I just spent almost 2 weeks in the hospital. It was horrible. I hope I never have to do that again. I have spent the last week or so seeing different docs and adjusting meds. It has been NO fun. The whole time I just wanted to feel good enough to blog. SO….now I do…and I have been thinking and thinking. . .TRYING to come up with something “life changing” to blog. . .and all I can think of is. . .GOD. . .it is good to be back!
Thank you to everyone that has so generously welcomed me back. Thank you to all the wonderful creators that have been patient with me while I get my “groove” back. And thank you to everyone that offered up thoughts and prayers for me while I was ill. You will never know how much it meant to me!

I was kinda glad that the first hair that Alli & Ali asked for me to model was Raissa. So I am told, the name means “Queen” in some language. And so the first dress I thought of that had a regal appeal, was this gown from Vero Modero. It comes in red, which is really more a dark burgundy, and so I chose the white one, being afraid that the red one would be too dark for good hair pictures. I took off the LOVELY collar that is normally worn with the gown so you could see the curls that line the lower back of the neck but I DID wear the amazing feather attachment that is to be worn on the pelvis.  I think it truly makes you feel like some kind of a royal creature.

And so, having took off the collar, I searched for a “royal” yet non-traditional set from Finesmith Designs to adorn my neck and ears. Finesmith is by far THE BEST when looking for a “futuristic” design. This particular set comes in several different colors and each one of them lend a different look to the set.

This skin is the newest release from Akeruka, Blanca. It comes in several different skin tones with several different lip colors and eye colors available, as well as a cleavage and a non cleavage design. Be sure and check out the special edition of Blanca that is featured at the “Culture Shock 2012 ” event.

The nails that I am seem sporting here are from WTG Jewelers.  It is their “French” nail and it comes with a HUD with LOTS of different base colors, a white and a black pearl and diamond set along with the ability to wear rings or take them off.  I took them off of the right hand, but you can see how lovely they are from the left hand.

Every since we did our Valentine’s Day videoblog, I have been LONGING to go dancing at Amorosa Ballroom (NO, V. . .I have not forgot!)  So I decided that if I could not actually dance there, that taking pictures there would be the next best thing.  Let me just take this time to say, that these pictures were taken with the Dolphin viewer.  They are not exactly the best pictures I could have taken to show off how beautiful shadows are with Dolphin, but I don’t have to worry about that anymore, since I can easily walk around with shadows enabled and enjoy them all the time!!

I know that people are always saying that shadows and the ability to have them is often viewer specific and what will work for one person may not work for the next, but after having tried LLV.3, the latest versions of Firestorm, Singularity and Exodus, along with downloading the Linux version of Niran’s HOPING that it would work on my Mac, since a Mac version was not available and STILLLLL not being able to find “the perfect” shadow, I had almost given up.  MOST of the viewers slowed down to a crawl once I pushed them to Ultra and shadow enabled.  Some had nice shadows, but ended up with blocks when I took a photo larger than my screen size.  Some had shadows, but no ability to adjust the shadows to suit me.  And some just slowed down to a terribly low FPS, making taking pictures painful.  Others crashed, slow. . .crash, crash. . .slow. . .crash, slow. . .OMG. . .taking pictures can be SOOOOO terrible!

Finally I read a review of the Dolphin viewer here at Inara Pey’s blogsite.  I had HEARD of dolphin before, but even when going to the website and looking at the Mac download, the creator says that HE cannot really test it on a Mac..and so he has no idea if it will work on a Mac or not.  So,  needless to say, I was greatly doubtful that I would have ANYTHING but poor results, if ANY.

MAN. . .was I wrong!  Dolphin is my new viewer of choice.  I preface this by saying that it WILL NOT work properly on my Macbook pro, that has a Nvidia card, but it works like a charm on my new Imac with a AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics card.  I can easily zip around the grid, (although it DOES take a bit to load textures from places it has never been before, imagine that??) and the pictures. . .oh man. . .(breathe a sigh of relief).  I can take the largest size picture available with BEAUTIFUL shadows, (that I can adjust as I please), with or without DOF (that I can adjust as I please)with Anisiotrphic Filtering on and  AA ALL the way up to 16!  Not only does it work on a Mac, kind dolphin creator, it works better than any other viewer I have tried thus far!

Perhaps it does not work so well on EVERY Mac.   Like I said, it does not work well with my Macbook pro, although I think that has more to do with  its’ Nvidia graphics card.  But I would certainly encourage all Mac users to give it a whirl.  Perhaps it will be the same magic viewer for you that it has been for me!  Good luck, fellow Mac lovers. . . and to you, Mr. Dolphin. . . TYTYTYTY!  You have restored the joy of one SL viewer and picture taker.  May you bring joy to many others…:))

Until later. . .

STYLING NOTES

*Gown: VERO MODERO / White Mistwalker Gown
*Skin and Lips:  Akeruka- Blanca Nat Cleavage Mk13,  Akeruka- Blanca Lips Nat Rosso
*Nails and Rings: +:+WTG+:+ **French** nail
*Hair:  Alli &Ali- Raissa Hair Blackberry
Shoes: Baby Monkey- Beckie Pump- Pinks & Purples
Lashes: *REDGRAVE* Eyelashes -39- Luscious
*Necklace and Earrings: Finesmith- OG earrings, OG necklace
*Eyes:  IKON Utopia Eyes – Trojan Blue (L)
*Poses: Purple Poses
Location: Amorosa Ballroom

For those of you that have followed my blog for very long at all, you will know that I model hair for Ali & Alli.  This CUTE little updo is one of their newest releases aptly named Kandy.  When Alice gave us the hair she simply asked for “something sweet” . . .and I can see why.  I LOVE the little tendrils that frame the face and neckline and the big bow to the side comes in MULTIPLE colors and if that is not enough, it also comes in a pink polka dot and a black polka dot.  But I guess one of the things I love the BEST about the bow, is that it comes with a color TINT option, basically giving you total control over whatever color you want it to be . . .and I LOVE total control!

I tend to be a “bargain” shopper.  I, like many of you out there, have a limited amount of money available to spend in SL and I am always looking for a good bargain.  So you can imagine my great delight when I stumbled upon VMC by Victory Modan.  Not only were her clothes adorable, BUT they were only 10L!  That’s right!  Every set of clothing in the store . . .even new releases are only 10L.  And when I saw this “sweet” little summer dress, I knew that I had found the right dress for Kandy.  The dress is simple, with a strapless bodice and a short (but not TOO short) skirt that swings when you walk . . .and I LOVE that, don’t you?  I thought the dress was SO cute that I needed to SHOW you ALL the colors of it!  And at 10L a pop…you can afford them all.

Oh . . .and by the way, if you are wondering where I got those precious little flats . . .in ALLLLL those colors, take a look at DUH!  They too offer bang for your buck and the entire fat pak of the flats only cost 100L.  They also have some nice little Espadrilles for the summer . . .equally affordable and you will be wanting those to pair up with all your beach and summer wear!

Thanks for taking the time to read.  Vanish and I will be gone for the next few days on his much deserved vacation, but we will be back soon and check in as we can.  Hope you all have fun while we are gone!  Until then . . .

STYLING NOTES 
*Poses: Purple Poses
*Dress: ::VMC:: frenzy- Green, Blue, Cream, Purple, Pink
Shoes: ::Duh!:: Floral Linen Flats Mint, Sky, Coco, Violet, Sand
*Hair: Alli &Ali- Kandy Hair Goldblonde, Blackberry, Strawberry, Mixed Brown, Platinum
Jewelry: Dark Mouse- Falling Flower Earrings and Necklace- Silver
Eyelashes:  *REDGRAVE*-38- Classy
*Nails: Moondance Boutique-  Square Xshort French Filigree
Skin: [Atomic] Skin Grace (LB)_Buff- Irish Green
*Eyes: IKON (formerly FASHISM) ‘Sunrise’ Eyes- Pale Verdigris (L)

A few weeks ago, as I was looking through the feeds and flickr photostreams I came across a pic of an avi . . .just a simple pick.  The picture showed an avi in casual clothes, various poses but all together and I had a thought . . .perhaps I should start a category in my blog where I shot 3 different pictures in different poses with a common theme and posted them all at once on the blog with styling notes….nothing more.

It is not often that I do a casual look.  I don’t wear many jeans, even though there are more than enough crowding my inventory.  But recently I have seen more and more that I really liked and found tops that I thought would look good with them.  And as my idea of 3 of a Kind began to take shape, 3 very different looks, all containing jeans began to form in my mind.

And here you have it . . .my first 3 of a kind.  I hope you like it.  I plan on making more.  Thanks for taking a look.  All poses are from The Art Body Store.  Until later . . .

STYLING NOTES 

Look #1 (Left to right)
*Jeans: Egoisme- dirty jeans Bicolour
*Shirt : .: Somnia :.- Bo Peek Sweater {Red} {US}
Hair:  .:EMO-tions:.- * ANITA * / darkbrown
*Jewelry: Ear Candy ~ Dressin Down Pendant in Gold, Earrings, Peace Rawhide Bracelet
*Boots: Ear Candy ~ Pink Flowered Moccasin Boot
Eyelashes: *REDGRAVE* -37- Extended
*Nails: Moondance Boutique- Square Medium Winter Snow
*Skin:  Akeruka Meg Tan New MK clevage(Fashion for Life2012)
*Eyes: IKON (previously  FASHISM)- ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Blue (L)

Look#2
*Blouse: Ever An’ Angel- *Mesh* Printemps Jersey Tank Cami Layer,  *Mesh* Printemps Jersey Tank Shell
*Jeans: Ever An’ Angel- YFJ- Forest- Silver Trim Pants
*Skin:  {.essences.}- Quilla Skin – Rosy Pale (blonde), Cleavage – ROSY PALE, Quilla Lipstick [pale.01]
Boots: PurpleMoon- Mara Boots in Taupe
Nails: PurpleMoon- Metallic Platinum Nails
Necklace:PurpleMoon- Tribe Necklace Platinum/Burgundy/Copper
Hair: Elikatira- Want – Blonde 07
Lashes: [LeLutka]- Photoshoot II Lashes(NOSE)
*Eyes: IKON (previously  FASHISM) ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Blue (L)

Look#3
*Jeans: Ever An Angel- Prettiful Jeans – Belted Indigo
Boots: Maitreya- Radical Boots
*Tattoo: s u . v i d a- dream catcher v3 chest TL
*Nails: +:+WTG+:+-  **Ribbon-heartbk** mini mania jeweled nail(L20)
Hair:  ::Exile::- Lucia:Roots-Nectar Mix
Eyelashes: *REDGRAVE* -32- CandyDoll
*Jacket:  {.essences.} Bonnie Biker Jacket Size XS [Black]
*Skin: Akeruka- Audrey Natural New Mk Clevag(Fashion for life)
*Eyes: IKON (previously  FASHISM) ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Pale Azure (L)

I was going to do a Q&D for this post . . .I PROLLY should have done a Q&D (Quick and Dirty) for this post, but I once again became so enamored with it once it was done, that I just HAD to talk about it a little.  There are SO many things about it that are SO pretty.

It has been a while since I have blogged anything from Siss Boom and that is NOT because Lestat has not put out a bunch of new items . . .it has just worked out that way.  But you can see from this dress that she has NOT lost her attention to textures and detail.  The dress is a simple one, but I LOVED the way she took fairly “warm” colors and somehow made them cool!  The beautiful textures of the skirt, combined with the intricate shadowing and texturing of the top made me fall in love with this dress.  It is called “Rustic Charms” and that combined with this brand new release from A&A made for a LOVELY pairing!

This hair from A&A has a kind of “old school” feel to me.  Perhaps it is just the fullness of the hair and the way it swoops across one eye, but I REALLY liked it.  And when I started pairing it with the dress from Siss Boom I decided to go with the really cool neutral shades in Alice Klinger’s palate.  It is not often that I will model grey hair.  Perhaps it is my own battle with the scourge in RL that keeps me from modeling it more often.  But I thought it was perfect for this dress.

I have asked several of my fellow bloggers on plurk what to do about shoes with a dress of this length.  I HAVE blogged the shoes that I would wear with the dress, but unless I included a pose that actually showed the shoes (which can be next to impossible to do) the shoes are just hidden under all those layers of the skirt, leaving one to wonder what is actually under there.  Many of the ones I questioned said that they simply do not wear shoes with the dress or they just do not include them in the post unless they are seen.  But the shoes I decided to wear with this outfit were SOOOOO cute that I had to take a pic and include them.

These are from R2 Fashion and 4 colors are featured at Collabor88 this month.  I must admit I picked up 3 pair and a couple from another designer at Collabor88.  I think it may be becoming my favorite place for discovering shoes in SL.  The ones I picked up last month from Ingenue were adorable and these . . .well . . .take a look at them.  They are amazing!  I am not sure if it is the advent of mesh that has me falling in love with SL shoes all over again or what!  But the detail of these shoes is GORGEOUS!  They make me feel like a princess when I put them on and after all, the feeling is about 90 percent of why we do this, no?

There is one last thing I want to talk about  before I leave the rest to the styling notes and that is the LOVELY jewelry you see here from Eclectica.  Eclectica has some of the PRETTIEST vintage pieces around.  I picked this set up from a 60L Weekend Sale and it was worth every Linden and much more.  This set is in the pale silver version, but they had several more metals and tones to choose from, all equally lovely.  I hope you can see how truly beautiful it is in my closeup shot.  The set comes with necklace, bracelet and earrings.

Thanks for taking a look at my silliness.  Until next time . . .

(P.S. . . By the way . . .I just learned that Finesmith Design’s is having a STOREWIDE sale . . .50% off!!!!!!  SO now is the time to stock up in BEAUTIFUL nails, jewelry and shoes!  The sale will end next Friday, March 23rd.  So hurry in!!!)

STYLING NOTES
*Gown: -siss boom- rustic charms shirt, pants, flex skirt, R shoulder sculpt, waist sculpt
*Skin: {.essences.}-  Serena skin – ROSY PALE with Serena Lipstick [pale.01]
*Hair: A&A- Wilma Hair Grey
Shoes: R2 Fashion- mele, off white
Jewelry: Eclectica- Deco Knot bracelet, earring, necklace-pale silver
Eyelashes: *REDGRAVE* -37- Extended
Nails: Finesmith Designs- Metallic Nails
Eyes: IKON- Utopia Eyes – Pale Mint+Gold (L)
Poses: Wet Cat

Don’t you hate it when people aren’t nice? Sometimes I wonder. Sometimes it seems like some people just want to be hateful and don’t give two squats about what others want or need, or what is right or wrong. They live on the “me” level. And I find that SO disconcerting. It is NOT that I have never “visited” that level, not that I have never put my thoughts and desires above other, because I have. . .  more than once. But I am not proud of it. And I hope that I don’t do it too often and that I learn what a great price you pay when you put your own needs ahead of others.

It happens even in the virtual world. You see it all the time. You unwittingly open a profile and feel the skin melt off your face from the venom that is spewed forth. . . and I always wonder. . . why? Or you go to one of your favorite “designer boutiques” to shop the sales and pick up many many WONDEROUS goodies. . . only to find that there is a group of griefers stationed at the landing point. And it seems their sole purpose is to make you feel bad about yourself, to ridicule you, to harrass you to the point of almost leaving. (You notice I said ALMOST. . . who could pass up some of those bargains???? Not me!!) And again I wonder. . . why? WHY would someone want to spend their spare time doing that to people?

Recently I have become aware of some kind of “war” going on between two groups of people in our virtual world. I am not even sure WHO the two groups are nor do I really want to know, for then I might be forced to take sides. . . something I am hesitant to do. But they seem to be fighting about. . . name calling. OK. . . it is more than that. . . it is ideas and principles and measures of respect. I understand being upset by it. I just wish there was a productive way to solve the conflict. It seems like there is so much hate being spread by BOTH sides. WHY?

And I think of the feeling that I get sometimes that some creators are really resentful of bloggers and wish that they did not have to deal with them at all. It seems they view us as “bottom feeders”. . . only looking for freebies. I don’t know of bloggers that DO that kind of thing. That USE creators to get what they want with NO intent of ever blogging it. But that idea creates some kind of “us against them” mentality that is hurtful to everyone. I wonder why it has to be so? I just wanna shop and play dress up and tell other people about the wonderful creations I find. I take it seriously. I really DO think about the creators and the longer I blog fashion, the more I learn and the more I find out what it is that the creators are looking for and the more responsible I feel.

Sometimes when I look at all these things it is easy to feel down. It is sometimes hard when you realize that your precious virtual world is really nothing more than a recreation of the world that you sometimes wish you could get out of! And then I think about all the WONDERFUL things I have found here in SL. I think of my wonderful husband that I never would have found without Second Life. I think about my SL sister and how she put her REAL life on the line for me, her VIRTUAL relative. Without her I could not have made the changes that were SOOOOO necessary in my life. I truly do not know where I would be today had she not wandered into my virtual life!

I think of the recent project of which I was privileged to be a part. It is kind of a long story and one that I am not sure I can reiterate correctly, but to the best of my understanding Cajsa Lillihook learned that one of our beloved designers, Squinternet Larnia of Donna Flora had become quite ill. Cajsa had herself in the not to distant pass fought a life threatening illness and won. She KNEW how important love and support can be to someone going through such a thing. So she embarked upon “Donna Flora A to Z” in which any resident that desired could blog a Donna Flora item, just to let her know how much she is loved and appreciated. And I must say, the results are phenomenal! Over 60 residents came forward wanting to blog for the project and the compilation can be found at the Donna Flora exhibit at FFL. . . or here, for those of you that wish to see it online. Either way, it is a powerful statement of the love and caring that we residents of SL have to offer one another. Please take the time to look it over.

With all that in mind, I have to say that I met a most kind and gracious designer the other day. It is Ever Courtois, designer for Ever an’ Angel. Ever An’ Angel is a new “find” for me. I stopped by their store and found a large range of clothing, from casual, to formal, to classy, to even items with a gypsy or elven flair. There were also shoes, jewelry and handbags there. I am glad to be sporting one of their cocktail dresses today. The jewelry and shoes are ALSO from Ever An’ Angel.

This look was almost complete from one store, with the exception of the nails. I just HAD to do a close up of the nails for you. These are once again, from WTG Jewelers. This is their French Nail and even though I chose NOT to wear the french tip with it, it is an option in the HUD, along with BUNCHES of other nail colors, pearls or diamond gems and with or without rings. I know I have been preaching about the goodness you can find at WTG for quite some time now, but if my words have not convinced you, perhaps the pictures will!

So there you have it. I am not going to go into every tiny detail of who and what I am wearing. I have pretty much covered it and there are styling notes below. I would prefer to spend this time saying: Thank you Ever, for your kindness and patience with me. It has restored my faith in creators and the working relationship that we can have together in a virtual world, doing what we love. You will never know what that means to me.

Thank you Cajsa for allowing me to be a part of Donna Flora A to Z. I TRULY feel privileged. I am an ex-nurse by profession. I cannot nurse here in Germany, but I still feel the need to reach out and help those who are ill. When I saw what you were doing, I felt like it was some small way that I could do that. Thank you for allowing me to feel that again.

As always to my dear sister, if you read this. . . remember how much I love you. Remember who you are. Life can be good again. I wish I had a magic button to make all things right or at the very least to ease the pain. But all I can tell you is how much I love you, how grateful I am to have you in my life and that it is ok when you feel frail. You do NOT have to “be strong” all the time. It is ok, love.

To my most beloved Vanish. . .thank you for listening to me rant and rave when I don’t understand something. Thank you for wiping away my tears when I cry. Thank you for taking such good care of me. I am yours. . .immer.

P.S. . . special thanks to Veenya Venter, who agreed to “share” her oft used photo layout with me. (I am not as good at it as you are yet. . .LOL I am afraid that I will have to work on it some. Yours just looks SO classy!) If you have not read Veenya’s fashion blog, take a look at it here. She is new to blogging, but you would NEVER know it judging by the class and quality of her blog. I look forward to each new look she puts together! You will too!

STYLING NOTES

*Shoes: Ever An’ Angel -  Redoute Shoes -  Antique
*Dress:  Ever An’ Angel -  Redoute Cocktail Dress Antique
Skin: *YS & YS* -  Cara Pale Preview 4 TDR with Pale Breast
*Nails:  +:+WTG+:+ **French** nail
*Hair: A&A -  Kelis Hair Rust (top) Blonde (bottom)
*Jewelry: Ever An’ Angel -  Grandma’s Cameos Set -  Antique Earrings and Antique Necklace
Eyelashes: *REDGRAVE* -37- Extended
*Eyes: IKON (previously  FASHISM) ‘Sunrise’ Eyes -  Pale Blue (L)
Poses: The Art Body Store

A while back my wonderful partner, Vanish suggested that I stop making my blogs SOOOO detailed and just blog about the one or two items of each outfit that really caught my attention.  That is SOOOO hard to do when there are SOOOO many pretty things just staring back at you!  The funny thing about it, is that this outfit was originally going to be a “Q&D”, just a post with pics and styling notes.  Lots of bloggers do ‘em.  And they seem to be accepted by most of the blogging community…and it is something that I can do relatively quickly.  But the more I worked with this outfit the more in love with it I became!

It started out as a modeling pic for Alli & Ali Designs.  This is their latest hair, Evora and if you run to their shop, you can get a free copy as a group member and I think there is a free copy as a voting gift.  In any case,  A&A has FREE hair every WEEK for both MEN and women, group and non group members…and they have a TON of MM boards spread over the grid.  So it would be well worth allotting one of those precious group slots to A&A!

Each week when we (we= those who have agreed to take pics for A&A) get a new hair to model, we also get a suggested style in the note card to guide us in our picture taking. Evora’s card had the suggestion of “casual, elegant”…and to me…that can cover a BROAD range.  So…as I began to formulate a look in my mind, a cute little “casual, elegant” mesh dress from e! sprang to my mind’s eye!  I had never tried on anything from e! before, but being a Plurk friend of one of e!’s co-creators allows me the privilege of an occasional sneek peek of  their upcoming releases.  And I had seen Arsene on Plurk and agreed that it was quite lovely, but when I pulled it out of the box to try it on…wow!  It comes in several colors, so I picked my favorite color, green choosing a gold zipper rather than a silver one that runs down the back of the dress and I was NOT dissapointed.  It was a lovely shade of green, not too dark and not at all bright, just a REALLY nice shade of green.  And the texture….I LOVED it.  It was a simple unorganized pattern.  It reminded me of a finely woven thread that had been sewn on top of the material.  I have seen that done in real life and it is always elegant.  I hope you can see it in the pictures I took and I hope you get a real feel for the dress.  It is simple, but in this case, simple=elegance.

Serena is the name of this lovely new skin from Essences.  It comes in several shades, with several lip colors and I chose a red shade to go with my green dress.  I have been a fan of Essences, almost from the very beginning of her store and I love her skins.  I think she especially does a fine job with some of the darker skin tones but this particular skin had lips a little larger than what I am used to.  I have found that in the “modeling/blogging world”, you have to be willing to change a few things here and there while still keeping the things that make YOU, you.   And in that spirit, I now have 15 different lip styles.  And believe it or not, I TRY to keep every one of them as true to “El” as I possibly can.  So you can imagine my dismay when my husband looked at me while I was putting this look together and said “You don’t look like my El.”  I looked at my avatar and went over all the things that I had recently tweaked and tried to RE-tweak a few of them to make them more “El-like”.  But when I got to the lips, I just could not give in.  I showed him the original “El” lip with the skin and how, in my opinion it just DID NOT work.  He finally agreed to me making my eyes larger and leaving my lips as they were…for THIS picture.  All I can say, is I think the pics turned out cute and….”Close your eyes, baby and feel my soft lips on yours.  See….they are still the same.”  <smiles and kisses her lover softly and sweetly>

OKOKOK….back to blogging.  Dark Mouse Jewelry.  I remember when I was just a newbie I stumbled upon a Dark Mouse shop and if my memory serves me right, it was in a rather dark goth-like place where you had to go down a lot of steps before reaching the shop, but I was impressed with the “darkness” of it all and I thought the name was impressive and it stuck with me.  Quite sometime later I stumbled upon DM in a nice little shop and picked up some of her jewelry that was on sale (A nice set of leather belt type bracelets that I STILL have in my inventory and wear on occasion) and a really cute hair.  I stopped by her store off and on for several months and then once again, lost touch with Dark Mouse.  Imagine my delight when I found out that one of the people that had accepted my “friend request” on Plurk, was none other than the creator of Dark Mouse herself.  I once again stumbled upon her creations at a sale.  I quickly remembered the name and the “gems” that I had acquired so long ago and quickly gobbled up several new ones.  What you see here is the fruit of that labor…:)  I LOVE the length of this necklace.  It seems like necklaces of this length can be hard to find causing this one to really catch my eye.  Mouse Mim has taken pains to make this necklace look as realistic as possible.  SO many times you see a necklace of this length just fall down in a straight line to the pendant. but this one falls realistically between the breast, with even a “crook” here and there in the chain, much as you would see in RL with a necklace of this length.  The earrings match the pendant and seem to be nothing more than a random congregation of scroll work type metal with a pale blue green stone in it.  It is REALLY quite lovely and matched this dress perfectly!  The necklace and earrings come in gold, silver and copper, giving you a NICE selection.  Dark Mouse has recently moved to a new store located in Sage and it’s nice and cozy.  I am glad that after all these years, Dark Mouse is still around and serving the residents of SL.  In today’s economy keeping a store in SL can be hard and I have seen more than one creator let go of the store that had served them well for several years; as creators are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet.  So, if you are new to SL, like I was all those years ago, Dark Mouse would be a nice place to start.  If you are an established SL resident and have not been by DM in a while…come see the new store!

I love shoes.  Given that fact, I have surprisingly far fewer than one would expect in my inventory. But I have cleared out a lot of the older things in my  virtual closet…so that means I have PLENTY of room for new shoes!!!  A couple of weeks ago I TP’d into Collabor88 and was enthralled by the shoes I found there by Ingenue.  I was SO enthralled with them, that I bought EVERY color they had and anyone that knows me well, knows that I RARELY do something like that.  But they were ONLY 88L each and the colors….wow…the colors were SO different from most of the colors you see on the grid and even tho they were simple, it was the texturing and structure of the shoe that just made me STARE at them!  (kinda like my dress from e!)  SO…I decided to take a pic of each color to share with you…and it is QUITE possible that they have MORE beautiful colors of the Gatsby heel in the Ingenue store, but I have stayed away from it for the time being for fear of spending every Linden I have!!!  BUT that does not mean that YOU cannot go there and then IM me and let me know how many other colors there are…:)) And by the way…to the best of my knowledge, Collabora88 changes their sales on the 8th of every month.  So you still have a few days to RUN to Collabora8 and scoop them up!

Last but not least, I am wearing lovely lashes from [GLOW] Studio, eyes by IKON (formerly Fashism) and nails by Moondance Nails. This is the May set of Moondance Boutique’s Classy Gems nails and you can find YOUR birthstone at their store.

Thanks to all the people who responded to the latest “videoblog” that Vanish and I made.  Your kind words are greatly appreciated and I am looking forward to doing more of them with my sweet partner and showing off more wonderful creations from across the grid.  We are currently “brainstorming” for our future adventures and would love to have you come along.  If you are interested in being a “guest” on the  ”show” or if you would just like to tag along as we trek around the grids, be sure and get in touch with either myself or Vanish.  We would love to have you!

Until then…..

 STYLING NOTES

*Hair: A&A-Evora Hair Dark Honey/Strawberry
Jewelry: Dark Mouse – Aisling Earrings,Necklace – Gold
*Dress:  e! – Arsene Dress Gold Zipper (Grass)
Shoes: Ingenue :: Gatsby Heels :: Chartreuse
Lashes: [GLOW] Studio – Innocent. eyelashes – gentle
*Nails: Moondance Boutique – Square Medium : Classy Gems Emerald
Poses: The Art Body Store (ABS)
*Skin:{.essences.} Serena skin – MEDIUM, Serena Lipstick [red.01]
*Eyes: IKON (previously FASHISM) ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Pale Verdigris (L)

STYLING NOTES

OUTFIT: R.icielli – PIETRA bodysuit /beige, BEATRIZ sequined miniskirt /gold
SHOES: R.icielli – CARMELIA pumps base
*HAIRBASE:  A&A Tattoo Layer Hairbase Darkblonde
*HAIR: A&A Marcella Hair Darkblonde
LASHES: *REDGRAVE*  -38- Classy
NAILS: Finesmith Designs – METALLIC
EARRINGS: R.icielli - BRIGITTE earrings /quartz L
SHOES: R.icielli – CARMELIA pumps/Crema
SKIN: Ricielli – ESMEE medium_DB/makeup4
*EYES:  IKON ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Deep Lagoon (L)
*POSES: PurplePoses

Is El Firecaster a bride…at last?  Well….yes and no…as my beloved partner, Vanish likes to tell me.  El has never been a “real” bride in SL <looks sideways at her BELOVED partner, Vanish>  I don’t think I would ever be one of those avi’s that wanted a big huge todo….not that that is a bad thing….it is just not MY thing.  But IF we ever chose to do something like that in SL, this would certainly be a good choice for a wedding dress.

I have to admit, the little girl in me fell in love with this GORGEOUS dress from Vero Modero.  To my knowledge it is not a wedding dress, but gee, if El were looking for one, this would certainly fit the bill.  It is SUPER sexy with the bodice split all the way down to the waist in the front and yet SO elegant with layer after layer of lace.  I swear, when I was taking these pics I could almost HEAR the crunching of the lace and taffeta.  I TRULY felt like a bride while wearing it.  It is part of the new evening gown collection at Vero Modero and the rest of the collection is JUST as beautiful.  So be sure and stop by there and take a look at all the new releases, including a stunning red and black mesh gown that has me itching to slink into it!

This hair is one of the newest releases from Ali & Alli Designs.  It is named Bella and while I have not seen the latest Twilight offering, I am assuming that it is a facsimile of the hair that Bella Swan sported in the movie.  All I know, is that it is a LOVELY updo and has a cute little color change clip at the top of the knot that lays at the base of the back of the neck, encircled by a braid. (whew, that was a LONG description!)  AND the clip also includes an invisible option for those of you that prefer no clip at all.

Since this is not “really” a wedding dress, it did not come with a veil, but I happened to remember that one of the latest releases from WTG jewelers had a tiara.  And what a better occasion to wear a tiara?  I must admit, this collection entitled “Pearly Shell” is just about the prettiest sets I have seen in SL.  It is truly elegant and the back of the necklace is just as beautiful as the front!  (And the set has matching nails!) Incase you are not aware of it, WTG has just opened a new branch at Sunshine Mall and has a brand new welcome gift out.  SO be sure and stop by there and snatch it up!

My sweet little tanned skin is from the Art Body Store, but I feel fairly certain I picked it up from The Tropicalia Bazaar.  And I’m glad I did.  I had noticed some SWEET poses from ABS that were featured at TTB and so I was glad to see this skin from them as well.  This is the tanned version and has 4 makeups with cleavage options.

So there you have it!  I am a bride!  Well….kinda <tries not to pout as she whispers> Let me know if you wanna be put on the guest list, ok?!?!

STYLING NOTES

*Gown: VERO MODERO – Cafferelli Saf Gown Top,Pant, Gloves, Skirt, Shoulder pieces
*Jewelry:  +:+WTG+:+ – **Pearly Shell** ear-pierces I, necklace-with back, Tiara
*Hair:  A&A Bella Hair Black
Eyelashes: *REDGRAVE* -37- Extended
*Skin: ABS Skin  - Michelle sunkissed2 cleavage
*Eyes: FASHISM (currently rebranding) – ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Deep Rising Sun (L)
*Poses: Purpleposes

“Pashima” has been sitting on my desktop AND my inventory for over a month now. I’m sorry. I HATE that it takes me so long to blog sometimes…but anyway, I guess it is better late than never! SO….if Pashima looks a little too “Christmas-y” in her green and red…GOOOOOOOD NEWS! Vero Modero has the same look in blue tones and in gold tones…and they are LOVELY!  Not only does the look come with the cute little top and skirt, it includes the scarf and ADORABLE BOOTS!  So no worry about what shoes to wear with Pashima!  If that is not good enough news, Vero Modero just debuted their brand, spanking new gown collection! And the gowns ARE gorgeous. There is even some mesh goodness thrown in there, so, if you missed their fashion show last Saturday, take a look here.  You will not be disappointed!

This sweet little skin comes from Siss Boom.  It reminds me of the look we get when we stay out in the cold too long and our cheeks get that “slapped” red look!  It is a perfect skin for the winter season.  Siss Boom has a limited collection of skins, but each one of them has the quality feel for which Lestat Reuven is known.

One last thing about this look…hair.  Not many hair designers have this color of hair.  Of course, they ALL have some shade of red…and some have MANY shades of red, but this carrot-red color is one of the reasons I love D!va hair.  All of her styles have a young, fun wispiness to them and this particular color is one of my favorites.

When I finished this look and started taking pics, Vanish asked me if that was El!  He thought it didn’t even look like her.  And when I looked closer, I could see how young she looked and that it did look a little less like El than what I am used to.  All I can say, is that I am currently working on a look that is much more “mature”.  So stay tuned for a much older look coming from El in the not too distant future. Until then….

STYLING NOTES 

*Outfit (including scarf and boots): VERO MODERO / Pashmina – Skirt, Top, Pash Boot Brown, Scarf
Hair: “”D!va“” Hair  - “Masami” (Carrot)(Forelock)
Lashes: Ema’s Secret – Eyelash Snuggle
Earrings: :: PurpleMoon :: -  Kenya Earring in Dyed Red Wood (L)
Bracelets:  AIDORU  - “earth” beads girl
*Nails: Finesmith Nails – L 20 SOlid Red
*Skin: siss boom – wind chill skin (body freckles)
*Eyes: FASHISM(No link currently available.  Store is rebranding) -  ‘Sunrise’ Eyes – Celtic Green (L)