Second Style Magazine

I just wanted to wish all of the readers of Second Style a Merry Christmas. I promise not to make a habit of recipe blogging, but I like to spread holiday cheer by serving guests peppermint martinis.

Peppermint Martinis

good quality vodka
white creme de menthe
peppermint schnapps
mini-candy canes
cracked ice
cocktail shaker
two martini glasses

1. Fill shaker with ice.

2. Add 5 shots of vodka.
3. Add 2 shots of creme de menthe.
4. Add 1 shot of peppermint schnapps.
5. Shake well for 5 seconds.
6. Strain into glasses.
7. Garnish with candy cane.
8. Don’t drive!

Well its official, the holidays have arrived like a winter storm, swirly and blowing and bringing in all kinds of goodies and treats. I have been frantically grabbing presents across the grid for all my loved ones these past few days. Yes, I’m one of those people that puts off shopping for presents until the last moment, not to even mention the wrapping! For all you last minute shoppers like myself, let me give you a tip. Shoes make great gifts! In fact there are several shoe designers out there, such as Stiletto Moody, that even have added a gifting choice to their purchasing selections. However, if you don’t exactly know which pretty pair to pick out yourself, a gift card is always an option.

 Because we all have been caught up in the holiday storm over at On Your Toes, we’ve been a bit slower. However, this doesn’t mean that we haven’t been busy collecting goodies to share with you, oh contraire; after our milk and cookies are all gone we have much in store! What we did have this week were some really cute shoes from Erpla Prieto of Periquita Shoes. The Super Dolly in red is a fun sassy shoe that I know you will enjoy. I love adding an unexpected splash of red to many of my outfits!

Also, Anessa brought us some shoes from Storm Schmooz! I have to say this girl beat me to the punch, I was over there in a flash and grabbed up some of these sculpty delights! With stores in several locations, all clean and modern, and very easy to shop in! I have included a link to the main store, but check out Storm’s profile to see the other locations!

The pret-a sortir is detailed and delicate, a real gem of a shoe.  Anessa and her saavy sense of style, has paired it up with a cute dress from Ivalde to set off this wonderful pair from heaven! You won’t be disapointed when you visit Storm Schmooz!

I was lucky enough to  feature some traditional Asian footwear in a not so traditional manner. The Red Geta from Orchid Dreams are full of unexpected details, such as small swaying tassels. Finally, are some boots from Bax Coen that I’ve been saving in my inventory and were dying to be seen. Three styles and more textures than you can imagine, this is a great shop to take a stop at!

From all of us over at On Your Toes, Have a happy and safe holidays to all our friends who are celebrating. ~G

Ever met love on stiletto heels? Meet Incanti, the latest sculptie shoe release from Damen Gorilla over at Adam ‘n Eve. This man sweeps women all over the grid off their feet with his shoes ever since he started making them a couple of months ago. Incanti is just in time for Christmas and is the perfect accesoire with every party dress. They come in gold and black as shown here and 12 other colour/gem options. No bling ofcourse!

Seen in world: yes  ~ Review Copy: yes  ~ Friends list: no

Underground? Time to surface… Janine Jewell makes some really cute things. I wandered into her temp shop at ETD the other day, and was pleasantly surprised. Elika really has had some very good new comers in her little free shop.

I picked up 2 sets from the shop, the daring crinkle dress and the darling floral satin skirt with wool top. The crinkle dress would be a wee bit too daring for me as it is, and I am likely to find a nice contrasting top to wear underneath it, but I really like the corset/belt. I really fell for the floral satin skirt. It looks soft and swaying and the little purple flowers match the green top very nicely. This outfit also has a very generous cleavage, but it is absolutely less revealing than the crinkle dress and I am more comfortable with it. These outfits are not flawless, there are some issues on the seams, for instance on the sleeves, but all in all they are just very nicely done.

Hmm.. while I am at it.. It worked when I blogged the latest Hubby outfit… Janine.. more layers for mixing & matching please sweety….. a cute green cardigan like this…I would love wearing it in other outfits too!!

Skin: Entice Almond – The Pout by Sezmra Svarog @ Nora, hair:  The Poynter in black by Liam Oliver @ Armidi, Petite Snowflake jewelry by Eolande Elvehjem,black Plain Riding Boots by Damen Gorilla @ Adam ‘n Eve

Seen in world: yes  ~ Review Copies: no  ~ Friends list: no 

Running around to get the last gifts, groceries, oh and a new table cloth…. some more decorations for the tree, making the house all comfy and welcoming, spending hours in the kitchen doing preparations for elaborate dishes… holiday stress.

Thank goodness I won’t have to worry what to wear during SL Xmas parties, or maybe I do, for the abundance of choice, but that is a luxury problem. One that just got bigger with the release of Claire by Jessie and JH Gervasi from Hubby’s Boutique. It’s a cute pewter corset that comes with 2 different skirts, med lentgh shown in the photo, and a more edgy miniskirt, as wel as a pair of hot looking shorts for a more gogo look and very well done seamed sheer tights. I only wish there would be more layer options. I love this corset, but it only comes on the jacket layer, so no shrugs to cover my shoulders when it get’s chilly.. I’ll put it on my wish list … more layers for everyone. I have been a good girl Santa ;-P

Credits: Holly hair in smoke burnt by Elika Tiramisu @ ETD, Vogue Noir Smoky in Cashmere by Starley Thereian @ Celestial Studios, Cameo Necklace by Megg Demina @ Chapeau Très Mignon

Seen in world: yes  ~ Review Copy: yes  ~ Friends list: no

It’s Friday night before what is (hopefully) a long weekend for most of us. Why not kick off your holiday weekend the right way by relaxing a bit and watching the ladies of Metro Models present Shine. Shine is a fashion benefit for Medecins Sans Frontieres (aka Doctors Without Borders) organized by Alaska Metropolitan.

Designers like Myllie Writer, Annah Whitfield, Nicky Ree, Moire Georgette and more have created special Shine fashions sales of which will go toward helping fund raise for MSF. There are two shows. One is tonight, Friday at 7:00 pm SLT, the other is tomorrow, Saturday, at noon SLT. Both shows will be held at the Metro Models Runway, Narcissus Island (203, 170, 22). Alaska has gone all out on the venue too – it’s been turned into a holiday wonderland, complete with particle snow, festive lighting and really cute holiday ornaments. There are some fantastic freebies set out as well to excite your holiday giving spirit.

On top of the special Shine fashions, several designers have also created exclusive one-of-a-kind goods to be sold at a silent auction which runs through December 24th. My favorite of these is Tesla Miles’ delicious ankle boots. Hope you can make it.

Update: Here are some photos I took of the show on Flickr. Make some time to go tomorrow and see all of the lovely things in person.

Another friendly reminder – this is your last chance to sign up for the Secret Santa game. The sign ups will end Wednesday December 19 at noon SLT. You can find a kiosk at Le Zoo (136, 26, 22) – Second Style headquarters – or a number of locations around the grid.

I was curious to see where people were signing up at, so I wrote a status page tonight which shows the number of signups by simulator.

Thanks to all of our Secret Santas and everyone who’s hosting a kiosk.

Just a friendly reminder that the deadline for ads to be published in January is 11:59 PM SLT Thursday, December 20, 2007. Ad placement pricing is going up after January, so this is your chance to purchase 3 placements now at our old prices and get a free placement to save even more. All sizes are still available, and premium placement is now available for an additional fee.

As always, ad banners never have a deadline; we can accept (or change) banner ads on demand. Contact me or Elise Fugazi for more information. The Second Style Fashion Network is generating almost 250,000 ad impressions per month and growing. Banner ads are an especially good and affordable way to inform readers of special events, sales, and contests.

Just in terms of the sheer number of things they reviewed, I think that this may have been the busiest week in SexySecond’s relatively short history. I’m always proud of our blogging team, but this week they outdid themselves. As I can’t possibly do justice to the wonderful things they reviewed here, I’m planning on hitting some highlights and hope that you get over there to take a look at some of these items as well as all the others!

Nemi McCoy showed off a couple of brand new items, including some lace corsets from the very talented Popfuzz Bamboo, as well as the outfit you see above which is from Rfyre.Yes she says, the boots ARE included with the outfit.

Graciana McMillan made her SexySecond blogging debut this week and showed she really understands sexy with the fantastic outfit you see at left from Bare Rose. She also brought out a body suit by Nicky Ree that turned heads. We’re thrilled to have her on our team!

Arabeth Laval reviewed a number of wonderful things, including the Gals Zipper Jacket and Chaps from Nanogunk (far left) and the lingerie set Obsession from Solange on the right. She also reviewed some clothing from Casa del Shai, Sintimacy, Hi Standard and some skins from Skin Within. I think it might have been the biggest week in our history just from Arabeth’s fantastic work alone! (It even inspired me to get off my virtual behind and review a set of lingerie from Shakture)

Though I worry we’ve modeled so much this week we threaten the species newclothes sexibus to the verge of extinction, I’m sure we’ll find something to show you next week, and there’s always the hope there will be nice things under the tree too.

We’ll see you here again at some point next week, but until then our continued hopes to you for a wonderful holiday season.

I’m pleased to tease our cover for Issue #14, which features a tribute to Ginny Talamasca and the designs of Dazzle over the past two years. I hope you enjoy it and the rest of the great stuff inside.

Now available for PDF download on our website, or from an in-world kiosk.

Reminder! If you have an older v4.2 or earlier Second Style kiosk, they will be out of service on 1/1/08.

Get a replacement kiosk for L$0 from my OnRez store. Thanks.

I don’t want to steal any thunder from my friends at Fabulously Free, but hurry over to Digital Dragon Designs (blog, Slurl) and get these gorgeous boots for free today!! When I popped over there to make sure the boots were still available there were a few other avies browsing. The boots look fantastic there appeared to be a feature where visitors can vote on the item that will become the next freebie. I would have stayed and looked around but really wanted to get “home” and write this up to spread the word to all my fellow boot addicts.
Another cute outfit I saw on the blogs is from Pushbutton Industries (Blog, Slurl). The Flux is a cropped leather jacket with sculpty cuffs and open prim collar and looks to be just perfect as a casual accent (to go with my new boots!). It comes in six colors.

Celestial Studios (Blog, Slurl) released a whole bunch of great cocktail length skirts and dresses yesterday, including Gilda, which you see to the left. Gilda comes in four colors and is one of several great designs shown on Starley’s blog- so much so I had a great deal of trouble deciding which to show you here, which means that for me it will be an either a tough decision or expensive shopping trip when I see them all in the store.

This week we added a couple of new links to our blogroll- Hibiscus Flossberg, Virtually Dressed and The Cafe Society. If you have a Second Life Fashion Blog and would like it listed with us, please send me an IM or an email!

It was announced on their blog last week, CJ Carnot and Roslin Petion, the creative duo behind Tête à Pied skins and clothing have entered a next stage in their content creating careers with the opening of a brand new sim that is dedicated exclusively to their brand. For that occasion there will be a massive release of skins, 4 sets of a total 12 regular make ups and a brand new version of the black & white skins, Noir. The old version was available as a Relay For Life special and have been updated to the Vivant standard and they made a male version of it as well. Roslin has been creating lots of new shapes too, both for women and men.

 I’d like to focus on the regular make ups here, because, well, I just happen to love them. Aurora is inspired after this season’s Sephora look. A dramatic and colourful style with total emphasis on the eyes. The make up is iridiscent, which I happen to like better than glitter. Very festive for the holidays. Rose has the most adorable subtle freckles, and all over the body and the Paon pouty lips! I have not seen body freckles like these on any other skin, but honestly, I never really considered wearing freckled skins, because I think it’s quite ridiculous to have them all over your face and cleavage as most skins do … and none on the rest of your body. Après ski is a more day wear version of Dakota, the succesful Versace inspired make up that was released a couple of weeks ago. The lips remind me a lot of Tête’s Vixen skin from their previous line. Lots of gloss here. And finally there is Lustrous. Roslin called it pretty simple.. and that happens to be just a combination that I love in skins.. pretty… and simple. Lustrous pairs a slightly iridiscent eye make up with a soft gloss on the demure lips.

Opening will take place on Sunday December 16. Keep an eye on their blog for  the opening time and rush over because the sim is adorable. CJ has been using all his building skills to create an image of travelling in the grand way… Orient Express style. Sit down in one of the comfortable carriages and enjoy the landscape while the journey lasts. 3 tickets will be hidden on the sim. And when you find them, take a copy.. once you have all three, trade them for a special release skin. Oh, and of course there will be some free goodies scattered over the sim for those who come to explore.

Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Fleur/223/222/23