La Vie Boheme

"To days of inspiration, playing hookey, making something out of nothing, the need to express, to communicate, to going against the grain, going insane, going mad..." La Vie Boheme, Rent

This outfit is my tribute to bohemia, to sitting outside coffee shops, to smoking cigarettes, to solving the problems of the world from a cafe patio, to friends and lovers, to life, liberty and pursuing happiness, even if we never really find it.

I started this outfit with the Pochette Autumn skirt... this skirt makes me smile. It totally looks like something I would find in a thrift store and treasure for years and years. Or at an open air bazaar in some exotic, far off place. I love the richness of the colors at the hem... perfect, earthy, bohemian colors.

For the upper half of my body, I put on the BareRose tunic shirt in brown, and then I tinted it a much, much deeper, redder brown color to pick up on those rich colors in the pattern at the bottom of the skirt. I then added the gray vest, also from Pochette, on the jacket layer to add some interest and an even more boho feel to the ensemble. I'm a huge vest/waistcoat fan in RL, but I have a hard time finding ones I like in SL. Anyone wishing to design more SL vests to feed my addiction is likely to receive many virtual hugs and kisses from me. That's incentive, right?

Okay, accessories. Necklace and earrings are from Bebe, the Verano Literature set, which, if I remember correctly, was a freebie, but don't quote me on that. Anyways, it's quite lovely, and the earthy colors made me happy. I was afraid I was going to have to use my Earthtones Boho set again, and, don't get me wrong, it's a gorgeous set, it's just... well, overused. One of the most beautiful and well-done bohemian-styled jewelry sets out there, honestly, but I really hate blogging stuff that's been blogged so many times before. So here you go... an alternative to the wooden jewelry thing, a bit more delicate... the Verano Literature set. Lovely. Yay. MissAurora is happy.

Bracelets are by KorvinKreations, called the Flower Child bangles. Shoes by Shiny Things... I thought ballet flats made the bohemian thing feel a little more artsy and fun.

My skin is the Tete a Pied group gift Paon 4 in Buff. Omg, absolutely stunning. Roslin and CJ have outdone themselves yet again. Wow.

My hair is, yes, it's Armidi's Soho style. And yes, I paid full price for it. And yes, it is worth every single Linden. I can rarely justify spending that much money for something, but this hair, the way it frames my face, the perfection of the texture, the fact that I didn't have to edit a single prim to get it to look amazing, that's worth it to me. And while I hate following trends for the most part, there is a reason that Armidi is getting blogged. It's just plain well done.

My eyes are from Decollage, and as always, my shape is my own.

Bonjour, Paris!

It started way back when I was a young girl... this obsession with Paris. Two Audrey Hepburn movies, Funny Face and Sabrina, were my gateway to the beauty and romance of the City of Light, and I've been intrigued by it ever since.

I've wanted to visit Paris for years and years now, but never had the chance. So today, I outfitted myself in flat shoes and a comfy skirt-and-cardigan ensemble, and headed out to explore the Parisian aspects of SL.

First stop, Shakespeare and Company. A friend of mine showed me pictures she took of the actual bookstore in Paris, and I was jealous far beyond normal parameters of jealousy. So when I found a replica in SL, I simply had to hang out there for a little while and snap some pictures of my own. I just love the marriage of old-world elegance and artsy bohemia in this shop... scads of books everywhere, and make-shift cots and bed-rolls strewn over almost all available floor space. There's something inherently artistic about it, but I can't seem to put it into words. Suffice it to say, my visit to Shakespeare and Company in SL only fueled my insatiable desire to visit it in RL.


Next, since the Eiffel Tower is by far my favorite landmark in the world, I simply had to locate one in SL so I could pose in front of it. Also, I wanted to get a bit closer in my photo so you can see my D-skin and how soft and natural it looks, as well as my beautiful cameo locket from Caroline's jewelry. I positively adore cameo's, so when this one came up as a group gift, I put it on and have hardly been able to take it off since. Thank you, Caroline!

I would like to take this moment to point out my lovely cardigan from Tres Blah. I love the little crocheted rosettes on it, and I thought it made the perfect complimentary piece to the wonderful Pedicel skirt from SugarCube. It took me a little while, but I finally managed to tint the sweater to match the skirt. Also, the tank that I'm wearing under the cardigan is from SugarCube and is fabulously tintable. I admit it... as much as I love boutique unique clothes, I find myself going back again and again to the clothes that I can tint to match whatever else I'm wearing. But I digress...

As I traveled back home from my mini-vacation in Paris, I stopped by a nice little British pub because I absolutely had to take a picture in front of this gorgeous red telephone booth. Ah, they just don't make 'em like this anymore...

Anyways, back to business... here's the credits for my outfit. As always, feel free to IM me if there are questions...

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Top to bottom:

Hair- Celestial Studios Jennifer in Smolder
Skin- D-Skin 02 v1.1 Color A - EB1
Necklace- Caroline's Special Cameo Locket in Gold from Caroline's Jewelry
Cardigan- green (but I tinted it so it looks very little like the original cardigan)
Tank- In Dreams cami (tinted a very dark gray) from SugarCube
Skirt- Pedicel skirt in green from SugarCube
Shoes- Shop Seu flat pumps in black

And as always, my shape is my own. Bon soir, my loves.

Orange Sorbet

I generally don't like to wear orange. I've never been terribly fond of the color, I can't wear anything orange or yellow in RL because it makes me look like jaundiced, and at this time of year, everyone else is wearing it, so I don't want to.

But Antonia put this absolutely yummy orange-sorbet polka-dotted dress in her Halloween skull hunt, and I simply couldn't resist wearing it. I'm even growing quite partial to this particular color... and it looks good on my avi, whereas it could never, ever, ever look good on my RL skintone.

I tried on the wide waist belt in orange from Cupcake! and was actually surprised that it was in the right shade to go with the dress, AND it hit my avi at exactly the right spot so as not to interfere with the lovely poof of the skirt prims. Perfecto.

I wore my D-skin because I love it's natural simplicity while still not looking completely bare-faced. I thought the pale skin and the rich red of the Bombshell hair was a nice contrast. I chose very simple pearl jewelry and the pump(kin) shoes from the Shiny Things group gift. These shoes happen to be a prime example of how insanely effective freebies are for marketing purposes. I slipped them on as soon as I got the gift in my inventory, and I immediately wanted them in thirty other colors. They are perfect... absolutely perfect heel shape, classy and elegant lines, they fit like shoes are supposed to fit, and the texture is lovely. What more can a girl ask for? Well, more colors, of course. Unfortunately, it's going to take me a while to save up for the whole Classics line from Shiny Things, so I'll just have to make do with these for now.

I don't feel like listing all the credits for this outfit, but if you simply have to know where I got a particular item, just IM me in-world (MissAurora Jewell) and ask. I'll be so thrilled that you read my blog and were interested in my outfits that I'll tell you anything you wanna know. :)