Fantasy Faire: Egregore

Egregore is a world of riotous colors which becomes almost completely overwhelming in daylight, and only slightly less riotous under the glow of the moon. This is a child's world, complete with enormous doll houses open in the side or tilted slightly so you can sneak inside to pick up the many delights of the Fantasy Faire. Jelly beans form the paths, pointing the way between stores and through the hiding spots and dance grounds of dolls and toy ponies.  The centerpiece is a giant mannequin setting up her own enormous dollhouse, her feet the size of two Faireland citizens put together.

Chiaroscuro

It's been a little over a week and I feel like I'm finally settling again - though my apartment has become the usual weekly mess. I feel like I'm settling into blogging again, too, after several deliberate and inadvertent gaps. There is something about refocusing on tasks left undone that is like things coming into the light from darkness - like one of my favorite things in art, chiaroscuro. I made my attempt at it again this time, using projectors and a no light setting in Second Life, and while I still think there are some kinks that need to be worked out in how I'm using the light in world, I'm overall very happy with how they turned out - and I have a lot to do to make my projectors more useful in the world.

Part of what inspired this second attempt (the first is here, pre-projectors) attempt at chiaroscuro was this amazing dress from Purple Moon Creations, which has a unique shape and uses materials in order to amp up the shine.It catches the light beautifully, shifting the match any hue provided, and the shapes and enormous jewelry are incredibly striking. I paired it with a Ploom hair I've been wanting to show off for a while. As a long style - well past the waist - it requires a slim-cut dress and something dramatic enough to stand up to it's enormous waves, and together they are simply stunning. The large, unusual shapes cradle the large waves, and I love Ploom's ombre offerings - in this case a blond to black fade which emphasized the shadows. Due to the sheer drama of these two pieces together, I kept additional accessories very light - webby wings from Deviance which are my go-to- wings for anything Unseelie, a mask I just picked up from the Seelie Faire, a mesh leaf confections from Chimeric Fashions, and bright red lips courtesy of Madrid Solo.

Visits from the Depths of the Inventory

I've been trying to sort through my inventory a bit more, and I hit my "petite" folder, which hasn't seen much light in the last year or so. I do still adore the avatar, though, despite being unable to give her my face. I took my pictures at Imagine, the RP Shopping sim associated with de la Soul's store which has a simply lovely setup. On aspect I always love about the petite shape is using it in contrast to much smaller locations - setting myself up on fountains, on desks, even on signs. It's the size contrast which really amuses me - in Second Life things tend to be so over-sized, so being undersized is simply a ton of fun. My default avatar is Fallen Gods, a pretty elven petite with pale skin and shiny purple Wasabi Pills hair. I try as much as possible to mimic my larger size in smaller, and in this age of rigged mesh hair, Wasabi Pills makes the best possible petite hair and Fallen Gods has a lovely, solid, simple skin tone for his petites which simply make me gleeful. Like my larger form, my eyes are always de la Soul in shiny rainbow tones and they fit perfectly in my head.

My outfit I picked up during a lovely sale by Evie's Closet, which thoroughly packed up my inventory with shiny clothes for petites - though I will admit that my all-times-petite alt got the bulk of my purchases. This one is flexi mesh, which works beautifully on a small scale since there is so much less volume than a full sized gown that it falls so smoothly to the bottom in every pose. It comes with the flower crown and beautiful fluffy sleeves, which make me so terribly happy. I added to it some of the incredible petite jewelry by Elemental that I have in my pocket - chunky and large with undeniable style. It's a combination of crescent and full moons, with gold balls as stars. In the past, I've had my old faithful Fancy Fairy wings,  but for this new petite Deoridhe I simply had to add in my favorite wings from Deviance and they worked beautifully. I left them much larger, to keep the contrast between the tiny body and enormous wings, and part of me now sort of wants to see the same contrast on my full sized avatar - it's so much more realistic. I had such fun revisiting my petite history; I'm definitely going to be trying to do this more often as I sort through my voluminous inventory.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Body: Fallen Gods, Petites Pale
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Monique
Eyes: De La Soul, RooMee Eyes
Jewelry: Elemental, Petite Moonglow
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Dress: Evie's Closes, Tuala

Poses: Long Awkward Pose

Location: Imagine
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Precision Blue
Water Settings: Blackwater

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

2014 Fantasy Faire: Between Courts

One of the nice things that Fantasy Faire does every year is set out a few no lag outfits, most of them excuses for going about without any clothes. I agreed with this basic premise, mostly because Trap style skins can be seen best with as little clothing as possible. I started with the skin, a collaboration between Trap and Gauze that is truly lovely in application. It also comes with a hair and eyes, not shown, all of them zero script. I augmented my look because, well, I'm me; first I added these wings from Deviance and ripped the scripts out of them to make them no script. I did the same with a copy of my awesome ears from Illusions - since they are manually tintable I could have kept the recolorable ones I use for these situations, but I wanted to make a complete low-script look for ease of use in the future. The hair I added is from Ploom, and I did the same thing - copying it, tinting it with the HUD the way I wanted and then cruelly emptying it of any and all scripts; I've covered this hair before, and I really love how it falls along my back. Since the Gauze and Trap skin did not have SLink appliers, I used a fade effect created by Orc Inc to smooth between the hands and my arms. I also tinted my nails with De La Soul's latest tentacley release, though this time in fingernail form. The only place where my script removal didn't work was with my SLink hands and feet, which stymied my every attempt to de-script them, but it still leaves me with only six scripts and a very low kb count, which I think makes this still work even with my vanity intact.

For the sake of these pictures, I added a new gacha release from Sax Shepherd Designs, a gorgeous set. There is a rare HUD which has twenty-four total stone and pearl shades, and a ton of commons which come with a simpler, twelve-option HUD. Bracelets and anklets are available in addition to the usual necklace and earrings, this gorgeous belt I'm wearing, and a lovely circlet that didn't work with my hair. You will very likely see it again - this is one of my favorites of his releases.

We're six days into the Fantasy Faire and I'm a little behind, which I always seem to be - eleven days is never, ever enough. In my defense, I've been trying to cover another event and I've done walkthroughs for one hunt and one hunt-like-event, but really I'm feeling quite behind. The sims are lovely, though, and I really encourage you to seek them our while the faire is still going on - we have until the eleventh before it all vanishes like mist.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Gauze & Trap, Dragon Koi (Free Fantasy Faire Skin)
Hair: Ploom, Camille
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands & Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands & Feet
Nails: De La Soul, Cthu Nails
Fades: Orc Inc, Blend Hands & Feet
Jewelry: Sax Shepherd Designs, Nia Moon (Fantasy Gacha Carnival)

Pose: Don't Freak Out

Location: The Faery Court
Light Settings: Places, Abracadabra
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Rainbows from the Shadows

I love rainbows. This is something most people know about me fairly quickly - I own a lot of rainbows, use rainbows in decorations, and keep crystals and brightly colored things handy in most circumstances.What I love most about them is how ably and immediately they demonstrate the true value of harmony; there is no uniformity in a rainbow - rather each shade stands out as itself - and yet each color cooperates with the ones around them to make a glorious, divergent whole. Every half year or so I pull together a new rainbow outfit, and this time I decided to go full-on Lolita, combining together a variety of clothes from across a great deal of Second Life time. On the older end of the scale is this amazing dress from Psych0, which is entirely made out of prims and textures. I chose it in part because I was showing dances, and I wanted them to have more movement than mesh allows for, and in part because Lolita in rigged mesh is fairly rare. I have loved this dress for a long time, though, and I was please to bring it out and jazz it up with a part-mesh, part-system-layer shirt from Violent Seduction. She released a ton of these in a ton of colors for layering under lowercut, otherwise Lolita style clothing, and the big bonus are these rigged mesh arms, which keep the poof and the frills of the Lolita look perfectly. The nice thing is, since it has a system layer, I can keep the older rainbow top of the Psych0 dress while still having all the advantages of mesh sleeves. The dress comes with a separate collar and bow as well, but I switched out the included black bow for a rainbow bowtie from Remarkable Oblivion, which carried the rainbow effect up toward my face. It's meant to be a hairbow, but I shrunk it down and tucked it in against my collarbone and it works beautifully.

My hair is fromt he middle of the mesh era, a lovely tousled Lolita style from Curio Obscura which has her characteristic thick, full texturing and shape. Even as she's embraced mesh, her style has remained fairly consistent and she's an example of someone making Lolita in rigged mesh, even mesh which could fit a male body. I tucked in a new headband released by Adore & Abhor which I simply adore - though sadly it didn't have rainbow textured flowers. It's a little spiky, but given the creepy Mlastina de Moarte I was wandering around in, a felt a little preparation was in order. The wings are from a Deviance gacha and are, unlike a lot of rainbow things in gachas, once of the commons. I adore her shading here, especially at the points where the colors meet; overlapping colors can become muddy, but she keeps each of them distinct and beautiful. And finally, I pulled up my skirt briefly to show off my lovely bloomers, something I picked up a long time ago from Scribble, and these amazing rainbow boots from Epic which I fell in love with as soon as I saw them. They had been mouldering in my "To Be Opened" folder since I picked them up, and I was all too happy to tug them out and prance around the marshy downs with them. They are, as the store name implies, completely epic and gorgeous, with subtle colors and patterning that move beautifully. I simply adore them and can't say too many good things except... I wish they came with white detailing in addition to the black and other colors.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Curio Obscura, Princessy Hairstyle
Crown: Adore & Abhor, Princess Headband
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Silver
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Dark Passions, Koffin Nails
Shirt: Violent Seduction, Lolita Blouse
Dress: Psych0, Rainbow Cupcake
Bow: Remarkable Oblivion, Briar Bow
Bloomers: Scribble, Bloomers
Shoes: Epic, Neo-Trekker's Goot Gear

Pose: Exposeur

Location: Mlastina de Moarte
Light Settings: TOR, DUSK Vision of Something
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

How to Be a Customer in Second Life

Normally, my slice of life conversations in Second Life are about what not to do - examples of boorishness, boringness, demand and despair, but this time I have something very special for you all - an example of a customer doing things right when making a request - a requested that was not fulfilled, by the way, in case you think this is a normal "Customer is happy getting what she wants" sort of thing. She also got prizes in the end, but I want to remind people to be polite and nice to others even if there aren't prizes in the end (though I'll admit to a similar prizes-are-awesome weakness). In this case, the store owner, my darling friend Charlie, has included some of his own comments which will be set out from the text of the IMs. If I have anything to add, I'll use my usual italics, but he pretty much marks things out the way I would have so good job Charlie.

((OFFLINES))
Vanria Resident: (Saved Thu Feb 06 19:04:31 2014)Hiya
Vanria Resident: (Saved Thu Feb 06 19:04:50 2014)Sorry to bother you. I bought the Digital Deamon full set
Vanria Resident: (Saved Thu Feb 06 19:05:23 2014)I know you probably get asked this alot, But where do I find the hair you have on the pic of it? Do you sell it and I am just missing it in your store?

((ONLINE))
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/30592 It would seem like the store is sadly, no longer around anymore.
Vanria Resident: ahhh now
Vanria Resident: no
Vanria Resident: the hair was so cool
Vanria Resident: well if the store is gone, is the creator still around?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I know! The store was awesome too!
Vanria Resident: awsome? Awww why did ya have to tell me that
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I'm not sure. Their profile is pretty much cleaned out, they have a partner, and only one pick, but it's not in english
Vanria Resident: joy
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I wish I could help more.
Vanria Resident: it is ok
Vanria Resident: thank you though
Vanria Resident: I am fixing to go back to your store to buy the skin packs
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Sorry it took so long to get back to you
Vanria Resident: no it is ok
Vanria Resident: RL should aslways come first

((This is why she gets the best Customer Support EVER! plus free stuff. She understands that shop owners have REAL LIVES!))

Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): You have no idea how much I'm grateful you said that! LOL
Vanria Resident: well it is true
Vanria Resident: I can not get mad at you just cause things come up
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Not everyone believes that
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): What color skin were you planning on getting? or was it the full set?
Vanria Resident: might get the full set
Vanria Resident: I am using my nightelf skin now
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): so the darkest ?
Vanria Resident: well my night elf is pink
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): oh!
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I'm not sure I made a pink skin.. *frowns*
Vanria Resident: lol it is ok
Vanria Resident: it is the only skin I have that does not have glowing tats on it
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Female, right?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): (seriously, half the time I am wrong)
Vanria Resident: yes although male Nightelves can be a darker pink
Second Life: Inventory item offered
Vanria Resident: I am at your store now if you want to see it
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Now, it's not a deamon kit... but its the pink skin I made for the Fantasy Faire this year.
Vanria Resident: oh thank you very much
received your inventory offer.
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): erm, last year
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): yeah, it's lighter than that, but you might like the markings on it. *shrugs*
Vanria Resident: let me switch to what I normally wear
Vanria Resident: well minus the tail
Vanria Resident: Nightelf from World of Warcraft
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): very nice. I don't play it, but.. LOL
Vanria Resident: I do not play at all
Vanria Resident: but loved the look
Vanria Resident: ok so where are your skins here?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): the deamons skins come with and without the scales
Vanria Resident: is there a buy all pack?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I also have more skins in another building. I should really reorganize so they are at least somewhat together. lol
Vanria Resident: or a TP map
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): the big vendors are the buy all packs for the  individual colors
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): the smaller ones are just the parts, or just the skins
Vanria Resident: huh?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I tried to make it so that if someone just wanted the skins, or the attachments, they could get them separately
Vanria Resident: ok
Vanria Resident: so where is the button to buy all the skins
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): you have to buy them by color. No fatpack of all the colors as one.
Vanria Resident: awww
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): the smaller vendors in the center, Flesh Only is just the skins
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): are you planning on buying all the colors?
Vanria Resident: think I will stick just withthe skins
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): wait!!
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): LOL
Vanria Resident: ok?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Are you in the DLS VIP group?
Vanria Resident: no
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): ok hang on a second.
Vanria Resident: I found your digital deamon on the marketplace
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): make sure you have room for a group. I'm going to remove the cost to join, cause you're planning on buying a lot. Wearing the tag in my store will give you a 10% discount on everything.
Vanria Resident: yeah
Vanria Resident: how much does it cost to join?
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): 150 usually, but I removed that for you.
Vanria Resident: stick it back on
Vanria Resident: I do not mind supporting
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): You sure?
Vanria Resident: yep
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Okay! LOL It's back on

 This is where I think she deserves a note of commendation - it seems like a little thing, but the sense that creators deserve the prices they are asking for different things is a major thing for me. Now, I'm not a huge fan of group fees, mostly because one tends to get locked into a group which might go from very generous to entirely inert without warning, but Vanria's dedication to giving that little extra is commendable and sweet.

Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Some vendors will give two pay buttons. If you have the tag on, the lower  price is the one you should choose.
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): is it awkward that I am still standing here? LOL It feels awkward, like I'm hovering at your shoulder whispering "Buy allll the thinnnnggssss"
Vanria Resident: I am working on it
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I'm really not saying that though! LOL
Vanria Resident: riiighhhht
Vanria Resident: your thinking it
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Well... yeah but I'm not SAYING it!
Vanria Resident: ok I got them
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): awesome!
Vanria Resident: now I have to find cool funky hair
Vanria Resident: youmight want to put in your market place ad that the hair no longer exsist
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Yeah, I should do that.
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): If you're looking for cyber ish style hair, the only place I can think of is Ash Soyinka's Blue Galaxy... or uhmm... the place that has this hair
Vanria Resident: hmm ok
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): I knew I kept this funky ass demo for a reason lol
Second Life: Inventory item offered
 received your inventory offer.
Vanria Resident: thanks
Vanria Resident: will go unpack the skins and play with them before I go there
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): uhm... I don't have a LM to blue galaxy i think
Vanria Resident: thank you very much
Vanria Resident: eh that is what the search button is for
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Ash (ash.soyinka)
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): that is the creator of it. She doesn't have much in the way of hair, but maybe something you'd like nonetheless
Vanria Resident: Blue Galaxy shows up
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): awesome
Vanria Resident: I will check her out
Vanria Resident: thank you again
Vanria Resident: above and beyond
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Not a problem! :D
Vanria Resident: BAMF
Charlie (lerochelle.destiny): Have a nice day! and weekend too!
Vanria Resident: you to

An there goes the sweet customer in her natural habitat. Fight on, Night Elf; fight on.

A couple few notes on my look, which I adore. The dress is a new release from Sublime Shroud Kreations, and is his first foray into mesh. He's not at rigging his own clothes quite yet, but don't worry - I'm tapping a foot impatiently at him <3 This was his playing with transparency, and he made a rainbow overdress which simply took my breath away, and the simple sheath dress underneath can be worn independently. My awesome hat is from Coco and was one of her entire huge room of free stuff. I've already outfitted a bunch of my alts - I recommend you grab all your friends and check it out because her offerings are awesome. Finally, the shoes are from Deviance, the awesome creator of my ever-present wings, and despite the marked lack of rainbow (*ahem*) they are awesome. All of the base colors are commons, which is fantastic as I love them all, and her rares are a couple of Alice in Wonderland themed slippers, and two glass slippers which appear to be the runaway hit of the Fantasy Gatcha Carnival. I have two Alice Shoes - you have two glass slippers - you want to trade with me. You are getting sleepy... sleepy... you want to give me your glass slippers... sleepy... and anything rainbow you own... sleepy... *snore*

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Cookie
Crown: Kouse's Sanctum, Breeze Circlet
Hat: Coco, Flower Petal Hat
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyeshadow: De La Soul, Simple Rainbow
Eyelashes: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Lipstick: Mock, Everwinter Lip Jelle
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Jewelry: Earthstones, Tumbled Stone
Nails: Nine Inch Nails, Butterfly
Dress: Sublime Shroud Kreations, Sweet Pastille
Shoes: Deviance, Miladys Slipper (Gatcha Prize)

Poses: Ilaya

Location: Mimikri
Light Settings: TOR, MIDDAY Cheery Cyan
Water Settings: Mirror Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Blood in the Snow

Within Second Life, it's easy to not make any significant decisions. Second Life is, in many ways, safe. Falling won't kill. Guns won't hurt. Even the words are often insulated by miles an mysteries. Offline, I spend a lot of time not being sure if my decisions are sound. I spend time doing things, then being afraid for the results. Bad things happen, and they're partially my fault, and then I blame myself. I try to do my best, and I so, so often fall far short of the goal. More and more, I'm beginning to wonder if the enormous output of energy I have on reminding myself of how much I suck is really worth it. It makes me stressed and unhappy. It's like those times as a teenager I would get a bloody nose and just watch the blood drip down onto the pure white of the porcelain basin, entranced by my own suffering. The contrast of red on white is a stark one, and one usually associated with a wound or injury. Second Life is a fangless world without actual physical wounds, but the ways in which we preset ourselves through our avatars can reflect the more subtle emotional wounds so many of us carry. Our pain and self-hatred can form themselves as bruises, or gems, or a cracked doll skin. We can reform our weaknesses into beautiful shapes and pictures, somehow redeeming pain with self-expression. The very safeness of Second Life makes it a prime place to flower free in ways we might be afraid to offline, to be honest in ways we may not offline, to relax our boundaries. The lack of consequences has it's own effects, encouraging me to rethink large aspects of my offline life in a place where it's easy and pleasant to pretend to have no cares.

I'm layered and warm in this look, starting with a curling Truth hairstyle which all  but engulfs my ears, large as they are. One thing I like about Truth's style is how it is open and loose without being too flyaway or formal. I also love the little bows, which are included and matched my outfit perfectly. My lips are a gorgeous shade of deep red from Adore & Abhor, and I was aiming for something rich and slightly dull to go with this charming cape top from Ur Favorite One. The invisi-layer is critical for this, but I quite like the effect of it overall; the hood is adorable, the collar looks soft and warm, and the length is charming. It's also quite unique, which is why I picked it up despite my usual resistance to separates. It's a little difficult to find clothing for underneath, but it works well with a knee length skirt or a pair of pants. I went for the former by layering under it one of katat0nik's latest releases, which unfortunately hides it's wonderful metal bodice but which still shows off a sweetly rigged, knee-length skirt with the simple, clear texturing that katat0nik is known for. My stockings are an old favorite - Stellar - and are a much darker color; I thought they balanced out my wings, from Deviance. I also wanted to capture some of the darker tones right before slipping into these elegant new shoes from Eclectica. I love the way the bows are done in particular; they really look like ribbon tacked on to the back. I also love the texturing - look at the rich red and soft cream, the gentle wood of the heel. It's such a simple design, and yet so lovely.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Truth, Velvet
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Adore & Abhor, 13 Lips Earth
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Finger Nails: A:S:S, Glamour silk
Cape: U.F.O., Ponpon Cape Coat (Collabor88)
Dress: katat0nik, Metal Corset Dress
Stockings: Stellar, In Bloom Tights
Shoes: Eclectica, Brocade Court Shoes

Poses: Diesel Works

Location: Crash Boat
Light Settings: Phototools, rara Home Fall Light
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Twisted Color Challenge: Week 45: Magician’s Life

The Magician's Life is one of slight of hand - of drawing the eye one way while magic goes on the other way. Much like the Lost Town display by Rebeca Bashly, the direction you're looking in changes everything. For a long time I have thought, I'm not sure why, that bell hooks was no longer alive - that I had her books to relate to and think on, but that she herself was in the past. Like how we talk about slavery and discrimination against Native Americans as if it happened hundreds of years ago, there is a way in which my perspective and inherent racism set me at a distance from bell hooks, and it was only through one of those incredible rabbit holes we cannot plan that I had the pleasure of seeing her and Melissa Harris-Perry speak on a wide range of topics related to gender, race, and class - as well as seeing the give and take of discussion, and a small smattering of how they handle various kinds of interactions with others in the community. I finished the talk with a mind stuffed full of thoughts and an increased appreciation for my own blindness. Sometimes it feels as if I spend my whole life preparing for these moments where I will discover I am wrong, I was unable to perceive what is around me - and then all at once it springs forth in front of me. There is barely any room for the shame, so lost am I in the joy of new discovery.

One thing which stood out for me is how we loose other people in our rush to make statements about the circumstances we all live within. This is something I've struggled with myself. In my rush to condemn sexism, I have often ended up targeting other women - policing their dress and appearance, judging their lives and choices, holding myself up against them as somehow better because of my relative wealth and circumstances. This paves over a fundamental insecurity, one which Harris-Perry touched on when she discussed how her voice was amplified at the behest of powerful white men. How power is created, gathered, maintained, and transferred is at the root of a lot of the inequality in the world. Once it passed through land and lineages. Now it passes through cash. In both cases it passed through the hands of men in the history of the culture I am within, and that tendency bends the world. I have a lot more to think about, but I and deeply grateful to bell hooks and Melissa Harris-Perry for sparking so much thought in only an hour and a half.

My hair is a gorgeous release from Alice Project; it was a gatcha prize with this coloration, but the hair itself can be bought at her store. I love her rainbow hued hair, especially when it's all winking in and out of the light like this. I tucked under it a delicate crown from Deviance, another gatcha prize and one of a number of gorgeous choices - all tintable, which is what I did in order to make a silvery circlet match up with the purple and cream of Magician's Life. My wings are also from Deviance, their usual shimmering white tinted ever so slightly toward cream to balance out the purple of my gown. My layered lips are a combination of two lips by Adore & Abhor - the larger purple lips forming a frame for her smaller baroque style, this time in sparkling gold. I tipped my nails in cream and gold thanks to Orc Inc, who has some of the most complete and economical nail sets on the grid. And finally, the gown - this gorgeous gown from Baiastice released for the FaMESHed event, caught my attention from the very first. I especially like the scalloped patterns on the sleeves, and how they are ruched above the elbow, but the careful rigging of the skirt so that it almost always appears like the skirt is skipping along the ground or flowing up with my movements. While I didn't photograph it, one of the !bang poses I flipped through is of my avatar holding her knee, and the dress bent almost perfectly at that joint, with none of the noodliness that you sometimes see with other dresses or boots, where the knee joint is rubbery and rounded. Instead it moved beautifully, and the ruffled edge makes even simple standing poses look elegant and natural.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: Izzie's, Irene
Hair: Alice Project, Steph II
Crown: Deviance, Erulisse Circlet
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick 1: Adore & Abhor, Fluff Lips
Lipstick 2: Adore & Abhor, Silent Star - Shine
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Nails: Orc Inc, Pastel Shimmer
Necklace: Lassitude & Ennui, Stacked Pearls
Dress: Baiastice, Shannon

Pose: !bang

Location: Lost Town
Light Settings: TOR, NIGHT That Spells Moon 1
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Twisted Color Challenge: Week 38: Hawthorne’s Dusk

Hawthorne's Dusk is a lovely combination of a soft, warm red and a bright, clear gray. I went rather heavier on the red than the gray, using the latter as accessory and not the main attraction. They mix in my gorgeous wings from Deviance, silver for the veins and rich red for the membrane. These are rares from her Gatcha, but I really hope that she continues to make wings because the styling and texturing on these are completely exquisite, and I would love for ones as intricate as the rares to be easily available to everyone. Silver and red mix as well in my fern-like jewelry from Eclectica, complete with delicate rings and a lovely tiara. The metal and stone are tintable in a ton of different colors, which makes it easy to match to lots of outfits - a feature of all of Eclectica's creations, which makes her one of my favorites. Thirdly, I was able to pair silver and red in gorgeous nails from Orc Inc, in the glory of her glitteryness - I adore her glittery nails, and especially the sheer opulence of the number of choices she gives in her large sets.

As for the two solo colors of this outfit - the dress is a gorgeous release from Impish which I picked up at an event along the way - they are now available at her store, I checked - with a funky, loose Nineteen Twenties vibe with fun Art Deco patterning on it. I especially like the handkerchief hem - something difficult to accomplish with rigging in Second Life, though this one moves well with different poses. Finally, my amazing SLink adjacent shoes are from Sax Shepherd Designs, and I've worn them for a few different looks recently, but I think this is the best picture I've gotten of them so far. They're a deceptively simple, slip on shoes with a bunch of options in recoloring the heel, base, and the cross straps. I love them for deceptively casual looks, like I was just lounging around in my vintage-wear when struck with the mad desire for some flowers.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Izzie's, Irene Skin porcelain
Hair: D!va, Tina
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Mock, Lucir LipColor Venom x3
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe Wings
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Feet
Nails: Orc Inc, Glitter Split
Jewelry: Eclectica, Harikoa I
Dress: Impish, Vintage Vamp Dress
Shoes: Sax Shepherd Designs, Flirt Cross Strap Mules

Poses: Don't Freak Out

Location: Miracle Love
Light Settings: Places, Greed
Water Settings: Nacon's Lake Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

SL Disney Bound – Week Twenty Four: Mushu

I went full on theatrical for Mushu, but I'm afraid I've long left behind the idea that any of these looks would be casual ones for going out into the community, unless that community was Second Life, in which case I took this look dancing last night. The eyes are a release from Tacky Star that I thought really embodied the draconic spirit; I particularly like how dark the pupils are, like pools deep into my brain. This style is available in a wide variety of colors, too, each of them delicate and crisp, and you can change the size of the iris through clicking the eye itself, as these are prim eyeballs. The lips are from an old Adore & Abhor set which I return to time and again because they're so unique, delicate, and fantastic. I love the effect of layering the smaller lip color over larger lips. It's especially fun in the "toothsmile" setting, where it ends up pulled thin and tight. My skin is a fantastic release from Fallen Gods which I've been sitting on a while, and I'm really struck by the delicate texturing on the face. I like how it gives the illusion of movement even though I'm perfectly still; it looks lace-like in it's delicacy, and the pattern continues, as you can see below, everywhere. I also really, really like the teeth - which fit into the color pallet perfectly while still adding a creepy effect when I smile. The texturing also continues over the hands and feet, but I played a bit of a conjuring trip because I wanted to make use of the SLink hands and feet, and Fallen Gods doesn't (yet?) release appliers for them. I used Orc Inc's arm and leg fades to bring in a similar enough shade of red - you can see the fade point below about mid-upper arm. I sort of wish Orc Inc had included a lower fade, and I may end up playing some more myself with forearm fades to see if I can correct for other fantasy skins; I adore using them, but more often than not they don't release the necessary appliers, and the tones are unusual enough that it can be difficult to find an applier that would work from another skin line.

My hair is a gorgeous new release from Underscore with some new texture options, like this layering of different shades of red which I thought set off my skin so beautifully. I love the lighter bits over the bangs, giving depth to the color. I topped it with roses, this headdress from Glam Affair which got rather a lot of play on the feeds back in the day. I love the simplicity of it, and how well the curved base sits on my hair; it also works well tucked up against an updo. My wings are one of the rares from Deviance's gatcha for the Fantasy Gatcha Event, not available at her main store to suck all of the lindens out of your pockets. I don't have words for how much I love these wings; the simple fact that they effectively haven't left my back since I got them should speak for itself. My outfit is another older release, this time from r2; I had considered looking for a skirt to go under the sheer top, and I may still see what I can find for the other shirt tops as I am certain they'll make their way through this blog. One problem with mesh separates is that they are much harder to layer due to the different shapes people use, and this is made doubly difficult with sheer - but the quality of this top is so high I think the effort is well worth it. You can see how delicately it meets the chest, how elegant it is while being completely alluring. Finally, my shoes - from Syl - are part of an ever-increasing stable of shoes made to complement the SLink feet. I particularly like these because of the unusual shape and the strappy style; you can see them up close in this picture, how well they are shaped and textured, and the open work of the heel. This is the lower platform - there is also a higher platform which might require you to edit your shape to stand taller. I love these sorts of artistic, unusual shoe styles, so when I saw these and thought through my rather extreme stylin for this look, these seemed simply perfect - and I think you'll agree they are.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: Fallen Gods, Onyrica Mimic Bordeaux
Hair: Underscore, Chiara S
Hat: Glam Affair, Framed Headdress
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: Tacky Star, Amber Burning
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Adore & Abhor, Silent Star
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe Wings
Hands and Feet: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands and Medium Feet
Nails: Orc Inc, Goth
Arm and Leg Fades: Orc Inc, Blend Red
Outfit: r2, Sheer Shirt & Skinny Pants
Shoes: Syl, Climbstra Platform Sandals

Poses: Grafica

Location: China
Light Settings: Phototools, Lo Light 02
Water Settings: Default

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

SL Disney Bound – Week Twenty Two: Cinderella & Gus Gus

It's going to take me a while to catch up with the Disneybound Challenge, especially when I do what I did today, which was spend a whole long time on figuring out how to make a projector because I am stupid. Right now I'm working on Cinderella and Gus Gus, with poor little Gus as a worn companion instead of an alt because... I just can't do all of that and shadows. Sorry, it's just too many variables to work together smoothly. I ended up pulling out a tiny mint bird which I got from Schadenfreude ages ago, remembering that Cinderella had bird friends as well as mice friends; it snuggles up against my hair in most of the pictures, which I think is really cute and understated.My hair is the FaMESHed Wasabi Pills release with a fantastic swirl of braid that I fell in love with as soon as I saw it. I adore how it curves around the bulk of the hair, and there are great wisps of hair down the back as well, which makes it look very natural and sweet. Although the braids cross through my left ear, it works from most angles because part of the braids go in front, so it appears like my ear has been woven in. My wings are an amazing rare gatcha prize from Deviance which simply makes me gasp with awe and envy; they were released at the Fantasy Gatcha Event. I really hope she keeps it up with the wings - I love her clothing, but her wings have helped to fully lure me away from my long-time Fancy Fairy wings, which I haven't worn in a long while.

My jewelry, gorgoeus releases from Lassitude & Ennui, I've actually worn before, but it remains so sweet and nature-driven that I felt it fit for Cinderella, who makes friends with wildlife like a good princess should. It has sweet and simple earrings and a delicately rendered chain. My one wish would be for darker colors on the jewelry (or an easier way to tint them). Much as I love the pastels, I'd like to modify them without taking them apart. My dress is an amazing one from Fateplay, and I may end up photographing each color before I'm done because his clothing is so flawless. In this case, I'm showing off the shirt-version where the sleeves remain hanging no matter what one does, which can lead to interesting effects in poses, but which also adds some verisimilitude when the arms are by the side. I simply don't have words for how glad I am that he's making women's clothing now. My finger and toenails owe their coloring to Orc Inc, which is one of my favorite nail stores; one bonus with Orc Inc's nail lines is that you get a certain color style in a tone of colors with a single purchase, which is a lot of bang for one's buck. Finally, these amazing shoes are from Sax Shepard Designs. I love the realistic detailing - you can see the stitches, even - and the delicately rounded heel which is very different from other shoes I've worn. They have a casual, classy style which can be dressed up or down depending; in this case I think they match well with the rough elegance of my Fateplay medieval gown.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Sarah
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: MiaSnow, Dark 2 blue
Lipstick: Mock, Fruitilicious Gloss - Grenadine Lolli
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe Wings
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Orc Inc, Rich Lights
Jewelry: Lassitude & Ennui, Dewdrop
Gus Gus: Schadenfreude, Mint Sparrow
Dress: Fateplay, Wende
Feet: SLink, Mesh Feet
Shoes: Sax Shepard Designs, Casual Mules

Poses: Exposeur

Location: Isle of Amras - Infirmary
Light Settings: TOR, EUPHORIA Monochrome
Projector Texture: Mine
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Taste the Rainbow Hunt: Rainbowtastic

The Taste the Rainbow Hunt is a very small hunt, but one that is extremely heavy on high quality, wonderful things which I completely had a ball collecting and making an outfit out of. I'll do a complete review of the hunt soon, but for now I'm just showing off one of the many looks available. I am by way of a rainbow fiend, as many who know me know, and so this hunt was right up my alley; in addition, the ratio of "keep" to "not quite" is extremely high - I simply adore everything I'm wearing. The hair is from Alice Project, and comes in every natural color, each of them with rainbow highlights woven in. I'm hugely fond of her highlighted textures, and the rainbow ones in particular fill me with glee. This is a gentle, curving style that went sweetly with the rest of my look. The horn, tail, and star-struck eyebrows are courtesy of aisling, and they are simply delightful. Both the horn and the tail have bundles of roses at the base, and there are little bits of sparkle coming from the tips of the horns. I really had fun tucking them into the accessories that came along with my corset from deviousMind. The roses with a rainbow veil, the necklace, the corset, rose pasties I ended up tucking into the top of the corset, a pair of textured bloomers, the tulle bustle, and the fishnet stockings all come as part of the same look in a wide variety of sizes and also as a textured top. I stuck with the rigged mesh, and was miraculously able to pair it with something I didn't get on the hunt, this pair of ruffled shorts from G Field to protect my modesty.

From Ellabella came this really intricate set of piercings, which at least for me fit out of the box with only being moved a little into place. I am not a piercing heavy person, but these are really cute and delicate, and I simply adore the texturing. The lipstick underneath them is from Pink Fuel and is one of a whole bunch of rainbow colors. Sometimes I have difficulties with lipsticks that are designed for the very pouty mouth a lot of avatars have - I have a wider, thinnner lip than a lot of the skins I see, so it's always fun to find cosmetics that work with my preferences. The wings are another set from Deviance, this time in a pale pastel rainbow instead of a rich, dark set of rainbows that were released in the gatcha. I was glad to see a paler set since finding a wide variety of rainbows of different hues can be a real challenge, and these add significantly to my collection. My only complaint about the hunt is the sad dearth of rainbow shoes, and so I ended up returning to my faithful surety, these gorgeous pale pastel shoes from katat0nik. Thus arrayed, rainbo from head to toe, I frolicked across Second Life a very happy fae.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Alice Project, Alexis Glitter/Rainbow (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Unicorn Bits: Aisling, Rainbow (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeliner: Mock, Glitterotica Eyeliner (Group Gift)
Lipstick: Pink Fuel, Metallic Lipsticks (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Piercings: Ellabella, Ballad of Stars (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Wings: Deviance, Titania Fairy Wings (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Nine Inch Nails, Butterfly
Dress: deviousMind, Sweet Rose Valentine (Taste the Rainbow Hunt)
Shorts: G Field, Mesh Frill Shorts
Shoes: katat0nik, Candy Rainbow

Poses: Flowey

Location: Chouchou
Light Settings: Nacon's Afternoon
Water Settings: TOR, Atomist

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

SL Disney Bound – Week Twenty One: Rapunzel

I have been wanting to show off this dress from Jane for ages, and Rapunzel made the perfect excuse for a textured, purpley-pink robe that allows for swinging around, climbing, and general tomfoolery. I love the layered effect, and all of the different designs Jane did with it - this lighter fade over a darker pattern is in three tones, while three different tones have a more elemental aesthetic. You can see how well and smoothly it moves, and I love the broad shoulder straps and squared bodice as well. The length is short enough to be flirty, but long enough to cover everything critical, and the mesh is line inside up quite a ways, though if one uses alpha layers to prevent clipping there is a certain height where it stops working well. I chose the shoes to match with the lower, crosshatched layer of dark purple and light pink; they're a very new release from Schadenfreude, and if you get the fatpack you can tint all different parts of it different shades. I chose pink for the toe and heel, and the darker purple for the sides, and I really think that they are glorious together.

The Schadenfreude shoes are available at the Collabor88 Birthday Event, as is the hair from Wasabi Pills. It's a gorgeous short, curling style with the most adorable headband, perfect for layering with some of the jewelry available at that same event. What I love about her hairs is that almost always the curls are far enough back to easily clear my ears (my eternal favorites, from Illusions), which means I can take pictures from every angle, instead of having to be careful. I tugged out a caged bird necklace and a shiny little crown from Krystal as the icing on this particular look;I have no idea when or where I got these, but aren't they adorable? I love the pink and blue together, and the gleam of each tiny prim as I wear them. Finally, the wings from Deviance are one of the commons from the Fantasy Gatcha Event, and I really adore them. One thing I discovered between now and then is that when you fly, these wings flap in response. Isn't that delightful? I love learning new things, even if I probably should have learned them from reading a notecard...

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Claudette
Crown: Krystal, Miss Imperial - Mini Tiara
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: De La Soul, Charlie Makeup - Ink
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe  Wings (Fantasy Gatcha Faire)
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: A. E. Meth, Tie-Dye Nails
Jewelry: Krystal, Bird Cage Necklace
Dress: Jane, Carolina Dress
Shoes: Schadenfreude, Casinelle

Poses: Long Awkward Pose

Location: Isle of Amras: Castle
Light Settings: Mod of TOR Foggy Windlight
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

A Very Rainbow Deoridhe

I've been having a very rough month offline, and apparently a bunch of creators are psychic, because this week they all conspired to make me a very, very happy Deoridhe. It all started with katat0nik, who had made these adorable shirts with a tulle skirt ages ago, and then made me an incredibly happy Deoridhe by releasing them separately - and including a RAINBOW one. Yes, rainbow. I know, isn't she fantastic? And isn't it a gorgeous fade 'round the sides, smooth and clean without any of the colors becoming muddy. She released a shirt to go with it - with a pretty rainbow heart on it, and that isn't mesh so it can slide under just about any top; I'm seriously hanging on to it for ever and ever. With mesh separates, having some system layer bits to add on is incredibly important. Then, while I was still goggling over what katat0nik had made for me, I ended up taking a quick run around the Fantasy Gatcha Festival and... lets just say that I hit rainbow multiple times over.

At the top of my head is my incredibly lucky score from De La Soul in the form of a crown of thorns that I had loved the first time Charlie showed it to me, and which I'm so glad he released now. The Super Ultra version has a HUD in addition to the horns, and a gorgeous hanging gem. The glow makes it a little difficult to see the details - I'll have to do another show off of some of the other options - but they are delicately formed and gorgeously made, with tiny gems hanging down from each of the horns. You can modify simply everything on it, from glow and shine to texturing and they remain editable so you can also tint them. This is the Ultra rare, though; all of the colors are available in separate commons and rares, too, so if you're aiming for just one color combination, that's the way to go.

The final cherry on my rainbowgasm of a look is something you are likely to see several times again in the future - these amazing wings from Deviance. Now, very recently you all saw me wriggle around like an overly excitable puppy when I saw her last wings, and can I just say that these are even better? Delicate, curving, with a delicious ruffled edge and curving veins. They don't flap like her other wings do, which is understandable since they're a gatcha prize, but I am completely in love. The rainbow ones aren't even her rares, too; her rares are a gorgeous set with little butterflies settled along the edge. I cannot express enough how much I love these; I was in all-caps mental breakdown for the first five minutes. ICly, Deoridhe has always been a rainbow fairy, and one of my quiet pains has been that I didn't have non-glamoured wings for her which I felt really fit her. Now that has changed completely.

I rounded my look out with three things from my inventory, some of which I've owned for a while. All of the corseting is from Rosal and is part of the same set - Unmei. It comes with a HUD which lets you tint each part of the corseting separately, so while it was time consuming to render the corsets vaguely rainbow, I think it was really worth it. Tucked in among my horns is a hat from Split Pea which I picked up a long while ago and which spreads the rainbow love across several flowers. I also really liked the shadows it cast, though they were hard to capture in the pictures. And finally, this amazing Love-Love Justice wand from Curio Obscura, which makes me giggle every time I see it, or even it's name. It's like a world of Cardcaptor Sakura and Sailor Moon all wrapped up with a bow.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Fashionably Dead, Moon Pigtails
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Horns: De La Soul, Royal Crown of Thorns (Fantasy Gatcha Faire)
Hair Flowers: Split Pea, Your love is a stag int he white sand
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Mock, Taste the Skittles
Lipstick: Mock, Lucir Lipcolor Frostbite
Wings: Deviance, Sidhe Wings (Fantasy Gatcha Faire)
Wand: Curio Obscura, Magical Love-Love Justice Staff (Past Arcade Gatcha)
Lingerie: Adam n Eve, Ana Lace
Shirt: katat0nik, Rainbow Heart Shirt
Gloves: Rosal, Unmei
Corsets: Rosal, Unmei
Skirt: katat0nik, Tulle Skirt
Shoes: Rosal, Unmei

Pose: !bang,

Location: Ghostville
Light Settings: Phototools, Dead End
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Twisted Color Challenge: Week 29 - Vamps Night

For Vamps Night, I got rather caught up in the orangey red of the challenge, and the silvery gray only exists as an afterthought, but I quite like the effect none the less. I have had a completely exhausting week, though; I tend to not go into my personal life much on here, as much as more immutable parts of myself like my opinions, but lets just say I have a relatively hard job with pretty complicated clients and three of them have gone into crisis in the past two weeks, and I kind of want to crawl into a hole and die. It doesn't help that I am not the most organized person in the world - more on that in a bit - so in addition to the world being complicated and a lot of things being very important, I keep tripping over my metaphorical untied shoe laces. I love being me, really. I've ended up scaling back a lot on online-type things, like my attempted return to roleplaying and any hope of blogging anything in a timely manner, and spending a lot of critical time staring into space and trying to match up glowing little crystals in lines because that is such a good use of my time. I love being me... really.

One of the things I have wanted to blog - and also the source of a silly story about how awesome I might be to be - is this fantastic hair from Discord Designs which is named ...dun dun DUN: Deoridhe. Yup, that's me, on a hair, me, shiny happy me with a hair that has her name on it, and it is awesome. I love the curly tendrilly bits, and how it seems to escape gravity, and I felt all wriggly and squeeingly about it for ages, so yeah - awesome, right?

Ok, now for super awesome story about how I suck - Kallisti Burns had dropped me a line showing me the awesomeness that was this hair (from Discord Designs), and letting me know that it would show up in my inventory when it was released because she is Just That Cool. And then Hair Faire opened (it was released at Hair Faire, by the way) and I searched my inventory, and no Discord Designs Deoridhe hair, and I went all, 'Well, she probably forgot, and I don't want to bug her 'cause she's busy and awesome and it might cut into hair making time, I'll just buy it,' and I waited for my chance to sneak into hair faire (wearing this without the hair, by the way - people loved me) and picked it up in blond figuring I'd get the fatpack later, or maybe she'd remember, or something, and then I looked in my (by then bloated and disorganized) objects folder to sort things and found... a box from her.

Yup, had it all along.

I love being me. Really.

I look fantastic. 8D

It's mostly the hair from Discord Designs, but I should take a moment to talk about the supporting cast. The bow and purse are a semi-matched set, both of them from katat0nik and sold at collabor88 for very reasonable prices. They are completely adorable and awesome, and as soon as I saw them I knew I wanted to wear them. I figure I'm using itty bitty bobby pins to hold it to my braids. The jewelry is a very old artifact of my inventory from Primalot (on hiatus) - like it was filed in a subfolder to sort later kind of old - and it's color change on touch with a ton of stone types and three metals. One bit of the "gray" of Vamps Night is the silvery metal of this awesome jewelry set. The other is the gray tines of my gorgeous wings from Deviance, which have been on my back since I bought them. I love my old fancy fairy wings, I really do, but I have wanted three dimensional wings for at least two years, and these are completely blowing me away. Every angle, every curve, is completely magical. I can't wait to see what else she makes - I will want it all forever and ever and ever and ever and.... etc...

Yes, I'm very gushy, I know. It's been that kind of week - sobs or hysterical laughter.

The lips are an older release from Adore & Abhor, and I really love how it cuts inside the lipline and makes a new shape for my face that way. The dress - which really is the meat of this look, is a recent release from Volstead that draws on Art Deco influences to make a clean line and a really fun bodice. I love the texturing along the front and the bottom edge, and the richness of the color. Finally, these really fun boots which I utterly failed to get a flattering picture of because - as seen from data above - I really suck, are from Dilly Dolls. They're mesh and unrigged, so I was able to scribble and scrabble and alter them to fit my unusually (for SL) large calves and short legs. All of her things are sold with handy color changing HUDs, which is really handy since you fit things once, and change for every outfit. Rock on, awesomeness. Rock on.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Discord Designs, Deoridhe (Squee~)
Bow: katat0nik, Dolly Vine Hair Bow
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeliner: De La Soul, Aestali Curly Lash
Lipstick: Adore & Abhor, Silent Star - Baroue Orange
Wings: Deviance, Titania Mesh Fairy Wings
Jewelry: Primalot, Gravitation annulet
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Orc Inc, Glitterslash
Dress: Volstead, Deco
Purse: katat0nik, Woody Purse
Boots: Dilly Dolls, Julia Boots

Pose: Olive Juice

Location: Wizardhat Studios
Light Settings: Nacon's Test
Water Settings: Nacon's Lake Water

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Twisted Color Challenge: Week 28 - Poppies Sky

Orange and Blue are fantastic complementary colors, and often really fun to pair up, and this set of bright, slightly dusty colors - Poppies Sky - are no different. I'm playing around more with coloring my wings from Deviance, and really enjoying the fact I can tint the veins and webbing separately - the effect is striking and powerful, I think. It's a little difficult to tint, since I wear them moving, but if you set the color n your selections first, then select face, and keep an eye on what the texture shown is, you can pretty quickly and easily tint your way through even with the wings moving. Like on the wings, I did a lot of mixing for this look; the hat and hair from Wasabi Pills hat the orange as a choice, but again I used select face to tint the two buttons - one a fantastic blue, and the other slightly more creme to match the secondary color on this necklace from Glow. I actually picked the necklace up thinking of this challenge, as the orange seemed to match it well and it was a unique, interesting piece of jewelry. One thing I love about Second Life is being able to accumulate a variety of unusual jewelry, and I added pieces from another set - a bracelet and ring - from Eclectica to balance out the orange at my fingertips - a fantastic glittery set from Orc Inc which I was glad to have an excuse to wear again.

My cosmetics are a combination of Elymode for the eyes, with blue lids and gold around the eye, and Mock in a orangy-brown for my lips. I'm unsure if I would have wanted more blue, but I have to admit the all orange around the eyes is a very warm, soft look. My dress is a fantastic release from Rebel Hope in an interesting cut, showing off the arms and legs instead of the breasts and butt, with fantastic texturing to show the ripples and pulls of fabric which Second Life can't duplicate in form. Finally, my shoes are an amazing recent release from SLink and allowed me to mix and match textures so that I could again pair up blue and orange to fantastic effect. They fit over the medium feet SLink releases, so I could match my toes to my nails easily. I spent a long while futzing with shadows and depth of field taking these pictures, and while I'm still a novice, I spent much of it crowing about how much I adored both. I didn't realize how unpolished my pictures looked until I saw them with shadows falling naturally, and the background fuzzing out slightly in response to focus, and it's like rediscovering photography in Second Life all over again.

( More pictures here. )

Credits: 

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Lumi 2
Ears: Illusions, Seelie Ears
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Eyeshadow: Elymode, Blue & Gold
Lipstick: Mock, Caramel Lip Jelle
Wings: Deviance, Titania Mesh Fairy Wings
Necklace: Glow, Scarf Style Necklace
Bracelet & Ring: Eclectica, Rococco Cobalt
Hands: SLink, Rigged Mesh Hands
Nails: Orc Inc, Glitterslash
Dress: Rebel Hope, Angela
Shoes: SLink, Tri-Color Wedges (worn with her medium feet)

Pose: flowy

Location: nostos deer
Light Settings: Places, Las Legunas
Water Settings: Glassy

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only

Twisted Color Challenge: Week 26: Plums and Berries

I'm running a bit late on my challenges again, but I had a lot of fun with this one - Plums and Berries - and it's a really gorgeous, subtle pink and purple color combination. It's actually a very simple setup on my part; the purple is from Wishbox, her gorgeous Coquette dress which is one of her older releases. I love the combination of lace and shadowy satin on this, along with darker satin ribbons, and the amazing ribbon around the neck. She's managed to work prims so carefully that is could appear like mesh - especially along the arms and the neck, but this is all static prims and flexi - astonishing, isn't it? I'm also continuing my play with shadows and seeing how they work out across the grid. I definitely slow down when they're turned on, but they add a verisimilitude which is difficult to resist. I definitely feel like a novice, though, starting over from the beginning again with a new set of toys. I may end up shifting around some of my facial features as well - I'm noticing flaws in the mesh more than I used to, and they're harder to combat with shadows in play, especially around the nose; I think I can correct for some of them, so we'll see what happens. Being able to use shadows has really change the entire tenor of my work, and I can see why so many people were so enthusiastic about it. I pity my poor computer, though.

The pink half of the equation comes in three places, and are a little more overpowered by the purple than I had planned, but I think they are each lovely on their own. My wings, a new release from Deviance, are the first mesh wing's I've seen that give serious competition to my longstanding Fancy Fairy wings. I picked them up in white, and they tint beautifully. My one complaint is the shape of the tines - since they are wide and narrow, they look more like curled wire than the veins of wings, which is awesome for anyone going for a human-realistic look, but which belie the fact I'm aiming for a natural fantastical look. I love how they take up shadows, though, and how the shadow they cast isn't the blockiness of flat prim wings but rather curled and shaped like actual wings. It's a tempting combination. The second set of pink is this gorgeous formal jewelry set from Virtual Impressions, which was on sale to her store group. I love the high collar effect of the necklace, and how the pearls can be tinted a gorgeous array of colors. They do come default full bright, but they're editable so you can remove that easily. She does a gorgeous chain, and the pattern of large pearls and small is really striking - I'm very glad I started picking up her jewelry. Finally, I have pink on my toes in a set of shoes from katat0nik which I simply adore - I took a close up you can see in the set for this photoshoot, and I think you're agree they are without parallel.

( More pictures here. )

Credits:

Skin: De La Soul, Candace Creamer
Hair: Wasabi Pills, Jamie Mesh
Eyes: De La Soul, Mesh Eye Rainbow
Eyeshadow: MiaSnow, dark 1 purple
Eyelashes 1: SLink, Mesh Lashes
Eyelashes 2: Flugeln Brise, 05-A
Lipstick: Mock, Opal Lipcolor Hopbush
Wings: Deviance, Titania Mesh Fairy Wings
Jewelry: Virtual Impressions, Silvia
Hands: SLink, Enhanced Mesh Hands
Nails: Nine Inch Nails, Deco
Dress: Wishbox, Coquette Purple
Shoes: katat0nik, Wingtip Mary Janes

Poses: Flowey

Location: Leroy
Light Settings: Phototool - B/W Light
Water Settings: TOR, Eyeballin'

Photographed by Deoridhe Quandry
Post processing: Cropping, only