I hate to do this, but I promise I’ve exhausted every possibility.  Those very few of you that know what happened – well, know it got worse.  Those of you that don’t, I have no answer, I just have to hope that you have the same faith in people I try to have (tho I must admit this is becoming increasingly difficult).

Short answer, I need money.  I’m sorry to be so blunt.  A few months ago I came inworld with a view to selling on Efe’s transferrable assets.  A very kind and generous friend offered me space and prims, but I did not have the personal energy to be inworld to do it.  Efemera was my joy, and I have no joy left.

I hate to do this, but I’m posting into the blue as to if maybe anyone can help.  This blog has gone so long since update, I don’t even know if it will still be in people’s feeds.  I get average 2 hits a day now, doubtless webcrawlers.

Those of you that know me and have my mail, I’ll answer any questions you have, but please remember sometimes I can go up to 2 wks without opportunity to check mail (those of you that have sent me kind offline messages – after four days I can’t reply, and is usually longer than that that I can check).

I don’t expect help, and I’m again very sorry to ask, but this is my last shot in the dark.

I miss Efemera desperately, but she was my joy, and that has gone.

I wish you all love.

To those of you that know I’m speaking to you – thank you, for being there for me, for valuing my opinion, for appreciating my efforts.

Happy Christmas.

I’m astounded that it’s become necessary to add these paragraph, but:

At the time of writing (12th December 2008) – This blog is syndicated to Fashion Feed of SL, Metavirtual and Fashion World of SL via IHeartSL.  Carissa Crimson, Kesseret Steeplechase, Tao Takashi and Gorgeous Yongho/Juicy Littlething are not and have not been on my friends list.  To the best of my recollection, I have spoken to none of them inworld.  These people provide a valuable service to SL residents without charging us, and deserve our respect and gratitude for their time and expense.

I have never, and will never, be paid for blogging items.  I sometimes receive review copies, which I consider as samples of work, not payment.  Much as I would wish to, my RL financial situation is such that I cannot spend vast amounts inworld, and on occasion I’ll pluck up the courage to request review copies of items I believe are deserving of exposure.  At no time will I promise to provide a review, positive or otherwise, because I will only blog items I personally like and on occasion something doesn’t look right on my particular avatar.  I make no particular discernment within the blog as to which items are review copies, items I’ve purchased or gifts from the creator as I believe the source of the item should not affect my appraisal/portrayal of it.  Oftentimes I receive review copies or “beta” items from creators which never reach the blog because there are certain elements I feel are below par, in which case I feed back to the creator on a one-on-one basis.  Thankfully, more often than not, the designer in question is grateful for constructive criticism given in a discreet manner, though sometimes I never hear from them, or receive review copies, again.  Regardless, I’ll continue to give my opinion in an honest, hopefully constructive manner.

View the whole of this blogs info here.

Super quickie today.  Lavea Alter of A-Bomb is in the process of reviewing her inventory.  She’s working on some wonderful updates to classics such as this slip dress, whilst the remainder of her lines are super-mega-cheapie bargains in the clearance area.

I’m showing the Dirty Little Thing dress in leopard, which I have to admit, I wouldn’t have thought I was likely to be seen in, but the patterning on this is discreet enough not to be tacky, whilst the sexy, strappy back and teeny sculptie skirt add a very appropriate dollop of *fierce*.  The warm tan of the Tuli skin beneath sets this off a treat, and the kitschy heels from Riddle run with the vibe!  The jewelry is from Primagine, formerly Trixie’s Treasures – the rebrand coinciding with the addition of more non-jewelry items to the store.

Told you was a super-quickie!  Bye-eee!

Dress – A-Bomb – Dirty Little Thing – Leopard
Shoes – Riddle – Leopard Heels – B&W
Jewelry – Primagine – Dreamers – Black

Hair – Curio – In Space
Skin – Tuli – Meredith Sunkissed – Silver Shine

Lashes – Cake - Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

My mother was, no doubt, unusually youthful in appearance even for her years: she hung her head, as if it were her fault, poor thing, and said, sobbing, that indeed she was afraid she was but a childish widow, and would be but a childish mother if she lived.

David Copperfield – Charles Dickens

So, there’ve been so many blogger challenges over the last week or so, I decided time-starved or not, I should make the effort and take part in at least one of them.  Should it be Winter Jefferson‘s Rosebud Challenge?  Teagan Blackthorne‘s Literature Challenge?  Or Jhuzen Ketsugo‘s credit-crunch inspired challenge to not shop?  Oh, what the heck, why not all three?

Whilst searching inventory for which Bare Rose creation to choose, I happened across the Night Magic set, and at first was going to feature the white for some wistful romantic character, but something about the skirt shape with it’s slight bustle put me in mind of classic literature, and, when I tried on the black, Dickens’ young widow, somewhat down on her luck and lacking a “proper” place in society sprang to mind.  Incredibly, I found that I actually had a widow’s bonnet in inventory, and the Laughing Academy boots despite their splash of colour in the trim, were a good enough match to stop me from rushing out to buy new footwear.  The cameo necklace seemed appropriate, but I don’t have a SLURL to give you as this piece was a gift and I couldn’t track down the creator’s store.  I’ve dropped her an IM and if she responds with an up-to-date location I’ll be sure and update.

Dress – Bare Rose – Night Magic – Black
Gloves – Sn@tch – Long Gloves – Black
Boots – The Laughing Academy – Victorian Boot – Venetian Lace
Jewelry – RavenLunatik – Onyx Bead Cameo – Soldier
Hat – Illusions – Widow’s Bonnet
Hosiery  – Last Call – Starley Tights – Noir

Hair – Diversity – Calista
Skin – SLink – Bijou Fair – Natural

Lashes – Cake - Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

Siddean Munro recently added to the growing family of SLink skins with Anya, the younger sister – fresh, natural and unassuming, but I’m sure nobody will put this baby in a corner.  (Lord knows where that line came from, I didn’t buy into the whole Dirty Dancing thing!!  Anyways, Anya to me will always conjure up memories of Buffy – oh, happy days!  And yes, I’m a dork.)

Anya has the sweetest of faces, matte skin with a real glow, just the odd glimmer apparent to the tip of the nose and the septum.  Brows are neat yet natural, not overplucked, and the whole face has a certain softness, emphasised by the fullness of the lush lips.  The impression of youth is sealed with the vaguest of imperfections to the chin, if you cam in and look hard you may see the tiny pink warning sign of an outbreak to come – thankfully no witch hazel is required in SL!

The body shading is in accord with the youthful feel of the face – there’s perhaps the merest hint of puppy fat remaining on Anya’s neat form.  This makes for a skin that wouldn’t look at all untoward with fuller shapes.  The breast shading is subtle, working very well with my relatively modest bosom.  The back shading is in keeping with the soft feel, the spine perhaps a fraction darker than my ideal, but certainly not enough to detract from the overall.  I also love the natural aspect of the knees and fingertips.  Perhaps Anya still indulges in the urge to climb trees when no one’s looking, sitting up on a branch absentmindedly biting her nails.

Siddean Munro has chosen wonderful makeups to suit.  The lips are the defining factor to me – partly because of the way they are so richly drawn, but mainly because of the choice of colours. The palest of nudes, suggesting little more than a slick of gloss, mixed with the brightest of brave colours, the boldest of dark shades – exactly the colourings you can “get away with” in the flush of youth.  The eyes are wonderful also – soft, deep smokiness or strongly defined liquid liner, truly a makeup for every occasion.  The facial shaping provided by the blush varies according to what best fits with the makeup, the emphasis either to the cheekbones or apples.

Side note: Thinking of the way that all the factors combine here (as they have on Isabelle, Bijou and Miyu also) to tell me the story of Anya, I really do wonder if Siddean has a full picture of “who” her skin “subjects” are during the creation process.  If you’re reading Sidd, let us know!

Image one:
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Summer Sky

Image two:
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Bronze Eyes

Image three (L-R):
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Autumn
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Base
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Blush (Freckles)
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Cammo
Skin – SLink – Anya Fair – Glamour

Image four (L-R):
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Jewel Lip
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Merlot
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Plum (Freckles)
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Poppy
Skin – SLink – Anya Tanned – Smoky Eyes

All images:
Lingerie – Insolence – Louise – White
Shoes – Maitreya - Verve Pumps – Lavender Blush

Hair – Diversity – Calista

Lashes – Cake - Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

Oh, I know, shoot me for the unimaginative title, but it’s another late night post.  This time, I’m burning the midnight oil in honour of my rezday yesterday, perfectly coinciding with the release of Ivalde’s new Retropolitan gown which just had to be my present to myself, as it’s the perfect foil to the divine Tiffany diamonds by Flirt I’ve been hoarding in inventory for so long.

So many times, I’ve bewailed my lack of kickass diamonds, then as soon as I get some, I can’t find just the right thing to set them off.  However, Ivalde’s new offering was simply perfect.  The fabric of the bodice moulds to the breasts, gentle folds reaching from the smooth, tight fabric of the gown, over the shoulders to the deep dip of the back, exposing a tantalising glimpse of spine.  The slinkiness of the dress base is balanced by the sheer floofiness of the sleeves and fishtail skirts.

And on to the jewelry.  *takes a moment to drool*.  I swear, I’ve wanted an awesome set of diamonds for, well, ever really.  But the ones I found were either too much – too big, too blinging, just too.  However, Flirt’s Tiffany set has just the right level of glimmer and glitz matched with frankly awesome primwork.  There’s just enough without it being too much – in no way ostentatious, but certain to draw an attentive eye.

The high piled locks of Diversity’s Camilla style, the latest release after Aleri’s brief sojourn in RL (welcome back!) were ideal here, glamorous and striking.  The smoky eyes and neutral lips of the Gala skin add to the red carpet style, and Maitreya’s Verve pumps are an autonomic response.

Dress – Ivalde – Retropolitan – Black
Shoes – Maitreya - Verve Pumps – Black
Jewelry – Flirt – Tiffany Series – Diamonds

Hair – Diversity – Camilla
Skin – Curio – GP Radiance – Sienna

Lashes – Cake - Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

I’ve become so numb I can’t feel you there
I’ve become so tired so much more aware
I’m becoming this all I want to do
Is be more like me and be less like you
- Linkin Park.

So, it’s way past 3am, but I needed to get inworld and put something together for my own sanity if nothing else.  Given the hour, little to say, so credits below.

Shirt – Wrong – Black Work Shirt – Cherries
Long sleeve top – PixelDolls – Emotional Warfare (from outfit)
Jeans – Sn@tch – Club Skank Pants – Black (from outfit)
Belt – Maitreya – Leather Belt – Dark Brown
Shoes – Akeyo – Chucks
Facial piercings – Rave Nation – Banpaia Piercings
Tattoo – Inflict – To All Eternity – Light

Hair – HCT – Bianca
Skin – Canimal - Essence (Charm) – of Rain

Lashes – Cake - Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

Location photography – The Wastelands

*waves frantically*  Yes, I am still here – just!  But RL has been sapping my energy like you wouldn’t believe so yes, I am still tardy.  Ho hum!  SL hasn’t helped either.  I had some time on Saturday and set up some fantabulous (aint I humble?!) shots to show off this fabulous dress, a (relatively) recent release from Digit Darkes.  Sadly, the glow that I spent an age balancing to look just right would not show on my snapshots.  Thanks to Whimsy Winx and the other helpful folks in FE for their assistance as I tried to figure it out.  Seems to be a viewer issue, and given the choice of glow on pics vs disappearing prims, I decided to forget the glow!!  OK, there’s my little aargh moment out of the way – I guess I should talk about the frock now!!

EDIT: Here’s another aargh moment!  The very lovely ladies over at It’s Only Fashion, Cajsa and Gidge, just posted the exact same dress!  However, they managed to shoot the glow, so go, take a look!!  I thought about saving my post for another day, but goodness knows when I’ll get time again, so you get double, well, treble helpings today!!

Ginsuzu is classic Digit, wonderful movement on the shimmering, sparkling ribbon skirt, accented with light, transparent so as to give a glimpse of long legs beneath.  The glitch pants are also transparent, but to save the blushes of those that change in public, undies are included!  The skirt is nipped to the waist by a prim corset belt, finished with leather straps and buckles. The bodice top gives me the impression of crocheted silk, between the gentle shine and the cheeky cut outs playing peekaboo!  For those that require more modesty, simply wearing an additional layer will make you more comfortable.  The straps are formed from fine chain, tracing over the shoulder to then cross and drape across the back.

I did need to do a bit of attachment point mixing and matching in order to wear the belt and the necklace, a quartz crystal on a simple thong from Studio Sidhe.  The dress itself is so glitzy, anything more seemed too much, but the crystal just breaks up the expanse of skin a little, and the length of the drop was ideal for the very revealing neckline.  The little glimmers peeking from the masses of curls are the matching earrings!  Strappy silver sandals complete the look.

Dress – Digit Darkes – Ginsuzu – Black
Shoes – Angels – Diamond Dream – Silver
Jewelry – Studio Sidhe – Quartz Crystal Pendant & Earrings – Abalone Shell

Hair – BishWear – TossMe
Skin – La Sylphide – Erin Tan – Party Girl

Lashes – Cake – Flutter Lashes
Eyes – Tuli – Luminous Eyes – Steel

Anyways, if you’d like to read my profile of SLink creator Siddean Munro, head on over to the Rez blogpost.