Firstly I wanted to say, I’m totally stoked with the reception this series of posts has received. All the designers involved so far have been incredibly helpful and fascinating to talk to, and you readers have been amazingly encouraging, leaving tips and such, leading me to find new stores and in turn, fabulous new skins.

Choco

I thought today though, I would show some skins from one of my all time favie skins makers, Cupcakes. I have followed both Rosemary and Mimi, from the time I started on FS. Back then of course, Rosemary was Rosemar, and Mimi was Cupcakes. They have done several collaboration skin lines, Celebrity, Lovespell, Magazine to name a few.

Choco

With each release, I’ve loved the skins more and more. Then came Seduction. If one could marry a skin, Seduction would be the one for me. I have really never seen a face so damn pretty, and one that suited me right off the bat, no tweaking of shape, no time required to get used to the “new me”. I ate up the lighter tones, switching between Alabaster (the lightest) and Cameo (the 3rd lightest) When I was planning this series, I checked out so many of my “go to” skin makers, to have a look at their darker tones, to see if they could work. Controversial? Well no, I don’t think so. So much of the way avs look in SL is not only skin dependent, but shape dependent too. So, if you have the right shape, in effect, you can make a skin look any way you choose, within reason. I also think that if the skin maker has got the tones right, taking care with shading and highlights etc, and it looks good on you, then all good right?

Nutmeg

I’m showing here the Choco (2nd darkest) and Nutmeg (3rd darkest) tones. I think they are beautiful. The choice of makeups you get is incredible, there are 3 or 4 fatpacks available in each tone, containing 10 makeups each. In Choco, I’ve shown fatpack 1, and Nutmeg is fat pack 2.

Nutmeg

How gorgeous are the faces, I cam on myself to a ridiculous degree when wearing these skins :p I would say my favorite makeup, in any tone would have to be Retro, a classic red lip and beautifully lined eye. But really you can’t go wrong with any of the make ups in the Seduction line, they are all perfectly executed and class personified.

The bodies are lovely, my only gripe is I would like a slightly bigger bellybutton, but that’s minor in the scheme of things. My point is with this post, check out some of the bigger names, you may be surprised at what you find in the way of darker tones, and of course, demo is your friend :P Ash Out.

Credits
Skins
Seduction-Cupcakes
Hair
Foehn-Inorite
Lingerie
Cupcakes gift bag #5
Dress
Hearse-Nomine

A few nights ago, I was bouncing round the grid by myself (this new tomezone/difference sux hard) when I got a fashcon notice. I rarely take notice of them these days, but this one caught my eye as
A) it was a new skin release
B) It was a store I hadn’t heard of
C) the release was for darker skins and I already had post one under my belt for the series. So off I go to SD Skins. I tried on the demos, got all excited about the body and face, then I found a seam and went “dammit”. Not because of the seam you understand, because that, like any other flaw with a product one purchases in SL can be fixed. But dammit because I had to let SteinerDesigner Ur know, and the last time I found seams on a skin that shan’t be named, I was fed the biggest load of bullshit by the designer in question. The seam was supposed to be there? Yes and there are blue, left handed flying pigs in the world aren’t there 0.o. So much so, I have made a point never to spend money there again, and believe me, I spend.

So I fire off an IM, not really expecting any response TBH. But Steiner did respond, and the amazingly professional way he handled my IM, and the subsequent conversations we have had, has led to us becoming friends. Not only did he fix the seam issue, refill his vendors and demo vendors, he sent out the fixes to all customers who had purchased, past and present. Customer service is something SD Skins prides itself on, and when you purchase from them, you will always hear from Steiner, just to make sure you are happy with your purchase. Above and beyond.

It was the faces that really grabbed me, the lips especially. The makeups are gorgeous, the eyes especially are my kind of smokey. The lipstick isn’t slapped on, although the colours aren’t muted, it’s a very fine balance Steiner got right.

Another favorite feature of mine is the face not being overly light. What I mean by that is the highlights are sedate, natural, giving a very even, smooth feel. The nose also made me squee, cute as a button!

You get a choice of hair down there versions, so there will be something to please you all. The body is lovely, pert little butt, well toned tummy, and gorgy cleavage. Again, the highlights on the body are very natural and not overdone….scrummy. SD Skins are totally worth a look, it’s a store that excited me on a few levels, not least the professionalism of Steiner. Ash Out.

Credits
Skins
SD Skins-Aaliyah
Silks
Haven Designs DSN gift
Hair
Vanity-Zarine

Today is an absolute treat for me, there is nothing I love more than going to a store that’s new to me and swooning. Thanks to a request from Meiling in comments, I sent myself off to Kiko Life. Osuntomi Melendez’s store had me oohing and ahing as soon as stuff rezzed.

Cocoa Tone

Osuntomi only makes ethnic skins, and it’s something she does well. They’re like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Really creative, hand drawn skins, I can totally see why meiling is such a fan. The faces are soo cute, and the makeups are lighthearted and FUN! The range is huge, from classic to avantgarde it’s all here at Kiko Life. The tones are excellent, I’ve shown the 2 current darkest.

Tea Tone

Guess what………there’s guys skins too, a great alternative to the stock standard everyone wears. So as I do, I got in Osuntomi’s IM box to find out about her, the store and her opinion on diversity in Sl. It’s clearly something she feels very strongly about, and she is certainly doing her bit to give SL residents more choices. I can tell you, she’s an amazing designer and an amazing woman, totally committed to what she’s doing.

Check out the yummy bodies. Beautiful soft tummy, well defined collarbone (another important feature for me) and when hubby saw me in the studio, shooting the pics, he said my butt was pinchable :) I got a sneak peek of some upcomming releases, and I’m so excited to see where the store goes from here. IMHO, it’s a place to watch, and Osuntomi is someone to get to know. Go demo before I kick your butts :P Ash Out.

Credits
Skins
Kiko Life
Hair
Pic 1 & 2
Applonia & Mademoiselle2-Vanity
Pic 3 & 4
Christina-Adam N Eve
Lingerie
Part of the Maida Suite-Silent Sparrow

When I first landed on the mainland and started finding my feet, it became very clear there were a few big names in the skinning world. I stopped being shy about trying to get information, and asked every av I saw that looked halfway decent, just where they got their shit from! A good percentage said Adam N Eve.

I remember strolling round their amazing booth at Skin Fair last year, loving the whole concept, but having a big tanty that the skins didn’t suit my shape back then. I also demoed the hell out of the new skins when they came out this year, loving the new more photo real look, completely falling for the bodies, especially the bum :P

I had no idea Sachi did darker skins though, till I took a good look at her Hair Fair posters. Those were definitely not the skins I had tried. So I went back and found Sienna. Isn’t she absolutely to die for? Sienna is available in four tones, the one shown here being the darkest. The makeups are amazing, and Sydd, there’s a delicious glossy red lip, just for you :P This is exactly how makeup should be done. You can still have glitz and glitter, but how you do it is important, and Sachi pulls it off perfectly. You get a choice of hairbase or bald, as with the other skins I have shown so far, which now is almost as important to me as a choice of eyebrows. Sienna also comes bald down there, with hair on the panty layer if you choose to wear it (I feel Sasy’s influence :P) And, she has matching manicures and pedicures, just another little touch that makes her stand out in my mind.

Check out the body. Smokin! Everything feels and looks so smooth and silky, and I totally love the stomach, boobs and butt. If you haven’t been to Adam N Eve in a while, do go back and check out the newest skins, you won’t be sorry. Ash Out.

Credits
Skins
Sienna-Adam N Eve
Hair
Raine-Kin @ Hair Fair
Lingerie
Fancy Fairy Spring Lingerie
Dress
Adam N Eve Catwalk Collection-Polka Black

So I was chatting with Terry yesterday, telling her about the series I’m doing on darker skins, part one is here. She was like “you have to do Efe from PXL, it has the best hair base I’ve ever seen” I’d admired Terry wearing that skin during the Rezzable show, she looked spectacular.

Copper Lips

I’m a huge fan of hand drawn skins,in fact it’s only just recently that I’ve been adding photo real to my rotation and Efe is just stunning. The makeups are divided into sets denoted by lip colour, and each lip set contains 4 different shadows.

Dark Lips

What I love about the lips is the fact they’re not completely saturated with colour, but rather stained, which is how I prefer my makeup rl.

Glossy Lips

Also, the shade of lip colour is very important in darker skins, all too often it can go terribly wrong and end up looking garish. That is not a concern with Efe at all, less is more here, giving the face an understated sexiness I just love.

Nude Lips

Follow those same rules for eyeshadow and we have a winner! My all time favie, cat eyeliner makes an appearance, and being a huge fan of a nude lip and smokey eye, I wasn’t disappointed.

Pink Lips

Red Lips

I also love a classic red lip, again hart didn’t disappoint.

The body is lovely, the skin being very natural looking and soft. If you’re into the sheen of Redgrave, then Efe won’t be for you. I found it very refreshing to not be shiny, but it’s a matter of personal taste. Do demo, for a really gorgeous hand drawn option, Efe is it. Ash Out.

Credits
Skins
Efe @ PXL
Hair
Taylor-Discord Designs
Bikini
Sysy’s (old group gift)