The First Time My Avatar Looked at Me - My attempts at a unique face and figure...Part One

The default "Female Gothic" avatar. 

Going back to the beginning, I have to say I was only too happy to change out of the default avatar you pick when you first join Second Life. Not that they aren't serviceable in their way, but I wanted to express who I was as quickly as possible. Trying to trace back exactly where I got my first shape and skin would be impossible, so I'm just going to share early pictures and attempts to alter my avatar with you, and tell you what I can about the process, hopefully culminating in my most recent search; which was for a skin and shape to reflect the fashion in cosmetics and silhouette from the 18th century.  I'll put in the brand names of shapes, skins, hair and makeup tattoos when I can find them.   

Hanging out at a pub in Dublin; wearing all clothing from default folders, and my first or second
customized shape. Here I'm wearing an outfit I called "Wicked School Girl"

Of course, in the beginning I had no knowledge about shapes, skins, hair and eyes, but I was lucky to encounter people  right away who wanted to help. A very nice guy gave me my first pale skin; which was called "pallid fae" and also an eye package (bunch of different eyes.) I settled on a green pair of eyes and some hair  called "Trizzi Burgundy" that he also gave me and between that and innumerable freebies, as well the default freebies you get  in your inventory folders, I was able to put together my first unique looking avatars.

I also discovered quickly  that you can manipulate your shape, including your face, so I changed my facial features  and my bodily shape very early on, as well.

One of my earliest attempts at customizing my face and body. I ended up going a bit too far, here, I think.
I also customised he clothing a little bit; shortening sleeves, getting rid of collars, etc.

I should probably explain how this all works as I understand it. Your "shape" is your facial and bodily structure, your skin is skin tone and built in make-up such as lip colour and eyebrow shape. You can add make-up by using make-up "tattoos" which are added on top of the make-up embedded in the skin. Be sure to use the "add" option when using several facial tattoos; the face and head and neck are connected; a complete area, so more than one tattoo in the area could cancel each other out. With hair; you often are given a "bald head" which was created for use with that hair. This may also alter the position of the eyebrows. Sometimes you can use a head which has a hair base tattoo on it, which matches the colour of your hair/wig and makes it look seamlessly attached to your head. Also, if you are getting some bald patches on your hair it can help disguise them. You can re-size and change your hair, usually, but until you do that it's a very useful feature.





Early days, indeed. Another early face and body. Here I am wearing all free stuff,
 including the tattoos, the henna on the hands, hair, stockings, dagger, bangles
and "Female Gothic" outfit.



Incidentally, there is literally EVERY kind of hair, body type, skin colour and shape you could possibly think of; as well as some you never would. All of these things usually have complete Demo versions for free or $1L, so you can try them before you buy them. As they are often the most expensive components, it is a smart to try them first. There are also quite a lot of free skins, etc; so it is advisable to pick up as many of these as you can to build a library of possibilities. You never know if the occasion will rise to change into some kind of green fog creature or winged demon.



Getting closer to what I want. Clothes all freebies. Corset from BlakOpal. Hair from "Truth," make-up Tuty's.
Tattoos, armbands, etc, unknown.





....to be continued....

Making Friends in Second Life - The Names Have Been Changed to Protect the Innocent

"Madame X" and I in St. Petersburg, outside Catherine the Greats' palace. I am wearing a new wig "Antoinette" by Canolle (?) and a wonderful court gown from Ephemera (fantastic place.) She is wearing "Beatrice," the free St. Petersburg visitor's gown, hair unkown.

Ahhh...the pleasures of one's own company! They begin to pale after weeks of walking around beautiful places, exquisitely dressed, and all alone. So finally, after quite awhile, (or at least it seems like it,) I started to meet a few people here and there. The first real friend I met turned out to be a great shopping friend; and also someone who enjoys sharing finds and changing outfits mid chat. We tend to meet up when it's early morning for her and mid-afternoon for me. We also started going to a few events together; mostly dancing at The Vault; a place which plays early 20th century music, and The New Champagne Rooms; a very classy and refined place which features a tasteful yet exciting Burlesque show on many weekdays at 9pm sl time.

She and I were just getting out of one of those shows, quite dressed to the nines and I offered to take her on a ride on my 1917 Gorgon Motors Motorcycle.

Outside in Caledon, with my Motorcycle from Gorgon Motors; wearing a dress by Ivalde, pearls by Icing, "Lulu" hair by Sonnata Morales, Ultra High Heels by Etuo (?)

I've ridden it a bit, mostly around Caledon; a huge network of Steampunk sims. You have to be in a place where you can "rez" objects, which means take them out of your inventory and presto! you have an object; like a burning torch when you are about to go into the Phantom of the Opera's castle, (yes, there is one!) So there is a place in Caledon and also right outside Champers where you can rez your stuff and fly it, ride it, wear it or use it.
It's great fun, actually, though I am a terrible driver. Anyway, we had our slightly disastrous motorcycle ride, (at one point I drove right into an empty bar,) and then we started getting out all of our different odd vehicles and took rides on them. The funniest, which I've already posted one picture of, was riding around on a giant, stuffed looking lizard (?) which my friend;Madame X, (not her real name,) had stashed in her inventory from a sim called "Gor." I'm going to look for another picture of the lizard, (her word for it, I rather thought it looked like a dinosaur..) Ah! Found one:

Madame X and I riding the "Lizard" from Gor. She is wearing a gown from Vita Boudoir.
I am wearing a Nicky Ree gown with fur by Donna Flora.

Have you ever seen anything so silly? I have rarely laughed so hard in my life. Madame X is really good for that, I must say. She and I enjoy being goofy, which I really appreciate in a friend. It helps with the escapism to have that kind of fun sometimes, I think. I have to admit that the escapism factor is probably the main driving force behind my desire to be on second life. Doing the project is important, but I also need a distraction right now. So my new friends are wonderful for that, especially Madame X. I'm also trying to get her to go to some of the more intimidating events, (intimidating for me,) so that I have a built in support system. Perhaps not fair, trying to drag her there so I won't be scared (sorry, Madame - please forgive me!)



Flying in an unknown vehicle of Lady X's above The New Champagne Rooms, same clothing as the Lizard ride.

 She's also been extremely supportive of my efforts to put myself together. I try to be the same for her and hope I succeed. That's another thing is seems like I'm doing in sl. Sharing and helping people with dress. I've become a sort of consultant. (More about that later.) Up above we are riding in some kind of balloon or zeppelin. We also rode my personal dirigible, which I found in Caledon Victoria City for 50L. The dirigible is a kind of two person zeppelin. People create extraordinary objects to play with in sl.

"Neo" and I at The Vault. I'm wearing a Nonna Hedges gown with Donna Flora"Jessica" Fur and hair by Sonnata Morrales. Also, my skin is "Donna Intense Make-up" by Tuty's; a free skin from Mr. S. and Tuty's.

I've also met a great dance partner and friend; "Neo," who has been wonderful chatting and hanging about with. He supported me in my first attempt to join in on an event in Versailles. (I'm not using his name right now because of the nature of this post, but He's given me permission to use it, so I'll be revealing his identity eventually. He's a performer in sl, and one thing I want to do here is help promote people who do great work. So if you see a real name in here, that is usually why.) I was pretty nervous about going to this event, so having a friend there was fantastic.
Let's see if I have pictures...

At the Versailles picnic wearing gown by Ephemera, "Winter Fairy" skin by Rag Dollz with hat by Le Grenier du Chateau. Clothing on the gentleman unknown.

Well, no picture of me and Neo there, but I do have a picture of myself relaxing at the picnic, with one of the attendees. I don't have permission to show any pictures of the court, hence the absence of a face on this serene Monsieur....and the lack of anyone else in the pictures. I have to say my male friend; Monsieur Neo received a much warmer reception than I did, though I found out later I had broken some rules by attempting to role play before having an approved character; a rule I completely understand. Apparently there is a bit of a process, which is excellent. You must submit a character proposal and have it approved and until then you are requested to wear a visitor's tag and refrain from interacting with the established characters. This is fairly standard for role-playing sims. You can, however, join the announcement group before that, and therefore be aware of what is going on in that sim (simulation.) Of course, Monsieur did not go through the process either, but I believe males are a little scarce sometimes, so they were happier to see him! Eventually a few people took pity on me and talked to me a little, but things definitely improved when I sent a glass of champagne to everyone! I guess simulated champagne can help loosen people up in sl, just like rl. "/me laughs" ha ha lol he he, etc.. I should mention that one of the gentlemen there also took pity on me and IM'd me to say hello. He made the tiny portrait miniature I was wearing! I'll definitely be reviewing his work; it's spectacular.


There were many events  this last weekend; A Balloon Race in Languedoc Couer, a Royal Stag Hunt in Versailles with picnic afterwards and a charity ball. I managed the stag hunt, which was brilliant. One of the most eminent court ladies enchanted herself into a stag and was chased by the assembled nobility. This was very entertaining. You could actually rez a horse or borrow one and participate, or chase on foot with muskets to the ready. This was great to watch, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I believe it was their first one, and perhaps there will be more which will be great.

I left early, as I was very tired, and returned later, when I met this lady:

At the post Stag Hunt picnic (which was over..) in Versailles wearing a fantastic militaristic ensemble which I cannot identify, with a lovely lady in a Canolle wig which she modified herself (!)

She's new to Versailles, as well, and I think  just started the approval process thingummy. Anyway, we had a lovely conversation, and she gave me some great Landmarks to some stores, and we did a little role-playing chat. It was great fun.

Sometime during the weekend, perhaps the night before the stag hunt, I went to what I think is a monthly ball in Languedoc Couer, where I met Sophie Trefusis; of Trefusis designs, and "Mlle. Gardens."  Here I am wearing one of Sophie's gowns; "Nimue," with wig and ship (ship!) headpiece by Ephemera. The original ship wig pieces were created to honour a real ship "La Belle Poule,"  I believe. I've wanted to make one in rl  for ages, so it's really brilliant to have a virtual one.

"Nimue" Gown by Trefusis, wig and ship ornament by Ephemera, pearls by Icing.

Mlle. Gardens and I hung out for a bit after the ball. (I was looking at a house to rent.) We walked around the house a bit and chatted. Turned out she and I had a lot in common. Both interested in theatricality, clothing, aesthetics. She writes and directs plays and hopes to do some period entertainment on sl. We discussed my participating by singing in one of them, so we shall see what comes of that. I am meeting people finally who share my interests and it is very exciting. Much better than just playing dress-up and walking around shopping alone, (though I still love that!)

"Mlle. Gardens"  in an unreleased gown and wig, designer unknown. The wig is fantastic!



So this is what has been going on recently. I intend to go back in time and show you my early attempts at dress and creating an unique avatar. For now, I'm going to stick to the present, as there is a lot to catch up on. Thank you to my first followers; Lady Fandango and Apollo Weiss! I hope the trend continues. I'm getting a good number of page views, so I'm hoping more people who will enjoy the blog become followers. Also, don't forget to comment and ask questions, I'm eager to hear what you have to say.

 The black and white suit is by Trilobitewear. Hat by Jackie Graves. Weapons by Fairlight. Mask by Illusions. Hair by Sweet Hair. Accessories by the defunct and much missed Mini A*Go*Go.

Here is another new friend; "Evil Girl," wearing an ultra cool outfit which is a complete mystery to me, honestly. I call her my "flirty friend."  We've had a great time dancing and chatting; little bit of flirting. It's fun. We even swam around as mermaids for a bit, which was really a unique experience. I have pictures somewhere, let me see if I can find any of us together...

"Evil Girl" and I dancing. I'm wearing "Johnnie" a flapper frock from the Curious Seamstress, "Lulu" wig from Sonnata Morales and fur from "Guilia-black" by Donna Flora

So here we are dancing on the balcony of The New Champagne Rooms after the show the night we met (I think.) Well, we have some fun here and there and she was great to meet, so on that note, I think I'm going to put this to bed.. Goodnight all..enjoy your adventures in second life; and don't forget to have adventures in your real one!

Back After a Short Break

"Cherry Hair" from Jet Doll worn with "My Spanish Gown."

Well, it's been quite awhile since I've posted. I'm still pursuing my second life. I've been gathering information and taking snapshots in the hope that I can use this blog to review the period clothes and places in sl. I'm also still discovering who I am. Currently I seem to have settled in the early twentieth century; mostly twenties to forties. I have a huge wardrobe for several different time periods and have even strayed a little into the realm of creatures, etc. My inventory consists of 16,700+ items; which may be some kind of record for a two month old.

"Irene" hair by Vita Boudoir, "Equestrienne" skirt and bustle by Icing.

I've made some friends; as well. I found some really fun places where the people are also friendly. This has been wonderful; as the slime factor in a couple of the places I was drawn to was really getting to me.
So first; the clothes. I found some new favorite places; Sonnata Morales, Donna Flora, Ivalde, Nonna Hedges, Ephemera and Grim Bros.


 I may not always give you all the info on something I'm wearing in a picture, but I'll give you as much as I can and enough of a hint to find the rest, I hope. You'll have to look things up in the search engines in Second Life  and on Marketplace; their online shopping section of their web site. I'll do my best to point you in the right direction. There will be mistakes and typos; I admit this freely; with an illness like mine you can't help it. To me the most important thing is to try and get this out there, so little details may get missed. That's my full disclosure and I stick by it.


A friend and I about to ride a huge silly lizard after attending a glamorous burlesque show at The New Champagne Rooms. The Lizard is from Gor, my friend is wearing Vita Boudoir and I am wearing Nicky Ree.

 In my upcoming posts I plan to take one designer and review their work as a whole and also show examples of some of the best and worst of their work. I'll share with you where their bargains can be found as well; and hope fully be able to give you enough information so that you can find their inworld stores and do shopping of your own. I'll be looking forward to your feedback and comments as I share my thoughts with you.



"Bloody Mary" hat and an adoreable dress from Vita Boudoir



Anyway, have fun, shop 'till you drop and be nice to those you meet in real and virtual life.