Sunday, June 10, 2007

How about a little Romance?





Everybody needs a little romance and now you can buy it! It doesn't get any better than that.

My latest release is soft and feminine with several wear options. I went for more fruity summery colors and a light delicately patterned fabric. The mini and long skirt are both sheer but not bare and you could even wear the top and bottom as a one piece swimsuit if you were so inclined.

I matched the dresses up with some simple slide sandals on blonde wood soles made in the same color matched fabrics so if you want shoes that match exactly you can purchase those as well.

The entire outfit is simple elegance, not alot of distractions, just cool, feminine lines. I think this is the dress for all those romantic summer evenings and dresses up or down very easily.

Enjoy!

<3 Solange

Saturday, June 02, 2007

NEW RELEASE! The beautiful and mysterious Kadin

My latest design, Kadin, was incredibly fun to make and an outfit i was tempted to keep just for me! :)) I've spent weeks putting all the pieces together and I didn't realize how HUGE this release was until I started boxing it up. .. over 150 different items.. oof! No wonder it took so long hehe! As always, I've paid great attention to detail and textures and I think you will be very pleased with the results. But on to the descriptions and details...

This outfit comes in 6 colors and 2 trim choices of silver or gold. It is covered in rich embroidery, delicate embossed silk as well as rich trims. You get 4 Flex! skirt versions as well as two sashes, a short jacket, top and thong, as well as pants. The pants can be worn with or without the harem cuffs and any of the belts or skirts, or without. Just as the skirts and sashes can be worn with just the the thong or belt (depending on how much you wish to show).



You can also purchase a matching veil with circlet to complete the look and harem slippers or loafers, all highly detailed and color coordinated to match. The Veils come draped or undraped and include the highly detailed circlet in your choice of gemstones and metal. The harem slippers have the turkish flavor with a curled to while the harem loafers are more casual and can also be worn with your favorite pair of jeans.


I also created an very detailed jewelry set that you can buy separately or as a discounted set.
The jewelry set includes a special piece called a nath (or nose chain) that i absolutely love. It is a symbol of amorousness in india and indian brides still wear them occasionally in traditional indian weddings. It comes in Sapphire, Ruby, Onyx, Pearl, Emerald, Amethyst or Solid Gold or Solid Silver. You can also get either silver or gold metal for each gem and piece.

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Enjoy :)


History of the Kadin...

"Women of the Turkish harems were well educated, being able to read and write Turkish, French, Latin, Greek, and whatever other languages were appropriate. They were instructed in art, music, history, court customs and etiquette, as well as the arts of physical pleasure.
Days were full for these women, since each was assigned some sort of light housekeeping task according to her ability or talent. All women were expected to be proficient in the womanly arts such as embroidery and household administration. Additionally there were structured times for eating, bathing, and exercise.

The harems of the Ottomans evolved into highly structured and hierarchical systems, with a distinct pecking order. The expectation was that any woman who entered the harem as a possible companion for the Sultan would try to ascend this ladder of power and position.
There were many women in the harems, of course. Slaves, dancers and other entertainers, educators, retired concubines, and many more. But our fascination is with those women who were destined, if they were lucky enough, smart enough, and beautiful enough, to attract the notice of the Sultan.

Upon entering the harem, these women, who may have been gifted, or even bought by the Sultan's emissaries, entered a dormitory-like group called an oda. The women slept, ate, and studied in one large room under the supervision of an older woman, usually one of the Sultan's favorites who had grown old in his service. At this stage, the maidens were called gediklis, the privileged ones.

Should a gedliki attract the attention of the Sultan in some way, she was immediately assigned the title of guzdeh, and given her own apartments and slaves. Her "allowance" was increased, and her status in the harem increased proportionately.

If a woman was summoned to the bed of the Sultan and pleased him, she became an ikbal, a favorite one. Again, she moved to larger quarters and received an increased stipend. The competition among the ikbals was fierce, for once a favorite of the Sultan, the next step was the Ottoman equivalent of "wife."

No Ottoman Sultan until Suleiman the Great, married any of his women. But the Sultans did have four Kadins. The Kadins were the equivalent of wives, and attained their titles by being the first four women to bear living children to the Sultan. Only the death of a Kadin's children resulted in her demotion and the elevation of an ikbal with living children to her place.

The title of Bas Kadin was reserved for the first of the Kadins to bear a living son to the Sultan. In other words, the Bas Kadin was the mother of the heir. She was supreme in the harem, deferring only to the Sultan Valideh. " (Excerpt from The Seraglio)

I hope you enjoyed that little bit of history! And I hope you enjoy the new designs as much as i do.

<3>

Thursday, April 05, 2007

NEW! Warrior Silk







Yah, I'm thinking... Conan the Barbarian. What can I say, I like men in, well, not much! =P

This started out as an update of the old Peacock design but mutated into something so much more. The guys get a ton of variations in this new Peacock Silk for men.

2 Versions of the shinguards
2 Versions of the armbands
4 Versions of the FLEX loin cloth
Bracers, Circlet, Chest Straps and even a Chest Medallion along with variations of the thong or the option to just wear the belt and go commando underneath it all... oh my! *covers her eyes*

Again I broke out the big crayola box so I'm offering 18 rich shades to choose from and plenty of wear options. There is lots of attention to detail and the fabric is a rich shaded brocade on the solid versions and a shimmery silk with inlaid design on the sheer styles.

Enjoy! I know I will.... woot!

<3 Solange

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Sexy, Sultry, Silky...







I love silks. I can't help it. They just call to me those wonderful old movies about the roman empire, or even the movie Gladiator. Just beautiful to look at and so feminine. Even if you don't enjoy the D/s or Gorean lifestyle they are still fun to wear and make me feel sexy. It's like lingerie with a twist!

Anyway, this newest release is a remake of the old Peacock Kajira silk that I made before FLEX existed. It was my first silk and is still lovely but sadly outdated. Instead of toss it in the trash bin I decided to give it a makeover. I've learned so much about designing since then so was eager to apply my new "l33t PS skilz" to an old design. I think I'll be redoing a few of my older styles as I just don't think they reflect where I am today in my designing and I know they could be improved. So look for some updates on old styles in the coming months. Yes months because I'm a slow ass designer and I know it.

This silk comes with 4 skirts; A long and short option in a sheer silk with subtle inlaid pattern and a long and short option in the solid brocade with brass and silver metal trim. You can go commando under the silk by just wearing the belt or don the panties for a more discreet appearance. The top comes in sheer and solid version as well. I've included armbands with a long sheer silk drape and a chest adornment (2 of them actually, one attaches at chest, one at spine, so if you wear a collar you can wear the chest adornment on the OTHER attachment).

The accent jewelry is sold separately and you can read the post below this one to see the details on that.

The men's Peacock should be available by the weekend and I'm so excited about it. Think .. Gladiator .. sexy style! Yummmmmm.

Ok that's it for my posts today. I'm all caught up til the next release! Yay!!!!

Party on!

<3 Solange

Silver and Gold Peacock Jewelry Set




This is the new jewelry set to go with the updated Peacock silk I'll be posting pics on soon. This set feels like something from one of those old movies like The Ten Commandments with the captive slave beauty all bedecked in finery. A beautiful desert flower in silver and gold, silks flowing as she walks... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.... err.. yah.. back to reality. I am not a persian beauty in real life, I am not a persian beauty in real life, I am not a.. what? why you looking at me like that?? Everyone needs a reality check now and then... dammit!

You can buy the pieces separately or buy the whole pack and save some linden. It comes scripted so you can click on the pearl stone and pull up a color change menu. I did this so you could match it to any of the peacock silks you choose (or some other outfit you have, whichever works :) ). I like the idea of selling the jewelry separately so you only have to buy it once instead of buying it with every silk package. Money saving is good, mmmkay.

Look for yet another post later today for the new silks. The female version is out today, the men's version is still a couple days away.

<3 Solange

Better late than never!






I've been slacking on my blog posts but I think it's because when I was creating this outfit SL decided to not rez textures or prims or and I was just too DONE from fighting with the grid to contemplate posting. But here I am now with piktars! I have been having a lot of fun playing with colors and highlights and shading lately so you all are just going to have to put up with my new big box of crayola's for awhile. If I start introducing colors like sienna and burnt orange feel free to tell me to give the crayola box back to my nephews where it belongs!

I love this texture. It's very rich and presents the colors in a subtle variation of shading for the top and panties. The metallic trim accents it beautifully I think. The sheer silk babydoll has the same inlaid pattern but also has a slight shimmer added to it. This was inspired by me wanting to rework an old silk, the first one I made actually. I decided to use the same texture and metal work but make it into something more mainstream. I'm happy with the results.

I'll still be redoing the old silk to update it but as usual I got sidetracked by another inspiration hehe. My muse just never likes to work on a schedule, fussy thing!

I don't have much else to say as I'm busy trying to get the remake of the silks done as promised and get another post up so enjoy my latest lingerie and look for another post soonish!

<3 Solange

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Isn't it ironic...













It's been gorgeous weather for about a week now and it totally inspired me to make this casual Summer Dare outfit as I was running around in shorts and loving spring! Today I release it and it is pouring rain and cold again. I find that incredibly funny.

This is also my first attempt at jeans and, actually, I've been runnin' around in those jeans for a few weeks and really liked them but wasn't feeling confident to actually release them to the public. Jeans are such a personal thing, ya know? We all have our own idea of what looks and feels good when it comes to them. I was thinking, well, I love them but I'm a goober... then I thought about it and remembered a few of you are too =P.

The Summer Dare outfit comes with a black version and a blue version of the jeans as well as 3 tops in varying shades. The tops shades are mirrored on the patches on the jeans to color coordinate them and give the outfit a country girl casual look that I'm really enjoying right now. You can also buy just the jeans separately without the patches for 75L each if you like them and want to be wear them with the bazillion other tops you have in your inventory.

Also, if you missed it, I gave away a couple freebies for St. Patrick's Day. If you aren't in my Fashion Group you should join up so you don't miss out! You can still get the Shamrock Dare Top for 1L in the Bargain Basement of my main store. Quite a bargain if I say so m'self!



The Back in Green outfit is also out for sale in the store if you aren't in group and missed the giveaway and just gotta have it. This is the first complete outfit I made when I had just started to design and it is still, surprisingly to me, a hot seller. After doing it over in green and looking at it I think I may make a few changes on it and do more colors now I know a bit more about making clothes. We'll see, I may just stay lazy!



Ok, I think that's it from me today. I've got a couple more outfits in the works but couldn't tell you when they'll be out.

Oh! One last note. Shiny Things released a new Boho Leather Sandal in 4 shades that looks absolutely faboo with the new Summer Dare outfit. I love those sandals and have been wearing them for a week. On Queenie Extraordinaire's blog I think she has a link to Shiny Things new blog so you can get a peek at the new stuff now just by surfing that. Too cool.

Check my sidebar for links to Queenie, Second Style, etc... I'll add more when I get off my lazy butt and do it.

<3 Solange

Saturday, March 10, 2007

I Double Dog Dare you!

NEW RELEASE! - DARE!










This new release is probably my favorite design so far. I was experimenting in photoshop with some new techniques and was so excited with the results. Dare! features a sheer chiffon slightly ruffled mini skirt that seems to flow like cream when you move. It's topped with an almost handkerchief shirt style cut top except the lowcut neckline, silver (or gold) lame' accents and silver strapped back combine to make this outfit anything but casual. This is definately my must wear outfit next time I hit the clubs! Errr... should I call you first before I go to make sure we don't show up wearing the same color? Let me know!

Hope you love this one as much as I do! I also included a hottie pack so you can buy all 8 for a 25% savings if you are like me and always want one in every color. Enjoy!

<3 <3 Solange