28 December, 2010

we don't care about the message or the rules they make

"Admittedly, there’s a chilly thrill in moving with the herd while quietly being tuned in to something dark, complicated, and unknown just beneath the topsoil of popularity."

Patton Oswalt wrote that, and the entire article is brilliant. And eerily feasible. Are we too caught up in pop culture analysis to heed his warnings? Probably. Still worth the time to read.

So, back to reviews.

This was nowhere near the level of the Caverna Obscura/Evie's Closet brouhaha, but some interesting allegations have come to light. Unfortunately, because I can't find other verification, it's pretty much a she said/she also said situation, so ethically, I don't feel like I can do much from the accusation end of things.

What I can do is review the two outfits in question, and to that end, I've finally acquired both of them.

First: Elvenbreath's "Maylea" gown. It only comes in white; well, it says white on the vendor, but what you get is a softly glowing, pale pink and muted red outfit, that flows in a silken, nearly liquid fashion from the hips.

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It's a mix of system layers and prim bits, and it's completely integrated. The only adjustment I did was on the collar piece (shown in the third picture).

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It's definitely fantasy wear; Elvenbreath's main consumers are fae, elves and Gorean women who want to look drop-dead beautiful. And that's not a bad mix to have; as most of the fae designers on the grid know, there's a lot of crossover between fae and Gor (about the same amount as between Gorean Free Women and Victorian ladies, to be truthful; most Free Womens' attire can be worn swimmingly in steampunk and Victorian sims--just remove the veil, perhaps add a hat, and you're good to go).

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The only piece I adjusted was the collar, as said, and truthfully, it didn't even need that much. It's very nearly wearable as is, it just needed to be moved down a fraction of an inch. All in all, it's lovely, elegant, and appropriate for elven soirées to sinuous dancers in Gor, and quite likely beyond. Satin beachwear? Fantastic lingerie? Add some spikes in the right color tones, you have demonic queen; add wings, you might have angel. Very flexible outfit.

(The hair is Deviant Kitties' "Mary" in White. The eyes are Pixeldolls' "Starry-Eyed" in Ruby, no longer available. The skin was a holiday freebie from 2009; don't remember where I got it, because--amusingly--the maker defaults to "newbie_template Linden". The antlers are mine, currently only available on the Marketplace. Yes, yes, I gave in finally; shush.)

Second: Wishbox's "Cassiopeia" in Royal Purple. I thought about getting it in one of their paler tones, but figured, if I'm going to wear this at all, I should get it in a color I'll actually want to wear, and their paler tones just did nothing for me.

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First off, surface impressions. Yes, they have a similar--but by no means exact--scalloped top. Here's the big difference: Wishbox's is prim. Entirely. That was the biggest adjustment on this outfit, frankly, which I'm still not sure I got right. I think I either need to shrink the top or inflate the breasts, not sure which.

(By the way, as an entirely prim top? It clocks in at a sim-punishing 241 prims. This is pretty much just a photo outfit now.)

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The skirt is held on kind of similarly, but not exactly. There are loops, yes, but multiple, not single, and the skirt is more "skirt" and less "silks", because it is a full circle skirt, as opposed to Elvenbreath's multi-panels that expose the wearer from ankle to hip. (The belt for the skirt, though, adds another 167 prims. Yipe.)

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I have to say, though, sim-crushing or not--the primwork is exquisite on this one. It pulls off delicate and feminine while still appearing supportive enough for the weight of the sumptuously textured material hanging from each finely silvered bit of chain. The maker states this is for the "Moon Elf Priestess", and sure, that does explain the crescent moon details, but to be fair, I think anyone fae- or fantasy-inclined could wear this without difficulty.

Well, unless you wanted to move.

Or rez anything in.

My conclusion: they're inspired from the same single source, perchance, be that movie or runway, but they're not inspired directly by each other. Unless I hear otherwise, I don't see evidence of direct copying.

(And I should also add, finishing off, that neither designer has complained; this was an entirely separate occurrence.)

4 comments:

Icterus Dagger said...

I think everyone has their "Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac" moment. As a former (and sometimes current) metal head, one such otaku invasion for me was when my best friend's sister was singing along to Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" on the local pop station.

-iD

Emilly Orr said...

I will say, though, living in the post-geek world, there are cool versions of the 'Deadhead' moment. For me, one of the coolest was hearing Jonathan Coulton's version of "Baby Got Back". Which made me a diehard Coulton fan and made me realize how fun the original song was.

Then, of course, it turned up in Shrek...that was the flip side of that coin.

Icterus Dagger said...

...and I *like* Shrek.. hmm... Interesting Times indeed.

-iD

Emilly Orr said...

Oh, don't get me wrong, it was a great use of the song. But having an eight-year-old wander through the house singing loudly "I like big buttz and I cannot lie..." was just the merest bit disorienting to the thought processes.

hide away, they say, 'cos we don't want your broken parts

Yeah, so...remember that thing I was recovering from? You know, last year ? Yeah. I did it again. So this is Em Faw Down Go Boom part ...