CONNECTIONS

I'm a believer in making connections; connections with other people, yes, but also connections with yourself. While you are busy thinking of others and being kind to others, also remember to be kind to yourself!



Yes go to work, yes kiss your children, but also wear perfume! Other people will walk by and enjoy your scent for a moment, but you know who will enjoy that perfume all day long? You will!



You have my permission. If you need it.

Dress: LIV-Glam "On My Way"
Shoes: SLink "Vintage 2-Strap Pumps"
Skin: Essences "Amaterasu"
Hair: Exile "Tempest"
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Hands and Feet: by SLink
Lashes: LeLutka "Photoshoot II"
Poses: by Don't Freak Out and Long Awkward Pose (unavailable)

Love,
Serene

NEFERTITI

Have you ever seen those pictures of Egyptian royals with their stretched earlobes and credited it to that extreme love of very heavy jewelry? LOL I'm trying to imagine what these eye-popping jewels would weigh in real life. That, and the big necklace is making me think of Tony Stark's glowing chest-jewel-slash-power-source. These are the random thoughts I have when I blog in the middle of the night. ... But beautiful jewels right?

Necklace and Rings: Finesmith "Vibe" (set also includes bracelets and earrings)
Earrings: Finesmith "Awake"
Cosmetics: Nuuna "Makeups v12 2" (tintable)
Skin: PXL "Efe" (vintage hotness)
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Lashes: LeLutka "Photoshoot II"

Love,
Serene

SHE WORE LEMON

This lemon yellow made me feel good today! Another cute bright print dress, bright yellow nail polish, and a sweet little ring. I need to remember to choose happiness. That sounds simple enough doesn't it? But simple isn't the same as easy.



Enjoy the simple things. Today we ran around and picked up new ballet slippers for my daughter, and we all had soup and salad together.



Dress: LIV-Glam "Feel So Close" (w/ texture-change HUD)
Ring: Milk Motion (at the Chapter Four Gacha)
Shoes: G Field "Alex"
Earrings: Hatpins "What Wrought"
Hair: D!va "Giz" (at the Arcade Gacha)
Skin: Essences "Cho"
Hands: by SLink
Nail Polish HUD: by Adore and Abhor
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Poses: by Frooti and Lost Angel Poses

Love,
Serene

IN MY SKIVVIES AT THE BEACH

So I sneaked off one last time to the beach before it gets cold. I was trying on pieces from Finesmith's flowery new September gift set, while doing a pinup pose lying on an old rowboat. 

And I was thinking Deep Thoughts about my latest skin obsession, Inka Mexicola's "Essences" skins. I read a skin review the other day by Arica Storaro over at one of my fave newer blogs, The Blogging Elf. Overall she gave a very positive review of Ms. Mexicola's "Cho" skins, but she pointed out the skin's imperfections honestly.

Reading her article made me think about what I expect from these skins. On the plus side, they suit my taste: they have these adorable tip-tilted noses that go just right with my eccentric little shape. The bodies are softer and don't make me look like a weightlifter. I think they hit just the right balance between hand drawn and photo real, neither too smoothly stylized nor too photographic in details. But some of my needs are probably different from some of yours ... As a blogger I like to show lots of skin options, but I rarely ask for review packs. So I look for bargains from the best skin makers. I go to the Dressing Room, the Arcade, the Chapter Four, etc. When I am paying between zero and a couple hundred lindens, I expect I am getting the equivalent of a Beta skin, which may have a couple of very small imperfections. But when I buy full-price skins (L$1000 or more), I expect higher quality: I think a body without visible seams is a perfectly reasonable expectation.

What can I say but ALWAYS TRY ON THE DEMO? Take a close look before you buy. The skin in the picture above came out of the L$100 gacha machine at the Chapter Four. At a moderate distance, I don't see anything wrong with it. But if you click on the photo to go look at the skin close up, there are a couple of artifacts along the seam line running horizontally a couple inches below the bellybutton. A couple more along the sides of the hips. But do I feel cheated? NO! Normally I am fully dressed, in front of a photo studio taking pictures, or teleporting around the grid. Maybe when she has had more time to work on her body template, I will buy some full-price skins :D  ... Love your work Inka!

Flower Accessories: Finesmith "September" (this month's group gift)
Undies: Plastik "Valerian"
Hair: Exile "Just A Reason 10 - Wildcards" (at the Arcade Gacha)
Skin: Essences "Amaterasu 05" (Gacha at the Chapter Four)
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"

Love,
Serene

OUBLIETTE REDUX

So this morning, Achariya really got me pissed by telling me that one of my favorite sims is thinking about closing.



Because I have a Black Belt in Grieving, I can do all five stages of grief at the same time.

1. Denial: "Oh I'm sure she'll change her mind. Building is habit forming!"
2. Anger: "How is it that every damn ugly strip-mall-in-a-toilet survives, but one of the prettiest places in SL might have to close?!?"
3. Bargaining: "Maybe if enough of us go and buy their amazing jewels, gowns and trees?"
4. Depression: *pouts and stamps booted feets*
5. Acceptance: "Maybe I'd better go take lots of piccies just in case it really happens ..."



I love to go here, just to watch the amazing shift of the seasons and to make myself happy in all this beauty. Every time I go there are lots of new little spots to explore. This visit, it seems as if all the seasons are crowded in, summer flowers over glorious autumn leaves. Go go go! Go now!



Cloak: Mr. Poet “Knit Scarf” (sculpted part of a men’s outfit)
   (Will someone please make a cloak like this in rigged mesh?)
Chainmail Shirt: bitch “Chain Mail Sleeved Doublet and Bracers”
   (This is a clothing brand by Maxwell Graf a.k.a. Rustica)
Pants: Panda Express “Cut at the Knee”
Necklace: Lassitude and Ennui “Lion’s Paw Torque”
Belt: Mabinogion “Medieval Belt”
Sword: Varen “Requiem Katana” (SL Marketplace)
Boots: Schadenfreude “Amargosa” (VIP Group gift)
Hair: D!va “Giz” (@ the Arcade Gacha)
Skin: Essences “Amaterasu 05” (Gacha @ the Chapter Four)
Eyes: Ikon “Ardent”
Hands: by SLink
White Makeup: Nuuna “Rinn Makeup White 70”
Teal Makeup: Nuuna “Sabe Makeup Aqua 50”
Purple Makeup: Nuuna “Lyre Makeup Violet”
Red Makeup: Visavi “Warpaint / Sacrifice”
Poses: by Del May and Diesel Works
Location: Oubliette

Love,
Serene

RED

I feel fall coming on yay! I love the rich tones and textures of this season best of all. Of course I can't help but have Halloween on my mind, and so I'm jumping the gun again with some skull-themed fun. The other day I picked up this little top from the Plastik. You can style it as a mini-dress if you'd rather but I see a cute long shirt :D in the sweet textures that Ms. Rieko always makes. I'm ready for some Grateful Dead tunes!



And the cute little Skully earrings come out of a Gacha at the Balderdash store in a whole bunch of cute colors.



Now this sofa was such a nice surprise. I have no idea how long it's been sitting in my objects folder but this is a lovely review sample. This sofa and a matching ottoman come with texture change HUDs that change the tufted leather to four colors, and the arms to the same four colors or to four animal furs. Lots of poses, and the tufting is three-dimensional, not just a texture to fool your eyes. Thank you!!

Sofa: Atelier Visconti "Vanessa Dormeuse" (w/color change HUD)
Shirt/Dress: the Plastik "Insidious Tee Dress //Damnation"
Pants: Zaara "Jeans *charcoal* (Classic)" (vintage system layer)
Boots: Lassitude and Ennui "Thecla" (partially tinted)
Earrings: Balderdash "SugarSkulls" (gacha)
Cuff: Baiastice "Spike Studs Leather Cuff" (previous Arcade gacha)
Hair: Lamb "Glass Candy" (w/shaved hairbase)
Skin: Essences "Amaterasu 05 *lait* brunette" (Chapter Four gacha)
Lipstick: Essences "Amaterasu Lipstick 03" (Chapter Four gacha)
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"

Love,
Serene

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

C'est bon, mon petit chou, c'est vraiment bon.



Souriez pour moi! J'ai bien joué vie.



Collar: Aesthetica "Choke Collar"
Shirt: Coco "BowShirt" (vintage)
Shorts: House of Fox "LolaShorts"
Tights: Sugar Heart "Sweet Factory JellyBean" and "Scalloped"
Shoes: Bliensen and Maitai "Griselda 2"
Left Ring: Maxi Gossamer "Black Boho Large" (Black Fair gift)
Right Ring: Remarkable Oblivion "Famous Ring" (Free*Style Shop)
Hair: Curio Obscura "Stackable Hairstyle Curling" (gacha)
Whiteface: Curio Obscura "Rococo Smoochy Whiteface" (giftie)
Lipgloss: Sugar Heart "Lip Shine" (gift)
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Poses: by Del May "Mime" and HelaMiyo "Silly Steps" (vintage vintage)

Love,
Serene

ASPHALT

I'm just loving these hot new jackets. There are a couple of versions, each one comes with a HUD that changes the jacket to three different textures. For example, this one also changes to red and baby blue. They don't look exactly like leather, but more like a metallic, shiny futuristic synthetic. The black texture is especially shiny.



And I guess this is the futuristic world we are building to go with it. I'd type an ironic smiley, but I don't think so much asphalt is particularly funny.



Jacket: LIV-Glam "Locked Out of Heaven" (two with three HUD-controlled textures each)
Hair: D!va "Giz (Type A)" (@ the Arcade Gacha)
Jewels: Lassitude and Ennui "Macabre" (I'm already thinking about October!)
Skin: Glam Affair "Giselle"
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Poses: by Adorkable
Music Running Thru My Head: "... pave paradise, put up a parking lot ..."

Love,
Serene

WARRIOR OF THE UNSEELIE

Yes sentry duty is important. It gets to be a grind, but we Unseelie know better than anyone what kind of sneaky little evils hide in the woods. We ourselves tend toward darkness, but that's how we know what to look out for.



Someone has to keep order in the realm.



Hat: Junbug "Sweet Pixie Cap Black Floral" (rare gacha @ last Fantasy Gacha)
Shoulder Pads: Cloud "Spiked Shoulders" (gacha @ last Fantasy Gacha)
Wings: Deviance "Sidhe Wings Bramble" (gacha @ last Fantasy Gacha)
Bracers: Bitch "Armor Bracers Steel" (part of outfit @We Love Roleplay)
Pants: Panda Express "Cut at the Knee" (@ Fi*Fridays)
Chainmail Shirt: Bare Rose "Forest Elf Silver Shirt" (part of outfit)
Slippers: Lassitude and Ennui "Mojari Slippers"
Strappy Harness: Kyoot "Addicted to Dopamine Harness" (vintage)
Belt: Pacadi Jasha "Mairey Leather Belt" (vintage)
Belt: Winkl "Belt Chain" (vintage)
Mask: Illusions "Imp Mask" (vintage gift)
Weapon: Seraphim Systems "The Countess"
Skin: Plastik "Astrali Ganymede"
Belly Tattoo: Tacky Star "Birdie Bye-Bye" (vintage)
Cosmetics: Plastik "Darker Lips" and "Lip Stripe"
Eyes: Ikon "Ardent"
Antennae: Scribble "Antennae" (vintage)
Hairbase: Discord Designs "dDx Ripley"
Poses: by Del May and Frooti

Love,
Serene

p.s. Unlike those high-and-mighty light fae, the dark Unseelie dangle participles all the time, because it makes them feel, like, all rebellious and everything.