PLEASE NOTE: My blog is still on indefinite hiatus; I have made a single exception for this blogpost. After this, I will be going back on my self-imposed break from blogging.
CATWA has announced that the one-day giveaway of their HDPRO Queen Bakes on Mesh, Bento female mesh head has been extended by ONE DAY ONLY, so you have until 11:59 p.m. SLT/Pacific time TODAY, March 26th, 2021, to visit one of the following four special promo sims to pick up your head for only one Linden dollar. After today, the Queen head will retail for L$5,910, so this is a truly exceptional bargain that you should not pass up, even if you already have a favourite Bento mesh head! Pick one up anyway today, when it’s 99.98% off, and stash it away in your inventory for a rainy day when you feel like switching your look!
QUEEN will be available for one linden purchase price until [26th MARCH 11:59PM SL TIME]. We thank you for the overwhelming response to this offer. We also thank Linden Lab for their help in setting up the additional sims. Landmarks are in CATWA groups. We have set up 4 sims for the promo, Landmarks were sent to both of CATWA groups. Make sure to use those LMs as it’s the only way to get in because all of the sims are NEW!
Each promo sim has 9 vendors; simply pay the vendor L$1 (it will not be refunded). The vendors all look like this (you do not need to join any group to use them):
If you are impatient and have received the message that you can use the delivery terminal, feel free to use the redelivery terminal on each of the promo sims or at the CATWA main store to get your HDPRO Queen head delivered (I found I had to do this for several of my alts).
Please note that all four sims are jam-packed with avatars trying to pick up this freebie today, so please be patient. You might want to use a tool like the handy free Teleport Hammer to fight your way in. (Remember that if you are a Premium member, you get priority access to overcrowded sims.)
Below is what theHDPRO Queen head looks like, with the included mesh eyes, and using one of the included head skins (a BoM tatto layer) and the default eyebrow shaper and body shape, without any adjustments to the sliders (you will have to find system/Bakes on Mesh skins to match the head tattoos included in the package):
Here is what the head looks like with the Elvira skin by 7 Deadly S[k]ins, paired with the Kalhene Ariadna mesh body (a freebie which is unfortunately no longer available):
Happy freebie shopping!
UPDATE 11:15 a.m.: Cat Pink SL has posted a 40-minute livestream on YouTube about the CATWA HDPRO Queen head (it’s in Spanish with some English):
As my regular blog readers know, I have a drag queen avatar in Second Life, named MissDrag, and I have written about doing drag in SL before (here, here, and here).
Now, in the real world, I have never (yet!) picked up a makeup brush or cinched my waist (as if!) to fit into some eleganza extravaganza ballgown and lipsync for my life, but despite this lack of real-life experience, please let a truly seasoned DIGITAL drag superstar (well, in my own French vanilla fantasy, anyway) share a few tips on how to get started in Second Life drag.
First, understand this: THERE ARE NO RULES IN DRAG.RULES ARE MEANT TO BE BROKEN. DRAG WAS AND STILL CAN BE A TRANSGRESSIVE ART FORM. So feel free to break some rules about what a drag queen (or drag king!) should look like.
Given the virtually endless avatar customization options in Second Life, your drag can be anybody (and anything) you like! Start with a male body, start with a female body, start with something in-between, or start with something completely different: a mermaid, a centaur, or a technicolor whirlwind of animated pixels! Whatever you can dream up, you can create for your own unique, signature look!
I mean, if you stop to think about it, everybody in Second Life is already doing drag. It’s actually a lot harder to recreate your actual, real-life look than it is to start from scratch with a blank canvas! (Although if that’s your scene, more power to you, boo. It’s your Second Life; make it what you want!)
Well, I woke up one morning Flossed my teeth and decided “Damn, I’m fierce!” You look good! You can be just like me! A goddess? Yeah! Don’t just pussy foot around and sit on your assets Unleash your ferocity upon an unsuspecting world Rise up and repeat after me: “I’m beautiful!”
—I’m Beautiful, by Bette Midler
In real life, I am a 56-year-old, gay, divorced academic librarian who spends waaay too much time on the Internet, and is significantly overweight, asthmatic, and sometimes struggles with clinical depression, but in Second Life, I am Vanity Fair, the absolutely fabulous former supermodel 😉
I mean, if this is not drag, then what is? I just choose to unleash my ferocity upon an unsuspecting virtual world instead of the real world!
My main avatar Vanity Fair: Everybody in Second Life is doing some form of (digital) drag. (This delightful Lou belted minidress is a free gift from Asteria, by the way!)
Now that we have firmly established that there are no rules, there are, however, a few general tips and guidelines. First: BIG HAIR, mawma! (Although many well-known real-world drag queens like are rocking the bald look, too!).
The higher the hair, the closer to God.
—Dolly Parton
If Dolly speaks the truth, then this next hairstyle is truly divine! This is the Hunny wig from Zsa Zsa’s House of Beauty, home of the finest drag queen wigs on the grid.
It comes the fabulous wig wall at Zsa Zsa’s Haus of Beauty (exact SLURL, open your map and follow the red arrow from your initial spawn point on the Tableau sim):
Here’s the full look, from head to toe:
Another guideline which can be observed or discarded as you see fit: accessories are all-important.
Purse first!
—Bob the Drag Queen
This wonderful purse is the Love Loca handbag from Vive Nine/Ryvolter (here’s the exact SLURL):
This purse comes in various versions with different Bento poses, hanging from your shoulder, elbow, hand or even just one finger!
This avatar is wearing:
Mesh Head: Freya by Catwa (free group gift, no longer available for free; more details here)
Mesh Body and Nail Polish: Romeo by Altamura (this was a free group gift for Valentine’s Day 2019; the Altamura group costs L$100 to join, but I had joined back when it only cost L$50)
Hair: Hunny wig by Zsa Zsa’s House of Beauty (L$235)
Eye Shadow: Pride Galaxy eye shadow by Dotty’s Secret (free group gift; group costs L$75 to join, but I took advantage of a free group join period in the past)
Lipstick: the high-definition lipstick is included in the Catwa Freya package
Purse: the Loca Love handbag in black from Vive Nine/Ryvolter (L$249 per colour)
Shoes: I picked up these female sandals and tintable feet by Ydea (which completely replace the masculine feet of the Romeo mesh avatar!) from The Free Dove, but they are no longer available there, and unfortunately, I cannot find them anywhere else in-world or on the SL Marketplace. No matter. I’m sure you can get similarly creative for your own drag look!
TOTAL COST FOR THIS DRAG LOOK: Only L$534! (L$50 to join the Altamura group, L$235 for the wig, and L$249 for the handbag)
Now we turn from day wear to evening wear! Check out this sickening lewk!
This avatar is again wearing the Freya mesh head by Catwa (which includes the lipstick you see here) and the Romeo mesh body by Altamura, plus:
Hair: Eleganza wig from Zsa Zsa’s House of Beauty (L$180)
Eyeshadow and Eyebrows: Vanilla makeup set by Dotty’s Secret (L$200)
Choker: the Nefert golden choker was a free gift from Poison Rouge at the recently-concluded 5th anniversary round of the Très Chic shopping event
Purse: the Loca Love handbag in red by Vive Nine/Ryvolter (L$249 per colour)
Shoes: The same Ydea sandals and shoes as above (no longer available)
TOTAL COST FOR THIS DRAG LOOK: Only L$879! (L$50 to join the Altamura group for the Romeo body, L$200 for the Vanilla makeup, L$180 for the wig, L$200 for the full-perms gown, and L$249 for the purse)
So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and put together your own drag on a dime! And feel free to send Auntie Ryan pictures of your eleganza extravaganza!
And don’t forget to hit the SL Pride Festival to pick up some free gifts to help you create that signature look; the festival closes today! Here is more information on the Pride Festival.
Look, I realize that I am absolutely powerless to do anything about the malignant narcissist who is currently inhabiting the White House in the United States (and as a Canadian, I can’t even vote his incompetent ass out of office come November).
However, I still do have one potent tool at my disposal, and after 14 years in Second Life, I have become an expert at wielding it: styling a complete Second Life avatar look from head to toe! (Too bad I can’t make any money at it.)
And so, late last year, well and truly fed up with the antics of Donald Trump, I decided to use my skills to create a parody version of Twitler himself!
My inspiration for the following avatar look came from a six-metre-high inflatable balloon depicting Donald Trump as a snarling orange baby (grasping a cellphone from which he launches his tweets), which first was flown in London, during a memorable protest against Trump’s visit to the U.K. on July 13th, 2018 (the balloon is so iconic, it even has its own Wikipedia entry!):
The Trump baby blimp (source: BBC)
This was my Before look, an avatar with a Catwa Stanley head and a Signature Gianni body (who shall remain nameless since entering the Second Life Avatar Protection Program for his own safety after participating in this makeover!):
And here is my After look!
Trump Baby in action
This avatar is wearing:
Mesh Head: the Stanley Bento mesh head by Catwa (L$5,000)
Mesh Body: the Gianni mesh body by Signature (L$4,000; the shape came with the Donald skin applier below)
Skin Applier: Donald by Session for the head, L$399, and a matching Omega applier for the body, L$299
Animation Override: Bento Fat Boy AO by Voir (L$349)
Diaper: Tushiez diaper version 3.0 by the Imagination Factory (L$349 on the SL Marketplace; the diaper even makes crinkling noises as he walks!)
Animated Pacifier: Pa-w-cifier (Pawpers edition) by Little Space Kreations (free on the SL Marketplace); here’s a short video of it in action:
TOTAL COST FOR THIS AVATAR LOOK: L$9,748 (and WORTH. EVERY. GODDAMN. PENNY.)
Needless to day, I have taken this avatar for several spins around the grid, and he has already been banned from several sims (including a few adult ones!), and politely asked to leave a few others for overstaying his welcome. In fact, he attracts so much vitriol that I only pull him out for special occasions, like this blogpost!
So, what do you think? Should I rent him out for in-world protests, weddings, and bar mitzvahs? 😉 I could just have a booming business on my hands!
Mermaid and merman role-play in Second Life is perennially popular (sometimes combined with pirate role-play). I have had a mermaid avatar in Second Life for as long as I can remember, although I must confess that I do not pull her out that often nowadays.
Here is what my mermaid avatar looked like before her makeover, a system-layers-and-flexiprims look cobbled together from various freebie mermaid outfits I picked up over the years (the lovely mesh tail was a recent free hunt gift from Solas NaGealai of BlueMoon Enterprise):
Mermaid: Before Look
Well, I decided to give my mermaid one of my patented fifteen-minute avatar makeovers today, to move from a classic, system avatar to 100% mesh!
Here is what she looks like now:
Mermaid: After Look
This avatar is wearing:
Mesh Head: the Freya Bento mesh head from Catwa (free group gift; the Catwa group is free to join; more information here). TODAY IS THE LAST DAY YOU CAN PICK UP THIS FABULOUS FREEBIE!
Lipstick: HD Lipstick (part of the Freya package, this comes in a wide variety of colours).
Hair: this absolutely perfect mermaid hair is called Spring Briar Fae Hair, which I picked up for free at a Crazy Hair Hunt many years ago now. I combined it with a hairbase from the Catwa Master HUD, tinting both it and the eyebrows on the Freya head to match.
Choker: This beautiful golden Nefert choker is a free group gift from Poison Rouge at the current round of the Très Chic shopping event (you can join the Très Chic group for free). It hides the slight mismatch between the skin tones on the Freya head and Classic body perfectly!
Mermaid Bra and Tail: This is a freebie, too! Just join the Arata Shouten group for free, and check the group notices for this lovely gift (which was my impetus for making this blogpost). You’ll need to alpha out your legs, of course, using the included Classic Meshbody HUD.
Mermaid Animation Override: I picked up this mermaid AO as part of a free hunt gift at FallnAngel Creations many years ago. (If you hunt around at the various mermaid role-play areas in SL, you might find a freebie mermaid/merman AO.)
TOTAL COST FOR THIS AVATAR LOOK: ONLY L$1! (for the Classic mesh body from Meshbody). Everything else was free!
