The social VR/virtual world platform Sinespace is going to be throwing a steampunk-themed party on Saturday evening, October 1st, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time/8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Residents are encouraged to dress up, with prizes in Gold (Sinespace’s in-game currency) for the best avatar in steampunk attire!
One of the event organizers, Mimi Marie, tells me:
Hi Ryan! Huge Theme this Month. If you have time . Its a great theme with loads of fun. We’ve created a Steampunk region. An amazing region Created by Saphy and filled with all things “Steampunk”, By Mimi and Mizz. . Walls are AI creations that some of us created in [text-prompted artificial intelligence art generator tool] Midjourney. Huge Gold give away For Best in Steampunk attire. Random region games for gold. Plus Music by DJ Spiral.
As you can see, they have a stunning new venue for the party!
The location of the party is called Grimstorp, but it will not be open until just before the event starts. Just click on the Explore button in the bottom row of blue buttons on your Sinespace client, search for “Grimstorp”, and you’ll easily find it! (The example in the image below was for “Zoo”, the previous Zoo-themed event, but it’s exactly the same procedure.)
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 post here on the blog! More information on this brand new SL group here.
Bray’s Place Blues Club and social community is celebrating its third anniversary on February 21st, 2021, and the theme is steampunk, that is, a genre of science fiction that has a historical setting and typically features steam-powered machinery rather than advanced technology.
Steampunk clothing features a style of design and fashion that combines historical elements with anachronistic technological features inspired by science fiction. So yesterday evening, I began to rummage through Vanity Fair’s overflowing inventory of over 236,000 items collected over 13 years, to find something suitable to wear to this event!
Most of the steampunk outfits I had were of the old system-layers-and-flexiprims variety, but I wanted a more modern, mesh outfit. I was so pleased with what I came up with (and how I did it so inexpensively), that I wanted to share my results with you!
Vanity Fair is wearing:
Hat, Hair, and Monocle: Mono by EMO-tions (I picked this up for free from their group gifts area sometime last year or the year before, I believe, and while I could not find this gift again at their new store location, I was able to find it on the SL Marketplace for only L$5 for a complete fatpack of colours; there are options for you to wear just the hair, just the hat, or just the wonderful steampunk monocle, the hair with the hat only, or the hair with the monocle only.)
Steampunk Necklace: I picked this up as a freebie years ago from a store called Newtique, but I’m afraid it’s no longer available! Any steampunk necklace should work well with this outfit, I think.
Peplum Jacket: Now, this part gets somewhat complicated, so please pay attention! This jacket is based on the steampunk peplum jacket by Meli Imako; this is the full-perms version (L$150 on the SL Marketplace), which you can texture and colour it as you please! You can also pick up one of 41 different full-perms textures for this jacket for only L$1 each from Amazing Creations on the SL Marketplace. Please note that in the original version of this blogpost, I had mistakenly assumed that the Amazing Creations Marketplace listings were for the complete jacket, and not just the textures! So be careful to check what you are buying. To add even more to the confusion, at the Amazing Creations discount sales wall you can buy outfits containing various pre-textured versions of this peplum jacket for only L$2 each, if you join the Amazing Creations group for free. So I suggest that you buy the Meli Imako jacket only if you really want to customize it; otherwise, head to the discount wall at the Amazing Creations store in Second Life (here’s the exact SLURL; please save the SLURL to your inventory, then right click on it, select Show on Map, and just follow the red arrow to find it). Got all that? Whew! Nobody said being a freebie fashionista was always going to be easy!
Long Skirt: This delightful boho skirt, with a triangular floral inset at the bottom hem, is a free group gift from a tiny, obscure little store called all…About on the Second Life grid (here’s the SLURL, just click the Join Group sign to join the group for free, then click on the gift panel as shown in the picture below.)
MY TOTAL COST FOR THIS ENTIRE STEAMPUNK LOOK: Only 7 Linden dollars! (If you choose the Meli Imako full-perms version of the jacket, the cost goes up to a still-reasonable L$155.) So, as you can see, you don’t need to break the bank to get a polished steampunk look, suitable for wandering around the Caledon or New Babbage sims!
If green is not your colour, there are eight other versions of this long skirt for sale for only L$90 each in the all…About store (and, at the time of this writing, the brown skirt is on a Super Sales Weekend promotion for only L$50!).
Please don’t forget to come to the steampunk-themed 3rd birthday party at Bray’s Place on Sunday, February 21st, 2021, with a wide variety of deejays and live musical performers happening all day between noon and midnight Second Life Time/Pacific Time. In 14 years of traversing the grid, I have rarely come across as warm and welcoming a community as I have at Bray’s Place! And you’re cordially invited to join us as we celebrate three years of great music and amazing community! If you don’t have a suitable steampunk outfit, please do come anyway, but please note that there is a “clean and classy” dress code in place. Bray’s is also LGBTQ and furry friendly!
We’d love to have you join us. Mark your calendars!
Please note that I am taking the rest of the summer off as a self-imposed vacation from the blog so I can focus on my other work, except for sponsored blogposts, and the occasional exception such as this post. See you in September!
I make no secret of the fact that one of the ways I cope with the isolation and social distancing imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, while working from home for my university library system, is to wander and explore the many different communities in Second Life (my preferred means of escape from the dumpster-fire year of 2020).
A couple of days ago, I had just picked up the latest group gift from Antaya, a lovely black lace Victorian umbrella (the group join fee is L$50), and so I decided to put it to immediate good use by going out for an invigorating stroll through Caledon! It’s truly the perfect accessory to protect the complexion of this aristocratic maiden, lest she acquire a tan which establishes her a member of the—gasp!—working classes. 😉
My Victorian avatar, Fidelity Constantine, at the Caledon Oxbridge University
Founded in 2006, the Independent State of Caledon is one of Second Life’s oldest and longest-running Victorian/neoVictorian/steampunk communities. According to the SL Fandom wiki:
Caledon is a small, windswept forested country at a temperate latitude. Wild creatures, country estate life, sights and sounds that were common well over 100 years ago are the hallmark of the land.
Technology is approximately that of the 19th Century, though some astonishing breakthroughs have provided for incredible wonders. Ground vehicles, airships, and even a device known as a ‘telehub’ are made possible through the power of exotic material properties and the wonders of Steam Technology.
If you are new to Caledon, a highly recommended place to start is the Caledon Oxbridge University (website; SLURL), which has a board listing all the things to see and do in this steampunk community:
I find it enjoyable and relaxing to stroll the many sims which make up the Independent State of Caledon. People’s homes range from tiny rustic shacks to large ornate mansions, and include fantastical tree houses, steampunk airships, and just about anything and everything in between! I always admire the creativity of the owners in designing and decorating their abodes.
Many of these homes proudly display the circular plaques which mark each year of their participation in the Caledon community, up to fourteen years in some cases!
Every so often, I will come across a Caledon resident and stop and have a chat:
Victorian dress is encouraged in Caledon, but if you have no suitable clothing in your wardrobe, simply load up the Abigail or Jasper starter steampunk avatars from SL’s own starter avatar collection:
You can also choose from a wide array of free clothing (all non-mesh, system layer and flexiprim clothing) available at Caledon Oxbridge University, available at this exact SLURL. Mix and match outfits, and you’ll blend in with the locals in no time!
Miss Fidelity Constantine is wearing:
Mesh Head and Body: Juliet by Altamura (a Valentine’s Day group gift in 2019)
Gown: Day Flower by Junbug (an ultrarare gacha item)
Parasol: Victorian lace umbrella (free group gift from Antaya; the group costs L$50 to join)
Hair: the Pulled Back Bun hair is already in your Second Life inventory! Just open your inventory, and scroll down to the very bottom of your inventory window to find the Library folder. It’s in Library / Accessories / Hair Design Options / Pulled Back Bun folder. It’s free, completely adjustable, tintable, and uncomplicated, and it fits well under hats and hoods, too!
Animation Override: the Ballroom gown AO from the Caledon Oxbridge University, which I picked up when it available was free for avatars aged under 30 days (the black lace parasol comes with its own high-priority hold animation)
