Prim Perfect Jigsaw at the Fantasy Faire: The Dragon Spire

The Dragon Spire

Designing Worlds returns tonight, with the first of two shows from the Fantasy Faire.  More on that shortly – but for now, let’s pay a visit to a region of the Faire that was stunningly bold in conception, but very hard to photograph. It was one of two areas (the other was Evensong Woods) where, I felt, the atmosphere you got from being there was really, really hard to convey in a photograph. For both, “You really had to be there” to appreciate them. And if you were in either, your likely response was … “Oh, this is cool!”

The Dragon Spire was constructed as a series of caves.  As such, it could be a little hard to navigate (and helpful arrows appeared on the floor rather rapidly). If you took a wrong turn, you were led deeper and deeper into the labyrinth. If you took the right (as in correct) path, you found yourself exploring some amazing shops – and all within this quite stunning (and quickly rezzed) sculpted cave environment.

Caves, of course, are an archetypal fantasy environment – and a favoured landscape for roleplayers everywhere – not for nothing is the Big Daddy called Dungeons and Dragons.  But caves are incredibly hard to pull off in Second Life – I don’t think I’ve ever seen it as well done as it is here. So kudos to Khyle Sion, the designer.

Let’s do a jigsaw.

Inside the caverns of The Dragon Spire

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Catch up with your Prim Perfect jigsaws (showing images of Second Life and other virtual worlds).

If you’d like to submit a photo of your own to feature as a jigsaw, send it to the Prim Perfect Flickr Group. It should be sized 800w x 600h, or else it will need to be re-sized.

Read Full Post »

Prim Perfect Jigsaw: an Asian Inspiration by Emerald Beningborough

Asian Inspiration

You may have noticed that – at the end of all of our jigsaw posts – we invite you to add your pictures to our Flickr group, and say that we hope to use some of them here as jigsaws.  There are some very striking photos posted to the group – and today’s is one of those.

It’s by Emerald Beningborough (whose photos you can see here), and it’s a photograph of one of her styling projects for the new Inspirations book – the amazing source book for interior design that’s the brainchild of Pitsch Parx and edited by Persia Bravin.  This is the from the second part of the Second Volume – and the whole is the most amazing and visually ravishing treat. Do go and take a look. And also a discreet tissue top mop up the drool …

Let’s take a deep breath and do a jigsaw!

Asian Inspiration Book Vol 2 by Emerald Beningborough

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Catch up with your Prim Perfect jigsaws (showing images of Second Life and other virtual worlds).

If you’d like to submit a photo of your own to feature as a jigsaw, send it to the Prim Perfect Flickr Group. It should be sized 800w x 600h, or else it will need to be re-sized.

Read Full Post »

Lunata Lupino in Darkwood Gardens

Lunata Lupino in Darkwood Gardens

Lunata Lupino is one of those creators who deserves to be better known.  Her product range is limited – but exquisite.  She produces hand textured and hand-painted flowers, some of the loveliest in Second Life, which she sells from a small garden centre in Darkwood Gardens in DarkWood.

Lunata Lupino in Darkwood Gardens

I first came across Lunata’s work when we were shooting the Christmas episode of Designing Worlds (or Meta Makeover, as it was then).  Our location was Summer Gildea’s home in Caledon Cay, because  she had decorated her home for Christmas in amazingly rich Victorian style.  While we were filming, I noticed that she had the most spectacular garlands over her windows, richly and beautifully textured, and another, with hanging Christmas cards, over the fireplaces – and I asked where she got them.  She explained about Lunata and Darkwood Gardens and warned that they were not exactly cheap to buy … but really, I think one should be prepared to pay a decent price for the sheer amount of detailed, intricate work that goes into her textures.

Lunata Lupino in Darkwood Gardens

Lunata comes from Berlin – which means that some of her products are labelled in German – the garlands, for example, have the names Kartenkette (christmas cards garland) and Mistelgirlande (mistletoe garland).  In real life, she is a screendesigner, and says that her reason for being in Second Life is “for painting textures (gardening + tapisserie)”.  She says her creations  require experience, endless patience and lots of real life-time.  Consequently those textures are  highly detailed and sharp without  having  halos.

These go beyond simple plants, I think.  They’re works of art.

Read Full Post »

June Treasure Hunt – Clue 2: Liquid Heat

Welcome to the Treasure Hunt for the June 2008 issue of Prim Perfect magazine! This month we have a record EIGHTEEN items waiting to be found, so put on your traveling clothes and be ready to see some amazing designs. For each item, you need to visit the store to discover its prim count. Instructions on finding the prim count can be found on our Treasure Hunt Information Page. For doing this little task, you could win something from the Prim Perfect prize cabinet, generously donated by talented designers and store owners from around the grid.

New to the Treasure Hunt this issue is Liquid Heat, owned by Erin Burks.  Liquid Heat is a real world corporation, registered in the United States.  They offer products to other businesses wishing to become involved in 3D environments.  Their specialties include sim design, building, texturing, and scripting.  Two of their sim designs are available to explore – a mystical paradise, including waterfalls and a volcano, and an English countryside with houses, a thick forest, and a gazebo nestled next to a waterfall.

A landmark HUD helps you get around the sims, but the landscape is very rich and deserves to be explored.  For a little while, you could pretend to be a mystical priestess in a grotto or a merchant visiting a castle or a pirate queen.  Did I mention that they sponsor live concerts in their coliseum as well?   To find the treasure hunt item, look in an area where the light is always dim.  There you could find the Oriental Style Tree Lights with Blue Glow.  They lead you up a hillside path to a mysterious fount.  As tempted as you may be to stare deeply into its depths, don’t allow yourself to be lost for long.  We have a lot of treasure hunting still to do.

In this treasure hunt competition, we ask you to find as many prim counts as you can for each of the magazine’s treasure hunt items (page 1 and page 2), and send the details to primperfect@gmail.com, including your avatar name and an answer to the tiebreaker question (which you can find in the magazine on page 80). The winner will be the person who is closest to an accurate prim count, and in the event of a tie, the tiebreaker question will be used. Also – you don’t necessarily have to find every prim count to win a prize! Just find as many as you can, and these clues are here to help. You have until July 20, 2008 to send in your entry. Good hunting!

See our earlier clues here:
June Treasure Hunt – Clue 1: Creative Fantasy

Good luck with your entry!

Read Full Post »

New Year Treasure Hunt – Clue 4: Organised Confusion

Once again there’s a Treasure Hunt in this month’s edition of Prim Perfect. There are THIRTEEN stores taking part this month – and you have to visit the store to discover the prim count of each of the pieces featured in the magazine. You’ll find instructions on how to find the prim count for an item on our Treasure Hunt Information page.

Today’s clue comes from a wonderful island of furniture (and a few houses – one of which I bought for my own Tuscan villa home!). It’s Zani Moe’s new sim – Organised Confusion, located next to Xylo, and packed full of treats from Zandie, ranging from attitude pillows to lovely delicately painted furniture, like the desk and chair we see here.

One of the things I really like about this set is that it conveys a sense of age, as well as being a strikingly lovely piece in itself. I find that many of the most characterful houses in Second Life have a story attached – whether created by the owner’s or just attached to it by the visitors who love it (Arcana Neuvo is, of course, a classic case of a house attracting legends). But pieces like this writing table and chair must equally attract legends – one can certainly see a Regency lady sitting down her to write spirited romances and social comedies in the mode of Jane Austen!

However, it would be unfair to portray Organised Confusion as offering only classical pieces. There’s a wide range of styles, all of excellent quality, throughout the island, including a large number of contemporary pieces in a variety of styles. One of the things I like particularly is Zandie’s use of colour – many of her modern pieces have a lovely clean fresh look, with a great use bright shades.

But don’t take me word for it – have a good look for yourself as you track down this clue at Organised Confusion!

For the treasure hunt competition, what you have to do is to find as many prim counts as you can, and send the details to primperfect@gmail.com, including your avatar name and an answer to the tiebreak question (which you’ll find in the magazine on Page 90). The person to find the most prim counts will win – and in the event of a tie, we will use the tie-breaker. Also: – you don’t necessarily have to find every prim count to win a prize! Just find as many as you can – by January 20th.

See our earlier clue here:
New Year Treasure Hunt – Clue 1: KitStar Designs
New Year Treasure Hunt – Clue 2: Serenity Studios
New Year Treasure Hunt – Clue 3: Botanika

Another clue will be appearing shortly!

Read Full Post »

Rustica Delights

Article by Kghia Gherardi
Please note that images here do not link to larger images, unless specified.

Lines that invite your eyes to follow them. Textures that tempt your fingers long to caress them. Pose balls expressing a wit – and a vocabulary — you wish you could find in your next date. Every piece designed to appeal, to attract, to invite. Maxwell Graf, the designer behind the new store Rustica , doesn’t simply seduce you with his furniture; he wants you to fall in love with it.

Vegas Victoria

Walking through the main entrance of Rustica, you are immediately enveloped in the decadently red furniture of the Vegas Victorian Collection. The collection is like a woman in a Victorian ball gown Victorian ball gown. The fabric is rich velvet, the lines curve and nip in, and the textural details make me want to dig my fingers into the fabric tufts. But the colour! Oh, baby, the colour! It doesn’t belong on some Victorian aristocrat but rather a woman intent on some Vegas-style sin. (Click here for a larger image)

The feature that most attracts me to these pieces are the pose balls. Yes, you heard me correctly. Instead of the standard, floating balls, Graf shapes and integrates them into the furniture as pillows and accents. But even better are the labels he applies — moods rather than actions. When you choose the pose, you are saying something about your attitude. Instead of sit, relax and lounge, you scheme and sublimate. You can regret, languish and sulk, just like the heroine in a Victorian novel. The Vegas Victorian Collection entices you to sink in and join the drama.

Café du Blonde

The Café du Blonde Collection reminds me of Hollywood femme fatale — beautifully coiffed hair, sleek gowns, and gleaming accessories. This collection captures the same essence. The textures of the blonde wood are carefully applied, as you can see from the back of the chaise longue or in this bed. Black granite is a solid, durable contrast to the soft, honey shades. Chrome accents in the legs and handles curve and reflect light. They lead the eye, like fine jewellery draws attention to a women’s face. The collection consists of clean lines, sensuous curves, and golden softness and enduring strength.

Like all Graf’s furniture, Café du Blonde demonstrates the designer’s mastery of sculpted prims (which Graf has named “sprims” instead of “sculpties”). This leather chair is ten prims. Unlike older chair designs of similar prim count, Graf added curves and softness that were unattainable before sprims. As Graf says, “it’s not just about saving prims, so much, but about allowing you to do a bit more with it, more detail, more life — and not be a gazillion prims.” The sprims allow prim-conscious designers to move away from the harder edges of modern furniture into designs that actually look comfortable.

Ironoak

Graf’s newest collection, Ironoak, showcases another style, one he calls “elven/castle-ish.” This collection is still a work in progress, but the pieces I’ve seen so far make me long for my own castle or cabin in the woods. Rustic and comfortable, these pieces are substantial. Rough-hewn wood is embellished with twists of wrought iron, giving this rather masculine furniture collection a fantasy accent. Graf has added a snuggle script into this collection’s bed, a feature I adore because it creates an intimate space for couples. Plus, it is getting colder where I live, and I like the idea of snuggling in. Graf has clearly worked with and studied the real life equivalents of the materials he uses in-world. There is integrity in his textures and the constructions. Even his fantasy pieces are grounded in reality.

Intents

On the roof of Rustica are a group of, what Graf calls, “colour therapy environmental tents.” I’m glad he defined it, because for me, they are simply whimsical fun. My favourite tent takes me to another world — complete with craters and circling spaceships. Other tents are simply romantic retreats. All share Graf’s trademark attention to detail. If your RL room is dark, the colour form the lights inside the tent make your monitor give off the colour glow, blurring the boundary between the real and the virtual.

Rustica is peppered with pieces that don’t fit into these collections but also deserve attention. Roll-top desks and dual-sided bookcases. Doors and drawers scripted to open and close. There are pieces in progress – sofas with fold-out beds and others that look like vintage cars, martini glass tables, and broken-down recliners that look fit for the trash heap. All the pieces capture Graf’s whimsy and showcase a true artistic talent.

Also make sure you visit the Rustica blog to keep up with the newest releases.

Read Full Post »

Signature Pieces Part 4

This is another in my occasional series on the Signature pieces by different designers. I’ve already talked about Baron Grayson’s hammock and Szabo Horn’s grandfather clock, and Lilith Heart’s palm trees in these articles. These are beautiful pieces and, in some ways, they’ve become the signature pieces for their designers – items that are so lovely and memorable that they appear throughout SL – sometimes in unexpected places.

The signature piece I’m going to talk about today is a little different because it’s a type that’s relatively common in Second Life – and yet this designer does it so very well that it has made an great impression wherever she deploys them – and this is Sofia Standish’s vases and planters from her store Sofia’s Furniture on Serafina.

The vase you can see here is one of the first pieces I acquired from Sofia- you’ll find it in the meditation corner of my office, and also on the Prim Perfect banner (which you’ll see at the top of this page). This elegant tall vase is one of two main designs that Sofia uses, and I first discovered them when I was attempting to furnish my first home, the castle that I’ve written about in the Banana Palm Saga (links at the bottom of this page).

I had three large floors and only 200 prims to furnish the whole thing – so I was aiming for some comfortable chairs and then some beautiful, eye-catching pieces that would serve to draw the eye without exploding the prim limit. And Sofia’s vases, in a range of beautiful and interesting textures, did exactly that.

She is still producing more of these lovely vases, either in this large form or in a slightly smaller format. A couple of recent designs include a medieval one that combines the imagery and colour of stained glass windows, or the lovely piece to the left, which can be seen enlarged here on Flickr. I love the contrasts between the blue and the gold here – especially that way that it seems to be lit from within so that it almost glows with light. I’m delighted that she can still bring something fresh and new to the concept!

As well as these tall, elegant jars, Sofia has long produced a range of planters. Sometimes these come in matching forms – Sofia utilises textures cunningly so that she sometimes produces an entire range of furniture following a single theme – so you can have bedroom, living room suite, planters and cases all harmonising.

At other times she picks up elements to create a harmonious whole. This was what she did when, back in June, she was designer of the month and created that really splendid cabin on the three sim-long cruise liner, the Galaxy. The planter, shown here on the right, was originally part of the bedroom set; the Captain of the Galaxy no sooner saw it than he wanted to know where he could buy one (actually, he wanted his own cabin bedroom just the same). And Bill Stirling, the designer and creator of the Galaxy was similarly impressed; he commissioned Sofia to supply planters throughout the ship, so that now you can see them from the lobby of the ship to the gorgeous health club!

Even here (or in the larger photo of Flickr) you can see the texture of this planter which perhaps goes some way to explaining why it’s such an immediately popular piece. Like many of Sofia’s other pieces (such as the Egyptian vase with its carved hieroglyphs, or the mosaic on other vases and planters), this has a tactile feel. The green looks like a burnished metal – and there’s a temptation to slide your fingertips over its smooth polished finish. Perhaps it is this ability to convey a very special sense of reality that makes these so popular, and elevates Sofia’s vases and planters to being signature pieces.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Banana Palm Saga
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Episode 4

Read Full Post »

September Treasure Hunt: Clue 17 – L’Utopie

Once again there’s a Treasure Hunt in this month’s edition of Prim Perfect. There are TWENTY stores taking part this month – and you have to visit the store to discover the prim count of each of the pieces featured in the magazine. You’ll find instructions on how to find the prim count for an item on our Treasure Hunt Information page.

Today’s clue comes from Sky Everett’s store, L’Utopie . I’ve written about Sky before, and her wonderful use of textures – in fact, Sky wrote a masterclass article on how to produce texture effects for the September issue of Prim Perfect – it’s well worth a read – and well worth trying out the methods that she suggests!

The chair, which is her piece in this month’s treasure hunt, is a lovely example of Sky’s work. Deep rouge velvet, patterned with gold thread, with the nap on the velvet almost palpable in the light. The shape of the chair is interesting too, open and expansive, with a place to support the back of your legs .. half a chair and half a throne – which concept the top of the chair seems to support as the diamond shapes form almost a crown behind the sitter’s head …

For the competition, what you have to do is to find as many prim counts as you can, and send the details to primperfect@gmail.com, including your avatar name and an answer to the tiebreak question (which you’ll find in the magazine on Page 28). The person to find the most prim counts will win – and in the event of a tie, we will use the tie-breaker.

Also: – you don’t necessarily have to find every prim count to win a prize! Just find as many as you can – by Octover 15th.

See our earlier clues here:

September Treasure Hunt: Clue 1 – Twist and Mila Designs
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 2 – Shop Domak.dk
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 3 – Fire and Water
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 4 – Bygone Days
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 5 – Mission Home Store
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 6 – Something Fishy
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 7 – Sofia’s Furniture
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 8 – Botanika
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 9 – Cache
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 10 – True North Designs
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 11 – Sweetbay Designs
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 12 – Corduroy
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 13 – The Loft³
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 14 – Marie Curie Branch Library
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 15 – La Belle Vie
September Treasure Hunt: Clue 16 – Heart Garden Centre

Another clue will be coming very soon!

Read Full Post »

A Dream in the Sky

You may recall that a little while ago, I wrote about Lavanya Fantasy Suites, where you could hire that dream romantic location by the hour or by the day. But the suites are not the only thing that Lavanya offers.

If you turn the corner from the amazing array of rentals in the central area, you’ll find a sign for Lavanya’s pre-fabs (and another for the condominiums, but we’ll look at that another time). Choosing the prefabs will lift you high into the air and onto her skyway, where an amazing array of prefabs will greet your astonished eyes.

Make no mistake, these are no ordinary prefabs. For one thing, they are all beautifully and equisitely designed and furnished. For Lavanya Holdings seems to have a mainline into many of our favourite fantasies, and has created a prefab that will fulfil that need. Just take a stroll down the astonishing skyway. There’s the opulence of Eastern palaces, a riot of rich cushions and rippling fountains. But there’s the Pacific beach hut lifted to wildly extravagant luxury, and the white clapboard house ready to be placed on some long pale North Eastern seaboard beach.

The prefabs are being added to all the time. When I called in, I was shown a delightful Italian villa that was still being worked on, a home, it seemed, all ready for a Contessa of delightful tastes. By the time you go, there may well be several more to admire.

Some of these are clearly designed to have their foundations (or perhaps their stilts) planted firmly on the ground. But some of these are equally designed for the sky. I was very taken with the collection of opulent roundels that came complete with a vast propellor underneath to keep the whole rich confection in the air. But I was completely smitten by the plain box you see at the head of this article.

Because once you step inside, you’ll find yourself in the most amazing hideaway – a series of elegant white terraces with strewn roses and a plethora of rugs and couches. To say nothing of a pool for cavorting in – no, you really couldn’t swim in this pool. You just have to cavort.

And inxorably the stairs and their romantic nooks lead you upwards to a wickedly luxurious bed where, doubtless, with a quite unparalleled view, you’ll be able to do some more cavorting.

Clicking on the wider picture here will give you just a taster of the place. But this is one that you really should go and see for yourself. Lavanya Hartnell, her partner Dode Goodliffe and their small and brilliant team have excelled themselves.

You’ll never look at prefabs (or skyboxes, certainly) in quite the same way again.

Read Full Post »

An Early Love Revisited

I can trace my love of design to two key influences from my childhood and teen years: Cotswold Stone and William Morris. And now I’ve found a Second Life designer who shares both my loves – followmeimthe PiedPiper (known as Pip to her friends) who has a wonderful store called Sweetbay Designs on the Sweetbay sim.

My first encounters with Cotswold stone came early. When I was young, periodically we’d travel from our home in the Midlands to my aunt and uncle who lived south of London. Nowadays, that journey can be accomplished in two and a half, maybe three gruelling hours – firstly on the fairly pleasant (as motorways go) M40, followed by the hell of the M25 (rightly described by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett in their wonderful novel Bad Omens as a sigil of the Devil*) followed by the purgatory of local South London traffic.

But when I was young, the journey took most of the day, and was an adventure. We’d break it at Woodstock, and wander around the small town, looking at the cottages and shops in their Cotswold stone. But this would only be one of the many villages we passed or saw on signposts, with traditional English names like Chipping Norton and Long Compton, Great Tew and Shipton-under-Wychwood, and plump cottages with their thatched roofs resting on the stone that glowed honey gold in sunlight.

And, of course, now I live in Oxford, that gleaming golden city on the edge of the Cotswolds, with its ancient colleges that soak up sunlight and reflect it back atcha. And its beauty was one of the reasons I’ve long chosen to make my home here.

So I was delighted to discover a designer who is attempting to capture that in Second Life. You can see it here, perhaps, in Pip’s recreation of the Palladian bridge at Wilton – a lovely, meticulous design in itself to be found in the garden close to her store. But trace it through the day – from night to dawn to day to evening – and see how the colour of the stone changes over time.

Pip doesn’t just use Cotswold stone in her work – as you can see in her lovely copy of Monet’s famous bridge – but she does work with it beautifully – as you can see in her Orangery, both by day and by night. In fact, she has a wide range of Victorian greenhouses and other garden buildings, as you can see on her website: www.sweetbaydesigns.co.uk/

And my second early love? Well, that’s the designer William Morris, whose work I discovered as a teenager. He had a fascinating life, and produced an amazing array of materials of various kinds – including wallpapers, printed books, tapestry, stained glass, furniture, poetry … His passion for craftsmanship was an inspiration to the Art and Crafts movement.

I must say that I’ve been a little surprised not to see more examples of Morris’s work in Second Life. Perhaps I’m just looking in the wrong places; if any of you have come across it, please let me know!

But Pip has been using Morris wallpaper in her lovely Cotswold manor – as you can see here with – and, as is traditional in a certain style of Victorian design that echoes wainscotting, different styles of paper above and below the rail. I’d warn that you can only do that in large rooms – it gets a bit intense in a regular room!

Pip uses Morris designs in other parts of her work as well – do take a trip to Sweetbay Designs and see her take on the standard relaxing rug – it’s quite gorgeous.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* “Many phenomena — wars, plagues, sudden audits — have been advanced as evidence for the hidden hand of Satan in the affairs of Man, but whenever students of demonology get together the M25 London orbital motorway is generally agreed to be among the top contenders for exhibit A.”

— from Good Omens, by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.

This is because (in the book) the M25 was actually moulded by demonic forces during its planning so as to resemble, from space, a mystic demonic sigil.

from Wikipedia on the M25

Read Full Post »