Second Style Magazine

Ivey Deschanel’s notices always begin with a warning, “do not read on if you are easily offended”, so it seems sensible as this post is about her designs, that I give the same advice. Some of her work does swing over the line separating good and bad taste, usually in a humourous way, poking a metaphorical tongue out at society norm’s. However, there’s absolutely nothing offensive about Ivey’s skills as a designer, her enthusiasm or her ability to say exactly what she means, and that’s what I love about her.

I had decided to do a blog piece about Sn@tch way before I ever spoke to Ivey, and only IM’d her because I read her rant about fashion blogs and was, quite frankly, not sure if she’d appreciate her work being Fashionista’d. When I told her my intentions though she was thrilled. Her moan isn’t against the blogs themselves, but that they contain the same few names time and time again whilst there is a tonne of talent out in the rest of the metaverse that never gets a mention. On the whole I share her view, although I think in most cases the high profile designers deserve the attention they get. Part of the problem has been finding out about these newer less well known talents. One has to go looking for them, something I know I don’t always have time to do. However, with the opening up of FashCon (thanks Honey, you rock!) this is becoming less so, and even though I am sometimes overwhelmed by the number of notices, I do take time to scan through them all, and follow up on those that stand out.

Sn@tch always stands out for me, not just because of the warnings, but because the clothes are really good. A combination of grunge, goth and punk, Ivey somehow also manges to inject chicness to her outfits and even, dare I say it, a little couture.

My friend, Noel Oh of A&F Photography turned up whilst I was doing the shots for this post, and before I knew it he’d dropped me his own take on this as shown below. His way of doing SL photography is completely different from my own, but I love the results he gets, as shown here.

These are just two examples of some great designs you can find at Sn@tch, I really was spoilt for choice when deciding which to feature. I would seriously recommend you check out the Barfly dress, Film Noir gown and La Petit Mort Top Hat, not forgetting of course the irresistible Chainsaw of Love – every girl should have one! It really IS nice to Sn@tch!

What I’m Wearing::

Pictures 1-3::

Skin::La Sylphide – Black and White II – Free Skin
Shape:: my own
Hair::**Digit Darkes-NATURALe-Defiance – Wavy Night Blood
Eyelashes::Cake – Cake – Flutter lashes – Tintable
Eyes::Shapes by Zada – -SbZ- Eyefidelity Neko eyes Deep Blue Freebie
Manicure::Skin Within – [SW] Vixen Manicure
Dress::Sn@tch – [The Hunger] Dead Flowers Dress (Black)
Boots::Oi/Beckenbauer Productions – Womens Oi! 16 eye doc’ boots
Belt::Digit Darkes – Black LEATHER STUDDED BELT SIMPLE STUD-SILVER (from Couture Collection Set 13)
Jewellery::Paper Couture – p.c. Black Pearls Set

Picture 4::

Skin::Fleur – Vivant Bronze Lalique 3
Shape:: my own
Hair::Muism – *Muism* Shaggy /platinum blonde

Eyelashes::Cake – Cake – Flutter lashes – Tintable
Eyes::Skin Deep (now The Body Politik) – Skin Deep Real Hazel eyes/Twinkle Eyes
Manicure::Tete a Pied (now Fleur) – TaP Long Dark Nails in Scarlet
Dress::Sn@tch – :::Sn@tch Sinful in Black:::
Shoes::Stiletto Moody – O Wedge (Gold)
Jewellery::Paper Couture – p.c. Black Pearls Set

• Items seen in world:: Yes
• Review copy:: No
• Friend’s List :: Yes

In the U.S. last night they whittled the Project runway contestants to 3… I don’t want to give away any spoilers for those who haven’t watched it yet but I did a few photo’s with the each designer as an inspiration… Rami, Jillian, Christian and last but not least Chris.

Rami

*CS* Eyes – Light – Wisteria-starley thereian
Armidi Hair – Symphony Twist – Auburn- Nicole David
~Muse~ Celine Pearl Earring (black pearl/gold)-Caliah Lyon
Grace Heels~Pearl -Onyx LeShelle
*Shai* Grecian Maxi Dress Top Lilac-Shai Delacroix
TaP Vivant Buff Apres Ski 1-Tap Shepard

Jillian

*CS* Eyes – Light – Gray-Starley Therian
(NO) Gold Party Dress Bow Bottom-Nylon Pinkey
Hasta Siempre Hose-GT
Kamryn Vest-GT
[ST] Karlie black cap! (mocha)-Sallie Takao
Diamond Bee Ring-Cora Lu
01 Boots Black-Leather L shoe // slim-Veronica Skjellerup
LF CHAI Skin -Ginger- Antique Freckle-Launa Fauna

Christian

kushukushu kutsushita BLACK-seu Ahn
Sophia Black Gloves-GT
(CS) Trixie Tank Tucked – Nightfall-Starley Therian
pc; Pistashio Wrap L-Ava Lu
Cake – Lil Diva – Black – Flexi Hair~Stumbelina Ophelia
HD – Eye super real ord blue eyes22223-Eddie Edman
[Armidi Gisaci] Oxford Leather Ankle Boot – Black-Lola Marquez
!BF! elkanother – Asian 1-elka lehane
~Vette’s~ custom_puff_(right)-Vette Decuir

Chris

(Miriel) Eyes – Holly (Big)-Miriel Enfield
p.c. Orange Blossom sleeve wrap-cora Lu
TaP Tangerine Nails-Rolsin Petion
*Indie* Party M0n5t3r – makeup 5-Indie Rainbow
ZsaZsa’s Natural Cleo – Platinum-ZsaZsa Withnail

Star blogger Anessa Stine never rests. This week On Your Toes started with the Simply Me  (shown left) shoes by Ella Ireton  The Simply Me comes in 6 great shades; Red, Purple, Blue, Pink, a basic Tan-like shade & a Light Purple.

Anessa didn’t stop there, featuring some adorable shoes and hinting that it is almost spring! The Polina Sandal from DeLa are an open toe clog and come in 6 colors.  These cuties also have 2 variations, contrasting red flowers on the sole or with flowers that match the upper part.

Estella Platform Pumps (shown left)were next on the list for the Super Shoe Sleuth, and these pretties from Tesla are just adorable. Available in 9 flavors: Black, Brown, Blue, Green, Honey, Pink, Red, White and Yellow, Anessa guarantees they will satisfy your sweet tooth.

Adam and Eve released some Volar Heels in black this past week and guess who got a pair?  Yeah, go figure. The Volars had previously been available in; Bisque, Flame, Grey, Saffron, Salmon and Silver and there are many lovely shades available in store sold in 2 packs. There are also demos available.

So once again the big question is: What the heck did Graci do? Hmmm I wonder…I might get fired if I keep this up, but we’ve kept Joel around for this long…so I’m not that worried. One thing I did manage to do was to post an entry on some freebies that if you haven’t grabbed yet…now is the time (as long as they are still available)! 

The major announcement of the week was that our winner of the On Your Toes $2000L shopping spree photo contest was Soleasta Kilian in her drop dead gorgeous outfit. The red boots from Armidi just pop, and really hit just what we were looking for. The 2nd place winner Zoe Demar’s adorable photo was also amazing. I was so pleased from what we received that I can’t wait to do it again!

So that’s all for now…I’ll go give myself 30 lashes and dig up some shoes for y’all!

Last fall I had the opportunity to write a chapter about shopping for the second edition of Wiley’s Second Life: The Official Guide. It was a great opportunity to explore the grid, expand my shopping prowess beyond fashion (although fashion stil plays a huge part of the chapter) and share what I’ve learned in my two plus years in Second Life. Classifying content in Second Life into three broad categories, I covered everything from dragon avatars to katanas to house plants.

This Thursday, several co-authors and I will be attending a book release party on February 28, 2008 at 6:30 pm SLT at Abracadabra (201, 90, 31) — and I would love for you to attend, learn more about the book, and ask questions. There’s also a chance for you to win your own copy of the book.

Whether you’re a newb or an old hand at Second Life, there’s plenty in this book to inform and amuse. I know I learned a lot from the other chapters including some great tips about scripting.

Check out a sample chapter here. (2.5 MB PDF file.)

If you’d like to purchase a copy, you can click the Amazon link below. You’ll save over $11 off the cover price.

Jaydei Benmergui told me about a brand new PDF publishing service called Issuu which converts PDF documents into embeddable flash documents. What’s so awesome about Issuu? You can now easily embed pages from Second Style in your own posts (maybe you’re an advertiser and would like to show off your ad, or maybe we featured some of your clothing in one of our photoshoots), but what I like the best is that you don’t have to download the entire 10MB magazine to start enjoying it. Right now issue #16 (the current issue) along with issues #15 and #13 are uploaded. Over the next several weeks I’ll be adding all of our backissues to the collection.

Jaime Wheeler of SexySecond Magazine also uploaded issue #2 for your browsing pleasure. You can find it here. There’s tons more fashion content on issuu, too.

Check it out, I love browsing our magazine and everything else and I think you will too.

It’s rare that you’ll see me without my trademark platinum blonde locks, but an outfit I put together this week just cried out for some chocolatey goodness of the wigged variety.

OK, so I ended up with espresso rather than chocolate, but no matter, it still gives a good buzz.

What I’m Wearing::

Skin::Celestial Studios – (CS) Vogue Skin – Amber (Fall – 4)
Shape:: my own
Hair::Armidi – (Armidi Hair) – The Bombshell – Espresso
Eyelashes::Cake – Cake – Flutter lashes – Tintable
Eyes::Glanz Products – ::Grants.TransparencyShineEyes::ClearBrown – mlarge
Manicure::Skin Within – [SW] Cocoa Manicure
Dress::<3 Cupcakes – *<3C!* Striped Dress
Boots::Insolence – Natasha Brown Boots by INSOLENCE
Jewellery::Earthtones – Maya Necklace & Earrings Set, Ocean

• Items seen in world:: Yes
• Review copy:: No
• Friends List:: No

I hope everyone who celebrated Valentine’s Day enjoyed themselves, and even if you don’t have a valentine, I know the next best thing…..yes, you guessed it! Shoes! Last week On Your Toes we featured shoes to fall in love with. The great thing is shoes don’t really care if you love more than one pair at a time!

Anessa, as always, was the star of the show and started off her week with some Beaded Platforms from the House of Nyla. Really Anessa herself said it best,  ”…these Beaded Platforms have a wonderfully hand crafted quality to them, as if I can see Nyla working away with a bowl of crystal beads in front of her, assembling the hearts on the toe one at a time. They remind me of the homemade Valentine cards that somehow stick around on the fridge longer than the store bought variety, and I mean that in the best possible way. They do have a hint of bling, and some optional heel clicks… but they are costume pieces, so I think they are worthy of the extra sparkle. ”

Anessa’s other features included the sweet and sexy Ruby Red Elegant Slingback from Stiletto Moody, the cute and adorable Kumii Yoshikama’s Candy Pumps (shown here at left), and the daring and dangerous Daphne Platform from SIN.

Anessa never ceases to amaze me with her gorgeous and fun pictures of shoes. That girl definitely has a talent! Of course, it doesn’t hurt when she’s got such a gorgeous subject, and such great shoes to capture…but it’s worth taking a look at!

As for me, this past week, I was lucky enough to receive a copy of the Bella Court Shoes. With shine and sparkle, these platforms from Fuel are fun and different.

While I didn’t get a chance to show off many other shoes this past week, I was working on looking through all our photo submissions or the On Your Toes $2000L shopping spree contest. I was very pleased on the pictures we received, and it was hard for the Shoe Crew to pic out just 2 for our readers to vote on.

I think you will agree that the pictures submitted by Solaesta Kilian in Kyoto boots by Armidi and Zoe  Demar in Yellow Rain Boots by ETD are both great  examples of the shoes really setting off an outfit. 

The ensembles, while both featuring a pair of boots, are very different in their creation and feel. Voting closes Friday (tomorrow) at noon SLT, so there is still time to get your votes in! Just find the poll at the top of the On Your Toes Website.

Congrats to both Solaesta and Zoe for their great photos!

Wow, it’s been awhile since I posted here, hasn’t it? If you’re curious, I’m Iris Ophelia, The managing editor of Second Style Magazine, and boy oh boy do I have a treat for you today.

It seems like our photoshoots are getting bigger and bigger (and can you blame us, there so much amazing stuff out there to showcase!), so would you believe that there is more to the Valentine Date photoshoot in this month’s issue of Second Style? 6 more outfits, to be precise! But but but, Valentine’s Day was last week! Well, do we really need a calendar to tell us what day we can show our love on?

On Dakota
Skin: Sierra Pearl 2-100 by Stumbelina Ophelia of Cake
Hair: Miyabi in Brown by Rei Gully of Zero Style
Clothes: Elysium in Ruby by Annette Voight of Decoy
Accessories: The Dauphine Necklace by Caliah Lyon of MUSE
Shoes: Shiny Vixens in Silver by Tesla Miles of TESLA.

On Dakota
Skin: parfait 1 by Roslin Petion and CJ Carnot of Tête à Pied
Hair: Gillian in Black by Truth Hawks of TRUTH
Clothes: Queen of Hearts by Nyla Cheeky of House of Nyla
Accessories: Cinnamon Hearts Umbrella by Nyla Cheeky of House of Nyla
Shoes: Webbed Pumps in Pink by Chloris Hathor of G.L.A.M.

On Dakota
Skin: Crushed by Launa Fauna of Chai
Hair: Windblown in Blonde by Aden Breyer of Aden
Clothes: Chastity in Pink by Shai Delacroix of Casa Del Shai
Nails: Scarlet Long Nails by Roslin petion of Tête à Pied
Shoes: Vidalia in Metallic Noir by Lola Marquez of Armidi
On Catero
Skin: Osiris by Khai Sinister of The Abyss
Hair: Delinquent in Black by Avant Scofield of The Good Life
Clothes: Basic Boxer Briefs in Pink by Shai Delacroix of Casa Del Shai
Accessories: Heartbreaker Necklace by Keishii Roo of Goth1co

On Dakota
Skin: Pin-Up 1 by Roslin Petion and CJ Carnot of Tête à Pied
Hair: The Soho in Blonde by Lola Marquez of Armidi
Clothes: Waldorf in Cabernet by Jonathan Hugo of Fuse
Accessories: marguerite Feather Necklace by Caliah Lyon of MUSE
Shoes: Gwyneth in red by Tesla Miles of TESLA
On Iris
Skin: Saba Cerise by Ayesha Bisiani of Skin Within
Hair: Jyoti in Chestnut by Aemilia Case of Philotic Energy
Clothes: Valentine in Red by Ciera Bergman of Vitamin Ci

So wherever you are, and whatever day it is, I wish you all the love in the world– and in the grid!

Hi there! This week has been crazy, but Teagan has picked up the slack for me. (I really am a slacker!) She kicked off the week with a knotted updo from Biedermann’s Quality Hair called Martazul. This messy style has fringed pieces spilling out, and cute bangs. Definitely not one to miss if you like messy ponies!

Male Monday I got to show off my sessy new male avatar! Of course, the Johnny style (pictured) from Crimson and Clover has NOTHING to do with his attractiveness… Ok, I’m so wrong there. Johnny is a man’s style, pure and simple, and it is the hotness. The tousled hair on top is combed to a neat DA in the back. Mmmm, throw on a leather jacket, and I’m THERE!

Tuesday, Teagan showcased Hairband Hair from Junwave. Can we say rock and roll? I think we can. *grin* This high-volume style has a white fabric headband that separates the top hair from the bottom, giving the illusion of layers. So fabulous!

Wednesday’s style was Anita (pictured) – a sleek and elegant updo from DG Innovations. This style is a bundle of curls that sits just below the crown. Stray curls spill out from the right side, softening the style.

Thursday, Teagan broke from the pack, showing something that wasn’t pink or red! (Good thing it wasn’t me, I’m ALWAYS in red hair!) Sirena‘s Seduction is a versatile hairstyle, including two styles in one! With the hairpins, it’s a nicely knotted updo with the cutest hair sticks. Touch the hairsticks, and you (or a friend) have the option of taking the hair down into a smooth straight style. So much fun!

Friday was Thalia from Diversity. The Thalia Style is a long, French braid that falls down past the small of the back. The hair is pulled back from the from with the braid beginning just below the crown. It’s a fantastic braid!

Saturday Teagan spiced things up with Taunt‘s Slyboots. This long straight style is parted down the middle with ends that curl under slightly. It’s simple enough to wear with jeans and a sweater, or you can spice it up like Teagan did with a specialty skin and silks!

Today, I finished off the week with an edgy style from Deviant Kitties. Uruha is a choppy messy style with asymmetrical bangs and more than a touch of attitude. I *love* it!

*EDIT* Ok, I totally misread the name of Uruha. I blame the dyslexia. It’s got nothing to do with Star Trek. REALLY!

So that’s the roundup for this week! Check back next week for guy hair, cute hair, and even some steampunk hair!

As the latest addition to the fabulous Fashionista team I thought I’d take a moment to introduce myself. From the UK in “real life”, and in SL for almost a year, I’m not sure I’d consider myself a “fashionista” and certainly NOT a “SLebrity” but I am a shopaholic and I love putting together different looks, be it casual, costume or couture. I appreciate good design and am of the belief that whilst I’m all for a freebie, quality rightly costs. Superb prim work and fine texturing don’t happen by chance – they take time, effort and practice which should be rewarded. That said, SL style need not break the bank, and many of my favourite finds have been free.

One of the key things to putting together a good look is, I believe, not overlooking the details. The right choice of make-up, nail polish, hairstyle and jewellery can make a dramatic difference and needn’t take a lot of time. Some key pieces, well organised and accessible in your inventory, can serve you well time and time again.

Each week, as well as bringing you my finds from around the grid (or the depths of my inordinately huge inventory) I hope to show you some of these key items and ways to use them. Today however, I will just show you…. me! This is the outfit that caught Celebrity’s eye and prompted her to ask me to join the team.

I spotted the shorts and tights on Caliah Lyon’s blog and fell in love with them. Teamed up with the top from Cubic Effect’s Tunic in red, Maitreya’s Dune boots and the Crocodile belt in black and bronze from Armidi it gives an everyday way to wear Kyoot Army’s Wilted Wednesday Vest without feeling out of place.

The snapshots are taken at Cherry Buttons, a beautifully designed shopping area that reminds me of summer at home here in England. I can almost hear the thwack of leather against willow as the local cricket team play on the village green behind me. Roll on summer!

What I’m Wearing::

Skin:: TheAbyss Jadzia_Noxious_SR[1]B
Shape:: my own
Hair:: ETD Marisela – Platinum
Eyelashes:: Celestial Studios – (CS) Lashes – Classic 1
Eyes:: Shapes by Zada – Eyefidelity Talisman Hazel Reflection eyes
Manicure:: Skin Within Nailpolish – Russet
Facelight:: CG Facelight 3.0 (available from NCI or Rfyre Main Store)
Top:: Ce_Cubic effect – TUNIC D5(Red) (on shirt and underpants layers)
Bra:: Kyoot Army – Wilted Wednesday Vest (on undershirt layer)
Shorts:: SHOP SEU – Short Pants BLACK
Tights:: SHOP SEU – taitsu taight YELLOW
Collar:: Kyoot Army – Wilted Wednesday Vest (on jacket layer and attachment)
Boots:: Maitreya Dune Boots – Red
Belt:: [Armidi Gisaci] Au Di Crocodile Belt [Black/Bronze]
Earrings/Bracelet:: my own

• Items seen in world:: yes
• Review Copy:: no
• Friends List:: no

Shoes, boots, and more shoes…it always is a great week On Your Toes! Our photo contest closed for submissions last Tuesday and I’m very excited to post our finalists for reader selection! Be on the look out on this Friday for that post!

As far as the footwear goes, last week Ms. Anessa Stine was what I’d like to call, a shoe ANIMAL! First she started by featuring the Venice boots by Babette Ultsch of Kitties Lair. These boots have been updated from a previous model and are worth taking a look at.   Storm Schmooz released the new Mimmi Sandals (shown left)and wouldn’t you know it, Anessa was all over those beauties. These got all of our toes itching to break free of the socks and boots and longing for bright toe polish. I just have to say, “Hurry up spring!”

Next our raving reporter gave us a look under her skirt, showing off the new Boudoir Legs hosiery collection (shown left) from Eloria LeShelle’s Battered boudoir. Available in a wide array of colors and styles, and Anessa reports, if you buy some of these, you may never need another pair of tights again!

I actually did do a little work myself, and guess what it was? I know you never guessed…Boots! I can’t help myself, it’s like an illness. I saw the boots from JB Gazov of J’s and I had to buy, buy, and yes…buy.

Anessa also did a fantastic feature on the Red Shoes she loves. Similar to her gold write up, she shows us 16 pairs of ruby richness. Perfect for those of you who are on a last minute search for the perfect Valentine’s outfit!

 Speaking of hot Valentines. Check out the Catalyst Boots from Abyss. These are HAWT and really could knock the shoes off of your special someone!

Always a party girl at heart, I have to say I loved Nessa’s review of Tesla Miles newest release. All of the variations named after our favorite cocktails. Bright and fun, these pumps will give each outfit an extra something special with a twist.

 Finally, after the fabulous shows this weekend Anessa and I were both able to attend, we brought back some very special finds.

From the New Shoots II show I personally fell in love with the shoes by Aphrodite Outlander of Aphrodite Creations. 

As for Anessa, she was drooling by the end of the GLAM Magazine  launch event. She literally yelled out when the new shoes from Maitreya, the ChiChi, appeared on the lovely legs of the models. I have to agree with her, these shoes are drool-worthy! Onyx LeShelle pays attention to detail, and it really shows!

From all of us at On Your Toes, have a very wonderful Valentine’s Day to our readers that celebrate. Even if you don’t have your own valentine, it’s never out of the question to buy yourself something special…and shoe eye candy always make my heart swoon. <3

Well, the biggest thing from this week is the publication of the second issue of our magazine!!! I’m still giddy from finishing it and am now hoping you like it as much as I do! You can read more about the publication here at the SexySecond blog or you can click here and go straight to the download page. The magazine has some great articles, including the “exposure” of Second Style’s own Haver Cole by Marleen Vaughan!

Early in the week, before the magazine set in in earnest, I blogged a few wonderful things I hope you’ll come and take a look at. First I had some silks from The Lair that I really like, and then a set of silks silks from Stygian you’ll want to see if you’re looking for wonderfully made silks that are fitting for a queen, goddess, amazon or other substantial personage. I also found a cute little Valentine set from SLAB called Quepid and I’m hoping to get some more Valentine things up in the next day or so.

I was absolutely thrilled to see Lisbeth DeCuir drop by to review Designs By Mika. At first I was just happy to see her, then I saw the store and selections she was reviewing and I was really happy to see her. Vintage stuff is such a weakness of mine, and the feathered headdresses (and the prices!) Libeth found at Designs by Mika look to be fantastic. Couple them with the cigarette in the long elegant holder she showed off for a good time that is verrrry old school, maybe even pre- old school. (Smoking’s not bad for avatars is it?)

Arabeth is again out and about and finding great new shops for us to try. One of them, Jarnia Underground is so good she even gave it the “bargain” stamp. She also took a look at Hexed, which is one of my favorite stores.

Very early in the week, Arabeth reviewed some outfits from Crimson Shadow which is a great store of which I’ve been a fan for a while, but which may be new to some of you. Arabeth showed off three very different outfits you’ll have to come take a look at, and gave the place a solid thumbs up. (Ooooh, and if you come over in a day or two I’ll have some rather unusual accessories from them to show off as well!)

All in all it was a fantastic week at SexySecond. I do hope you’ll stop by and get a copy of our magazine, and I’d love to hear your thoughts about it!

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone, and we’ll see you next week!.