These days, when it seems like everyone in SL fashion is taking themselves way too seriously, it is delightful to be reminded of just why I play virtual paper dolls. Recently, while scouting for a costume for a party, I discovered something I’ve been looking for since I was thirteen years old.
It’s quite possible you may not recognize this dress. You are not necessarily a child of the 80s with a crush on all things fantasy. But ever since I first saw this sequence from the movie Legend which features Mia Sara dancing with (and being seduced by) a gothtastic gown, my id has been muttering a low, guttural Gollum-like cry of “mine.” And now, thanks to the SL dress-up goddesses and Natalia Zelmanov of Sirena, it is now my precious!
Like many costumes, it’s not a 100% success. Those nummy gossamer arm drapes are not represented, and there are some elements that could use a little tweaking. I should mention: I could care less. The wicked-witch delish high collar, the cleavage that dips all the way down to Paris, the black and gold decadence of the original intent is well represented in goth girly scrumptiousness. The skirting is also a triumph. It doesn’t suffer from the wretched pangs of transparency bug ruination (is LL ever going to address that crap?) because it is actually two different attachments - effectively layering the skirt and creating smooth movement without the woes of most formal-length offerings today. The texturing might be that “lather, rise, repeat” style that is unfortunate in SL dressmaking, but in this instance, where we’re dealing with folds and ripples of black satin, it just works.
Also at Sirena, you’ll find some fabulously innovative scripted hairstyles. The one I paired with my Dark Lily is called Seduction and it has been my favorite fashion toy over the last several days. When you purchase Seduction, or a similar style, you’re effectively getting two styles in one shot. The base wig comes in colorpacks of four shades, with each shade presented in three different sizes. Each size has corresponding hair sticks (sister styles might come with barrettes, etc). When the hair sticks are worn, the style changes to an updo. To revert to original long hair, simply remove the sticks. You can set it so that only you (the owner) can remove the hair sticks or allow anyone to do so - making your hair a target for friends and mischievous strangers to play with. The hair shows as no-mod in your inventory due to the scripting, but I was able to resize and re-texture it with no problem. It must be said, it was really a treat to get the wigs in three different “start off” sizes.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the faboo skin I’m wearing is from Fleur and the necklace that compliments the ensemble so delightfully is a previously reviewed gem from Miriel.
Now if anyone can tell me where I can find the ball gown from Labyrinth…
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It’s been a while since we’ve reviewed a skin here at Linden Lifestyles; considering what an important part of an avatar’s look skin is, we thought it was time to take a look at some of the newer skins available on the grid. For today’s entry, I’m going to be looking at the new line of skins by Gala Phoenix, which are, quite simply, stunning.
What you get: Gala’s new line consists of six skintones (ranging from milky pale to deep-brown at the edge of black) in (so far) sixteen makeups. Singles are priced at a reasonable L$1,000 each, and a four-pack is L$3,000.
The face: These skins have an adorably sweet, fresh-faced look that strikes a good balance between photorealistic and hand-drawn, with excellent highlighting and detail; the brows in particular are extremely well-done, and are possibly the best I’ve seen on an SL skin; they’re neither too thick nor too thin, have visible fine detail, and are slider-adjustable to match your desired hair colour. The lips, expecially on the natural-look skins, have nicely-done fine crease lines, and the lip colour and gloss can be adjusted within a narrow range through the use of the makeup sliders.
The cosmetic choices available include some rather dramatic selections in eye makeup, and what may be the best natural, no-makeup skin I’ve seen yet (this is a choice that more skin creators should be offering, in my opinion; it’s nice to have the option available should you want it); upcoming releases will include freckled skins, which I got a peek at:
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If you have a weakness for Gothic Lolita (like moi) then you should probably stay away from Draconic Lioncourt’s store because you’re going to drop a mint (also like moi). I don’t wear this flavor of highly detailed yummy black goodness very often, but sometimes a selection just screams my name and refuses to let me leave the store. In this case, the dress just…cawed to me.
This is “The Raven” — part of a suite of four Edgar Allen Poe inspired stand-out sets available amid all the other luxuriant goth joy that is Draconic Kiss. There is delightfully detailed prim work on the costume, and I was impressed with all of it — the decadent multi-layered flex skirts and puffy shoulder prims, the raven-feather choker and especially the deep purple patchwork raven that sits on your shoulder.
The set also includes a goth skin with purple raven-feather tattoo beneath the eye and electric purple lips. The rest of the skin really doesn’t matter as the face and hands are the only sections of the fashion canvass of you that are visible beneath the dark delish layers of this costume, and I am not an expert on goth skins by any means. However the pale tone is smooth and milk-white without being pasty, the necessary bits and details (navel, nips, etc) are well rendered and there is a faboo black and purple raven tattoo on the back between the shoulder blades.
Did I mention the raven that sits on your shoulder? Although I didn’t buy them all, each of the four costumes seems to come with some little attachment like this. In my case, the patchwork purple raven with his one button eye and one stitch eye was just too cute. I know the Black Cat version comes with a kitty carry around. But, honestly, how could it be more adorable than a little purple raven?
I chose the Bloom boots from Maitreya to compliment the wicked witch ring-striped stockings (which, I must confess, have a wee bit of an alignment problem) and the SuperPony hairstyle from Armidi. I know there are gothier selections out there, but I was already a poser and figured I might as well keep a little of myself amid the pale.
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