I feel like I haven’t blogged for months, but it has only been a few weeks. Helping get Hair Fair 2011 underway is always a huge undertaking. This year due to the incredible committee we have it has been amazing so far, with so much more fun to be had I am sure.

The first hairstyles I am showing are from Discord Designs. I actually met the creator at Hair Fair 2008 while she was setting up, and Kallisti just floored me with her braided styles. To watch her be able to bring her visions even further with the advancements in SL since then – with sculpties and tattoo layers – has been amazing.

The majority of her hairstyles are unisexy, so make sure you try everything, as well as grabbing her goodie bag at the fair. Next up is LoQ, the styles this year are fabulous, and all named after alchohol lol. I have been watching LoQ and her advancements in hair making have been really impressive. She recently released new colours it appears, and they are vibrant and really nice to wear. These three styles are just fab for lazing by the pool or of course the beach.

The bikinis I have on are from DCNY, and if you have been to Hair Fair you will have seen their logo on the wonderful Low Lag outfit they generously donated to us for use this year, between them and Exile donation wonderful hairbase tattoo layers, you don’t need to find your own deprim outfit at all – and it is FREE. I especially like this bikini because of the prints, and fabric, but moreso because you can wear the top as a top with its full coverage style.

I am also wearing the new flip flops from Maitreya, these are perfectly timed for me and everyone walking around in them. Definitely divine feet and anklet options. I will be wearing these all summer, but I will call them THONGS.

Lastly for this post is the Pr!tty hair, this is their first Hair Fair, and their three styles are just adorable. They all have attachments of feathered headbands, and the blonde style has extra length attachments as shown so your hair doesn’t move all over the place.

I love the sporty look incorporating these styles with the DCNY Sporty Dress, these are so cute and sexy. The best thing about them too is that they are really well colour balanced, and again you could totally utilise the parts in other looks.

I am wearing a new skin by Curio called Summer. I haven’t worn Acorn tone for a while, so I thought it was time I did, what with spending all week by the seaside at the Hair Fair builds. The build is incredible this year, I just love what Mel and Whimsy did with it, and how well layed out the space is, as Washu and Damien worked out a land plan well in advance. So many people have taken incredible pics of the build and all things related to and added them HERE to the Flickr pool, so if you have any, please add.

These are perfect make ups for Summer too, so aptly named. Light and not overly done, they have more of a natural look, even when made up. The lipsticks are more matte in this release and the eyes are softer. So DEMO DEMO DEMO.

Looking for all the locations of Hair Fair this year, you will find them HERE , Newdoll spent hours gathering them all up for us, and you can also get them in world on a card from the greeters we have at every entrance. Also if you get greeted but don’t grab the card, or book, you can click the greeter prim in the centre of the circle and it should regreet you to get another.

Also please note that if you haven’t heard already, this year for the first time we changed the rules on donations. Instead of one wig donating 50%, all wigs donate 15% or more – depending on the choice of the designer, that is why you are probably noticing signs with different amounts all over the place – but no matter what, every single sale will donate a portion to Wigs for Kids.

 

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:

Summer – Curio by Gala Phoenix

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Pics:

Hair:

Lola, Lotta, Lilith, Gaijin, CHarlie – Discord Designs @ Hair Fair

Clothes:

Halter Bikini – DCNY

Shoes/Boots:

Flip Flops – Maitreya Gold

Accessories:

Skin Worn:

Summer – Curio by Gala Phoenix

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

2nd pics:

Hair :

Liqueur, Sake, Vodka – LOQ Hairs @ Hair Fair

Clothes:

Halter Bikini – DCNY

Shoes/Boots:

Flip Flops – Maitreya Gold

Accessories:

3rd pics:

Hair :

Athena, Indie (braid version), Local Native – Pr!tty @ Hair Fair

Clothes:

Sporty Dress – DCNY

Shoes/Boots:

Flip Flops – Maitreya Gold

Accessories:

Tennis Pieces from Tennis GIrl set – BareRose

Love this dress it is so darn sexy, a tad revealing but incredible work done on the texturing and craftmanship of putting it together so well. What better way to show off these new shoes too, not so new in style, but new in textures. This is a super duper quickie post , but wanted to make sure you didn’t miss out on the fantastic flf hair from Elikatira, a stunning short style that looks fantastic in the white. Mel loves white hair, and this white is superb.

I love that this hair is short enough to expose the faint line of hairbase I have on in black, one thing I wish more of in SL was the ability to wear wigs, but as our own hair is a wig in reality it doesn’t come across. So this is my make do do.

The necklace I am wearing is actually a bracelet, I saw it was no mod but resizable and took a gamble. I love this as a choker as the necklace style in the same store was not really as exciting to me. So this definitely works.It has an elephant on it, so cute.

Ok so much for quickie, the shoes I am wearing are peeptoe pumps from MStyle and you have seen the floral collection I am sure, but these are the new citrus strong colours that were released and they are glorious, so demo demo demo.

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Fri.day

oOo

Equipment Used:

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

Skin Worn:

Odette – Lara Hurley @ Ch1c Event

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Again – Elikatira for FLF

Clothes:

Stretched Crochet Dress – DCNY

Shoes/Boots:

Rivea Pumps Lemon – MStyle

Accessories:

largecoin bracelet-silver (modified to be worn as a choker) – ruchica @ Accessory Fair

 

Ok so before I forget, Diesel Works is having their annual SALE, which pretty much has everything at 50% off. But it is limited time only, so do not miss out on the bargains, I used Diesel Works poses in today’s post, so they are lots of fun.

Now speaking of lots of fun, the Apple rings from Addict are just darling. Very retro as the apple somehow was a huge embellishment in the 70’s. My mum actually had an apple pendant in green glass with gold embellishments when I was younger, that I adored. So, this set of Apple rings are a must for everyone, and they have a hint of sin surrounding them, with that whole Eve and the Apple thing. The necklace I am wearing is also from Addict, I do so love when Kianna gets accessory inspired, some of my favourite pieces are from her.

Another must have this week, is the Other hair from Elikatira. This style is definitely cutesy, as Elika says herself, and I for one am glad that cutesy is part of her broad repertoire. For another few days the Ch1c Birthday event is on, until the 19th to be exact, and I thought I better pull my finger out and get to showing you more items from it. Realises that yet again I forgot to include the Ballina Beach set that Whimsy and I created for it DOH!, you will just have to go look for yourself at that one.

The clothing items I am wearing are from Magoa – a brand owned by Keira Seerose the Chic Management leader herself – and Cynful. You can of course tell what item is Cynful due to the large amount of my bum showing from the leather tights lol. The Magoa item is actually a more detailed bodysuit/pants set, but I went with the top only, two birds one stone etc.

The skin I am wearing which is also from the event is by Lara Hurley. This skin is Odette and she is definitely impressive. A lovely range of tones, all the appropriate add ons, but it is more the overall features that I am finding really lovely. The eyebrows for one thing really captivated me, they are strong without being overly so. There is a nice blush to the face that can be considered as youthful glow, or just healthy living, and I really like the shape of the mouth/lips, full and petulent without coming off as overly sexified. All in all definitely a skin to try if you haven’t before. DEMO DEMO DEMO.

The shoes I have on are the newest release from SLink, they come with her new HUD, and the ability to walk on a heel the size of a nail. OH MY GOODNESS these shoes are sexy. But not only sexy, incredible created to not show the join of leg to ankle, with only the thinnest of straps. I personally think that these are shoes that should be bought by men, for their women, because there is not much else you would want to wear with them – if you know what I mean WINK WINK .

Toodles…

 

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Diesel Works Poses

Equipment Used:

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

Skin Worn:

Odette – Lara Hurley

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Other – Elikatira

Clothes:

Not that kind of girl bodysuit ( upper only ) – Magoa @ Ch1c Event

Leather tights – Cynful @ Ch1c Event

Shoes/Boots:

Lulu heels -SLink

Accessories:

Apple Rings, Start a riot Necklace – Addict

 

*Please note the accessories in the picture have been modified in PS to look naturally unworn*

At the moment Accessory Fair is in full swing, an Egyptian theme that has a lot of room for interpretation. I did go over and have a run through with Newdoll the other night. There were some amazing pieces on show, I picked up a few things while I was there. But do of course plan to go again, I think all fairs should be visited at least a minimum of three times over duration.

The set I am wearing is from MOOD one of the sponsors of the fair, which is located at the DIG sim, the Egiziano Dea set is a beautiful set, comprising of necklace, earrings and double bangle. The earrings have an Ankh look to them which I love, and the overall texturing is a divine mix of metals to create a hammered effect. The effect is gorgeous and really natural, so really perfect for all the natural tones coming out in fashion at the moment.

The colours definitely compliment the new bag by LeLutka part of the Summer 2011 release. Azufr3 Catteneo did an outstanding job on the bags that have been released, four in total, this one is adorable as a small over the shoulder wearable, and I think the added Gerbera flower attached at the front is just so sweet. A big welcome back to him too, as he has been traveling lots lately.

Speaking of the Summer 2011 collection, the Jumpsuit that I am wearing is part of it, the style is of course an all in one, but because of the thickness of the waistcinching belt, you could get away with changing tops which is nice for those that want a more versatile look. You can of course also buy the shorts as a seperate with a cinched upper portion in a more solid colour, so up to you which you feel you will get more use out of. The shorts are sculpted, and even though modify – I am wearing the medium with a minor edit to make a little bigger – you do get also the option of wearing an alpha layer underneath to hide any change of sticky outty bits…there are demos in the store though, so you can try before you buy.

The whole collection is outstanding, and the colours blend so well with either brights or more earthy colours. I am loving the sculpted versatility of the collection, so much funna.

The shoes I am really behind in showing you, are from GOS and are part of the “Pimp up your pumps” range. Not showing all, but these shoes have the option of changing not only the textures in various parts of the shoes, but also the added bonus of bows that you can turn on or off and contrast in colours. I found this a lot of fun especially when it came to the ballet versions, both the strap and maryjane versions.

The hair I am wearing is the Little hair that I mentioned last time, you know the little something release from Elikatira, it is so sweet and loosely styled, with a soft braid down the side at the front. I like hair that looks like you have actually lived in it, or actually do stuff in your day, like in RL how a tightly pinned do can end up with all sorts of strays throughout the day.

* heartfelt warm wishes go out to Cajsa today, who is in the process of losing her beloved cat. Losing a pet is devastating, and having to choose to do what is best for him/her over your own wants is incredibly hard to do. We love you Cajsa, all the best to you and your cat Cliff.

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

oOo

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:

Little – Elikatira

Clothes:

Jumpsuit – LeLutka

Shoes/Boots:

Pimp up your pumps Classic Platforms – Gos

Accessories:

Mompox bag – LeLutka

Egiziano Dea – MOOD @ Accessory Fair

 

Have you ever wondered what time period you would live in, if you were to travel back in time, or where born in another time. I remember being little and totally feeling that I should have lived somewhere between the 30’s and 60’s. I knew for certain that I wanted to be a doo wap girl – have no idea how to spell that, but you know the ones, the ones behind the lead singer doing all the back up vocals.

I also loved the fashion so much from those decades, even so far as the 20’s. But then wouldn’t being a teen in the 50’s or 60’s have been awesome too, I was obsessed with Gidget and Moondoggy, OMG he was so hot. Mind you that is just me being so Australian Americanised that I want everything to be like my favourite T.V shows. But then I also think about the fact that I adore bloomers, well pantaloons really, and all the layers and finery that comes with the era further back.

Can’t you just picture yourself in Gone with the Wind land lol. Trouble is I know nothing bout birthin no babies either, and as for the war, well no not interested. I kind of picture it being like Ever After with Drew Barrymore, but before the father dies, and when it is just him and her. Not terribly wealthy, but enough to not have to do anything really but be a Lady of the Court, oh and have someone tie up all my corset laces, because seriously, can you imagine having to do all that stuff yourself?

Anywho, there hasn’t been a time in my life that I haven’t loved the concept of pantaloons, the hippie revival look of a chemise top and baggy bloomers in crisp white. A barwench that is only tending bar to infiltrate some big conspiracy against the King, I have an overactive imagination I know. That is what makes Second Life so wonderful, we can be and do all those things if we want to , either by just dressing the part, or starting our own or joining another RP colony of sorts.

So if you need some of the fineries, or just want to feel all summery and carefree, then the new L’abel release is a MUST HAVE, not only in crisp white, but there are prints and colours in different styles and variations of this release. The styles are all super feminine and girly girl, you will squee with delight.

New hair from Elikatira too, called Something, I do admit that when I saw something and Little, the other style, I did IM Elika and ask for a something II so I could have a little something something. Butfor now I will have to settle for just a little something lol. The necklace I am wearing is from MIAO, a beautiful pendant, that comes on a ribbon with bow, now I admit that I wish there was a no bow option, or even a bow at back option, but regardless the pendant is divine and the length and shape of the neck portion is perfect.

The skin I am wearing which just like the necklace is for Ch1c’s Birthday event, is from Mynerva, it is called Bianca and has many tones and cleavage options, as well as smaller breast shading. It is very youthful which is kind of a thing when it comes to Mynerva skins in the past, but I would say that this one is a nice middle ground, youthful but not too young. So definitely give it a try and welcome back to Mynerva 🙂

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:

Bianca – Mynerva @ Ch1c Event

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

Something – Elikatira

Clothes:

Enna – L’abel ( Ivalde )

Shoes/Boots:

Mischa – LeLutka

Accessories:

Andel Pearl and Ribbon Necklace – MIAO @ Ch1c Event

 

Ok so Chic Management is having one last hurrah before summer is upon us, and that hurrah just happens to coincide with their one year anniversary. So what better way to do so than with a big bash, and what is the most funna about this event, is that everyone whether on purpose or just coinkydink, ended up making items that can totally be party wear.

On the left we have the stunning jeans from Tuttu Frutti, you know I am a huge fan of her print work and these just left me satisfied – I almost needed a cigarette after. The top I have on is from the House of Fox set, but I liked the combo a lot to mix and match with. My new love is the League release, but not the actual dresses, even though they are lovely, but OMG thank you Nena for releasing the belt portion as a seperate item, and the fat pack is a steal, I will be wearing those lots and lots.

The hair I have on is Voodoo, the 2011 version, as this was a style created for Kavars very first Hair Fair and one we met over…awww memories, he was so sweet and still is. It comes in the new roots options as well as the fun streaks options in all of the colours on the bangs portion of the hair. Just click and pick.

The other hair I have on is from Shag, this style is so pretty and fun, pulled back in the areas its needed so bits don’t get in your drinks as you party hearty. Make sure if you are a Shag fan you check out that they are also running their own competition for the upcoming Hair Fair. The winner gets to be the model for their HF release ads, and last years ads were so gorgeous.

Ducknipple not only dressed for the party, but also made a delightful necklace to go with this awesomely adorable party frock. Tiered perfection t makes me think of cake, which is ideal, and the black and pink goes so well with the black and pink feature parts of the Nardcotix leopard print heels. They are really pretty and fun to wear, and with solids like the outfit, the print is really cute.

Lastly on the right is my military party look, this creation is from sYs, and as usual really inspired fun, their sci fi style is great to wear to any occasion, but really has an impact at dressier event. I have paired this and the first look with the lovely new skully pumps from Lassitude and Ennui, they are a really nice kitten heel height, so if you aren’t a huge fan of high high heels, these are definitely worth checking out.

The prop and pose for the last shot is from aDORKable, the Official Hair Fair Posemakers, who have done it again with this prop/pose set. Can’t you just see a line of beauties all lined up in the powder room checking their make up, and applying more, and if no room they even included a hand mirror.

The make up I am applying is the Chelle eyeliner, and it is on top of the Odette skin by Lara Hurley. A lovely faced skin and stunning body, so be sure to demo demo demo.

Every single item shown today is from the Ch1c event, so be sure to check it out before the 19th when it ends. It starts tonight at midnight, and goes until then. Ch1c Event Slurl

While you are there you might also want to check out the collab that Whimsy and I did, under her brand W.Winx, it was a lot of fun to make, and we love the outcome, hope you do too.

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Helimayo

Equipment Used:

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

Skin Worn:

Odette – Lara Hurley @ Ch1c Event

Eyeliner Cleo Called Tattoo – Chelle @ Ch1c Event

Eyes:

Ellis – LeLutka

Lashes:

Natural Curl Sculpted Lashes – LeLutka

1st Me:

Hair:

There she goes – Shag @ Ch1c Event

Voodoo – Exile @ Ch1c Event

Clothes:

Chic Dress – Ducknipple @ Ch1c Event

Silver Surfer pants – Tutti Frutti @ Ch1c Event

Chic Ruffels ( top only ) – House of Fox

Vintage Chiffon Belt – League @ Ch1c Event

Lady Set – sYs @ Ch1c Event

Shoes/Boots:

Mana Moshi – Nardcotix @ Ch1c Event

Skully Pumps – Lassitude & Ennui @ Ch1c Event

Accessories:

aDORKable Lipstick Prop/pose – aDORKable Poses @ Ch1c Event

 

Wow aren’t my posts few and far between lately. I was in a slump for a bit, but I got some of my mojo back thankfully. Now I am just busy with the other fine committee members for Hair Fair preparations, but that is not until July 2nd so make sure and mark your calenders for Accessory Fair that starts before that.

New hair came out last week from Elikatira. As a fan of Elikas for many years, it makes me happy to see her making some of her classic styles again, not the same by any means, but along the line of some of her most famous uppydo’s. I have always been a fan of her half up and down hairstyles too, so this release of Break and Leah was with much joy.

Last night Whimsy and I were out shopping, and we came across a Sur+ satelite, yay for satelite stores because they really do remind you to visit the mains.As soon as I saw the items I have on it was love, the dress floored me, if it looked half as good on as it did on the rack I was in heaven, and it lived up to the vendor and more. Everything about this vintage classic style is pure love, I hope and pray that Sur+ has an urge to release these in other colours and prints, maybe a lighter cotton for summer…whatever she does I just need more.

The second print I bought I decided to just wear as a top with the great gaucho pants, also from Sur+. So very versatile and it is a whole new collection which you can actually buy as one big fat pack, unfortunatly I only saw that option after the fact, so be sure to look out for it. To bring out some of the blue in the print I am wearing the Yip Collection tote bag from BOOM, these are only available in some locations, one of them being their The Deck satelite – which makes me cheesey happy.

The other blue comes from the incredible new Mischa shoes from LeLutka, now in the composite image I have one pair missing, those are the colour I am wearing in the first pic, I ran out of squares lol. Not only is there a solids pack and a collage pack – the mixed straps variety – but you get an option on the hud with this release to change the soles colours WOOHOOO, so you really get three pairs of shoes in one, an awesome option and lots of fun, because now co-ordinating is so much easier.

I really love how the straps wrap around the ankle, done so well as to not look like they have to cover up that join of av leg to sculpty foot. Also the heel is amazing, as either a platform style or cut out wedge, it depends on how you want to phrase it. But either way stop talking about them and just love wearing them, like I am going to…

Click HERE to SLURL’s Page.

Poses by :

Helimayo

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:

Break , Leah – Elikatira

Clothes:

Vojeto Dress, Baobab Dress ( top only ) , Amalfi Pants  – Sur+

Shoes/Boots:

Mischa – LeLutka

Accessories:

Pangani bangles – MOOD

Cathedral Set – Essentia

Take it easy Tote YIP Collection – BOOM @ The Deck

 

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: