Well, mostly.

If you’re just tuning in now, you might have missed my newest blogger challenge! Yes, I was having a hard time putting words to (metaphorical) paper and I’ve noticed that the longer you put writing to one side, the harder it is to start up again.  Hence the challenge to just post something, already! 

Feeling similarly stoppered up? Give it a try!

( The Truth.)

I hope you’ve heard by now that our beloved Sea Hole is closing. Like me, you might have wondered why a star brand at Collabor88 was missing, only to sigh, nod sadly, and sulk over the news for days. Whether you made it to the mainstore right away or not, whether you bought half the store in one fell swoop (like me) or resolved to get a few things, only to find you absolutely NEEDED the entire store afterwards (also like me), it is my sincere hope that you have done everything in your power to send this incredible designer out with a bang (and all of your L$). Drinkenstein Sorbet, you will be missed!

(The WHOLE Truth.)

Second Life is always changing. This is most likely the only thing we can say for certain about the place we choose to make our home. Generally, it’s a good thing; it’s what keeps our world dynamic. It’s the reason we’re always searching for new clothes and shoes, hair and accessories. It’s the only logical reason to explain why we own sixteen different houses, all tucked neatly into our inventories, and more furniture than any one person needs. If you’re a blogger or a photographer, you’ve been exuberantly gathering poses for weeks, months, and even years. If you’re a blogger or a photographer, no doubt you’ve heard that aDORKable poses is closing too.

*Sadface*

I can only describe what I’m feeling now as a sense of longing. For what, exactly, I’m not sure. All I can say is that SL will be a poorer place for the lack of these two creative spirits and truly, I wish them both well in their future endeavours.

(And nothing BUT the Truth. So help me Gos.)

We SHOULD end this post on a positive note, though, and in the spirit of this I would like to remind all of you about Gos‘ incredible new(ish) Ursula wedges. Look up, waaaay u-, HEY!, eyes on the shoes! Down, down .. there!

Okay, they aren’t cheap, but who cares?! I fully intend to demonstrate in the coming posts how they can be worn with absolutely everything, from casual summer sets, to glamourous evening wear, to yes, even clubwear. I don’t tend to go in for entire collections but, gosh, I would rather own ONE pair of gorgeously versatile shoes I’ll wear constantly than fifteen pair that will sit in my inventory, forgotten and gathering dust. Admit it, you agree with me.

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Ardent Eyes – Nymph
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
Miamai_Protagoniste Basic (Eyelashes only in first picture)
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

TRUTH HAIR Selma – LightBlondes01 (Check out the NEW mainstore!)

The Sea Hole – Annis Top, Champagne
The Sea Hole – Smocked Skirt – Sea Glass
The Sea Hole – Catalina Lingerie – Foam
[Gos] Ursula Wedge – Classic Collection – Ivory

Color.Me.H.O.F [ContinentalWallet[Pearl] (March Arcade)
EarthStones Lora Earrings – Moonstone Gold
{mon tissu} Take Flight Necklace ~ Robin’s Egg
p.c Braided Finish Gloves

All Poses: aDORKable

~ Shown Here and on Flickr ~

Amazing Prefab
Scarlet Creative For Gorgeous

Gazebo
floorplan. garden gazebo ~ Available at Collabor88 (May)

Grass
Zigana [ Lilies .white ]

Flamingos
/artilleri/ Yo, flamingo!

Potted Plants
{what next} Cornwall Daisies Planters
floorplan. boho ivy planter / mint

Furniture
LAQ Decor

Lighting
The Loft – Leighton Chandelier & Sconces

Rugs
The Loft – Laundry Rug
Dreamscapes Art Gallery ~ Shabby Rug Floral *Sky*

Cake!
-tb- Tea Time – Cake (from The Arcade ~ March)

My last post was February 25th. It’s May 19th. I think it’s fair to say that there’s a problem here.

So what do we do when life is busy, stressful, and generally not conducive to thoughtful introspection?

We find a new challenge, of course!

So here it is: My challenge to YOU, oh bloggers of SL, is to write a single blog post. I’m going to help you get through this in less than ten steps. Observe!

Let’s give it a try, shall we?

3) 

4) Share your favourite thing about this outfit. Is it the clothing? A new hairstyle?

The first thing I heard about the Gos Ursula Wedges was that the pearl colour option is sweet, simple, and summery. These are three of my favourite words. Also, I love these shoes so much and have literally been wearing them every chance I get!

5) Why do you like this colour? These colours?

It’s probably obvious that I wear a lot of white. A ridiculous amount of white, really, but the reason for it is that I love simple clean lines. As someone who lives with chronic anxiety, white is a colour that calms me right down. It is pure and clean.

6) Are you accessorizing? If yes, why? If no, why not?

I am accessorizing very simply this time with a set of Earthstones Lora jewelry (sorry ladies, it was a gatcha thing). Just a touch of silver and white to complement the silver buckles on these amazing wedges. There is also a simple white ribbon at the bottom of this braid. It’s a nice touch, I think.

7) Why this pose?

This pose (Olive Juice – Does this skirt make my butt look big?) is delicate and feminine. It does not cause my legs to clip with this mesh dress AND one foot is firmly rooted on the floor, which makes the picture more believable. I believe it captures the mood of this outfit well as showcases the individual components.

8) How do you feel in this particular outfit?

I feel relaxed, comfortable and light as a feather, thank you!

THAT IS ALL YOU HAVE TO WRITE!

(Phew!)

9) Post your credits here (don’t forget your posemaker):

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
*YS&YS* – Ipnotic Eyes Ice
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce
Eye Candi Skin – Glow (Tattoo)

[e] Control – Blonde 01

*LpD* – *Atena* Dress White
[Gos] Ursula Wedge – Classic Collection – Pearl

EarthStones Lora Earrings – White Lace Agate Silver (Gatcha items, sorry!)
EarthStones Lora Necklace -White Lace Agate Silver  (Gatcha items, sorry!)

Pose: Olive Juice

I think you know what I mean.

 ( Flickr, whee! )

So let’s talk about colour today, my lovelies!

If you’ve glanced through my blog before today I’m sure you’ve noticed that I love neutral colours. If something comes in white, or beige, or taupe, I probably own it. I have a fondness for green, blue, and yellow, of course, but these are all fairly natural colours and for spring, especially Spring 2013, there is a HUGE movement toward bold, vibrant colours. I hope I speak for everyone when I say “HOORAY!”

This outfit actually started out quite differently from what you see now. I love the new coldLogic sweater/dress combinations SO much that I knew I needed to showcase at least one of them and, for me, the the ‘Norton’ set was especially exciting. Since I wanted the dress texture as well as the shape of the sweater to pop I grabbed the set in coral, not even considering the style challenges this combination presents for an avatar with my build and colouring.

The coral sweater looks great on its own (and you can wear it separately from the dress if you want!) but I find that with the lovely turquoise dress beneath, this combination deserves some extra attention. Sure, you can wear it with black or white shoes; maybe add a purse and sunglasses; maybe wear an updo and some cool earrings, but I wanted to do more.

You know how I feel about gloves . Initially, I was wearing fuschia gloves from Emery and Gos’ Mae platforms in plum. I think I had purple lipstick at the time, or maybe it was a turquoise spray mask over the eyes (or both) but as I was rummaging through my inventory for jewelry I realized that there was just too much going on. I needed to streamline and keep the attention on the sweater and the dress, not my billions of accessories and tattoo layer addiction.

So I traded the spray eyeshadow for simple blue under eye shadow from cheLLe and punched things up with Pekka‘s bright orange Flora lipstick. I selected a long LeLutka hairstyle to cover the ears and create a sense of softness for what could easily be a very abrasive colour palette. I decided to try RED shoes and gloves and, holy wow, it worked! Jewelry was easy this time – I grabbed my texture change broche set from Admiral Spicy and found the faceted turquoise stone to tie everything together. I also reinforced this by wearing IKON‘s new Lucid eyes in glass; if you look closely, you can see green, blue, and even a bit of brown inside them.

 ( Seriously, check these eyes in fullscreen. Lovely. )

So this is my affirmation of life in colour. This is my conscious decision to be bold and take risks; to try things that may not always work out for me and learn from my failures as much as my successes.

Be bold, my dears. I look forward to sharing something new with you again very, very soon.

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Lucid Eyes – Glass
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
cheLLe – (eyeshadow) Dreamy (Under Eye 2)
cheLLe – (eyeliner) Eyeliner Basics (Top)
.Pekka. FLORA Lipstick Colors (2)

[LeLutka]-OOPS hair – Marilyn

coldLogic combo – norton.coral
[Gos] Mae Platform – Red -

Emery – Gloves #Red
!Admiral Spicy! Broche Ring
!Admiral Spicy! Brocke Necklace

Pose: Miamai
Set: Atelier Ylannys (Secret garden in the Enchanted Unicorn Castle)

Holly Golightly: You know those days when you get the mean reds?
Paul Varjak: The mean reds, you mean like the blues?
Holly Golightly: No. The blues are because you’re getting fat and maybe it’s been raining too long, you’re just sad that’s all. The mean reds are horrible. Suddenly you’re afraid and you don’t know what you’re afraid of. Do you ever get that feeling?
Paul Varjak: Sure.
Holly Golightly: Well, when I get it the only thing that does any good is to jump in a cab and go to Tiffany’s. Calms me down right away. The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there. If I could find a real-life place that’d make me feel like Tiffany’s, then – then I’d buy some furniture and give the cat a name!

 (A larger shot, just for you dahling. )

Okay, so I know this isn’t the first time I’ve quoted Breakfast at Tiffany’s here, and it certainly won’t be the last, but when I was composing this look (oh, I don’t know, about a week and a half ago *sigh*) I was feeling some of those ‘mean reds’ myself. Life gets overwhelming on occasion, everyone knows that, and sometimes all you can do is go to Tiffany’s or, you know, haul buns over to the Gos Boutique to look at some new shoes. Why not swing over to the Designer Showcase  to pick up shine by [ZD]‘s new mesh outfit while you’re at it and certainly, certainly treat yourself to the gorgeous new LeLutka hair, some jewelry from Paper Couture, and lovely, lovely makeup from cheLLe.

It’s called ‘retail therapy’ for a reason, right?

( Check these beautiful new Lucid eyes from IKON. *Swoon!* )

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Lucid Eyes – Optimism ~ NEW!
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 01 Femme
cheLLe – (eyeliner) French New Wave Eyeliner
cheLLe – (lipstick) The Mean Reds (Rose) bonus!

[LeLutka]-JOSEPHINE Hair – Marilyn ~ NEW!

shine by [ZD] MESH FRILLED BLOUSE taupe ~ NEW @ Designer Showcase
shine by [ZD] MESH MINI SKIRT black ~ NEW
shine by [ZD] small knotted belt
[Gos] Sophia Peeptoe – Taupe ~ NEW!

P.C; Diamond Fan Ring

Pose: [Gos & oOo] Pouffe – Small – Brown
Set: NsB, Thistle, BAZAR (Arizona House)

Ahhh, much better!

So maybe there’s a bit of a disconnect between what Lucky is wearing and what I’ve chosen for this pic. If you’re looking at our feet, sure, the shoes don’t really match (but aren’t they FANTASTIC?!). What I find interesting, though, is scrolling up, you can see that we aren’t mismatched either. We coordinated colours and accessories to make this shot just a little more cohesive. Life is like that, too; sometimes you can’t line things up exactly but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Use what you’ve got. Love what you have.

I know for a fact that Lucky is going to rave about his sweater-bowtie-vest-thinger in HIS blog post so I’ll just tell you about what I’m wearing today. Deal?

Deal!

These shoes. I still have no words to describe them without sounding like a lovestruck fool; if you’ve read my Grace post, you already know what I mean. The shoes are part of Gos Boutique’s new line, named after four Hollywood icons (Grace Kelly, Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, and Sophia Loren) and if you STILL haven’t been to the new in-world boutique you need to go. Now. These shoes, like everything Gos, are incredible and created with so much passion and attention to detail you can’t help but channel it when you’re wearing them.

My outfit began with the shoes, as many of them will for the forseeable future, and I just KNEW that shine by [ZD]‘s new wrap dress belonged with them. Since I was feeling fancy, I wanted to rock LeLutka‘s Magdalen hair and maybe I started with more elaborate jewelry but when I saw what the broface (Lucky) was wearing, I quickly added some Gos cateye glasses and a pair of LaGyo earrings I found at the December Arcade event. I even went with a richer shade of IKON eyes, royal blue in this case, to keep the colour theme going. Co-blogs can be such fun!

~ Portia ~
Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Royal
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
.Pekka. Classy Eye shadow with eyeliner – Love
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

[LeLutka]-MAGDALEN hair – Marilyn

[Gos] Mae Platform – Naturelle Collection -
shine by [ZD] MESH DRESS with Belt black ~ Available this month @ BlackOnly
shine by [ZD] WAISTBELT black
*BOOM* Everyday Tank (cream) (BB-0, ftw!)
*blowpop* Yvette – black panties (DON’T FORGET)

[Gos] Custom Eyewear v5.0b CATEYE
LaGyo_Lila earrings Midnight
Emery – Gloves #Sailor

~ Lucky ~

Skin – EDWARD – Tan / 03 unshaved – REDGRAVE
Tattoo – [Stellar] – Infinity Arm Sleeve Tattoo
Eyes – IKON Eternal – Paradise

Hair – Trailerstar – Mohawk V2 [Brown]

Shirt – [Avoid] Geekazoid – M / 8
Pants – Razorblade Jacket Jaw Breaker / Standard Boot – Stonewash S1
Shoes – 2Real – PURE

Hat – [Avoid] Sideway Fitted – Solid Colors
Glasses – [IC] MESH Nerd Glasses .::Classics::. 2.0 Scripted UNISEX
Watch – (Simple/CHAIN) [MANDALA] SITENNOAH_black(male)
Bracelet – ROZOREGALIA *Belial* BRACELET1/Type3[Black]
Lip Piercing – ROZOREGALIA *Gemma* LIP PIERCE2/C
Earrings – ROZOREGALIA *NORNIR* Unisex PIERCE3[Type2]
Ring – JCNY – ‘CRIMSON Rose, Engraving Ed. – Mens Ring 2.0

~

Poses: !bang, Exposes
Set: Barnesworth Anubis

(I know you’re not the biggest Mraz fan, Lucky, but it’s my blog and I can do what I want.)

I think every man and woman breathing has a Dream Person, some face fixed in their mind representing an ideal of beauty and inner Grace, a body they know and one day hope to possess for their own. This is what you need to understand when women rhapsodise over shoes they’ve found. This is what you need to understand about my deep and abiding passion for the new Gos Boutique line; yes, I have a Dream Person of my own but I also have a Dream Shoe and this, my dears, is It.

I adore the new Grace sandals so much that, perhaps for the first time in recent memory, I have put a picture before my intro text so I can stare at the pretty shoes as I write. I’m doing it now. Just LOOK at them and believe me when I say that I have never, never, in all of my Second Life worn a shoe that fit as perfectly and configured as effortlessly to my desire as these.

The Gos ‘One Time’ HUD is a revelation; it connects to an online database that SAVES your customized preset for any shoes you will wear in the future. It’s something he has worked on for months. And months. The shoes are mesh, of course, with feet built into them as close to RL perfection as he could make them. As these shoes are HUD-driven, you’re able to configure everything from your skin preset to your shoe colour to any one of 59 (yes, that’s FIFTY NINE) nail colour options.

So why in the world are you still here? Get your pretty selves over to Gos right now! Join the Gos Boutique group in-world for future updates and a shiny member discount. Visit the gorgeous Gos Boutique blog. Find your Dream Shoe!

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Steppe
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

[LeLutka]-APHRODITE hair – Marilyn

[Gos] Grace Sandal – Elegance Collection – Gold
Maitreya Mignon Evening * Gold
[Intimizzio] Chiara di Luna – White w/Gold

Donna Flora ~ ADELE Set
Chop Zuey ~ Shirobana Ring

Poses: !bang, WetCat
Set: ~Bazar~ Touch Skyhome

BLOGGERS: This is my next challenge for you! I want to see your best, least laggy outfit; help spread the word that Zero Lag can still look amazing. <3

Today we’re going to explore the challenge of trying to move around in Second Life. We’ve all fallen prey to the SL ‘Lag Monster’ and while sometimes the situation is completely out of our control, sometimes it isn’t. Sometimes we’re our own worst enemy.

So whether you’re scaling down (har har) to get ready for competitive racing like me or you’d just like to be able to cross the floor of your favourite club without rubberbanding, you might want to read on. Watch and learn, Grasshopper.

 ( If you want to race with guys like these, you need to run lean and clean. )

Okay! So we’re going to talk about two things in this post: LAG (which we all haaate) and something called Mesh/Rendering Weight. Everyone knows about lag; it’s what happens when a sim is packed with avatars, all wearing scripty, primmy, flexi things. Sims can be laggy on their own if they’re full of vendors and scripted objects or if they haven’t been restarted in a while. So let’s make a resolution this year to dress responsibly for our own sake as well as our neighbours’.

~ SCRIPTS & LAG ~

Scripts:
In many ways, this is the easiest way to control our own contributions to sim lag. If your clothing has resizers in it or any kind of texture change option, it’s very likely there’s a script controlling this.

~ Since most clothing in SL is copy/mod now, I recommend making a copy of your favourite boots (I just typed ‘goots’ because I’m still in love with my Gos equestrian and hunter boots) and removing the resizer scripts via menu whenever possible. If something fits properly, there’s no reason to have these scripts active when you’re in-world. I employ this strategy for jewelry as well.

~ HUDs! We all use them. We all love them. We may not realize how badly they can lag us, though! Even your basic AO, something you wouldn’t dream of going without, may run upwards of 20 scripts (some of them WAY more than that). Using radar HUDS, Yus/Nuu or RLV anything, MystiTool, face animators, titlers, hug/kiss/dance/etc HUDS .. all of this contributes to script lag, even when they aren’t in use. So please, if you don’t think you’re going to use a particular HUD when you’re out and about, detach it!

I’ve been using the Firestorm AO for about a week now and I just love it! If your viewer has a big ‘AO’ button somewhere in the user interface, just try loading your favourite AO animations into it. Sure, it takes a few minutes (or longer if you’re me) but the difference is profound when you’re in a laggy environment. Try it. Love it.

~ Get a script counter scale! I have a scale (this one is free on the Marketplace) rezzed beside my default pose stand. Once I’ve made sure everything fits properly (we’ll cover this in another post, I swear!) I hop onto the scale to make sure I’m not being a scripty jerk. Anything under 3MB/3072K is excellent, but I challenge you to go lower, just to see how it feels.

Other Sources of Lag:
There are a LOT of them and some have absolutely nothing to do with your avatar. If you’d like to research this issue, I highly recommend having a look at ‘Massively’s Guide to Reducing Second Life Lag.’ It’s a fantastic article.

 ( Even horses know that prims cause lag! )

~ MESH/RENDERING WEIGHT ~

Even when you’re running very few (or zero) scripts, your avatar can still contribute to sim lag. Your basic avatar, all your clothing and attachments, your goots (hehe) and jewelry, hair, and eyelashes may lag you up even more than your old script count!

~ To see avatar weights, open Me>Preferences… from the main menu. Under the Advanced tab, enable “Show Advanced Menu”. Back at the main menu, pick Advanced>Performance Tools>Show Draw Weight for Avatars. The number pops up over your head: green is good, red is not.

~ Every avatar on the grid has a base rendering cost of 1000. This covers your skin, hairbase, eyes, tattoo layers, and all of your system clothing. You can go ahead and call these ‘freebies.’ Use them at will; layer, play, and have loads of fun!

~ It’s too bad we all LOVE our attachments, isn’t it? The unfortunate truth is that anything you have to click to ‘wear’ or ‘add to outfit’ is going to increase your rendering weight and the primmier your attachments are, the more you’re going to lag (or your neighbours will) in a busy sim. Even your mesh items, although they tend to be lower in weight, will increase this number. Stealth Weight Offender: YOUR MESH EYELASHES!

Mesh/Rendering Weight Formulae:
I’m not going to list everything here because it’s ALL laid out on the Second Life Wiki (please read the article, it isn’t long) but I’m going to list some of the worst offenders in no particular order:

Flexi prims, shiny prims, glowy prims, alpha prims, particles, and light emitting prims.

If your clothes or attachments or whatever have one or more of these features, please check your rendering weight before you wail about being on a laggy sim.

I would never dream of telling you not to wear your favourite things (I certainly won’t stop wearing mine), but I think it’s important to consider your wardrobe choices when you’re visiting a high-traffic area (fashion shows, RP sims, busy clubs, SL events, etc). Count your attachments the way you might count calories:

“I can wear these beautiful goots today, but only if I wear system gloves instead of these scripty fingernails,” or

“Gee, I really love this flexi hairstyle – how about I go easy on the jewelry this time. No one can see my ears anyway.”

Dress responsibly, my dears, and I’ll have more tips to share with you very, very soon.

~ Portia ~

23933 Render Weight (orange/yellow), 0 scripts

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Mist
Miamai_XGen Makeup_Basic Lashes A Black – (Tattoo layer lashes, ftw!)
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

[LeLutka]-HAIRBASE Marilyn
[LeLutka]-BELLE pony – Marilyn

{Happy} Posh Wrap (Gray)
{Happy} Confidence Blouse (White)
jane.intrinsic.tank.wh cream [hi]
Loralai Michalski ~ Jockey Silks: Caramel & Tan Leather Pants
[Gos] Equestrian Boot – Black – (MY GOOTS!)

Loralai Michalski ~ Jockey Silks Riding Helmet: Black Rubber
Emery – Gloves #Black

Poses: Diesel Works
Horses: Awesome Breed Creations (Lipizzaner, Thoroughbred, Arabian)
Set: The Domineaux Effect ~ The Country Barn, Starmark Creations ~ Ranch V2,

 ( This gown is even more stunning in high resolution. Check flickr. You won’t be disappointed.)

The gown: Tres Beau.

The jewelry: Chop Zuey.

Everything was custom made for this year’s Miss Virtual World pageant and even though I’m wearing Iceland’s gown and Turkey’s jewelry (my next post will feature Turkey’s gown with Iceland’s jewelry) the effect is just incredible. I used a soft, romantic hairstyle from [e] and IKON’s striking new Eternal Eyes in ‘Wave’ to complete this outfit. I still don’t know what else to say about it.

 ( Just .. yeah. Pretty. Sparkly. Flickr link is here. <3 )

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*light *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Wave ~ NEW!
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 01 Femme
Eye Candi Skin – Glow – (More about this soon!)
.Pekka. KATHYA Eyes Make Up (baby blue)
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

[e] Found – Blonde 01

Tres Beau “Miss Zaara” gown ~ MVW Iceland 2013
Tres Beau “Miss Zaara” Gloves

Chop Zuey ~ Hagia Sophia Circlette ~ MVW Turkey 2013
Chop Zuey ~ Hagia Sophia Earrings
Chop Zuey ~ Hagia Sophia Ring

Pose: WetCat
Background: Heart

It’s pretty incredible how many things can change in a year. Some of them are easy to see; while I’m still using the same skin, my shape has changed to reflect a softer, more womanly personality. I’ve switched to using lighter shades of blonde hair. The Rozena ‘kiss kiss’ lip tattoo is one of my staples now (the only time I’m without it is when I’m wearing big bold lipstick instead.) I have found amazing new stores, covered events, taken up blogger challenges and issued one of my own. I wrote a quiz that received more page views in 24 hours than I usually get in a week.

 (Okay, so maybe it looks a little like a tv weight loss commercial. HA! )

Harder to notice are the ways I’ve changed inside. If you’ve followed my blog, you may have read that I battle emotional and mental illness (and I  am ALWAYS open about this). You’ve probably inferred that I have loved and lost. I have picked up the pieces many times this year and needed to soldier on. It’s been harder than I would have imagined but I’ve made it through. I’m stronger now.

My first post ever (link is here) said the following:

So yes, this is me. (Arguably) Doing what I do best. No, it isn’t anything to do with photography.

At all.

I do love looking pretty, though, and doing it in a way that suits me. I love spending time with my family and friends looking great and being silly. I love making a space interesting and inviting and planning for the future.

I hope to cover all these things in my blog and I’d dearly love to share my journey with you this year. Buckle up, kiddos, it’s going to be good times!

Honestly, it’s been mostly good times.

My first post was a little frivolous but through the months I’ve come to realize quite a lot about myself. I believe that a positive outlook is the only way to achieve real happiness.

I share things here to help you smile and feel as though you’re a little less alone. This is why every post is a little bit different, why every outfit I put together has some sort of contextual reason to be in this blog. This isn’t a catalogue of ‘looks’ to flip through in order to find the newest trends in SL fashion – there are plenty of those already.

This is me connecting with you, sharing an outlook that isn’t always pretty but, gosh, what is? The important thing is that we try.

So here’s to the beginning of a new year: it won’t be perfect; it may not always be fun, but I promise I’ll be right here the entire time, doing my best to connect, to be open, and to help you find your reason to smile.

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Pond
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 04 Audrey
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

::Exile:: Sway My Way:Stefani

Maitreya Silk Neck-Tie Blouse S * Pure
JANE – wide leg pant.zooey.truffle
[Gos] Hunter Ankle Boot – Hazel -

Donna Flora ~ MARIA Set 1&2
[PM]Sculpted Nails V2

Pose: Diesel Works

There’s only one possible song to share here. Measure in love, honey.

So this post is a little late (what else is new? ) but I’d like to wish you the very, very best in 2013. I hope your holidays went beautifully and that you spent a wonderful time with friends and family. I hope you gave every gift you wanted to share and received thoughtful gifts in turn. I hope you danced on New Year’s Eve, or at least watched the fireworks.

I hope you’re smiling now.

Be happy, honey, because this is going to be a fantastic year. Have hope. Look forward.

( Bigger pics in flickr; don’t forget! )

How about we look forward to a year of nights out? Fancy parties aren’t just for the holidays and you do NOT have to spend a bunch to look amazing all year ’round. Use what you have (try typing ‘gloves’ in your inventory search bar, please just humour me here) because you bought it for a reason. Find new things to love; maybe it’ll be something like this beautiful (FREE! :O ) strapless mesh party dress from shine. Try using accessories that make a statement (ie. anything from Chop Zuey) and experiment with makeup in an environment where you -won’t- have to dry out your skin with soap and water.

 ( I would have -never- put this together a year ago. )

We’ve all been thinking about our plans for the new year. Why not resolve to put a little extra TLC into your avatar this month and try something new?

~ Portia ~

Fairy Skin -Avie- /*natural *REDGRAVE*
IKON Eternal Eyes – Pond (Fave. Colour. Ever.)
Miamai_Catwalk Lashes_Evergreen 01 Femme
cheLLe – (eyeshadow) Big Night Out (Black)
ROZENA/ Kiss Kiss ~ dolce

[LeLutka]-ATHENA hair – Marilyn

shine by [ZD] NEW YEARS EVE PARTY DRESS ~ FREE until January 31 HERE

Chop Zuey ~ Night Mystery Gld Set
~Blacklace~ Tempest: Black lace Gloves

Pose: Diesel Works