Tag Archives: bento mesh head

Ropes not Roses!

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Today I am hurrying with a wonderful release of A&Y – the “Zoe” dress – for the Fetish Fair and the awesome “Insanity Eye Patch” from .:E.A.Studio:. for the Tres Chic event. The Fetish Fair ends today and Tres Chic should be done after the weekend as well so it would be the last chance to get those 2 incredible releases on the events before they return to the main stores.

The “Zoe” dress as you can see above, has a wonderful, sexy and deep neckline in the back, while it is very high closed in the front as you will se on the pictures below. The fabric shows excellent skills if it comes to latex. Latex is probably one of the most difficult fabric in Second Life to make if you want to satisfy those who use materials and those who don’t. Either you have white “spots” where the reflections are if you want the non materials user to be able to see the “shine” or you have the fabric only on the materials which results to the fact that, that those who do not have materials enabled won’t see much up to nothing that looks like latex. Anabel Crystal, owner and creator of A&Y found the perfect way to showcase latex perfectly to everyone – it amazes me every time again when I wear it.

The second design I would like to drag your focus on is the super cool “Insanity” eye patch from Eclipse Art Studio. A leather, heart shaped eye patch with nails and a plaster in the middle. You get the option of having either the left or the right eye covered and with the huge HUD you can customize the whole patch including some super interesting textures for the plaster in the middle.

I already talked about the mega amazing “Infernal Claw Ring Set”, which is the release for the Fetish Fair that you still can enjoy today before it closing its doors. This time I chose a red leather version and a different polish for the caws and rings to show you another possibility of the amazing HUD options.

I wanted to do this post way earlier but the last week of school craziness and then all the Christmas horror delayed kinda everything… it wasn’t planned like that and I hope I can catch up with all the posts I have planned over the Holidays 😉

Clothing

Dress: [A&Y] – “Zoe Dress” (Maitreya) – NEW @Fetish Fair 3rd Edition // December 2019

Stockings: .:Avanti:. – “Bette Stockings” (Maitreya Applier)

Shoes: UTOPIA@Design – “Dixie” (Maitreya)

Accessories

Eyepatch: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Insanoty Patch Eye (L)” – NEW @ Tres Chic // December 2019

Septum: -[TWC]- – “Thirst Septum – Silver”

Piercing: *PKC* – “Collar Lip Piercing” (LeLutka, Simone)

Collar: [A&Y] – “Lorna Leather Collar – Dark Red – 04” (Gacha, Common)

Nails & Rings: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Infernal Claw Ring Set” (Maitreya, Bento) – NEW @Fetish Fair 3rd Edition // December 2019

Leg Straps: Gemini – “Sis Leg Bangles” (Maitreya)

Hair & Makeup

Hair: .shi – “Ya-Resh”

Lipstick: .{PsychoByts}. – “Hecate Lipstick” (LeLutka Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Simone 3.4”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Ears Gunvor”

Tattoo: TAOX – “Back Bio Spine” (Maitreya Applier)

Poses, Props & Tools

Poses: Foxcity

Set:

[Kres] – “Kinky Neon – 9” (Gacha, Common)

[Arch] Deco – “Box of Chains v1.0”

Mushilu – “0005bg Whip and Whispers Shop”

22769 ~ [bauwerk] – “Leather Whip”

Fapple – “BDSM Tool Box”

NOMAD – “Industrial Neon Lamp // Red”

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

There she walks with feet unmoving eternally…

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TUNES

You are my endless disease
Die if you can if you please
Help me she lingers on and on
Now death ain’t so bad
My virus undead
[Beloved Enemy]

Most of the time we see humans being scared about undead or demons in movies and pictures… what about the thought of the undead fear the living to enter their world? That was the basic idea of todays post when I saw the “Deadly End Door”, a collaboration between CerberusXing and Insomnia Angel. Even if the hands are bloody and creepy that try to open that door from the other side, I had that imagination that this would not be the door to hell more the door from hell *snickers*

So lets take a look what the sweet little demon is wearing while she tries to hold the door from the living that try to enter her empire…

When I saw the “Anatomical Venus” gacha from CURELESS [+], I instantly did know, that I wanted to make a picture with it. Like so often, the right scenery wasn’t coming to my mind instantly and so it took a while until I did know what I wanted to do with it. When I saw the “Deadly End Door, it just fell all in place. First I thought the door would be just a part of a whole background set, but when I got it i saw it was only the door, but the colors matched the “Crucem Inverso” backdrop so perfectly that I just combined them. The huge skirt wasn’t easy to pose so I had to find poses that are not moving too much down from the hips, but as well are not too boring upwards from the hips. As so often I ended up just making some poses to express what I wanted to 😉 The whole scenery and outfit had some rich, brown tones and I wanted to add some more dramatic vibes to it. That was why I chose for red and green lights and some green smoke for the post processing of it. Even if Halloween is over already, I take the full advantage of the darker season to play with my visions and imaginations *winks* So that still won’t be the last post in that category as I really love the dark side more and more and we will see where it does push me for my next posts…

Clothing

Arms: CURELESS [+] – “Anatomical Venus /Pneuma Arms / GOLD” (Maitreya, Gacha, Common)

Torso: CURELESS [+] – Anatomical Venus / Osseus Temple” (Maitreya, Gacha, Rare)

Skirt & Skeletons: CURELESS [+] – “Anatomical Venus / Mors Vincit” (Players Reward)

Accessories

Headpiece: CURELESS [+] – “Anatomical Venus / Dea Halo / GOLD” (Gacha, Common)

Hair & Makeup

Hair: Analog Dog – “Midnight – Mix”

Faceart: CURELESS [+] – “Psychopomp Face” (Omega Applier)

Makeup: CURELESS [+] – “Undereye Lines & Eyeliner” (Omega Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Aida 3.4”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Skin: CURELESS [+] – “Anesthesia Skin / BEIGE” (Omega Applier)

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Ears Thauron”

Eyes: LOTUS – “Noir Eyes 17” (Gacha, Rare)

Poses, Props & Tools

Poses: Selfmade

Background: [CX] – “Crucem Inverso” & [CX] x Insomnia Angel – “Deadly End Door”

Face Animation Tool: LeLutka – “Axis HUD Face 1.1”

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

“Am I Beautiful Yet?”

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“Am I Beautiful Yet?”
I’ve blinded my eyes with ornament. Replaced my limbs with ornament. Cut out my organs for ornament. Am I beautiful yet? I can dance for you. Watch me. I will never stop dancing. Never stop watching. Never. Stop. Or else.

For the the theme of ‘Freak Show’, I’ve put together this circus ballerina. Her limbs are wrapped in gold with pink accents, as well as barbs, some tinted with blood. Ballet is known for being brutal in its precision, and this type of decoration carries the metaphor visually.

Her face is obscured by a mask of similar style. Floral designs, especially that of the thorny rose, are prominently featured here almost like a religious icon. It is perhaps one of the most eye catching pieces of the style, in part representing her inability to see the world for what it is. She is blinded by her preconception of what beauty is, and is unable to appreciate the world around her.

Finally to pull it all together, the most unsettling piece is her torso body mod. Many strive for an hourglass shape, but the tragic ballerina has assumed a literal hourglass, complete with animated sands. Yet another clever visual metaphor representing the years of life she’s shaved off by taking her pursuit of the beauty ideal to unhealthy lengths and destroying parts of herself in the process.

The entire style combines fragility, obsession, suffering, and horror into a form of visual storytelling, in order to tell a very tragic story.

As stated above, the look was made for a special show hosted by Madd Modelz on the amazing “Uri Jefferson’s Freakshow” sim (SURL). We all had to write our own descriptions for our styles and presentation and I had in mind what I wanted to say but since I am not a native English speaker, it mostly doesn’t sound as I want it to be. This time I had great help from a dear friend – Tour Blanche, the partner of my sweet sister Consuela Blanche. He is a god with words and made my idea sound so amazing, that I could not just have it for the show. I wanted them to be visible for longer than the few minutes of the show and he allowed me to post them here on my blog. Thank you for that Tour ♥

Clothing

Outfit: Moon Amore – “Etheral Time / Hourglass Body” (Gacha, Rare)

Shoes: N-Core – “Ballet” (Maitreya)

Accessories

Collar: aisling – “Nura”

Headpiece: Moon Amore – “Etheral Time / Decima Mask – Gold” (Gacha, Common)

Arm/Hand Wraps & Nails: Moon Amore – “Etheral Time / Chronos Arms” (Gacha, Rare)

Leg Wraps: Moon Amore – “Etheral Time / Chronos Legs” (Gacha, Common)

Hair & Makeup

Hair: KoKoLoReS – “Runa”

Makeup: .::Nanika::. – “Gold Eyeshadow” (LeLutka Applier)

Makeup 2: CURELESS[+] – “Noel Set” (Omega Applier)

Eyelashes: alaskametro<3 – “Slay” (LeLutka Applier)

Lipstick: alaskametro<3 – “Impressionist” (Omega Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Aida 3.4”

Eyes: -SU!– – “Aure Eyes” (Group Gift)

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Neck: CURELESS[+] – “Dog Bites” (Omega Applier)

Knees: Izzie’s – “Knee Wounds” (Maitreya Applier)

Skin: CURELESS[+] – “Morphine” (Omega Applier)

Poses & Props

Poses: Poseidon

Set:

Backdrop: Chaotic Creative – “Center Stage Scenebox” (not anymore available)

Circus Ring: Chaotic Creative – “Aerial Dolls Trapeze” (not anymore available)

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

“The worst is just around the bend.”

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TUNES

“It was a long time ago, longer now than it seems,

In a place that perhaps you’ve seen in your dreams.

For the story that you are about to be told,

Took place in the holiday worlds of old.

Now you’ve probably wondered where holidays come from.

If you haven’t, I’d say it’s time you begun.”

[The Nightmare before Christmas]

Clothing

Outfit: * Les Sucreries de Fairy * – “Sally” (Maitreya, Gacha, Rare)- NEW @ The Dark Style Fair

Shoes: **UTOPIA@Design** – Sadie” (Maitreya) – NEW @ FaMESHed // October 2019

Accessories

Mask: [Since1975] – “Clown Mask”- NEW @ The Dark Style Fair

Earrings: BLAXIUM – “Nocturna Earrings” – NEW @ The Dark Style Fair

Collar: *PKC* – “Risque Collar”

Rings: *Merlific* – “Back to School Rings” (Maitreya)

Nails: !TBL – “Ingrid Nails” (Maitreya) – NEW @ The Dark Style Fair

Hair & Makeup

Hair: no.match – “No.Private” – NEW @ Tres Chic

Faceart: { Speakeasy } – “Moon Child” (Omega Applier) – NEW @ Black Fair

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Simone 3.4”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Handtattoo: Mug – “Rory Murder” (Omega Applier)

Poses & Props

Pose 1 (with Chainsaw): Belle Poses – “Martha” (Bento)

Pose 2: Poseidon Poses

Set: DRD – “Burtonized Skybox” (only parts of that and a super old item)

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

The Engine Room – Part II

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As I was threatening in my last post – her is the Engine Room part 2! *snickers*

Today with something more naughty, but still in a vintage, maybe today more dieselpunk looking way. Now you might scratch your head and think… usually she talks about steampunk and now she throws in a new word called “dieselpunk”, but actually it is a different genre, even if there is a lot of cross over happening in fashion. Lets take a look at the “Dieselpunk Encyclopedia“…

“Dieselpunk is a style and a budding sub-culture that combines the zeitgeist of the interbellum period through World War II and ending before or at the early 1950s with postmodern sensibilities from a counter-cultural viewpoint…”

“Dieselpunk fashion blends the styles commonly found during the diesel era with contemporary styles to create a fusion of both. The “punk” nature of the subculture comes from expressing a more complete presence in public akin to the fashion styles popular during the diesel era such as waistcoats, covered arms, hosiery, styles of shoes, and head wear to name a few. Military and paramilitary also counts, especially related to genre icons. Dieselpunk emphasizes the inclusion of such accouterments to render one’s look “complete,” in defiance of modern custom.

The now defunct blog Gearing Up was one of the first web sites dedicated to dieselpunk fashion. Despite its domain name (dieselpunk.net) it promoted mostly steampunk costumes and accessories but also helped to define the style and to point out the difference between Diesel and Steam… Generally, dieselpunk fashion is not (and never was) restricted to formal dress or military uniform. It includes a broad range of styles, from 1930s colonial to 1940s bomber jackets, from posh zoot suits to humble working-class overalls. Sometimes a light touch of style, like a vintage wristwatch, a pair of Art Deco earrings or an old-fashioned petrol lighter, is sufficient for a fashion-conscious dieselpunk.”

I tried to archive that look with some of the releases from the Engine Room certainly 🙂

When I saw that awesome bondage crane from Dictator Shop while I was wearing that super naughty, but kick ass cool and military looking “Disciplinarian” dress from CerberusXing, the dieselpunk idea was born in my mind. I do love the combination of steel and military inspired fashion with a little touch of fetish as well 😉

First I was tempted to cover up my chest with a black bra, but then I thought that would drag away the attention off the dress too much and when I found that cool nipple piercings in my inventory, which had a touch of a military decoration, the desicion was made.

The incredible detailed and interesting face art was made by Skye Nefekalum, an artist and friend which I do admire for along time for his creativity and skills. The “Shaman Series – Earth” is one of an amazing series of the 4 elements and it does come in black, color and one white/tintable version as an Omega applier. With that it is compatible with most of the mesh heads in Second Life.

What really caught my eyes are the “Mistic Glasses” from The White Crow. They do come with a tattoo for face and body, but for this post I only used the body part or it to not mix up the face art I already was wearing. The interesting part of the glasses are that they are “pierced” into your nose and do not have frame temples at the sides – those of you who know me, know that I LOVE such things 😉 They are available in 3 different colors and are resizable so you can customize them perfectly to your head.

To get an even more dominant touch for my pictures, I did add three of the “Unfortunate Destiny Mannequins” and put the new “Plague Masks” on them, which you can wear yourself a well as you can see in my last post (HERE) – so I was able to show all the colors that are available at the event 😉

The Engine Room is open until the 20th or October and again this will not be my last post – I am already working on the next look and pictures *winks*

Clothing

Dress: [CX] – “Disciplinarian – Original” (Maitreya) – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Accessories

Hat: !R! – “Peaked Cap/Wearble” – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Glasses: -[TWC]- – “Mistic Glasses – Reading” – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Collar: +AH+ – “Pampering Collar”

Piercing 1: IMMODEST – “Downfall Septum”

Piercing 2: Blaxium – “Dangerous Bento Piercing – Simone” (LeLutka Simone, Bento)

Piercing 3: .::Supernatural::. – “Sweet angel Nipple Piercing [Gold]”

Bracelets: Gemini – “Sis Bracelets” (Maitreya)

Rings: : CULT : – “Rou Rings Set” (Maitreya, Bento)

Nailpolish: DP – Koffin Nails – “Neo-Victorian Keys” (Maitreya Applier) – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Hair & Makeup

Hair: .Entwined. – “Nyx B”

Face Art: Nefekalum Tattoos – “Shaman Series – Earth (White/Tintable)” (Omega Applier) – NEW

Makeup: Zibska – “Noir Pack 06” (LeLutka Applier)

Lipstick: alaskametro<3 – “London” (LeLutka Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Simone 3.4”

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Ears Akasuna”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Right Arm: Wicca’s Originals – “Eagleden Arms” (Maitreya, Bento) – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Tattoo: -[TWC]- – “Mistic” (Omega Applier, part of the glasses) – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Poses, Props & Tools

Poses: Foxcity

Set:

[Ds] – “Vindustria Bondage Crane – Adult OMNI v1” – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

::Static:: – “Unfortunate Destiny Mannequin” – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

::Static:: – “Plague Mask – Caged {Worn Hide}”, “Plague Mask – Aperture {Worn Pale}” & “Plague Mask – Caged {Worn Coal}” – NEW @ The Engine Room // Sepetmber/October 2019

Face Animation Tool: LeLutka – “Axis HUD Face 1.1”

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

From little Seeds great Flowers grow…

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“She limped, unaided around the house, like a bird with its wing broken. Tame, because it couldn’t fly away. All her time was taken up with managing herself, working out new ways to do things. Being a different person in the world.”
[ Joan London, The Golden Age ]

I guess I never had  more opposite posts back to back  than the last and today’s… maybe thats because my life at the moment is a little bit upside down and huge changes are about to come. I do have mixed feelings about it, as I did not really plan those, but sometimes you just get forced to make changes and you have to adapt the situation and make the best out of it for yourself.

But then, like I wrote yesterday… I always wanted the freedom to do what ever I want on my personal blog and so I hope you all don’t mind a black/silver against white/gold contrast 😉

It was always something I thought a lot about. When I started modeling, we were taught, that we should find our personal style. Back then it was like either you are a casual person, a formal one, am avant garde one or one of those kind of styles that we all know. I never felt ‘home’ in one style genre only and so I started to call my personal style weird or crazy to at least have category if I was asked about. I do not know where all that comes from, but it is not only happening in Second Life. In real life I am a musician, but as well a teacher and I do give private lessons for instruments and songwriting and I do work for a record studio playing the bass sometimes, too. I never had the desire to have a nine-to-five job, more than that I even was scared about the thought to have to do the same every day in a certain time frame. Certainly it would be easier and you could plan your free-time better, but I guess I would miss something just having one job.

It isn’t the first time that a chapter of the book of my life closes (sometimes I had to close them my self, too) and so I know if one closes another one will open. Just the time until that happens is sometimes a bit scary, as you never know what it will be. Usually those kind of “in-between” times only happen if you didn’t close the chapter yourself. Mostly they do happen, if you didn’t plan any changes and all of a sudden for no reason others decide to screw you over with lies and gossips that aren’t even true. First I tried to fight against that, but if you have 4 people gained up against you they can pretty much tell everything and being their own witnesses for their lies. First it dragged me down a lot and I was trying to find a way how I still could prove the truth, but the longer it did happen, the more I came to the point that it would be senseless. So I had to change my tactics and just make my peace with it and find new ways for myself. It would have been an unnecessary waste of power and time to keep on fighting in the end.

So I am looking forward to what will come. Things have come up to my mind already and now just need to grow and being developed more. That already feels much better than the time of uncertainty, where you have no clue what you are going to. Maybe that’s why I found parts of my creativity back, too and have fun taking pictures again even if they are a little bit weird *winks*

For now I will be on holidays and try to get some rest from all the past half a year crap. I know things will move on, as they always have and every time it happened, there was something new for  me that I really enjoyed. Even if that sounds old and lame sometimes and in the middle of frustrating and depressing times you neither want to hear or see it – Life has so much to give and there always will be ways to find new perspectives. Recently I found a quote, first I read it was from Sigmund Freud, but when I looked it up, there wasn’t any prove for that and no one really knows where it came from, but it does fit so perfectly for now and I like it a lot. I even thought, if I should put it on a sign and place it at my desktop somewhere, so I can look at it if I get bad feelings about the whole situation again. Maybe it makes a great closing sentence for today’s post *grins*

“Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self esteem, first make sure you are not, in fact, just surrounded by assholes.”

Clothing

Dress: CURELESS[+] – “Pygmalion’s Bride / M / Galatea Bridal Gown” (Maitreya, Gacha, Rare)

Gloves: CURELESS[+] – “Pygmalion’s Bride / M / Galatea Gloves” (Maitreya, Gacha, Rare)

Accessories

Collar: .Charm. – “Skai Collar” (Store closed)

Piercing: [CX] – “Bitten 2017”

Hair & Makeup

Hair: no.match – “No.Arrest”

Eyeshadow 1: Nanika – “Gold Eyeshadow” (LeLutka Applier)

Eyeshadow 2: Zibska – “Lennie” (LeLutka Applier)

Face Art: Nanika – “Serena Gold” (Omega Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Simone 3.3”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Legs: CURELESS[+] – “Pygmalion’s Bride / M / Galatea Legs / MARBLE” (Maitreya, Gacha, Common)

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Thauron Ears”

Eyes: .ARISE. – “Blind Eyes / Gold”

Skin: *YS&YS* – “Immortal Skin Applier” (LeLutka & Maitreya Applier)

Tattoo: Nanika – “Gold Sequins Mesh Body Applier” (Maitreya Applier)

Poses & Props

Poses: Poseidon

Set:

E.V.E Studio – “WHISPER Petals {Gold}”  (Gacha, Rare)

E.V.E Studio – “Apple Flower M01”

E.V.E Studio – “Apple Flower M02”

E.V.E Studio – “Golden Apple”

E.V.E Studio – “Flowers of the Golden Apple”

E.V.E Studio – “Petals Path A {Gold}”

E.V.E Studio – “Petals Path B {Gold}”

E.V.E Studio – “Dancing Petals Dystopia in Bronze/Gold”

Air – “Road sign type A stand_gold_CM”

Air – “Road sign type C_gold_CM”

Air – “Road sign type D_gold_CM”

Air – “Road sign type E_gold_CM”

Air – “Lost Bravery stand(gold)_CM”

Air – “Lost Brain stand(gold)_CM”

DISORDERLY. – “Enchanted Extras / Beast’s Library Papers”

Raindale – “Elnaril floor candle holder (light gold)”

{anc} – “mannequin. MermaidPrincess(Adult)” (Gacha, Rare)

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

The Dark Nun – My Journey of Blogging

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It is still sunny and hot outside but I already desire the dark months again… maybe exactly because of that. I hate hot weather and I never was a huge friend of the sun.

Recently I watched the movie “The Nun” again. I do love mystic, horror movies a lot and the 2 Conjuring movies with the spin-offs of Anabelle and The Nun are just a must if you love that kind of genre 😉

So I guess The Nun was my inspiration for this when I saw the “Lost Saints ” gacha from ANTINATURAL[+] the first time. Like usual it took me a while before I found all my components and parts for my pictures, but I got used to that. I have a huge respect for those who get something at the release day and instantly have a cool idea what they could do with it for their pictures. I am not talking about the usual blogger pictures that are just showcasing the outfits (nothing wrong with them), but about those who make pictures that kinda tell stories or being made in an artistic way.

I remember times when I just blogged for blogging purposes like reviews, showcasing items, putting a simple stylecard and doing promotion for designers. Like I said before there is nothing wrong with that, but after 10 years of blogging I had to find something different for me as blogging started to feel like a duty only and the fun started to vanish. I started originally with one picture and a style card and never had more than one or two sentences to it. Back then it was cool as I could kinda pump out up to 7 posts per day. Back then we didn’t have any kind of windlight, shadows or meshes, so it was way more easy to shoot pictures and post process them lightly. Usually the only thing I did was to put me in front of a colored background, have more than one view of myself or closeups in the picture and in the end I added a shadow to give it at least some depth (EXAMPLE). Back then I felt really cool with doing that, as it did it’s purpose to showcase designers work as best as I could. Those damn shadows and the desire to have myself more than once on my pictures or have some closeups were the reason why I started to learn Photoshop back then *giggles*

Over the time I tried various things to develop my picture skills and to find new ways how I could showcase designers work properly. I tried simple backgrounds, busy ones and I tried the green-screening and having completely different backgrounds that did not came from Second Life. The last one I did not try for too long as it did not look right for me and I really wanted to keep my pictures taken in SL. I never had the desire to merge SL snapshots into RL pictures or backgrounds and so I gave up on that trend relatively quick. While I started with square pictures (512×512) I figured out fast, that other rations can look way more interesting and attractive. After experimenting quite a while with sizes and formats, I found out that I do love 4:3 (3:4 as well) ratio the most.

Back in 2009, blogging wasn’t as popular as it is today and as a model we were told we should do pictures of have a blog to showcase our styling skills away from the runway shows and vendor shots where the designers kinda put their own visions on us. It was a way to interpret clothing different than the designer initially did, but still it was a way to promote the designs and show that they could have different ways of styles and could attract different groups of people. I had the most fun to fool around with gowns, away from being just beautiful and pretty *grins*

First I was told if I keep on doing such things, like wearing gowns with shaved hair and piercings,  pull simple casual outfits to something wicked and dark with accessories and the location/set I was using, mix and match different outfits together or even use accessories away from their original purpose, I would damage my reputation and no one ever would give me things to blog anymore. I was new into the business back then and a little scared that those who already worked in the fashion industry would be right. So I calmed down again and went on with mainstream pictures again. Then something really funny happened. Designers, fellow models and some other people IMed me asking me why I would go back to those “boring” styles again. That was a wakeup call for me. Even if my ideas were unconventional and different, there were some people who enjoyed that as much as I do. I screwed the thought and the anxiety about my weird ideas and went back to what I really enjoyed. But I always made sure to not distort designers work with too weird poses and later on, when we got windlight, shadows and lights, to not change the color of an outfit or have things too dark so you could not anymore see them. I wanted to have more than one picture, so that I could tell a little story with them. To the same time it would give me the possibility to again focus on details in different pictures. I made the decision to put more pictures on my blog post and have one reference picture (mostly the one I loved the most) displayed on Flickr.  That all kept my pictures weird for my styles but in general relatively simple, as they looked flat without any emotion and depth. For quite a while that was ok for me and I enjoyed, that I could live my craziness of styles and got new sponsors now and then (EXAMPLE).

Again I came across a point where I had the desire to change something as I wanted to have more emotions and feelings in my pictures. When we got windlight, shadows and lights, I found out that you can create cool, dramatic shots with a strong light and shadow combination and a powerful windlight. But there was the other side of the coin… with deep shadows some details started to vanish and first I had the feeling I  should not do that as it does hide designers work too much. The more I tried, the less I could resist to all those new features and I that seriously put me on the horns of a dilemma. I wanted to do more artistic pictures that have more content than just the clothing that I was wearing, but how I could do that if I loose details to the dark. When bento came to Second Life it was even worse, as pose creators started to make more crazy poses and with my 4:3 ratio pictures I didn’t want to use standing poses only anymore where I had more background than avatar on the picture. I had so many awesome sponsors (if I now look back, it were too many) and I wanted to satisfy them all. I wasn’t able to have a combination of blog pictures and personal pictures done, as I had so many deadlines and outfits that I had to blog. There was a point where everything became too much and blogging or making pictures became a burden and nearly all the fun had vanished. I had to make a decision – either I go on like usual and loose all my interest in blogging, Second Life and everything I loved, or I have to change something drastically and revamp my blog.

It wasn’t an easy decision as I had the feeling I do have to let my sponsors go, when I cannot satisfy them anymore. I left a few and as well explained to them why I had to. A handful of my sponsors really surprised me, when they told me they would still like to keep me and see where my journey would go to – I never ever expected that!

I took a few weeks off and started to reconsider my blog and pictures. During that time I watched a lot of Photoshop tutorials and learned a lot of new techniques about photo editing. When I came back I was full of energy and started to play with lights, projectors and shadows and experimented with all the new things I learned in Photoshop. It was a complete new freedom and feeling and I found all the fun back, that I missed so much. I am a very self-critical person and so even if the fun was back I felt there was missing something, as many times the pictures looked ok but not “cool”. That was when Silly told me about VISONAIRE. First I thought, why I should take a course if I can have all the tutorials and information on the Internet as well? But the more I thought about the more I did remember, how much I loved attending classes and workshops in my life. So I signed up and I have to tell you, I do not regret any second! (If you want to know more about my VISIONAIRE experience you can look HERE) It was a completely different experience and it did teach me a lot about things that I never thought of and just did because I felt it looks nice. What was again a huge surprise, with my new way of pictures (I did not dare to apply as a blogger at too many places anymore) I got requested as a blogger or even got flickr mails where designers or blogger managers invited me to join their blogger team. That certainly was the most awesome thing that could happen – I do what I enjoy and others do enjoy my new way of blogging too!

I am sure, there will be times, when the desire of changes will come up again, but for now I really do enjoy blogging and taking pictures again 🙂

Clothing

Outfit: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Unsainted Nun / Mini” (Gacha, Rare)

Veil: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Unsainted Nun / Veil” (Gacha, Rare)

Shoes: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Leather Boots” (Gacha, Rare)

Accessories

Wrist Armor: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Gold Gauntlets” (Gacha, Rare)

Tounge Piercings: LeLutka – “BDYART-TBRBL” (Bento)

Headpiece: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Sacred Silence / Gold” (Gacha, Common)

Horns: ANTINATURAL[+] – “Lost Saints / Gilded Horns / Gold” (Gacha, Common)

Rings: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Tunderstrike Rings” (Maitreya, Bento)

Nails: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Obsess Claws” (Maitreya, Bento)

Hair & Makeup

Hair: Entwined – “Jana”

Eyemakeup: CURELESS[+] – “Undereye Lines & Eyeliner” (Omega Applier)

Forehead: CURELESS[+] – “Onibi Markings” (Omega Applier)

Wounds: .{PSYCHO:Byts}. – “Badass Fighter” (Omega Applier)

Lips: LeLutka – “Beast Applier” (LeLutka Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Korina 3.3” (Bento)

Teeth: LeLutka – “Beast Teeth 1.1” (Bento)

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1” (Bento)

Skin: *YS&YS* – “Immortal Skin” (LeLutka & Maitreya Applier)

Eyes: ANATOMY – “Reflect Eyes – Albino”

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Gormory Ears”

Poses & Props

Poses: Poseidon – “Evil Nurse”, “Puppeteer”, “Hil Nurse” & “Morgue”

Background: SEMPITERNAL – “[The Forbidden Room]”

Table & Dishes: DRD – “Black Widow Tea Table”

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

“Visionaries and dreamers have always been dusted with a little oddity.”

by

“The key to success is to risk thinking unconventional thoughts. Convention is the enemy of progress.”

[Trevor Baylis]

Today probably is the last chance to visit this incredible, awesome sim if you not yet did! Cica Ghost did it again… she amazed me with one of her installations and over exploring her newest built, I again forgot to take pictures and when she said it will only last a few more days, I really had to make something!

I really think that our RL affects our SL, especially in the creative department. I was kinda paralyzed the past few weeks. I never ever had experienced mobbing at one of my working places before and now, being over 40 I have to learn about that. I still have no clue what the motivation for those people can be, but to me it is just a senseless power game for no reason. Probably just because they can and they are bored in their own little life. A mixture of disappointment, anxiety and anger did really throw me out of place because of that and I had a hard time to be creative while all this bullshit was going on. Now that I do have holidays and started to sort myself again, some creativity seems to come back even if it is weird. Yesterday I already had those weird thoughts about that poor little octopus and today I had the strange vision about taking my goldfish out for a walk. Certain the “Dogwood by Cica Ghost” did parts of that too as I loved the idea, IF iI should take out goldfishes for a walk it does have to be in a super dry and dusted environment to make it even more surreal :p

Both of my quotes, the title and the one below the first picture are from Trevor Baylis. I recently discovered him and I do have to admit, many of his quotes hit right into my soul. He was an English inventor best known for the wind-up radio (LINK). With thinking a lot about myself and the world in general the past weeks, I read a lot of biographies and just let my mind flow over the world wide web finding some really interesting people that I never had heard of before. Reading some of their statements about certain things, really changed my personal visions and thoughts a little. Most of them were not actual celebrities but older ones or some that lived in past centuries, but still their visions do apply to the present tense. I feel weird saying it did help me but some of their thoughts really made me think about myself again and I was able to step out of that weird mood that RL and my work situation had put me in.

Clothing

Dress & Headpiece: Fellini Couture – “Yuko” (Maitreya)

Panty: Scandalize – “Nicole” (Maitreya)

Jacket: [Azuchi] – “Amber Jacket Black” (Maitreya)

Shoes: EQUAL – “Nixie Platforms” (Maitreya)

Accessories

Leg Bands: Gemini – “Sis Leg Bangles” (Maitreya)

Collar: CODEX – “Perception” (Maitreya)

Glasses: HAYSURIZA – “Eyewear Lawyer”

Rings: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Thunderstrike” (Maitreya, Bento)

Nails: FORMANAILS – “Wedding” (Maitreya, Bento)

Hair & Makeup

Hair: .shi – “Kuwn”

Makeup: Look At Me – “Submissibe Eyeshadows” (Omega Applier)

Lipstick: Izzie’s – “Spring Colors Lipgloss” (LeLutka Applier)

Hairbase: Mina Hair – “”Myla” (LeLutka Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – “Simone 3.3”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Akasuna”

Tattoo (Leg): Redfish – “Masa” (Maitreya Applier)

Poses & Props

Poses: Poseidon

Fish Props: *[BB] – “The Friendly Fish Companion Set 04” (Gacha)

Location

Dogwood by Cica Ghost

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

There is so much Life underneath the Water that we don’t know about…

by

“And everywhere, just as there were animals on land, were the animals of the sea.
The tiniest fish made the largest schools- herring, anchovies, and baby mackerel sparkling and cavorting in the light like a million diamonds. They twirled into whirlpools and flowed over the sandy floor like one large, unlikely animal.
Slightly larger fish came in a rainbow, red and yellow and blue and orange and purple and green and particolored like clowns: dragonets and blennies and gobies and combers.
Hake, shad, char, whiting, cod, flounder, and mullet made the solid middle class.
The biggest loners, groupers and oarfish and dogfish and the major sharks and tuna that all grew to a large, ripe old age did so because they had figured out how to avoid human boats, nets, lines, and bait. The black-eyed predators were well aware they were top of the food chain only down deep, and somewhere beyond the surface there were things even more hungry and frightening than they.
Rounding out the population were the famous un-fish of the ocean: the octopus, flexing and swirling the ends of her tentacles; delicate jellyfish like fairies; lobsters and sea stars; urchins and nudibranchs… the funny, caterpillar-like creatures that flowed over the ocean floor wearing all kinds of colors and appendages.
All of these creatures woke, slept, played, swam about, and lived their whole lives under the sea, unconcerned with what went on above them.
But there were other animals in this land, strange ones, who spoke both sky and sea. Seals and dolphins and turtles and the rare fin whale would come down to hunt or talk for a bit and then vanish to that strange membrane that separated the ocean from everything else. Of course they were loved- but perhaps not quite entirely trusted.”
[Liz Braswell, Part of Your World]

As I promised before, with all the amazing designs at the Mermaid Cove event, done by Flair for Events, I could not resist and do a second post. This time it isn’t quite a Mermaid, more an underwater creature, as I did not want to post my favorite mermaid tale again, plus I wanted to showcase those amazing leg wraps, which I found at the Mermaid Cove as well 🙂

To do an underwater picture, but actually not being under water was quite a challenge I have to admit. I first tried to set up everything underwater, but with the windlight and lightning I wanted to have it did not really work out that well plus, I realized that underwater in SL… doesn’t look like it should anyways. So what I did was, I created a small set with rocks and some grass, which I tinted in blue, purple and white color and some underwater creatures beside my self. To get a little bit of an ambiance I used some designs from E.V.E Studio with inbuilt lights and some glitter. All the bubbles and plants I had to add in Photoshop afterwards, as I could not find any non-flexi plants, that did look right for what I had in mind.

It was something new and I even learned some new Photoshop tricks about fx styles, so it was a win-win situation to try something new and non familiar. I hope you enjoyed my underwater creature as much as I did and for now I do not have any plans for more mermaid or underwater styles 😉

I am happy with the result, even if it was a little bit of a rock road until it came together as I imagined it 😉

Clothing

Top: SynCo – “Mermaid Bralette” (Maitreya) – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Pants: -:zk:.- – “Bella Panty” (Maitreya)

Accessories

Head- & Shoulderpieces: Zibska – “Helmine”

Nails: Ama. – “Mermaid Claws” (Maitreya, Bento) – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Handjewelry: .Drastic. – “Tentacle Jewelry” (Maitreya, Bento)

Legwraps: *Merlific* – “Sea Stars Pearl” – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Toerings: Elle Boutique – “Talluah” (Maitreya, High Feet)

Feetchains: Salt & Pepper (S&P) – “Keisha” (Maitreya, High Feet)

Tentacles: – Fika – – ” Sirens Song – Hip” – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Collar: .Quirky. – “Scales Collar” – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Bracelets: E.V.E Studio – “Scorpion Spikes Bracelet” (Maitreya)

Hair & Makeup

Makeup: Zibska – “Araceli” (LeLutka Applier)

Body & Tattoo

Head: LeLutka – Simone 3.3″

Faceart: .Arise. – “Face Scales 3” (Omega Applier) – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Meraxes”

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Bodyscales: ~ Cynefin ~ – “Body Scales~Shades” (Maitreya Applier)

Poses & Props

Poses: Fashiowl – “Undersea – Pose Set” – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Set:

Rocks: Fashiowl – “Undersea – Pose Prop” – NEW @ Mermaid Cove

Grass: Little Branch – “WildGrass*1Li{Lavender}” & “Grass1l{Winter}” (partwise tinted)

Fish: 22769 ~ [bauwerk] – “Floating Fish Iron”

Jellyfishes: *HEXtraordinary* – “Jellyfish” (Gacha)

Ambience: E.V.E Studio – “Sunny Spells [M1] W/Tile”, “Dancing Bubbles {White}” & “Sunny Spells M02 – KOI Glitter”

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin

“I am not here to fit in your World – I am here to make my own!”

by

“It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. An animal perfectly in harmony with its environment is a perfect mechanism. Nature never appeals to intelligence until habit and instinct are useless. There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change. Only those animals partake of intelligence that have a huge variety of needs and dangers.”

[H.G. Wells, The Time Machine]

Steampunk always had something that pulled me closer… I do not know what exactly it is, but maybe it has to do with today’s title. It always had something active to me… something that develops forward never staying still somehow. Maybe that is part of the attraction it has to me 🙂 The Victorian epoch, was a time of inventions, so no wonder that the steampunk era was put into that time frame somehow. But what exactly is steampunk? Lets see what Wikipedia has to say 😉

“Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction or science fantasy that incorporates technology and aesthetic designs inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Although its literary origins are sometimes associated with the cyberpunk genre, steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the 19th century British Victorian era or the American “Wild West”, in a future during which steam power has maintained mainstream usage, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power. However, steampunk and neo-Victorian are different in that the neo-Victorian movement does not extrapolate on technology while technology is a key aspect of steampunk.

Steampunk most recognizably features anachronistic technologies or retro-futuristic inventions as people in the 19th century might have envisioned them, and is likewise rooted in the era’s perspective on fashion, culture, architectural style, and art. Such technologies may include fictional machines like those found in the works of H. G. Wells and Jules Verne, or of the modern authors Philip Pullman, Scott Westerfeld, Stephen Hunt, and China Miéville. Other examples of steampunk contain alternative-history-style presentations of such technology as steam cannons, lighter-than-air airships, analogue computers, or such digital mechanical computers as Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine.

Steampunk may also incorporate additional elements from the genres of fantasy, horror, historical fiction, alternate history, or other branches of speculative fiction, making it often a hybrid genre. The first known appearance of the term steampunk was in 1987, though it now retroactively refers to many works of fiction created as far back as the 1950s or 1960s.

Steampunk also refers to any of the artistic styles, clothing fashions, or subcultures that have developed from the aesthetics of steampunk fiction, Victorian-era fiction, art nouveau design, and films from the mid-20th century. Various modern utilitarian objects have been modded by individual artisans into a pseudo-Victorian mechanical “steampunk” style, and a number of visual and musical artists have been described as steampunk.” [Wikipedia]

So steampunk is nothing that really existed back then, but was invented by the desire of the thoughts what time back then could have been with its future thoughts… yeah sounds crazy, but it does make sense if you get deeper into it 😉

Maybe it is as well the colors that are assigned to that kind of styles. I love the combination of muted, dark colors and the gold and copper metals. It just falls together so well most of the time and you always get a lightly elegant touch even if you do not wear a long gown :p Maybe it is the feeling of strength, that all the gear and leather gives most of the outfits and the huge buildings, vehicles and structures you can find if you look up steampunk in SL or google about steampunk in RL.

Whatever it is, steampunk does have a huge fascination for me and I do enjoy those styles and looks a lot, so that won’t be the last time I am styling up like a Victorian steampunk or a dieselpunk ‘Conqueror’ to discover new and unexplored space and maybe get more information about the mystery of the time machines 😉

Clothing

Dress: Wicca’s Originals – “Cecilia”

Sleeves: Wicca’s Originals – “Amity Arms” (Maitreya, Gacha, Rare)

Shoes & Socks: Eudora3D – “Yana Boots” (Maitreya)

Accessories

Mask: [ContraptioN] – “Maskineri II Eye *???*”

Necklace: Codex – “Vintage Time”

Rings: Meva – “Victorian Bento Rings” (Maitreya, Bento)

Nails: Formanails – “Cris Claws” (Maitreya, Bento)

Wings: Luas – “Steam Commander Bento Wings Beige” (Maitreya, Bento, Gacha, Common)

Hair & Makeup

Makeup: alaskametro<3 – “Molten Eyeshadow” (LeLutka Applier)

Lipstick: alaskametro<3 – “London” (LeLutka Applier)

Hair: no.match – “No.Ring” NEW @ Salon 52

Body & Tattoo

Body: Maitreya – “Lara 4.1”

Head: LeLutka – “Piper 3.3”

Skin: *YS&YS* – “Petal Tone 02 Skin Applier” (LeLutka/Maitreya Applier)

Ears: .:E.A.Studio:. – “Nepthune”

Shape: .{ wren’s nest } – “Piper Shape for LeLutka Piper Bento Head”

Poses & Props

Poses: Foxcity

Set:

DRD – “Steampunk Airship – Ground”

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Antique Gramophone” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Drum Table” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Pipes Lamp” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Armchair” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Bike Figurine” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Cart Table” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Glass Of Red Wine” (Gacha, Common)

22769 – “Steampunk Salon – Wine Bottle” (Gacha, Common)

::Static:: – “Vintage Lighting – 15 Bulb Lamp” (Gacha, Common)

::Static:: – “Vintage Lighting – 11 Desk Light” (Gacha, Common)

Model & Photographer

Wicca Merlin