Two years ago today I brought Oscar home. He has been such a surprise. At the Humane Society, he was not a friendly cat and I was told not to expect much affection. Hah! He’s been wonderful and very loving, even if he does sound more like a duck than a cat.

1. You Could Probably Rule the World from SL, if You Wanted To. Aemeth Lysette has an inspiring and thoughtful post about her success in using SL to enhance her opportunities in real life as well. 
2. Your SL Evolution – Harper Beresford challenged folks to put together a timeline of their style evolution a few years back when she was hosting a forum on SL’s Community blog for Fashion Week. So many responded she created a Flickr group. For SL10B, she had the great idea of putting up an exhibition with an updated photo. Be sure to check out her blog and her gallery at SL10B.
3. Sleepover: The Arcade often brings out our inner child, but no more so than with Carthalis Rossini in this fun little post exposing his inner child. Adorable.
4. When Boredom Strikes: Josiah Lee Baxter’s post is striking, powerful and captivating. He knows that sometimes simplicity is stronger and more powerful than anything else.
5. Three Doors Down – Kryptonite: I just love the naturalness and simplicity of her outfit and her poses. The pictures looked snapped, not posed. Beautifully done

It’s been a while since I did a Fast Five. I have been irritated at folks lately. It is hard to highlight good things when I am aggravated. I have disliked browsing the feeds and Flickr thanks to the overabundance of photos that just should not be there. However, I  have decided to push on through and recognize that I can’t change people, just my own reaction to them.

1. Normal maps, spec maps and diffuse, oh my! Sei Minuet has a great tutorial demonstrating that the new materials work on regular old prime, too, not just mesh, so ooh la la! 
2. How to view multiple textures on one mesh with more than one material in Blender. Siddean Munro has a great editorial on multiple textures. Hair makers take note! 
3. 53 Lets the Sun Shine Through – Bodzha Elderflower has another great photo and I just love the styling. I want that hat and I want it now!
4. Challenge Gallery 42: Community (SL10B Challenge): There’s a great collection of pictures for this week’s Single Frame Stories. Go check them out!
5. Cat Litter – Oh, this is exciting, a preview, a hint, a possibility of a Where’s Dim Sum game….I can’t wait to see more.

It’s 7:00 a.m. and do you know where you computer is? I do. It’s back at the factory. There’s a handy site I can enter my Service Repair Order # into and see where my lappy is at the moment.  I keep checking.

1. Yemana – Harper Ganesvoort has some eerie photos and a disquieting poem. The photos are beautifully lit.  Continue reading →

Day Three with no laptop and no Second Life® and I can hear my inventory calling me. There are boxes hollering “Rez me!” and skin demos crying “Try me on!” and hair and jewelry whispering “Don’t leave me.” I promise I will be back as soon as I can, but my inventory is not listening.

1. Hearts will never be practical until they can be made unbreakable.  Sophee Mojo’s outfit is adorable and so is her picture. And of course, hearts will never be practical Continue reading →

Day Two with no laptop and no Second Life®. but what with Plurk and the Second Life feeds, I am not completely cut off. In fact, I am developing a shopping list for when I get back.

1. Summer in My Winter: I love the first picture. I like to see folks shoot from different angles and  capture emotions with their snaps. It’s a great shot by Virtual Evangelical.
2. Prim Perfect Talks at Home & Garden Expo: Prim Perfect will be hosting 17 or more creators in a Q&A format with audience participation/question time during the Expo. The complete schedule is posted here.
3. Challenge Gallery 40: Engage and a Special Challenge: The Single Frame Stories website should just be bookmarked to check every week for the new challenge gallery because there is always something worth seeing. This week, Sinjin Cooperstone offers an amazing photo that I would love to have framed and on my wall.
4. Second Life’s Favorite Game Show: Tymmerie Thorne presents a fun, excitement filled episode in the game we have all experienced – what was I wearing when I logged out.
5. May Rain – I live in Oregon where May=Rain so this spoke to me no matter what. However, I really want you to check out the photos by Jule Lemondrop. The last one in particular is stunning.

My laptop’s graphic card died an ugly and painful death. Services were held at the Mac Store and it’s been shipped back to the factory for resurrection. Luckily, I can still stay in touch on my 10 year-old desktop, so long as I don’t try something too fancy. Remembering how incredibly fast it was when I got it 10 years ago, it’s funny how mind-numbingly slow it is now. Everything is relative.

1. Blog the Beat: A Weekly Musical Challenge – Harlow Heslop jumps into the weekly challenge field with an innovative challenge that may be more interesting than most. I have mentioned before that it seems like many bloggers have lost their own voice by doing so many challenges, particularly those who only blog once or twice a week. If they do two challenges, they blog nothing driven by their own interests. That said, this challenge opens the door for a lot of creativity and should not generate dozens of look-alike responses. From her own first entry, Mirrors, it looks like it may inspire exciting creative exploration. So, to Blog the Beat, read the lyrics from her song of the week and see what pictures they inspire for you. Continue reading →

It’s Friday. If you missed my last post, AVENUE’s May issue is out and is full of goodness including some amazing East meets West styling that is too good to miss.

1. Enabling Facebook Notifications for Friends and Favorites: This new tutorial has good advice for your SL and RL facebook pages to manage your notifications. Strawberry Singh is an expert on social media networking options and is generous with her advice. Be sure to check this out.  Continue reading →

Lots of goodness today. First and foremost, the first post from the newest addition to the It’s Only Fashion family.

Welcome to It’s  Only Fashion, Mouse!

1. Models Work Out: Wicca Merlin shares how she keeps her girlish figure. Not content to fiddle with sliders, she works hard to keep herself in trim.
2. My Alt Is Just Somebody I Know In Second Life: Honour McMillan notes that she has a different connection with her alt than with her main avatar. I bet that is true for a lot of people. She highlights Miniascape sim, which looks like its designed to be photographed over and over and over.
3. Harper Beresford: Harper is featured at Connecting 365 SL Lives and writes about SL and partnership in SL, though not the romantic kind.
4. Designing Worlds Episode 197: Server Side Baking and Materials: Saffia Widdershins and Elrik Merlin interview the Linden design teams who have been working on SSB and materials changes about how they will affect user and designer experience. The techs show samples of materials and it’s awe-inspiring.
5. Champagne – I love Gogo’s new blog post – sitting in a tree. But she’s not sitting with anyone, so there’s no K-I-S-S-I-N-G which means no love, marriage or baby carriage. Awwwww, poor Gogo!

There is so much goodness today, I had more than five picks before I even opened up the feeds. So, for great pictures, great styling and generally great posts, let’s get started.

1. Memory Bliss – Sophee Mojo just blows my mind with this post. If you don’t scroll down to see her head shot, I will punish you. The composition is masterful, from the ess-curve made with her head, neck and shoulders, her use of the golden ratio and the rule of threes with those bright pops of red. I am in love with this photo.  Continue reading →