Hair Fair: Miamai + the French Connection

If there is one thing that Monica Outlander of Miamai is the master of it's glamour.  Be it classic, avante garde, or romantic, she makes it look effortless.  She has released 5 new mesh hair pieces for Hair Fair 2012 and they are stunning. They are all unrigged and modifiable. I honestly could not pick a favorite. Hair Fair wraps up this weekend and the 2 weeks of it have flown by.  Soon the hair will be in the stores but there is an important reason to still visit and that is that Hair Fair is a charity fundraiser, with a percentage of sales going to Wigs for Kids.  If you are inclined to purchase, do so now and help out a child in need.

Before I start carrying on about these gorgeous styles I wanted to mention the gown.  HelenSue Helendale of DEW Designs shared her newest release with me, the French Connection gown, and it's just super stunning. The main dress is mesh and comes in standard sizes and she has added to flexi attachments for ruffles on the back.  You can remove these attachments if you prefer a simple, drop dead slim gown and the integrity of the dress remains intact. It was the perfect backdrop for Monica's hair pieces.

I got to say first off that I love Miamai's hair bases.  They come in several versions and Monica has picked the right one for each style.  I appreciate this level of extra attention to detail.  Giselle utilizes a hair base with a strong central part.  The hair piece sits high on the head with with an updo with a sturdy braid wrapping the front.  It has an extra texture layer to provide depth as well as a few loose tendrils.

 Yanne plays it tighter with sleek french braids running at contrasting levels on both sides of the head and ending in a tight bun at the back of the head.  It utilizes the same hairbase as Giselle (Style C).

Lika is classically gorgeous.  It uses a hairbase that is pulled straight back and has a large bun as well as braids that run the length of the skull and wraps around the back of the bun.  No whispies on this one.  It's perfect in it's formality.

Ixie is probably the most casual of the hair pieces.  It uses a partless hairbase (Style B) and is in the style of hair that has been swept back into a pony-tail and then made into an updo with a set of barrettes.  It also has a gentle flexie layer to make it less severe.

Kirge utilizes a hairbase (Style A) with that is side parted then combed tight to the head.  It features a two level bun and strong side tendrils.  The hairbase really makes the look for me and I think would be fun not only with glam but strong urban looks.

Now go get 'em at the Miamai booth at Hair Fair 2012. There is also an special gift updo available at the fair, that probably won't be available after the fair (hint hint).

Credits:
Hair: Maimai: All hairbases and updos are new mesh releases available at Hair Fair 2012
Gown: DEW: French Connection - Black
Skin: Filthy: July Group Gift - Cream
Lipcolor: Pink Fuel: Elly - Glam Lipstick/Smoked Plum
Jewelry:  photo 2: LaGyo:  Spring in Gold
               photo 3: Caroline's: Kennedy Pink Pearls
               photo 1 & 4: Zaara: Anuska Pearl Drop Earrings - Night
               photo 5: [HANDverk]: Wassily Black
               photo 6: Mandala: Kagetora
All Poses: Miamai

Back to Black + Wasabi Pills

I am way behind in blogging the Back to Black Event which started last Friday.  Chic Management, the event host, has been around long enough now that we are seeing the second year of events and they are always superb.  Back to Black is a mental health awareness event.  Chic is not running this as a charity event though some designers have chosen to donate earnings to charity.  Sadly, mental health needs both.  According to the SAMHSA website in the US mental health and substance abuse funding grew slower than all other health funding, which is really sad when you understand that the public sector significantly outspend private insurers when it comes to funding mental health care.  What this boils down to is that for people with the most severe mental illnesses, they have to lose almost everything before they can get adequate mental health care.  This only serves to perpetuate stigmatizing views of people who have a mental illness/issue so I'm all for anything that promotes awareness.  Luckily treatment advances have occurred and there is no reason for anyone to have to suffer in shame or alone.

I've been inspired by the sharing of so many designers as well as event organizers of their own experiences with mental heath. I would feel like a complete hypocrite if I did not also share that I have both Major Depression and an Anxiety Disorder for which I receive treatment.  My first real depressive episode happened while I was in graduate school and it was easily treated with medication.  When my husband died suddenly a  few years back, it felt like the world fell out from under me.  However, I had a toddler to care for and was a busy professional (in mental health :) and I did not take very good care of me and eventually my symptoms snuck up and bit me back.  I continue to experience symptoms of impaired concentration and anxiety but luckily it's all pretty well managed at this point.  Recovery is possible.

I've talked a lot about mental health and not enough about the fantastic items I am showing here, most of which are available at Back to Black.  Instead of writing more here, please read the credits for more information on what I am wearing.

Credits: (B2B means it is available at the Back to Black Event
photo 1:
Dress: Vanita's Vesture: Restless Dress - Charcoal (B2B):  The skirt is a system skirt but I find that the baby doll top helps reduce that really pronounced bubble butt but that can happen with them.
Jewelry: LouLou & Co.: Hyperion Necklace (B2B): includes 2 versions and chest and spine attachment points.
Shoes: Purrfect 10: Rose Heels - Cream (B2B): these shoes are available in 3 different primary colors and can also be made completely or partially black. The roses can change to 9 different accent colors.
Skin: Adore&Abhor: Flora skin: pale (B2B): Sileny does the best freckles!
Hair: Wasabi Pills: Sybille2 Mesh hair - Cinnamon - new release!  She just gets better and better!
Photo 2:
Outfit: Izzie's: Leisure Outfit (B2B): this outfit is perfectly made.  I adore her work.
Jewelry: Caroline's Jewelry: Serenity Necklace (B2B): Inspired by the Serenity Prayer, it has 3 discs that say "Courage, Serenity, Wisdom".
Hair: Amacci: Emma (B2B): comes in about a billion colors and includes the nifty feathers
Skin: Anymore: Denis - pearl: exclusive at B2B

Thank you to Cajsa Lilliehook for sharing the background image in photo 1 with the Flickr Stock Images group! 

Ivalde: Weekend in Paris

I've not been shy to discuss how much I have adored Vintage Fair.  I've been very meh about blogging, spending more time avoiding then actually taking photos but this event has renewed my interest in SL fashion.  There has been much drama around the grid about legitimacy: whose work is original, what has value, etc.  While my ear has certainly been bent I've also felt over it.  Some of this is about trust, but the hating just brings more of the same.  I respect people's learning curve, understand there are some folks in SL that purely want to profit, others for which SL is mostly for fun/want a few L's to blow, and others that rely on SL for a living.  Within that are all kinds of levels and I'm cool with it, am happy to contribute to the SL economy, but I've also been around long enough to have a pretty good understanding of the industry and don't get ripped off too often.  Having that off my chest, Nefaria Abel from Ivalde is a truly talented woman and has had a strong SL presence for years and years.  Nef's deal is Vintage, always has been and hopefully will remain (though I adored L'Abel).  I have an enormous collection of her works and doubt I will ever eliminate them from my inventory. They are like the archives of fashion history and if I want something classic, that folder is one of the ones I hit first.  I adore the new Jamica gown that she has debuted at Vintage Fair.  The dress is what the system skirt was made for in my humble opinion.  A diaphanous prim skirt wraps around a column skirt bringing attention to a narrow waist and hiding the bubble butt that I so dislike in system skirts.   I envisioned myself as a young woman, embarking on an overseas voyage to Europe, possibly a new bride or socialite in a pre-feminist era where a lady's beauty was her most essential asset.  Thank goodness those times are past but I definitely appreciate the clothes!  This dress can stand on its own with just a touch of accessories.  The floral necklace and earrings from WTG and little bowed slingbacks from Baby Monkey complete the look.

I adored the Billie Dress for similar reasons.  Nef has taken a straight system skirt and layered it this time with tulle-like cocktail length skirt for an elegant day to evening look.  I modernized the 1920's style dress with accessories more in line with a 1950's couture look but you can go all kinds of ways with it.  The textures on this dress are almost touchable.  I am probably going back to get it in more colors.   The fantastic Audrey Necklace from Caroline's Jewelry just begged to be worn with the dress.  Caroline was inspired by the necklace worn by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's and comes in either white or black pearls.  This is a simply stunning piece.  The hair is a gift from Plume for fairgoers.  It's a bit funky and whimsical and the roses change color.

Lots of nice skins with a retro flair have been released for Vintage Fair.  Today I featured a new skin from Boho Beauty.  Redsoledrea Gossipgirl is back with new stuff including the Sloan Skin.  She says it is perfect for redheads but I am wearing it without red hair and was very pleased with it. It comes in 4 tones.  Each pack contains 2 makeups, a cleavage option and 2 mole tattoos.  You can pick up this version at a limited release price at the fair.  Her new store, Boho & Boho Beauty, will be opening on the Chic sim over Thanksgiving weekend.  Until then, her inworld group is free to join and she will be sending out free gifts.  I look forward to more.

Credits: (Most of the items are available at the Vintage Fair.  I will note those that are not. Slurls will be to main stores.  A map and slurls to all shops at Vintage Fair can be found at the Chic Management blog.)
P1:
Gown: Ivalde: Jamica
Jewelry: WTG: Floral-w
Skin (all photos) Boho Beauty: Sloan - Vintage (main store opening next week!)
Hair: [e]: Soft: available exclusively at Collabor88
Shoes: Baby Monkey: Mia Pumps (not at fair)
P2:
Dress: Ivalde: Billie
Necklace: Caroline's Jewelry: Audrey Pearl Necklace: White
Hair: Plume: A Kiss from a Rose: Freebie!
Glasses: Artilleri: Gabriella (not sure if this set is at the fair)
Stockings: Vextra Messing: Sheer Pantyhose - Blue (not at fair)
Shoes: Armidi: Barcelona Slingbacks - Prussian Blue (note: the website is still up but I've not purchased anything from it in about a year so buy at your own risk.) (not at fair)

All poses are from oOo Studio from retro sets available at the Vintage Fair.  They are fantastic!