Aside

Kitty’s Fave Blogs #2 – ‘The Fashionable Heart’ by Heidi Volare.

Here’s my second entry where I tell you about a favourite Second Life blog that I admire.

Today I’m encouraging you to go and visit the ever-amazing ‘The Fashionable Heart’. which is the work of Heidi Volare. 

The Fashionable Heart is one of those blogs that I visit that leaves me one part enthralled and the other part enraged.

The being enraged comes from the fact that every ruddy image featured on this blog is perfect, and I get very angry at my own ineptitude and inability to craft pictures as sensational as the ones produced by  Heidi Volare.

The enthralled feeling comes from the fact that Heidi really does take us on a fashion journey with every single shot that she publishes.  She carefully selects her locations and backgrounds enabling her to create a look that perfectly represents her mood on any given day.  For example, sometimes she’s  feeling classically glam and others casually cute. But whichever mood she chooses to share with her readers, each has one thing in common; they look astonishing.

When it comes to making fantastic Second Life images, some people just have ‘it’, that magical skill that turns an ordinary fashion shot into something very special indeed.  Heidi has it in bucketloads. The way she lights her images? I have no idea how she does it, but it just works.

If you’ve never visited ‘The Fashionable Heart’ before then you’re in for a treat.  Expect to see  beautifully coloured, high-res fashion shots that really stand out from the crowd. These are the kinds of images that make me go ‘Ooh’ and ‘Aah’ and above all else, encourage me to go shopping in-world.If I was a content creator in Second Life, knowing my work had been featured on Heidi’s blog would make me one very happy bunny indeed.

If you’re looking for style inspiration, and I often am, Heidi’s blog is a great place to visit to quench your thirst for all things lovely. Her Flickr is also a fabulous resource too.

So here’s to you Heidi Volare, and your fantastic blog. I raise a glass to you and your delicious fashion stylings, and must tell you that I cannot wait to see what else you have in store for us.  Keep up the fantastic work! 

LOTD: Kitty’s feeling FROCKY!

LOTD: Kitty’s feeling FROCKY!

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Back after my holiday break, and what a wonderful birthday I had. Once again thank you so much for the wishes. I thought I’d ease myself back in nicely and feature an Autumnal LOTD today.

Now, you all know me well enough by now to know that I do like a good frock. (I said frock you perverts!)And there are many, many good frocks out there to be had on the grid, including this extremely nifty wee number from DCNY.

Apparently there was a version of this Boho dress included in Fifty Linden Friday on the 13th, BUT alas I was away so missed my opportunity to grab a copy.  And I would have done, with much gusto too, because this is a very pretty dress indeed.

I like the shape which perfectly fulfils the boho brief without being too fussy, and it wears incredibly well with boots making it perfect Autumnal fayre.  But thevery  best thing about this dress? Well that will be the choice of patterns and colours that are available in-srore. There’s a version for every occasion.

So dress it up with a floppy hat and boots and long flowing locks, or add a razor sharp haircut, heels and statement jewellery.  Either way it works. Fits like a dream, and looks the part. What more could a girl about Second Life ask for?

What are you waiting for? Let’s get frocking!

Kitty wears: 

Dress: Boho Baby Dress  in Gingerbread DCNY 

Bag: RICIELLI ‘The Birkin Bag’ (Croco) (TDR Fusion)

Skin: BELLEZA Leila Med 3 (The Boutique)

Eyes: IKON Perspective Eyes ‘Blush’ M (The Boutique)

Boots :Color Me H.O.F Rider in Oxblood (The Arcade)

Hair:  Boys&Girls 46 (Sienna) DURA

Hands: SLINK Updated hands!! (Check out Strawberry’s fabulous post about them here) 

Earrings/Necklace :IZZIES ‘Leaves’ Jewellery (TDR Fusion) 

The Story Of The Season

The Story Of The Season

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The problem with September is a VERY skint Kitty. Why? Well this is because there are way too many wonderful events going on in world at the moment. It’s driving me mad, but in a GOOD way.

The Arcade is still busy and bustling, but there’s also the fantastic latest Collabor88 collection and a new kid on the block, The Seasons Story.

The Seasons Story was incredibly busy upon the first few days of opening so that I couldn’t actually get in, but when I did I realised why it had been so popular. This is a real quality event, the theme being Autumn (of course)and each stall is arranged around a beautifully decorated sim featuring trees, fruits and flowers of the, erm, season.  It’s delicious to look at and walk around. You can practically smell pumpkin soup and warmed cider as you meander down the pathways investigating  each vendor.

There’s a vast array of fashion, hair, skins and furnishings on show for the fall-addicted avatar. I confess that I was like a kid in a sweet-shop once I managed to get in, because there’s some truly wonderful shopping to be had here.

In the photograph I am sporting the fabulous flannel shirt from SHEEP DOOR, and I really like it,  although I do wish the demo had included examples of the textures rather than it being a demo for fit. Still, as you can see it looks perfectly snug and wears really well.  Ripe for layering in this cool September sun.

I also really fell in love with this glorious hair and beret combo from  INK.  It’s a great unisex style, available in a limited selection of colours but an absolute bargain at L$150 a pop.  Not only that, each style comes replete with hud for beret colour-change happy, and includes a couple of hairbases, one of which is specifically aimed at the male avvie and includes a beard.  I love thoughtful touches like that!

I combined my choices from The Seasons Story with some quality purchases from Collabor 88.   I cannot get enough of this Belleza ‘Leila’ skin which is the perfect choice for the season. I’m wearing combo 3 ,which features a winged eyeliner against a palette of golden hues and a lovely warm red lip. The colours are just breathtaking, and I’ve realised now that Belleza probably draw my favourite brow in SL; it’s *perfect* and frames the face beautifully. I can’t get enough of it.

I’m also sporting this delicious jumper from TEE*FY  in  ‘Pumpkin’ shade. I’m really loving this brand at the moment.  This is a brilliant example of a wardrobe staple being perfectly re-created in Second Life. It features a generous roll-neck collar and comes with both a no-sleeves (for wearing under jackets) and long sleeved versions plus  alphas layers to suit. Another example of a designer actually giving thought to how something will be worn, and again it’s a touch that’s truly appreciated.

What do you think to my foxy tail? This beautiful brush is  available at Collabor88 from AUXILIARY, and even better no beautiful foxes were harmed in the making of it! You can purchase it pre-attached to a denim skirt, or you can buy separately to add to your own items.  It’s available in a variety of shades and is a really unusual enhancement to your wardrobe.  I really love it!

The Seasons Story is a perfect environment for taking photos.  The backdrop above is actually comprised of the Gacha items that virtual design Goddess Sienia Trevellion (the name behind the LARK label) has at The Arcade this round. The books have been enlarged to create a really effective display, and they demonstrate the awesome imagination and skill that Sienia possesses. She is one of those people in-world who is a constant source of wonder to me and I cannot praise her work enough. In fact, all the designers I’ve featured here today are an absolute joy, and one of the reasons why I love my Second Life so much.

And finally let me tell you about the pose.  This is from a pose maker that I discovered at The Seasons Story called MODEL POSESand I am really impressed!  There are two packs available of five poses for L$60 each, and they’re excellent quality with a natural grace and finish to each movement.  I’ll certainly be keeping an eye for this brand in future! (The pose in the photo is number four from the ‘Martina’ collection)

Have I wet your shopping appetite? Good, I am pleased to hear it! CLICK HERE to visit The Seasons Story, and HERE to visit Collabor88.  Enjoy!

 

 

LOTD: The light is changing and Autumn is on her way..

LOTD: The light is changing and Autumn is on her way..

ImageSo here I am taking a breather behind a rock and having a think about a few things. (This is my intelligent thinking face, stop laughing at the back!)

I’ve actually managed to get into The Arcade a couple of times now (although not for long sadly, I maxed out at five minutes before I was unceremoniously booted out.) As a result of my swift sojourn there  I have a superfluous amount of oars in my inventory because the Apple Fall Gacha clearly hates me. (I’m desperately trying to get the rare sideboard!) I was lucky enough to get the tall cabinet and believe me it is a thing of sheer beauty, but then, so many items in this round of The Arcade are, and it’s hard to know where to start once you do get in. I’ve actually taken to sitting outside, behind the venue on the chairs and camming in which is a useful tactic if you don’t want to be bamboozled by busty avatars and unceremoniously booted out of the way by toddlededoodles or whatever the child avatars are called these days.

As you can tell by the picture I got my paws on some CURIO OBSCURA boots and I think they are nothing less than extraordinary. In fact, my mind is completely boggled by the Gachas this round. I knew that they were going to be good, but blooming heck, they’re outstanding! In fact,it’s really hard not to completely lose your way on them and just throw all your money at them.  You know, the content creators who have worked on this event must be making an absolute fortune, and quite right too. The effort that has gone into the whole enterprise is there for all to see, and everyone involved deserves to do well from it. I actually find myself just staring at the creations I see on the screen before me in sheer wonder at what has been made.  It’s almost meta-wonder too; I’m staring in wonder at something in a virtual world that someone in the real world made for it. Kind of makes the brain boggle a bit doesn’t it? 

So, the reason for this post.  I happened across a really useful blogpost during the week that features a listing of various yard sales which is very handy to have  if you’re keen to hunt down a particular item. I actually had to put a plea on Plurk for said blogpost too, because I thought I had bookmarked it and was seriously alarmed when I realised that I hadn’t.  (Amazingly enough someone identified exactly what I was looking for by my asking if anyone..”Knew of a blog post by a lady-blogger that features a list of yard sales..”  Plurk really is a clever wee community when it wants to be!)

So the blog post can be found here, and it’s rather blinking good as a comprehensive yard sale starting point. I realise that more locations will have been added since the post was published, but even so it’s a more than adequate way to plan your yardsale tour.  It’s on a blog called ‘All About The Little’, which is a blog aimed at the child avatar community, and even though child avatars are not my thing I do recognise the very important role that they play in many a person’s Second Life. It’s actually a really nice blog too; professionally laid out and very informative too. It’s clearly a labour of love for Addison Faye and aims to keep the kids community up to date with events on the grid, and in my opinion does a cracking job of it.  And if Google docs are more your thing, get your eyes on THIS LIST too! LOOK AT ALL THE SALES, CAN YOU EVEN?!

A final thought, if you’ve had your fill of all things Gacha,  let me frustrate you even further by telling you that this month’s round of Collabor88 has started and it’s a flipping corker.

But don’t despair too much, at least you might be able to get into The Arcade now! 

Kitty Wears:

Hair: Boys & Girls 46 in Sienna by DURA

Eyes:  Ascension Eyes in Sahara (M) by IKON

Skin: Leila (#7) by BELLEZA (The Arcade) 

Nails: Nail Polish from ADORE & ABHOR (Fifty Linden Friday, 6th September)

Scarf:  Skull Burgundy By MILK MOTION (previous Arcade round; you may be able to find at Yard Sales)

Dress:  Oversized Sweatshirt by CYNFUL

Boots:  Mish-mash Carnivale Abomination Boots by CURIO OBSCURA (The Arcade)

…Oh, and pile cream from Preparation Ouch, I knew I shouldn’t have sat on this draughty cold floor for so long!