Tag: Kittycats

Cats Sleep Anywhere…

Cats Sleep Anywhere…

by Lisa Millar ♥ 1 Comment

Ailurophilia has started to completely dominate the grid no and it seems everyone is afflicted, designers included.  Sometimes Second Life can get a wee bit too real you know, and all the drama and back-biting can become too much to bear, so what better way to deal with it than shopping for some frou-frou and virtual frippery for your favourite furry beasts?  When the Wildwoods emerged there was huge fuss and furore, but the arrival of the Kittycats seems to have added an extra dimension to the moggie madness. In fact, it seems that at the moment you can’t walk across the grid without stumbling across a cat bed, cat tree or some other essential must-have cat accessory.  If you’ve been bewildered by the choice, here are a few suggestions to get you going…click on the pictures to enlarge:)
Now this one is purrfect (see what I did there?) for you if you are a total ‘cat-mommy’. The Kittycats mainstore is offering a rather sweet Kitty Rocker Basinette.  At L$175 for 10 prims it reeks of cuteness and should you own one, I demand that you fill it to bursting with kittens and take photos! It is, as you would expect, beautifully coloured and textured but then again I haven’t seen anything in the Kittycats store yet that has suffered from bad texture choices or faulty design.  It’s all good and let’s be be honest very feminine, but who cares? This is Second Life and you can overdose on the girly if you want:) The Kitty Rocker Basinette comes in 6 muted shades to coordinate with pretty much any home, although nekos who live in dustbins may find it doesn’t quite work. Incidentally the store has TONS of wonderful beds and scratching posts if the basinette ain’t your thing, and every single one is a corker. Barnesworth Anubis has contributed a few beds and items to the collection himself and they are definitely worth a looksy. You know, I wish you could get this stuff in real life. Instead my lot prefer their beds dank and dingy. I have such chavvy cats!)

La’Licious, which without a doubt is one of the best home and furnishing stores upon the grid, is offering a fantastic freebie to update group members. If you’ve never been to the store before, smack yourself silly around your chops for being so utterly foolish and get yourself over sharpish. If you do visit, be warned you will return home empty of pocket but carrying some of the most beautiful shabby chic and cottage style wares that you can find anywhere in world. I seriously cannot praise Amaliscious Destiny’s products enough; you can furnish your entire home just from this one store and I guarantee that when you invite friends round they will be totally bowled over..but I digress, we’re talking cat accessories here and what you need to do is go to the update group sign that is conveniently located right next to the landing point, join the group and search through past notices to the 10th of February group gift, which is this wee gem:
Yup, it’s a Shabby Chic Canopy Bed, and better still a FREEBIE. Again, TOTALLY girly-whirly but perfect for your Kittycats to slumber in a corner. I have no clue how long it will be available for so you’d better zoom on over (Click here) If this is just too pink and frilly for you, or you prefer a simple bedding arrangement for your furry chum how about a simple laundry basket? If you have mosey around the store to the farthest corner from where you came in, next to the garden entrance, you’ll find a simple but lovely 4 prim rustic basket that is just the ticket and I think looks especially good piled with Wildwoods:) It’s only L$25 so it’s all good!

See it in the corner next to the wheel? Here’s how it looks in situ..pretty neat huh? The cats certainly like it:)

Of course there are a myriad of beds and items available on the marketplace too, but something that’s got me really excited is the news that Sookie Slafford, of the amazing ‘Jolly Farms’ bunny business, and SL artist Alia Whitfield are launching a new store in-world devoted to all things cat.  It’s going to be called Kitty Cattery and promises to feature an amazing array of feline items.  If you’re familiar with Sookie and Alia’s work then you’ll know it’s all about quality, originality and of course artistry too; so I’m expecting big things from them come launch! I’ve no idea when that will be, but you can visit the store’s future location upon Lionheart Scar and join a subscribo there. Here’s a sneaky peeky of the kind of stuffs we can look forward to…

But when it comes down to it, sometimes the best place for a moggy is on your bed. After all, as Jane Pauly said, ‘You can’t look at a sleeping cat and be tense’. I think Second Life could certainly do with a wee bit less tension of late!

(Isn’t this grand? Bedroom from Mudhoney)

A Sneaky peek at the Kittycats sim!

A Sneaky peek at the Kittycats sim!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 1 Comment
So the Kittycats Beta testers got a sneak preview of their newly opened central location earlier, and boy, is it something! I can barely contain my excitement!

It’s a wonderfully landscaped sim featuring a swanky central store building designed by none other than uber-creator Barnesworth Anubis. This is where you will be able to purchase all your kittens, as well as a vast array of food, bedding and treats.

Visually the sim is a real sight for sore eyes, with whimsical butterflies fluttering in the gardens, boats in the water, fabulous fountains in the courtyards and plenty of places to snuggle with a loved one, or a cat or two, and have a picnic! But your main focus is of course the resplendent white store which just oozes class out of every brick. This is where the action happens, or it will be happening, later this week when Kittycats finally go on sale to the Second Life population. I know, from being a beta tester that this is a high quality product and it’s only fitting therefore that Kittycats offer you a high end shopping experience too. The store interior is beautifully proportioned, well- lit and laid out in the style of an upmarket department store. Walking into this place feels more akin to visiting an upmarket fashion emporium, in fact you almost expect a sales assistant to jump out at you and squirt you with the latest celebrity-endorsed fragrance.Fortunately, we were more likely to see staff members walking around holding their cats which is a far more impressive sight to behold…especially when one of them is SLebrity extraordinaire Callie Cline! (Her cat seemed a tad over-protective mind…see what I mean?)

Just inside the entrance, on each side, are two visual displays featuring a sequence of cats engaged in various feline escapades They’re super cute actually; on the left is ‘Shabby Tabbys’ which is a shabby-chic scene styled by Aurora Jacks featuring a variety of breeds in a gorgeous home environment.I was tempted to set it to my home location! To the right is ‘Tropicats’ styled by Callie, featuring cats chilling out on a tropical beach. I wanted to jump into the frame and soak up the rays beside them, but I also wanted to explore a bit more, and see what other goodies I could discover..The answer, was of course, plenty. You walk out into a courtyard where two cats are engaged in a game of chase around a fountain (madness!) and this point leads to different sections; ‘Accessories’, ‘Food And More’ and ‘Kitties and Packs”. Starting on the left you’ll find a wide range of coloured sacks to choose from in the ‘Kitties and Packs’ section, and by the looks of things you can buy individual, paired and multiple-pair packs. I would have loved nothing more than to scoop up every sack and shove it in my underwear before beating a hasty retreat, but alas, I would have been spotted:(  The range of colours that have been chosen for the Kittycats merchandise are pretty special; the styling is top notch and this is amply reflected in the ‘Food and More’ section of the store. The eats look a treat,and you can purchase various consumable enhancements, as is the way with most breedables, here too. Some of these are labelled like vitamins, a very novel approach, and each individual object is textured to perfection to make it look just right. This kind of attention to detail and design excites the hell out of me:) Moving on, and if you thought you’d seen every single cat bed on the market then you’re in for a treat in the ‘Accessories’ section. There are all kinds of amazing items here; ranging from simple round cushions to chaise lounge as well as the practically obligatory scratching post. All familiar, yet each one has a unique Kittycats twist ensuring that this is a brand that stands out on its own.

But of course, it’s all about the cats isn’t it? I saw lots of different coat colours today, many that I hadn’t encountered before, and this was also my first opportunity to see the cats being held by their owners. I’ve been impressed previously by the animations upon these cats, but now I’m also struck by how lovely the holding pose is. It’s animated, allowing for fidgeting ( Ever tried holding a cat? They don’t sit still for long..) and looks very natural and loving actually, which is just the way it should be.

Oh, and I didn’t know until today that you can wear the Kittycats on your shoulder when they are kittens!! LOOK!

In summary then, the sim and the store totally evoke the exclusive vibe that these beautiful cats have oozed from the start. Purchasing a cat here will add reams to the experience of being a Kittycat owner, and the entire space oozes with the quality of design and attention to detail that has been a fixture of this breedable from the start. I just cannot properly express my satisfaction at seeing the sim; it’s obvious that a lot of hard work has gone into creating these cats and the design team deserve to be rewarded for their efforts.

One final point: I’m even more certain now that Wildwoods and Kittycats can co-exist happily on the grid because each one plainly caters to different markets. They may both be cats, but they couldn’t be more different..and I’m so grateful for that.

They both offer different perspectives and challenges for the in-world breedable pet keeper, and I’m besotted with both of them. I said previously cut me and I bleed Wildwood? Well, I think I’ve become infected by the Kittycats virus too, and it’s turned me mud-blood. And I couldn’t be happier!

Best of luck to the Kittycats team as launch approaches! ( My money is on Friday..shhhh!)

Kittycats Beta ends..cats released this week?

Kittycats Beta ends..cats released this week?

by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Well, rumour has it that the Kittycats will be released this week, and I do hope that they receive a fantastic reception because they are pretty darn awesome.

I’ve spoken before about the novel animations and coats textures but take a look at this snapshot-believe it or not, features what happens to the kittens when they get sick! I KNOW!! It’s too cute isn’t it?? This doesn’t make me want to rush out and buy kits to fix them, it makes me want to leave them snuggled up under their blankies! The only way this could have been any cuter is if they had wee thermometers sticking out of their chops. More news on Kittycats impending release when I get it.

It’s been a busy week breedable wise mind; Ozimals have released an update that has significantly change the appearance of the bunnies, adding new improved higher res textures and preparing them for potential Valentine Day elite creation. They’ve clearly put a load of work into this release, with a new trait available as well as the option to opt-out of the Elite creation process, amongst other things.

 

I popped over to my mate Vere’s place to take a looksy, and her bunnies all looked rather resplendent with tons of new coat and eye options on display. It really feels like Ozimals are back on track, and I hope that’s the case.

The bunnies are still an amazing breedable pet to own, and these recent changes seem to make them even more desirable. There is still an ardent bunny-loving community in world, and after the epic crash and controversy of last year I can honestly see a time when things level out for them. 2011 is of course ‘The Year Of The Rabbit’, so let’s see how it plays out for Ozimals. I do hope it goes well.

Kittycats Beta Going Strong!

Kittycats Beta Going Strong!

by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Yeah, I know I’d said I’d post about another hunt but I want to  let you all know that the Kittycats beta is progressing very nicely indeed, in fact they’ve made some fabulous changes recently  in response to feedback making Kittycats even more desirable to the Second Life ailurophile…

Here’s a shot of me with an array of cardboard boxes containing kittens!! ( I look so miserable on this picture, my apologies it was one of those days.  Yes, we have them in the virtual world as well!) Now, before you accuse me of being cruel, these boxes are what the kittys are birthed from, instead of baskets which are just sooo last year now dahling (chuckle), and the birthing process is actually a lot more fun than just sitting around and waiting for your cats to hatch, as it were:)

It takes thirty minutes to birth your kitten, and while you are waiting the messages above the boxes change at frequent intervals. I am not going to spoil the experience by telling you what they are, but they’re very sweet!   Not only that, the boxes shudder and shake as they approach birthing so it feels like there really is a desperate kitten waiting to appear. You can even hear tiny little kitty mews! Squeeee!!!

I’ve said before that the animations on these little critters are awesome, and I haven’t changed my mind. They have quite a few different sleeping animations now; they chase butterflies, wash themselves, run and scamper in a very appealling fashion. In fact, my only gripe, as mentioned previously, is the walk. It doesn’t look as fluid when compared to the other animations so I hope the team are looking at ways to improve it. All in all that is a minor grumble when compared to the sum of all parts, and I firmly believe that the Kittycats are going to be an essential purchase for breedable collectors all over the grid.

And besides, from one mad cat lady to another, you can never have too many cats…