This is a mirror blog for one being posted on the Second Life website. I am including SLURLS for the items I show in the photos as I was not able to get enough space there to do so and I feel pretty strongly about attribution. If you are here from there, welcome! If you are here and need to go there, please do.
AND while you’re at it, join me in the SL Forums TODAY (right now!) from 9 am slt to 4 pm slt to chat about fashion. Bring your photos, comments, learned answers to the Forums and don’t make me sit there alone (well alone with Frolic and Sasy and Whimsy and Laylinha).
For over two years, I have written daily about SL fashion for my blog, “A Passion for Virtual Fashion,” and I co-lead Fashion for Life, for Relay for Life, one of the biggest fashion charity events on the grid. Linden Lab graciously invited me to share my expertise.
The other day, I saw a TV ad for a fashion show about five easy pieces for one’s real life wardrobe. This got me thinking about five essential pieces in SL.
1. An AO.
The Animation Override (AO) is a script that replaces the avatar’s standard animations. An AO will provide those “non verbal cues” that say who you are—manly man, nerd, anime girl, kitsune pup, fashionista. Purchase a preloaded HUD (Heads Up Display) or buy animations and load them into a HUD (or into a special folder in some third party viewers) and replace the “newbie waddle.”
2. Shape
The shape of an avatar is the frame of your avatar. It is our “body” and the core of our virtual selves. Buy a modifiable one from a good shape maker and tweak it to your personal tastes rather than starting from scratch. Making a pleasingly proportionate avatar is harder than it looks.
3. Skin
The skin is the decoration on your basic shape. You can’t have an avatar without a skin. The skin you purchase should be a statement about you and should please your eye. Consider a neutral skin so you can change it using the five additional makeup layers that SL allows.
4. Hair
Hair is a huge differentiator between avatars. Whether you want a cute ponytail, luscious locks, a sassy pixie cut, a mohawk or a mullet. Combining regular prims, flexies, and sculpties (and soon mesh) with gorgeous textures and scripted features, hair is one of the engineering wonders of SL.
5. Eyes
Our avatar’s eyes move to follow our sight line as well as blink, giving avatars a human quality. When the eyes are flat or bland, the entire avatar looks “fake.” Eyes are an inexpensive investment change you from cartoonish to alive.
Want to know more about the great content I have featured? Check out this entry on my blog for references and SLURLS.
What are your five easy pieces? Leave a comment here!
Base look:
Hair: fri. – Dixie – Natural Black by Mollie Monday for fri.day
Skin: :GP: Sundust [Dark] Pout-Big Baby 1 by Gala Phoenix for Curio *
Eyes: FASHISM ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Cool Silver (ML) by Ikon Innovia for FASHISM *
Top: *CUPCAKES – Wrap Top – Grey by Mimi Coral for Cupcakes
Jeans: Maitreya Rolled Skinny Jeans – #06 by Onyx LeShelle for Maitreya
Shoes: ::Duh!:: Spring Flats – Ink (Black) by Renee Harvy for Duh! *
AO:
S. *SLC*STAND55(P2) by Mammoth Nishi (no longer available)
T. -RC- AO Wedgie by Redd Columbia for RC Cluster
U and V. MRS – DRAG QUEEN & TRANSgender AO by MrSigmund Fride for MrS
W. CCFStand04.2 by Beauvoir Rousselot for Maitreya
X. CCBirdGirlStand04.4 by Beauvoir Rousselot for Maitreya
Y. *AW* Patience by Keiki Lemieux for Huddles
Z. Elegance 5 by Ninja Petion for Digital Dragon Designs
Shapes:
1. Personal shape
2. Little Duck for Maverick Designs by Harper Beresford for Maverick Designs
3. Yoon for Maverick Designs by Harper Beresford for Maverick Designs
4. Dolly by Harper Beresford (personal)
5. Girl Next Door by sachi Vixen in the SL Library
Hair:
11. fri. – Dixie – Natural Black by Mollie Monday for fri.day
22. ::Exile:: Bailey:Roots-Chardonnay by Kavar Cleanslate for Exile *
33. ladonna punch by Queue Marlowe for Analog Dog *
44. Francesca Chocolate by Truth Hawks for >Truth< *
55. /Wasabi Pills/ Earleen Hair – Grafite by MissAllSunday Lemon for Wasabi Pills
66. Asymmetric Bob (Purple) by Truth Hawks in the SL Library
Skins:
A. -Glam Affair- JadisV2 MedTan – D HB 11 by Aida Ewing for –Glam Affair- *
B. DREAM INK-SF-ARIANNA-D-4 by esra Noyes for DREAM INK
C. alpha.tribe::: Quiet Purple by Alpha Auer for alpha.tribe
D. mythic ~ maeve ~ fire ~ ash – sparked by Mattie Rae for mythic fantasy skins *
E. Nubian M0-1 by Anzhela Karsin for Angel Rock Skins *
F. :GP: Swan Frex [Dark] Jasmine 2-China Rose 1 by Gala Phoenix for Curio *
Eyes:
AA. ::UH::GS eye(noir-S) by umetaro Mayo for ::Umedama Holic::
BB. eyes by LL – bright – spanish moss (m) by Lano Ling for Poetic Eyes
CC. [PXL] SOUL Eyes – Blue (M) yb Hart Larsson for PXL
DD. Pulse Eyes Dance With Me #3 by Lorac Farella for Pulse Skins
EE. Pulse Eyes Trinity #3 by Lorac Farella for Pulse Skins
FF. FASHISM ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Dark Brown (ML) by Ikon Innovia for FASHISM *
Really a great post Harper, thank you.
Thank you!
Excellent post. These are the building blocks to a realistic Avi. Thanks for the links to some places I haven’t seen yet. Of course, now I am off to shop!
Thank you! And yes, please shop!
Thank you for the post. Alpha.Tribe is no longer available. Land has been abandoned.
Yikes! Thanks for pointing that out. If Alpha Auer is in world, I am sure she can say if she’s still selling the skins.
Wow! I actually wanted to post (on my RL blog) about the basic of AV in SL but I never got time to put the pictures together. It is quite a lot of work although you don’t photoshop it so I applause your efforts in this. It is very helpful and informative. I have always wanted to get an Asian skin and am happy to found the one I liked on your blog. :)