Sunday Girl (Avatar Blogger Crossfit Challenge (Entry 8 of 30))

Sunday Girl (Avatar Blogger Crossfit Challenge (Entry 8 of 30))

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It’s a LONG time since I did a look of the day post..but I was inspired by the offerings on sale at the latest Collab88, which it must be said is an absolute corker.

The inspiration is the 1990’s, so think zingy colours and taste flying out of the window.  I’m talking Global Hypercolour tees (they’re BACK!) Sweater Shop jumpers (Now being sold as vintage, the Hipsters LOVE them!)  Shell-suits (JUST SAY NO!) and Color-Me-Bad! (Oh dear!)

I had a VERY quick rummage at C88 and instantly fell in love with this glorious dress from

Teamed with my wonderful friendship bracelets from Boom at The Arcade (Have I got in yet? Don’t be silly!!) and this luscious ‘Bad Reputation’ hair from Exile and I think my look is very 1980’s rather than 1990’s, but I care not a jot because I LOVE IT!

You know I really do think it’s a fantastic time to be an avatar in-world at the moment.  There is so much fantastic fashion to be found, teamed with some exquisite building work; I’ve not been this enthused about SL for a LONG time!

If you want to emulate the look I’m sporting above, here’s what you’ll need:

  • Shape: Mine, not for sale.
  • Skin: Ava BB 2 in Medium – Belleza
  • Eyes: Destiny Eyes in ‘Maya’ (Group Gift) – Ikon
  • Hair: ‘Bad Reputation’ (Fusion 2) – Exile
  • Dress: {U.F.O} ‘Who cut off my sleeve?’ dress in black – C88
  • Jewellery: {Yummy} Ball Chain Necklace – C88
  • Lashes: ‘Flirt’ by Hush
  • Hands: ‘Casual’ by Slink
  • Manicure: ‘Classic’ by Izzie’s
Just Another Manic Monday!

Just Another Manic Monday!

Monday_001So how was your weekend? I wonder if it was spent like mine, and I’m sure many others, trying to get into ‘The Arcade’.  Can you believe I even got up super-early  to try and get in and it made NOT A JOT of difference. It’s frustrating, BUT fortunately there are just as many, if not even more, yard sales as last time, so be sure to ask around your chums for recommendations.

My own personal fave is the yard sale at Pixel Mode; it tries very hard to stay legit, with items priced to sell at exactly the same price as the Gachas at The Arcade. They also recognise that not every designer wants their items to be included in the yard sale culture, and they are respectful of this. Whilst you’re not really getting the full Arcade experience, yard sales are great for getting your gacha on and grabbing items that you’ve been lusting after. Like most avatars I know, I had a list in my head of what I was after, and fortunately I found everything at the yard sales already.

Having said that, I’ve spent a fortune BUT it’s hard not to when the items are so fabulous. Can you spot my Gacha winnings in the picture above? Well, for a start I am totally addicted to the BOOM friendship bracelets and am adding them to my wrists like crazy.  At only L$25 a punt they’re not breaking the bank and they look amazing, just like the bracelets I used to wear as a kid! They’re also mod, which makes fitting them a breeze, and I’ve discovered that they hide the tiny lines that come with wearing mesh hands absolutely perfectly. I still have a few colours left to  get, but these bracelets are totally made of win as far as I’m concerned. My scarf is by MILK MOTION and my glasses from BAIASTICE.  The glasses spoke to me as soon as I saw them; they’re are pure designer style and perfectly evoke ‘Selina Kyle’ spirit. Oh, and of course they look OUTSTANDING when you wear them!

By my bed you’ll spy one of the floral arrangements from ARIA. There are a few of these that I really fancy but funnily enough I haven’t seen many of them at Yard sales; I get the feeling this is because they’re just perfectly created. On my bed you’ll see my corgi from SILENT SPARROW.  I got a couple of these in different colours because they’re just too cute, and well, Corgis are pretty awesome. Last but not least, I’m wearing another outstanding BOOM creation in this shot; the traveller tee that is currently available at the NUMBEROLOGY event. (Yes, there is other stuff besides The Arcade happening in-world right now!) It’s mesh, fits like a dream and features a curious time-traveller inspired print.  (As you can see it looks amazing with my Milk Motion scarf gatcha prize!)

I’m also wearing one of the latest hair releases by EXILE. Exile are really nailing it when it comes to styles and colours at the minute, and as soon as I saw this shaggy bob, called ‘Bad Reputation’,  I knew I had to have it. It’s stacked with volume and style, and the demo comes replete with a multitude of huds for you to select your perfect colour from. Such thoughtful presentation and ease of use makes for a brilliant shopping experience, and naturally I had to indulge. I think I look a right bobby-dazzler!

Best of luck getting into The Arcade, and if you can’t don’t despair; you still have 27 days left ;P

 

Home & Garden Expo For Relay For Life 2013

Home & Garden Expo For Relay For Life 2013

It’s a bank holiday weekend in the UK, that means rain, wind and crappy weather.  But fear not, dear reader, the sun always shines in Second Life, and it’s going to be blazing down upon the Home & Garden Expo for Relay For Life 2013, a fundraising event that’s not to be missed!

You’ll find over 100 exhibitors sharing their very best homes, gardens, landscaping and interior design products in Second Life.  This year there are also an additional 30 creators from the breedables sector in the second annual Breedables Fair too..<phew!>

I’ve been lucky enough to have a sneaky peeky at the event and I can assure you all that you won’t be disappointed. There 8 regions full of home products, can you imagine?! (There are also 2 sims just for the Breedables fair and 1 entertainment sim as well!)

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Each exhibitor is going to be showcasing their very best designs, but will also feature new items that you can buy to support Relay For Life and the American Cancer Society.

The event runs for just over a week from :  12PM SLT on May 24th until June 2nd, so you have plenty of time to wander around and enjoy the amazing displays, and trust me you’ll need it because there is so much to see here that it’s overwhelming!

So what do you need to know? Well first things first, the builds are absolutely brilliant. Each exhibitor has really gone the extra mile to make their display look brilliant and invite you in to spend your lovely loot!  The environment feels like it’s been designed and engineered to make the entire space come alive with things to see, experience  and enjoy.

There are garden spaces to wander around and relax in, as well as cobbled streets and rustic villas juxtaposed with family homes and contemporary structures. If you’re a texture freak like myself then you will *drool* at the wealth of pattern and colour that surrounds you. It’s a total treat.

Rustic and traditional are as well served here as modern and contemporary, so even if role-play, or  past-times living aren’t your thing in Second Life you’ll still be enchanted by the displays that you’ll discover in Expo 1. (There are a number of items aimed at petites here too)  Be sure to gasp agog at the Devonmoor Manor from Kismet, which is like stepping back in time.  In fact, I actually turned the music OFF so that I could walk around and soak up the ambience from some of the garden environments,  and I heartily suggest that you do the same!

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I spied a myriad of wonderfully built abodes across all 8 expo sims. In particular look out for contributions from BA, Pixel Fusion, NACH Homes and Furnishings and Funky Junk.  With the increasing application and development of mesh it’s fair to say that houses are really becoming grander and so much more realistic than ever before, and there are plenty of luxurious abodes here to suit every budget and requirement.  T

Wandering around I was struck by how many were family homes, with many offering multiple bedrooms and furnishings to suit. There are lots of structures suited to Second Life families this year, and a number of retailers are here purely for the family role-play market.

I’m always keen to find knick-knacks and elements to enhance the space in my home, and you’ll find lots of essential homewares from brands like Second Spaces, Cheeky Pea and Mudhoney.  There’s a huge emphasis this season on outdoor entertaining and there are many different patio sets, barbecues and seating solutions to be had from some of the best names in furniture.  You’ll also find lots of plants and garden inspiration from names like Botanical and Heart Botanicals, helping you to transform your virtual lawn into something more spectacular. (Note: Don’t visit the expo if you need to go to the toilet, there are so many water features dotted around that you may struggle to keep control of your virtual bladder!)

Of course the expos allow newer designers upon the grid to make an impression, and it was great to become acquainted with names that I hadn’t really encountered before, such as Cobblestone and Shabby Tabby.

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Aspiring builders are well served too, you’ll find texture artists and mesh retailers such as Zwicked Textures,  Clutter and Builders Brewery have representation here.   In fact, Builders Brewery have a a huge staging area for lessons and lectures, with an extensive programme schedule for the duration of the Expo. If you’ve always wanted to learn to sculpt and texture, now’s the time to check the lecture timetable out!

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It’s really difficult to pick a favourite build or a singular item from the assembled throng of loveliness that’s on display here, so over the next few days I’ll feature a few choice items that I think  are worth sharing with you.  Is the Expo worth a visit? Most definitely; it’s inspiring. Illuminating and above all else it’s a great way to support an undoubtedly worthy cause. This is definitely one of the highlights of the year, be sure to enjoy it!

Exhibitors include: 

-JoHaDeZ- “Poetic Furniture”/::A&A::/::WetCat:: Builds&Poses/.::Sense and Sensibility::./
[beach street home and garden/[ba] barnesworth anubis prefabs/[CIRCA] Living/[LeeZu!]/
[PM]Pixel Mode/[RNP] Animations/{what next}/*ionic*/%Percent Furniture & Lighting
~*~Inspired~*~/22769 ~ [bauwerk]/3S Creations/Akaesha Designs/Amaretto Ranch Breedables/Aphrodite Shop/ARIA modern furniture and lights/Atelier Visconti/BellaRose/Beyond Prims/Black Tulip/Botanical/by Chiana Oh/By Dorian/Cheeky Pea/ChiC buildings/CLEO DESIGN/Clutter for Builders/Cobblestone Home & Garden/Cozy Homes/Creations Kitchen/De Baza/Dekute Dekore/Dysfunctional Designs/Fancy Designs/Fennux/FLRN BABY’S & FLRN DESIGN/forest feast/Full Perm Mesh/Funky Junk/Galland Homes/Glas Houses/Good Furniture/Green and Wild Garden Centre/Heart Botanicals/Home and Garden Market/Home by JLZ/Hybrid Productions/Island Dreams Realty and Seaside Lounge/Kabuki Creations/Kaerri/Katy’s Kreations Sculpties & Mesh/Kismet/Kuro/La Dolce Vita/LOTTIE Garden & Home/Lovers PlayGround/Maven Homes/meadowWorks/Meeroos/MESHWORX/Mission Home Store/MudHoney/NACH Homes and Furnishings/Naked Mesh/Nexxus Arts/Oceania Breedables/Organica Specialty Landscaping and Home Décor/Overland Trail/Park Place Home Décor/Persnickity/Pet Peddlers/Petals on the Wind Gardens of Gentle Decay/Pillows & Things/PILOT/Pixel Fusion Homes/Prim Perfect/PRIME/PrimTique/RE Blueprint Designs/ReBourne PreFabs/Roawenwood/Robin (Sojourner) Wood/sanctuaire/Scarlet Creative/Sculpty Republic/Second Spaces/Shabby Tabby/Soul Effects/Spargel & Shine Homes/Steaming Ahead/Gothic’s Musing/Stonewood Homes/Studio Skye/Terra’s Closet/TexturAni Textures / MeshAni Mesh/THE Beachstore/The Dark Fae/The Domineaux Effect/The Forest/The Nawty Box/The Virtual Kennel Club/Thistle Homes/Tranquil Homes/Tribute City/Two Moon Gardens/Unrepentant/West Studio/Zigana/Zwicked Textures

Quick TP (Click each to teleport)

Breedables Fair TP Links: 

Kitty Plays ‘Catch-Up’

Kitty Plays ‘Catch-Up’

As I’m sure regular readers know I work in real life (Shh! I know we don’t like to talk about that!) so my time in-world is often limited.  This means I have to play ‘catch-up’ when I finally come back in, and I have to say that at the moment Second Life is really overwhelming me due to the amount of events that are currently running on the grid. I shouldn’t complain too much though, it’s a good time to be an avatar, especially if you want to be a super-stylish one too!

Problem for me as a blogger is that there are so many events in-world that I know I can’t possibly do justice to them all on these pages. You have to appreciate that these kinds of occasions take weeks of planning and organising so it’s only fair that when they begin they receive the quality coverage they deserve.

Perhaps one of my issues is that when I attend an event I like to take my time and wander around them, and then I  get distracted, go back to stores repeatedly and have another look, and then forget where I saw things that really caught my eye in the first place. I do actually have a notebook that I use to remind me of locations and places where I’ve seen fabulous items, but of course, that only works if you remember to write in it….DOH!

In a situation like this when I feel that there’s just so much going on that i don’t know where to start, I find a good visual aide to be invaluable.  It saves me time if I can see what an event is offering by checking out a dedicated web-site,or checking out the feeds to see what other bloggers are covering.

Fortunately we are blessed with resources like Serpahim which seems to cover the majority of sales and events on the grid. To be honest, I’d be lost without that blog; it’s become my go-to on a daily basis to find out what’s happening and where, and a quick nosy at their snapshots always help me plan my spends ahead.  I’m also  finding myself glued (or should that be pinned?) to Elysium Hyne’s Pinterest selections for event reportage too. Here’s a huge thank you to Elysium and all the team at Seraphim for their hard work!

Anyway, let’s get on to the good stuff. I have managed to treat myself to a few lovely things this week, so I’ll do a quick post about a few things I’ve spotted at a couple of events before I scurry off to check out some more!

First up, The Liaison Collaborative has gifted us with ‘The Boutique’, which features a superb selection of fashion, accessories and poses. The theme is ‘Fresh’, and they aren’t joking, featuring zesty contributions from Baiastice, !Bang, Belleza, Bilo, Cae, CNS Emotion, E! Apparel, Earthstones, Elikatira, Essences, Flowey, Glam Affair, Gos Boutique, Half-Deer, Haste, Hopscotch, Ikon, Inside Lab, Ispachi, Izzie’s, Just Designs, La Petite Morte, Lassitude & Ennui, Lavallie, Leezu, Noodles, NYU, Olive, Rebel Hope, Valentina E. and Vanity Poses. Phew!   I always enjoy these events; they’re not so large as to leave you feeling bewildered, and the selection of designers that contribute are all well-established, quality brands. There’s a real feeling of finesse to this event and I always get the impression that there’s been a lot of care taken by the planners behind the scenes to ensure that they have curated the very best goodies for the event. That’s why you find brands like Belleza showcasing skins, and how I wish they wouldn’t.

</me Kitty shakes fist angrily!>

Because yet again Belleza have adorned their sublime Mya skin with some utterly glorious make-ups and naturally I couldn’t avoid them. As I’ve said before, I love make-ups and it would take some serious coaxing to get me out of my Izzie’s skin and into another, but Ava proved way too hard to resist, with her winged eyeshadow perfection in a variety of colours. It would be just plain rude to not indulge. So I did.

And I look fabulous, see? 

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Don’t even get me started on the totally delicious array of IKON eyes at the event either; I had to walk away lest I spent my rent. Suffice to say that IKON are my favourite brand of eyes in world (I am wearing them in the picture above of course, but these are an existing pair from my collection) and seeing new ones made me all teary and misty-eyed. So to avoid further distress I swiftly departed on to my next destination, The 100 Block.  

This is a ‘Depraved Nation‘ event and it features over 100 participating designers and artists. That’s way too many to list in this post, so if you click HERE you can go visit the official blog and review the selection yourself, but suffice to say I found it very satisfying indeed.  I’ve been zooming all round the, erm, block, most of the morning  with gay abandon and totally relishing the fabulous fashion on display.

There are some really special mesh items on sale and it’s nice to see that there are some goodies for the chaps as well as the ladies, and there’s also hair, piercings and tattoos.

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I discovered a new brand of hair whilst I was at the event.  In the shot above I’m wearing ‘Toffsy’ (Maroon) by Adoness and I really love it. It’s an unusual combination of bob shape with added oomph and curl, and I think that it makes for a winning combination.

But what’s also rather special is this fantastic frock that I discovered at the event.  I’m all about Leopard print in Second Life, well, I am called Kitty after all, and I was really blown away by this stylish gown that I found hanging on the rack at Ellemeno.

I’ve blogged CarrieAnn Lemon’s label before and it’s a relatively new yet well-produced brand that is especially focused upon the mesh boobs market, but don’t let that dissuade you from investigating their goodies because you don’t have to sport mesh boobs to look sensational in them. I was going to wear my Lola’s for this shot, but in the end I thought I looked fabulous enough without.

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Taking a traditional gown shape and bringing it bang up to date with Leopard print is a brave move, yet it works beautifully. Now I wear a LOT of leopard print and there’s one thing I’ve noticed, especially with mesh items. If the textures aren’t carefully applied, and to be frank if a decent Leopard print texture isn’t used in the first place, the result can be a bit..well, rubbish.  But there’s no such worries here with this gown; the print really looks the part and the shape of this dress is nothing short of perfect.

I wish I could wear this in real life, but alas, I’d look like Bella Emberg channelling Bet Lynch.  

But at least in Second Life I can look divine, eh?

So anyway, because I’m still playing catch-up I thought I’d share a small list of events that I really do think you will enjoy checking out, and to make things even more fun for you, I’ve included links (to either Seraphim or Elysium’s posts) so that you can have a peek at the good stuff before checking them out in-world.

Who knows, I may even bump into you at one of these!(You’ll recognise me, a bewildered looking idiot) Be sure to say ‘Hello’ if you do see me!

Happy Shopping! Oh and a thought, if you find something nice why not tell us about it in the comments below? Toodles!