SWANK July Round #5 - Aphrodite Shop - Silver Seahorse

The Silver Seahorse beach dinning set from Aphrodite Shop comes in two sizes, respectively for 4 and 8 people. It has some wonderful soft textures on all the fabrics. The plating and decoration on the wooden table is just beautiful. There is of course some really nice animations as well for each seat at the table.
It's just perfect set for a cozy get-together with friends and family. Must have for any beach property owner.

Get this set at the SWANK July event right now.

Wonderful textures and plating

  SWANK has over 100 designers showcasing their talent and products such as Women and Mens clothing, Home & Garden items, Animations and much much more. With a new round every month, you'll always be able to find just what you need.

• *~Aphrodite Shop~*- The Silver Seahorse Beach Dining set (4 persons) @ SWANK July Round 

SWANK July Round #4 - .:TM:. Creation

If you need anything for your private beach, your back yard garden, or home - chances are pretty darn good that you can find just about anything you need at .:TM:. Creations. .:TM:. is a long time supporter and exhibitor at the SWANK Event. Her designs and products are always top quality, and except for very few items, (I have listed those below each picture), everything you see in the pictures below is courtesy of .:TM:. Creation.

Please note that the items listed below is not necessarily part of/ or a complete set. Some items have to be purchased separately.

Available at the SWANK July Event.

The path way in beach wood comes in several different sections and variations. Curved and straight, with and without ferns. The lanterns are not included.

Rocks and plants galore! Grass not included

Tree log and pillows that leans up against some more rocks and plants. Single, Couple, Adult and PG animations.

Flower fat pack with multiple colors variations.

Gazebo with lights specs in the ceiling and the floor. Also included is rose petals, perfect for the romantic evening or a wedding. The curtain and furniture are not included.

 SWANK has over 100 designers showcasing their talent and products such as Women and Mens clothing, Home & Garden items, Animations and much much more. With a new round every month, you'll always be able to find just what you need.

• .:TM:. Creation @ SWANK July Round 
• Romantic Rose Gazebo
• Pathway Beach Wood with/without Ferns Mesh Kit
• Tropical Flowers Rocks Arrangement (m13)
• Tropical Flowers Rocks Arrangement (m14)
• Tropical Flowers Rocks Arrangement (m15) !!Exclusive!!
• Mix Flowers FATPACK 7 (GP03-04)
• Blanket LoveLog Adult animations

Go see them all up close at the SWANK Event.

SWANK July Round #3 - Outside the Box - OTB!

Outside the Box (OTB!) is showcasing this beautiful cozy one bedroom beach hut at the SWANK July Event. What else do you need on a beach? The hut is of course loaded with animations with an adult version available at the event as well.

Gorgeous textures is on all the surfaces of this hut. I included a night shot, so the tiny light chain is more visible. You need to this on your own private island.

You get it at the SWANK July Event.

 SWANK has over 100 designers showcasing their talent and products such as Women and Mens clothing, Home & Garden items, Animations and much much more. With a new round every month, you'll always be able to find just what you need.

• OTB! ~ Beach Hut #2/PG @ SWANK July Round 

SWANK July Round #2 - Tylar's Treasures

Tylar's Treasures (.:TT:.) is this month featuring a beautiful set of beach furniture which will compliment your own beach paradise quite nicely. The straw textures of the chair and lounge couch are amazing and you can chose the color of the pillows to match anything you already have. It is of course loaded with animations such as Cuddles, Singles, Adult and Dances. Included in the set is the special edition weathered fencing, the lounge couch, the chair, the fire table, the side table, a pergola (not shown) and the palmtree.

Get it all at the SWANK July Round.

SWANK has over 100 designers showcasing their talent and products such as Women and Mens clothing, Home & Garden items, Animations and much much more. With a new round every month, you'll always be able to find just what you need.

• .:TT:. ~ Bahama Breeze  Beach set @ SWANK July Round includes
• Breeze Chair
• Breeze Lounge 
• Breeze Pergola (not shown)
• Parrot in a palm
• Fire Table
• Side Table
• Special Edition Fence

When we're alone

When Debbie and I get a chance to try some of the amazing couple poses from agapee, we simply have to blog them. Over at the Cosmopolitan Event, you can get a very beautiful, very tasteful and intimate set of couple poses from agapee. Get them while you can. They are exclusive to this event, and will not be available in stores.
We tried all of them and we both loved the poses. You can see them all on Debbie's blog where you also can see what she's wearing.

These poses are so good, the pictures came about almost on their own. The intimacy, the love just oozes from the poses.

Legal Insanity ~ Rocco Briefs Sport SLINK

The briefs from Legal Insanity comes in different designs packages. I chose their sport package. The briefs are HUD controlled with 10 different colors all with the fashionable stripes on the hip. They are designed to be used with Slink, Aesthetic, Signature and TMP bodies.

::ALTER:: Jason T-shirt and Jeans Hipster

For you that haven't decided on a mesh body yet, you can get this outfit from ::ALTER:: Currently available at the SWANK September Round. The ::ALTER:: Jason T-shirt and Jeans are very nicely textured and also comes with a Flannel shirt tied around the waist - not shown here. Every thing is HUD controlled, giving you countless combinations for a really cool look. The set is available in 5 different sizes from  XS to XL.


Style Card: Picture 1

Outfit

• Legal Insanity ~ Rocco Briefs - Sport SLink

Hair

• Dura ~ Boy*61 - Black

Head

• Catwa ~ Jackson

Body

• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Physique Male 
• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Hands

Skin

• L'etre Homme ~ Dave [Golden]

Pose

Agapee ~ Couple Pose 012 @ Cosmopolitan Event

Style Card: Picture 2

Outfit

• ::ALTER:: Jason T-shirt Hipster @ SWANK September Round
• ::ALTER:: Jason Jeans Hipster @ SWANK September Round

Hair

• Dura ~ Boy*58 - Black

Shoes

• .:: ILL ::. SLink Mirko Sneakers

Pose

Agapee ~ Couple Pose 015 @ Cosmopolitan Event

Chilling

SWANK August round is coming to a close on August 31st. So there is still time for some last minute shopping, such as the Alec outfit from Ghostyss. After the event you can head on over to the Ghostyss main store to pick up the outfit which consists of a pair of jeans and a very nice textured shirt with Tie and Waistcoat. It comes in 5 different mesh sizes with alpha of course.

The incredible detailed Chaise Elegante PG is from OTB! includes several poses, is also on sale at SWANK.

The image below was published in ENVY Magazine 3.0




Style Cards:

• Ghostyss ~ ALEC - Mens Button Down Shirt, Tie & Waistcoat - SWANK August Round
• Ghostyss ~ ALEC - Mesh Blue Jeans v3 (black) - SWANK August Round

Hair

• Dura ~ Boy*61 - Black

Head

• Catwa ~ Jackson

Body

• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Physique Male 
• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Hands

Skin

• L'etre Homme ~ Dave [Golden]

Shoes

• Cold Ash ~ JERICHO Dessert Boot

Props

• OTB! ~  Elegante Chaise Set PG - SWANK August Round

Be my spring ♥

Up here, in my neck of the woods, winter lasts a long time, so at the end of 4-5 months of miserable weather, the spring arrival is always anticipated with great expectations but usually takes its sweet time to overcome the last breaths of winter. Personally, I wish spring would arrive in January ;). But, the snow is almost gone now, and whats left is big dirty piles of sand and gravel, and what the melted snow has uncovered is honestly not very attractive, at least not yet. Everything still looks dead and withered. However, that will not last long. Soon the grasses will re-green the lawns, flowers will bloom, and the insects will come alive once again. Watching the snow melt away is my favorite time of year.

Luckily while being stuck in doors most of the winter in RL, taking my gorgeous girlfriend for a spring walk in Second Life a matter of choice of sim. So Debbie and I packed some lunch and went to Devil's Point for our little spring shoot.

Serendipity just released the Freddie Dual shirt/HUD. If you know the character Sheldon Cooper, you would know that this shirt is his fashion of choice  - A long sleeved shirt under a regular T-shirt. This shirt is extremely customize-able. You're able to change the short sleeves and the front and back of the T- shirt individually, giving you countless of combinations. I have included a screen shot of the HUD below.

With the shirt, I chose Adrian pants, also from Serendipity, and also very versatile when it comes to color schemes.

Finally a pair of Jericho Desert boots from Cold Ash.

You'll want to check out Debbie's amazing outfit as well.
Check out her blog here

Complete style cards for both Debbie and me are below.

Freddie Dual Shirt HUD

Style Cards:

Debbie's Outfit

• Lybra ~ Kaihua Outfit ~ Maitreya @ On9

Accessories

• Loordes of London ~ La Boheme Earrring [Coal]
• Loordes of London ~ La Boheme Ceramic Necklace [Coal]

Shoe

• Loordes of London  ~ L'Occitanne-#27

Hair

• Dura ~ Boys&Girls*58 [Champagne Blonde]

Head

• Catwa ~ Gwen HEAD v4.8

Body

• Maitreya ~ Lara Mesh Body

Skin/ Lipstick

• amara beauty ~ Lucie 02 Fair Catwa @ We <3 RP
• amara beauty ~ Lucie lipsticks Catwa Applier [Got it] @ We <3 RP

Scott's Outfit

• *Serendipity* ~ Freddie  Dual mesh shirt with HUD *New Release*
• *Serendipity* ~ Adrian Jeans with HUD

Shoe

• Cold Ash ~ Jericho Desert Boot

Hair

• Dura ~ Boy*58 - Black

Head

• Catwa ~ Jackson

Body

• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Physique Male 
• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Feet 
• Slink Mainstore ~ Slink Hands

Skin

• L'etre Homme ~ Dave [Golden]

Pose

• agapee ~ GG couple pose Valentine2

Picture taken at Devil's Point

Run, Baby, Run

Sheryl Crow is one of my all time favorite singers. Amazing, timeless lyrics and music that never gets old to listen to. While editing this image I was listening to one of her old albums (Tuesday Night Music Club) and her song Run, Baby, Run just made me pause and listen, so it became the title of this post. There's a youtube link to her song below.

This week new release from Serendipity is the Tyler leather mesh pants series. They come in 6 different colors, beige, grey, navy, red, white and black - which is featured below, and each them comes of course in 5 mesh sizes ranging from XS to XL.

Debbie Jasper did an amazing job creating the pose for this post ;) Thank you ♥

Style card:

Outfit:

• *Serendipity* - Tyler Leather Jeans - Mesh - *NEW RELEASE*

Body:

• The mesh project [TMP] + Skin tone #20

Skin (head only):

• -Nivaro-  - Cunov Skin - summertone

Hair:

• ::Exile::- AJ Autumn

Jewelry:

• Gabriel - Angel wings Necklace (male) / silver

Pose:

• Debbie Jasper - Custom pose

The blog post can also be found on http://debbiejasper16.blogspot.sg/

Wooof..

This weeks Fifty5 Thursday item from Glint is this nice and cool celtic necklace made of a couple of leather strings with silver and black beads on both sides of the celtic ax and the wolf. Very cool and rugged looking.

Woof...

Style card:

Jewelry:

• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Leather & Pewter celtic charm necklace - Fifty5 Thursday item

Outfit:

• ColdAsh - Mens MESH Ryder Jacket

Fashion For Life 10th Anniversary

The next 2 weeks (March 6th to 20th - 2016) will be a really good time to head over to the Fashion for Life 10th Anniversary event. Glint Jewelry & Accessories is there again this year with 3 exclusive items. 100% of the sales of these accessories, two of them are displayed below, will got to the event. Of course Glint has other jewelry on display and 50% of the sales from these items are donated to the cause. So head on over there. And perhaps hit the donation box when you're there :)

Exclusive : Unisex Time to Heal necklace

Exclusive : Men's Hope watch

Style card:

Jewelry:

• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Unisex Time to Heal necklace *Exclusive*
• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Men's Hope Watch *Exclusive*

Outfit:

• Razor/// - Brawler Tank 2.0 - Men's Stuff hunt item
• {Cold Ash} Ocelot Jeans

You can leave your hat on

Across the street from Glint Jewelry is a clothing store - Serendipity, which I have the pleasure of featuring this weeks outfit for.

Starting at the top, the ball cap is HUD controlled with five different colors and two types of metal silver and gold. A really convenient re-sizer is also in the HUD. Great idea!

The sweater and pants is also HUD controlled, 11 colors for the sweater and 10 different colors for the pants and pockets.

 This weeks L$55 item from Glint Jewelry is this very nice Leather Skull bracelet. Looking up close it has really nice leather textures. A great find.

Style card:

Outfit:

• *Serendipity* - Harry Sweater - Mesh - *NEW RELEASE*
• *Serendipity* - Adrian Jeans - Mesh - *NEW RELEASE*
• *Serendipity* - Zachery Spiked Cap - Mesh - *NEW RELEASE*

Jewelry:

• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Block letter bracelet in silver
• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Skull Bracelet, Male

The blog post can also be found on http://debbiejasper16.blogspot.sg/

She's mine

Another really nice treasure from Glint Jewelry & Accessories is this customize-able block letter bracelet for both him and her. When you purchase this bracelet, all you have to do is to fill out the accompanying note-card and return it to Rainbow. She will very quickly personalize your bracelet and sent it back to you. I believe a total of 6 letters of your choice is maximum on each bracelet. The bracelet is easily adjustable via a script dialog box, and making sure it sits right on your wrist is of course done via the edit menu.

The outfit I'm sporting on this beautiful morning is from FashionNatic on the markedplace (link below). It's completely HUD controlled for pants, shirt and tie. 35 colors and textures for the shirt and the tie, 8 colors for the pants. There is an option for hiding the tie if you choose to do so.

Finally, a great pair of shoes from L&B, (link below). They are the WingTip Fatpack option, also complete HUD operated with several color combinations.

Click image for lager size

Style card:

Jewelry:

• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Block letter bracelet in silver
• Glint Jewelry and Accessories - Leather bracelet with metal rings

Outfit:

• FashionNatic - Vidor - Shirt Mesh
• FashionNatic - Vidor - Pants Mesh
• FashionNatic is only on the Second Life Markedplace.

Shoes:

• L&B - Dress shoe WingTip Fatpack

The blog post can also be found on http://debbiejasper16.blogspot.sg/

Photography tips #3 - Derender

In real life photography, a little pre-photoshopping on location is time saved when editing, and by that I mean removing things (if possible of course) that has to be fixed in post editing anyway. So before the shot is actually taken, remove or fix things such as an odd twig, toys in the background, garbage, or stray hair on the model etc. Basically try and get rid of anything that doesn't belong in the final picture. You'll thank your self later if you do.

Until just recently, I thought that was more or less impossible in SL without having editing rights, but a shooting sessions with Debbie Jasper over the holidays taught me something very cool. I might be the noob here for not knowing this clever little trick, but I'm okay with that :) I'm always willing to learn and share.

The session we were on was shot over the Christmas holidays. We were shooting a gown Debbie was blogging, and the problem was there were Christmas decorations and other items that just didn't fit the theme of the gown. After have shot from a few different angles I just couldn't get a shot I liked because of the items on location. Then Debbie said - "Just de-render temporarily".  /Me: "Huh?" So she showed me, and low and behold, life just got a little bit easier.

I found some of the raw photo's from that first session. In this shot, the cat on the piano and the lamp at the end of the stage is bugging me. But to clone those items out in Photoshop looks like a lot of work so kept looking for angles where these items weren't visible, but that of course changed the look and view of the gown.

After Debbie's little revelation we went back the next day. Below is another raw shot from the second session. The cat and the lamp has been de-rendered temporarily making the post editing a lot easier. 

Here's how do this in Firestorm: 

• Right click on the item that is in your frame, or picture that you want to remove. 
• Click MORE in the circle - twice
• Click DERENDER 
• Finally click TEMPORARY. 

And the item such as a pose-ball, tip jar or perhaps a person in the back ground is gone. You have a much cleaner raw photo to work with in Photoshop.

Thank you Debbie :)

One thing to keep in mind when doing this, is to be very careful what you click on. I lost the floor the first time I tried but a quick relog fixed it, and I could start over with de-rendering unwanted items again. 

Here's a link to the gown Debbie blogged.

This blog post was also posted on http://debbiejasper16.blogspot.sg

Photography tips #2 - Watch your background.

This time we'll take a look at another simple way of making your Second Life photos turn out better. In photography, the background is or can be just as important as the subject. Especially when the background is interfering with the subject in a way that is unintentional.

Its a simple tip really. Lets call it the "Keep the head in a clean spot" tip. What I mean by that is, when you shoot your self or another person, try and keep the background behind the subjects head clean so nothing appears to be growing out of, sticking in to, or going through their head. A good example could be tree branches that mysteriously protrude from the subjects head, or a lamppost sticking out of the top of the head.

Here the trunk of the tree is growing out of my head.

It is fairly easy to avoid this situation. A simple change of camera angle, or perhaps make the subject take a few steps to one or the other side will save a lot of work later in Photoshop.

Even though the back ground is messy, it is uniform behind the head, and the background is also been blurred by using the DoF feature in Firestorms Phototools

If it is impossible to keep a separation between the subject and the background, turning on the depth of field option in SL will help making the final image more pleasing to the eye.The trick here is that the eye will seek out sharp details before blurry details, and because of that we have a seperation between the back ground and the subject.. Still, moving the camera slightly will eliminate the unfortunate tree growing out of the head completely.

Even with DoF enabled, the tree trunk is still where is shouldn't be, however a better version that with the DoF disabled.

Again, tree in a position where  they shouldn't be any.

A slight move with the camera and the head it is clear, however we have another problem  - horizon lines going through the head.

 Another scenario to keep an eye out for is horizon lines going through the head of a subject, as in the line between the sky and the ocean for example. A slight move with the camera and the problem is gone.

Horizon lines through the head are almost as bed as trees and lamp posts.

Camera is re-positioned for a better end result.

This post was also posted on http://debbiejasper16.blogspot.sg/

Being casual

Ahh...the casual look. A pair of jeans, a t-shirt, some shoes or boots and perhaps a jacket. It's a look that a lot of guys in Second Life use. Im my opinion the casual look just got even better. I was at TMD - The Mens Department awhile back, where Cold Ash had a small display of one or perhaps two of their outfits. A quick visit to their main store, and I was sold on the out fit below. All 3 items are of course mesh and were purchased separately.





The jacket is the Ryder. It can be used with or without the T-shirt, and in the including HUD you will find 6 great leather textures in different colors for the jacket, and 6 muted colors for the T-shirt making it easy to find a good look.

(Click any picture for a larger view.)


The jeans are called Ocelot, a nice straight fit, very worn looking pair (but not ripped),. The HUD gives the choice of 6 tones from light blue to black
Last but not least to complete the look, I chose the Jericho desert boots. It's a short boot, and goes perfect with the jeans and other long pants. Again there is an option for picking a color to go with the rest of the outfit, this time 5 different tones ranging from Copper (light brownish) to Black.

Style card:

Outfit:

• Cold Ash - Ryder jacket
• Cold Ash - Ocelot jeans
• Cold Ash - Jericho dessert boot

• Mandala - Inari Necklage (short)

Picture location - Tempelhof