Sometimes it gets to be too much

Like most folks that I know in SL I tend to get too busy to the point where I can't keep up or get so overwhelmed with IM's and tasks that SL ceases to be fun.  SL, at least if you are a fashionista, has become so fast paced.  I cannot keep up anymore with events, which like it or not, is SL's current business model...and I like events, and even, work on some.  It has introduced me to so many designers I would have never known.  Almost every thing I am wearing or am standing on or next to is from a recent event and include some items that I will continue to wear or use over and over again.

I love to death Baiastice's new Tori dress which is available right now at The Liaison Collaborative. It is the definitive sexy slip dress and great care has been taken on the placement of lace and texture shading to show off a woman's curves, even a no-mesh-body, tiny avatar like me.  Some of you may remember the slip dress that Digit Darkes made about a billion years ago in SL.  I used to wear that thing to death and this will be an often used favorite in my ghastly inventory.  I decided to go with Soonsiki's newer Rat hair, which has that gamine look I adore and does not cover up this pretty dress. The Peyton shoes from Baby Monkey are a newer release and are available with a multi-texture hud for a very reasonable price.

Credits
Build: Trompe Loeil: Attic Skybox for October Collabor88 (love the texture treatment on the windows!)
Tables: Circa: Traveler's Desk for Mystic Realms (closing soon!)
Hair: Soonsiki: Rat
Skin: Glam Affair: Aria - Arctic 01 G
Dress: Baiastice: Tori - Bittersweet for The Liaison Collaborative - October
Jewelry: Mandala: Billionaire Watch Set & Sagarmatha Necklace -Silver
Shoes: Baby Monkey: Peyton for Slink High Feet
Poses: oOo Studio: both from new sets that were introduced for the recent FLF: Avenger & Henrietta

Color Challenge: Shuttle Grey

In RL I live in a northern climate and grey is a shade I know a lot about.  It's odd how I am drawn to it even in SL even though there are very few sims that are blustery year 'round.   The challenge for me was calling good enough alone as I have so much.  In the end I was happy with a casual look that included one of my favorite pants from Maitreya and a sweater from Baiastice.  The hair is a new style from Wasabi Pills and right now can be found at Fantasy Faire 2012.

Credits
Sweater: Baiastice: Mary Fall Pull-grey
Pants: Maitreya: Acer Chino
Tank: MichaMi: Washed Out Tank (currently at TDR)
Earrings / Bracelet: U&R Dogs
Ring: Rozoregalia: Carpe Diem
Hair: Wasabi Pills: Teeloh Mesh Hair (also available in men's version): available at Fantasy Faire
Skin: Laq: Ebba
Makeup: Mock Cosmetics: Shadow Dark Purple Winterberry
Pose: Exposeur: Full of Grace 4

Culture Shock: Baiastice

One of the nice things about being an active fashion blogger in SL is the opportunity to occasionally preview events before they are officially open.  This results in a lot of work, too, but that isn't what I'm going for here.  My prolific blogging partner, Jacqui, IM'd me and told me I had to see Baiastice's Mattina chiffon dresses at Culture Shock because they were so me.   She knows me so well!

Sissy Pessoa, the hardworking designer of Baiastice, must have worked her fingers to the bone making these beautiful dresses.  The dress is primarily sculpted prims with all the requisite clothing layers.  Sculpted clothing is becoming quite prevalent in SL and those of you who have tried it know how difficult fitting can be.  Sissy has obviously put a lot of thought into that as the top comes in 4 sizes to fit a most avatars.  The sculpts are not resize scripted so if you have decent editing skills you can modify the top to fit your specific height and width requirements.  If you are anything like me and want to immediately start messing with the sizing,  I recommend you copy the pieces before you start messing with them or you could ruin these beautiful pieces.

The skirt on the dress is available in 2 versions; a multilayered option shown in the top photo and a single skirt as shown just above.  Again, these do not have a resize script so you can manually adjust as needed.  Again, copy before you edit, particularly on the layered skirt!  What truly impresses me about the skirts is that Sissy has added an AO with both walking and standing animations that let you avoid having your hands get buried in the sculpted pieces.  

The Mattina chiffon dress is available in 3 colors, mixed cold (blues/greens) mixed hot (pinks/golds) and royal (violets).  It is a a high quality piece that displays the breadth of Sissy Pessoa's talent that makes her a fashion leader.   The purchase of this dress benefits Médecins Sans Frontières, so please, reduce your scripts, brave the lag and pick it up!

Médecins Sans Frontières most recent donation total from Culture Shock is $L1,007,003.  This is more than $4,000 USD earned for the charity and the event runs through May 22.  We are blessed to have so many generous designers and caring individuals in SL!  For a complete map and list of slurls for all participants visit here.  

Credits:
Dresses: Baiastice: Mattina Chiffon Dresses: available exclusively at Culture Shock
Bracelet and Hair Ornament: Bliesen & MaiTai: Geiko: available exclusively at Culture Shock
Skin: Fall In: Deliciouz Skin: Dee (photo1) / Devin (photo2): available exclusively at Culture Shock
Shoes: Baby Monkey: Ultimate Ingrid - Lime
Hair: Elikatira: Away (photo 1)
         69: Jessica 01 (photo 2): currently only 50 L in new shades: Dusty Blond and Silver