Chouchou et Chocolat

The first time I met my very dear friend CodeBastard Redgrave, she was wearing the most gorgeous dress covered in sparkling red paillettes. A gift, she said, from her friend Eshi. Like a fool, I only nodded and complimented it’s beauty, never asking more about the designer.

A couple of weeks later, I received an invitation to a taping of Tonight Live with Paisley Beebe at the SLCN studios. The featured guests were to be Eshi Otawara of Chambre du Chocolat and the musical group Chouchou. Finally making the connection between Codie’s friend Eshi and Chambre du Chocolat, I visited her boutique for a look around and instantly fell in love with the glowing, ethereal Smokey Tux Dress.

Having visited the seductively barren Chouchou sim before, I knew at once that this dress would photograph beautifully there. I wasn’t disappointed.

Because the dress is so captivating in its composition and movement, I chose to keep my accessories simple.

The dress does come with a pearl choker that is lovely, but I chose to wear black pearls to accentuate the smokiness of the gown itself.

I chose a simple updo from ETD that had some volume to balance the width of the skirt. I also opted for the Diamond Bee Ring from Paper Couture that I am in love with and tend to wear with just about everything.

Please click on the pictures for a larger version. You can also find more photos on my Flickr page.

Style sheet:
Skin: Fleur Vivant Bronze Feline 3
Hair: ETD Holly – Blonde
Eyes: ~Glanz~ .::Eyes::. mid : FreshBlue
Necklace and Earrings: Paper Couture p.c. Black Pearl Set
Ring: Paper Couture p.c. Diamond Bee Ring
Dress: Chambre du Chocolat Smokey Tux Dress in Gold
Poses: Boudoir Rouge Collection by Alexx Markova available at OPC Store

Cure For The Blues

This past Sunday, I was feeling a little blue…Guy wasn’t online yet, Pyper was nowhere to be found, Tucor was busy building his Lunar Landing and my inventory was just sitting there glaring at me, begging to be organized in some way. So, what’s a girl to do? Why, go shopping, of course! I logged into my reader and checked out some of the blogs that I hadn’t kept up with over the weekend and decided to visit the Gossip Girl Street Fair, based on a tip I picked up in the SL Free*Style blog. While wandering through the vendor’s booths, I came across Rebel Hope. My eye instantly went to the stunning blue gown on the back wall. I immediately decided that this deep blue, sparkling confection would go a long way toward curing my Sunday Night Blues…I was not disappointed.

As if by magic, the instant I purchased the dress, Guy appeared online. I teleported home to show him my new dress and let’s just say that his response erased any lingering blues that might have been hanging around. After adding a few accessories, Guy whisked me away for an evening of dancing aboard the RMS Titanic. (Another fantastic build…don’t miss the poseballs at the bow of the ship for recreating the movie’s iconic image.)

After dancing and exploring on deck, we decided to teleport to another dance venue where we encountered my old friend Ted and his lovely Ashby. ::waves:: It is always so nice to unexpectedly run into old friends on the grid.

Now, let me tell you about the dress that was the catalyst for this fantastic evening and the cure for my blues…

Rebel Hope’s Lumiere Azure Limited Edition gown was created to celebrate Rebel Hope and RH Engel’s third anniversary as Second Life content creators. From the high neck and plunging back to the mermaid skirt, this gown sparkles and shimmers in a deep shade of royal blue. According to the Rebel Hope blog, the dress was created in Windlight and this is the only color that it will be made in. Even after dancing in it for three hours, I still can’t find the words to describe how beautifully it moves as it swishes and swirls around the dancefloor. The skirt comes in five parts, so that you can adjust the fullness to your individual liking.

To accessorize, I wanted to keep the jewelry light in color and chose classicly simple pieces. I opted for Rebel Hope earrings that I also picked up at the Gossip Girl Street Fair, the Claris White Pearl and Diamond Choker in Silver from Muse and the white gloves from Simone Stern’s Cotillion Gown (awwww…this was my Maid of Honor dress from Pyper’s wedding). For shoes, I chose Stiletto Moody’s Elegant Slingbacks in Silver Twinkle. When it comes to hair, I normally stick to colors similar to ETD’s blonde, but I tried on this Platinum shade from ETD and haven’t been able to take it off. If only I had figured this out during the sale…*sigh* (see below for complete details)

The other thing I can’t seem to take off lately…my new skin from Fleur. It is the Feline in Bronze 3 and I just love the cat-like liner on the eyes and I’m in love with the lip color. I purchased this skin with the 500L Gift Certificate that Roslin and CJ, in a display of their usual (and unparalleled) generosity, made available to members of the Fleur Update Group. A very big thank you to the Fleur team!

Okay…time for some accountability… I was out of commission for a week or so, and then I was just lazy. So, here is what I plan to bring to you this week (I’m thinking that if I put it into writing here, I will have to stick to it): An interview with Rose Farina and a review of her store Rose Petal Creations, more looks from Last Call, and a tour of some of my favorite places in SL. Then, for next week, I’ll be working on a peek into my inventory spotlighting designs from Icing and Cupcake

All the Details:
Dress: Lumiere Azure – Rebel Hope
Gloves: Cotillion Gloves (part of outfit) – Simone
Necklace: Claris White Pearl and Diamond Choker in Silver – Muse
Earrings: Diamond Drop Earrings – Rebel Hope (free gift at the Gossip Girl Street Fair)
Ring: 16 Diamond Silver Band (London Collection) – Debbie Watson
Shoes: Elegant Slingback in Silver Twinkle – Stiletto Moody
Skin: Feline in Bronze 3 – Fleur
Eyes: FreshBlue, mid size – Glanz
Hair: Davina II in Platinum – ETD