell itself would make a lovely addition to an underwater tableau. I could have wished for a few more poses taking advantage of the outside, as well as the inside, of the shell - something leaning over the top, for example, or lying back and taking in the sights above, but the variety of poses otherwise is wonderful, including one swimming through the shell, and others in various states of repose from sitting to lying. Like all Uncertain Smile posts I've used, the poses themselves are smooth, realistic, and don't distort the standard avatar mesh, which is really fantastic - especially for over the head poses, where the shoulders can often become disjointed.

I knew I wanted to do a whole mermaid look for it, but all of my mermaid accessories are pre-mesh, and didn't seem quite as fluid and seamless as I'd like. Luckily, however, Genre did a mermaid special and I was able to get a good assortment if mermaiding awesomeness to put together a new mermaid form. The hair first, from Souzou Eien, and is all but made for me - rainbows and shininess, with a fun fin and little tendrils off the sides of my head. This set the bar for a rather spare, colorful mermaid princess, so I added in Sax Shepherd Designs' new forehead jewel set, which has an incredible amount of individuality in terms of tinting them - four different sets of gems that can be tinted individually via a HUD and that look amazing. I love the curves over the brows and the enormous gem in the middle. With my head set up, I headed over to Genre to check out what was in the offering, and found awesome lipstick from Senzafine in a variety of watery colors. I also saw, and thus remembered, this amazing octopus necklace from Eclectica, with it's little tentacles curling around a pretty black rock. I really like the naturalistic style of this necklace,  how it looks like it has the weight and heft it should when it hands around my neck. In order to keep my modesty on top, I layered an old set of scales from Evie's Closet under a new set of rainbow gradient scales from Even Tide. The latter come in a whole set, many colors in addition to the rainbow I'm wearing. And finally, my gorgeous tail is from deviousMind and at the Genre event. I chose it because of the vivid layering of colors, and I fell in particular in love with the edges of the fins - how they curl and lace out at the edges.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Souzou Eien, Dawn Child of Proteus (Genre)
Headdress: Sax Shepherd Designs, Devi Jewels
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Glitter Pop Eshadow
Lipstick: Senzafine, Sirene (Genre)
Necklace: Eclectica, Octopus (Genre)
 Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Scales 1: Evie's Closet, Lumina Nymph
Scales 2: Even Tide, Gradient Mer Scales (Genre)
Nails: A:S:S, Royal
Mermaid Tail: deviousMind, Undine (Genre)

Pose: Uncertain Smile, Mermaid Princess (Fit for a Princess)

Location: Skyrah
Light Settings: Phototools, B/W Light 02
Water Settings: TOR, Ice-like

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Japan Faire: Kimono in the World

The Japan Faire is pretty awesome.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Argrace, Haruka
Headdress: *N*, Higanbana
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Glitter Pop Eshadow
Lipstick 1: Adore & Abhor, 13 Lips
Lipstick 2: Buzz, Gem Lips
Wings: Sax Shepherd Designs, Mesh Filigree Wings
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: A:S:S, Golden Threads
Jewelry: Sax Shepherd Designs, Portia Renaissance
Kimono: Silvery K, KimonoMesh
Shoes: r2, jf wedge

Pose: Grafica

Location: Bare Rose Mainstore
Light Settings:
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

How NOT to be a Peer in Second Life

So, several times now I've gotten a random, unsolicited invitation to a group called Suicide Dreams from an avatar named Adam01DaxterALT who has hidden himself from search to be more difficult to find. Based on it's description it's a support group for a narrow spectrum of people - something really for a narrow line of avatars, not random invites, and not something I was interested in becoming involved with.

"Suicide Dreams is a peer to peer advocacy daily support group for people who deal with suicidal thoughts. We hold daily meetings at 4pm SLT.

suicide, mental illness, health, bipolar, schizophrenia, schizoaffective, ocd, add, adhd, did, borderline, ptsd, autism, aspergers, depression, anxiety, panic, agoraphobia, disabled, self harm, transgender, abuse, trauma, stress"

Not the kind of thing you'd think random strangers should be invited to - right?

I had ignored it the first (few?) times, but this time I decided I was really tired of getting the invite and was hoping to stop it. After a sincere amount of work to contact Mr. DaxterALT, I sent him an IM.

[18:46] Deoridhe Quandry: This is the Second Time you have invited me to your Suicide Dreams group unsolicited. Please do not invite me again.
[18:47] Adam01 Daxter (Adam01DaxterALT): fku
[18:47] Deoridhe Quandry: Wow, rude.

Now, like most people, I assumed that the group leader or a Peer Advocacy and Support Group would like to know that one of his members was not only inviting people unsolicitedly and randomly, but also know that such a person was rather abruptly rude, so I wrote a notecard.

Dear Mr. Xthislife:

One of the members of your Suicide Dreams group has invited me to join it - unsolicited and without speaking to me first - at least two times. I contacted him to politely ask him to cease doing so, and he responded with "fku". I would expect, given the purpose you say this group has, that you would not like your members to be insulting people so directly, and so I am letting you know what happened.

Sincerely,

Deoridhe Quandry

I got the following response:

[18:58] Xthislife: discardedand muted
[18:58] Xthislife: never read it

And then I was muted and blocked by him.

It's really amazing to me that a Peer Advocacy Group that advertises itself as a resource for people with a whole panoply of mental illnesses would be so incredibly, immediately, and unrepentantly rude to polite requests and responses. I really hope they aren't equally as rude to their members.

( More pictures here. )

Fit for a Princess: Interlude

Some days, a girl just wants to take a break from tending dragons to read a good book... but where to go when the dragon flamed all the trees? Decisions, decisions.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Truth, Rocky
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Glitter Pop
Wings: Favole, Cawthorn
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: A:S:S, Royal (Fit for a Princess)
Jewelry: Cae, Duchess (Fit for a Princess)
Dress: Fateplay, Dany
Book: Frogstar, LIAGBG (Fit for a Princess Gacha)
Cape: Fateplay, Dany (We <3 RP)
Shoes: Hopscotch, Dorothy (Fit for a Princess)

Poses: Flowey

Location: Twilight's Edge
Light Settings:
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Cherry Blossom Princess

This has been a very eventful month already, and I've had such fun - but I'm feeling a little poor. The nice thing is, even if my pockets are empty, my inventory is full, and I had such a ball pulling together items from a few different events to make a fantastic, royal look. I also found a gorgeous new sim for pictures - Nagare - which has a wonderful, formal design with beautiful cherry blossom petals flying around like magic. I found myself quite entranced by them, and by the ever-present rain which is only barely visible in these pictures; it was soothing without being overwhelming. I'm seeking soothing a lot these days; life has been pretty hectic and upsetting, and so I dive deeper into the things I love - pretty clothing, taking pictures, and baking. The poses I used are all from Fit for a Princess, a royal set from Lalochezia which worked well with my gown - though sometimes the sleeves caught on themselves here and there. I'm really looking forward to see more poses from this store.

Speaking of pretty clothes - this gown from Junebug is another of the Fit for a Princess event offerings, and I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it on the feeds - though picking a single color was really difficult. I love the poofy quality of it, something difficult to render in rigged mesh, and the layers of fabric. The ripples of fabric fall well even with different leg poses - in the top picture you can see how a lifted foot kicks the skirt up like a breeze is ruffling it without causing unnatural jaggedness in the fabric. The corset bends with motion well, as well, and I love that the sleeves are bell like but don't cover the wrist, allowing me to show off some bracelets. The texturing is also gorgeous; the lace of the bodice adds some texture to the whole look, and then is repeated in the sleeves only semi-transparent; having only a few spots of complicated texture really make them stand out. The seams are thick and rolled at the waist, and bands of velvet trip along the sides of the bodice; I find touches like this add to the verisimilitude of an outfit and make it seem more polished. I paired it with the sets of creamy lilies and roses from The Annex at We <2 RP which I simply couldn't resist. I tinted them more cream to match the gown, but otherwise they were completely perfect - especially when I found the bands of pearls of the headband framed the forehead braid of this hair from Wasabi Pills perfectly. I love it when two completely different stores release items which fit together as if they were made for each other - and this is definitely an example of that. I added a necklace and bracelets from League for that final bit of creamy pearl, and again it looks like it was all made for each other, and simply perfect. Given how much older the jewelry is than the rest of my look, it's really amazing how seamlessly it melds in to make the perfect princess glow. The final piece were these gorgeous wings from Una, which I've gotten a lot of use out of - I'm glad I played the gacha so much to get so many colors, though I wish I could have been able to buy a fatpack. They have a formal, elegant appearance which makes me a perfect, clockwork pearl princess.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Stella
Flowers: The Annex, Purity of Spring (We <3 RP)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Adore & Abhor, Princess Wish
Wings: Una, Steampunk Wing
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Adore & Abhor, Princess Destiny
Jewelry: League, Pearls & Lace
Dress: Junebug, Principessa (Fit for a Princess)

Poses: Lalochezia

Location: Nagare: Home of the Blue Lotus Clan
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Precision Blue
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Endless Movement Stopped

It's been a couple of years since I last went to Spencer Art Museum; in 2010 I went there for the first Color Challenge I ever participated in, the color Gray in November. There's word it may be closing soon, which is why the abstract stylings of the sim are flooding across the decks of bloggers everywhere; sadly, nothing draws people more quickly than word that something is going away. It is an amazing sim, though, and difficult to capture in pictures in a way few sims on Second Life are - the ever-present motion means that things are always changing in a way static pictures simply don't do justice to. It's also so enormous that anything other than pure landscape pictures are sadly reductive, and the fun of bouncing around on a pink, stuffed chair is both fleeting and pleasant. I love the rusty, misshapen aspects of it, and the tiny details of platforms, cages, light-bulb trees, and long, misshapen arms. It is at once, mechanical, magical, and worn. I love it against a powerful color; it ends up being such a different look from my last look at this sim, and really shows the effect a good windlight can have.

The larger pieces of my outfit are from this session of We <3 RP, which had a few shining items but seemed less diverse and combineable than in the past; I pulled together hair, dress, crown, and a few poses but most of what I picked up are other outfits, and so they will filter out as time goes on with other accessories. The crown was a gacha prize from Plastik, and a gacha of rare and enviable bliss; three sets of crowns, with rarity being based on color instead of style, which meant I ended up with a number of lovely crowns and even a rare or two - which left me feeling upbeat and cheerful. I perched the crown on top of this hair from Calico, is a fluffy concoction of curls which cascade over one shoulder and tuck perfectly behind my ear - a rarity in hair and deeply appreciated. Like a lot of other stores, she's moved to HUD based recoloring of her hair and includes roots with the basic set - something I took advantage of in this look, though I'm normally not a roots girl. I also quite liked her set of fades, which covered many natural hair colors as well as unnatural; I adore the variety of options.

The dress - the largest part of my look - is a gorgeous new creation from Evie's Closet that is reminiscent of the best of her gowns. The colors are rich and dull, the styling unique and lovely - I particularly like the triangle of fabric over the back of the hand, and how the fabric parts at the tips in a natural manner for the laced up style. The gold lattice work on the bodice is echoed in the bright gold of the underskirt - my one wish here would have been for two layers of mesh supporting the layering in the texture more powerfully, but even as a textured underskirt it seems to glow in the light. I also love how it cuts in on the side and back, the top smooth field of red lava from which the gold emerges and cascades to the hemline. Finally, some of the poses are from Elephante, which is a fantastic emerging post maker who makes naturalistic, interesting poses of a wide variety of types. The We <3 RP poses available are in the style of Fairy Tales - a warrior and a wicked Queen - but if you go to many other events open right now you'll find even more options available to you.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Calico, Francine (We <3 RP)
Crown: Plastik, Syl Crown (We <3 RP - Gacha)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Glitter Pop Eshadow
Lipstick 1: Adore & Abhor, 13 Lips
Lipstick 2: Buzz, Gem Lips
Wings: Illusions, Apsara Wings
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: A:S:S, Mermaid
Necklace: Max Gossamer, Summer Ladybird (Arcade June 2013)
Dress: Evie's Closet, Iseult Gown (We <3 RP)

Pose: Elephante

Location: Spencer Art Museum
Light Settings: TOR, SCIFI Lydian Dinosaurs
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Monday Meme: Advice for Newbies Challenge

Strawberry is back again, this time with an Advice for Newbie Challenge. I'm actually a semi-big newbie person. I carry gifts for newbies, and part of this blog - the Newbie Resources Page - is directly aimed at giving practical advice for how to get nice things and get around. They are some of my most visited pages, though usually I don't get much feedback on them and some of the sub-posts have been very difficult to keep up to date. They are more nuts and bolts, so for this list of five pieces of advice I'm going to focus on the more abstract issues of how to thrive in Second Life.

1. Start with something you're interested in. Is it music, philosophy, dance, charity, creation, fashion, or art? Is it socializing, romance, self-expression, games, or exploration? The search on Second Life isn't the best, but if you search for any of those words you'll end up somewhere to begin, and you can search on the wider web as well. I'd honestly recommend looking in at least two directions - I started with fashion and philosophy - so that you don't become too isolated in a small sub-genre and loose sight of the larger picture of how diverse Second Life is. Don't try too many, though, because it can be easy to get overwhelmed; Second Life is largely about who you meet and who you are, so be mindful of both.


2. Invest in a single persona at first. Second Life offers a lot of angles for re-imagining oneself, but to get the full effect, focus on one expression of yourself at first until you find your sea legs. This doesn't necessarily mean focus on one avatar form - I've known people who change avatars very often and with great glee, but that is part of the persona they are building, as someone transcendent of image. Spreading out all of one's aspects of persona across many accounts, however, can lead both to a shallow relationship with Second Life, but also make it much more likely that if something happens within that context, one has less to keep oneself in world.


3. Make a second persona about the stuff you want to hide - your shadow. In addition to being a wonderful way of pursuing things one enjoys and doesn't mind people knowing about, it can also be a wonderful place to explore the personally taboo with less risk of danger or discovery. This may mean a gender change, an appearance change, or moving into communities one normally avoids, but Second Life offers unparalleled freedom to explore the external unknown and our inner darkness both.


4. Remember that NPCs are few and far between. It's easy to begin to think of other avatars are players in our own stories, but the truth is that we are all the main characters in our own stories, and we weave in and out of each others' lives in ways both pleasurable and painful. One way to minimize the latter and emphasize the former is to not be so attached to ourselves as an isolated actor, and instead recognize that everyone has a lot going on and their own perspective which may or may not be equally valid to our own.


5. Keep several things going at once, if you can. People have a tendency to mono-focus, even in a diverse world like Second Life, and that can lead to stagnation, isolation, and cynicism. Most of the time when people talk about how Second Life is no longer the wonderful thing it was, they mean that something hurt them in one of their experiences, and since that was their main or only experience and focus it soured the whole rest of Second Life for them. This souring is often relationship based, which is part of why I encourage people to make friends in different social groups instead of focusing on a single community, or even a single relationship. I've had hurtful things happen in relationships in Second Life, but the positive other experiences I had - some community based and some not - kept me going and enthusiastic.

Everyone was new once, and I hope this helps you to be as successful and happy in Second Life as I have been.

( More pictures here. )