Narcissi has released a perfect summer outfit at Vintage Fair. These shorts and tops come in two sets, pastels and brights. The pastel shorts set also has several gorgeous prints, fun vintage prints.
I took to the trees because I was doing a book review of a book called The Solace of Trees that I reviewed on my book blog and on YouTube. It’s about refugees and it is timely, important, and not terribly well done. Continue reading
Thalia Heckroth™ has made minimalism and simplicity her design signature. But just as Doris Janzen Longacre was correct when talking about simple living not being simple, minimalist design is just as deceptively complex. Embellishment is easy, structure is hard. Look at the structure on this gorgeously simple dress. Look at the bodice and the way the sleeves are inset. This is a deceptive form of simplicity that is the hallmark of good design. I decided to go for pink, out of the many color choices this dress comes in. I was tired. Pink wakes me up.
Our imagination is the only true freedom we have. Before you decide that is depressing and melodramatic, consider this. What really impinges on our freedom more than anything? Is it the government or is it the mores and expectations of friends, family, and community? What stops us from pursuing our dreams, the police or our fears? There are many things that hold us back, health, financial limitations, even time, but for those of us who live in a relatively free society, we are the ones who limit our freedom.
As a white woman in the United States, I am relatively free of governmental repression. Of course, there are many cultural limits on women’s freedom and if some get their way, there will be governmental restrictions as well. But given the continuum of freedom in the world, I am comfortably situated on the relatively free section.
I have been arrested a few times for my political activities and always released with an apology. For people who are not white, police encounters are more dangerous. In fact, over-policing and police impunity are repressive, a form of unofficially sanctioned terrorism to set the limits on the movements and aspirations of people of color. Nonetheless compared to many places in the world, we continue to enjoy a relatively high degree of political freedom–for the moment. That may change, as some states are trying to criminalize protest and political activity.
The idea that our imagination is our only true freedom makes me think of Mahatma Gandhi who said, “You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.” This is real freedom. That is why we are the ones who keep us unfree and we are the only ones who can liberate us.
Epictetus said we had the freedom of choice whether we stand at the podium or in a prison. I think of Epictetus when I think about Donald Trump. He may be the “leader of the free world” but he is one of the least free beings I can think of. He is a prisoner of his desperate need for approval and praise. He is a prisoner of rage, it clouds his judgment and incapacitates his reason. He will never be content, not to mention happy, because he is a prisoner of fear. No matter how many podia he speaks from, he will never be free.
Real freedom is in peace of mind, in being able to make your choices without fear or anger. Real freedom is when your mind is free of emotional traps, societal limitations and cultural prisons. So, yes, our imagination is the only true freedom we have…if we dare to grasp it.
There was a downpour yesterday, raining so heavy that at times it looked like it was dark out during the day. While it was cold, grim, and miserable outside, inside was warm with food, friendship, and the fellowship of good company. Countering the gray, cloudy rain, there was a bright yellow sun in the form of this lovely minidress from Decoy for Collabor88.
This Verushka dress from Liziaah is striking in its details – all very architectural and rigid, but intricate and complex – a baroque form of modernism.
It is also unusual in its construction. With the advent of mesh, we have lost the old form of system layers and while we often use appliers for lingerie or layering, there are few people making clothing using appliers and mesh pieces. Liziaah is one of those few. This dress is applied and the dreaded flap for the skirt is added, however, since this is mesh, not prim, it has not of the flaws of past. It conforms to movement, it reacts to the light the same as the applied textures. In the end, it makes a beautiful dress that is form-fitting in ways that mesh cannot achieve.
Continue reading
Does the weather in your first life influence how you dress in Second Life®? It sure does for me. And I know that’s crazy, but it still does. However, I dressed in the chilly pre-dawn when it as 45° and now it’s 79° and I am melting. Why does a jacket on my avatar make me feel warmer in my first life? How silly is that?
I really wanted to wear this Edwardian Jacket from The Annex, though because of the cold I opted for a different approach than the ruffled hot pants that are designed to go with it. Besides, I wanted to show you how flexible it is.
“We got into an argument over the color of love. I said it was pink, and he said it was red. So you see, I had no other choice but to stab him.” I swear it was pure coincidence that I chose this quote by Jacob Kintz for my Flickr picture titles today and not commentary on the propensity of some people to go from I disagree to I want you to die in a heartbeat. Incidentally, Jacob Kintz is so weird in a funny weird, not creepy weird way. He makes a living, I guess, from coming up with odd one-liners, quotable quotes brought to you by internet ads and click-bait. I admire people who find ways to make this new internet information economy work for them in new and odd ways.
Continue reading
I saw this quotation attributed to Plato the other night, ““We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” and thought it did not sound right. I like the idea, though, that it is tragic that people fear the light, which I take as a metaphor for knowledge and truth. It certainly is tragic for our planet when people fear the light that science can shed on the issue. Anyway, I was suspicious of the quote, thinking it sounded too modern and in researching, discovered that there seems to be a cottage industry in fake Plato quotes. It’s amazing and worth checking out for the sheer vastness of it all.
Also worth checking out is the wonderful selection of holographic inspired items from Collabor88. I particularly liked this top from Stories&Co by Flowey. I like that it has the fluidity of color that we would expect without the insistent sheen that is common in most selections. It’s not matte, but it is subdued and I like that very much.
Continue reading
The newest dress from Thalia Heckroth™ is all about the back. It is a simple sheath that is quite plain in the front and then, once your back is turned, reveals a lot of skin and a lot of design.
That does not mean it is severe. The front has a deep scoop neck and is open under the arms, so it is revealing, but with restraint.
Continue reading
Francis Bacon,the great scientist-philosopher wrote, “In order for the light to shine brightly, the darkness must be present.” The truth of this is demonstrated every time I work with projectors. They are brightest when it is darkest. I thought of this quote, though, in relation to this avant garde outfit from Liziaah. It explores form and texture and through its form, the interplay of dark and light. Released in deep, dark shades of aubergine, royal blue and black, the colors provide the darkness.
Explorations of form, curving shapes and an open back reveal the light of exposed skin made brighter by their relation to the dark, rich fabrics.
Continue reading