Rose Tea for a Romantic Valentine's Day

HAPPY Valentine's Day! I am sorry I haven't posted the past two weeks. Life has been super hectic.. I haven't had much to post on anyway, due to the new events for the month being so-so in my opinion. FaMESHed didn't have much I was liking, nor Uber. But Collabor88 opened last Monday-and I went a bit crazy.

Dress: Zaara Thalia Draped Gown @Collabor88, Hair: Truth Kasimire Blondes with hairpiece [former Epiphany Gacha], Maitreya Lara Mesh Body, Eyes: IKON Charm and Redgrave Natural6 Lashes, Whatever Mesh Teeth, Skin: Glam Affair Sasha @Collabor88, Lipgloss: Glam Affair Romy Goddess

Collabor88's theme is Espionage, so lots of spy items and sexy Bond Girl/Secret Agent attire. It is also Collabor88's prom (the designers/creators have asked other creators to be their dates)So there is almost twice as many items! Let me just gush about some of my favorites...

Zaara of course is my favorite. She has a new gown released for the event. It is more expensive..ish... 588L for the event. And it is so worth every penny. The gown is made specifically for the Maitreya Lara mesh body, and it comes in fun colors. I like the cut in the bust. The cleavage goes down to the naval, and the cut gives it a bit of a more modern edge, but not too drastic. It really is a classy gown.

Outfit: The Secret Store Honey Cotton Shirt and Peggy Pleated Skirt @Collabor88, Hair: Truth Sicily, Shoes: Poute Victoria High Heels, Necklace: CAE Belle's Rose, Ring: CAE Belle Ring, Earrings: Aisling Roz, Familiar/Pet: Alchemy Hell Pupper Held @The Fantasy Gacha, Skin: Glam Affair Sasha @Collabor88, Lipgloss: Glam Affair Romy Goddess, Eyes: IKON Charm and Redgrave Natural6 Lashes, Slink Hands and Feet, Whatever Fang Mesh Teeth

The Secret Store has a fun shirt/skirt combo out for the event. And it reminds me of Miss Moneypenny from the Bond movies. Not really a sexy outfit, but very sophisticated and simple. Still attractive. I bought the kiss patterned blouse and the red skirt, because Valentine's Day is.....right now. When I was putting the outfit together, I wanted to keep it simple, so I have it paired with a simple rose necklace by CAE in gold with some rose earrings. As I was putting the outfit together I wanted to add one small "flair" piece to it...so I added a familiar/pet by Alchemy which is out right now at The Fantasy Gacha. The Hell Pupper is so cute and even though Cerberus is supposed to be vicious, this little puppy is too cute--it will just melt your heart.

Outfit: Foxes Bound Dress, Harness, and Jacket @Collabor88, Hair: Oleander! Taffy @Collabor88, Headset: Amala Spy Headset @Collabor88, Maitreya Mesh Body, Eyes: IKON Charm and Redgrave Natural6 Lashes, Skin: Glam Affair Sasha @Collabor88, Whatever Fang Mesh Teeth

Foxes has a fun dress out with a sort of binding at the neck and bust. There is a leather jacket as well at the event which pairs well with the dress. The outfit reminds me of a spy doing a sort of wardrobe change/strip while in the middle of a mission. Amala even has a cool spy headset which helps bring the look together. This whole outfit (minus the Amala headset) is made exclusively for mesh bodies. Make sure you try the demo before you buy.

Erratic has a very sexy bikini out this round which just looks like it came straight from a beach scene in a James Bond movie. It is just perfect! I had such a hard time picking out a color, because I wanted all of them. The detail is perfect. AND it comes with these cool cuffs so the bikini looks more....Badass. There is also a medal change hud for the belt buckle and the cuffs on the bikini. The bikini is made exclusively for Maitreya Lara mesh body.

Bikini: Erratic Eunice with Cuffs @Collabor88, Hair: Oleander! Taffy @Collabor88, Maitreya Lara Mesh Body, Eyes: IKON Charm and Redgrave Natural6 Lashes, Skin: Glam Affair Sasha @Collabor88, Whatever Fang Mesh Teeth

There are other really cool items at the event, Oleander has a hair out which is very neat. I am a sucker for curly hair and braids. While the hairstyle isn't curly, it does have a braid in the ponytail. There are also cute headbands and some lace masks. Olive hair was invited, and the hairstyles (both for men and women) have fedoras. I did not demo the hair to see if the hair comes with a fedoraless option...I am not a big fedora person. There are some sexy short dresses and lots of heels and boots. There are even a few items for men (few, not a lot). I think you should go check it out and see what the creators and their dates have done for the world of Espionage~

I hope all my Tea Readers have a wonderful Valentine's Day! I hope you enjoy the day with your loved ones, and if you don't have a significant other I hope you spoil yourself to something wonderful! You deserve it! Hugs and Smooches~~


SURLS:

Collabor88:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/8%208/41/178/1089

The Fantasy Gacha:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Acerbus%20Silva/207/207/58

Fashion Flashback#5

So, after posting my last fashion flashback of Zaara, and Earth's post on Utopia..... I had no idea who I would post on.  See, in my early days of Second Life I was at a lot of Medieval and Tolkien Sims. Even now I still enjoy going to Medieval and Mythical Sims (I might still live on one *wink wink*).  So I was talking to Earth about what the heck I was going to do a fashion flashback on, and she said, "Well, why can't you do Evie's Closet?" And I got to thinking... Why not?!

Outfit: Evie's Closet Iseult Witching Hour, Hair: NEW Truth Rumi, Necklace: CAE Reverse, Neck Ribbon: Junbug Highland Ribbon, Wolf Familiar: Alchemy Dire Protector, Eyes: IKON Charm Field and Redgrave Natural6 Lashes, Skin: Glam Affair Amberly II, Slink Hands

Evie's Closet... Let me start with how I like literally just randomly stumbled upon it.  I was at an Elven Market on an Elven Sim, and the shops area at the time (for me and my dinosaur of a computer I had) was laggy. I was trying to get to one area of the pier to shop and my mouse and arrows weren't helping me navigate and I ended up crashing into a vendor stall in front of another shop on the opposite side of the pier. As I was trying to rez everything, this pretty white dress (Evie's Iseult Winter) came up and I decided to check to see the price. It was, I believe, around 250-300L and I figured why not. It was and still is a pretty mesh dress. I bought it, then I was informed I had 500L store credit... or some crazy number. So I IMMEDIATELY searched for a landmark to her main store, went and proceeded to spend my store credit and more Linden$ on outfits. And that is my Evie's Closet story...

Dress: Evie's Closet Nimue Gown, Hair:Truth Priya, Necklace: Junbug Pearls of Wisdom, Eyes: IKON Charm, Skin: Glam Affair Katra, Slink Hands and Feet

Evie's Closet is usually at We <3 Role-Play every month, and though sometimes her dresses are for role-play, a lot of the time (more times than not) you can wear her outfits around anywhere.  Her dresses range from elegant to flirty.  I like the versatility of the outfits and the prices are very reasonable for such good quality.  And for some of you who like lingerie (and really, who doesn't)...Evie has that, too!  When I say she is versatile, I mean it.  She normally does a color theme per outfit, some are just in brights, some are in pastels, and some are in darks. Not much mixing of the color themes. One really cool thing Evie does with ALL of her outfits is she includes a notecard with the styling credits for each from the Vendor/Ad pictures. It is really helpful if you see a hair or an accessory you saw and really liked. Really awesome and helpful--Thanks Evie.

Dress: Evie's Closet Sylfai Primrose, Hair: Olive The Show Queen, Skin: Glam Affair December, Slink Hands and Feet, Slink Mesh Eyelids, Whatever Fang Mesh Teeth
This outfit was partially put together with the help of Evie's Notecard included with the dress when I bought it. So if you need styling help, or like how she does her ad looks, you can easily do it~

I haven't known about Evie's Closet for long...well, it depends on your definition of long on Second Life... I discovered her about a year or year and a half into my Second Life, and like I said, I just stumbled upon her. I know this is really short, but I wanted to mention how amazing and show how versatile Evie's Closet really is.


SURLS:

Evie's Closet Marketplace

Evie's Closet:  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Oubliette/162/183/414

Evie's Closet Blog

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas Now

Arcade opened up at Midnight on December 1st.  I know this post for the Arcade is late, but it doesn't close till the end of the month (31st to be exact), and it is perfect for getting last minute Christmas, Chanukah, and any other holiday or "just because" gifts.

Okay, so as I have mentioned before in earlier posts, and on my info page, I do enjoy gachas.  And the Arcade is really well done this round....well, it is really well done every round... BUT, it is Christmas time, and there are 25 gifts from the designers under the tree in the center of the room.  I haven't opened all my boxes, but I did open a few, and I liked them. Thank you designers! On a bit of a different note, I was excited about Zaara's Tuk-Tuks, and I got the RARE Unicorn one--so excited.

As I was looking at the guide for the Arcade this round, I noticed Birdy/Foxes has a very girly winter set out.  The Peacoat and boots come together as a common, as well as the earmuffs, scarf and necklace. The rare is the cute little kitten--well, the kitten isn't very little, but it sure isn't large.  I LOVE little attachable pets. Alchemy at the Mystical Realms Faire had the Dire Wolf Familiars... There used to be a store (it closed down due to the owner/creator having Real Life problems they needed to take care of) called Manticore which had lots of different attachable familiars, and the kitten familiar is similar in "design"....if that makes any sense.  I have another kitty familiar by Birdy/Foxes from a while ago, another Rare from a gacha a few months back.  Anyway, I have the whole set. And at first I thought the outfit could do without the kitten, and it does look great on it's own...but the kitten....oh the kitten is just so cute, and makes the whole ensemble look innocent and more girly.

Complete outfit: Birdy/Foxes Woodland Wonderland in Mint (with gray Ear Muffs and Fur Muff, pocket watch necklace, and Kitten) @The Arcade, Skin: Glam Affair December Jamaica1 @The Arcade, Hair: Splellbound SweetDreams @The Arcade, Eyes: Redgrave Catgreen, Eyelashes: Redgrave 6 Natural

The hair I am wearing in the above pictures, as well as the skin, are also both from the Arcade.  The hair is by Spellbound (my first hair from this creator) and the skin is by Glam Affair--also at the Arcade.  I lucked out in getting the blonde first thing at the gacha, and the skin, well...I am the odd person who wanted to common more than the Rares.

Overall, I am very happy with all my Arcade purchases/wins.  I lucked out more in this round than I have in others. Plus I got a few awesome presents. Take some time before the end of the month and check out The Arcade.

Now is the time to enjoy a nice hot cocoa or mulled wine (if you are within legal age).  I hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and any other holiday you and yours may celebrate. Hugs and Smooches~


SURLS:

The Arcade:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Arcade/129/132/32

Who Doesn't Enjoy a Good Herbal Tea?

Hey everyone! I wasn't going to post this week, due to mild disappointment with some of the new rounds, but Collabor88 opened Saturday, yesterday, and I have to blog about it!!!

Okay, last week when I said I was looking forward to all the new rounds opening up, I wasn't lying. I was really excited about them. FaMESHed, Uber, We <3 Role-Play, and such.....held so much promise...but alas they were not as amazing as I was hoping.  FaMESHed had a few items I really liked--Zenith has an oversized sweater that is cute, it was hard to pair it with mesh bottoms, but I managed to get find something decent to go with it. The one item I really liked was by LaGyo, a Hamsa jewelry set. Now the necklace is really pretty, but for me the earrings leave something to be desired, after pairing it with a beautiful hamsa, the earrings look like blah in comparison.  Erratic  also has a very pretty coat out at FaMESHed, and I did pick that up. It looks like it is something to keep you perfectly warm on a romantic winter autumn night out.

Uber....Uber....Uber..... This month's theme at Uber is Macabre, and to me Macabre seemed very promising. There is so much you can do with death. It doesn't have to be horrific and bloody. And at least to me there is much potential in Macabre, but some of the designers left SO MUCH to be desired.  I did get the leather long sleeved shirt by [Foxy], the hair by Wasabi Pills, and I even got the white dress by Fishy Strawberry...but like I mentioned earlier...so much left to be desired. I left the event somewhat disappointed.  I have seen people across the grid in some of the items from Uber, and I am glad everyone else is enjoying the Macabre. Alas, I will have to wait for next round to be uber impressed.

We <3 Role-Play opened up earlier this week, and again, another wave of disappointment for me, BUT I had so much fun at the Mystic Realms Faire and the designers had so much amazing stuff, I feel like I have to cut them some slack.  I can't compare the next year's rounds of WHRP to Mystic Realms...I can't. So, I only ended up getting some poses and a Chinese/Korean-Bindi-type thing at the event.  I am going to go back in a week or two to check it out again, hopefully with a clearer mind.

There were some other events that have opened up that were given a lot of Promotion on Facebook and by some designers..... Sad November and Xiasumi School Festival.... Sad November was...sad. The sim was designed amazingly! And there were a TON of shops and designers there. I only ended up getting a fang tooth attachment from [whatever].  And for the Xiasumi School Festival.....I got a fox pet-companion.... But for those two events, I know the styles of the outfits were just not my style, so it was legitimately a ME thing, others seem to really like the events, and I am always excited to see people across the grid in the items I have seen at these events.  As I always do with events like this, I go back through the month to see if there was anything I missed or if anything else catches my eye.

skin: Glam Affair Skye India1 @Collabor88, teeth: [whatever] teeth Fangs 2.0 @Sad November, Hair: Tableau Vivant Wicca, Necklaces: Schandenfreude Alchemy Necklaces @Collabor88, outfit: GizzA Nordic Outfit @Chapter Four, Boots: LaRoo Riding Boots, Eyes: Redgrave Catgreen, Nails: Slink Avatar Enhancement(with nail polish  by (NO) called feathers @Collabor88), Bangles: Zaara Banjara Kada stacked, Ring: Earthstones Splendid Love

Finally, the big event for me this week...COLLABOR88!!!! Okay, please go check it out. I mentioned briefly at the end of last week's blog Modern Alchemist was going to be exciting see....and the designers did NOT disappoint.  Zaara is one of the guests at the event this round, and I broke down and bought the fatpack of the jewelry she released.  Necklaces and bracelets/bangles......amazing.  So worth it. And the items are at a discounted rate again just for the event. So be sure to pick them up while they are discounted.  Glam Affair has some skins out at the event, like they normally do, and the India skin-toned Skye is Gorgeous! I am wearing the skin in all the pictures, and I think I might have to make this one of my normal go-to skins.  Also, there is a necklace set by Schandenfreude, necklaces of different lengths you can wear together and pair up with of astrological symbols and such. LOVE THEM! At 88$L I bought a few....but I am going to go back for more!!! Also the hairs at this round.....None of them disappoint. I bought three of them. I went a little Linden happy at the event when I was finally able to teleport in.

Also Chapter Four is open, and there are some cute outfits there this round.  I am wearing in the pictures the dress by GizzA.  There are other cute Fall/Autumn items there. So if you get the free time, and have some extra Linden, go check it out.


SURLS:

Collabor88:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/8%208/41/178/1090

FaMESHed:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Fresco/173/168/36

Uber:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Uber/131/127/27

Chapter Four:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Dreamlove/89/133/1237

Sad November:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Taj%20Mahal/144/66/26

Xiasumi School Festival:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/snackpack/102/54/22

Fire Burn, Cauldron Bubble

This week's post is done by a Guest Blogger, Earth Tvilling, my Real Life and Second Life twin sister. Enjoy:

It’s a wonderful honor to be your guest blogger this week. As Sun would tell you, I’ll drink tea, but I’m much more of a coffee person. I’m actually working on my second cup while writing this post. It will be tough to write as well as my darling twin, but I will do my best. So sit down, have a coffee, tea, or whatever refreshing beverage fits your taste at the moment.

Second Life is quite the place; every user has a story about how they joined. I have my own as well as I joined for a college class to do research for a project on how Second Life can benefit those with disabilities. During the project I learned much and fell in love with it, thus when the project was over I kept playing and learning. I kept making friends, meeting new people, learning so much about Second Life beyond the scope of the research I was doing for class. To this day, I still get fascinated, especially with avatars and unique fashion.

For most of the time, when I’m not working my KittyCatS business, I’m a dragon in world. As a dragon it’s hard for me to find places to roam freely throughout Second Life, but I get by perfectly fine despite my large avatar.

Zenith Black Noble Queen, whole outfit in black @FaMESHed. Slink Avatar Enhancement Hands Elegant. Skin: Jalwa Evil Queen group gift @ Jalwa/Bilo/Apsara

Halloween there are a multitude of parties, costumes, SIMS to go to in a unique outfit/costume of your choice. With so many options it can be a bit overwhelming, but that’s part of the fun I believe. As far my choices for costumes, I love trying to get costumes that completely change my appearance for Halloween, quite like a whole new avatar whether it be a quadruped, furry, Harpie, etc. For the past two years I have done multiple costumes no more than three and usually made up of avatars and such already in my inventory that I do not wear hardly ever or free costumes from some of my favorite designers, such as Utopia. This year, by my standards, I went overboard on my costume. Sun told me about a Zenith costume that I would very much enjoy and at first I was skeptical, however I was quickly converted to her line of thinking. Zenith came out with a Maleficent outfit I had to have. It was not a matter of if I should or should not, it was a matter of could I wait all month for Halloween so I could wear it and could I wear this during the year?

Of course the answer was yes. As a dragon for the majority of the time, getting to be Maleficent for Halloween was a dream. I had looked last year at similar costumes and none were to my liking, so when Sun said Zenith had one I was wary. By far this is my favorite costume I have ever gotten for my avatar. I will definitely be wearing this outfit for costume parties, special themed events, and the like. It also helped that the skin that I have paired with the outfit is a group gift at Bilo, which has a pale skin and light green tinted skin you can chose from.

Though we can change our avatars on a whim on Second Life, we definitely love to costume up for Halloween. Why not participate in Halloween in world, even if it’s just wearing a costume for the month, the week, the day, etc?  It’s another way to express the endless creativity which makes up Second Life. Not everyone has a lovely twin sister to help them find amazing outfits and costumes, but with it being October there are so many events that can help inspire you. Or go through your inventory, piece together different parts of outfits. One of my continued favorite costumes is males in dresses. It’s funny, it’s classic, it’s always a hit.

Sun: Outfit(including hat) Evie's Closet: Iseult Witching Hour @Evie's closet(discounted until Halloween), Eyeshadow: Senzafine Safira Gold, Lipstick: Senzafine: Moonglow Carmine, choker: Junbug Highland Ribbon Necklace in black, Eyelashes: Redgrave Natural, familiar: Alchemy Dire Wolf Shadow @Mystic Realms Faire, Hair: Truth Thalia @Mystic Realms Faire

My coffee is now room temperature, which means my time with you is at an end. Before we part, I want to know about you.  What are you going to be for Halloween (In World and/or in real life)? How did you come up with your costume? I would love to know.

SURLS:

FaMESHed: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Fresco/172/170/36

Evie's Closet: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Oubliette/162/183/414

Mystic Realms Faire: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Eldertree%20Village/227/188/22

Faire closes today!!! Make sure you go and check it out before it is gone! This faire won't be back until next year!!!!!!

Bilo/Apsara/Jalwa:    http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Oubliette/162/183/414