~A Beguiling Tango~

Second Life is rich with creative people…each one expressing their genius in his or her own inimitable way.  Each time I set out to explore this amazing virtual world, I am awestruck with the depth of skill and attention to detail that goes into creating beauty, form and function out of pixels.  Pouring your heart and soul into producing something from your imagination is tough enough in First Life…add the challenges of translating that same work into pixels, on a computer, and you start to appreciate the dedication and perseverance required to do so.

I always feel honored and blessed that I have had the good fortune of becoming friends with truly artistic people in Second Life and one of those friends is someone I particularly cherish.  Jillar Lamar is not only an incredibly talented digital artist, in SL, she also has the ability to translate that eye for beauty into the landscape of her Second Life world.

The Beguiled; Art Gallery and Studio is where you will find the collective works from Jilla and where you will also find yourself immersed in a lush, whimsical landscape that invites you to slow down, wander the grounds and take in all the enchanting details.  Jilla has managed to build an artistic, three dimensional masterpiece worthy of Monet.

~A Beguiling Tango~

When I saw the Kara Little Black Dress and the Poppy Dot Chemise, from ~ghee~, I wanted to grab my husband and head to The Beguiled to tango the afternoon away; amongst the flowers.  We found the perfect spot, for dancing, right next to this wonderful Garden Piano from Boudoir.

~A Beguiling Tango~

You can find the Poppy Dot Chemise and the Kara Little Black Dress, and many more fabulous black themed dresses from ~ghee~, at the Black Fashion Fair.

Life is fleeting in any world…take time to explore and stay captivated! ❤ ❤

~X~

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Xiu is also wearing:

In Photo #1

Dress:  ~ghee~  – Kara Little Black Dress (available at the Black Fashion Fair)

Foot Ribbons:  ~ghee~ – Black Ribbon Wraps with optional Poppy Accents (available at the Black Fashion Fair)

Hair:  [elikatira]– Looking (retired style)

Skin:  Glam Affair  Aria – Asia (previous gacha item)

Hands:  Slink – AVEnhance – Elegant1

Necklaces:  MG-Maxis Gossamer Accessories Jewelled Owl, Wild Honey Bee & Jewelled Peacock

Bangles:  [EY:NO] (store closed)

Pose: BODY / shots – Tango d’Amore 03

Shot on location at Beguiled; Art Gallery and Studio  

Photo #2

Dress:  ~ghee~  – Poppy Dot Chemise (available at the Black Fashion Fair)

Shoes:  ~ghee~ – Sequin Heels Ruby

Hair:  TUTY’S MOCAP ANIMATIONS, SKIN & SHAPE, HAIR– LIMBO

Skin:  Glam Affair  Aria – Asia (previous gacha item)

Hands:  Slink – AVEnhance – Elegant1

Necklace: Created by my husband and not yet available

Bangles:  [EY:NO] (store closed)

Pose: ::Focus Poses:: – The Tango  *Please note that the left side of the female avatar, in this pose, gets burried into the right side of the male avatar…I had to do a lot of repositioning of the “female” pose ball to extract her body out of his and get a decent shot (that is why my foot is off the ground).  I also had to heavily edit the arms in this pose, using Animare, in order for them to meet up with his body and arms.

Shot on location at Beguiled; Art Gallery and Studio 

***I used three point body lighting and projector key and fill lighting from the LUMIPro lighting system.

**My Husband is wearing his FATEwear suit, AKEYO Black Wool Fedora and I do not know which shoes he is wearing lol.

***PLEASE NOTE that I am not a mainstream fashion blogger.  My focus is telling a story through a photo…so I DO manipulate my photos.  TRY before you buy. ***

~Whiteout in Candy Land~

Do you remember playing that fun board game Candy Land, where you follow the winding track through the Candy Cane Forrest and Gum Drop mountain in search of King Kandy?  I remember playing it with my niece and nephew and the little buggers tried to cheat!  Despite the cheating, we still had a blast and it whiled away the endless hours of being stuck inside on a school snow day.

Yesterday I mentioned the Month of Games event, hosted by Siren Productions, was in full swing.; with tons of fabulous designs geared toward three game themes.  One of the themes is Candy Land and the amazingly talented creator behind Lyrical B!zarre Templates came up with this oh-so-sweet candy dress named Whiteout. This dress is loads of fun and perfect for a costume party, a day exploring or just because you LOVE candy!

~Whiteout in Candy Land~

You can really get creative with the different components of this dress…I used a copy of the bodice candy piece as a wreath for my hair and I wore it on my *DOLLCOCO* avatar!  I accessorized the dress with the Fairytail Hair and Spring Fairy Parasol from Boudoir and my lovely little snow colored French Bulldog; a past The Chapter Four gacha from Alchemy.  The fabulous Wonderland Teacup Party is the latest VIP group gift from Boudoir and ONLY AVAILABLE FOR 48 HOURS…so HURRY!

I shot this on location at a really adorable little parcel named A&R haven & relax place.  This enchanting little place is full of wonderful spots to relax, take photos or enjoy the dances created by the owner Ryeeee.  A fantastic little hidden secret garden that is well worth the visit and don’t forget to check out her lucky boards, filled with her unique dances, that turn over quickly!

Now I’m off to gather clues for the next game theme!

Life is fleeting…stay captivated!

❤ ❤

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Xiu is also wearing:

Ballet Shoes:  Slink – Ashia Ballet Pointe Pewter

Pose:  Diesel Works Poses & Animations

***PLEASE NOTE that I am not a mainstream fashion blogger.  My focus is telling a story through a photo…so I DO manipulate my photos.  TRY before you buy. ***

 

~Cosmic Swing~

I have been fooling around with creating poses and layers for my photos and this piece came together on the fly.  It reminded me of a silly piece of fluff I wrote ages ago…so I put the two together just because I can :p
~Oblique~

~Cosmic Swing~

Today I swung above the earth
tilting to and fro
hair floating in
weightless beauty
catching stardust
and cosmic glow

I held tight
to ropes of stars
and rode higher still
through the blue vault of heaven
touching moon beams and astral frill

Such wonders
did I spy
baby stars in
angel dust
cradled lovingly
in the cosmos
generated by solar lux

The moon, the sun
creation
yet unseen
and all
this I did
spy
upon my
cosmic swing

The Details

Avatar:  COCO DESIGNS *DOLL COCO* Body/Snow, Head/Snow_kyoko

Hair:      Boudoir Fairytale Hair (Powder)

Eyes:      Curio Tragic Eyes (Watercolor/Large)

Slippers:  SLink  Ashia Ballet Pointe Pewter

Shot on Location at Inevitability of Fate.  I found my avatar stuck between prims and it looked like I was suspended in space…so I snapped the shot.  It was just a throw away shot…so the quality isn’t that fabulous.  I was just fooling around with the filter I had made and dropped it on this pic…tweaked it in Picmonkey and voila…crappy pic with a layer over it and a crappy poem.  File it under astral ephemera…or cosmic junk 😛

Her Etchaflesh Corset is Boudoir Fly…

LpD, Etchaflesh, Boudoir2

There are still several more days till Halloween…that means many more opportunities to get your haunt on!  Earlier I told you about the [Etchaflesh/Virtual Props] Trick and Treats Hunt; where you can score fabulous mesh corsets and/or pose/prop sets…AND you can go back everyday to do the hunt over to score another prize…WIN! (no group join required).  Sooo I went back and filled up my HUD with candy to cash in on this fabulous mesh corset; which you can see a bit better in the second pic.  I paired the corset with this delicious little plum colored, ruffled skirt (5L) from – Quintessência Store – on the Marketplace…and these HOT _Dietrish Nouveau_BLACK knee high boots from *ATHOR* (0L group gift/free to join).

Last week Precious Restless sent out a notice in the Boudoir Group (free to join) that there was a new member gift waiting for all their ghouls to grab…well this Wearable Giant Fly came along just in time…since my broom was in the shop for repairs.  Isn’t he fantastic?  I think I’ll call him Igor. ;p;p
Lpd, Etchaflesh, Boudoir3

Now, a girl can’t just get all dolled up with no place to go…so I headed straight for Journey to the Lost City which is the hauntingly spectacular build from Tymus Tenk and Truck Meredith…owners of the sublime Calas Galadhon sims.  If you haven’t been to these park sims…they are an absolute MUST SEE.  I can’t begin to tell you how incredibly detailed they are landscaped…Truck and Ty spend endless hours landscaping and decorating them for every season.  There is so much to explore and enjoy…and now they have this wonderful Halloween adventure…search for the golden idol in the castle and you will be admitted to the Lost City…just beware of the perils on the way!  I took my trusty Staff of Hatred from Wylde Arts ~WA~ on the Marketplace (not free, but half price @ 150L)…to cast dark rain on any rogue corpses.
LpD, Etchaflesh, Boudoir

I know you’re wondering how I keep my ethereal good looks…it is all thanks to this *Andrea Witch* skin and eyes from *LpD* (group gifts/free to join).  My lovely raven curls are the Halloween 2012 group gift (free to join) compliments of Dura.  My sparkly Glitter Skull earrings are another wonderful Halloween  (FREE/no group required) from [dirty.little.secret]…and the Witch necklace and witch hat are group gifts from NCParis (free to join).

The Details

FREE!!!

Withered Corset:  [Etchaflesh/Virtual Props] Tricks and Treat Hunt (Free when you fill your candy HUD) (no group join required) http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Endless%20Death/43/164/29

Wearable Giant Fly:  Boudoir (group gift/free to join) http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Boudoir/216/79/23

_Dietrish Nouveau_BLACK knee high boots:  *ATHOR* (group gift/free to join)  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Delilah/52/27/945

*Andrea Witch* skin and eyes:  LpD (Les Petits Details) Skin Store (group gift/free to join) http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/GoldenSand%20Island%20008/173/81/606

 Hair…Halloween 2012 group gift:  Dura (group gift/free to join) http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Dura%20Dura/65/130/1003

Glitter Skull Earrings:  [dirty.little.secret]  (Free/no group required) http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Envision/123/159/1749

Witch hat and necklace:  NC Paris  (group gift/free to join)  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/NCparis%20Fashion%20Region/55/80/25

Olyvia Female Poses:  Diesel Works  (group gift/free to join)  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Brooklyn/113/128/25

Almost FREE!

-Gaby Jeans Gift Skirt Mesh-:  Quintessência Store  (5L) https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/Quintessencia-Gaby-Jeans-Gift-Skirt-Mesh/3741300

NOT Free

Staff of Hatred:  Wylde Arts~WA~ (150L)  https://marketplace.secondlife.com/p/WA-Staff-of-Hatred-SF-PROMO-50-off/3735967