Author: Lisa Millar

GOTHMAS BY GASLIGHT

GOTHMAS BY GASLIGHT

by Lisa Millar ♥ 1 Comment

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Gothmas By Gaslight will begin on Sunday 15th December  and run until 5th January 2014 and if you’re a fan of Goth, Steam/Diesel Goth and Dark Victoriana it’s going to be an absolute must visit.

We’re talking a banquet-on-a-stick of all things dark and delightful, held upon two sims: Sium and Cursed. (Note: Cursed is rated ‘A’. Even though this isn’t an especially Adult location, you won’t be able to access if yours is a free Second Life account.)

It promises to be really rather special indeed; the location has been sumptuously decorated with a Gothic Christmas twist making it a great place to take photographs, and there are some exciting contributions from some of the leading names in virtual alternative fashions and furnishings, as well as some equally outstanding newcomers too. I really loved the layout of the event; it’s beautifully decorated with plenty of Gothic flavour, and the vendor booths are small and sweet, and it’s nice and easy to navigate.

You’ll find absolutely everything you could require from make-up to dresses to furniture and frock coats, everyone is guaranteed to find something luscious to spend their Lindens on. If you like your Yuletide darkly dramatic this event is a must-visit.  I’ll be featuring some of the items I’ve found there on the blog over the next few days, but check me out in this fantastic Ballerina Outfit from Dark Water Designs.  It includes corset, collar, shoes, cage skirt and panties and is incredibly dramatic and would make a  bold statement at a Yuletide Ball. I’m especially impressed by the detail on the bows; each one has a mesh skull decoration, and the corset is equally fabulous with its festive design. Shadowed Luik Darkfury has done a great job on this outfit, and it’s part of a vast collection of collars, suits, corsets and jackets that are available from Dark Water Designs at the event. Not only that, there are Gacha machines too…yes, I said Gacha. I can see you twitching already, now stop that! 

I’ll post the links to the locations when the event begins but until then take a look at the official Flickr feed so that you can grab a taste of what is in store…

It’s the most wonderful time of the month!

It’s the most wonderful time of the month!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 1 Comment

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No, not that! It’s time for another round of Collabor88 guys and gals, and of course, just like always, it’s a corker!

Each time Collabor88 comes around I think, “Nope, I ain’t gonna go mad at it this time. No, there won’t be anything I want, I’m sure of it..” I adopt a firm disposition that lasts, ooh, about ten seconds and then flies straight out of the window. Then I spend all morning trying to get in, and leave with ALL THE THINGS!!! I have zero willpower, it’s pathetic. But can you blame me for being so weak-willed when you consider just how awesome C88 is?   It’s always jam-packed with quality lovely stuff and things and this month isn’t any exception at all; if anything I think it’s possibly one of the better rounds of recent times. Not that any of them have been duff, but this one is FULL OF JUMPERS amongst other niceies, and you all know how much I love jumpers. And coats.  And basically all things warm and snuggly..and there are plenty of those to be had…oh JOY OF JOYS!

First up is this bloody amazing, huge and super snuggly coat from Maitreya. Now there’s something a little Mod about this; the shape reminds me of London street-stylings, and it’s more than a little Crombie-coat-esque. Can you imagine wearing this in real life? It is HUMUNGOUS. This is the kind of coat you wouldn’t  need to wear a jumper underneath because you’d  have a hot flush.  The shape is fabulous actually, and it’s made even more blinking fantastic by the fact that it comes with sleeve extensions that change this  from a three-quarter sleeve into a full-sleeve coat.  You know, a lot of the time I gauge an item in SL against the likelihood of my wearing it in real life. Rightly or wrongly a lot of what I wear in world is an extension of what I’d love to wear in real life, had I the cash/figure to wear it. Needless to say but  I would so wear the shit out of this coat. I would wear it in blinking summer I love it THAT much. Yes, I might die from heat exhaustion, but I’d die looking outrageously awesome.

The over-sized shape allows a lot of space for a glorious texture, and it’s finished really well, which is just what you’d expect from Onyx Leshelle.  Onyx is a creator par excellence and whenever she release anything new to the grid you can practically hear the rumble of a squillion avatars feet running towards it.  I love everything about this coat. I could even lick the ruddy buttons I love it that much. Best of all? It’s just L$188, which is a bloody scandal really. It’s available in six variations and every single one of them is as delicious as the other, but for me it just had to be this gorgeous red, called ‘Syrah’.  I’m sure Jez could fit in this with me, which would be super cosy indeed!

Incidentally, I’m also sporting a new GLAM AFFAIR skin that can be found at C88.  It’s called Mokatana, and is simply stunning. I’ve become totally enamoured with the GLAM AFFAIR brand this year, and Mokatana is a stunning addition to their exquisite skin-stable.  So what does this skin have that attracted me so much? Allure, dear heart, and then some.  Like every GLAM AFFAIR skin it oozes personality from every virtual pore; add to that the fact that  they are so darn pretty; they have beautiful body shading and great make-ups and you’re onto a winner. They also have sweet optional additions such as moles and freckles, something that I’m festooned with in real life. (RL Titbit: I used to think the moles on my body mapped out the constellations as a kid.  Mad I know, but kind of a nice thought!) The real selling point on Mokatana though are the lips. These are the kind of lips that are made for kissing, and biting, and basically ravishing. They’re dewy and soft and just so gorgeously, mouthwateringly perfect that basically I went into squee-spasms when I tried this skin on. So I had to have it, natch.  The other vital selling point for me are the brows; Aida Ewing knows how to make GREAT brows, and various brow colours are very thoughtfully included in the skin pack.

Snapshot_005For my second look I’m wearing another make-up from the Mokatana line, and I’ve teamed it with a comfy combo comprising of this divine sweater from COLOR.ME.H.O.F. and the skirt/leggings combo in black from BAIASTICE.  This is another great sweater and again, an example of a quality texture that has been perfectly applied. I love the height of the neck and the inverted ‘v’ pattern on the front of this. It looks like a very expensive, designer sweater, don’t you think? The sleeves are styled to be large and shaped before finishing just on  the wrist. The body-length of this is good too; I get a bit annoyed with jumpers that are too short in SL, which is a bit daft really because it’s not as if I’ll feel a draught while wearing them, but it’s just a bug-bear of mine.  It was hard not to buy all of the range, but my favourite shade of red (In this case it’s called ‘Oxblood’) just had to be mine.  Moving on to the skirt/leggings and it’s hard to believe that I first blogged Baiastice way back in 2008. It’s simply marvellous that Sissy Pessoa’s brand has become one of the fashion benchmarks of Second Life, and she goes from strength to strength. It would be easy to dismiss the skirt and leggings as relatively simple mesh creations, but that would belie their strength. They’re extremely well created, the fit is great and the incorporated belt can be worn in either a gold or silver finish.  Speaking of finishing, the detail on the front of the skirt really adds something extra to an item that would have worked just as well had it been left plain, but it’s this attention to detail that has always made BAIASTICE creations stand out amongst their peers.

So there you have it, just some of the goodies available at this round of C88. But there are tons more, and I’ll endeavour to feature some of those very soon too.

But if you can’t wait, here’s your taxi!

 

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Just Jez: The Mens Dept. Makes it easy to look good this Xmas!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 2 Comments

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The Mens Dept has to be one of the resounding success stories of Second Life retail 2013. Every time I visit it’s busy, especially in the first few days after a new collection is revealed. I don’t really know why this is but I think it’s because having menswear, accessories, poses and other male-orientated goodies located in one spot is just more accessible than searching the grid. Certainly I struggle when looking for quality items for Jez to wear (because he’s bloody useless at shopping for himself) and visiting The Mens Dept allows me to kit him out in quality from pretty much his handsome head all the way down to his stinky toes. This round is as exceptional as any other, but highlights for me this time include this mesh sweater from XIAJ. It’s available in a number of prints and plain varieties, but for me it had to be this great wintry wool print.  Jez didn’t have a really festive jumper, and now he does he looks very Christmassy indeed. It’s an incredibly reasonable L$185 per jumper too, which means you can add a few of these mesh lovelies to your  fella’s winter wardrobe without breaking the bank.  As you can see from the photos the sweater photographs extremely well; the texture is nice and crisp, and the red and navy combo on this particular selection is bang on trend.

Of course, you can’t just have a good jumper, you need some quality jeans to team with it, and that’s where APHORISM come into play. They’re selling some fantastic denim jeans at The Mens Dept. that really must not be missed.  Now, I am very fussy about certain items in SL, you’ve probably noticed, and jeans are very near the top of that list. Why? Because they are so easy to get wrong. You have to suggest depth and wear on a good pair of jeans.  All too often textures aren’t applied correctly which is a shame, because when textured correctly a pair of denim jeans can really look stupendous in-world. You need to suggest creasing in the right places, as well as wear and tear, because denim jeans always look better when they’re aged a bit. Not only that, but they need to ‘hang’ on the avatar correctly, depending on the fit. Baggy jeans can look like a pair of MC Hammer pants if the shape is wrong, and straight-leg pants can just look incredibly flat. It’s a balancing act that few designers manage to pull of successfully, but fortunately APHORISM have successfully risen to the challenge.   I’m exceptionally impressed by these jeans.  They fit just right, and really look the part, especially the vintage options.  The creasing is spot on, not just at the top of the thigh but also around the calf area too.  They’re styled as regular jeans and I would say that’s correct, they’re neither too thin or overly baggy, and in my opinion that makes them an absolute must have for a male avatar. Not only that but they’re just L$200 a pair, so they’re a bit of a bargain. I think Jez looks brilliant in them, but then again I’m biased:)

Snapshot_005Last but not least, check out Jez’s pose. He’s using the pack from POSEOLOGY, also available at The Mens Dept., and it’s a very nice selection of male poses indeed. There’s no over-the-top posing here, just nice stands that allow for great photographs and work really well in-situ.  You can buy them individually for L$25 each, but Jez insisted on splurging ion the full pack for L$100 because he hasn’t got many quality poses in his repertoire, and I agreed these were pretty good for the price! So there you have it, a few picks from this round of The Mens Dept. Take your fella, drag him down there if you must, and get him kitted out for Christmas in style!

Here’s your Taxi to The Mens Dept. 

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Strawberry Singh’s Memes: The Winter Season Challenge!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 2 Comments

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Apparently Kitty has been VERY Naughty this year! 

Time for another Meme courtesy of Ms. Singh! This one was a lot of fun to  write because it took me back and helped me remember some snow-related events!

Of course, I’m writing about real life here, but hey, I do have one of those you know..(Admittedly not as fun as my Second Life, but still…) Why not have a go at one of Berry’s Memes?

They’re always an enjoyable challenge! Thanks Berrycakes!

1. What is the December/Winter season like where you live? I live in Chesterfield, Derbyshire. We’re practically bang smack in the middle of England, so we’re well insulated against the kinds of nasty storms that they get along the coast.  However, just because we’re in the middle doesn’t mean we get mild weather.  We’re a hilly county, and Chesterfield is right on the cusp of the Peak District National Park, so when it snows here boy does it snow! I can recall a really bad Winter when I was a Saturday girl in a store in town.  The weather was so bad the store had to shut early, and to make matters worse all the buses had been taken off the road meaning  I had to walk home.  The trek was  a good three miles in deep snow, snow that was so bad the telephone lines were swooping down onto the ground, they were so laden with the stuff.  It was exhausting. It was also really dark because there had been power cuts, and I remember being a little scared as I walked home. The only light was that which was reflected off the snow, an almost dull glow to navigate by.  I recall that I was most perturbed by how incredibly silent it was; my walk home meant I walked alongside a road that would normally be busy with traffic, but there were no cars or vehicles of any kind  to make a sound. The only sound was the crunching of my feet as I crunched home through the snow. We haven’t had bad winters like that for at least 20 years, and honestly I never thought I would see the like again, but then in 2010 *WHUMP* we had a massive snowstorm. I live on the very top of a hill at the end of a long winding street, and the snowfall meant that we became a little island, completely cut off from the main roads. It was pretty inconvenient, but it was so beautiful, and the snow was deep and crisp. We had a few power cuts but I seem to recall that I  managed to do LOTS of serious Second Life-ing during those snow-bound days! One of the more charming occurrences was the sound of school-children playing in the snow on the nearby school fields. The schools had to close because of the weather obviously, but that didn’t stop the children from making the most of it, and listening to their laughs and gleeful giggles was really lovely. The sound carried over to my house so that it became a soundtrack to my snow days. Those excited squeals would start in the early morning and only end when it was dark. (I’m hoping for a repeat of that this Winter actually:)

2.When you think of winter, what’s the first thing that pops into your head? When I think of Winter I immediately thing of playing in the snow as a little girl. Growing up there was some wild, rambling woodland opposite the street where I grew up. It extended along the side of a hill, and it was nicknamed by the local kids ‘The Gorse’, because it was full of Gorse bushes. In summer it was great for hiding out, picking blackberries and basically doing all the things that young children are supposed to. In Winter it turned into a paradise for sledging. The best bit was the long, steep, winding driveway that led up to a house that was hidden in the middle of the wood at the top. One winter all the kids off the street, myself included, trekked over the road to The Gorse and made our very own version of The Cresta Run!   The path that led up to the house became black ice, encouraged by the constant presence of at least thirty local kids continually sliding up and down it on whatever we could get our hands on; proper sleds, plastic NCB coal bags, bin lids…anything and everything. Those poor people that lived in that house, they couldn’t have used a car on their driveway because we’d made it so slippery, yet they never complained  and we spent days walking up and sliding down this long, winding and incredibly exhilarating path. The only problem was at the very bottom of it there was a cattle grid, and then the main road. This meant that you had to be a little careful on downhill slalom runs, because you had to try and stop yourself in case you flew over the grid and into the main road. The worst possible outcome would be gaining so much speed on the descent that you couldn’t stop, so you would have to throw yourself into the snow before you hit the grid. It was like being a stunt-man, and I note we had some near misses! Hitting the grid at speed was pretty uncomfortable and it really hurt our bums, I wore through a number of coal sacks that week and I don’t think I have ever had so much fun in my life! (It wasn’t without accidents though; one lad, Craig, didn’t follow the path properly, and instead of turning he went flying into a Gorse bush. He emerge with a Gorse barb sticking out of his ear, and on closer inspection we all realised that it had completely pierced it! Cool huh? (I wanted to share a picture of the area with you so you got an idea of how awesome it was skidding down the track. THIS shot is from Google; alas, the cattle grid is no more (it’s been filled in!) but can you see what I meant about having to stop before you hit the road?! Also, the gorse bushes have all gone, which is a bit pants. Still, happy times!) 

3. Have you ever played any extreme winter sports?  Extreme sledding on coal sacks has to count, right? I’ve also gone downhill on a sled at a local country park called Rother Valley. This was way back in the 1990’s. I went downhill with my then-partner, his brother, his brother’s girlfriend AND their dog on a massive sled down one of the ski-slopes in the park. We all wore wet-suits under our clothes so we could stay dry, and also in case we ended up in the lake at the end of the slope! That was unlikely though, because we were hell bent on stopping, not least of all because of the barbed wire fence at the bottom of the hill!  It was certainly an exhilarating experience,  but it was also VERY scary because we gained so much speed on the descent. (Incidentally, such activity in that spot has been banned in recent years because unfortunately a young lady lost her life in an accident on that exact same slope a few years ago)

4.What do you like most about this season? Snow makes everything look beautiful doesn’t it? I also like to see how my pets interact with the weather. My cats look incredibly funny when they are trying to navigate deep snow, and my dog is always very unsure if she actually likes it or not! I really love Winter clothing too, and covering myself in soft, woolly jumpers and thick socks and cuddling a hot water bottle on a cold Winter’s afternoon is one of my absolute favourite things. Even better if I am drinking steaming hot Cocoa, or better still Mulled Wine, which is definitely one of the best things about this time of year!

5.Do you celebrate Christmas, Hannukkah, Kwanzaa or another holiday during this time of year?  I celebrate two holidays, GREEDY KITTY!  As a practising Witch I celebrate Yule, on December 21st. This is a celebration that is believed to have laid the foundations for modern Christmas festivities, which I also enjoy with my loved ones on December 25th (because they aren’t Pagan).  I consider myself lucky that I have two celebrations to enjoy, and this year I’m looking forward to celebrating Yule after a slap-up meal at the best restaurant in town. Christmas Day will be different for me and my partner this year because I’m actually working nights and technically I will be asleep on December 25th,  so because of my working hours we’re not actually seeing our parents on the day this year, as is our tradition. (One year we spend Christmas with Philip’s parents, the following year we spend it with my parents, and so on.) But I’m sure our Christmas this year will be just as lovely, even if it’s a much quieter affair.