Dressing up and going out

April 2nd, 2009 at 03:17pm Ryan Darragh

I love dressing up and going out.  I mean, hey, who doesn’t?  There’s just something about looking good that makes you feel good.  Plus, as my granny used to say, “Looking nice shows people you care.”  If there’s one thing my sisters and I have learned in life it’s that, over time, our granny and our mom are always right.

What does it take to “look good”?  Of course there’s no simple way to answer that question, but I’m going to take a fairly traditional approach today and start with a suit.  If you’re worried that this means I’m suggesting that “looking good = stuffy,” fear not!  And trust me.

Although it’s not a new discovery, I truly feel you just can’t go wrong with the classic Wool Suit by Blaze Columbia.  There are certainly plenty of other suits out there, and I own a number of other fine ones, but this is the one I keep coming back to–the lines are clean, the style classic, the detailing meticulous, and the colors to die for.  I love this luxurious, softly shiny blue like I love my dog.  Well, like I imagine I would love my dog, if I had a dog.

Blaze’s suit handily includes a white dress shirt and contrasting flexi tie, but today I have something else in mind.  Here I’m wearing the generously appointed and very flexible Form dress shirt by Adam Soler, which can be worn tucked or untucked, with collar open or closed, and with sleeves to the wrist or rolled to the elbow.  Because, as I said, today I have other plans.  Please allow me to demonstrate.

The madness behind my method is Plurabelle Laszlo’s recently released Reifsnider necktie.  Although not flexi, Plurabelle’s necktie is quite elegantly sculpted, and it’s scripted for size and color change–you can choose from seven different fabric textures, and you can select gold or silver for the beautifully detailed tie-pin.  Each tie comes as a set that includes wide and narrow ties, and three different wear options are included, for different looks and to work well with different clothing construction.  The “knot-only” tie works well with a texture collar (and equally well with some buttoned prim collars) and is probably the easiest to adjust.  The “under-the-collar” tie includes part of the neck band (it’s intended to show) and works nicely with some prim collars, although it may be challenging to adjust.  For wear with a wide-open prim collar (or perhaps with no shirt and thus no collar at all), the “around-the-neck” tie includes the entire neck band, which wraps completely around the neck.  This tie is easier to adjust, although you may have to do some hunting for a shirt-and-collar that works to your satisfaction.  Here, I’ve gone for looks that are effective rather than 100% realistic; I encourage you to do some experimenting and find what works for you.  You may need to change the attachment point (chest vs. spine) for the tie, as I did, if it displaces your prim collar.  The Reifsnider necktie is priced at L$250  in both M C T or M C T permissions.  A ladies’ version is also available.  At Bliensen + MaiTai Jewellery and Accessories (Polly Jean 157, 27, 21).

Although my RL clothing budget is vastly smaller (in relative scale) than my SL clothing budget, I am nonetheless a bit of a shoe whore.  Thanks to the local DSW and my relatively harmless fetish, I’m slowly but surely becoming something of a suburban male Imelda Marcos.  I suppose there are worse things that could happen.

I don’t have any shoes like these, though, and that might just call for another trip to the DSW.  These are the latest sculpted style from Damen Gorilla, which he calls M110, a classic pepperpot leather lace-up design.  The black and dark, dark blue shoes shown here are finished in a deep shine, but some soft shine variations are also available.  I find that I often don’t care much for SL shoes with a high level of shine, as the baked-in lighting can look too specifically directional to me, the result being that the shoes only look “right” from certain viewing angles.  This seems very subjective, and maybe this bothers nobody but me, but there it is.  These shoes walk the line (sorry) very well, though–I think they’re beautiful.  Touch to resize automatically via menu.  Priced at L$279 a pair, or buy the pack of all colors at a 40% discount.  A free demo pack includes all the colors.  At Adam n Eve (Genesis 92, 134, 38).

It seems I can count on Mhaijik Guillaume to provide the perfect piece of jewely for almost any ensemble or occasion.  The ring here is one of her new “Masculine Metals” series.  I love the bold, almost Art Deco design with its simple silver base and raised parallel bands of thin goldish-coppery metal.  It’s a strong design, reminiscent of RL designs I’ve seen with extraordinary price tags attached, numbers up in the “if you have to ask, you can’t afford it” stratosphere.  Mhaijik mentioned that this new collection was inspired by a striking ring worn by another attendee at a recent meeting.  I love the idea of Mhaijik sitting in a RL meeting and thinking about things she can do in SL–because that means it’s not just me!  The collection includes rings in a half-dozen different styles; the one shown here is my favorite.  Affordably priced at L$50 each, or L$275 for the set of all six designs.  Find them at at Mhaijik Things (Pheosia 56, 227, 152).

Disclosure: Seen in World: Yes | Review Copy: Yes | Friends List: No

Notes: On Ryan: "Antonio" skin by Funk Schnook (FNKY!). "Surf's Up" hair by Kavar Cleanslate (Exile). Wool Suit by Blaze Columbia (Blaze). Form dress shirt by Adam Soler (Lookr).

Entry Filed under: Blaze Columbia,Bliensen + MaiTai,Dressy,Jewelry,Lookr,Mhaijik Things,New Items,Shirts,Shoes,Suits,Ties