Zana stepped back into her apartment the next morning, thoroughly relaxed by the night’s activities … all of the night’s activities. It had been a stressful term so far, even for a cyborg; of course, graduate studies were always stressful, but psychology was tougher than most. And add into that my personal psychotherapy starts in two weeks, she thought as she moved into her bedroom to change out of her finery, into a casual unitard. God knows what little gremlins will turn up then! She had always considered herself well adjusted and mentally healthy. Who but God could guess what a qualified psychotherapist would find …? Then her lips quirked back in a mercurial change of mood. Although her career would be made, perhaps, as the author of the first case study on a ‘borg in the literature!
The small jest improved Zana’s mood; but she still felt the need for some encouragement, or at least a shoulder to cry on for a few picoseconds. Glancing again at the holographs on the mantel, she regretted not returning home to her parents’ house. Still, there were other ways of getting together with family … not as satisfyingly tactile, but they would do in a pinch …. She said to the room, “Computer, please call Ariel Sherman, home code, full holo.” She sat on her couch as the computer beeped.
Shortly, a full-body image of her mother, wearing a green casual outfit and a purple silk duster, appeared in the holoprojection field created by the comm program. “Hi, sweet one! What makes you call on this fine Saturday morning?”
While working up something — or at least trying to; I’m struggling for quiet time lately — I stumbled across a few old photos from 2011 that I don’t think I’ve ever published. Both of these were shot at Omega Point, which was still standing back then. The costume was done by Nicky Ree, once one of the doyennes of prim fashion before mesh took over; it still looks good today, and is available on the Marketplace. The jewelry, including the phoenix headdress, was by Alienbear, and is also available. Enjoy!
Summertime, and the fashion is easy, and sometimes a touch more seductive. I love crossover halter tops like this one from Connors; paired with a casual pair of jeans, it makes for an excellent combination.
I stumbled across Tukinowaguma hair sometime in the deep, dark past that I can’t remember, and I purchased one of her interesting wigs at that time. But I didn’t go crazy about her hair until I got a sale ad from the Galleria at Frank’s, which drew me to her store there. After catching sight of the other styles she had, I ran off to her main store and went crazy. KateForster Akina does lovely bobs, one of which I include in this photo essay; but her updos are fantastic as well. If you’re looking for big hair for a ball or formal dance gown, definitely try out one of the Tukinowaguma stores, and you’ll find things there to enchant.
Most, if not all, of the styles are scripted for color change, by the way; click on the wig to bring up the menu. You should either make a copy of the original (preferable, unless you have a huge Inventory), or choose a white shade to bring back the original base color.
I’ve placed the best of the photos I’ve taken in a set on my Flickr stream, and on Koinup as well. If you like them, please leave comments (both here and there!). But I’ll give you a small taste here of what I came up with, instead of drowning you in six tons of photos on this blog. As it worked out, I had a mess of Satin Sheen gowns from Nicky Ree on hand as well, and sets of opera gloves from Mimikri; and so I decided to try a themed photo shoot, changing only colors, shoes, hair and jewelry. A few WindLight tweaks, courtesy of Torley Linden’s excellent package, are also used here. As long as you have a good default saved to fall back on, don’t be afraid to experiment with those sliders, for both sky and water!
A few notes:
Nicky’s Satin Sheen gown is available at her store in most colors for L$100. This absurdly low price for a Nicky Ree original is because she’s offering the original — it appears, from my reading of the notes I found in the packages, that someone’s copied her. Please patronize the original designers, not the 7th Avenue knockoff “artists.”
Mimikri’s gloves are some of the best I’ve found on the Grid. The cuffs are prim addons, so I did a little mixing of colors for effect, to match a few of the gowns. Buy the whole set, and use the cuffs to show the “lining” of your gloves!
Saint Patrick’s Day is one of those days that brings out the internationalist in you. You could be from Pago Pago or Timbuktu, and it’d still be appropriate to wear a shamrock and shout “Erin go bragh!” to a passerby. That’s certainly been happening in Second Life today, especially in the Dublin sectors. It was a regular street party across the whole place, with music in the streets, a parade winding around the (virtual) River Liffey, and much downing of (virtual) Guinness.
I didn’t participate this year, though I braved the lag last year to hang out in the Blarney Stone in Dublin main region. (How do I know what was going on? I’m a group member at the Stone!) Instead, I went to somewhere I haven’t visited before, the even more famous Straylight. After all, Ireland is more than pubs; it’s also beautiful countryside, where the locals are said to recognize dozens more shades of green by eye than the rest of the world. This poor benighted Dutch-American girl can’t say that — I can’t even recognize dozens of shades of orange, which would be more appropriate for a Dutch. But I was happy to find spots where I could wear something green today. (Click on the photos for larger images.)
I found this lovely outfit at Nicky Ree, and it seemed both perfect for Saint Patrick’s Day, and versatile as well. Unlike the decadent Lindens, who pop up at office hours in guises beyond belief, I’m old school; a business meeting demands a suit. But it doesn’t have to be charcoal grey all the time, and the deep emerald of this creation shows that. The long duster coat dress makes this piece excellent for meetings at all but the most conservative of get-togethers. The grace note here are the shoes, which are Foxy wedges by Stiletto Moody. I picked them up at her last sale, and I’m unsure if they’re still available.
Want a different look? Shorten the skirt, or even the pants (both are available in the set), and change your shoes to a pair of nice boots. Now you have something that could still be worn to an office, but could also be worn to drinks and lunch on the town with a date. But if that’s not enough….
…then take off the jacket completely, and use the shorts option, along with those boots. A change of jewelry as well, and now you’re ready for a party at the pub with your mates. Raise a glass, and toast the Saint and his beloved Eireann in style!
The details:
Shape/skin/eyes: my standard for this avatar
Hair: Mirada Sarita (fiery red)
Nails: Pixel Mode sculpted nails
Suit: Nicky Ree Diana jacket dress and pants (green)
Jewelry, photo 1, 2: Zaara Kaya (malachite/gold) bracelet, earrings and necklace
Jewelry, photo 3: EarthStones Bullseye (citrine/silver) bracelet, earrings and necklace
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