Second Style Magazine

Weekend! Yaaaay! I am so excited…unfortunately I will not be in SL this weekend to ejoy all of these fun events, but yesterday was my RL birthday so I am getting out of the house for the weekend. So, I hope all of you will enjoy these fashion finds! Remember, if you have any events you want me to post here, please give me the info in world or at rhirossini@gmail.com

Friday 1/30

Saturday 1/31

SuperElite Model Graduation Show, 9am http://slurl.com/secondlife/Fashionista/135/128/21

Runway Debute of Nardcotix, Chloe and Phoenix Rising, 12pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Casablanca%20Boulevard/32/228/2

MAD Agency: Mechanisim, 1pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Kmadd%20Enterprise/128/128/2

[KA] Designs Showcase, 1pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/JSP%20Island/43/38/22

Las Vegas/James Bond at VooDoo Vouge, 3pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Motels/73/152/23

Sunday 2/1

InStyle Nouveau Style, 11am http://slurl.com/secondlife/InStyle/158/203/21

Adam n Eve (SLURL) has made a huge improvement on their skin lines of late, recently launching four new lines in November 2008. Since, there have been a couple of other releases, the latest being the “Bliss” skin line. This is, in my opinion – the best yet. A gorgeous face (that oddly reminds me of Kirsten Dunst for some reason), and simply stunning details with a realistically smooth and glossy skin texture, I just want to run to the nearest massage parlor and get all oiled up just so I can watch this skin glisten.

Creator: Sachi Vixen
Store Location: Genesis (SLURL)
Tones: Tone 1, Tone 2, Tone 3, Tone 4 (From fair to tan!)
Price: $1200L per skin, $3000L per 4 skin makeup pack
Notes: Each skin purchase comes with two skins (one with and one without pubic hair… HOO! Brownie points!), two different pedicures, two different manicures, prim lashes, an instruction notecard on how to adjust the prim lashes, and a notecard of recommended light settings. There are also sixteen makeups available that also include freckles!

I Will Be Reviewing: Tone 4, Babe Makeup

Detail Pictures (NSFW):

Face, Torso, Back, Ears, Hands, Legs, Privates

You might recall a recent blog entry I made on my own blog regarding the recent Adore release. Truly, the Bliss release is even more “evolved”.

I love the knees on this skin. They’re surprisingly realistic, as is the rest of the leg. The belly glistens with a “healthy” skin glow, if you know what I mean, which I absolutely love.

One thing I couldn’t help but notice… I love the ASS on this skin. Especially in a thong. And the face is, again, absolutely drop dead beautiful… and surprisingly sophisticated. A mature kind of look, but with sharp features that just pop out at you.

Each skin comes with a manicure and pedicure set that is geared to match the makeup you’re wearing. Nothing says “attention to detail” like matching fingernails and toes, right? And once again, Sachi has answered my skin whore prayers by allowing for the choice between pubic hair and clean shaven… a truly delicious addition to any skin creator’s arsenal in their quest to get my money! Options, options, options! Sachi does not disappoint.

Only one minor suggestion for this skin I would say — the feet are a slightly lighter tone than the rest of the skin, at least on tone four. Nothing that would keep me from buying the skin, but I obviously can’t speak for everyone. If I were you, I would most definitely head on over to Adam n Eve (SLURL) to check this beauty out yourself. What’s a little in-world nudity between skin fanatics, eh? I know I’ll be there!

Way to go, Sachi! Another gorgeous release, and another happy customer just hopping her way on over to your skin-guru abode!

Iki Ikarus of Dutch Touch has been making wonderfully made clothing for as long as I have been on the grid and then some I’m sure. I’ve always been a fan of her fashions and I am also an admirer of her skins.

Featured here are the Amy skin line in the Powder Pink skin tone. Again, this is a soft skin with beautiful lips and simple, yet sultry eye makeups. Features that I really like are the nose and the philtrum, you know that little groove under the nose above the lips. FYI: The ancient Greeks believed that the philtrum was one of the most erogenous spots on the human body. And on this skin it looks like it wants to be kissed. I also like the soft collar bones and then the tiny peeking of bootie cleavage viewable on my back shot.

Makeups shown below are makeup 1 and 3, with a double shot of 3 featuring the freckled option that comes with each skin. These skins run 950L a skin and come with eyes, skin with and without freckles, and some eyelashes.

SLURL and other items include: Hair from Truth, Earrings from ETD, Bra and Panties also from Dutch Touch, and shoes from Dirt Road.

From time to time, the topic of taxes in Second Life comes up. Many content creators I know who make “real” money in-world and cash it out on a regular basis are aware they’re liable to pay income taxes on it, but recently I came across this paper by Indiana tax law professor Leandra Lederman, suggesting pretty strongly that sales taxes ought to apply to in-world purchases made with Lindens whether or not you actually “cash them out” into US Dollars. Writing in the Yale Law Journal she states:

Millions of people participate in virtual worlds—immersive online forums such as Second Life and World of Warcraft (WoW). While some online activities lack significant economic implications, one of the attractions of Second Life, which is designed to be a commercial platform, is the prospect of making “real money.” This essay argues that profits received in the form of Lindens (Second Life’s currency) should be taxed in much the same way profits received via PayPal, a widely used electronic-payment system, are. Although Second Life profits could instead be taxed once the taxpayer sells for real money (“cashes out”), that would create a special exception for Second Life that does not exist for platforms such as eBay. It would facilitate abuse and distort economic activity.

Although some previous discussions around taxation in and around Second Life (and other commerce based virtual worlds like IMVU) haven’t amounted to much, having an article like this published in a prestigious law journal makes it a lot more likely that the U.S. Congress will take some action on this issue in the near future.

Thinking about the nightmare of trying to figure out how to collect and remit taxes in a global micropayment environment where the buyer and seller have no idea of the legal jusidiction of either party boggles my mind. To paraphrase President Obama that’s way above my pay grade.

(Tip: TaxProf Blog)

Welcome to week four of our 30 Days project! We’re half way done with this series and I hope you’ve been enjoying it. When I started thinking about the skins I wanted to post in the series, I picked old favorites, but I’m taking my slot this week to write about a brand new skin release by Cane Sutter called Skinthesis. In fact, the grand opening for this line was yesterday, January 25.

This brand new line is a hybrid between photorealism and hand-painted skins and I think Cane has done a great job with this release balancing the contrasts between the two approaches to skin design. She also has quite a flair of picking classic makeup combinations and doing them well across most of her skin tones. Skinthesis Mandi line comes in six tones from the aptly named Dark (a bit too orangey for my tastes), to a beautiful caramelly “Ethnic” tone (shown left in my favorite makeup from the whole line called “Assassin.”) through the ultra-goth pure white “Powder” tone on the other end of the spectrum.

And while Cane was kind enough to send me samples of every skin tone the one I liked the best was the “Fair” tone – a bit lighter than “Tan” but not quite as light as “Pale.” (Seen left. The far makeup is called Smoulder; the near makeup is called Moderne.) While I’ve enjoyed wearing these skins around the grid, I did have some issues with them too. First, depending on the shape (I tested several) the breasts can look a bit, well, square. The trend in SL is definitely toward well shaded breasts so perhaps it’s a function of the shading on these skins. The second issue is that these skins seem to have painted-on eyelashes. This can make fitting prim lashes a challenge. If you pick lashes that are thick and luscious enough they’ll hide the painted-on lashes pretty effectively, but you can still get some strange artifacts from the viewer depending on the “LOD” or level of detail that’s rendered and how well your video card does alpha layer sorting. Third, the only brow color is a beautiful dark brown – perfect if that’s your everyday hair color. If you’re a redhead or like dark black hair, you’ll want to request different brow colors from Cane.

Cane is very open to taking custom work from her clients – although she tells me that she’s been super busy with a set of orders lately. Simple requests like brow colors can be handled quickly, but if you want to request a custom makeup or tattoo placement or something like that, it could take a bit longer to fulfill that request. She’s also planning a fun line of “dress up” skins – like for example the golden hued Egyptian-themed skin she just finished last night. So far you can play with that one, plus a “Totally 80s” makeup theme called “Radical.” If you’re in the mood to try one of Cane’s skins for free, you can try your luck on her Lucky Chair which is currently loaded with an exclusive (not-for-sale) Valentine’s themed skin in all six tones.

Visit Skinthesis at Mysten (103, 97, 76). Prices for the skins are: singles 999L, 6 pack(1 makeup, 6 tones), 1600L, 8 pack (mix and match, any 8 skins), 2000L and 15 makeup packs are 3000L.

When selecting the designs we wanted to feature on the 30 Days of Skins, I purposely chose skins that were favorites as well as a few that I was interested in, but hadn’t had a chance to try out yet. I’d seen tons of gorgeous photos of the Blowpop skins from Annyka Bekkers, but had yet to take the plunge.

Upon teleporting to the store, I realized I was going to be there for a while deciding between the six “yummy” tones ranging from light and creamy Vanilla to a deep bronzed Cocoa. The perfect midtone of Honey resulted as my favorite, but the options definitely didn’t end there.

The makeup collection is ginormous, with gorgeous eye makeups available in three lip color options. Shown below is the original makeup collection with the “natural” lips selection.

Each skin tone also has a “Vivid” collection, consisiting of 18 bold and beautiful makeups, in bright and funky lips or eyes.

The options don’t end there. Every individual face is delivered in four versions, brown and black brow/with and without freckles. Yep 2 x 2 = 4

The hand painted body lives up to the deliciousness you would expect of a skin named “Blowpop”, with highlights in all the right places, a supple flat tummy and perfectly shaded bum. There is only one naggy issue I have with Tuesday, and that is the pixelated look of the upper lip. I find myself waiting and waiting for it to rez, unfortunately only to realize it’s a design of the skin and not SL being a pain. Still, I highly recommend it for those that love the look and softness of a hand painted skin.

Need to Knows:

• where can i get it? Blowpop Skins Mainstore OR you can purchase special edition skins that will benefit RFL at 100Limite
  
• what skin tones are available? vanilla, cream, honey, caramel, cinnamon, cocoa
• what’s it gonna cost me? $L950 for individual makeups, $L2200 for the three lip option of one eyemakeup or $L4000 for all six eyemakeups in one lip option.

Yes you’re reading it right, and I promise I’m not disputing how you were taught to count in Kindergarten…I should have posted this last Friday, but real life and work have kept me away from SL and the blogosphere.

But as promised, the Naomie skin from Redgrave. I’ve been obsessed with darker toned skins lately, and my recent foray into shape making helps me justify my skin whorish ways because I actually wear them and they even inspire me to create a unique shape especially for the skin.

Such was the case with the Naomie skin from Redgrave. Highly photorealistic, with a gorgeous face and a broad variety of makeups.

I’m seriously obsessed with the lips which can only be described as “juicy” especially considering the generous application of a glossy shine. I also love the skin tone, the darkest of any of the Redgrave line.

Redgrave skins always photograph extremely well, but I’ve found I have to do a bit of PS magic to tone down and blend the highlighting and shading. The above photo is untouched, and the painted highlight along the arms is particularly evident. Thankfully, Emilia has reworked and softened the body on her new Leona skin, but I would love to Naomie given the same treatment.

NEED TO KNOWS:

• Where to get it? REDGRAVE SKINS
• How much? $990L for individual makeups, but the fatpack of all 10 faces is a steal at $L2990
• Skin Tones? Naomie is only available Dark

…stay tuned for Skin Day 15: BLOWPOP!

Another weekend! Yaaaaaaaaay! That means rest and relaxation…and SL parties! Woohoo! I have a few things to share with you as far as events go. We still have the New Years Hunt going on at Ellie’s, so be sure to stop by there and check it out. For more information on this and the following events, please see our google calendar. Remember, you can always send me your event information in world or at rhirossini@gmail.com

Friday 1/23

Saturday 1/24

Taboo, 12:30pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Aloha%20Ocean%20Ridge/213/199/322

LeeZu! and Courtisane, 2pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Kmadd%20Enterprise/66/116/26

The Debut of Spork, 3pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Black%20Sand%20Beach/220/220/22

The Vassnia Fashion Show, 3pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Jonathan/7/197/24

Sunday 1/25

Dress Up with Zullay, 11am http://slurl.com/secondlife/Archipelago%20Wild/71/117/25

B! Fashion Show – Eleganza, 1pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Royal%20Properties/183/202/23

FFA Graduation Show, 2pm http://slurl.com/secondlife/Aloha%20Ocean%20Ridge/212/213/38

A while back, when I decided to change my skin after a long, beautiful relationship with Celestial Studio’s Vogue (*wipes tear*), I went through several skins that appealed to my palette of rather complex skin tastes. Everything from the best known designers to the least passed through my skin folder for at least a week at a time. I loved many of them, but there was something special about Damiani’s (SLURL) Charly skin when it was released back in November 2008.

I was long-in-love with a previous release of Damiani’s, Michelle, by this time, so trying Charly on seemed like almost second nature. With Pompeja Rossini’s and Koaz Koba’s exquisite eyes for detail, I expected nothing more than elegance with each new release, and Charly certainly did not disappoint.

Creators: Pompeja Rossini & KaoZ Koba
Shop Location: Plush Meter (SLURL)
Tones Available: Pale Rose, Normal, Olive, Tan – 9 makeups for every tone
Price: $1200L per makeup / $3000L per makeup set (3 skins per set) / $9000L per fatpack (9 skins)
Note: Individual skins come with a pair of eyes (06_ocean blue), a bra and panties set, full permission eyelashes, a bald hair base, and a styling card.

Detail Pictures:

Face, Full Body, Torso, Back, Hands, Legs, Ears

In addition to Damiani’s usual standard of quality: smooth skin, delicate features, elaborate attention to detail… Charly has a face that is slightly more refined than the previous releases. She has almost a debutante look about her; one that commands authority and demands respect.

Her lips are beautiful with a slight sheen to them, which is great news for you gloss lovers out there. And the eye makeup’s fantastic and remarkably realistic in comparison to some other skins — this is definitely not airbrushed on, but rather painstakingly crafted down to the tiniest detail in the upper eyelid crease. Below are just five of the nine makeup options available (click for a larger image):

Something I did not manage to get a shot of to do it accurate justice, but that I strongly encourage you to try a skin demo out to inspect yourself, is the inside of the wrists of this skin. I was pretty taken aback at how detailed they are, right down to the tendon markings, skin creases, and veins.

The only major suggestion I might have for improvements on this skin, and many other skins now that I think about it, is the matching of the ears to the skin tone. The ear is actually quite beautiful and remarkably realistic — however, the tone is just slightly off, which gives it that sort of “pasted on” feel.

Yes… it was a long and elaborate love affair I had with Miss Charly here. And I loved her dearly, I must admit. I encourage you to drop on by the Damiani (SLURL) main store and try out a skin demo. While you’re there, you might also pay special attention to their latest release, Angeline — yet another heartbreaker just dying to be discovered.

I hope to see you here for lots of fun! Zullay Thor is an amazing designer and she has the best personality ever! I guarantee a great time! Lots of fun!

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Archipelago%20Wild/71/117/25

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Black%20Sand%20Beach/220/220/22

Wow, didn’t see that one coming. I woke up to find an email in my inbox, like many readers I suspect.

I must say I knew that OnRez was probably not long for this world. Strategically, the Electric Sheep Company pulled pretty far back from Second Life through most of 2008 and it was increasingly apparent that the OnRez portal just wasn’t going to get the developer time and attention it required. I figured that ESC was just going to quietly wind operations down and move on to whatever it is that they do now.

But I was genuinely surprised that the Lab showed up to buy both OnRez and Xstreet, putting the former out of its misery and the anointing the latter as the web shopping experience for Second Life. I had to tilt my head here and think, “Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot?”

For all the charm of Xstreet’s late 90s layout and design, I always recommended people buy things from my OnRez store, whether they wanted to do it in world from our headquarters location or via the Web. I also had put a number of free (hopefully useful) items in my OnRez store so that I could easily distribute them to others. I guess what’s really disappointing is that a ton of content creators are going to have to spend hours and hours and hours transferring information, objects and graphics from OnRez to Xstreet.

I’m debating what to do myself. All Second Style back issues and magazine kiosks are already on Xstreet – but I’m not really sure I want to go to the trouble to move all of the free items over. Based on the feedback I’ve read at SLUniverse, I don’t think this is an extremely popular acquisition, although I can tell it has the potential to be a great thing.

Given previous track records though, I’m not really expecting much, or on any reasonable timeframe.

What do you think?

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