Baiastice: For the Fashion Elite
These are the things that make me so glad to be a member of the Second Life fashion blogosphere.After reading about the excellent awareness post over at MichaMi (one of my absolute favorite blogs on the SL fashion feed, I might add), I was very pleased to discover the elegance of Baiastice (SLURL), a FANTASTICALLY chic, beautiful, detailed, runway-worthy fashion stop. While I’m not a big fan of the Seagull jacket that Milla posted, I decided that a shop being described as “as couture as pixels get” was simply worth the trip.
My. God. I can’t tell you how happy I am that I went.
Now, my wallet’s been taking a strain these days (planning a wedding, holiday bills to recover from, etc) but I picked out three outfits from this incredible collection and I simply can’t WAIT for the opportunity to go back for more. However, until then — let me share with you the fabulousness that is Baiastice in what little quantity I can. And I will just get out ahead of this right now: go. Seriously. Just go. You won’t regret it.
The first outfit I saw and nabbed for $850L was the Opera dress (pictured above). It is a beautiful, BEAUTIFUL (and did I say *BeAuTiFuL*???) long, flowing gown in an almost golden copper color. The detail on this dress is MAGNIFICENT, especially on the chest where patterns tend to blur and distort. The flexi skirt is the perfect length and it’s elegant train makes me feel like the Belle of the Ball, as I’m sure it will you. It’s straight out of an Italian fairy tale, and you’ll feel like a princess wearing it! I want to just skip right off to the Oscars, sip some Cristal, and brush elbows with the movie stars.
This next outfit, which I paired with onyx Liah boots from Vamp, Suite 17 Jet Dark Black sunglasses, and Lynne II hair from ETD, is the utterly gorgeous ensemble which I will lovingly refer to as “The Manhattanite” (though its actual name is Madama T — picture right). It’s a sexy yet sophisticated dress with matching long black gloves and a look that kills. Can you say, “Look out, Prada!”
And we’ll wrap up with the dress I hope to make my bridesmaid gowns if I can ever muck up the cash to do it between now and the wedding date (I’m getting married, by the way… did you know??? LOL!). The dress is called Histoire (pictured left)… an elegant golden camel dress, perfect for your next cocktail party or art gallery opening. Whether you’re dancing the night away or attending a very… planned… out… wedding… (woot!)… you’ll look stunning in this gown.
I am so happy that Milla pointed this place out, and so incredibly excited to see what other releases may come from this diamond in the rough. Baiastice (SLURL) is the name folks, and bring your checkbooks! You’ll need them!
Damn, I wish SL had layaway… *feels her inner trailer park showing* Meep!
The Blog Round-Up
There’s so much going on, I don’t even really know where to start. So I’ll do this in an orderly fashion, really… all bullet-pointy and stuff.
The Second Mirage jewelry store is having a Flickr Contest for which first prize is every piece newly released in 2008. THAT… is a sweet deal. For all us girls out there that love jewelry, this is a hell of a reward for taking a few decent snapshots. Perhaps even the guys could get in on this… wonder if Serenity would be willing to forward the prizes on to one lucky lady should a guy win? Hmm… well, anyway, here is the scoop:
Take a photo featuring you in Second Mirage Jewelry and post it to the “Second Mirage” group on flickr! Enter as many times as you like, but only ONE submission per named set/item though, so pick your best shot for each! All submissions to the group need to be before January 22nd! The winner will be unveiled at the upcoming Second Mirage showcase to be held over the weekend of January 25-27!
Any questions, contact SerenityVal Alcott inworld or by email at serenityval[@]gmail.com.
Also, as I’m sure many of us in the blogosphere have heard by now, Last Call (AND Moderno) will be having their “final shebang” beginning 11th of January during which all items for sale by Ginny Talamasca, Katterina Dagostino, and Devyn Carmichael will go on sale one final time for $100L a piece. After the sale, all items by these designers will be permanently retired — more details as follows:
Starting Friday 1-11-08 at 9am SL Time, all Items created by Ginny Talamasca, Katterina Dagostino, and Devyn Carmichael will go on a final $100L sale. All Items will be marked as Modifiable and Transferable but will NOT be Copyable. So please be careful with items you purchase, once this sale has concluded all sale items will NO LONGER be available in SL from their original creators.
I will continue to honor all Gift cards up until 7am Tuesday morning 1-8-08 when I shall close off the island to begin reprogramming the vendors and their respective inventories. I know that not everyone will get this notice before the deadline, so let me be clear. I will honor Gift Cards submitted after Tuesday morning and for the duration of the sale, BUT they will only be redeemed for the ORIGINAL item’s price NOT the sale price. Once Last Call has closed its doors following the conclusion of the sale all gift cards will be considered Void. The sale will run for approximately one month or possibly longer demand permitting.
For those of you wondering if the Dazzle Sim will be shutting down for good, don’t fret. Lyra Muse assures us that that is in fact NOT the case… simply that Ginny Talamasca has virtually “left the building”… a tragedy in itself, but from the sounds of it, a personal need. I wish him all the best, and sincerely hope the rest of you do too.
Moving right along…
The current Second Life hair texture guru (in my personal opinion) has released some new styles over at RaC (SLURL). I simply LOVE these hair textures… I’ve never seen them more real. I have to say that my favorite one is definitely “Silk”, closely followed by “Princess”. To see some shots of these awesome new styles, head over to Melanie Kidd’s blog and check them out. Then, while you’re at it, head on over to RaC and buy them!
Raskella Canadeo, lovely designer of Blooberry (SLURL, OnRez, SLEX), has announced that she will be completely redoing her storefront, including a new building, new posters, etc. Until previews are ready on her blog, she also has some quite lovely new releases for us to enjoy. A little sample:
I don’t know about the rest of you guys, but I’ll definitely be shimmying my little butt right on over to Blooberry to grab this cute lil number! Along with the other new releases she’s proudly displayed on her blog.
And finally, another thing I’m sure most of us have heard about… Simone! has opened her fantastically fantastical $100L discount outlet store (SLURL), full of LOTS of $100L clothes for all of us to play with. I know I stopped by the other day and spent a cool $2k pretty easily. If you’re on a budget, this is probably THE place to stop and shop, so I’d recommend polishing off those wallets and getting on over there to do some serious comfort shopping.
WHEW! Lots going on… So much to do, so little time!
Digit Darkes Clothing: Mash It Up!
Boy, have I got one for you guys today!
Digit Darkes (SLURL, OnRez) recently released a whole slew of new goodies and I am delighted to have the opportunity to tell you about just a few of them. Are you ready for some shopping, Rykerized style? Cuz I am!
I recently had the pleasure of meeting Digit Darkes at the ASpiRE! Magazine Radio launch, where I got to see her new line in action. A fashion show didn’t do it justice… it only made me want more! Sultry, sexy, fabulous designs that are sure to please and are delightfully girlie. Wonderful store manager, Sasy Scarborough, quickly asked me if I would like the opportunity to do a review for Digit, and obviously… I jumped right on it! What an honor!
Among Digit’s many creations are some seriously fabulous dresses, gorgeous latex tops, and mock chaps that are just to die for. However, my most favorited item has quickly become the Diversity Pants in Pewter, a shiny number with some fantastic detailing. As you can see, by the picture to your right… those pants are well integrated into my current wardrobe! My only complaint (and believe me, this isn’t enough to stop me wearing them!) is a seam issue… the designs on the pants don’t really meet up seamlessly from the front to the back. However… the lovely design itself more than makes up for that. God, I love these PANTS! *drool*
One thing I especially like about all of Digit’s stuff is how diverse it is… and for those of us that love “mash ups”, you know how important it is for a piece to integrate well with other pieces from your inventory. Well everything I’ve seen of DD’s can accomodate even the most finicky of mashers, and this is a BIG plus in my book. Full outfits, tops, accessories, shoes, hair… there is no end to the magnificence you can create with Digit’s products.
I have to say, that after trying on the shopping bag full of goodies, that I am rather impressed by the detail on the chaps I received. It’s hard to get a good “leather” texture in SL, and this one is actually very nicely done. The shading is quite lovely, and I can almost HEAR the squeal of the leather as I walk. Paired with the chaps is an awesome black mesh crop (I’m telling you… diversity!) and a cute liquid black latex top. The belt, spike bracers, and gloves (from the Addicted Gloves pack) only take this outfit to the maximum badass level. What a treat! Look out Midian!
Now, I have this really bad habit of wearing some dresses the way I’m actually not supposed to… with the skirts too low. Because I’m such a petite little thing (it’s fucking tragic, I tell ya), 99% of the time, skirts don’t usually fit me properly. So I tend to give them my little Ryker touch and adjust them, as you’ll notice with the “Dia Dress” in Electric Punk. This fantastic purple and yellow get-up looks splendid with or without a little tweaking.
Speaking of dresses, I received two more to try on, one of which I could just DIE for… the Kasbah in Silver. If I ever wore a dress that made me want to go Salsa dancing, this would be it. With its perfectly detailed, flowing skirt and cute little coin belt… it’s just something you don’t always see. And I love it. Originality is no stranger to Digit Darkes! The other dress I received is the cutest little thing, Petals in Powder Pink. While I think this dress needs a little more shading around the boobage area, I think the skirt ruffles are fantastic. Kick those floppy prim skirts to the curb girls… ruffles are in!
Speaking of ruffles, have you worn yourself a shrug lately? Well, now’s your chance to pick one up! Shoulder ruffles galore and several different colors, you can wear this jacket layer with any shirt you like!
And finally, for those girls out there that like their lingerie, I am happy to announce that DD is very, very good at the lace. Femme in Black is a sexy embodiment of black satin and lace, which I really enjoyed trying on. You can be sure that this outfit will be staying with me for a long while to come… a girl can never have too much sexy lingerie!
Overall, I am very pleased with the products that Digit Darkes has provided, and this tiny review doesn’t even begin to scratch surface of the breadth to this woman’s talent. Hair, shoes, accessories… anything you can think of! Check out Digit Darkes in world or on OnRez and see for yourself! And get those damn pants… because omg. *drools again*
