Update - Helena Shirt by Persona

I officially love Myllie Writer of Persona. Not only was she kind enough to read my post on the Helena outfit, but as a result of customer feedback, she has eliminated my only complaint by releasing the Helena shirt as a separate! In eight colors, no less! Each color is L$95 separately or can be bought in one of two tonal fat packs for L$300. The first soft colors pack has metallic green, light grey, dark grey and creamy shirts while the strong colors pack holds black, blue, purple and red.

I've edited in the details on the shirt release, but noticed while I was there that there is a Helena set in a deep rich burgundy now that has me drooling. Thanks so much, Myllie!

A Perfect Friday Night - Bogart's Vintage Jazz

Friday night. Date night. Drinks, dinner, dresses, dancing. The night of the week when more clothes wind up crumpled on the floor of the closet because they just didn't feel quite right. Obviously cause for a shopping trip, wouldn't you say? I would. First, however, I needed to pick a spot to shop and dress for - a destination. I considered casual blues at Toby's or JYB, but I had a real itch for another pair of Stiletto Moody's and decided to build my outfit around whatever shoes struck my fancy and then select my setting for them.

After spending a silly amount of time closely examining nearly every shoe in the store multiple times, I wound up with not one, but two pairs of absolutely to die for shoes with oh so very high heels. The first pair I bought was the Elegant Slingback (Silver Twinkle) and then I turned around (literally and figuratively), came face to face with the Foxy Slingback (Black) and the Lindens flowed. I had immediately envisioned the black slingbacks paired with Marlene by Cachet, so I set off to find the perfect outfit for the ever so elegant silver slingbacks. A gal's gotta have options, you know...

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LeeZu Baxter Designs has been a goldmine for me in versatile evening wear, so I decided to have another look around. As fate would have it, hanging there in the Ready to Wear section was a brand new release - the Lizz Flexi Dress. In three skirt styles and three colors - grey, rose and vanilla. Sold. I picked up my bags and boxes and ran home to change before I spent the rent and wound up on the streets. A little accessorizing with EarthStones Wire Wrapped Crystal Necklace (Labradorite) - another new release - and I was out for the evening. Bogart's has a formal dress code and ballroom dancing, so I finally settled on an evening in black, but I couldn't resist popping over to get pictures in both outfits against the red carpets, polished brass and gleaming pianos. And, of course, Bogie. As time goes by...

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The recipe for a perfect evening - the right dress, the right shoes, the right date and the right music at Bogart's Vintage Jazz Club.

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On the left:

Dress - Marlene by Cachet

Shoes - Foxy Slingback (Black) by Stiletto Moody

Tattoo - Liseron by addiXion

On the right:

Dress - Lizz Flexi Dress (Vanilla) by LBD

Shoes - Elegant Slingback (Silver Twinkle) by Stiletto Moody

Necklace - Wire Wrapped Crystal Necklace (Labradorite) by Earthstones

Persona - Helena Shirt

The second I saw this outfit, I knew I needed it. Not wanted, needed. Classic styling, two skirt lengths in bright clear colors, back seamed stockings and a tailored black shirt to die for. I had the shirt paired with the Puma Jie skirt in my head before I hit buy. The skirt comes in blue, green, orange, pink, and purple - though it doesn't really describe the richness of the texture and tone of the skirt. There is a light catching sheen to the outfit that makes it positively lustrous and a bargain at L$300.

There are skirts and skirt bases (bases come in two layers) in long and tea length, the shirt comes in all three layers and the prim collar and cuffs are absolutely gorgeous. There is also a scripted Intelliskirt version of both skirts that kicks in for adjustment on first wearing. My only complaint is that all the shirt layers include the high waist from the skirt, but with three layers, if you don't want to use the skirt color as a waist sash it just requires a bit of finagling to make it all work together. That said, once you are done, the results are absolutely spectacular.

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Add a dash of color to your wardrobe at the Persona Main Store.

On the left:

Outfit - Helena (Purple) by Persona

Shoes - Bitch Booties (Black) by Stiletto Moody

On the right:

Shirt - Helena by Persona

Skirt - Puma Jie by Icing

Tattoo - Flora 2 by addiXion

Shoes - Bitch Booties by Stiletto Moody

Bare Rose Tokyo - Tietop Boro Bolero Shirt

First, my apologies for being waaay behind on posts - the flu hammered me hard and I've spent days in an incoherent stupor. That said, what better way to come out of a stupor than to a fabulous and flexible new release from Bare Rose? The Tietop Boro Bolero set is just so much for the Lindens you won't believe it. 43 pieces (yep, you read that right) in black, blue, brown, green, orange, white, purple and orange - spread throughout scarves, shirts, skirts and hats. All for an incredible L$170, no less. It's actually kind of odd that I'm blogging new pieces from Bare Rose as they are a substantial part of my wardrobe and I have quite a few other items I could have featured - but somehow the idea of completing my pirate look was calling me... (still looking for a good leather eyepatch, BTW)

Options, almost too many options here. 5 jackets, 4 scarves (which include a matching necklace), 3 skirts, 3 shirts, 2 hats - yikes! You can mix and match among the outfit's various colors and separates or pull out any combination to add in with other clothes in your closet. I personally couldn't wait to put the white top over my leather pants and barbed wire boots, but controlled myself and played around with the outfit for a while first. The prim sleeves are in two separate layers with the upper providing the puffy sleeves at the top and the bottom being a cascade of ruffles.

Mix and match until you get confused at the Bare Rose Tokyo Main Store.

On the left
Shirt - Tietop Boro Bolero (Blue) by Bare Rose Tokyo
Pants - Sarrouel Pants (Black) by Cubic Effect
Shoes - ChiChi Pumps (black w/ blue) by Maitreya

On the right:

Shirt - Tietop Boro Bolero (White) by Bare Rose Tokyo
Belt - Aoife Belt by HUSKY GFX
Pants - Aoife Leather Pants by HUSKY GFX
Boots - Orenns Barbed Wire Boot by Sentou Yousei

The Abyss - Hell and Back Jeans

Yeah, I know, like there aren't 90745984750947 pairs of jeans in SL and they are practically falling from the sky. True. But for all the jeans I have and all the jeans I've seen, these are the first that I actively seek out of my closet. They have character. They have detail. They have texture. They are oh so low (great for tattoos). And, most importantly, they look gooooood.

Did I mention that they are unisex and come in three colors - light denim, dark denim and black. At L$150 each, I immediately snapped up all three. The great thing about these jeans is that, no matter what combination of top, shoes, boots or accessories you pair with them, they add to the look rather than fading into the background as jeans are wont to do. The fraying and chemical process look are very good, the seam and pocket detailing is superb and I cannot tell you how much I love the low waist. They aren't so much an old pair of jeans, they are *the* old pair of jeans (you know, the ones you just couldn't let go of).

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To own a really great pair (or three) of jeans, stop by The Abyss.

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On the left:

Sweater - Short Knit Cardigan (Dark blue) by Kurotsubaki

Belt - Knuckle Buckle Belt (Brown, Dual) by Sinistyle

Jeans - Hell and Back Dark Blue by The Abyss

Boots - Bloom (Brown) by Maitreya

On the right:

Shirt - OpenShirtF:White (30% sheer, full open) by X2

Belt - Astrea Coin Belt (Damara) by Last Call
Jeans - Hell and Back Denim_Light by The Abyss

Boots - Bloom (Black) by Maitreya

LBD - Grand Re-Opening

From previous posts you know that the Loren dress by LeeZu Baxter Designs is one of my personal favorites with it's ever so low back and ever so demure front, so I could hardly wait to get to the LBD Grand Re-Opening at To The Nines. When the landmark finally became active, I teleported on over for a look around. Specials also abound like the L$100 MissP Flexidress (no longer available after March 7th, all proceeds to go to kiva.org) and the group gift new release Lou Lou in grey. (I messed up on this one somehow and wound up buying one by accident and then getting another when it was sent out to the group, so stick to pulling it from group announcements if you have had transaction problems recently.)

I made several purchases that I had been eyeing from the Ready to Wear section, the first being the MarshaM Flexidress. An absolute confection in earthtones, the first time you put this outfit on, you will (if you are like me), just move around for a while to watch the leaves in the skirt shift and flutter. There are 5 pieces - two skirts that combine for the flowing look, a pant layer for under the skirts that has lots of potential for future mixing, top and gloves. For L$400, this is a dress with a huge amount of flexibility in where it can be worn.
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The nearly identically priced LBD Flexidress is another staple purchase - a L$390, it is a flirty yet versatile Little Black Dress for any occasions where the Loren is a bit too much. You can change the overall look of this dress dramatically with various combinations of stockings and footwear - lacy hose and stilettos, ankle boots, patterned stockings and heavy boots, the list just goes on.

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Be sure to take a stroll around To The Nines after you finish shopping at LeeZu Baxter Designs (LBD) Main Store.

On the left:
Outfit - LBD Flexidress by LBD
Boots - Bloom (Black) by Maitreya

On the right:

Outfit - MarshaM Flexidress by LBD

Boots - Dune (Red) by Maitreya

Group Gift of the Month - February

When I first started doing this, I had a few ideas for "special" posts, one of which was to save my group gifts from the month, try them all on and pick the one to feature. Little did I know two things when I decided to do this - the first was that there would be so many great gifts and the second was that I'd wind up picking a skin. Interestingly enough, my second choice was another skin, so I guess it was inevitable that my maiden post in this category would require some creative photography. I have to admit that I paused a few times before uploading the pictures today, but a skin post is kind of pointless if you can't see the skin. Plus, it seemed appropriate for the opening of the Skin Fair today.

February brought some great Valentine's Day inspired gifts in reds and blacks to play with for months to come, the Valentine's Pumps from ::69:: were adorable and the Evie's Closet Chimera Gown in Diamond (exclusive group gift color) is simply gorgeous. I also spent an afternoon trying demos so I could use my L$500 Fleur skin group gift card - great fun for me since Fleur (formerly Tete a Pied) make up a large percentage of my skins. With all those great choices and more, I have to go with the ::Tuli:: S5 Skins group gift as my pick of the month, however.

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The day I got the group announcement and attachment, I had just been thinking that what I really needed as a special occasion skin was one with a very natural look and dramatic eyes. Now, I don't often change my skin unless a particular outfit or look really demands it, so having not one, but 7 skin tones with a natural makeup and fabulous eyes drop out of the sky on me just made my day. Ranging from goth to exotic with everything in between and a variety of tans and tones, there is a skin here for nearly every occasion or event. A big thank you to ::Tuli:: and all the groups that are so generous with their members!

::Tuli:: Main Store at Le Zoo

(Group Name - Tuli Update Group, Cost to Join - L$0, Group Tag - TULI-holic)