The Merchants of Skin City present the first ever Guy Fawkes Fashion Show on Second Life - a show of skins through masks - and totally interactive with you!

Wear a mask you grabbed at the Trick’o'Mask Spree in Skin City from Oct 27th to Oct 31st and join us on the Skin City runway on Guy Fawkes Day Nov 5th. Yes, we want YOU on the runway - in a Trick’o'Mask mask from any Skin City brand. Since it’s a designer show, loads of freebies will be given out - and random mask-wearing models will win free skins and more! Be there, for this original and fun event - to be a part of history, and to win!

Guy Fawkes Day Fashion Shows (All times are SL Time):

• Nov 5th, @ 1 PM - Show begins at 1 PM. All who wish to model - be there at high noon 12 PM - with your mask!
• Nov 5th, @ 7 PM - Show begins at 7 PM. All who wish to model - be there at 6 PM - with your mask!

Only at Skin City. The one stop place for skins and more. Sin City and beyond.

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SfIC: The Shapes for IC-Skins Contest

Shape designers and models - here’s your chance to win skins from IC-Skins and an honorary merchant spot at the new SfIC Shape Store. It’s the SfIC Contest: Free skins and free rent for great shapes and photos - based on IC-Skins.

Entry Directions:

1. *Box up at least one photo and one shape created from an IC-Skin. Drop it in the IC-Skins mail box at the Roundling at the main store at:
2. Include a notecard that includes the following information (name it “[!ICSC] nfo - Your Name”):
   1. Your name and email.
   2. A brief biography with relevant experiences in your Second Life. (You may also include relevant skills from your other life .)
   3. A LM to your store(s), if you have one.
3. Post at least one unedited photo to the SfIC flickr group. (You may also wish to post touch-up photo’s and include additional’s. Be sure to tag photos of the same shape accordingly, as explained below.)
   • In addition to any other tags you may wish to add to your photo, be sure to add the following tags to your photo: SfIC-(Your Avatar Name)-(Your Shape Name) - but leave out the (parentheses)

*Note: If your shape or photo is no mod, please make sure to name each no-mod item with the following prefix so that I can find it easily in my inventory once I retrieve and unpack it: [!ICSC]. The default contact person will be the creator of the shape, unless you include further directions in a notecard (also with the prefix) in the pack. For records purposes and to minimize confusion through data loss in SL, entry results will be sent to both the contact person and email.

Judging:

Judging will be done by me (Ina Centaur), and will be based on merit in each of the submissions items listed above.

Prizes:

1. All-pack version of the skin your shape is for, or another one if you already have it.
2. Indefinite free rent (or at least 3 months) for selected shapes for IC-Skins created by you at the SfIC Shape Shop in Skin City.

About IC-Skins
IC-Skins makes the most photorealistic skins on Second Life by Ina Centaur. IC-Skins was founded in August 2007, at first to raise funding for sLiterary. Its precursor, SLface.com, was established in March of 2007, and has provided hundreds of custom movie-quality photorealistic skins for Second Life users. IC-Skins features a range of photorealistic skins for women and men. Women skins are in several different brands, including _AR (”idealized realistic skins”), .:RIO:. (”Memorable skins to become you”), and Mei Asian Skins (Featuring faces with accurate SL skin rendition of epicanthic folds), and the original IC-Skins, which feature the most unique and character-filled bodies and faces on Second Life. Men skins are mostly in the SL Globe Theatre Gift Shop, often characters in SL Shakespeare Company productions. IC-Skins has also been featured in several fashion shows, machinimas and newscasts, and a huge selection were donated to RFL (Relay for Life) and also the RFL Grand Finale Fashion Show.

About Skin City
Skin City is the one-stop place to see a wide selection of skins, shapes, eyes, and other avatar accessories on SL. Skin City supports the IP Campaign - all Skin City creations are original, so you know when you buy from Skin City, you’re buying from an original content creator. The build is grayscale based on Frank Miller’s Sin City (theatrical version), and only the various shops give it color. Merchants are told: We are noir until you! Visitors are told: Turn the right corner in Skin City, and you can find anything.

About Ina Centaur
Ina Centaur is a young American artist undergoing a seclusion experiment where she stays house-bound for an entire year. This gives her a lot of time to create things in Second Life, and also other virtual worlds and the Internet, in general. o.O

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2008 October 22

Skin City - Three days before Halloween 2008 (October 27th to October 31st), Skin City merchants will be putting out their Halloween treats in front of their stores. Unlike many promotional events, Trick’o'Mask strives to be unique and easy for residents of Second Life to participate in. To be given out are not just any treats, but masks — masks based on select skins created by Skin City designers! But, there’s more to the story:
The masks can be used to obtain discounts to its corresponding skin, and also to land on modeling opportunities for its bearer. Following this event will be the first ever Guy Fawkes Fashion Show on November 5th, where anyone who has a Trick’o'Mask mask get to walk on the Skin City runway and to win more prizes.

Mayor Ina Centaur explains the entertainment-based rationale behind the event, “Virtual candy is generally not as sweet or fun as its RL counterpart, so, instead, for Halloween we give masks - with famous faces based on skins created by the designers of Skin City! Customers who like the skin can then use the mask to activate a discount in a vendor containing the original skin the mask face is based on. For those who can’t afford the skin, they have a chance to win it at the Guy Fawkes Fashion show on Nov 5th - and maybe to land on future modeling opportunity to accumulate more fashion wealth on SL!”

The Trick’o'Mask event is from October 27th to October 31st. The Guy Fawkes Fashion Show, where all are welcome to model is on November 5th.

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Just received a pack of action hero movie DVD’s par avon today. Someone wants me to watch movies. Got Ironman (and compliments for this brief flash), and that was the first in the pack I watched. (Note, all references to superheros and comic book worlds refer to their latest movie versions.)

I think I like it better than Spiderman in that it’s self-empowerment instead of a windfall-superpower-bestowed-on-you. Yet, Ironman is a bit behind Batman, who had loads of super-technologies developed and then never industrialized. Ironman actually had to work and build in his lab, and his many failures are built into the plot of the movie. But, it’s interesting that the movie plot’s major science revolved around a science the movie portrayed well, i.e., the coldness of the pre-space atmosphere.

The lack of any good guys being killed is both unreal, yet happy (or was it censorship). I was amazed at first that the movie started in Afghanistan; I’d assumed that location might have been just a tad bit sensitive. Even more amazed that Ironman had to build weapons for the terrorists in order to “win” his freedom. It’s good he didn’t let desperation push him into the hole, though, and ended up building a “weapon” for them, but actually for himself to escape. His assistant, a captive tinkerer who both spoke English and managed to build a heart for him, was killed to buy him more time–but it was by his own choice, when he admitted he’d finally get to join his family. But, none of the poor Afghan villagers whom the terrorists invaded were killed, as, impulsively, Ironman blasts off from his home in Malibu to Asia fast enough to save them (yes, I agree, the kid’s baba was too lucky!) o.O. It’s both wild and crazy and queerly deux-ex-machina-esque, yet satisfying.

I did find it a tad bit suspicious that Tony was sent to Afghanistan, and forced to be his own corp salesman - I would have assumed they’d have someone hired for such a dangerous task. So, I think I anticipated his corporate next-in-line (that tall bald guy, not the girl) to be the one to betray him (and possibly also his parents, who had apparently been blown up). The guy’s funny, especially when he went furious at the unsuccessful corp engineer he’d hired to try replacing Tony, “Tony Stark was able to build this in a cave with sharpnels…” I think the engineer who admitted, “Well, I’m not Tony Stark” was brave.

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It seems like there are three general consumer types for skins:

1. newbies trying to find their first skin
2. people trying to find a skin to identify with/bond with
3. fashionistas who would wear the latest rage skin or pretty fashion finds

With enough Type 1’s (who generally go for the L$1 option) visiting, you can accumulate several thousand $L a day at least. But, they’re generally clueless, and many actually end up begging you for the L$1. Sometimes, they also ask nubbie questions, “how do I take off this L$1 skin I got from you?” Or worse, “how do I take off this skin [weird name - it’s obviously someone else’s skin but they’re nubbie so they think it’s yours]?” Type 1’s are to be avoided. They aren’t really worth the customer support to coax.

Type 2’s generally don’t purchase a new skin, lest they “lose” the look and get confused on not looking like themselves. Type 3’s are the ones who often buy skins from many of us. Now, I’m thinking about Type 2’s - I’m actually kind of a Type 2, or was… I ventured into skin creation since my previously penurious avatar-self couldn’t afford to buy her own premium skins (this was before I became the spoiled protégé of far too many designers <3). Anyway, I have an idea that might coax Type 2’s into taking a look at new skins (at least).

In theory Type 2’s have already bonded with their current skin, but they wouldn’t mind wearing a mask - especially during mask season, such as Halloween. They’d likely look at the mask, or if not, they’d definitely look at it after the lag and crowd and hunts ubiquitous across the grid - in the Nov 5th event. So ergo the idea:

Trick’o'Mask (with trade-in’s for discount or additional freebie). Yup, that’s my idea. Implementation steps follow:

• create masks based on the faces of new skins (or skins you want to promote);
• put it out front like Halloween goodies;
• if you’re curious at results, try having “mask trade-in’s” that come with irresistible offers, such as 50% off or a special goodie - but the idea is that the mask would activate a discount or special pricing, not just another freebie. (Skin City merchants: scripts and promotional textures and Halloween box for the event will be provided… but suggestions welcome!)
• Nov 5th Event: We’ll celebrate Guy Fawkes Night with an open fashion show parade that’d show off the masks (if it gets too crowded, the event would move to the 4-sim Sky Globe venue down the street) - everyone who has a mask gets to walk on the runway!

It’s an interesting test to see what happens, whether or not we get data, my idea just might also prove to be a unique and interesting Halloween Trick’o'Treating event at Skin City.

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The NEH recently switched from the icky PureView form (which actually requires a Windows 98 machine to use!) to Acrobat form packages. It’s interesting the pdf is made to emulate the old PureView form interface. After about half a dozen submissions errors (Error: Intake servlet is unable to save the data. Error message:: Broken pipe), I finally get a grantor-received email, so I guess I’m FINALLY done. Yippee!

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The problem with this latest gmail gadget Google Mail Goggles is that some of us can do basic math even if unconscious or in an state of dire unconscienceness, and would just go through the math problems like mindlessly gobbling popcorn. It’s a lifelong byproduct of a science education, and I’d assume CS majors can amsd while standing on their pointer finger, too.
Also, thanks to everyone who read my blog(?!?!?!) and gave me tips on the previous issue. Digital image can always be fixed with sufficient tweaking, but the annoying *performance* part is still there - the new viewer has a 300kb/s memory leak on Vista x64! I’m not sure if it’s a sick joke for LL technicians to get people to stop idling and multitasking while on SL - I suppose that would help their already bloated networks (but so much for massive in MMOG) - or intended… Mandatory viewer upgrades = goggles to LL technical conspiracies?

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A couple of months ago, I came up with a skin called Rio. Its has a fair Caucasian tone, described by some as distinctly “Northern/Eastern European”, “exquisite”, and my favorite comment, “a supermodel skin on SL that’s memorable.”

Thus, arises the .:RIO:. line - “Memorable SKINS to become YOU.”

I decided to play with some sketch layers used as eyes and lips in some of my earlier releases. (The devout should be able to see them ;-)) To my surprise, each skin looked distinctly different, and the tone works well, as seen in:

Gia, with warm expression-ful eyebrows, available in:

makeup variations:

and “Avant Garde” showgirl mode:

Gae, whose features give her a formidable and venerable composure:

Gina, who fits as supermodel or an unforgettable pretty girl:

The .:RIO:. line also comes with a selection of eyeshadow colors to bring out your eyes, a selection of lipstick choices (and also directions for custom makeup requests), - each available as individual packs, and also (with discount) row, column, and “all” packs. Two
body choices are available with each, and these body skins will actually be released as psd and textures soon - along with tutorials on customizing your avatar body skin. Stay tuned to the IC-Skins group for details!

All photos shown are unedited SL shots - color, shadow, and everything, looks exactly like they would look on SL using Second Life 1.19.0 (5) Feb 28 2008 17:18:12 with the default [IC-skins] face light included. You can also get a similar look using the regular/
current SL viewer with atmospheric shaders turned off in edit > preferences > graphics

Enough 2d-ness, drop by the main store to see these skins in 3d… on you!

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This is what I spend my “vacation” doing. After sending in a manuscript (I guess I will publish another novel this year), I now get a few days of *mandatory* break until I have to take another stab at re-thinking what I’m spending all my time on the SL Shakespeare Company for.

Centaur has just finished “The Physical Impossibility of Death from the Mind of Someone Living”:

Ina Clawtooth is currently working on a Pozzo ceiling.

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