It’s a beautiful sunny day in Gidgewood, so I popped across the river to Gidge’s back forty and settled under Trompe Loeil’s marvelous outdoor hangout with some deer and rabbits as one does. I brought along some wine and grapefruit which don’ go together if you eat them at the same time, but are fine for eating and then drinking. My lovely dress is from Stories & Co by Flowey for Collabor88. I interviewed the designer Flutter Memel for this month’s issue of VSN. You can read the article here.
I love it when Collabor88’s theme is all feminine, with lacy fabrics, flowers, and lovely fabrics. And this month, that is everything Collabor88 is all about. And of course, The Arcade always has some lovely feminine and girly items.
For me, I love this lacy romper from Zaara which is rigged to Maitreya. I added this great little kimono-style jacket from Emery.
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Alchemy is more a philosophy than a study. A belief that somehow base metals can be transmuted into fine metals, as water is into wine in Christian communions. In the abstract, though, we can think of alchemy as the process of changing elements by bringing them together. This modern kimono from Atomic has some alchemical magic of its own coming in 3 colors and 6 tank colors that can be transmuted with a HUD. The other alchemy at play is adding an overlay of a light leak to add some color to my blue sky. You can download that video and screenshot individual light leaks from it. I used this particular capture.
In this shot, you can see the gorgeous amethyst crystal necklace from BOOM at Collabor88. There is a lot of interest in crystals for use in healing and balancing our lives – a belief that they focus energy. I think they are pretty and that is all they need to do. The gorgeous manicure is from FLAIR.
I have done very little since I received that e-mail early Wednesday morning telling me that Squinternet had reached the end of her journey. I posted an announcement in her groups and on the Love Donna Flora blog and crawled into bed for a good cry. Crying can be so cleansing. Unfortunately, it upset my cat who proceeded to demonstrate loudly and longly that he can cry harder and louder than me. This touch of the ridiculous made me laugh.
Grief is like a cloud, fogging my brain. But one thing I know, I am not alone in my grief. Squinternet (Giulia) was widely admired and literally hundreds of people have been touched by her artistry and her kindness and they all feel her absence. I hope those who loved her find comfort in the knowledge that she was well and widely loved and that thanks to the generosity and openhearted spirit of the Second Life community, she got to see that before she died. In many ways, Love Donna Flora! was a memorial – one that she attended. People shared their hopes, best wishes and their love for her at the event and on the blog with blog posts, messages and open-hearted generosity. And she got to see it for herself.
When I first heard and then read about the Donna Flora event, I cried, I really did. I don’t do it often, but it really hit me. I cried a little again, when I realized I missed the cutoff date for applications for designers.
So I shopped instead.
I have never had the opportunity to talk with Squinternet. I’d sometimes see her setting up vendors in the shop, or out and about at events. I do however know her store line personally, as I have acquired many pieces from it over the years.
Some of you may know me, or of me, some of you may not, but one thing that can be universally seen in many of my posts is my love of colour. I also love period and retro styles. Donna Flora was one of those places I could go, get a Purple/Orange/Red patterned dress, grab gold, like real looking gold jewelry(so hard to find) and come out not looking like a clashy mess.
The monthly events faMESHed and Collabor88 always come through with something wonderful For example, from faMESHed there is this gorgeous dress from NYU. The bodice is particularly lovely making its name “Bodice Dress” so appropriate.
The Giulia dress from Baistice for Love Donna Flora is elegance personified. Sissy Pessoa does such a fabulous job with making textures that hug the body and catch the light. She finds beauty and elegance in simplicity, stark and unembellished. I added gorgeous scarlet silk gloves from 5th & Oxford.
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I know why I love Squinternet Larnia. I love her because whenever I found a sim that was cool and I wanted to share it with someone, she dropped everything to come look. I love her because she was always ready to come dancing or exploring. I love her because she always asked how I was doing and wanted an honest answer, not a glib okay. I love her because she is funny, quirky and stubborn. I am really counting on that stubborn nature now.
But why do we love Donna Flora? I suppose it could be because she is a generous and charitable creator who was there with her support for every event and charity that asked. I suppose it could be longevity. It could be her skill, the ability to make things that look and fit well. However, I think it’s more to do with how her wild and creative designs speak to our hearts. Seriously, if you told me there was a dress with pink satin, black tulle covered with giant pink peonies and big, gold flowers, I would roll my eyes and laugh at the idea. But then, take a look at this dress. It is exactly that and should be a hot mess of kitsch and instead it a hot melange of romance and glamour. It is pure genius. And with genius, we have two choices, love it or hate it? And we love it.
I fell for the whimsical dress from CIA Designs that is on sale at Love Donna Flora as soon as I saw those cats peeking over the black line. I love polka dots in the first place and polka dots and cats and this entire feeling of fun and whimsy is charming.
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Siddean Munro asked me if I thought making her mules in the colors of the Italian flag for Love Donna Flora would be cheesy. I said of course not, because after all, the grid needs more green shoes. What luscious shoes these are, too. Available in Italian Red, Green and White at Love Donna Flora.
Green it is! My favorite color, I love the rich, bold green in this top from Milk Motion for Collabor88. I could play with the colors of the flowers, but I loved it just plain green.
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