L’Abel Spring Collection, Pt. 1

If this picture reminds you of Abba or Farrah Fawcett, you’re not far off, because I’m once again revisiting the 1970s.

When Neferia Abel asked on Plurk if there were any bloggers interested in reviewing an item or two from L’Abel’s upcoming spring collection a while ago, I put my name down on the list, because I’m always curious about what Neferia will come up with next, and while the L’Abel range is the modern branch of Neferia’s fashion “empire”, it often allows for a vintage interpretation as well. So it was no surprise that the “Nana” jumpsuit immediately reminded me of ethnic-influenced clothes from the 1970s, while at the same time it also picks up and reinterprets recent fashion trends.

“Nana” comes with a tight-fitting upper part, accentuated by moderately sized shoulder cuffs, and a lower part which is skin-tight on the system layer, but adds volume with the help of prims both above and below the knee. The colour is a silvery white with charcoal accents and a subtly shimmering texture.

To be perfectly honest, I never thought of Aderyn as a “jumpsuit type”, but this outfit made me revise this opinion as it has just the perfect feel for a hot summer’s day with cloudless skies: one can almost feel the cool fabric on the warm skin, and it certainly looks comfortable in a very un-frumpy way.

The “Jane” wedges by Shiny Things are an excellent match, and while at first I wasn’t going for hair quite as big, Truth’s “Farrah” won me over eventually because it looked the most authentic.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Rebel, Rebel 4
• Eyes: [LeLutka]-Reflections-Mist-Eyes
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: >Truth< Farrah – espresso

Outfit:

• Jumpsuit: -L’Abel- Nana silver jumpsuit
• Shoes: (Shiny Things) Jane Wedges – white

Other:

• Pose: [Long Awkward Pose] – Odds & Ends – Whatcha Want

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The First Flowers of Spring

Today there was a hint of spring in the air: the first crocuses are in bloom here and the sun is slowly gaining strength. A feeling that also spills over into my virtual life.

Ingenue recently released these flirty skirts and cute bustiers, just right when you feel like finally tossing the coats away. The come in 8 different colours each, so you can either go monochromatic or mix them up, and are versatile enough to be easily dressed up or down, just as the situation demands.

They remind me a little of the short cocktail or party dresses that were en vogue in the 1980s and for a moment I seriously pondered dressing them up with black lace leggings and gloves. However, I am not exactly fond of the 80s when it comes to fashion, and it would feel weird featuring a time in my blog that I actually remember from personal experience and still call it vintage (I’ll give that another ten years, at the very least). Besides, they are so lovely and have such great textures – not that this is news when it comes to Ingenue’s designs – that taking the focus away from them feels like comitting a sin.

Also new are the Liasis pumps, a retro-looking shoe in snake skin optic available in 15 different colours, which should make them a wonderful match not only for the above-mentioned items, but for any wardrobe in general.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR Natural 4 (left); (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR Nightfall 2 (right)
• Eyes: [LeLutka]-Reflections-Mist-Eyes
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: .:[ Tiny Bird ]:. I and Love and You – Pepper

Outfit:

• Bustier: Ingenue :: Tulipe :: L’Eau (left); Ingenue :: Tulipe :: Noir (right)
• Skirt: Ingenue :: Pivoine :: L’Eau (left); Ingenue :: Pivoine :: Rouge (right)
• Shoes: Ingenue :: Liasis :: Rouge (left); Ingenue :: Liasis :: Teal (right)

Other:

• Poses: [Long Awkward Pose] – Doin Right (left); [LAP] – CM – When I’m Alone (right)

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Between The Seasons

Even though meteorologically, spring starts today, and even though I am sick of the cold, grey weather, it’s hard to come up with a daffodils-and-hyacinths-look when the window shutters are rattling in the storm outside. Instead, a TV-documentation on fashion designer Sonia Rykiel inspired me to create an outfit based on some of Rykiel’s collections from the 1970s, perfect for that time of the year.

Today’s look contains two pieces I have used in the same combination before, but they fit really well into the concept: if you look past the hippie and disco fashion, a lot of clothes from the 1970s are a re-interpretation of the silhouettes which were en vogue in the 1920s – especially noticeable in haute couture. For Sonia Rykiel, it became one of her signature looks which she still keeps varying several decades later. What I like about it is that despite the obvious references to bygone (fashion) eras, her creations never look dated.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Nightfall 4
• Eyes: [LeLutka]-Reflections-Mist-Eyes
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: !lamb. Dog Roses – ink

Outfit:

• Cardigan: *Thimbles* Jim Jones Doomberry Kool-aid
• Top: [Whippet & Buck] Cole Boatneck Top ALABASTER
• Skirt: *ICING* Fields of Bloom [part of outfit]
• Gloves: (5th&Oxford) Leather Gloves – M *white*
• Stockings: Stockings by Bettie’s – ivory [formerly 1-800 Bettie’s]
• Shoes: Maitreya Neyya * Toe Cap White

Other:

• Pose: Reel Expression – Posh 13

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She’s Such A Tease

The name of 5th & Oxford’s latest release is to be taken literally: “The Tease” is a set of satin lingerie consisting of corset, underbust-corset, buttoned gloves in three lengths, bra and panties, with and without garters and two pairs of stockings in coordinating colours and in a nude tone respectively. My favourite hue out of the six available colours is a rich sapphire blue, the other available ones can be seen on Anastasia Trefusis and Freyja Nemeth (as well as some of the other clothing options – since lately I crash every time I take a picture [regardless of viewer], I had to limit myself to a single image this time around 😦 ).

The hand-drawn lustrous textures are as great as one has come to expect from this brand and I especially appreciate the little details, for example the small horizontal creases on the corsets – a sure sign for tight lacing – or the drawn-up hem where the garter are tucked on the stockings. The items are too pretty to hide them away as underwear only, but at least for the corsets it is not a stretch at all to imagine them worn as a signature piece in a more “dressed up” look.

This kind of lingerie is not strictly vintage, but rather in the style of the “New Burlesque”, but too gorgeous to not play around with it. There is a certain playful way to this fashion format which often seems missing nowadays: sensual rather than sexual; despite the revealing cut of the underbust corset “The Tease” is notionally alluring rather than salacious (at least to me). Funny to think that what was scandalous once appears almost nostalgically innocent now.

The hair is hardly-disguised reference to Bettie Page and once more professing my love for Bubbles Clawtooth’s designs – how could I not love the many vintage references in those hairstyles?

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR Kitty 3
• Eyes: [LeLutka]-Reflections-Mist-Eyes
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: Clawtooth by Clawtooth: Velvet Moon (Black Beauty)

Outfit:

• Corset, Panties, Stockings, Gloves: (5th & Oxford) The Tease *SAPPHIRE*
• Shoes: =DeLa*= Pumps “Stella” Noir Black

Other:

• Pose: Diesel Works Animations – Momo 18

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“Brooke” – 5th & Oxford’s New Skin Line

Skins are important in Second Life®: more than anything else, they influence our avatars’ appearance. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I am following any new developments at 5th & Oxford with keen interest; always wondering where the next release will take me. My curiosity was answered when the talented Roslin Petion, one half of the creative duo behind the brand (the other being CJ Carnot), dropped a folder of the latest skins on me.

“Brooke” is based on the “Audrey” line, which it shares the body with, but has been adjusted in skin tone and contrast. The face, however, is very different and “Brooke” comes with completely new features: bolder lips, a changed nose and thinner brows are only the most prominent alterations, creating a slightly more mature appearance than the very youthful “Audrey”.

The new skin line launched with five individual make-ups, each available in six varieties and three skintones. Ranging from very natural looks over daytime tones to kaleidoscope colours, I chose two examples from each make-up to showcase here in my usual “fair” skintone. As you can see, some of the looks also come with one or several beauty marks or with freckles, which makes for an interesting variety.

With winged eyeliner and lip colours appropriate for vintage or retro looks, it can hardly be a secret that I adore the “Kitty” make-up.

“Rebel, Rebel” compliments the latest fashion release of 5th & Oxford, a line of punk-rock-inspired shirts and skirts, but the striking eyeshadows and intense colours work equally well in a different context.

The name says it all: only a hint of eyeliner and lipgloss make the “Natural” make-ups a look where the differences are down to details, like the hue of the lip-texture, a beauty mark or flushed cheeks.

If you’re trying to add a dramatic note to your attire, “Nightfall” offers smokey eyes in dark jewel tones.

Finally, a range of eyeshadows in subdued colours and balanced hues for the lips – “Subtle” includes great daytime make-ups that add a bit of colour without dominating the appearance.

“Brooke” once again shows great craftsmanship: the textures are smooth, the make-ups tasteful (even the more flamboyant ones) and the skins are well-balanced, with intelligently and sparingly used highlights. A personal delight is the fact that pitch black brows are available again – with “Audrey”, you had to settle for a brownish black, which sometimes could create the impression of having your hair dyed black rather than sporting your natural haircolour. As always, the eyebrows are modable, so that you can easily adjust them to your haircolour.

I love this new skin line already and look forward to any additions Roslin and CJ might want to add to it in the future!

Skins:

• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Kitty 3
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Kitty 4
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Rebel, Rebel 2
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Rebel, Rebel 4
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Natural 3
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Natural 4
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Nightfall 4
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Nightfall 5
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Subtle 1
• (5th & Oxford) Brooke FAIR – Subtle 3

Other:

• Hair: Clawtooth by Clawtooth – Woman of the Year – Black Beauty
• Eyes: (Miriel) Realistic Eyes – Strong Green [not available anymore]
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]

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World AIDS Day 2009

December 1 is World AIDS Day, and on this occasion I would like to do a blog post to raise awareness of a condition we all know about, but – for various reasons – choose to largely ignore in everyday life.

A very dear friend of mine is HIV-positive, and he also is the person who first introduced me to SecondLife® in December 2007. Without him, I wouldn’t be here, writing this post.

Like most people, I knew about HIV, but the role it played in my life was too insignificant to ever become more than a distant, abstract threat that seemingly did not belong to my environment. Now, no day goes past that I don’t think of it consciously, that I don’t hope for improvement of already existing therapies or for a breakthrough in scientific research, so that a cure might be found.

At a time of the year when most of the Western hemisphere has its collective thoughts on either upcoming or past holidays, I would like to take a break for World AIDS Day and for all those who are infected with HIV – regardless of age, race, gender, sexual identity or social status; regardless of whether their infection was a risk they took, an accident, or fate; whether they were born with it or not.

To my friend, I’d just like to say: I hope that many decades from now, we will sit together, old and wrinkly, laughing about the times when we were young. I love you.

——————————————————————————————————————————————–

Of course, the red ribbon I’m wearing is very anachronistic, but in this case, I really don’t care.

My outfit is a new-ish release by Ingenue that I love so much that I’m not yet willing to change into something else. Both the high-waisted “Jane Jean” and the “Marguerite” sweater have a playful, pin-up style sexiness which is never really out of date, so even if vintage or retro fashion are not usually your cup of tea, you still might enjoy these two items. The quality is, as always with Betty Doyle’s creations, very high, so there really is no reason why you should hesitate to get one of the many colours she offfers.
If your balance is currently low or you still need further persuasion, there’s a red version of the Jane Jean available through a Midnight Mania board at Ingenue – just touch the board and with a bit of luck, you’ll receive a free copy at midnight SLT.

Since I recently joined the “iheartsl.com bloggers”-group, I will from now on note all promotional items I received through them with a bold “R” for “review copy”.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) FAIR Audrey Summer Cocktails 5
• Eyes: (Miriel) Realistic Eyes – Strong Green [not available anymore]
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: >Truth< “Ashlynn” espresso

Outfit:

• Sweater: Ingenu :: Marguerite :: Coal R
• Jeans: Ingenue :: Jane Jean :: Blue R
• Shoes: Maitreya “Verve” black
• Red Ribbon: freebie from the SL HIV Prevention and Education Center, here: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Snowlion%20Mountain/149/126/25

Other:

• Pose: [LAP] Wonder Girls II – The Zoe

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Intoxicating Mixtures

(More pictures and credits below.)

Mothers, lock your daughters in, it’s too late to talk to them – the Verwood Sisters are in town and you are going to lose your last bit of grip on the young girls if you let them visit these concerts! On stage, they will intoxicate you with their velvety voices only, but well-informed sources claim that that the sisters’ singing and dancing is not the only thing which will get to your head and that they have a habit of inviting their most faithful fans to night-long hedonistic debauchery.

I was one of the lucky bloggers who received a review package for 5th & Oxford’s latest cocktail-themed release: 6 new skins, 12 dresses (2 different models in six colours each) and a retro-style bar set were released by Roslin Petion and CJ Carnot last weekend, and my high hopes have been surpassed even.
Not only does everything meet the high quality standards one has come to expect from the creators, but is also is a very inspiring and inspired colourful collection.

The diverse set of skins comes with lipsticks and eye shadows in different textures and – partly bold, partly subdued – hues, the linking element being the most lovely winged eyeliner. And since it’s 5th & Oxford, it goes without saying that the more demure make-ups look classy, not dull, and the more chromatic ones look vibrant, not garish.
There are two kinds of cocktail dresses: a mini with an asymmetric, gathered top and a longer v-necked dress with short (prim-)sleeves and an obi-like belt. Both come in six colours, all of which are shown in this post – three on the mini, three on the obi-dress.
I’m especially in awe of the longer dress, not only because it is a style I favour anyway, but also because the top part of it exhibits some great shading and wrinkles around the bust which create a very realistic and sexy appearance – the upper part actually makes a great top to go with other pieces of clothing.
Finally, there is the retro bar set that comes with a lot of accessories, which I couldn’t show all here: highball and martini glasses with drinking animations that actually empty, a cocktail shaker which dispenses new drinks to your friends, bowls of lemon slices and olives and finally something that promises to bring life into the dullest party, a soda siphon you can use to spray other people! The set is sold with four of them, so you can hand the three remaining ones to your friends.
The bar furniture itself are of an understated elegance that lends a timeless quality to the design, despite the reminescences to bygone decades, making it suitable to match a lot of different interior designs and tastes in furnishing. My only regret is that I don’t have a home in SL where I could rez these permanently.

Since I wanted to do a theme that did not feature the obvious (sunsets, swimming pools, the silhouettes of palms against the evening sky), I came up with the 1960s girl band idea – plus it was the perfect excuse to air all those beehive-updos I had bought.

The Clawtooth by Clawtooth-hair is not available in this very colour anymore, since it was a temporary offer only. It can still be bought in other varieties of black, though.

Body:

• Skins: (5th & Oxford) FAIR Audrey Summer Cocktails 1, 3 & 5
• Eyes: (Miriel) Realistic Eyes – Strong Green [not available anymore]
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: fri.day – Allison – Paranoid Black; ETD – Roslin (smoke); Clawtooth by Clawtooth – Sweet Whispers – Softest Black [only available in other black tones]; ::69:: Model hair 01 – offblack –

Outfits:

• Cocktail dresses: (5th & Oxford) Summer Cocktails *RED CRUSH*, *CHEEKY MONKEY* & *BLUE LAGOON*
• Cocktail Mini: (5th & Oxford) Summer Cocktails Mini *COSMO*, *APPLETINI* & *PURPLE HAZE*
• Stockings (with long dress): *Sheer* Stockings 01: Nylon Black
• Patterned Tights (with short dress): *Sheer* Tights 11: Vines Black
• Shoes: [hoorenbeek] Stilettos [colourchangeable]
• Earrings: Paper Couture – Round Diamond Circle Drop Earrings

Other:

• Furniture, Drinks etc.: (5th & Oxford) Cocktail Bar set
• Poses: First picture = [LAP] Bolly9, DQ – Cam Hoor Too & BB – Fierce; second picture = inbuilt female sit from bar stool & *ELISA* melting icecream 6; last picture = pose built into hair

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La Bella Figura

(Credits at the end of the post.)

Summer 1960: hemlines are creeping up to the knee, outfits become simpler. Only a few years later Mary Quant will present the mini skirt to the public and fashion rules will be completely overturned. The Golden Age of Haute Couture is coming to an end and at the end of the decade, the street will rule over the catwalk.

We tend to think of the 1960s as a decade of revolution, not only socially, but also in terms of fashion, and often forget that they also contributed many staples to classical wardrobe. Change did not come with a big bang, but was achieved gradually when the highly refined and complicated wardrobe of the 50s shed many of its decorative elements in favour of more slim-lined cuts.

When I received a notification about the release of Couture Chapeau’s Sophia Loren retrospective some weeks ago, I was immediately intrigued by the idea, but unfortunately an illness kept me from logging into SL for a longer period of time and afterwards it took me a while until I found the opportunity to poperly check them out. I’m glad I did, though, because I immediately felt drawn towards some of the hats, and so it came that the “Napoli” model inspired this look.

The outfit consists of Armidi’s “Primavera” mini-trench, worn without the prim sleeves for an authentic appearance, and the “Simplicity” prim skirt from /artilleri/, one of those basics I couldn’t do without in SL. Of course, I had to mod the prim parts of the trench to fit on my avatar (and over the system skirt), but in this case the task turned turned out to be surprisingly easy – a rarity when it comes to prim-clothes.
Black mid-length gloves by 5th & Oxford and black pumps by Maitreya lend an elegant touch to the ensemble, while the necklace by (luc) adds just the splash of colour to prevent it from looking too monochromatic. Tres Blah’s lovely bag finally has a design which matched my vision of this outfit perfectly, I only had to get rid of the bow – not because I didn’t like it (I do, very much so), but because there was “too much going on” in the outfit now. Fortunately, the bag comes with copy and modify enabled, so I could take a copy and shrink the bow to a size that you can hardly see it.

The hat is available in black and red as well and contains a resize script, so it should fit every avatar regardless of (head-) size; I’m wearing ETD’s “Roslin” underneath, once again modified to prevent some of the strands from poking through the hat.

“Why the cigarette?” you may ask. Well, I don’t smoke in RL and never would, but I found for a look from a time when smoking was the rule rather than the exception, when people were unaware of the health risks  and when stars did it in public without tabloids scolding them through a series of unflattering snapshots the next day, it would make an appropriate accessory. Even though the cigarette comes with particle smoke, it didn’t show very well in my snapshot, so I added the smoke in Photoshop.

And if you think that’s a cheap romance novel poking out of Aderyn’s bag, you are mistaken. She assured me that it’s a copy of Cocteau.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) FAIR Audrey Fresh 1
• Eyes: (Miriel) Realistic Eyes – Strong Green [not available anymore]
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: ETD – Roslin (smoke)

Outfit:

• Hat: La Loren Napoli Chapeau – white straw
• Jacket: (Armidi) Primavera Mini Trench Bianco
• Skirt: /artilleri/ simplicity pencil skirt *black*
• Stockings: [1-800 Bettie’s] Stockings by Bettie’s – nude
• Gloves: (5th & Oxford) Gloves Medium Black
• Shoes: Maitreya Group Gift Pumps – black
• Necklace: (luc) Gaea Necklace (coral/gold)
• Bag: -Tres Blah- Chic Satchel (black)
• Cigarette: PERSONA cigarette solo [freebie]

Other:

• Pose: Standing pose from [LAP]’s free basic AO in combination with the in-built holding pose of the bag

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Sweet as Sorbet

(Credits at the end of the post.)

Some dresses are just made for balmy summer evenings spent outside, for Sunday afternoons in the garden or a stroll in the countryside. Prelude’s “Sorbet” is such an outfit. a cute dress, available in a variety of icecream-colours, with a romantic sweetheart-neckline and puffy sleeves, very reminescent of the 1940s.

I’ve been changing into and out of “Sorbet” for a couple of days before deciding to make it a little more demure, as required for vintage daytime clothing, and to wear Pink outfitter’s “Poppy” blouse in white chiffon underneath, tinted to match the dress. Its half-transparent texture compliments the diaphanous overskirt and sleeves and looks just airy enough to pass as a summer outfit despite the high collar. Thanks to a resizing script, you can easily fit the skirt and belt to match your avatar’s proportions.

Shiny Things’ “Brandys” cork wedges are among my favourite shoes in Second Life®, both due to the texture and the fine details, and the blue ones just happen to have the exact right colour to go with the pattern in the dress.

Body:

• Skin: (5th & Oxford) FAIR Audrey English Rose GG [group gift]
• Eyes: (Miriel) Realistic Eyes – Strong Green [not available anymore]
• Lashes: (Miriel) Lashes – Feather [not available anymore]
• Hair: Kin – Jennifer (black)

Outfit:

• Dress: Prelude – Sorbet Mint
• Undershirt: [Pink Outfitters] Poppy Sheer Chiffon Blouse – white [tinted; without chest ruffles]
• Hat: Tesla “Melanie” hat [freebie]
• Shoes: (Shiny Things) Brandys – blue

Other:

• Pose: [LAP] – KB – Prissy

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A Second Chance at Second Life

Hello, my name is Aderyn Verwood and I first came to Second Life in 2007, but eventually left again almost a year ago and even deleted my avatar, since I didn’t expect to ever go back. But as the months went by, I found myself checking the feeds for new developments and products – infrequently at first and then, gradually, so often that I decided to give it another try: Aderyn Verwood was born, an “experienced newbie” to this online world. Some things had changed, some things still are the same, some vanished and others were brand new. I didn’t regret coming back.

I used to have a rather short-lived blog (with approximately three individual readers, myself included 😛 ) as my first incarnation and knew from the day I registered again that I would give blogging another go as well. Once the novelty of SL has worn off, one needs an incentive and a direction on what to do and how to spend one’s time, and since my budget isn’t big enough to make shopping this virtual raison d’être and I always enjoyed the process of taking and publishing pictures, a blog seemed to make sense.

Naturally, my inventory was empty when starting again, and I wistfully thought more than once of all the skins, shoes, hair and outfits I deleted last year, not to mention those things which are not available anymore, like that huge folder with Last Call outfits…

Slowly I’m getting to a point where my inventory holds enough items for creating outfits of sufficient variety to justify blogging. My main interest is in vintage and retro styles, mixed with a bit of ethnic influences sometimes, and that’s what I’ll be showing.

Another reason for not starting any earlier is that there are some nasty visual glitches bugging the snapshot function of my viewer, which have ruined more than one session so far…

But now, enough of those boring firsts posts. I hope you’ll enjoy this blog, and thank you for reading. 🙂

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