Lelutka

Structured Style

February 9, 2013

I have been wearing this outfit in Second Life for over a month now…because I didn’t want to do my pixel laundry. Just kidding! Really though, I seriously have been wearing this Michami Lana Brocade Cocktail Dress for that long. I have wanted to blog this dress since it came out. I haven’t been in SL much in the past month, mainly due to illness, partially due to not feeling creative, and somewhat to do with not feeling like the photos I was trying to capture were doing these items any justice as to how pretty they are.

Starting with the dress…I think the structure is one of the best things about it. It offers a lovely modern contrast to more of an intricate, rich, vintage feel texture. It looks elegant and classy.

The heels were a more recent purchase. Gos turned up the heat in the mesh shoe realm with an entire new line of sexy, sassy, glamorous footwear with an amazing skin matching HUD. Trust me ladies, skin matching is easier than ever before with these beauties because it works in conjunction with a website that lists skins from SL’s most popular skin brands. Achieving the perfect foot color is as simple as selecting your skin from a list and syncing the HUD after you have chosen. You may then save your commonly used skin tones to the HUD. For any skins not listed in the website database, manual shade matching is still an option.

Please note, in the above photo there is something funky going on with the ankle shading right under where you can see the skin of the mesh meet my skin. While I have edited certain things in these pics (applied an action, added some lens blur, smoothed some sharp edges), I did not edit this glitch out in order to show the shoes clearly. I believe the shading in the photo may have occurred because I may have worn a pair of the heels that was a size too small, and I could not get the large ones to rez at the time of the photo and became impatient (my other ankle looks great). The larger pair does not have a noticeable line like this inworld for me.

So, I believe that the little line there is blogger error and the fact I was using a smaller size. Oopsies. Anyway, I so love the way these shoes look. Plus, I don’t have to fight with trying to match my skin tone!

STYLE CREDITS:

SKIN: Ivy in Tropez by Body Co. & the Classic Eyeshadow
HAIR: Mourray in Bournville By Lelutka
JEWELRY: Polly Necklace, Bracelet, Earrings in White and Gold By Mandala (Mesh)
DRESS: Lana Brocade Cocktail in Precious by Michami (Mesh)
SHOES: Grace Sandal in Mirror by Gos (Mesh)

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Let’s Go for a Sunday Drive

February 26, 2012

Spring is coming (I think) and I felt an overwhelming need to get creative on a project I had been thinking about. I haven’t written too much about it in previous posts (um, actually nothing but I added a page about it). My partner and I, Zaap, created a brand called N² Pixel Studio for our photo studio and projects that we partake in together. I haven’t bothered creating another blog for it because it is just a hobby thing. I suppose one day I may need to create another site for if we make more items or take on other projects under the brand, but for now I guess I will just be using my own blog for N² Pixel Studio promotions.

So, now onto the shameless self promo.

I have loved fashion and clothes for years, but one major thing that inspires me is fabric. It is fun for me to check out different textiles and imagine the possibilities the fabrics can be used for in real life. I am physically unable to sew, but I can still visualize what I would make.

Second Life textures are also fun for me to look at–I check out the Marketplace often to find inspiration. Recently, I found some textures made by Alex Bader of Studio Skye. All the textures I have bought from here are exceptionally well done. Studio Skye is one of my top picks for texture artists.

The floral textures I found inspired the Sunday Drive Dress I created. I utilized two texture patterns in various colors, and I modified some colors to suit what I wanted. The dress is mesh, and it comes in four sizes.

To view anything created by N² Pixel Studio, we have a Marketplace presence: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/57565

STYLE CREDITS:

HAIR: Mourray in AlmostGoth by Lelutka
JEWELRY: Gloria Watch and Nana Earrings by Donna Flora
DRESS: Sunday Drive Dress in Pink Flirt by N² Pixel Studio (MESH)
SHOES: Caresse in Platine by N-Core

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March Mesh Madness is on its way!

February 20, 2012

I am bursting at the seams to share with you what I have been wanting to write in this post! First of all, this isn’t going to be just about March Mesh Madness, but it is what I am highlighting here right off the bat.

Beginning March 1st, 2012 one of the most anticipated events for mesh lovers will kick off at FATEisland. Mesh creators will be coming together in one place to showcase their designs in a grand event. This will be a hot sim to be at opening day!

Creators featured here will be coldLogic, Aura, Jane, FATEcreate, Decoy, Wasabi Pills, Magika, and many more! So, be sure you mark your calendars and remember this SLURL: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/FATEisland/128/128/22

March Mesh Madness

The more I wear mesh, the more I like it. I am definitely saving my lindens for MMM 2012!

Now, to showcase another design from the mesh brand coldLogic (yea, yea, my third coldLogic post in a row…but when you are inspired by something you just need to run with it)! When I saw this dress initially, I knew I wanted to do a sort of a retro or vintage look. When I was browsing the fashion feeds recently, I caught the new fringed oxfords by Annex which had a color that matched the buttery yellow dress to perfection!

I also wanted to feature this pose I am using by Essential Soul that can be found at the Proposers Expo. An amount of the proceeds from the expo will be given to ASA also known as the Autism Society of America. The event ends February 25th, so check it out if you have not yet been there!

Zaap just so happened to sneak up behind me while I was experimenting for the first time with the Exodus Viewer on some country back road. He coincidentally was wearing a yellow shirt. I’m not sure he knows I am posting this picture…but oh well. I liked it!

I really think the image quality of Exodus is exceptional. The clarity and crispness is amazing. I still get some lines on my images, however, at least I now know an effective way to deal with them.

After messing around posing myself with him in the background, I then had him try this adorable pose with me by Nspiration that can be found at the expo as well…

STYLE CREDITS:

SKIN: Aiko Deep tan 11 HB cleavage and Lip Layer 3 by Belleza
HAIR: Mourray in AlmostGoth by Lelutka
MAKEUP: Love my eyes Liner and Mascara -thick by *BOOM*
JEWELRY: Gloria Watch and Nana Earrings by Donna Flora
DRESS: Reed in Butter by coldLogic (MESH) ***
SHOES: Fringed Oxfords in Beige by Annex

SINGLE POSE: Above The Fold by *ES* ***
COUPLES POSE: One Heart by Nspiration ***

LOCATION: The Mother Road

Items in italics and *** note promo copies.

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Jewelry Fair And The Dorky Chick’s Opinion Of Mesh

September 15, 2011

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!

Sunday Was Lazy, And So Was I

September 4, 2011

Sorry, this is not a mesh post! Haha! I have only tried a couple of mesh pieces, and I think it is a great addition to SL. But…my mesh posts will have to wait for now!

I took some photos today with the intention of getting them up in a blog quickly, but I began editing (playing) in photoshop and got lost in trying different effects. I also wasn’t really in a writing mood. The funny thing is, when the photos are complete I then want to post them as soon as they are done–but I don’t like posting them anywhere without the blog entry ready. Thus, I usually get myself to then write the blog.

I will keep this short and get to the fashion goodies!

I was in a purple mood again and bought the Careah dress from Lelutka. I really love it! The sculpted parts are fantastically made and textured, and the skirt is just the perfect length to have an elegant flow when moving.

STYLE CREDITS:

SKIN: Aiko Deep tan 9 cleavage with Lipstick 7 by Belleza
LASHES: 2011 lashes, Long by LeLutka
HAIR: Shiva in Soil with Soil Hairbase by Plume
MAKEUP: Love My Eyes Liner and Mascara – thick by *BOOM* @ Kozmetika
DRESS: Careah in Blossom by Lelutka
JEWELRY: Une Princesse Earrings by Je Suis
SHOES: Caresse in Platine by N-Core

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