Freckleface at the Vanity Universe Skin Fair 2009

This post has been overdue.  I’ve had my own outside factors, and when I was able to take pictures in-world again, controversy reared its ugly head.  I am neither judge nor jury, so I will go ahead with the comprehensive post as I had planned.  For the record, I do not condone any illegal sourcing of images.  I strongly encourage you to study details carefully, and make your own decisions.

Now, this post is a compendium of freckled skins available at the Vanity Universe Skin Fair.  To the best of my knowledge, this shows a sample of each the unique freckled skins — if you find one at the fair not included here, please let me know, and I will remedy it.  All skins are shown on my shape, without lashes, with the same eyebrow shape.  You’ll want to try them on for yourself to see how they fit your shape, to really know what will work best for you.  Of course, you’ll want to look at the character of the freckles — big or small? evenly or randomly scattered? Just across the nose, over the whole face, extending down the chest?

 

Mira mami mira!

So.  Hair coloring awesomeness.

Kallisti Burns of Discord Designs has been making new color combos for her latest hairstyle, Mira, and they are awesome.  What I love about these is that each coloring has a unique pattern in the hair, giving each a really unique personality.  From the goth-y Noir to the beachy-surfer Sunkissed to the art-school-kid SarahTheRed, they all bring a very different feel to the avatar.

 

Frankenfeet

So, first things first.  I strongly believe in protecting intellectual property rights.  I’ve chosen to participate in Step Up and Achariya’s project.

Now, on to the blog post at hand.  I was planning this outfit for Halloween, but computer problems prevented me from doing so.  Fortunately, every day is Halloween in SL, where we don’t need an excuse to dress up in a costume.

This look started with the frankenfeet Siddean Munro of SLink sent to me.  They’re absolutely hilarious, and the best part is that I don’t have to worry about matching the feet to my skin!  I wasn’t sure what to do with them, until I remembered the Victorian Lace Nightgown from Studio Sidhe I’d seen on Plurk a while back.  I shortened the skirt a bit to show off the feet, and it’s perfect, don’t you think?  The detail on the bodice is really lovely, and the prim buttons are a nice touch.

 

Pink Hijab Day

Today is Pink Hijab Day around the world.  What’s this about, you ask?  There are two goals: first, to increase understanding of the hijab, and second, to raise money for a cure for breast cancer.  Now, I am not Muslim, but I have a deep respect for the religion and those that follow it, and that respect includes what are often perceived as cultural differences, such as wearing a hijab, or headscarf.  Hijab is specifically the headscarf, but also often refers to dressing oneself modestly in general.  While I do not usually wear hijab, today I have chosen my wardrobe in support of fellow women who choose to do so.  Hijab, for the women wearing it, does not usually mean oppression in the “western” world; most feel empowered and protected.  Wearing hijab is not only a symbol of religious submission to God, but also a symbol of feminist empowerment, a celebration of being judged for our minds and not our bodies. 

 

Advocate for a Cure

It’s easy to say you support racing for a cure, or promoting breast cancer awareness generally.  What about everyday advocating for breast health? 

Recently I was having Sunday lunch with a friend and her fourteen-year-old daughter at a wings place, and of course the football games were on TV.  A few of the teams were wearing hot pink jerseys, and we talked about how wonderful it was that those big brawny macho football players were wearing pink to support breast cancer awareness.  Then, things got interesting.

 

Freckleface: A few more

A few more sumptuous freckles skins to look at today.  I’m running a bit behind on these, but I hope you’ll forgive me.  I’ve been out of town, and my internet access was inadequate at best.  Anyway, let’s start by taking a look at the faces.  As usual, all skins are shown on the same shape and brow shape, without prim eyelashes.

Each of these skins offers a different style of freckle, from the barely-there delicate dots to more full face coverage.  More notable about these four skins, however, is the overall feel of the face.  Some are more youthful, while others have a more mature look to them.  Vulnerable, naive, confident, innocent, fresh-faced, exotic, old-fashioned — these adjectives might apply to one or a few of these skins, but not all, and that’s what I like about them.  You have the opportunity to choose a skin that not only suits your shape and overall look, but even suits your particular mood at the moment.

Now, on to the bodywork. 

 

Fishnets

Fishnets fishnets fishnets fishnets.  They’re possibly my favorite legwear in-world, bringing vintage sexiness with a touch of bad girl.  Annyka Bekkers of Blowpop recently released new fishnets, to much fanfare.  She’s put a lot of work into perfecting these.  I thought I’d see how some of my old favorites compare.

Check out the pelvic area, the general flow of the fishnet pattern, the side seams, the ankles, and the feet.  All of these are made well, but one pair in particular stands out for me.  Also, I don’t want to take over the whole feed, but feel free to click on the pic to go to my flickr and see side and rear views of the fishnets.

And a Halloweeny pic, because I felt like it.

 

I wear pink.

This outfit is a bit of shameless product promotion — I’m wearing Vanitas Vesture’s special edition Breast Cancer Awareness top.  All the proceeds go to Making Strides against Breast Cancer, an organization dedicated to increasing awareness and raising funds to help find a cure.  You can find out more here.  Pink is not a color I wear often, but I make an exception to help draw attention to this worthy cause.

 

Denim One

This begins what will be a series of jean comparison posts.  Most posts will focus on a specific style or cut, such as holey jeans or high-waisted jeans.  But, I thought I’d start with a simple post showing the importance of cut, and discuss the factors I consider in a pair of pixellated jeans.

Jeans are ubiquitous in both my lives.  I love them; they’re so easy to dress up and dress down for most casual occasions.  However, the look you’re going for will determine which pair of jeans you grab from your closet or inventory.  The cut of a pair of jeans often determines the mood — take a look at how each of these four pairs of jeans subtly change the overall feel of the outfit.

Now, let’s talk about what makes a pair of jeans unique.

 

A few darker skins at the Expo

So, you may know that I like freckled skins.  What you may not know is that I also really like the darker range of skins.  (Freckled dark skins are of course the holy grail.)  So here is a small selection of some of the darker skins available at the Skin/Shape Expo.

I find that darker skins in particular show off the unique character of the skins.  Not only does each skinmaker create unique shades in the darker range, the differences in facial features — lips, eyes, nose, brows — often become more pronounced.  Now, I’m wearing my usual shape, so of course they’ll appear different on your shape — do try them on.

With different skinmakers come different body shadings.  We’re looking at the overall body shading and the usual fine details — collarbone, boobs, elbows (front and back) abs, knees (front and back), toes, shoulderblades, spine, buttocks and heels.  Look closely at how each skin treats these body parts differently.

Now, shoo!  Go try on some dark skins!  Even if you think the darker shades don’t suit you or your av, I encourage you to try on a demo — the elegance of these beauties is worth it.

Also, the bra and panties set is an exclusive release, part of this weeks Fifty Linden Fridays, so if you like it, you’d best grab it before midnight tonight.

Credits:
Hair: Adam n Eve Lena – Black
Skins, left to right:
Rockberry Farrah F dark
Adam n Eve Desire 2 Preview – Nutmeg
Curio GP Bean – Light – Vixen – Majesty 2
Eyes: Exodi Zbilja Eyes – Brown
Lingerie: 5th & Oxford Little Miss Lingerie in Olive (Fifty Linden Friday Special – today only