Grand Opening @ Brutal Gear [2]

March 9th, 2007 at 07:32pm Ryan Darragh

It wasn’t easy, but Nex Brannan and I finally managed to coordinate our conflicting schedules well enough to have a little chat/Q&A earlier this week.  Nex has always been more than friendly and seems like one of the nicest guys in the virtual world.  I remember dropping in at his first small backroom store back in September–hey, I bought a pair of jeans!–and I’m pleased and excited to see his Brutal Gear line of men’s designs taking off and expanding.  The recent grand opening of his new shop is a sign not only of that creative growth but surely also of more great things to come.

As Cat mentioned in his earlier post, Nex’s shop build puts us squarely in the middle of a chop shop that would give an OSHA inspector nightmares.  Its high level of realism reflects Nex’s passion for detail as well as his sly sense of humor.  (The unbelievably filthynasty flophouse apartment upstairs especially cracks me up.)  Why put this much effort into building up the shop?  “Oh, I’d honestly have to say it was entirely for me.  Every time someone comes into the store for the first time I resist the urge to drag them around and go, ‘Look at this!  Did you see this?  There’s this hidden here!  Read this sign.’  I’m clearly disturbed!  I’ve seen a lot of great stores in SL laid out like actual stores, but I just didn’t feel like my style represented that kind of presentation.  My stuff feels like maybe you bought it from some guy off the back of a truck, no questions asked, cash only.  So the whole idea of boxes of stolen Brutal Gear stuff in a chop shop really worked for me.  No pretentions, I guess.”

And he did the whole thing himself?  Isn’t that kind of…crazy?  “Yeah, and I had offers from REALLY great folks to help.  Fade Dana, for instance, who’s a genius as well as a sweetheart, offered to help me do the chop shop gratis, but I wanted to do it all myself.  I had a concept, for sure, but a lot of it was one thing inspiring another and so on, which I couldn’t have done pre-planned and handed out to builders.  There were actually very few things I couldn’t do that I wanted to.”

I talked with Nex about what pushes and influences him in coming up with designs for his BG line–maybe real life items he owns or has seen, or maybe just an ethos he likes and hopes to bring to Second Life?  “I’d say a little of both.  Part of what attracted me to design in SL was the ability to make exactly what I wanted for myself.  I don’t have the time or budget in RL to have all the clothes I’d like, especially with a new baby, but SL gives me that ability.   I don’t really check any RL fashions or anything like that, but I do like a certain style.  Seriously, my inspiration is usually “Oh hey!  It’d be cool to have _____ for my AV.”

It all has to be fun and personally satisfying, though, right?  “Yep, I make stuff I want.  I get folks who wish I made girl-specific clothes etc., but I can’t get into it.  Seriously, I wish I could, there’s a lot more business for women’s fashion.”  What about the possibility of unisex designs?  “Actually, a lot of my female friends wear my stuff.  The female AV shapes are soooo much kinder to textures too.  I truly believe they made the female shape, then bent it to the male.”

I asked Nex what he’s got coming down the pipeline or in mind for the future.  “My immediate plans are MORE PRODUCT!  Between the new build, a new RL job, and my new son, I’m feeling like an old man.   I’m really working to get new stuff out, for both the Brutal Gear line, and the new Gearhead hair.  For the future?  I really hadn’t thought about anything other than continuing to make more clothes, expand the style but not change it, and sit in my store and talk to folks.  Sounds pretty good to me.”

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In the picture above (”Garage Parking”), I’m wearing some of Nex’s earlier designs, the Bomber Jacket in brown (L$200) and the 177 Straight Leg Jeans (L$125).   The jacket features beautiful texture work by Nex on the leather, patches, and prim collar.  The jeans are faded fairly light, with realistic fade/wear patches on the thighs.

Perched on the hood of that broken-down old beater, you see me in the Mechanic Shirt in Blue (L$200).  The pinup design on the back is seen here in close-up detail.  I’m a big fan of prim attachments that make shirtsleeve cuffs, and really complete the shirt.  I’m also wearing the 181 Bootleg Lowrise Jeans.  These are darker and have markedly different fade and wrinkle patterns than the 177s.

In all of these pictures I’m also wearing a brand new hairstyle by Nex, “Gearhead Shifter” in red.  This is the classic look that most of the guys in my junior high wore in one form or another–straight as an arrow, chin-length, parted more or less in the middle, falling down over at least one eye.  The long strands are nicely flexi but not flowing–definitely a man’s hairstyle.  All hairstyles are available in a variety of colors and come in packs of three similar tints for L$200.  Take a look at Cat’s earlier post for more info on the different hairstyles that are available.

Last but not least we’ve got the Oxford Open Shirt in Blood (L$150), also worn with the 181 Bootleg Lowrise Jeans.  This is another classic style, well interpreted by Nex.  It’s unbuttoned and just slightly open, with long tails hanging down.  It can be worn with or without an undershirt, depending on the occasion.  The texturing is subtle, not calling attention to itself, but very realistic.  A pair of prim cuffs rounds the whole thing out.

All clothing is available at the Brutal Gear main store (Callatropia 160, 49, 24). Nex’s hair styles are available at Gearhead Hair (Callatropia 125, 194, 25).

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

Notes: On Ryan: Dante Light (Toned) skin by Lost Thereian (Naughty Designs). Black Petrified Work Boots by Kaejo Dasilva (Renegade). Desert Avenger Brown Boots by Dragontat Zagato (Desert Moon Clothiers).

Entry Filed under: Brutal Gear, Casual, Designer Reviews, Hair, Jackets, New Items, Pants, Shirts