Men's Second Style

To begin with, in second life, I’m a DJ and manager at The Wharf.  I host events for other Djs, as well.  If you’ve never been to the Wharf, you are missing out on a fantastic place.  Chester Howley and Finnegan Chesnokov are the dynamic duo that own the place, and have made it into the awesome place it is today.  I love to talk to and meet people.  And I love to share my music – hence the DJ thing.

You could say that I spend a great deal of time in and around music on SL.  I enjoy exploring various places, whether its a music club, seeing interesting builds, or going shopping and doing things with my friends.  I have met some fantastic people, and have grown very close to a few.

Sometime in mid-February, Ryan spoke with me about becoming a guest contributor for his blog.  I remember we were at  Centerfold, and my good friend, Kaj, was DJing (he is a fantastic DJ, by the way).  Centerfold was having a “sports” themed event.  Everyone was wearing something that somehow was related to a “sport”.  Kaj was dressed like a surfer, Malden a wrestler, just to name a few.  I came in fully dressed, not knowing there was a themed event, and was promptly told I needed to change.  I immediately threw on some board shorts, removed my shirt, socks, and then put on some shades – a very water/beach feel to it.  Shortly thereafter, I was being teased about my pale skin.  Kaj threatened to steal me away to a tanning bed until I was properly cooked.  Ryan sprang to my defense, saying I looked fantastic and different.  I was flattered, to be honest.

Later, Ryan told me I had an interesting look, and asked if I would like to be a guest contributor to his blog.  I found the whole situation interesting, and somewhat intriguing.  So I said yes.  A few days later I realized that I actually needed to do a self-analysis and consider what I like to wear and why.

First things first – My avi is elven and male.  People have differences of opinion maybe on what an elf actually looks like, but in my case, I’ve chosen a pale skin and what I consider a somewhat refined look.  My general size estimate is about 5’11″, and I’m not bulky – being more what I consider lithe and toned of build in my presentation.

The clothing I chose to wear is somewhat influenced by the fact I love rock, industrial, goth, and alternative music.  I pick out outfits and clothing that suit my mood, as much as any preset idea of what I want to wear.  I tend to have a casual or relaxed look.

I guess I don’t have a particular requirement, other than it works for me when I wear it.  I wear anything from jeans or board shorts to various styles of leather pants.  Button up shirts, tshirts – depends on my mood.  Really, it depends on whether a particular item of clothing piques my interest, and looks just right on me.

One of the more frustrating things on SL is the fact that so much of the clothing is typically made for women.  Good quality clothing for men is sometimes difficult to find.  This is one of the reasons I like reading Ryan’s blog.  It’s a great resource for guys that want to find the better quality clothing and accessories.

I want to say thank you for the opportunity to contribute and I wish Ryan continued success with his awesome blog.

If anyone has questions about anything in this article, please feel free to contact me via IM or notecard.

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BODY:

Shape – That’s mine – all the modifications were made by me.

Skin – *ANIMUS* NOCKER FAE – NO DESIGNS – TONED, Animus.  It’s hard to find the right skin without looking very similar to a number of other people.  I suppose the only way around that is to create your own.  Since I’ve not learned that aspect of SL yet, I still buy mine.  I have had several skins (that still sounds wrong no matter how long I’ve said it xD ) – I like this the best, so far, as something that represents what I wanted to look like.  This skin in particular is fantastic.

Hair - Black Cat MidWave B, BareRose Tokyo.  I have looked and looked, but I have had difficulty finding the exact hair that I want.  I was pleasantly surprised to find this “Black Cat MidWave B” from Bare Rose, created by June Dion.  It is a great flexi hair that covers in  the way I want, and in a style that I like.  I had the original Black Cat, which came in a short version, then there was the “long tail” version…and this, my fav so far, Midwave B, is great. I know BR isn’t known for hair, but this one was a great find.  You get several versions of the same general make.

Ears – Sculpted Elf Ears V2, The Body Politik.  I like my elf ears – I don’t understand why someone isn’t making elf ears that are 1) more subtle, and 2) more color matchable to the vast variety of skin tones.  I have done quite a bit of shopping for better ears, but these, by The Body Politik,  are pretty good, and the color, though not the size, is modable.

Eyes – Pantheon (Demeter ~ Radiant) – part of a three-pack, different shades, Zanzo.  I found eyes that are really cool bright blue eyes, created by Theodore DuCasse, that work well for me.

CLOTHING:

Leather Pants and Red/Black/Silver Motorcycle Jacket, :sey (Itutu RR 205, 167, 1525).  The pants are by :sey, part of an outfit pack with both girl and boy versions of the same outfit: leather pants, and leather jacket, with a collar attachment that goes on the spine.  There are also attachements for two places on each arm, so really six pieces for the jacket.  From a different :sey outfit pack, this is a red and silver Riders Jacket.  They come in both shirt and jacket versions, have sleeve/wrist attachments, and the collar of the jacket makes four pieces.

Shirt – 2di4 Death Messenger Shirt, Styria.  It’s a really interesting and out of the ordinary shade for a shirt.  I like the muted design, and the blend of color and shading in it.  It’s made by VincentTalent Maximus, and includes two versions – a shirt-layer tucked version, and a jacket-layer untucked verison.

Belt – Studded Belt – Shape A, Snipster’Z.  My friend Snippy Yifu made this awesome belt – of all the belts that I have, I like this one best, as it seems to suit the flavor of my attire, and its easily size changeable.  It comes in two variations.

Shoes – AKEYO_shoes_CHUCKS_HiTops, Akeyo.  The Chucks sneakers are one of my favorite pieces for my relaxed attire by Akeyo.  The colors of the various parts are modable at the click of a mouse, and you can change the colors of either shoe seperately or at the same time to the same color when modding.

ACCESSORIES:

Necklace – Mystic Elven Necklace, Earendil Lowenhart’s Elven Market.  This was a gift from my friend, Earendil Lowenhart.  He has several pieces that match the the necklace – a belt and a bracelet (not shown here).  He does sell these pieces as well.

Glasses – ROLE OPTIC SG-56 Arcadi, ROLE Optic.  I recently decided to try adding something that sort of accentuates certain features of my face – or really just because I like them.  I was called HGN, whatever that means…  Later I heard it was Hot Gay Nerd, which is cool of Gage to have said…I think.

Bangles (Left Arm) – Wharfrat Bracelet The Wharf Exclusive!, The Wharf (by Broder Kubrick, BroGear).  This is a kewl bracelet “set” in one piece, and it’s something from The Wharf, my favorite hangout, and incidentally where I DJ, host and, most recently, manage.  [This bracelet set is a freebie available at The Wharf to members of The Wharf @ Port Serenity group.]

Bangles (Right Arm) – Emo Bangles, Boobery!  A creation by my friend, Chester Howley, from his store Boobery!  Also available at his store at The Wharf.