Graveyard Stalking

The other day when Eden and I did a photo shoot, she took me to a sim called The Trace. I'm always on the lookout for great photo sims, and I must say, this one is just wonderful! It's very well done, they have several different "scenes" on the sim, and the best part? THEY HAVE BUILD TURNED ON so you can rez stuff! \o/
* A plea to all creators of photo-worthy sims: PLEASE, FOR THE LOVE OF KITTENS AND RAINBOWS, LEAVE BUILD TURNED ON FOR US PHOTO TAKERS! <3 *

Anyway, as I was looking around, I found the most quaint little graveyard (can a graveyard be quaint?) which set the stage for today's look! The adorbs dress I'm wearing is from Tres Blah, which you can find at this month's Collabor88 event. It comes in around 8 colors, and is versatile enough to either cute up, or goth down. I wanted to add a little fantasy flair to my outfit, so I paired the dress with the Vinnitsa Sandals from Hucci (also at Collabor88) - of which I adoringly call "The Butterfly Shoes", cause they have the cutest little butterflies on the heels! They are available in many colors, and I do believe are only L$88, if I recall correctly. I picked up a few more items along the way, topped it off with a dolly-type hair from D!va, and my look was complete!
If you're looking for a nice place to relax, or to take some awesome photos (or both), I definitely recommend checking out The Trace. I see a lot more shoots from there in my future. ^.^

PS: The poses I used are from a store called In-Pose!. They are having a closing sale right now. All the poses are L$25 each!

Credits:
Skin:  Essences - Lorde01 *lumiere* (I can't remember if I got this at an event or not, but check her mainstore just in case)
Eyes: {S0NG} :: Murky~ Ghost Eyes
Hair: D!va Hair "Nana" (Type B)(Platinum)
Dress: Tres Blah Fluffy Dress - Black - Collabor88 for April 2014
Shoes: Hucci Vinnitsa Sandal - Midnight - Collabor88 for April 2014
Snakes: +Half-Deer+ Baby Cornsnake [Prism] - The Chapter Four for April 2014
Forehead Makeup: +Nuuna+ Zion 2 makeups (F) White
Eyeshadow: R.icielli - BLACK EYES / 06 - Marketplace
Lipstick: Shakeup!Cosmetics - Matte Lipcolor [NaturalPaletteinPetal]
Nails: DP - Koffin Nails - Fishnet Fetish - Jellybean LTD - Cosmetics Fair for April 2014
Mouth Piercing: .Pekka. Fidelity Piercing
Spiked Necklace: {me.} Spike Necklace BLACK
Cross Necklace: .Pekka. Pyr cross necklace - Black
Lashes: La Malvada Mujer- FAKE B+W [eyelashes] - Cosmetics Fair for April 2014
Hands & Feet: Slink (Casual hands / High feet)
Poses: In-Pose!

Shape & tattoo: My own

Location: The Trace
Black Grass: FD Decor - Spooky Grasses Set - Marketplace
Fog: FD Decor - Spooky White Fog - Marketplace

It's Been One of Those Days

Actually, it's been one hell of a few years.  I am a single mom (widow) and have a fifteen-year-old son who is not navigating the teen years well. Things have recently gotten worse and have required a great deal of my attention.  I'm on SL less and less lately and when I do come on, it's usually to blog.  I love blogging and have been doing it for many years on Free*Style and this blog.  I do so because I love SL fashion; it's been an obsession of mine since I figured out how to leave Orientation Island and I have the inventory and transaction details to prove it.  However, right now my mind is elsewhere and I've decided to take a blogging "break".  A wise person once said to me "don't make any major decisions when you are under a lot of stress", so, I'm not sure what that will mean for me and blogging.  I've always disliked the title of my blog and kept meaning to switch and will probably do so when I'm ready to come back to steady blogging.  I will continue to post on Free*Style as well as run and manage the group with Sileny Noel.  I have a store to organize and open for Free*Style and I am months behind in doing so.  Therefore, I will still be around the things in SL that I love; just not at the pace I have done for the last year.  My mind and my heart are needed at home more than ever.  I thank all the designers that have entrusted me to show their work.  It has been a true honor and I do so hope you will have me back when I can give you all the attention you deserve.  Some of my favorite people made the items that I am using in this post.  They are talented, good folks.  Eden Knoller

Credits:
Hair: Wasabi Pills: Izumi Mesh Hair for October FaMeshed
Shirt: Boom: Twenty-Three Tee - Fetish: new release - available in about a zillion colors and discounted in colour packs.
Shorts and Stockings: Erratic
Shoes: [HANDverk]: Western Ankle Boots - Ostrich/Pink for October FaMESHed
Skin: PXL: Faith NAT Pinkish: group gift
Electric Chair: FD Decor: partial mesh, animated and adjustable

Home Expo Highlights

Tomorrow is the last day for Home Expo 2012.  I just want to show you some of my favorites from the event. I am going to keep my comments to a minimum and let the credits do most of the explaining.

Barnesworth Anubis Catalina Cabana and Furniture Pack (does not include basket or bonsai) 150 each - 100% donation to RFL

Thistle Coastal Cottage - 142 prims, 17x27 footprint, rezzer, scripted windows and paints

Piddler's Perch Lil Red Wagon Flower Bed - cute!

FD Decor - Mudroom Cabinet

The Pink Room - upper floor - all details in Credits

UrbanizeD Candles &Ivy Mannequin...hundreds of texture change options and poses by Glitterati!

Sway's "Peace" Lawn Chair - many animations incl. guitar

Funky*Junk Deck

For information about Home Expo including maps and store locations please visit the blog.

Credits:

Photo and Collage 1:

Barnesworth Anubis: Catalina Cabana and Furniture Set

Buddha Beats: Ginko Bonsai

AtiXx Designs: Basket Half Open

Photo 2:

Thistle Homes: Coastal Cottage

Photo 3: Piddler's Perch Lil Red Wagon Flower Bed

Photo 4: FD Decor: Mudroom Cabinet: 100 % donation item.  Also, everything has been permanently discounted by 50% at the expo and the store. 

Collage 2 (left to right)

Artilleri: Elisabeth Chaise - green : 100 % donation item

What Next: Keep Calm Print

What Next: Loungin Chair & a Half : pink/green

fucifino: Verona out on a limb lamp

Urbanize: Garden on a StringA: Candy Pop

Prime: Expo Coffee Table

LeeZu: Studio Ring Table Lamp

Urbanize: Deco Sparkle Paintings - RFL

Dutchie: Old Radio

Thistle: RFL Memories Loveseat

Photo 5:

Urbanize: Candle & Ivy Mannequin -- so many options and the poses by Katey Copolla from Glitterati are fantastic.

Photo 6:

Sway's: Peace Lawn Chair - Guitar included

Photo 7: 

Funky Junk: Summertime Dock: RFL item

Park Place: Chill Out set

Sway's: Vacation Deck Chair and accessories (and then Sway's again!)

Back to Black: What Not to Wear!

It's becoming a bit of a tradition for me that whenever I'm officially covering an event or hunt or such in SL that I devote at least one post to non-wearable items.  These items are often not covered or get used at  part of background decor and it's turned out to be one of my favorite things to do.  It takes a long time to take all the shots and put them together into photo groups but I am lucky enough to have spare prims and I do love design so it's all good.  And, there is some darn good stuff at Back to Black. The shot above shows FD Decor's Esme sets in white and black.  Fallacy DeCuir spent a lot of time attending to details on these pieces.  On both sets the chair seating and pillows change color as well as have animations for both men and women and a reading pose (that includes a book).  The sound can be turned off on the fountain, the light turns off and on and the vases change color so you can be matchy or use contrasts.

I used Circa Living's "Into the Void" skybox as the settings for Fallacy's furniture settings.  Circa is the new brand by Cherelle Capra who has been around under the C&D Designs label for a good while and definitely knows what she is doing.  The dimensions are 30m x 32 m and is 54 prims with the tree being 13 prims.  The tree is coalesced so you can remove it if you wish.  It has a great open floor plan and thoughtful touches such as an sliding glass door that opens, spot lighting and accent windows that help make it nice and airy.

Tranquility Way Station offers the dear Tranquility Bookcase which has the words "Serenity, Courage and Wisdom" from the Serenity Prayer.  It is color change and the objects are coalesced.

Designer Prims also offers a nice skybox for the event.  It is partially furnished and also has some really cute details.  Each window is individually controlled and you can turn on/off the fireplace, sink and cooktop.  The wall decal which reads, "Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it." The sofa has multiple sit options for one or two people.  Information on use by landowners that might want to rez more than one home is also included.

*RnB Designs* offers the Serenity Set.  The total set is 60 prims but each item is separate so you can rez and much as you wish.  There are lots of special touches such as candles that turn off/on on the bookshelf, a lamp w/menu and a coffee giver on the display table.  The bench has 12 poses and seats up to 3 avatars.  The colors are nice and springy, just in time for the new season.

I've loved about everything Gin Galtier has ever made and the Yoga Studio she has made under the elafantu brand is nothing short of amazing.  It is soft linked so please rez it in build mode.  It is contained within a phantom orb so that it appears as if It is in a loft in an urban setting.  It is quite primmy but you can use as much or as little as you wish to create a personal serene settings.  All the mats have sequenced animations and the seats also have several options.  The details are splendid; if you are looking for something unique and peaceful, this is it!

I've become a huge fan of Hanaya since The Vintage Fair and her newest set, the Pine Lake Family Camping Trip, is so cool and offered at a discounted price at Back to Black.  One of the things I appreciate most about Hanaya's goodies is that it includes both an auto-rez version as well as a boxed set with individual items.  The set is jam packed with PG animations like playing the guitar, roasting marshmallows, hide and seek around the tree, sleeping and reading animations on the cots and so much more. It is perfect for SL families and reflects a leisure time away from daily stresses.

I feel I am missing some items.  Sometimes when I open boxes for an event they don't make it back to my blog folder and end up buried in my inventory.  Thank you to the clever designers who made such cool items for the Back to Black event.

Credits: in photo order, all available at the Back to Black event
FD Decor: Esme Sets - White and Black versions
CIRCA: Into the Void Skyhome
Tranquility Way Station: Tranquility Bookcase
FD Decor: Esme Vase - White - exclusive to B2B - the other vases do not turn white
Designer Prims: Comfort is Home Skybox
RnB Designs: Serenity Set
elefantu: Yoga Studio
Hanaya: Pine Lake Family Camping Trip