She’s Just Being Riley!

June 4, 2016June 4, 2016 by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I’m keeping my looks pretty simple at the moment; no tattoos or anything uber fancy. Sometimes simple is enough you know? In fact it’s nice to let the skins speak for themselves, and that’s precisely what I’m trying to do here with ‘Riley’ the latest from AMARA BEAUTY.

Like their previous release, ‘Amelia’, there’s a freckle option and I’ve kept it. It adds a sort of vintage feel to this look made even more awesome by this excellent JUST BECAUSE dress and this cracking LAMB hair from the latest round of THE ARCADE. I’ve not blogged about THE ARCADE yet, suffice to say it’s a pretty good round indeed and unfortunately it’s supplemented my cat addiction, yeah, thanks for that MUTRESSE! (Pictures of skybox cat havoc will be forthcoming imminently!)

I’m loving the HUD for this skin, yet again, Shantia’s nailed it with the amount of eye shadow options and lip colours in the HUD. The on/off button is there for freckles too, along with multiple shades for brow, along with a no brow option and a tintable one too.
Back to the happy snap- I’m trying to add more depth to my pictures by playing around with shadow settings. It really does make a difference, although I find that the windlight settings are a bit dark. To add a little light to the important bits I resort to adding that most reviled of Second Life accessories- A FACE LIGHT! *Gasp!* The horror! If you weren’t around in the old days these things were reviled, as basically they turned you into face-melting beacons of doom, and were the most unsubtle of lighting tools. Times have changed though, and the one that I’m sporting actually comes with the LELUTKA ‘Stella’ mesh head. I don’t see the problem with them for snaps, provided you remember to take them off before you leave your platform and mooch about in public.

I think I look like I should be chewing gum, riding a bicycle and drinking milkshakes in a 1950’s diner. Here’s your shopping list!

Kitty Wears:

SKIN: AMARA BEAUTY ‘RILEY’ CATWA applier /MAITREYA body applier in 03 Peach (no make-up options worn, kept this plain and simple) WE ❤ ROLEPLAY (Kitty wears this on Catwa ‘Gwen’ mesh head)

EYES: IKON ‘Sovereign’ eyes in ‘Field’

BODY: MAITREYA ‘Lara’

DRESS: JUST BECAUSE ‘Zoey’ tee dress in grey

HAIR: LAMB ‘Loomer’ (Variety/Ombre/Eccentric) THE ARCADE

NOSE RING: KUNST ‘Septum Keeper’ (Right)

Windlight setting: Shadows-Bright Day/Face Lamp used by LELUTKA (comes with ‘Stella’ mesh head)/Pose: MARUKIN – (Clinic) Black Eyed

A few of Kitty’s Arcade Faves

August 28, 2015August 30, 2015 by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

UPDATE: THE ARCADE SHOPPING GUIDE IS OUT! CLICK HERE

You know something very odd that I’ve noticed about Second Life is that even though we live in a virtual world where it can be whatever season you want, we still stick very closely to our actual seasonal pattern. I guess the real life influence is just too strong to resist in this case, and this is not a complaint, far from it. We’re actually entering what is (in my opinion) the very BEST time to be a Second Life resident. Once September hits we have some amazing things to look forward to. Most sim owners change their land to reflect the season so you have all the vibrant colours of Fall to enjoy, and then of course we have Halloween which every year gets madder and more fun. We’ll be spooking ourselves silly into November, and once Thanksgiving hits then generally it’s downhill (on a sledge, naturally) into Christmas.

Without a doubt the period of September-December is an absolutely manic time with events and parties and all kinds of occasions to look forward to, but my actual favourite starts next week, on Tuesday. Yup, it’s THE ARCADE. Love it or hate it THE ARCADE GACHA EVENT is now a firmly established event on the Second Life calendar. September has always proved to be an exciting round too, and this year is going to be an absolute corker, make no mistake. In this post then I’m going to be sharing with you some of the gacha that I am most excited about playing, starting with..

When I saw this ‘Bastet’ Collection from PIXICAT I very nearly peed myself with excitement. See, as the name of the blog suggests I am indeed an avid ailurophile and practising Pagan with an affiliation to the Goddess Bast. I am absolutely obsessed; there are statues of her all over my home, books about her. (My favourite being ‘Bast & Sekhmet Eyes Of Ra’ by Storm Constantine and Eloise Coquio Storm signed my copy when I attended her house for a Tarot course. Cool huh?) I try to make an annual pilgrimage to see ‘my’ statue, the Geyer Anderson Cat, at The British Museum every year too, so of course when I saw that PIXICAT had called their Gacha ‘Bastet’ it pushed all my buttons and it looks incredible. I’m hopeful I’ll get my paws on a jacket or two, and the kittys will look very at home in my sky-box too. I am desperately trying to reduce my belongings so that I can save some precious prims. It’s not easy because I have so much epic stuff in my virtual home that I just don’t want to part with…
Taking the sphinx cat theme that PIXICAT engineered so wonderfully and adding a witchy twist are BIRDY with their ‘Hocus Pocus’ gacha. This is another absolute must-have for me; I’m loving the toads, the cauldrons and spell books are rendered to perfection and the cats and owls are simply sublime.

My dressing table is absolutely choc-full with goodies form TRES BLAH featured at previous Arcade rounds and this month will be no exception; Juliette Westerburg has released another collection of must have decorative pieces that definitely need to find a home in my skybox! There are more make-up bags and brushes but I’m particularly after the cat-shaped trinket box and the pillow.

Of course there are many fun items to be had too; Seeing as I spend most of my time under a Slanket in real life I’ll definitely be throwing some Lindens towards COMMONER’s ‘Sluggie’ pile and wearing one while I chill out in-world…

I’ll also be trying to win Tweety the cockatiel in memory of Rocky who was my parents pet bird and constant companion for 15 glorious years..

Of course a LOT of things haven’t been previewed yet and I’m sure there are many content creators who are still working on their final productions, but the wondering, waiting and the longing are all part of THE ARCADE’s twisted charm. Of course none of us will be able to get into the sim for the majority of the first fortnight either, but if you’re anything like me you’ll be busy making lists and hitting the yard sales with haste. I do think I’ve left the best for last though. You should all know by now what a huge NYLON PINKNEY fan I am and I went absolutely ballistic in RL when I saw the pictured she’d released of her arcade goodies:

They’re cat rings and they are beyond perfect. I’m only annoyed that I don’t have 16 fingers so that I can wear all of them at the same time; I definitely will have every single one of these in my collection and I’ll wear them with serious pride. (I’ll also be sporting YUMMY’s Septum Ring collection too. So much to love!)

If you’re curious to see what goodies THE ARCADE GACHA EVENTS have in store for us this round keep your eyes glued to their FLICKR FEED. That’s what I’ve been doing and I’m hitting refresh constantly to see what has been added. There’s so much that it’ds almost impossible to keep up with it all; it’s very exciting and I cannot wait for Tuesday to come around. What are you looking forward to this round of THE ARCADE?

LOTD: Goa Trance Kitty Ahoy! (Dancing around her bedroom, not the beach!)

June 10, 2015July 13, 2015 by Lisa Millar ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I’ve not compiled or featured a LOTD post for a wee while so I thought that I’d share my current appearance with you all. I’m totally in love with my look at the moment, and that’s due to a number of factors: a fantastic group gift hair from LITTLE BONES, my glorious ZOUL CREATIONS skin and the amazing ARCADE offerings from ZAARA. It’s not even the most recent group gift either, that’s called ‘Rude’ and is on the counter, but this long-length style which is a shift away from my usual bobbed/mid-length favorites works perfectly with my outfit. I don’t tend towards long hair in SL for a number of reasons. It doesn’t always photograph well with bits of clothing or limbs sticking through it and I find it very hard to actually discover long hairstyles that I truly love. I do have some, but they tend to get used for blog posts then find themselves thrown into the deepest, darkest corner of my inventory. Not so with this style at all.
I remember once reading an article where a journalist that the Pet Shop Boys do themselves a huge disservice by using epic songs as B-sides; the point being that because their quality was so great they could be released as singles. This is a gift in a similar vein; the style is incredibly easy to wear and ALL the colours you could possibly require are included in the pack. Had this been available to buy I would have bought it. Instead, Nova Faerye has been seriously generous in giving this one out to group members. I really rate the slightly off-centre parting and the way that the hair falls onto the shoulders. I also particularly like the lock that hangs down at the back too, it’s very realistic, and of course being LITTLE BONES hair you’re guaranteed some beautiful colour options. I’ve waxed lyrical about how much I adore ‘Carly’ by ZOUL CREATIONS before, but I’ve not taken her off for a number of weeks now. I just keep finding new ways to wear her because of the quality eyeshadows and lip colours Shantia Soulstar crafted to match. As you can see the skin works with this look perfectly; the eyeshadow and lip colour compliment the colours of both my hair and my trousers completely. I opted to wear the no-brow option though just so I could add my go-to brows from JUST MAGNETIZED, and, of course, my favourite MONS eyeliner is included too!

!I also picked up this utterly amazing nose-chain from MAXI GOSSAMER at UBER. The nose-chain is something I have always wanted to try wearing in-world but have never quite felt brave enough to give it a shot. They’ve seemed a little too obtrusive, but this delicate chain with pearl embellishment really does the trick. I think that it works beautifully with this casual look despite it having a dressy feel.

Moving on, I discovered a store recently called B BOS. It’s clearly been around for a while, but it’s a new discovery for me and it’s not bad at all, featuring some really excellent tops, dresses, pants and other items. In fact, I dragged a friend over there so she could also indulge. As regular readers know I do like my mesh pieces and there are plenty of those in-store to choose from, it was a highly enjoyable visit. If you go be sure to take your time and check out this cracking top that I’m wearing called ‘Valery’. It’s available in a number of colours and with some printed logos too, but I chose black so it would prove more versatile. It cost a very acceptable L$160, and I really rate the hanging strap and chain details, as well as the high cut and cap sleeves. I do have a few criticisms though. First up, there are a number of textured items visible in the store that are clearly not original (for example the Batman logo features prominently). My second criticism? I hate store logos on outfits and this top sports the B BOS logo on the back below the collar. I don’t wear store logos in real life, let alone second and I prefer items to be plain rather than have names emblazoned upon them. I didn’t register that it had the logo on it until I had purchased the item, but decided that I had to make an exception because I really do love the styling plus the name is relatively discreet and I can just about cope with that. Last but not least, ZAARA at THE ARCADE is absolutely killing it with these amazing ‘Arpora Fisherman’s Pants’. I’ve raided multiple yard sales and got myself every single blooming colour and I fully intend to spend my summer in Second Life wearing nothing else. They are utterly sublime, beautifully patterned and textured (as you would expect from Zara Kohime) and fit my Slink body like a glove. I want more of them, no, I NEED more of them. They make me a very happy kitty indeed. If I can find the bracelets to go with I’ll be satisfied! (UPDATE: Found them, OH HAPPY DAY!!)

Finally, check out my flat. It’s an absolute mess, absolutely festooned with gacha wins past and present, but I don’t care a ruddy jot. THE ARCADE has provided so many brilliant decorative pieces this round that it’s hard to know when to stop, so I haven’t! There are clothes, cats, make-up and stuff everywhere, and I couldn’t be happier. As my friend Natalie put it, my flat is incredibly eclectic, and I think it’s a fair reflection of who I am in both lives, although I must confess in the metaverse I am definitely better dressed. Right, you’ll have to excuse me, I’m sticking my ZAARA Goa trance CD’s on and attempting to tidy-up..toodles!

Kitty Wears:

SKIN: ZOUL CREATIONS ‘Carly’ (Sk1 No Brows ChB)
(Eyeshadow – Carly Eyeshadow Magic 03)
(Lipstick – Carly Lipsticks Lilac 03)
EYELINER: MONS/Makeups – Black eyeliner series -8
EYEBROWS – JUST MAGNETIZED ‘Diva Brows’ (Brunette 03)
EYES – IKON ‘Destiny’ eyes in Maya (M/L)
LASHES – HUSH ‘Flirt’
HAIR – LITTLE BONES ‘Wasted’ (L) (GROUP GIFT)

Body:
MESH BODY – SLINK ‘Physique’
TATTOO – INHALE ‘Vessels’ (AVAILABLE AT THE CHAPTER FOUR)
MANI/PEDI –ADORED @Sparkling Nights’ (Slink + Omega)

Outfit:
TOP – B BOS ‘Valery’ top in Black
TROUSERS – ZAARA ‘Arpora Fishermans Pants’ *Eggplant* (AVAILABLE AT THE ARCADE)

Jewellery:
CHOKER – XYZ//Tattoo Choker (black)
NECKLACE – ZAARA [Goa Party] Rudraksh necklace (AVAILABLE AT THE ARCADE)
RING – REIGN – Chamber Rings- Meow (Black)
NOSERING –MAXI GOSSAMER -‘Maharani’ (AVAILABLE AT UBER)

Kitty’s Arcade Raves & Faves!

December 15, 2014July 13, 2015 by Lisa Millar ♥ 1 Comment

Odd for me that I haven’t blogged THE ARCADE so far, but it’s been publicised to death across the blogging landscape so please forgive my transgression thus far. But of course, just like all previous rounds it is an absolute corker. Perhaps even more so this time; there’s a massive, gorgeous Christmas Tree in the centre of the build and underneath it you’ll find gifts from many of the designers taking part, and they’re all FREE. Which is bloody wonderful!

THE ARCADE is all about the gacha, and I’ve been hitting a number of machines especially hard. Naturally I couldn’t get in for the first few days, but I’m not having any bother at all now that the initial furore has eased.

It’s very hard to pick a favourite vendor this time around. My criteria is simple; does it have a cat on it? If the answer is yes then you may proceed! ATOMIC have pushed all my buttons in an abstract sort of way with their ‘Critter Comfort’ collection. Granted, it does look like you’re wearing animal pelts and naturally the idea of wearing a cat draped around my neck fills me with dread, BUT it’s very clear in both lives that these are merely novelty accessories and thank goodness for that, because they look ruddy fabulous:)

The CASA DEL SHAI Crazy Christmas Sweaters are all kinds of fun. Naturally, I’ve been after the jumpers that feature a very grumpy looking cat on them, but no luck yet. As I’ve said before, Gacha festivals of this kind are fabulous for picking up wee items and paraphernalia that really turn your virtual house into a home; and I’ve been collecting items from the SORGO Insomniak Geek Collection to scatter around my skybox work area.

I’m incredibly partial to PIXICAT’s collection of animal onesies, because I collect these in real life…

They’re called ‘Kigurumis‘ and I own a Lion, Lemur and a Kitsune (Japanese Fox) along with a couple of cats too (these are the only snaps I dared share with you of me wearing them though!) I love them, oftentimes I get home from RL work and just throw one of these on and that’s me sorted until bedtime. They’re ruddy roasting as well so you don’t need your RL heating on so high when you’re wearing one. I can’t recommend them enough so was delighted to see them in-world…

But I think perhaps my ultimate must-have items this round, apart from the PIXICAT onesies, are the bags from NYLON PINKNEY. The reason I love these is because I am a super-huge NYLON OUTFITTERS fan. I love Nylon’s quirky and original artworks and designs and when I saw these bags I almost died from excitement. They feature fabulous artworks by the great Nylon herself and include hand-holding animations too. I don’t usually bother with bags in Second Life, but I’m so in love with these that I think bags will be a part of my wardrobe for a long time to come! Naturally I’ve spent a small fortune trying to get the rare, which of course just HAD to be a cat didn’t it? No luck yet sadly, but there’s still time…

THE ARCADE runs until the end of December so you’ve loads of time to visit and gacha yourself into a coma. Kitty-tip, if you’re looking for a particular item from THE ARCADE try yardsales first. My Yardsale of choice is at THE PEA, where everything is nicely alphabetized and easy to navigate, but SERAPHIM has a comprehensive list.

Kitty Wears:

Eyes by IKON

Ears by AITUI

Skin by BELLEZA (Eva Med Matte 8) (UBERSL)

Hair by LITTLE BONES (FROST)

Dress By FOXES (C88)