SKIN FAIR 2014 – Marvellous in Meenakshi by Jalwa

SKIN FAIR 2014 – Marvellous in Meenakshi by Jalwa

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I got to wear my first ever Jalwa skin last year, ‘Coven’, and it’s been a firm favourite of mine ever since. Chandra Masala makes blinking fabulous skins, and her Skin Fair submissions this year are nothing short of fantastic. When I saw the line up I KNEW I had to get my sticky-kitty mitts on ‘Meenakshi’ in the Cardamon shade, and that is precisely what I did.

For a start I love the colour of this skin. It has a really earthy, warm tone making it ideal for all kinds of wear. I imagine it would fare well in role-play for some reason, it just has that exotic, spirited air about it. In fact I got a real vintage vibe from it when I was playing around with different looks. I don’t know why that is actually; perhaps it’s just me but whatever spurred that feeling on I used it to great effect when styling this look. But I digress, let me tell you about this skin.

‘Meenakshi’ has a stunning face. She’s incredibly beautiful, with striking eyebrows that are skilfully sculpted, almost as though they are hewn from stone. But even though these brows are high drama, they don’t detract from the look.  Instead they balance out the visage perfectly, complimenting the strong cheek shading and balancing out the perfectly rendered lips. When you try this skin on it’s worth increasing your lip size, even if it’s just a bit, just to get the full benefit of the scrumptious lips that Chandra has blessed ‘Meenakshi’ with. They really are a virtual sensation.

Onto the body and it’s just as elegant as the face, with details accentuated well and the suggestion of a blemish or two.  I really like the cleavage on this skin, and the fact that there is a mole on the breast to draw your attention to it. This is a skin that looks great naked by the way, intimate details are extremely well done with a neat ‘private area’, ahem. One thing I especially like about this skin is the generous use of highlight on areas like the thighs. This is the kind of skin that looks excellent when worn in beach-wear for example, and I think if you’re a virtual beach-bunny then you’ll find this a very rewarding wear. Set your windlight settings to sunset and  bask in Meenakshi’s warm, spicy glow. Utterly delicious.

So onto my snaps, which are a little bit 1970’s, hence my referring to them as vintage. I styled this skin in the fanatastic ISON suit that is available at this month’s Collabor88, and coupled with this fabulous ‘Harriet’ bob from Truth and rather ostentatious bow necklace from LARK came up with this rather funky look.  It’s further enhanced by some make-ups that I picked up at Skin Fair 2014 (and will be further writing about) from MADRID SOLO, my new make-up label of choice. I’m wearing an eyeshadow and lip-colour from the ‘Seductress’ range, along with my favourite MONS eyeliner.

Incidentally, Meenakshi comes replete with her own line of eyeshadow and lip options too.  They’re absolutely scrummy, and are featured to great effect on Sydd Sinister’s fantastic blog (Sydd is a ruddy fantastic blogger and if you’re new to her work check it out, she’s one of the most accomplished bloggers on the grid in my humble opinion. I’ve long been a fan:)

But as I’ve said before, it doesn’t matter what you wear on top, it’s the base that counts.

And in Meenakshi I’ve discovered an absolute winner.  A skin that’s versatile and ready to be styled in whatever way I fancy, and every time I wear it I KNOW I’ll look good.

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Can’t ask for more than that really can you?

CLICK HERE TO VISIT JALWA ON SKIN FAIR 1

Splish Splash Kitty’s Taking a bath!

Splish Splash Kitty’s Taking a bath!

Floria vintage(Click on each shot for a bigger and better look!)

As all of my regular readers know I’m a huge fan of Ria Bazar-Mavendorf’s work. I’ve been blogging Ria’s items now for well over a year, and each release is consistently awesome, with fabulous builds, textures and innovative features carefully blended to create some of the best furniture in the virtual world.  The ‘Floria’ series has been a particular delight, combining elegant textures and fabrics together in a classical style with a gentle, modern twist, and the latest addition to the collection is no exception. The Floria Bathroom is one of the most extravagant bathrooms experiences you can have in Second Life and comes complete with mesh components full of options that will help you to engineer the perfect bathroom for your virtual home. Like all of the Floria range the bathroom is texture change so the units can be altered to whatever finish you see fit with the same wood characteristics and colours that were previously used in the range.

This makes it an especially nice choice for en-suite bathrooms, particularly if you already have the Floria Bedroom.

Floria Bathroom 1(Just a couple  of the colour options you can choose from..)

The quality is of course paramount, and the selection of accessories chosen for the set is rather brilliant too. There are matching sink units, with a mirror and accessories for him and her. There’s a decorative shelving unit which is ideal to place above the pedestal, especially because it features an air-freshener! There’s even a loo-brush and a toilet paper holder too. All the fixtures are further enhanced by a golden gleam courtesy of the metal colour deployed across the range which is applied to pipework, door-knobs and other fittings.  The star of the show has to be the tub. It’s a huge, claw-footed tub ideal for two to relax in and is brimming with options. For a start, you can choose soapy water, romantic rose-petals or even a fabulous bubble-bath to luxuriate in. Not only that but you can rez a bath rack that has everything you need for your perfect bath-time experience. Choose from a book, carefully propped so that you won’t get the pages damp, a bottle of wine or a shaving mirror with bath-time creams and unguents to enjoy. There’s a menu teeming with animations for single males or females, and there are couple poses too, which I really enjoyed. These are perfect for romantic moments with your significant other, and all the poses can be easily adjusted. I really like the option to rez candles around the tub; add the rose petal option and you’re all set to take advantage of the Adult only options that are available..

Floria bathroom 2

It’s not just the tub that is full of animations either; the sink units have options such as brushing and drying your hair or having a shave, each one rezzing the right appliance for the job. And if you need to use the loo, you can do so in comfort whilst reading a magazine. A novel and very amusing touch indeed! To finish the set there’s a side table brimming with towels and bath treats as well as a beautiful candelabra with four flickering candles to add a touch of opulence to proceedings. There’s even a lovely screen to help protect your modesty too.

Bathtime fun

The Floria Bathroom is a wonderful addition to all of the ‘Floria’ range from Bazar, but will work in any virtual abode or skybox where luxury and low-prim count are key.

 And don’t forget, there are no tide-marks or mess to clean up after all the fun, and you’ll have LOTS of soapy fun with this, I promise…*ahem*


Kitty & JezCLICK HERE to visit BAZAR in-world. 

SKIN FAIR 2014 – ‘Cara’ by Zoul Creations

SKIN FAIR 2014 – ‘Cara’ by Zoul Creations

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(Click on the raw shot above for a larger version of the image, so worth it!)

In my previous Skin Fair post I was talking about the importance of brows, and how they were going to be a really big thing at Skin Fair 2014. That was an understatement and a half, a rarity for me I know! But EVERY single brow-style that you can think of has been catered to at this years event, including those fabulous furry facial caterpillars that belong to Cara Delevingne.   And speaking of Cara, this is a skin named after her from Zoul Creations and she is a bit of a stunner. 

Now of course think of Ms. Delevingne and you’re immediately going to think of her eyebrows.   Although Cara’s brows are heavy they’re fortunately not very Denis Healey; being more refined and polished. The fact is, if those brows were fitted to any other shaped face than Cara’s they’d look a LOT different, and definitely not as cool.
The CARA skin follows a similar principle; your shape is your canvas after all and you may find that you have to tweak it a little to get the full benefit from this skin. But tweak you must, because make no mistake, this skin from ZOUL: CREATIONS is a bit of a corker, and I predict it will be a huge success at Skin Fair.

So apart from the brows, what do I like? Well the tones of this skin are all really lovely, and I have had no issues at all with seams or jaggedy edges where the finishing hasn’t been quite up to par. My favourite tone is Tone 4, and it’s a really delicious caramel shade that can be perfectly complimented with any of the make-ups that the creator, Sharia Soulstar, has made. The lip colours offer a real opportunity to individualise your skin, and all the main shades are accommodated well here. I always tend to go for darker berry or red shades, but I surprised myself by really enjoying the paler choices that are available too. The cheeks are beautifully shaded providing great depth and finish to the face, and the skin looks great when worn nude.

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Details such as shoulders, the nape of the neck and base of the spine are well-defined and features such as the belly-button and, ahem, lady-garden are more than adequate. The breasts look just right; no comically over-sized areolas on display here. The lines are clean, crisp and finished well. The eyeshadow options offer further opportunities to play about with your look and each choice is great value. I always like striking, well defined eyes and ‘Cara’ does not disappoint in that regard. Even though this is a brow-heavy skin the make-ups balance the face out perfectly; had this been designed by someone less experienced I wonder if it would have been as successful as it is.

cara naked_002I really enjoyed experimenting with this skin. That’s one of my Second Life joys, one minute you can be pale as snow, the next dark as night, yet look utterly fabulous constantly. I actually didn’t need to do anything to my shape to make it look good, and to be frank I couldn’t have made it look any better on me had I tried. It’s an absolute must have if you ask me, and I will be wearing this a LOT.  So, Kitty tip; do NOT be put off by the brow. It’s not something I’d normally try and yet I’m wearing it, and looking bloody fabulous too! Go to Skin Fair, give it a go. Trust me, Cara is totally worth it!

Congratulations to Shantia Soulstar for this fabulous creation; you’ll find Cara on sale at Skin Fair 1.

SKIN FAIR 2014- REVIEWS COMING SOON!

SKIN FAIR 2014- REVIEWS COMING SOON!

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My first skin review from SKIN FAIR 2013 will be featured very soon; here’s a sneaky peaky!

This is the beautiful ‘Cara’ from ZOUL CREATIONS. I’m completely in love with her, and so many amazing skins available at this event. I can’t wait to share them with you all! Watch this space!

(Click on the pic to see a larger version, and prepare to drool!)