Spring Flowers

It’s been horrifically cold here and we saw SNOW yesterday but my crocuses are up and the irises are in abundance, if I am just counting leaves. (The snow did not stick, incidentally. Whew.)

I am tired.. worn out by the late winter/early spring. I decided to put on something light and fresh visually to give me the spark I need right now. This drss from sunami Beck was a great choice. With its lovely flower print in a basic tank over a short slim skirt, it’s chic and light (and a bit sexy).

My skin is Tuli Asturias’ newest, a fresh greeting to spring. She has included with the fat pack different eyebrow colorations, lipsticks, cleavage options, and freckles. Tuli is really understanding what women want and bringing her sophisticated beautiful look to this new set. My jewelry is from two places—Felicity Winslet, whose Mariposa brand is now defunct and Polly Pavlova and Maximillion Grant of Logo. While Max makes skins, Polly does jewelry, and she replicates RL pieces she has made in-world. I loved comboing the two sets of jewelry—I liked both pieces too much to not show one or the other.

April is a promise that May is bound to keep.  ~ Hal Borland

Hair: **Dura**Treasure Hunt(Black)resize by chiaki Xue for Dura *

Skin: [:T:] Sara / sunkissed :: 04 with [:T:] Sara / sunkissed / lips :: Nude by Tuli Asturias for Tuli *

Eyes: FASHISM ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Light Warm Silver (ML) by Ikon Innovia for FASHISM *

Dress: Emery – Dress Kezno [Tdrb] by sunami Beck for Emery

Necklace and earrings: Mariposa: Simplicity: Onyx (Necklace Short) and Mariposa: Simplicity: Onyx Earrings by Felicity Winslet for Mariposa (no longer available)

Necklace and bracelet: LOGO Stone Chip Necklace Onyx and LOGO Stone Chip Bracelet Onyx by Polly Pavlova and Maximillion Grant for LOGO

Shoes: Maitreya Gold – Aequus Champagne by Onyx LeShelle for Maitreya

Rezzing

Rezzing means making resolutions, I have decided. We all have them, let’s face it. I spend my entire year trying on new resolutions. I have managed this year to recycle more, drink less soda, use more coupons, knit and purl much more, and get up earlier. I also have tried to and managed to achieve a sort of emotional stasis. Next year I resolve to knit and purl even more (and make a sweater), be more involved with my community, and continue to try to practice compassion and empathy.

I also resolve to look fabulous every single day!

So I start out the year perfectly with this caftan and bikini set from Phia Vaughan. With a cleverly constructed jacket layer and prim skirt piece (which lines up perfectly across the lace) and the lace motif repeated in modest prim sleeves and through the decolletage, we see some great system piece work combined with prims to make a modular outfit that can go from beach-side bistro to water very quickly. (Please note above the bikini I wore under the caftan. Tres sexy!)

I show this outfit with my recent favoritest hair from Truth Hawks. Now, it can be argued that Truth ends up on lots of blogs—he does so because he cranks out a lot of hair, period. He’s got something new every week. How can we bloggers resist? My glorious sun kissed skin is courtesy of Nena Janus. This pretty necklace is from Felicity Winslet, who will be reincarnating her jewelry business soon, I hope.

Last resolution: I resolve to keep my inventory sorted. And my RL closets and cabinets organized. Yeah.

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

Skin: *League* Amber Br Sunkiss –Greenglade by Nena Janus for *League* *

Dress: ::Twisted & Spoiled :: Kaftan & Bikini Set Olive by Phia Vaughan for Twisted and Spoiled

Necklace: Samsara – Luxuria (Necklace/Chest) by Felicity Winslet for Samsara (coming soon)*

Feet: SLink Jolie Pied Barefeet Low by Siddean Munro for SLink

Banner: couverture – 2011Flag by Chocolate Arashi for couverture *

PS I am taking on WordPress’ challenge to do a post a day in 2011. Check out about it at PostADay.

Oh Argentina

I secretly harbor a desire to go to Buenos Aires. I can’t explain it. Maybe it’s an article I read a couple years ago in Slate saying Buenos Aires now is like Paris in the 20s. Maybe it’s reading about the tango so much and the beautiful words of Jorge Luis Borges. Maybe it’s from watching too many Argentinian movies and TV shows. I think Buenos Aires is my other Berlin. (Of course, this is a lot of idealization. I have a friend who lives there who would probably laugh at me.)

Women in Buenos Aires are beautiful (like aforementioned friend) and cosmopolitan. But they bring a bit of the ranch with them to their fashion. I thought this outfit would do well in Argentina, which is, as you recall, in the middle of summer this time of year. A short skirt with leggings from yurio Ellils and a crocheted camisole from Umeko Shan (over a skin tone bra from Annyka Bekkers) gives a great funky look for a sporty Argentinian girl.

Women in South America are not all dark haired with dark eyes. Many beauties there have blonde or brown hair, and so our beauty has a light brown hair, cut short and cute with a little barrette. The new group gift from Tricky Boucher is a perfect skin—a little tan for the summer but not too dark with light brown brows.

The boots? Made of several animal pieces including leather uppers and a feathered and furred leg. These boots from yorinminaty Beresford were too fun and funky to pass up and in SL, no animals ever get hurt in the making of boots.

Don’t cry for me….

Hair: :::{{trico}}::: ADELE (auburn) by miyu Paule for :::{{trico}}:::

Skin: -Belleza- Erika Sk group gift by Tricky Boucher for Belleza

Top: *::UM::*  Crochet set A vol2 by Umeko Shan for UmeMode

Skirt and leggings: Denim_No.30 by yurio Ellils for *VERONICA*

Bra: *blowpop* Yvette – nude  bra 1 by Annyka Bekkers for Blowpop

Jewelry: Mariposa: Jewels: Aubade Reloaded! – Jade by Felicity Winslet for Mariposa (no longer available)

Belt: MP Hippie Belt ~ Brown Leather by Moxie Polano for Moxie Polano’s Haute Couture

Boots: (yorim’s F)lFeather >< Fur boots(=FOOT=one_size) by yoriminaty Beresford for yorim

November Rain

“When I look into your eyes
I can see a love restrained
But darlin’ when I hold you
Don’t you know I feel the same
‘Cause nothin’ lasts forever
And we both know hearts can change
And it’s hard to hold a candle
In the cold November rain.”
–  Guns N’ Roses, November Rain

You know, it has to be bad when I quote the lyrics of a Guns N Roses song, but November is doing her work on my mood, strangling the golden rays of the sun and presenting a us with a gray sky and moody mien. ‘

A little color is in line, and this dress from pixivor Allen fits the bill perfectly, reminding us of the rich and beautiful colors autumn just gave us. I especially love the hem of the dress—pixivor has made a graceful and translucent skirt that doesn’t suffer from alpha clash by using the right channels and underlying it with a simple texture. It floats beautifully in the November winds and brightens the grayest day with its bold and feminine beribboned waist and sequined top. Normally a decollatage like this would aggravate me—it’s so simple and “easy.” But pixivor exceeds expectations with a clean and crisp edge and logical decoration. She didn’t default to this because it was easy; it’s SUPPOSED to be this shape.

My skin is a new offering from Syndel Daviau. Syndel has tried to enter a pretty competitive environment among skin makers, and she admittedly uses mostly photosourced pieces for her skins. But her recent Lorena set is certainly up for the challenge with its smoky eyes and optional makeups. Syndel opted to offer blush sets, an aging set, and a freckle set for the tattoo layer, which is a different strategy than most skin makers.

“November always seemed to me the Norway of the year.” ~ Emily Dickinson

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

Skin: Lorena_Make4_Bald_FB with [TS] Lorena Blush 1 by Syndel Daviau for Tribal Soul *

Dress (with Shoes): (AlaFolie) LADY  CHOCOLAT longue by pixivor Allen for AlaFolie

Necklace: Mariposa: Jewels: Amorphis – Aquamarine by Felicity Winslet for Mariposa

Wallflower

“So fellows, please listen to me:
Don’t look at a wallflower askance;
If a girl sitting lonely you see,
Just bow, smile and beg for a dance.”

I can’t say I am often a wallflower. I don’t go out dancing that often any more (which is a sort of wallflowerishness, I guess.) This dress might catch someone’s eye. Made by Mimikri Kit, it is an example of what she excels at—provocative textures and shapes that are beyond the ordinary. The win is in the details—the seams that match up, the clean edges of the system pieces, the shape of each feather in the skirt, the excellent texture. Short skirts with flexi abound in SL. Most of them are not this stylish or wearable.

My skin is Kira Ahn’s offering for The Dressing Room Blue, which comes with several lipstick options on the tattoo layer. I love being able to choose my lipstick, and certainly this particular skin would afford eye makeup choices too. The face was a little over-dodged–not sure what happened there.

My choker is a sale item from Felicity Winslet’s closing sale at Mariposa. I recently had discovered Felicity’s work, had it in queue to blog, and then caught wind that she was closing shop. It’s a true shame because Felicity’s work is exquisite—this necklace is the least of it (and it’s gorgeous). Get down there as soon as possible to treat yourself to some beautiful gems. (She’s really nice too—handled a customer service thing for me wonderfully.)

i’m not here, no one sees me — wallflower
i’m by myself, please excuse me
~ “Wallflower” by Priscilla Ahn

Hair: !lamb. DIY Haircut – Ink by Lamb Bellic for !lamb.

Skin: [dekade.] Skins  -Claire- sunkissed/DB/No Make Up with [dekade.] Skins -Claire- glossy lips/red 03 (viewer 2.0) by Kira Ahn for [dekade.], available at The Dressing Room Blue

Dress: Mimikri – Vic python / TDR blue by Mimikri Kit for Mimikri, available at The Dressing Room Blue

Necklace: Mariposa: Jewels: Noche Necklace (Chest) by Felicity Winslet for Mariposa

Shoes: Maitreya Verve Pumps – Black by Onyx LeShelle for Maitreya

Shoot to Thrill

My second guest blogger is Raven Haalan, scripter, builder, artist, thinker. I met Raven initially through the fashion bloggers’ group and then got to know him at Burning Life. Raven and I clicked pretty quickly—we’re both very task-oriented people; hanging out and doing nothing in SL is not for us. As I got to know Raven, I found out that he was pretty public about his alter-egos, Jaime, a beautiful redhead with looks that kill, and Bin, a brainy coder.

Raven is a very experienced and prolific photographer and blogger in SL himself. You can find his work in the pages of Prim Perfect or on his personal blog, Raven’s Roost.  This month, you can view his great photography at a joint exhibit with GM Nikolaidis at Tricia Aferdita’s Gallery.

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AC DC’s Shoot to Thrill was in the headphones as I was sending a friend the LM for a fabulous trench coat… at that precise instant Harper’s invite to guest blog arrived. It seemed fitting that great looking coats and guns should be the theme of this post.

Shoot to thrill, play to kill
I got my gun at the ready, gonna fire at will.

The coat mentioned above was Laine Markova’s stunning Red Trench. The secret is to combine it with rust Caela Jeans by Dick Wiesel – they fit in perfectly as the flexies show leg. A white basic cami from Heather Connolly and the red Bax suede boots round out Jaime’s ensemble.

It was time for Raven to catch up, building a look around the Redemption coat by Arken Soothsayer. Add in a Cowboy Hat from Whenever Timeless and Western Boots by JB Gazov. Include a black checked shirt by Yelmer Pfeffer and Zaara’s Classic black jeans (tinted darker than purchased) and we’re ready for a gunfight.

Classic weapons equip our intrepid protagonists for elegant action. Dual Colt 1860 Army revolvers by Vegoth Munro suit the Blackbird’s taste. Red gets nasty with an ornately styled 1864 side by side, double barreled shotgun by JoMilla Gears.

I’m gonna take you down – yeah, down, down, down
So don’t you fool around, I’m gonna pull it, pull it, pull the trigger

With the gunfight over, our heroes depart, stepping gingerly over the corpses. The victims might be lucky and live long enough to catch the rear view of these outfits as a final visual treat to aid their passing.

Jaime:

Hair: Valerie (Sangria) by Truth Hawks for Truth Hair

Skin: Sundust Vixen by Gala Phoenix for Curio

Eyes: Jaime Kenin Blue Skies Calm by Kitten Krakauer of Kitten Designs

Mascara (Natural) by amandine Arai for Pixelfashion

Coat: Trench Coat – Red Female by Laine Markova for LAINE’s

Basic Cami: Blanche by Heather Connolly for astraia

Jeans: Caela Jeans – Rust by Dick Wiesel for WoE

Necklace: Aubade (Silver/Blue) by Felicity Winslet for Mariposa

Nails: Manipedis – Ruby by Ryker Beck for Exodi

Ring: Celtic Knot Femme Wedding Ring by BastChild Lotus of Lapointe and Bastchild

Boots: Bax Prestige Boots: Red (Black Cherry) by Bax Coen for Bax Coen Designs

Weaponry: 1864 Side by Side Shotgun by JoMilla Gears for Gears Trading Co.

Raven:

Skin: Miguel Tan (with hairbase) by Tricky Boucher of Belleza

Eyes: Zbilja (Brown) by Ryker Beck for Exodi

Coat: Redemption Coat by Arken Soothsayer of Super Possessed

Shirt: Checkered Shirt – Black by Yelmer Pfeffer of Alphamale

Jeans: ZC Classic Jeans (Black) by Zaara Kohime for Zaara

Tattoo: Huxley by Hatzfeld Runo for Tiki Tattoo

Hat: Timeless Cowboy Hat by Whenever Timeless of Timeless Hats

Gloves: Narcisse Black by Paul Lapointe of Lapointe and Bastchild

Boots: Western Boots (Black) by JB Gazov for J’s

Pistols and Gunbelt: Colt 1860 Army Revolver by Vegoth Munro for V&N Creations