Otherworldly

The Skin Fair opens today and I’ve got another new release, this one from the Plastik, to show you. The Astrali skin comes with a huge array of options and in a wide selection of tones, allowing it to be used both for regular wear and for more fantastical purposes. I decided to pair it with some recent releases from Gallactic to start with, before stripping down a bit more. After all, the whole skin matters, not just the pretty face.

No, I wasn’t thinking directly of the sin, but I am not opposed to a bit of sinning. However, it was the lovely vintage vanity from Trompe Loeil at this months FaMESHed that inspired the title and provided the setting for this look at another new skin from Adam n Eve set to debut tomorrow at the Skin Fair.

I’ve been doing a lot of fantasy looks of late, but the latest One Bad Pixel release as well as a new furniture set from HANDverk for The Men’s Department obviously lent itself to something very different. With it, I also have another preview of the Skin Fair, this time in the form of a new Tuli skin.

So many gorgeous new things, so little time. That continues to be my bane, though I imagine that is only too common. Plus, these things do have to come together naturally for me to be really pleased with them. Like this one, which definitely grew quite organically. I had had a number of the pieces sitting in my inventory for a while, and then this fountain by DECO showed up at Collabor88 for March and provided the (almost) final piece of the puzzle.

If you’d like to try something new in SL and get a bunch of cool stuff, then Global Domination by Hottie Cooterati might be for you. Its a game that involves searching for items and solving riddles. Some quite easy, some very hard. I played the game right on the launch night and persistent as I am, it kept me up to 4.30 in the morning as I insisted on trying to finish it all in one go. Of course, there was a race at the time to be among the first three to finish to get one of the grand prizes. I didn’t manage, but I was definitely not disappointed by the prizes available to everyone who completes the game. I also enjoyed the actual game play; the scripting of the HUD that you purchase to participate with is well done and the puzzles were fun and engaging.

Need to look your best in space? Then Gallactic may be what you need. They’ve recently released a number of different body suits, each shiny and sexy, some more revealing (much more revealing, even) than others. I picked up a few in my favourite colours, slipped into one of the Nephilim skins from Nomine and dug out some suitable poses from CnS.

I’ve already shown the mesh drapery from Maxwell Graf of Rustica in a previous post, but they most definitely deserve more of a spotlight feature as well. They are lush, versatile and just the thing for changing the feel of a slightly cold and empty room to make it seem more cosy and intimate.

Also shown in these photos is the special Valentine edition of Claire from Tuli, the new Timea ankle boots from lassitude & ennui and the newest hair from Wasabi Pills.

I am in fantasy-clothing heaven. First the Muses gave us the Rainha gown and now the Shieldmaiden has been released. It uses similar elements to the Rainha gown but instead of leather and chain mail you get leather and linen, for an elegant yet slightly rustic look. As with the Rainha gown you can combine pieces from different sets to mix up the colours and this is helped along by a hud that allows you to adjust the colour of the undergown on the mesh part.

I am also wearing one of the gorgeous new hairs from LeLutka—the hair net is such a fabulous detail—and the stunning knotted pearl necklace from lassitude & ennui.

When Nephilaine Protagonist dropped me her newest dress for The Muses (one of her little army of mesh shops!), I knew right away what I wanted to do with it. This regal mesh gown combines leather and chain mail for a fierce, warrior-queen look and when I put together the red gown with the black chainmail, it truly looked like something that Visenya Targaryen could have worn.

Yes, once again I am going on about A Song of Ice and Fire (which you may know as Game of Thrones), but that is because Ran and I have spent a rather crazy amount of time in Westeros lately, working on The World of Ice and Fire together with George R.R. Martin himself. Much of that work has concerned the history of House Targaryen since their arrival in Westeros and one of the most fascinating characters from the past is Queen Visenya, one of Aegon the Conqueror’s two sister-wives. She was a warrior and a dragon-rider, a wielder of the Valyrian steel sword Dark Sister. And I am sure she would appreciate the Rainha gown, though I think she would be practical enough to wear something beneath that chain mail. ;) Because there’s nothing royal about chafed nipples.

Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel books rank high on my list of best fantasy series, so of course the Plastik’s Namaah set caught my attention. However, there’s much more to it than just a well-chosen name. Composed of a number of pieces—some rigged mesh, some not—and with HUDs for texture changing, this is a unique and versatile set of fantasy accessories. Or a whole outfit, if you’re inclined to show a lot of skin (which I am). I am also wearing one of the latest new hairs from Magika and the Helena skin from Tuli. My poses are from the awesome Music is Life set by Studio Sidhe; these are really full of motion and still so very well balanced.

A couple of weeks ago, Tuli released a couple of previews for a new skin at the Dressing Room Fusion. Since then, I have been eagerly awaiting the full release of the Helena skin, as well as the return of some of Tuli’s previous skins in new and updated tones and with other little tweaks. This weekend, Tuli’s new mainstore on the Cupcakes sim finally opened, with four skins available in three tones each. In this post, I am taking a closer look at Helena, the new skin (the other three being new versions of previous skins).

HANDverk has released a pair of elegant low prim skyboxes in mesh, the single (14m x 32m) and double (27m x 32m) Longchamps. I am showing the single, which can fit in on a 512 sq.m. parcel. Given the fairly simplistic, scaled back look of the skyboxes, they could easily serve for both residential and commercial use. What charming little boutique couldn’t use a view of Paris through its windows, after all?

Gos Boutique opened for members of the update group yesterday and somehow I was able to get in pretty quickly to grab demos. Once I had decided what I wanted, it took a bit longer to get back in to actually make the purchase, but I survived that too. What was much quicker and easier was definitely the setup of the new shoes I had bought; the new HUD system from Gos really is a quite striking feature.

I’ll get into that a bit more, but first the basics. I picked up the Grace Sandals in Bronze and I am wearing them with tone four of Adam n Eve’s latest skin, Siobhan. I am also wearing one of this week’s new hairs from Truth and once again the mesh jewellery from Zaara. The poses and furnishings are from Libertine.

Nomine has a bunch more mesh releases out since a few weeks back, including this comfortably sexy sweater dress. Nomine also has a new store build and to celebrate that everything is currently set for sale at just L$100. This includes all the new mesh items as well as all the skins and anything else available in the store. You really don’t want to miss that.

I must be part dragon, because I do love to hoard precious metals and sparkling gems. It is easier to do in SL than RL, so I make sure to indulge myself with virtual jewellery on a regular basis. My latest acquisition is a brand new set of mesh jewellery from Zaara. It is her first so far, but you couldn’t tell by looking at it since it is absolutely stunning.

I am also back in bed, specifically in the canopy bed by Trompe Loeil, to celebrate that it has been updated to provide access to all previously released sheet colours plus several new ones. If you own the bed yourself, please see the website to learn how to receive an upgrade.