Read it in issuu format

Download the .pdf

You can also pick up the in-world book from any Metro Virtual Fashion magazine kiosk. To get your copy of the kiosk please IM Alaska Metropolitan.

I’m really excited to bring you the fourth issue (vol 2 issue 3) of METRO Virtual Fashion! We have some great stuff in store, including:

sweet couture
Who says fashion can’t be fun? This is a look at couture concoctions based on the edible treats we love to indulge in. Best of all, Second Life is calorie free.
Photography: Anessa Stine

rl meets sl

5 “key” looks in First Life fall fashion seen on the runways are interpreted using current Second Life fashion. This editorial also features a preview of the new Synergy skins by OPIUM.
Photography: Alaska Metropolitan

rebel chic
Music and fashion have always been intertwined throughout history. This editorial takes the icons of rock and roll and interprets them virtually in a totally rockin’ homage.
By Honey Bender

an interview with katat0nik
Katat0nik’s fashion defies categorization, being a sinister-sweet combination perfect for the dead doll in all of us. In this candid interview, Katat0nik Pidgeon reveals her inspiration, design process, and advice to new designers.
by Kyra Nemeth

style your destiny (pt. 2)
This three part article series gives advice on your appearance and item management from a First Life image consultant, sure to help you manage a swamped inventory!

Part two covers organizing and purchasing a wardrobe offering the best value for your Linden dollar, using the capsule concept.
by Arabesque Baroque

FEATURED MODELS
covergirls: nessa & graci
Anessa and Graciana are known fashion models and bloggers, perhaps best known for their team footwear blog On Your Toes. But this dynamic duo’s virtual lives are full of more than just shoes, as this in-depth interview reveals.

Pick up your copy today! For advertising information, please contact Arabesque Baroque.

Posted by Arabesque from Hair Fair ‘08

I’m back! RL did not completely swallow me and I’ve even had the chance to dash around the Hair Fair sims during the last 24 hours. I don’t know if there were big crowds at the beginning but I have certainly found things pretty quiet down there.

The Expo does provide an easy way to check out new hair makers and there were I few I was not familiar with. I was impressed with Find Ash amongst others, but did not include them here as I got on a bit of a roll with my bangs theme!

Cuteness is my new fave thing and it’s pursuit has guided my choices here. It’s also an opportunity to show you some of the new things I’ve acquired for my wardrobe since the last post.

I kind of wish there was more exclusive/limited edition work at Hair fair - Torrid Midnight’s Fedora styles are an example, but I have to say I found it enjoyable nevertheless and was really impressed with the organisation that went into making demos available in advance and providing such a reliable bank of SLurls at the website - congratulations to all involved!

I was a little disappointed that some of my favorite designers were absent - Waka + Yuki for example who currently have most dos on sale for L$30 at their store. I’ve thrown one in here as an example to encourage you to take a look in spite of possible “hair fatigue”.

Ok - time for the visuals!

Gorgeously unusual braided updo with texture-change bow and a touch of flexi by Wilted Rose.

Worn with:

Scully Argyle turtleneck minidress from Riddle

Cable kneesocks also from Riddle

Gothdamn customizable stilettos from Canimal

Lego Muertos earrings from Pushbutton Industries

Ever-so-cute messy chignon with chunky bangs by BP*

Worn with:

Tweetie Pie tube top (group freebie) from Dutch Touch

Lemon soda dirndl skirt from DP YumYum

Bangles and Earrings from VG Republic

White ballet flats from Lassitude & Ennui

Petite Leona sculptie bag in blush from Glitter Girl

Softly fanned chignon with loose strands by The Alice Project

Worn with:

Limestone veil in green by Waka + Yuki

Baroness outfit in Seamist from Last Call (recently acquired at a yard sale)

Chocobloo bangles from Turnstyle

An example of hair I love from Waka + Yuki. This also comes with a long hair version.

Worn with:

Oldschool T-shirt and Plaid Shorts both from Riddle

Simple scarf black from Aoharu

Tintable crochet tights from Veschi (part of an outfit)

Mishima Dawn black patent heels from Maitreya

Audio Wire bracelet from Kari

Sand Seduction from Naive: Wild and playful, this monokini from Naive hits your curves in the right places. Summer may nearly be over, but you still have time to look sexy by the pool before the Labour Day weekend’s done. (model: Alaska)

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Breeze from Sweetest Goodbye: Sweetest Goodbye often combines elements of tradition Korean garments with a more modern outlook, and Breeze is no exception. Impeccable prim detailing in the drapery and a lovely sheer lace undershirt combine for a look that’s totally unique. (model: Haruka)

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Electric Ice by Naive: The perfect glittering little club minidress! Comes in silver and blue as well, but shown here in head-turning brilliant gold. I just love the metallic texture on this dress, it’s so hard to get right. (model: Haruka)

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Come to the NEW SHOOTS III show, tomorrow and Saturday, for more fashion by newcomers Naive and Sweetest Goodbye!

Friday August 29th at 6 PM SLT
Saturday August 30th at 12 noon SLT

Location: Metro headquarters roof

***Join the Metro Models at the Metro garden rooftop as we present NEW SHOOTS III, a fashion showcase presenting the best in up-and-coming talent.***

NEW SHOOTS III: A Fashion Showcase
featuring Naive and Sweetest Goodbye

Friday August 29, 2008 at 6 PM SLT
Saturday August 30, 2008 at noon SLT

Metro Garden Rooftop:
Luxury (219, 54, 53)

***Please note: seating and sim space is limited. We suggest arriving 10-15 minutes early to secure a seat, and removing all scripted attachments (aos, colour change accessories, etc.) Turning your graphics settings down may help with lag. We hope to see you there!

Bianca Foulon’s design sensibility is, above all, fashion foward. Combined with the trendy, striaght-off-the-catwalk look of Bianca F’s line is a liberal dose of sensuality. The fabrics run from sheer to glittery to shiny patent to sequined, in a variety of textures and colours (forget basic black, Bianca does colour in saturated, brilliant tones.)

The styles are guaranteed to make you feel sexy, with micro miniskirts and shorts, sheer lace, and swirling dresses cut to show off your legs to best advantage.

Pizzo Next in purple is something you wouldn’t wear on a first date, but the peekaboo lace is definitely going to turn heads. The dress comes with micro shorts and a sleeveless cropped turtleneck for underneath, but I dared to leave them off for this look.

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One of my favourite Bianca F items, Play is a flirtatious black micro dress with an asymmetrical one-shoulder cut. The fluffy skirting is dangerously short, but Play would work equally well as a tunic top over leggings.

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The Vernice trenchcoat in Rossa is a fiery red patent leather affair, the sort of coat you’d wear to a lover’s house with barely anything on underneath. Of course, the Vernice coat can also be the finishing statement piece to a simple black outfit as well, adding a splash of colour and texture.

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Double Zebra is a fun, layered outfit in one of my favourite colours: green. The dress underneath is a cute babydoll with zebra skirting, with a sheer green zebra jacket overtop. Both layered can also be worn seperately to mix and match with other outfits.

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Visit Bianca F’s store on the Velvet sim.

Posted by Arabesque Baroque

Autumn is my very favorite season! So I just adore all the rich, vibrant colors in this outfit.

I was inspired to put this look together not only by the Group Gift skin from Bianca Foulon that fell from the pixelated skies this week, but also by some of the new season RL trends that have been evident on the Northern Hemisphere catwalks for Fall ‘08. In particular, folk-inspired pieces, statement necklaces and tomato red. Plus, I’ve had these Maitreya boots kicking around my inventory for ever and I really don’t wear them enough!

Many of Second Life’s Japanese designers came to this particular party, and the overall effect is something I’d be very comfortable wearing in real life.

Outfit Credits:

Long knit from risey Arai, worn as a mini-dress

Wrist warmers from Veronica set by Giusia Ethaniel, tinted by me

Black leggings home-made using scrunchy bits from Kushukushu Kutsushita by seu Ahn

Vushuddhi Eye Necklace by risey Arai (part of a set)

Brown Belt (freebie) by toraji Voom

Spade Hair by sato Yifu with band tinted by me and worn with Pirate Beads by Eolande Elvehjem

Dune Boots by Onyx Leshelle

Darjeeling Skin (freebie) by Bianca Foulon

It’s often asked what the best skin in Second Life is for modelling. Some might think the answer would be MMS, after all, the word “model” is part of the name, right? Or Celestial Studios, because of the hundreds of makeup options. Or Redgrave because they’re based on real models’ faces.

The real answer is, the best skin to model in is the one that you, personally, like best. The skin that makes you feel unique and beautiful. Once you’ve found the skin you love, check it over for seaming mistakes, then buy enough makeup options that you can pull off a few different looks. Oh, show directors and agencies will want you to change sometimes, and you might collect a few different skins you like. But a skin is a big part of your look as a virtual model, and the best thing to do is be yourself and enjoy the skin you’re in.

I’m going to show you two skin lines that aren’t the most popular (but aren’t unknown either) that I wear on a regular basis. I’m also showing them on a preview of new shapes to come from the Metro Models store.

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Bianca Foulon’s “Fata” skins (not to be confused with Quelita Soon, which is a seperate body parts store with skins also by Bianca)

Three things make this skin stand out for me: the face, the makeup options, and the breast shading. The face is beautiful and I have yet to see it look ugly on any shape, the lips are perfect. The makeup options are fashion-forward and reflect what a true, RL makeup artist might do today (versus in the 80s, like most skins in Second Life. Hot pink lipstick??? UGH!) There are daytime makeup wearing options, but also some that are eccentric enough for the runway. And the breasts! This is the first skin I have seen in Second Life to get the shading right for small breast sizes! They’re small and perky.

Three of the fashion-forward makeup options offered by Bianca: the neutral base, warm golden “Oro”, and dramatic “Acrilik”. All in Sahara tone.

My only complaints? The eyebrows only come in a thick black colour, and I’m a blonde (waah!) and the collar bone placement seems a bit off. I still wear the skins tho, so these complaints aren’t that serious.

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La Sylphide by Stephanie Misfit.

The first series I wasn’t crazy about, but the “Ingrid” base is a more lovely and natural take on the handdrawn/hybrid look. The makeups for “Ingrid” are classically beautiful and lend a sultry, seductive look to your eyes. The body shading on these skins is really, really nicely done. Not over the top, but not lacking in detail either.

The lipstick colours vary from barely there to dark and dramatic. I like wearing the medium tone myself but the alabaster creaminess of the light tone is lovely. Shown from left to right: Sultry with red lips, Smokey with russet lips, and a friends-only vampy glitter makeup version.

My only complaint? Not enough makeup options. Get on it Stephanie! <3

By Arabesque Baroque

Just quickly dropping in to let you all know about Shopline. It’s a new extremely simple HUD-based update system that you can acquire by contacting Kristianne Matfield in-world.

The system addresses many of the drawbacks of Fashion Consolidated and aims to become its obvious alternative.

Designers have the flexibility to post as often as they like and not just new fashion releases but events and launches too.

Shoppers have the freedom to check the latest updates from the system as and when they want to. No need to miss out on any notices. The HUD just quietly informs you that it’s up to date and you simple pick your moment to read the day’s release notes. I’m wearing mine all the time and really liking it!

I told Sachi Vixen recently that her store was part of my “Fond Memories” of Second Life®. I remember as a newbie struggling to fly to the top level of her previous store to buy hair. It was almost two years ago, which seems like a lifetime in SL terms! Sachi confessed that to redesign her store had been a wrench, but the new Adam & Eve is certainly a very enjoyable shopping environment and there’s so much on offer!

Sachi and her business partner Damen have one of the most diverse skin offerings on the grid. No matter what your avatar’s shape, you will find a skin that works for you and it’s likely to come in a great variety of wearable makeup looks and skintones. When Sachi dropped a big range of skins on me yesterday, I found that some simply didn’t work too well with my shape - but others looked truly stunning! It’s really worth the time spent demo-ing the full range. Sachi has always been a stickler for detail and it shows in the lovely hands, feet and ears on her skins as well as the fact that she bundles in mani, pedi and pubix options. She has some of the nicest lip shapes I’ve seen anywhere! It led us to a conversation about the need for people to be a little more flexible when it comes to tweaking their shape (see my article in the latest issue of Metro Virtual Fashion).

Adam and Eve also have a range of gorgeous wigs and lovely clothing, some of which I’m featuring here. Adam and Eve is one of the “stayer brands” in Second Life fashion and there’s a reason for that - quality and dedication. Maybe not a name being shouted from the virtual rooftops but certainly worth making time for a thorough look!

This skin is from the soon-to-be-released Persephone range. It’s a remodeling of Sachi’s personal favorite, Pandora. The makeup is called Creme and I chose it to go deliciously with Sachi’s new gown in buttermilk, called Samara - shown here with the ballerina length skirt.

Here is a close-up of the skin detail.

This is my favorite version of the Samara dress - the soft bubble skirt in black. This time, I’m wearing Jodie skin in a makeup called Berry. Here is the facial detail.

Finally, I want to show you a skin that Sachi released about 12 months ago. It is my favorite of the ones she sent me. It’s called Venus and is shown here in a makeup called Sage. I just adore the cheeky smile!

Product Details

Outfit 1: Dreamy Creamy

Skin - Perspehone t2 in Creme from Adam and Eve

Dress - Samara in buttermilk from Adam and Eve

Shoes - Fresh, cream from Pixel Mode

Earrings from Yukirei

Bracelet from Muse

Outfit 2: Black Berry

Skin - Jodie t1 in Berry from Adam and Eve

Dress - Samara in black from Adam and Eve

Shoes - Virtue from Maitreya (Shoe Expo exclusive)

Earrings and bracelet from Muse

Outfit 3: Venus de sMilo (sorry!)

Skin - Venus t2 in Sage from Adam and Eve

Pant suit from Haute Style & Co.

Waist sash from Persona

Necklace and Earrings from Earthtones

All poses from the newly released Fashion Set by Luth Brodie

Hair - Alina in nickel from ETD

From Arabesque Baroque

Myllie Writer helped launch her SL design career with the Metro Models “New Shoots” program last year and since then she has been making strides with her Persona fashion brand. She also collaborated with Annah Whitfield making poses for Animah, but has more recently been developing that side of her talent independently under the Persona umbrella, including making a range of exclusive poses for Ananke Media System’s Photostage.

Here I’m using some of these new poses, which feature excellent hands *woot*, as they’re ideal to showcase Myllie’s latest jewelry designs - the elegantly understated Oval Rings Collection and the subtly ethnic Wood-Metal Collection, both of which are eminently versatile.

A lovely opportunity to dig out some old favourites from Last Call with appropriately plunging necklines but simple enough to allow this jewelry to take centre stage.

Each collection features a massive range of options including silver, gold or bronze metal (all nicely textured) plus a choice of chunky bangles for your more casual looks or finer bracelets for more dressy occasions.

Well done Myllie for a set of pieces that’s destined to be an inventory keeper! Here’s just a taste of the range.

Oval Rings Gold necklace & earrings. Crack Metal bangle gold

Wood Metal bronze necklace and earrings. Wood Metal large bangle bronze

Triple Chain silver necklace. Oval ring silver bracelet. Wood Splint earrings silver. Crack Metal bangle silver.

Outfit Credits:

Outfit 1

Simple 3/4 sleeve T and leather slim-leg pants from SLink

Outfit 2

Last Call Rebecca corseted blouse. Pants as before

Outfit 3

Last Call Ginny shift dress, leggings by Royal Blue (part of a jumpsuit)

All Outfits

Boots - Liah in gunmetal by Covet (now Jaywalk)

Hair - Night in dark brown by Laqroki

Poses - AMS Exclusive poses by Myllie Writer