New Explorations

This weekend I realized I had not left Caledon or Winterfell to explore Second Life in weeks and weeks. There is so much to see here but sometimes one can become isolated in the social fabric. Therefore, Kaye and I packed up the bustles and hats. After a long day at the RFL Swashbuckling Ball & Auction, I was ready for a change. Kaye and I first went to see the Crystal Palace exhibit where we found more clothes to buy. When the exhibit completely opens next month, it will be a sight to see. Noticing explorer outfits, Kaye remembered she had once purchased a camping kit. Ahhh, back to Winterfell so she could see the crate's title. We whipped out casual hiking outfits and took off for Virtual Africa. We wandered around this beautiful sim looking at the animals, being scared by a huge spider, floating on a raft, and generally enjoying ourselves. We dropped to rest at the swinging bridge treehouse. Kaye kinda turned into "Oprah" while I "unloaded" assorted soapy baggage. (Oh, the drama sometimes!) We end our journey with quite a bit of silliness - which included trying to land on a rhino! Kaye almost made it!Go out explore your Second Life - one never knows what or who is waiting on the next sim!

Crystal Palace: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Sterling%20Grove/87/128/22
Virtual Africa: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Virtual%20Africa/135/85/23
And of course, if you need boots for stomping around, these are from my favorite shoe store - Shiny Things for the Glossy Ribbon Boots with changeable color ribbons hud: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Shiny%20Falls/173/180/37
Hair by Cake - Berlin in Cocoa http://slurl.com/secondlife/FNKY%20Cake/129/76/26

Walking around Caledon

First things first! The clothes are pretty, the gardens wave in the breeze and the homes are cooler than anything I will ever live in. However, for a "shoe person," Victorian and other period shoes typically leave something to be desired in SL. I spent days hiding my feet underneath my bustles since the occasional shoes included with an outfit were pretty bland.

Taking myself to Google, I researched period costumes and footwear. Research showed that the proper Victorian miss wore half boots or high lace-up or button leather boots for everyday wear outside. Proper shoes included a mule with low heels usually decorated with buttons, bows, and embroidery. For formal dress, shoes could be satin flats tied about the ankle or just slip on's.

Shopping for shoes to match period costumes now became a treasure hunt - for there are some treasures hiding out there.

Victorian Boots @ Shiny Things
All the shoes at Shiny Things are treasures! Wish I could find shoes this nice looking in Real Life. For those "shoe people" (you know who you are!) you will love these models to peek out from under your crinolines or swaying gowns.

Lady Victorian Boots - These half boots come in several colors plus basic black. Leather with brocade inserts with buttons plus an ankle ruffle that hides the weird ankle effect in SL. The neatest trick is that these boots are one piece - no adjusting between the boot and ankle sections.















Ruffle Boots - These leather half boots also with buttons come in black, red, coffee, and chocolate. These were the first shoes I purchased! I needed to find boots for jeans and pants that didn't have the calf section poking out of the pants fabric. (Of course, now I know to look for jeans that have the two layers - pants or underwear.) These worked beautifully! Of course, now they go with those lovely Victorian walking dresses.

















Ballet Slippers come in multiple colors such as these flats also from Shiny Things. Several shops sell variations of this style. Just like brides or prom girls in RL, the stylish miss in Victorian or medieval play can wear these for dancing slippers.