This post has been sitting in my drafts since ( Last edited by Sasy Scarborough on March 30, 2010 at 12:33 pm ) and the subject keeps coming up in one way or another. So I finally put all the pieces together and hope it makes sense.

~

You have decided to open a business in SL and you want to start creating as soon as possible. That is great, but one of the most important things you will need is a name. You may think that you can worry about that later, but as so much is based off the name, and so much has to include the name, it is a good idea to try to start with that as early on as you can.

Naming your store/business :

Coming up with a name is not a joke, you do need to take the name seriously as it is as much of a lure to your customer as your product is.

Do not settle on just one name, as you may find that a change is needed. Make sure that the name is easy to understand in text and voice, that there is no confusion over how it should be spelled when searching for it. Also you need to make sure that it doesn’t sound too closely like another in voice.

Work out in advance an abbreviation of your name, or what customers will break it down into – because we all know that can happen. If the abbreviation of your store name is also way too close to another, don’t go there.

Take your name on the road : By this I mean search everywhere for it – one of my absolute pet peeves are those that use the name of other well established businesses and think it doesn’t matter. It does matter!  there are stores I will never give my money, because I cannot bring myself to give it to people who do not respect the hard work of others. I am not the only one that thinks that way, so do as much as you can to ensure you start off on the right foot.

Start with Search in world. Type the name of your intended business in every single tab in search. The reason for all of the tabs is that some businesses are not listed in search places. Some rely on classified ads to advertise their location. Name tab seems not necessary, but over the years SL has used many words as names, and if your business name is in fact a last name previously used,  it may be a business somewhere, or it will definitely trigger things in customers.

After you have scoured search, move to Marketplace, Apez.biz, SLUniverse – SLU is not a product site but archives could be very useful. These are all Second Life product sites. There are often businesses that do not have land in world to sell their goods, but do have an established business in one or more of these avenues. They may have also had land issues and be only temporarily on these sites only, that does not mean however that because they do not have an in world premises that you can use their name.

Next move is to google or whatever browser search engine you use. Search not only the name, but also add Second Life, SL , and the name of the types of items you will be selling with the name. This gives you various ways the name could come up. Also try using the inbuilt search in some of your favourite blogs that may cover the type of items you will be producing. I have found that often if the name of the store is not in the title, that a blog post containing an item from that store wont hit a google search for pages and pages.

Now back in world it is conference time. Ctrl click on all the names of people in your friends list that you trust enough to share some info about your upcoming business with. Tell them that you are planning a business and you would like to know if any of them are aware of a business with the name you are planning…then ask them politely if they would mind searching in their inventories by typing the name with the exact spelling you plan to use. While they are doing this you should also be doing this, because sometimes the name you select could be one you already subconsciously know but did not realise.

If none of these come up with the name you have chosen…

Congratulations you now have your store name .

Rebranding: Over the years I have seen many stores change their brands, whether just for a change of pace for themselves, or to give the whole brand a new face, the same rules apply. If you find that the name you want to take on is close to another, again DO NOT GO THERE. I cannot say this enough.

In RL there are laws that stop this from happening, and I do wish that LL would make some sort of name registry, so that just like our avatar names, a store name cannot be repeated. Adding something different to the end or begining does not make it better either.

There are millions of names available to you, and in the interest of fair play you should use one that is not the same as someone elses. But if fair play isn’t a motivator think of it this way, any ill will that business/brand has ever given to a customer or event, or whatever in SL you will take onto your new business. On the otherside you may think they are so popular so it can only benefit you, well that means they have brand loyalty and that is going to make potentially thousands of people hate your guts.

Also convincing yourself you sell different items so again it wont matter, it does it ALWAYS does.

Two fashionistas walk into a bar…

Just kidding, but two people are wanting to go store hopping, one says to the other lets go to store A , person 2 has only heard bad things about store A and convinces person 1 to not bother. Store A is not the same Store A person 2 had heard of, it was a new store that didn’t google. Also imagine this in voice, so many people spend hours a day in skype and SL voice chatting more than texting, again if your store is ZUME and your friend tells you all about how ZOOM was around first, well it wont matter if you have an accent or not, you’re going to be percieved as BAD for not caring about your fellow creators.

 

Naming your products:

When you name your vendors (the prims which you sell your items from) whatever you put in the name section, is the name the folder becomes if you set it to sell contents only. If you box your items inside of a vendor, then the name you give your box will unpack to a folder with that exact name.

Either way, you must always start with your name – and stick to the same method each release. This is a good thing to think of when naming your business, keeping it short makes it easier when labeling. On a sidenote, it is a must to name your items with your store name first because not only does it help make finding your items faster, but instills brand recognition as well as putting all purchases in the same place. If a person buys a red bikini and white shorts, then some orange shoes and none of those have names in front, they will end up all over the place, and shock horror some people don’t put things away, so your items just end up rubble.

Try and refrain from adding characters you don’t use in your regular logo/brand in the naming of inventory items. It may or may not push your items up and down a persons inventory, but it also makes searching more difficult.

example : The Store – Cute Coat – blue

It is also important to put your store name, or a recognisable abbreviation on each item you are selling, no matter how many items are in a product.

example : The Store – Cute Coat – Blue Jacket

The Store – Cute Coat – Blue Shirt

The Store – Cute Coat – Blue  Undershirt

The Store – Cute Coat – Blue Collar (Chest)

Helpful Hint : If you are making clothing, when you create the items in appearance you can make outfit, name the folder The Store – Cute Coat – Blue and then check the box that says name items same as folder. Then every single basic layer will name automatically for you. Then when adding extras such as ‘with garters’ or ‘wear with pants’ you can add those pieces if multiples the same way. There are always time savers.

Your name on your items is also advertising, think of it as brand recognition, even though only text, the constant scrolling past your name embeds itself in the consumers subconscious. This is also why it is very important to name every item. Using search in inventory to find shorts may result in hundreds of pairs. If your brand shows up in that search it may be what encourages the customer to put yours on over another label, just because seeing the name of your store triggers the good feelings they have about your product.

Landmarks and notecards are not a guarantee to keep your items branded, as many will delete those as soon as they unpack. If you do not have the name of your store on your items and or vendors/boxes I really do urge you to change that as soon as possible.

Logos should be legible:

Be as creative as you want with the items you create, but when it comes to your logo keep it as simple as possible. Simple does not have to mean boring, some of the most basic of logos in RL and SL come off looking incredibly stylish. A customer should never need to stand on their head with one eye half closed, while looking backwards through a mirror, to work out your store name.

Lastly for now:

DO NOT ADD OTHER STORES TO YOUR SEARCH TAGS. If you have a store, do not try and profit off the branding of another. In Shapes stores this is one of those things that are deemed ok, because they do actually have a reason for mentioning other stores – but I suggest actually asking permission of the creator of the other brand, this also can lead to product awareness of your brand to them that may lead to referals, so it cannot hurt to be polite.

But if you don’t make shapes, don’t list other stores in your search just to come up in search when people are looking for them, it is wrong, and also false advertising. Many brands these days are legally trademarking their names, so it could lead to more trouble than it is worth, also again, if I or people I know see your store come up in searching for a well known brand, you just look bad, again no money for you.

To put it a different way, a business in SL is as much about heart and passion as it is about money. A brand name can become as much an extension of a person as their avatar name. So please consider the feelings of others if not just for business sake, these stores mean things to people, and coming in and just taking what someone has built is an awful thing to do.

 

Now that I can finally mark that off the draft page, o/ and got it out of my system, lets move on to fashion. First off Exile has gone crazy and released a billion new styles last week, as well as new textures that have roots or not roots and some even have streak options in all colours as well as extensions on one of them – in this case I am calling it my Curio Cleavage framing hair.

One of the styles Whimsy loved so much that she went and bought it from looking at it on my head, didn’t even give me a chance to press publish. I am making her wait for the pants though, so the pants are the latest in Naith Smit Designs new Female Range, yes fans of NSD can now be all fulfilled. These pants are so cute, I just love the detailing on the rollover waistband. You can also wear the pants without the band, and still have a lovely finished look. They come in more colours than the ones shown, but I wanted to just give a little taste of these for now.

The top I am wearing is from DCNY, recently taken over by Anessa Stine with Dawn Memorial, and the change has been wonderful for the brand, the styles are coming out more frequently and have a very good feel for what is wanted right now. The colours are great and this is just one of the natural pack of colours for the soft scoop neck tank. I really like the front of this, but like the back lots too, as it makes it a little more provocative and you can show off those perfect shoulderblades.

Also new is the Chic skin by Curio, again a completely new face with lovely make ups, these are a mix of simple and fantasy. The noir with the deeper liner and lips is hell sexy. I kind of wish that Gala would take all her previous skins make ups and make them all tats, so that we can have everything we love in all sorts of combinations. I mentioned recently that she has also done the cleavage enhancements for the skins. Personaly I have always like the softness of the Curio cleavage line, but these are woah!. I generally would not wear an enhancer with this style top, as there is no visible support or lift in the garment. But I am going to pretend I had a boob job and they are just standing to attention on their own.

Now if you ever read my posts from way way back, when I used to work more in the public eye. You may remember that my favourite shoes for working were the Talyns by Enkythings, they had such a great style, and professional look for heels in SL, and were perfect for wearing dressy casual as well. Well Enkythings has rereleased them in sculpted form and they are just as wonderful. They come in some really lovely colours, and the range of colour has you covered i think for all fabrics. So make sure if you were a talyn fan, and love a more mature shoe that you go and try them on.

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Status

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Chic – Curio by Gala Phoenix

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Alyssa – Exile

Clothes:

Miami Trousers – NSD

Soft Scoop Tank – DCNY

Shoes/Boots:

Talyn – Enkythings

Accessories:

Parade Pearls Ring & Earrings – MOOD

Sex & The City Bag – GLOW Studios

 

The Official Hair Fair Flickr Contest for 2011 has begun. Starting today and ending on the 19th of June you can upload 8 pictures featuring hair in some way. The theme of the event is Seasons, and we hope that gives people some fun and exciting challenges. The prizes as every year are awesome, and the 3 main winners and 7 runners up will get access to Hair Fair 2011 a day early, as well as their pictures displayed at the fair.

If you have any questions regarding the contest, or want to donate prizes contact Ashia Tomsen, who is the committee member looking after this event.

If you would like to see some of the previous years entries here are the pools 2008 , 2009 , 2010

Below is a list of the incredible stores who will be donating prizes for this years Hair Fair Flickr Contest, with prizes being added daily.
Action
^;^CaTwA^;^
Cynful
ChiChickie
DCNY
Discord Designs
Discord Designs
Emo-tions
Enigma
Hairoin
Idiosyncrasy
Kmadd
LeLutka
L+N Signature
Magoa
Malevay Studios (Meeroos!)
Mechanized Life
Milestone Creations
MINA Hair
MOOD
Nikita Fride
Rezispa Loc
Rock Candy
Sysy’s
Tekeli-li
TenFifteen
Tutti Fruitti
Vanity hair
VR Studio
W Winx

* If you would like to donate a prize, please contact Ashia Tomsen in world via notecard stating the prize you would like to donate and your LM. You dont have to be a hair designer to donate a prize…

 

First off a reminder that the Annual Hair Fair Flickr Contest starts tomorrow 23rd May, all the info is here

Ok so now that I finally got around to taking some Bloom pics, I feel inferior in contrast to ones such as these by so many talented people. One day in the future I may be able to take prettier pics of them, because they are truly inspirational. See that is the phenomenon that is the Bloom doll in Second Life at the moment, the desire to take a simple yet adorable avatar and run wild with it.

The first thing I thought of when I saw them a few weeks ago with Emma and Turnip, was that this would be an incredible oppurtunity to pull out some older items, especially themed outfits and costumes. They really are a lot of fun and THAT is the reason for it IMO. They are referred to as ‘they’ ‘them’ and so on, where as the usual thing to do in Second Life is to say ‘we’ and ‘I’ or ‘my’. Over the years we have all become so in tune with our personal mesh avatars that ‘dressing up’ became ‘ getting dressed”.

The Bloom Doll avatar by Emma Gilmour has given many people in Second Life that second chance at being whimsical, to want to stop and smell the flowers and explore the inside of a dew drop. I have seen so many incredible images evolve from the Bloom group, would the work be the same if not Bloomified? I don’t think so.

The other thing I have noticed about the Bloom dolls is that it has brought people together, while I know that often friends gather and socialise in SL, the Bloom release had pics surfacing of up to 8 fashionistas in one place at one time – imagine the inventory strain on the servers of that sim – and while I do not profess to know the ins and outs of their usual gatherings, it just struck a lovely cord thinking that it was in fact the dolls that did that, the fun they must have had coming up with different looks, and just the pure girlyness of it all.

But do not despair there is a man in there too. Clark is the male version of the Bloom dolls, and he is very debonair. The one quirky feature he has is the twirly mustache, of course to show him as male from the get go. But I had a thunk on that, and went to check out Discord Designs and some facial hair. A few demos later I was ready for action, because now my guy doesn’t look the same as the other Clarks about town. I also got the version of the mustache in prim as well for a more 3d look.

If you missed being new in Second Life, as in went straight from rezzed to fabulous, then the Bloom doll is also going to give you that Second Chance to explore and be creative in a way unlike you have in years, if ever. It is also another reason to sort through all of your old hair, and be a lot more creative as the Bloom dolls do not come with hair, and the editing of hair is a skill you will need to master.

They also come with their own doll skin and shape, but you can of course use your own shape, or make a new one. Many have said that these avatars would be great for the children in Second Life, but I don’t think they should be the only ones having all the fun…try having your own Bloom Doll experiences and make sure you post your pics in the group, there is a contest going on at the moment also.

Now on another note and speaking of children, one of the stand out stores for me for Shoe Fair was a kids store R(s)W which is owned by Robin Sijourner Wood, who many of you will know is the lady that redid a lot of the templates we create clothing on – from Chip Midnights adaptions – and also has a lot of tutorials around the web. I did not know she was creating at the moment, and I sure didn’t expect shoes, but there they were, and as everyone knows, kids stuff is just cute adult stuff – as in 99% of the time it is wearable by either – I fell in love with the MaryJanes that look like my old Clark school shoes, and the saddle shoes that are just perfect. Both styles are only 150 each and that makes them a steal for sure. So if you didn’t give the booth a proper look last time you were there, you best be going back.

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

aDORKable

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Bloom skin supplied with Avatar

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Lily 05d (heavily modified ) – Aoharu

Heraldo (mustache), Scott ( Goatie ), Carter – Discord Designs

Clothes:

Toonip Bloom Avatar , Clark Bloom Avatar – Surf Co.

50’s Poodle set – BareRose

Saville Row Suit – 5th & Oxford

Shoes/Boots:

MaryJanes – R(S)W @ Shoe Fair

City Walk – Shiny THings

Accessories:

 

 

More than one post in one day, the shock of it all. But then I only realised today that skin/shape expo ends tomorrow so you all need to go back and check it out all over again.

The skin I am wearing is from Adam n Eve, it is called Lyndsey and is a release at the fair. The skin comes in the new base with make ups and bases and brows options. The standout for this skin for me is the more youthful and fun make up, especially in the eyes. Also for those that know their supermodels the lips are familiar in shape as well.

I went Camo for the post due to the fabulous hair I got from BC322 the other week, I showed you one of my newer styles, but saved this one. How fun I thought it was when I thought it was rollers, but on closer inspection realised it was handgrenades, how hilarious.

Trailing downwards to the stunning new shoes from Slink at Shoe Fair, the Echo shoes are shoe fetishist fun. I have actually only recently seen a girl on Flickr do this in RL to her shoes, and it got a lot of praise. She went a little more extreme though by putting a lock in every buckle so they couldn’t be removed, and then tells the story of how she forgot to mark what key belonged to what lock, so it took her some time to remove them all. Anywho the Echo are sexy and I really like the squared off toe and sturdy heels.

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

aDORKable

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Lyndsey – Adam n Eve @ Skin/Shape Expo

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Sweet Pine – BC322

Clothes:

RB Tank – Maitreya

Denim Mini – Page 3

Kini Camo – Cynful

Shoes/Boots:

Echo Heels – SLink @ Shoe Fair

Accessories:

Camo Nails – WTG

 

So now one usually to change shapes – well actually it has become an annual thing only with Skin/Shape Expo. So as the Expo is still in full swing, I am wearing some shapes with my own as the first one.

I am wearing the shapes from LePetale, and they look good with the Layla skin from Glam Affair that was a release at the fair. The Layla skin has incredibly beautiful make ups, as well as lipsticks on a seperate layer – not shown – the tones available and body work are as usual superb, so DEMO DEMO DEMO.

The shoes I am wearing are of course from Maitreya Gold, but are this years featured item for Shoe Fair, they are a Charity Item for the length of the fair, so make sure to drop by and grab them, because Salience with socks or leggings are HOT, you can also choose to wear the feathers at the front or not, I have turned them off for this post.

I am having fun with gold in this post, usually I am a silver go to girl, but with the lovely details in gold on the handbag, belt from the Zaara skirts and bangles from MOOD, all is YUM. I am also in love with the new stuff from Sea Hole, a great store that just keeps releasing more beautiful items that are must haves. The top and shorts I am wearing in this post are just gorgeous, and the colour pallette used there lately is perfect, especially to mix with items from stores like Miel.

Also wearing the Matte nails from MStyle, this is the set 1 set 2 just got released in deep pastels that are fun and fresh to wear also.

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

aDORKable

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Layla – Glam Affair @ Skin/Shape Expo

Shapes by LePetale @ Skin/Shape Expo

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Lara II – Maitreya

Clothes:

Tab Top Shorts, Tuxedo Bib Shirt – Sea Hole

Shoes/Boots:

Salience Socks & Tights – Maitreya Gold @ Shoe Fair

Accessories:

Pangani Bangles – MOOD

Long Nails Matte II – Mstyle

Niti Skirt Belt – Zaara

Natasha Bag – Orta @ Culture Shock

 

Colours in the air, everywhere I look around – sing it you know you want to. Ok so my post today is like this event, that event, and don’t forget that one, so make sure if you haven’t been you pack a lunch.Firstly though OMG HOW AWESOME ARE THESE SHOES!

No seriously, love all over the texture of these incredible loafers when they were shown to me. Treads is a new to me brand, and I am so loving this style. I had a pair similar in black from Italy that were so loved and I used to wear them all the time going out dancing all night, and then one stupid day I had to pick up something that spilled all over them and ruined the leather, sad face for days I was. Not only am I over the moon on the design, but how killer are the the colours available, and they come in small and large in the pack, so unisexy for the win.

Also from shoe fair that makes me giggle, is this adorable caged bird ring by bellballs. The concept of it goes so well with Bliensen + MaiTai’s Culture Shock release of the Grimms Bros Beware of the Apples jewelry, which of course is a take on Snow White it is just beautiful. Another item from Culture Shock is the fabulous vintage style teeshirt from Fishy Strawberry, they come with three different prints in various colours and do actually have cuff prims for the sleeves, but I opted for without.

The adorable ruffle skirt Niti is from Zaara and comes in such pretty colours, I am so in love with the belt that comes with too, it has a silver buckle or a gold option and fits neatly to the body. Now speaking of bodies, while I haven’t shown the one for the skin, you only have to look at the face to fall for the new Gaia skins by PXL. Ok maybe not on my shape the loving 😛 but it is such a gorgeous look for PXL a much softer face than usual. There are also an incredible amount of options for the overall body, including different cleavage sizes, freckles, hairbases and brow colours, then you have the lipsticks and eyeshadow tattoos also.

I really hope Hart expands on the make ups for Gaia because these are definitely some of his best work and wow on getting glitter to look so incredibly close to glitter. Make sure you DEMO DEMO DEMO Gaia she is gorgeous on everyone I have seen wearing her so far.

 

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Exposeur

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Gaia – PXL @ Skin/Shape Expo

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Enaa – 69

Clothes:

Niti Skirt – Zaara

Revolutionary Tee – Fishy Strawberry @ Culture Shock

Argyle Socks – Aoharu

Shoes/Boots:

77 Loafers – Treads @ Shoe Fair

Accessories:

Caged Ring – Bellballs @ Shoe Fair

Grimms Necklace Beware of Apples – Bliensen + Maitai @ Culture Shock

 

12 minutes and counting until this years Shoe Fair Opens its doors. The build is wonderful and put together at the 11th hour. Big kudos to the organisers that got it all together with such a tight deadline, and the stores that set up their spaces so beautifully.

My first shoe to feature are the K.I.A shoes by LeLutka, these are the first foot in shoe style that LeLutka has done since I think it was 2009 with their peeptoe shoes. KIA are just fabulous, and the colours are divine. Full rich summery colours that you can really sink your fashionable teeth into, one of my favs is the ruby, which is like a blood orange. The HUD is so easy to use, you can have it for V1 or V2 shoes at the press of a button, the skin tones are all based around the LeLutka skins, so easy to tint to other skin brands, and simple as if you own LeLutka skins. The style is so summery and fun, but definitely sturdy so you can play and look fabulous at the same time.

Shown here with some outfits from Kyoot, the one on the left being from Culture Shock and the Jewelry is the new release from MOOD which is actually also at Shoe Fair from today.

Ok two minutes left, so HURRY UPPPP.

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Diesel Works

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Gem – LeLutka

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Biggest , Material – LeLutka

Clothes:

Ryn Jumpsuit – Kyoot @ Culture Shock

The ground beneath her feet (darkened way) Dress – Kyoot

Shoes/Boots:

KIA – LeLutka @ Shoe Fair

Accessories:

Pangani Set – MOOD @ Shoe Fair

Long Nails Matte Pack – MStyle

 

Another of the wonderful new skin releases from Skin/Shape Fair, with the added beauty of clothing from Culture Shock and Shoes from Shoe Fair. What an explosion of events, no one could ever complain about nothing to do this week, I even heard that Home Expo opens soon too. I cannot wait to see that too.

May is the latest skin from Curio, and the skin is va va voom HOT. The first thing of notice is that the lips are full, pouty and just barely anything other than a slight hint of colour or gloss. I am loving that nakey lip look a lot. The eyes are dreamy, and the excitement of the Skin/Shape fair is that you can purchase Cleavage options for the skins in up to five different variations. With the roots hair now a big thing from LeLutka I am really in love with the dark blonde brows and blonde hair, but then I used to rock that a lot anyway. The way I see it, it is damn obvious I colour my hair and am not a natural blonde, if one day my hair is blue and the next it’s deep red :P.

So if Curio skins up until now have been too young looking on you, May is the answer, DEMO DEMO DEMO. Now speaking of hair from LeLutka, OMG Biggest is Gorgeous. Such a full on hairstyle that would have any Jersey Girl or The Nanny in their element. I love it, I am so hoping that this hair brings back Sofia because she always wanted bigger hair more often.

The stunning outfit is from Baiastice, and is their Culture Shock release, the colours on the side are only a few of the ones available, and it is low slung at back so the top will look great with dress pants or jeans too. The shoes are also from Baiastice and their latest release for Shoe Fair, there are also other versions that get higher and higher platforms, I will have to practice walking in those.

The accessories from Je Suis are also items at Culture Shock and lots of fun, the bangles have texture change options for each individual bangle, so you can do lots of variations.

So stay tuned for more. Shoe Fair starts tomorrow on the 14th and Skin/Shape fair is on now, and if you do some looking around, you might find that one is not so far from the other *hint hint*

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Diesel Works

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

May – Curio @ Skin/Shape Expo

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Biggest – LeLutka

Clothes:

Mattina Chiffon Dress – Baiastice @ Culture Shock

Shoes/Boots:

Maxine Sandal – Baiastice @ Shoe Fair

Accessories:

Asymetrique Bangles, Divine Sunglasses  – Je Suis @ Culture Shock

 

It is coming this weekend, the long anticipated Shoe Fair 2011, you have all seen the posters, the teasing shots and announcements made about contests and previews. Well this Saturday all of that is going to come to a head with the opening day, and I for one cannot wait.

Here are some things from their blog

 

2011 Shoe Fair press release

Step Forward For A Charitable Cause
Get your shoe fix at the fourth annual Shoe Fair, coming this spring

This May 14 – 27 will mark the 4th annual Shoe Fair in Second Life, where over 50 vendors will be displaying their latest footwear trends with partial proceeds to benefit Soles4Souls (soles4souls.org), a charitable organization that collects shoes and distributes them to people in need all over the world.

Vendors will include Bax Coen, Courtisane, Decoy, Ingenue, Lassitude & Ennui, n-Core, R2, slink, Pixel Mode, Maitreya, and many others – including newcomers LeLutka.

The fair will feature a stunning build by Tya Fallingbridge to showcase hundreds of shoes in one convenient location. Attending shoe enthusiasts can look forward to the unveiling of new releases which will be available exclusively for the duration of the fair with proceeds going to this year’s charity. These new releases will only be offered in retailers’ stores following the event.

You can follow announcements about shoe fair on Plurk, Facebook and Twitter.

For more information, contact Phoenix Chapman, Event Organizer, at phoenixchapman@gmail.com.

 

Ok so before I post on the stunning new skins featured at Skin/Shape Expo that opened today, I want to point you in the direction of a post that Grazia Horwitz did on her blog More than meets the eye.Now while you may or may not agree with what she said, or what I said in my comment, there are also a few other things I would like to point out.

If you look at every single – known to me – Feed and many In World Promo Group or Flickr Group…the majority of them, and I mean MAJORITY are PAID FOR, and run by BLOGGERS.

Ihearts – Blogger

Fashion Feed – Blogger

Shopaholic – Blogger

ChicCritique – Blogger

Style Academy – Blogger

Fashion Planet – Blogger  ( now closed )

What’s New SL – Blogger

Skin Addiction – Blogger

Sales Consolidated – Blogger

Nocturne – Blogger  (now closed)

Also not to leave out Freestyle and FabFree two of the biggest blog/groups for free items whos work is just amazing.

There was also a full wiki started by the book Sisters years ago that I cannot find the info on, but again Bloggers.

While I understand that many are also content creators, the majority started as bloggers first. So when you start yacking about how bloggers shouldn’t be sent stuff, and only want free stuff, think about how much we do pay for not only to do blog posts, but also to maintain the tools that are out there for store blogs, notices and picture promotion.

Not to mention things like Windlight settings that appear in 3rd party viewers, a lot of those came from bloggers, tutorials on so many things pertaining to Second Life come from bloggers, both fashion and news style blogs. I would also lay claim to knowing that it is often bloggers that help with finding faults, beta test items, and sometimes actually give advice on styling, business ideas and even design ideas.

Ok I said more than I planned too, but it is that kind of topic, and regardless of all said, I love blogging, I love interaction with designers and all my readers, and I love being in some small way a contributor to Second Lifes community. So if I don’t say thank you often enough I am sorry, and send a big thank you to everyone. I also love being a part of a group of bloggers that without ever meeting I believe that they like me want to give back something in the way they can, not all bloggers want stuff for nothing in return – because that is the actual language missing in these debates, it is not free stuff it is items that in return are promoted to hopefully increase business for a store or event.  Just like all designers don’t not answer IMs or Notecards and are too scary to IM if help is needed, grouping people together that way is hurtful, and after all that many of us do do, really not fair.

Ok onto a lady who used to blog up a storm on not only Freestyle selflessly, but also her own blog, and is also an incredibly talented skinmaker. The store is Idiosyncrasy, the skin is Natasha and the cleavage options are OMG. The Natasha skin is very pretty, with freckles tattoo options, hair base tattoo options, brows in dark or light, teeth options and now three cleavage options, and the sc one is SUPER CLEAVAGE lol.

I love that the skins can go from sophisticated to girl next door with ease, and the teeth are so cute, especially with my piercings not looking out of place as they are only partially open.The make up on the skins is base natural to elegant and fun, all inspired by this seasons MAC SurferGirl collection and Biba cosmetics, as Ashia is a huge make up addict in RL.

The hair I am wearing with all the pics is from Maitreya, I really love the new textures she has added to the familiar favourites, giving everything a fresh new look. The clothing is from Aoharu, and I am especially in love with the bow wide denim pants, so fantastic looking on, and not too low on the hips for the more modest out there.

Make sure you visit the Skin/Shape Expo as soon as you can, because the skins and shapes are amazing.

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Diesel Works

Equipment Used:

VR Studio 3.0 and HUD and Library for location shoots – VR Foundry Mainstore , VR Foundry @ The Deck

Skin Worn:

Natasha – Idiosyncrasy @ Skin/Shape Expo

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Jordyn, Ymre, Lara – Maitreya

Clothes:

Bow Wide Denim Pants, Bowtie Blouse – Aoharu

Mini Length Trench, Bow Wide Denim Pants – Aoharu

BodySuit – No9 Nylons

Shoes/Boots:

Funny Girl Flats – Periquita

Allure – Maitreya Gold

Accessories:

Shield Rings – LaGyo