Sabrina is much better at reviewing skins than I am. For one thing, it’s just impossible for me to review skins with bits I don’t like and there is a never-ending plethora of skins in SL that just have icky bits by my standards. Yes, I know, I know, most people only see the make-up. I don’t know why I can’t get passed that, but I just can’t.
That said, male skins are completely different and I quite enjoy borrowing the avs of my guys friends and shopping around for new skins. Maybe it’s because technically men don’t really have bits, per se, so I can’t get hung up on them. Who knows. Either way, I was thrilled to discover .::by Max::. recently and thought I’d share about them. It should be noted that the store also carries female skins, but this review deals exclusively with the mens’ side of the store.
What You Get: All of by Max’s male skins are sold in a variety of options. First, there are seven skin tones ranging from pure white ivory Gothic to the Ebony set which is actually ebony and not just really dark tan passing itself off as black. Next, each skin tone comes in a basic and “Hairy” version. Finally, each of the two versions per skin tone come in 13 different facial hair options. Gothic skins come with pink and black lip options, but they are the only ones, for obvious reasons. I know it sounds complicated, but the store is smartly laid out and the options are all very obvious and easy to find when presented in front of you on the wall.
The skins are sold in packs of 4 facial hair options for L$3000 or, as the full set of 13 for L$4000. So, assuming you have the Lindens, that buy is a no-brainer. There is also a “clean shaven” single skin pack for each tone that can be purchased for L$1500.
There are demos for every skin tone, so you can try before you buy, but most of the tones in the store are well represented in the store displays so long as you have your Force Sun settings on a Sunrise or Noon setting.
The Face: The face is my favorite part of the by Max male line. Sabrina and I differ over (well, everything, really) our preferences for photo-realistic based skins, but even she had to concede to liking these faces. Sabrina’s sole complaint was the eyebrows which were too bushy for her taste. I like them, but as with so many skins issues, it’s up to taste. The facial hair is all extremely well done. One issue that will hopefully be resolved / addressed in future releases is that there is a microscopic seam right where the lips meet that looks off. Unless you are fully zoomed in and staring at the mouth, you’d never see it, but it was as though a flickering line appears randomly at the seam of the upper and lower lips. You see this generally in skins with eye seams needing touch-up. But while the eye issue is always highly noticeable to me, this lip concern took me an hour of close-up photography to see. Although, granted, once you know it’s there, it’s easy to spot.
Another good aspect of the heads with these skins is that they look good bald. Many photo-resourced male skins don’t come with bald options and with so many gloriously bald headed men in SL (or prim-hair wearers) that’s just bad juju. This skin accomodates bald setting fabulsouly. There is an odd shadow sometimes on the back of the head where, I believe, the seams meet, but I found it to only appear when SL was throwing one of its “I’m rezzed, no I’m not” hissy fits. At any rate, it appears only from odd angles at odd times, so it depends on how prissy you’re going to be about curious shadows as to whether that’s an issue.
The Body: The bodies on these skins are just orgasmic. I prefer the Hairy skin (I’m that way, I’ve got a thing for bald, fuzzy men IRL) but the smoother one is also nummy. If you prefer your man to be on the “bear” side of the animal kingdom, then the Hairy option is simply the best rendering of that in SL I’ve ever seen. This skin tone below is called “Tawny” and is a great shade for white boys who want some color without going into fake-and-bake tan territory.
The Hairy skin doesn’t just focus on the chest, either — both the arms and legs are sprinkled with fuzzy goodness.
The back is not, but we’re going to assume that our SL men take the no pain, no gain outlook on back/neck hair and wax accordingly.
The Bits: Well, men in SL don’t really have bits in that oh-so-very-Ken-doll way, although there is nice detailing all the way down to the…erm…place where the bits *should* be.
However, in a stroke of brilliance, by Max does offer a skin texture pack to go with the Xcite X2 penis attachment (this is a texture pack ONLY, you still have to go buy the penis itself from Xcite). There is a texture set for each skin tone for L$100.
All in all, these are some of the best male skins I’ve seen in SL, and the Hairy version is definately my personal favorite.
(Read More | Where to Buy)
Technically, this was Sabrina’s find, but as she hasn’t blogged it yet, I’m hoping on passing the joyful news along to everyone.
As many of you know, every parcel in SL is capable of supporting an audio (and/or video) stream. If this is new information to you, then click on your parcel “About Land” settings (accessed by either clicking at the top of the SL interface on the Parcel name & coordinates, or by clicking on any blank ground within the parcel and selecting “About Land” from the pie menu) and take a gander at the media tab. If you have mod rights for the land, then you just fill in the blanks, close your About Land settings, press play on the Media Controls box of choice, and sit back to enjoy your aural and/or optical pleasures.
While there are many streams of club, country, 80s, and other music genres, it seems to me that classic rock is difficult to find. Well, weep no more my fellow throwbacks:
Virgin Radio’s stream can be located at: http://mp3-vc-128.smgradio.com:80
Yes, there are commercials, but that’s as it should be. Radio stations you don’t pay a subscription for have commercials. Since they provide their broadcast free over the net, there shouldn’t be any copyright concerns. Broadcast out of London, Virgin offers a really fabulous (and surprisingly non-repetitive) selection of mostly 60s and 70s rock with the occasional visit to the 80s. Plus, Alice Cooper is a regular DJ on the station. How ever-flipping-cool is that?
It may be worth noting that Sabrina tracked down the URL for this station while programming channels for her Mini HiFi Stereo, which lets you flip between programmable stations on your land:
It’s also scripted to change color on command and match any interior, and the cute little CD drawer opens and closes, too. I think it’s nifty 
Given the fact that it never rains in Second Life, (although apparently it used to - right through the roof of your house) it’s not too surprising that a rain coat is not an easy item of clothing to find in SL. Which is unfortunate, as I have found several fabulous umbrellas that I am wearing in near constant rotation at the moment.
In fact, Second Life isn’t exactly overflowing with coats of any description, the spate of furry warmness inspired by the creation of snow sims aside. Luckily, one of my favourite coats - the Petty outfits from Vitamin Ci - happen to come in three colours that nicely compliment my three new umbrellas.
It’s hard to beat the fabulous Mary Poppins umbrella from Chow Chow Shop. First of all, it has the most amusing and authentic mary Poppins parrot head handle, and you really can’t beat a dead parrot. Except in this case the parrot is just $1L.
The umbrella is scripted to open and close on touch, and should you find yourself falling down a very long chimney, it will magically open and stop you hitting the ground. Magic!
If the relentlessly perfect weather is getting to you, check out the magical UNbrella from Shiny Things. It comes in three colours and you can touch it to turn the refreshing rain on and off:
There are three varieties - red, teal, and black - and they all have a lovely mod patterns to them that go beautifully with the retro Pretty jackets.
If a bit of beauty is what you crave, the graceful and elegant umbrella from Empyrean Emporium may be the perfect accessory for your sunny days:
The umbrella is scripted to change hands; one had whilst you perambulate, and the other when you stand still to be admired. The umbrella comes in eight colours including black, and stikes me as a perfect Victorian accessory.
So while you can’t complain about the weather, don’t let that stop you from sheltering underneath the perfect rain accessories.
(Read More | Where to Buy)
Reverie Virtual Systems is a prime SL location for quality poses and animation overrides, but one of the delights of the store for me is really the furniture. Although it can get primmy, it’s always nicely detailed and (as a rule) includes absolutely charming poses.
I found this papasan chair a while back and have been meaning to blog it ever since, even though Sabrina loathes it (not specifically the Reverie version, but the existence of papasan chairs in a general sense).
The solo version just looks so comfy you can almost hear the collective sighs of ex-college students around the world, indulging fond memories of furniture that managed to hold 6 frat boys, a semester’s worth of books and that bike tire no one admitted to owning, but somehow never quite made it out to the dumpster. I don’t know what happened to my college papasan, but I miss it when I visit Reverie.
The couples “cuddle” version is very sweet, but the poses give one the sense that they are posing for a photo rather than wriggling down into the cushions for some afternoon delight. Still, it’s wicked cute.
Touching poseballs, btw, makes them disappear and/or reappear which is a fabulous feature to be sure, and all the furniture I’ve purchased from the store is mod, so you can change the fabric and textures and swap out the poses if you prefer.
As previously mentioned, these papasan creations are a bit on the primmy side for a chair (26-prim-ish) but they really do sell the effect and style of what this item goes for, and even if Bri swears to disown me if I add ‘em to my decor…I keep a couple in my inventory. Just for emergencies ;-).
(Read More | Where to Buy)
