The Cat’s Out of the Bag

I don’t generally blog teasers—I hate being teased. But a resident named “KittyCats”—yep, just “KittyCats” under the new naming structure—sent me a note and then tp’d me over to see some new breedable pets. I found her standing in front of me HOLDING the cutest kitten. I looked down and my ankles were caressed by a menagerie of cats and kittens. Just watching them walk around the sim made me laugh—the animations are really clever. I got a gander at these little kitties, and I fell in love. I can’t wait until they come out.

These kittens are breedable and come in many different iterations. The siamese melted my heart. OK, you know I am not into “twee” but can you possibly look askance at kittens like these? Horses are nice, bunnies are cute, but gosh, a large population of the users in SL have cats in RL. Why not have one .. or two… or a whole houseful in-world? I know there are other breedable cats in-world, but none of them caught my attention. They were either crashy, goofy looking, or just boring.

If you would like to be a beta tester for the kittens, join the KittyCats Addicts group (check out KittyCats Resident’s profile for a link).

The Male Gaze

When I was in college studying theater one sad last senior semester (when you take classes like “Feminist Theater”), I bumped up against the “male gaze,” which was a theory proffered by Laura Mulvey (quite a while ago) that the audience for films is always put in the perspective of men, specifically straight men. That is, when we see a movie, we always see it through a straight man’s eyes. A scene will linger on the beauty of a woman and will do so as if a straight man were looking at her as opposed to another woman, for example. (I would argue that one of the reasons men in SL don’t have a lot of hair choices is because the male gaze insists on the decoration and objectification of women first. Look at it this way—the hegemony of the male gaze makes those boobs come out so darn big and insists on cleavage skin, k?)

What do you do, though, when the gaze is not straight? It could be argued that gay men have a certain power in our society, much more so than ever before. What about the gay male gaze? Of course, I am stereotyping the gay’s gaze (I couldn’t resist that pun) with this ensemble. (After all there is a whole spectrum of desire and taste within the gay community.) This particular version of desire shows an uber-masculine man displaying his masculinity in a very overt manner with bright colors, tight, revealing clothes, and rich details.

Shea Paule, a gay man made this outfit, so presumably it is what he would like to see on other men. I *really* love the Carnaby Street pants (thanks, T, for the reference), the low slung belt, the um.. prim package included with the pants, the open shirt and its rich pumpkin color. Check out how these pants fit on our guy—they are just tight and just right. It could be argued your average straight guy just could not pull this off but a strong and confident gay man make this look hot.

I wear one of Hart Larsson’s deliciously masculine skins. I like Hart’s work because it is hand drawn and not overdone. Our guy is clean cut, but still strong, not stubbled but still masculine. Tousled tresses from Truth top our tantalizing tiger. A great necklace from Jon Ree provides the perfect amount of decoration and aviator glasses from Guu Nishi hide where our male chooses to gaze.

You know what they say:  You can’t teach a gay dog straight tricks.  ~ from South Park

Hair: >TRUTH< Jason – cocoa by Truth Hawks for >TRUTH< *

Skin: [ PXL] Daniel NAT Face00 Dark by Hart Larsson for [ PXL ] *

Shirt: HardWear “Bewildered” Shirt (pumpkin) by Shea Paule for HardWear *

Pants: HardWear “Nightshade” Pants/Waistcoat (amber) by Shea Paule for HardWear *

Glasses: HOC – Aviator style glasses #003 Male by Guu Nishi for HOC

Necklace: MTP Sly Fox necklace by Jon Ree for Mustang Trading Post

Shoes: Colbert – Brown (Copy OK, No Transfer) by Eponymous Trenchmouth for Jeepers Creepers *

Rock Me Right

You say you haven’t been rocked in a long, long time
Oh, good, hard rockin’ is so hard to find baby
Gonna make you sweat, gonna make you shout
Oh, your homemade lovin’ done knocked me out baby

What’s a rock n roll girl to do when she wants to be rocked right? She dresses up to rock it hard. It starts with this glam coat from AvaGardner Kungler. With its wild, fiery feathers and its glam short styling, this is perfect for a girl out on the town. I wear it over a little body suit from Jungeun Vella, who is having a sale at his place on clothing and hair. Check it out!

My makeup is bold and sexy, courtesy of Nena Janus, who has come out with a fabulous new line for brunettes. I have been through the gamut of make ups and it’s a very sexy skin from top to bottom. Nena builds her own skins—no purchased templates—so this is true artistry. Next time I am going to show a softer side of this skin.

My necklace, also from AvaGardner Kungler, is just one more piece of extravagance on an already extravagant outfit. With a diamond-studded head, it loops around her neck, whispering “ss-sin” sibilantly.

Finally, the shoes, which have already walked their way all over the blogs, but I have to show my investment off as well. Maitreya has come out with this pair of socks with sandals that, under usual circumstances, would only be worn by my grandfather but in this situation look like sex in high heels. I wish they had given us the shoe without the sock—I still think they make some of the prettiest toes on the grid—but I see that in this season, socks are called for as the nights grow chilly. I will say the foot Onxy LeShelle has made here is almost as sexy as a bare foot. And I will note that the socks are color change and don’t have to be long up your leg–you can wear them down around your ankles too. Our rock girl digs this look—it keeps beer splashed during the backstage party off her toes.

Come on and rock me right…
Oh, rock me right…
Rock me right…
I’m gonna show you how to rock me right
~ “Rock Me Right” by Susan Tedeschi

Hair: BP*big bomb hair2 by BettiePage Voyager for BP

Skin: *League* Amber Br Sunkiss -Glam- by Nena Janus for *League* *

Jacket: (Kunglers Couture) Isis – feather jacket – fire by AvaGardner Kungler for Kunglers

Bodysuit: JE*REPUBLIC-MIST by Jungeun Vella for JE*REPUBLIC

Necklace: (Kunglers Extra) Serpente- necklace silver by AvaGardner Kungler for Kunglers

Shoes: Maitreya Gold * Moxie Patent Red by Onyx LeShelle for Maitreya

Change of Heart

Well, I guess you must have had a change of heart
You don’t treat me like you did at the start
Your campaign of love was quite a work of art
Now I guess you must have had a change of heart

~ Change of Heart by Teddy Thompson

Melancholy country and western songs are my secret pleasure. A little Teddy Thompson or Mavericks or Alison Krauss, and I am pleasantly emo. Then I want to wear somethign a little country, a little bohemian. A trip to Twill Tymet’s place finds a great off-the-shoulder sweater and a tie-dyed skirt with belt to make this bohemian girl’s heart melt. The skirt is fantastically made from what looks like a photosourced texture (that it isn’t instantly apparent to me shows that it’s nicely done) and topped by a nicely engraved two-buckle belt.

AtomicSparkle Skytower and her incredibly long name make my face new and fresh with a matte makeup that was offered for the Black Friday sales through the Skin Addiction group. I bought the fat pack—I couldn’t resist. What most attracted me were the eye shadows and the even tone of the face. While the lips are still a little overfull (I tried to use the sliders to cut them down with no luck), they have a really nicely done matte look.

Written while listening to Teddy Thompson sing “Take Care of Yourself” and “Change of Heart”:

Hair: >TRUTH< Gwyneth Streaked – copper by Truth Hawks for >TRUTH<*

Skin: AtomicBambi-Sara-Sunblush-Rd-Cleo by AtomicSparkle Skytower for AtomicBambi

Top: Boho baku teal off shoulder knit sweater by Twill Tymets for Boho Baku

Skirt: Boho Baku~ Seaweed tye dye skirt set by Twill Tymets for Boho Baku

Jewelry: MTP Ladies Santa Rosa set by Jon Ree for Mustang Trading Post

Boots: J’s WesternBoots by JB Gazov for J’s

Late Nights in the Groups

I was up late last night chatting away about Thanksgiving and shopping and the banter flew around. The thing is, it wasn’t local chat—it was group chat. For some reason groups have gotten a lot chattier for me. While I am blogging or working or running around shopping alone, I am in group chats chatting. It’s almost a form of texting with the group chat being a mobile phone (and I have seen some chatting FROM their mobile phone in group chat). This is why it’s so important to people that LL get this fixed. It’s social glue.

I put this ensemble together while I was chatting. I love these new dresses from AvaGardner Kungler. This is AvaGardner’s forte: using complex textures in clothing—prints of various florals and abstracts run over clothing with exquisite texturing in the shadows and highlights so that the clothing seems to be made of a material with an expensive sheen. She carries it through to her jewelry as well, if you look closely at my necklace.

This is one of Truth Hawks’ new colors—quince—on one of Truth’s new hairs. I show it with Mallory Cowen’s absolutely gorgeous Julie skin, which I *love* for redheads. Originally I was a LAQ girl with red hair before I decided to transform myself daily. Mallory still does it for me with her gorgeous skins.

Thanks to Hey, Girlfriends and Fashion Emergency for making me smile:

Hair: >TRUTH< Sonya – quince by Truth Hawks for >TRUTH< *

Skin: LAQ ~ Julie – 01 [Peach] Glow skin by Mallory Cowen for Laqroki *

Dress: (Kunglers) Tanja – green by AvaGardner Kungler for Kunglers *

Jewelry: (Kunglers Extra) Bambu – natura by AvaGardner Kungler for Kunglers *

Shoes: ::Kookie:: Vo pumps / Green grass by Kookie Lemon for ::Kookie::

Black Friday

This is it, the day of all days for shoppers—Black Friday. In the US, it’s the day after our Thanksgiving, when supposedly all retailers see so much shopping their accounts finally turn to black from being in the red all year. (Gosh, I don’t know if I could run a company that runs in the red for 11 months and only gets its profit in the last month. Would drive me crazy.) By the time you read this, I will still be in bed, having completely forgone the whole business of going to the midnight and 3 am sales—everyone is getting iTunes gift cards this year. (Actually, I DID go to Kohl’s at 3 am. You would have thought it was 7 pm. The parking lot was packed; the store was hoppin’.)

If I WERE going shopping, however, I would put on an outfit like this one—practical, pretty and price-conscious. First with a top from Cerberus Noel, who is one of the few designers in SL who can do clothing AND shoes (it’s not an easy thing). I am wearing it sleeveless, but it also comes with a full sleeve. As always, Cerberus pays attention to the details. Her seams are incredibly done, her sleeve is not simply made by adjusting a slider but has a finished edge (with stitching along it), her bow is beautifully shaped and textured. (I know it’s a simple black top but it’s so well done!) Versatile and great slacks by Rob Moonites gets me around practically and comfortably. My shoes and handbag are the real bargains here—make sure you get over to Renee Harvy’s shop and pack your closet with cheap chic. No one knows this handbag is not Fendi ;)

My skin is a new offering from Tuli Asturias, one I grabbed by being in the Skin Addiction group. For a pretty reasonable price, you get six eyeshadow skins and eight lipsticks and then all the accessories like freckles, cleavage, etc. How can you beat that? This new skin from Tuli is another one of her wondrous creations with beautiful eyebrows, luscious lips, and beautifully shaped face.

A bargain is something you can’t use at a price you can’t resist.  ~ Franklin P. Jones

Hair: [e] Melody – Black 04 by Elikapeka Tiramisu for Elikatira

Skin: []::Tuli::[] Claire (tone 3/dk) :: 05 with []::Tuli::[] Claire (tone 3) red lips by Tuli Asturias for Tuli, available for the Black Friday sale for the Skin Addiction group

Top: *GF* Bow Neck Tops -black- by Cerberus Noel for G Field *

Pants: *FIR & MNA* Carter Pants Black by Rob1977 Moonites for *FIR & MNA* *

Handbag: ::Duh!:: Big Tote – Black by Renee Harvy for ::Duh!::

Shoes: ::Duh!:: Woman’s Black Moccasin by Renee Harvy for ::Duh!::

Swashbuckling

To err is human; to “arr” is pirate.

While you’re enjoying your turkey today (or crepes or vegemite or whatever you’re eating wherever you are), think about a time past when female pirates wandered the land. Most likely they dressed the way Trilobyte Zanzibar and blakopal Galicia envisions with their latest pirate outfit. Equipped with the long jacket skirt you see here and a shorter one for more swashbuckling play, this outfit is abundant with what makes their designs so desirable: outfits chock full of versatility and details, like the sculpty cuffs and collar and the shadowed textures. Add the kicking boots and you’re a pirate who is worthy of a little booty.

My pirate is an Asian beauty, made by Hart Larsson. I received a lot of compliments on this skin from the last blog I did, and with good reason. It’s a great skin—one of Hart’s best—and it shows his artistry from top to bottom. I tried on all the demos and played with the lipstick/eye makeup combos and realized that even if everyone on this grid owned this skin, it was highly unlikely any two could look alike because the eye makeups can be switched up.

My hair is a new ‘do from Mirja Mills, who makes wild and messy sexy and fun. This style is the kind of crazy that lies just inside the boundaries of out-of-hand, so it’s ideal for this edgy look.

For all my American friends, Happy Thanksgiving! And I quote my friend Stephen Petrovic: “I do think family get togethers were what sparked Einstein to theorize about how time slows down when swirling around a black hole.” Hope yours goes by fast and fun!

Hair: .:EMO-tions:. * TRIXIE * /black by Mirja Mills for Emo-tions *

Skin: [PXL] Kasumi SK BlushLips with [PXL] Kasumi SK Black Eyes by Hart Larsson for [PXL] *

Outfit: BlakOpal Swashbuckler Lady Pirate Outfit – Purple by Trilobyte Zanzibar and blakopal Galicia for BlakOpal Designs *

Hat: blakopal Swashbuckler Pirate Hat by Trilobyte Zanzibar and blakopal Galicia for BlakOpal Designs *

Boots: BlakOpal Swashbuckler Lady Pirate Boots – Black by Trilobyte Zanzibar and blakopal Galicia for BlakOpal Designs *

Sing Me to Sleep

Sing me to sleep tonight
(I wanna hold you but it’s just to late now)
Sing me to sleep tonight
(I wanna hear you say it’s gonna be alright)
~ Sing Me to Sleep by Fran Healy with Neko Case

Pretty lingerie at bed is always in order, especially when the sky is gray. Camilla Yosuke has recently come out with another set of pretties, some of her best as she has conquered the seam quandary and provided an evocatively shaded satin material. Lingerie might seem an easy proposition in SL—after all it’s such little graphic area covered. But it’s because it’s such a small area that it has to be perfect, and camilla packs this full of special touches like lace on the top, lacing across the midriff, a flowered material in front with a smooth in back. Her lingerie is the stuff fantasies are made of.

I show it with one of Gala Phoenix’s new skins that have been greeted with much fanfare. We still have the wide eyes and bee-stung mouth (in a different shape) but the skin tones are more even and freckles aren’t standard this time. The body is beautifully shaded (check the booty) though I would argue the breasts are a little overdone underneath, and I am curious about some stippling around the collarbone. The makeup colors of the Yum set are very versatile and sophisticated.

Come be with me tonight.

Hair: >TRUTH< Paige – copper by Truth Hawks for >TRUTH<

Skin: :GP: Sundust [Light] Yum-Fatpack Bonus2 BR by Gala Phoenix for Curio

Lingerie: Ange Leaf Satin Lingerie Set by INSOLENCE Lingerie by camilla Yosuke for INSOLENCE*

Nails: Candy Nail #FP006 Clear Glitter French 3color change by peche Bury for *CaNDy NaiL*

Unravel

While you are away
My heart comes undone
Slowly unravels
In a ball of yarn
The devil collects it
With a grin
Our love
In a ball of yarn
He’ll never return it

There is something about Eshi that reminds me of Bjork. I think it’s the use of prims and textures in the same way Bjork seems to use instrumentation and melody. It’s joyful, shimmering, exotic, beautiful, unique and sometimes confrontational or bizarre.

When we see an Eshi dress, it makes sense even though it’s also odd to us, just as a Bjork song makes sense in some strange way. Eshi’s new dress, shown here, has elements of joy in the stamped blossoms, the lace, the bounty of billowing prims, the flowers floating all around. And then you hear more ominous notes: the needles jammed through the ears, the nipples pierced and chained, the almost posture-collar forcing the neck up.

I show the dress with a new skin from milok Hermit, who offers a somewhat different look on the grid. With its fresh coloring, it has a decidedly girlish air and suits Eshi’s alternative fashion perfectly, with the black off setting the pale skin nicely.

So when you come back
We’ll have to make new love
~ “Unravel” by Bjork

Hair: Kin-Cricket-[Black] by Kin Keiko for Kin Keiko

Skin: .::Mother Goose’s::.SiSi(2)_5a by milok Hermit for Mother Goose *

Dress: Flowers WIthin Flowers by Eshi Otawara for Eshi Otawara

Boots: McQueen Rose Boots by Megg Demina for Chapeau Tres Mignon

Critical Mass

She clicked the first air interchange on, clicked the second, the third, felt them all shunt open and heard the low hum of the mechanicals gearing up. Lights flickered on, popping in sequential strings of glowing red gems across the control panel. The vents slowly opened, pushing the first breaths of fresh oxygen into the cabin where the dormant residents lay.

She checked her belt. Her carbon-blade set was available, her electro-mace charged and unlocked. While she hoped she wouldn’t have to use them, the doctor warned of disorientation upon awakening, and she wanted to be prepared.

The first resident stirred…

~ from “Critical Mass,” an unpublished and mostly unwritten science fiction novel by Harper Beresford

I secretly read science fiction and fantasy. I am not an avid reader but a grazer, interested in strong characters, deep thought, interesting landscapes, new cultures. Sometimes it’s fun to think about new worlds, and the very avid RP class in SL does just that. One of the best stores for such folks is run by Bryce Randt and Eclipse Lykin.

This newest offering by them, available tomorrow, shows Bryce’s newest work in 3DMax as he bakes on the textures with shadows, skillfully building the prims and pieces in SL after his work. It’s truly a piece of wonder and if you’re waiting for someone else to get back from their afk break before you resume role playing, you will most likely spend your time camming around the outfit, fascinated by the details—the buckle on the cape, the three knives tucked in the back in the belt, the pouches on the side, the laced fly. It’s a fascinating graphic journey—each exquisite detail opening up another potential story.

I really like Hart Larsson’s new line of skins with their Asian features and beautiful coloring. Hart has blessedly drawn the nose wider (rather than the unrealistic Michael Jackson pinched nose I unfortunately see on so many skins for women of color) and smoothed out the skin. Hart approaches the tattoo layer differently than other creators—rather than giving you one eye makeup on the skin with lipstick options, he gives you one lipstick on the skin and you purchase the eye makeup options separately. This allows you to customize your skins as you please, swapping out say, a cat eye with red lipstick to a smoky eye with wine lipstick. You ostensibly create your own makeup set in this manner. For example, you can purchase the wine lipstick skin as I have here and purchase several eye makeup options to create your own fat-pack.

For me science fiction is a way of thinking, a way of logic that bypasses a lot of nonsense. It allows people to look directly at important subjects. – Gene Roddenberry

Hair: POISON ponytail/plum ( resizable / no rezz ) by Mirja Mills for Emo-Tions

Skin: [PXL] Kasumi SK WineLips with [PXL] Kasumi SK Smoke Eyes by Hart Larsson for [PXL]

Outfit: ED-Crucible-F by Bryce Randt and Eclipse Lykin for Eclipse Development *

Boots: Adam n Eve Boots Sleek by Damon Gorilla and sachi Vixen for Adam n Eve *