Excited for the Jewelry Fair 2011?  I am!  It seems there are many events going on this week, but the Fair and mesh were the top two subjects I wanted to write about  in this post.

I was lucky enough to be included in the Jewelry Fair blogger list and was able to get a sneak peek at some of the jewels for this yearly event.  The theme is based on the elements of earth, air, fire, and water.  There are four separate sims, one for each element.  Over 100 Second Life creators are taking part, with proceeds from charity vendors, exclusive item auctions, and gatchas going to benefit the  organization of Oxfam.

The venue opens to the public on September 16th, and runs through September 25th.

Je Suis is one of the many jewelry fair participants, and I just had to show off Julia Merosi’s new release!  It is a delicate set of jeweled chandelier earrings and necklace with color change gems and metals.  So pretty!

 

Now, on to mesh.  I love that Eboni Khan of Hucci has been sending out a color of her latest mesh items to her group members as gifts.  I liked her first sculpted mesh dress so much, I bought it in pink too!  It is a great way to help introduce mesh to those who have not yet tried it.  Just a note to anyone who hasn’t plunged into this new fascination yet, you need a mesh enabled SL viewer to see these items properly.

With a hunger to learn more about how meshes are made, I turned to the virtual classroom that is YouTube.   From my understanding, mesh is still a sculpt made in a 3D modeling program like Blender, but different weights are applied to the sculpted mesh in the program in order to get the type of movement on the body that is desired upon importing it to the grid.  That’s the basic idea.

With that said, my overall opinion of mesh clothing as a whole is a bit…mixed.  Like anything new, there are positives and negatives.  While I think the implementation of mesh on the grid gives some things more flexibility, it also has limitations.

So, the positives?  Obviously, I love that the clothing moves with the body rather than retains a stiffness that often can result in extra photo editing or posing issues.  Another thing I love is the clothing makes the curves on the body look better.  The Julesa Dress, the most recent group gift from Hucci, is a rocking one shoulder ensemble that is super sexy.  The sleeve shape really has dimension and depth, and I adore the print.

While I am excited about this creation, it did take me a little while to tweak how my body fit into it–even with the alpha layer.  It is not the clothing that fits to the body, it is the body that needs to fit with the clothing.  This is the case with mesh.

The biggest complaint I see on the blogs is regarding meshwear and body shape.  Most people would prefer not to change their shape to accommodate what they wear.  “Why should we have to do that?  My shape is unique to me.”  Well, to be honest…I don’t mind tweaking my shape slightly in order to not have my body poke through my dress.  Sometimes, it just has to be done.

Would I want to have to adjust my shape for every clothing item I wear?  No.  I do like my own shape.  Some creators have been including multiple meshes in varying body types, alpha layers, or glitch layers to aid in hiding the visible bits, however, for me the alpha was not a fix all.  I had to reduce my bust size a few digits and decrease some of the muscle mass in my thighs to avoid the edges of the dress being interfered with.  Once those things were adjusted, I was good to go.

Now, if I buy or receive a mesh outfit, I copy my regular shape, edit it to fit the clothing, then place the newly edited shape in the outfit folder for added convenience.

I will be trying more mesh in the future.  It is far from eliminating our current methods of clothing construction and I don’t think it will ever come close to doing so.  I do think, with any advancement of technology in the metaverse, designers will continue to improve and creatively integrate mesh with our current methods.  Just think about how SL design has evolved from using regular and flexi prims to using sculpties.  We are sure to see more exciting evolution ahead!

STYLE CREDITS:

SKIN: Aiko Deep tan 9 HB cleavage with Lipstick 0 by Belleza
LASHES: 2011 lashes, Long by LeLutka
HAIR: Siri in Kala Jeera by Maitreya
MAKEUP: Love My Eyes Liner and Mascara – thick by *BOOM* @ Kozmetika
DRESS: Jalesa Dress in Blue Print by Hucci (Group Gift)
JEWELRY: Leah Jewelry set by Je Suis (NEW @ Jewelry Fair)
FINGERNAILS: Female Mandala Palette 1 Medium by Mandala

Are you on Flickr, Twitter, Plurk, or Facebook?  Add me!  I love seeing the blogs and pics of other SL residents!

 

Don’t forget to visit the Jewelry Fair!