The Hallowe’en 2020 Shop and Hop event is back, with 16 sims groaning with free gifts for you! Every booth has at least one free gift, and a few of them offer more than one! This popular shopping event runs from Oct. 6th to Nov. 1st, 2022. Here’s a handy alphabetical list of all the vendors participating.
As before, I am NOT going to cover the Shop and Hop event in detail here on the blog. Instead, I have compiled a notecard of my picks for the best and most fabulous freebies, free store credit offers, and gift cards, and posted it to the Second Life group I maintain, called the RyanSchultz.com Steals, Deals & Freebies group (the group costs L$50 to join; more information here). My notecard includes the exact SLURL for each freebie, for you to pop in, pick up your gift, and move on to the next score, for the most efficient freebie shopping experience! (Note that SL’s list of stores in the paragraph above has several SLURLs which stick you behind store walls!)
As always, there are many offers of free store credit and gift cards; here are my picks:
Addams – L$300 (group join fee L$5)
Blackstone – L$300
GGVG – L$500
Luna Chelsea – L$500
MALified – L$400
Mirage (home decor) – L$500
Nuve – L$300 (expires Oct. 31st, 2022)
Poison Rouge – L$350
Paper Sparrow – L$500 (join group for free; credit expires on Dec. 1st, 2022)
PRO TIP: Grab that L$500 gift card for Luna Chelsea and head over to the footwear section in their main store (exact SLURL), where you can pick up five L$99 fatpacks (over 70 colours!) of a wide variety of women’s shoes and boots, like these Destiny classic leather pumps (which also come in patent leather and suede versions):
Stock up on shoes using the L$500 gift card at Luna Chelsea, and you may never need to buy shoes for your avatar again! (Haha, just kidding, of course you will…)
Here’s a completely free vampire outfit I was able to pull together, using a combination of free gifts and free store credit, and taking advantage of discounted prices at the Hallowe’en Shop and Hop:
the Blood Vamp outfit is the gift from the Be Bold booth, and it includes the boots (there’s also a L$250 gift card if you join the Be Bold store group for L$50);
the red-lined black high-collared Bento animated cape I purchased on sale using the free credits from the MALified booth; and
the perfect finishing touch of the Sweet Death Crown, which I bought on sale using the free credits from the Poison Rouge booth.
Happy freebie shopping! Obviously, most of the gifts this round are Halloween-themed, with ghosts, bats, witches, and pumpkins galore. Boo!
A new womenswear store has opened in Second Life, called Brillancia (SLURL). The Brillancia group is free to join, and among the 27 group gifts you can pick up, there is a L$500 gift card!
The group gift wall at Brillancia
And you can put that gift card to immediate use on any of Brillancia’s ample stock of womenswear for your avatar! I chose this beautiful brocade Valery dress, which comes in eight different colours (black, white, pink, red, maroon, beige, chocolate, and blue). The Valery dress comes in sizes to fit the following mesh bodies: Maitreya Lara and Petite; Meshbody Legacy and Perky; INITHIUM Kupra and Kups; and eBody Reborn. With your L$500 gift card activated, you can pick up two colours for free!
The dress even comes with an optional shimmer/sparkle attachment! Here’s a short video clip demonstrating it:
Another option is this Nataly party dress, which comes in eight different colours as shown in the image below (sizes: Maitreya Lara and Petite; Meshbody Legacy and Perky; INITHIUM Kupra and Kups; and Belleza Freya). At L$250 each, you can use your free gift card to snap up two different colours!
According to a notice posted to the Brillancia group:
Hello everyone, the gift card will be valid until March 8th. After March 8th, the group will become paid. And I will systematically organize sales and gift cards for the group members! Therefore, if you have friends who have not used the card yet, invite them to us. Also, a new group gift is waiting for you soon!
So, hurry on down to pick up your group gifts, plus the L$500 gift card, before it’s gone, and you have to pay to join the Brillancia group!
P.S. The Brillancia gift card is transferable, if you rez it on Second Life land where you have build rights, wait for it to initialize, then take it back into your inventory. Then you can give it to a friend (or an alt 😉 )…
The Valentine Shop and Hop event starts tomorrow, February 2nd, and runs until February 15th, with over 200 merchants participating over 10 shopping sims! Each store has a free gift for you, and today Vanity Fair is modeling some of those gifts. And, as you can see from these pictures, not everything is red or Valentine’s-themed! Please note that all SLURLs provided here should take you directly to the gift.
Let’s start with the underwear today! Here Vanity is wearing a layered undershirt and matching panties, the Valentine’s Day present from the Neve booth (which comes with a HUD with four colour options for each; sizes: Lara and Petite, Legacy and Perky):
From Belle Epoque comes this cheerful heart-adorned Lacey top and matching panties (sizes: Lara and Petite, Legacy and Perky)
This black-and-pink bodysuit is the gift from ViSion (sizes: Lara and Petite, Legacy and Perky, Freya, Kupra), along with L$400 in free store credit if you join the ViSion Clothing Store group for L$18 (the credit must be used before Feb. 20th, 2022):
Next up are a wide variety of dresses! The Super Star dress is from TO.KISKI (Lara, Legacy, Freya, Hourglass sizes):
The gift from Pink Cream Pie is a fatpack of the Tori Crush dress (Lara and Petite, Legacy, Freya, and eBody Reborn sizes), which comes with a HUD with 24 different textures for every single part of the dress!
Another minidress is this Zoe dress with the cheeky little cut-out, from the FlowerDreams booth, which comes with a HUD with 12 different colours and textures! It comes in a wide variety of sizes, too: Lara and Petite; Freya and Isis; Hourglass; eBody Classic and Curvy; Tonic Curvy, Fine and Minimizer; Signature Alice; and Altamura.
If you’re in the mood for something red, Baiastice has you covered with this Hatas dress! It comes in the following sizes: Lara and Petite; Legacy and Perky; Freya; Hourglass; and Kupra.
Or if you prefer something with a bit more coverage (after all, it is still February!), how about this lovely damasque Valentine dress with its tied, flared sleeves? It’s the present from Poeme (fits Maitreya Lara; Belleza Freya, Isis, and Venus; Slink Physique and Hourglass; Tonic Curvy and Fine; Meshbody Classic/TMP; eBody; and five fitmesh sizes).
From The Annex come two free gifts! The Dreams nightshirt comes in a fatpack of eight colours (black, green, grey, navy, peach, pink, purple, and teal), and if you join The Annex store group for free, you can pick up the ribboned Rhoda dress, which comes in nine colours (aqua, black, blue, green, grey, peach, pink, purple and yellow). Both gifts come in sizes to fit Maitreya Lara, Belleza Freya, and Slink Hourglass mesh bodies.
Be sure to drop by the QE Designs booth and pick up their generous gift box; it’s stuffed with many gifts of womenswear, and even a couple of home decor items! Here Vanity is wearing three gifts for QE Designs: the Everly top, Camilla denim shorts, and Gretchen tip-toe sneakers. Top sizes: Lara; Freya, Isis, and Venus; Physique and Hourglass; Tonic Curvy and Fine; eBody. Shorts sizes: Lara; Freya, Isis, and Venus; Physique and Hourglass; Tonic Curvy and Fine. Shoes fit Maitreya, Belleza, and Slink feet.
And here’s another couple of gifts from QE Designs, the Anya romper paired with the Una heels (each of which comes with a four-colour HUD). The romper sizes: Lara; Freya, Isis and Venus; Physique and Hourglass, eBody; Tonic Curvy and Fine; and classic sizing. Shoes fit Maitreya, Belleza, and Slink feet.
There are some truly lovely ballgowns for you to snap up as well! First, we have this red Bekka beaded-bodice gown by Sascha’s Designs, shown with another Shop and Hop present from ALTER, this lovely red-and-gold Vianney jewelry set (necklace, earrings, and ring). The gown can be worn with or without the flexiprim skirt attachment. Gown sizes: Lara and Petite; Legacy and Perky; Freya; Physique and Hourglass; Tonic Curvy and Fine; eBody Reborn; Kupra; fitmesh Medium; and something called Cinnamon & Chai (which is a body I have never heard of before!).
Another option is this stunning vintage ballgown from Blue Moon Enterprise, the Lady Rose Heart gown, which comes in only the Maitreya Lara size:
Here’s a close-up of the earrings, the Valentine’s Day present from Beloved Jewelry, which come in two different sizes (small and large), with a complete fatpack of metal textures and stone colours to choose from, to match any outfit!
Our last ballgown gift is a show-stopper! Behold this stylish Sol gown in soft pink from SOFIA, which comes with an optional star brooch worn at the waist (not shown here). Sizes: Lara, Legacy, Freya, Hourglass, and Kupra.
Below, Vanity models two different presents: the red latex Ryud pants are the gift from MEMOIRE (sizes: Lara, Legacy, Freya, Kupra), and from Addams comes the Betina Valentine’s top (sizes: Lara and Petite; Legacy and Perky; Freya and Isis; Hourglass; Kupra; eBody Reborn), which comes with a HUD with five different patterns as shown:
From Entice we have the gift of this wine-coloured, full skirt, imaginatively called Only Exception. And you can pick up the matching Only Exception top (which comes in two patterns, with or without the heart) for only L$50 nearby! Sizes for both skirt and top: Lara, Legacy, Freya, Hourglass.
The sneakers Vanity is wearing in this final outfit are also a Shop and Hop gift, from Lapointe & Bastchild SWEAR (they also come in a men’s black version; both men’s and women’s sneakers come in a variety of sizes to fit most popular brands of mesh feet).
Valentina E‘s Shop and Hop present is this jaunty cherry red beret (resizable via menu), which might just be the perfect finishing touch for your outfit!
And finally, there are several offers of free store credit or gift cards available for you to pick up:
Salesita’s Creations – L$300 gift card if you join the ! ~ *Salesita’s Creations* ~ ! group for free (also a free dress with an 8-colour HUD, no group needed)
TREND – L$600 store credit if you join the ~TREND V.I.P.~ store group for free (credit expires February 10th, 2022; there’s also a free dress, no group needed)
Tachinni Clothing – L$150 free store credit, plus L$250 in additional free store credit if you join the ~ Tachinni Clothing ~ group for L$15 (all credit expires Feb. 19th, 2022)
Don’t forget that you only have two weeks to pick up all these gifts, plus many more fabulous freebies, so don’t delay! Happy freebie shopping!
UPDATE Feb. 2nd, 2022: Naria Panthar was once again done a YouTube video in which she unpacks and tries on all the gifts from all ten sims of the 2022 Valentine Shop and Hop! I recommend you watch the video on double-speed playback to save time, and keep a pen and paper handy to note down the stores whose gifts you like. Then, use this handy alphabetical listing of stores participating in the Shop and Hop to go directly to each store to pick up just the presents you want!
And one more ballgown gift to share with you! This is the Irina gown from 2Love:
This beautiful red ballgown comes in the following sizes: Lara, Legacy, Freya, Hourglass, and Kupra.
Have you joined the RyanSchultz.com Steals, Deals & Freebies group yet? I will be posting EVEN MORE news and tips on finding fabulous freebies and bargains in Second Life than I now post here on the blog! More information on this brand new SL group here.
International Women’s Day (Monday, March 8th, 2021) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. I did a bit of hunting around, but I could not find any information on what events are taking place within Second Life to mark the occasion, as Inara Pey reported on the festivities held last year (if you do know what’s going on, please let me know!).
However, I do know that, to mark International Women’s Day, a couple of well-known Second Life stores are offering special gifts.
First up is Belle Epoque, where if you join their store group for only L$10, you can pick up this spectacular long gown (sized for Maitreya Lara mesh bodies):
There are five other group gifts you can snap up at the same time, as well as group gifts for several well-known freebie groups, so it’s well worth your time to drop by.
Here’s a pro tip on how to wear a ballgown with such a voluminous skirt: use an animation override (AO) which does not move your legs around a lot. There’s a perfect, FREE one on the SL Marketplace, called Chubby Girl AO by an animations store called [ImpEle] that has long since left the grid. Don’t let the name put you off; it actually has arm poses that put a bit of room between your arms and torso, and many simple, non-convoluted stands—just perfect for this ballgown! Simply add a hands-only AO for your Bento hands (don’t pay for one; you can get one for free from any of the freebie Altamura bodies at the various freebie stores in Second Life, see here for a list of where to find them), and you’re all set!
To celebrate International Women’s Day, AMUI is offering a free L$250 gift card good for anything in the store if you join their group for L$25, which I think is a good deal! There are also a couple of group gifts you can pick up at the same time, including an attractive IWD-themed top; just pay each vendor L$1 and your Linden dollar will be automatically refunded.
Here’s a close-up view of the vendor panel for the International Women’s Day top gift from AMUI, which comes in no less than seventeen different sizes! No matter what brand of mesh avatar body you are rocking, you should be able to find a size that fits you!
Happy International Women’s Day! If I hear of other freebies or bargains, or of any in-world IWD celebrations, I will update this blogpost. If you do know of something that I haven’t mentioned here (either a deal or an event), please leave a comment, thank you!
UPDATE 8:18 p.m.: Ivy Qissentell (I just love that avatar name!) has told me about a couplr of dollarbie items for International Women’s Day that I wanted to share with you.
This lovely, resizable pink-and-white bouquet comes with a hold pose, and it has no copy/modify/transfer permissions, so you can buy it and give it to the special woman in your life!
Thank you for your tips, Ivy!
UPDATE March 8th, 2021: Hilly Haalan, a store which has always been among the most generous on the Second Life grid for its large number of free group gifts, has a brand new gift out for International Women’s Day, this complete outfit, which includes the shoes and handbag!
Simply join the Hilly Haalan group for free and click the panel. While you’re here, be sure to visit their Freebie store nearby, to vacuum up literally dozens and dozens of group gifts!
This Monroe skin comes in the pineapple skin tone, is compatible with Genus Bento heads, and comes in both system/Bakes on Mesh and an Omega applier version. Pick it up quickly, before the end of March 8th!
