[Guest Style Consultant] : Renji Land

June 25th, 2009 at 12:11pm Ryan Darragh

Being classy on Second Life in a predominantly hip-hop environment is not easy.  I’ve been on the game for well over one year and from the first day to the day I wrote this I can honestly say certain scenes on SL have and will never change.  Every group, every clique, every organization has a particular style they represent.  In the hip-hop community it’s usually as follows:

1 pair of Nike Uptown styled sneakers (tennis shoes for those of you in the south)
1 pair of baggy jeans
1 sports jersey
1 excessively over-primmed platinum chain and matching earrings
And last but not least, 1 oversized baseball cap representing the local team

Here’s the thing about my community: anything other than that, that isn’t a suit, is jokingly considered “metrosexual.”  For us that’s not a good thing.  If you’re trying to get your Kanye West on you’ll be labeled as something negative (usually from fellas on SL who don’t have the lindens or the IQ to have a true sense of fashion).

Going against the grain, I decided to be myself on the game.  A typical New York after-hours party gentleman.  In my circle here on SL as well as in RL it’s known as the “Grown & Sexy.”  The look is elegant in its simplicity, yet you’d be amazed how difficult it was to find the right pieces to make it work.

My look as of writing this is simple yet Clooney:

Sartoria Grey Suit Suit by traveler Bade – Sartoria
THE Dress Shirt by Bastion Weyland – Rogue Men’s Clothing  (I consider this to be the best open collared dress shirt for a suit or vest in Second Life)
Grey Low Shine Dress Shoes by Daman Gorilla – Adam n Eve
FNKY black dress socks by Funk Schnook – FNKY!
Rudens Optics Glasses by Maris Kanto - Kalnins
King’s Back Ring by naith Smit – Naith Smit Design
Cross Jewelled Stud/gold/clear earring by Icemocolo Voom - Muism
Eyes from The Gold Beach edition by Lano Ling – Poetic Colors

I keep my look simple because I dress the way I do for work in RL on this game, and for leisure the way I dress when I’m off of work.  I try to keep the prim count down so i can enjoy each sim I visit and focus on each client I shoot, though occasionally on my leisure time I’ve been known to throw on a Zooby Snake, some neck jewelry, etc. to differentiate myself from others around me.

The most important part of any man on SL is the combination of his shape and his skin.  My shape was designed by Veronika Garzo of Exotique and my skin was designed by Niecy Devin of Emporium Epidermis.  As an African American (partially) male on SL it’s darn near impossible to find a look that works simply because of “hair.”  We often get stuck with Made Men skins, possibly an Emil from Redgrave, or a Soul skin.  I ran through all of those companies, mainly because they had a skin with drawn hair on top which is closest to my look of short hair on the dome in real life.  I’d like to thank Niecy Devin of Epidermis Emporium, for the last part of my look…my skin.  Niecy took pictures of me in real life and designed a skin to complement me perfectly inworld.  She’s truly a talented soul.  Both of these ladies worked tediously to get my avatar as close as possible to what I look like in real life.  I am honored to walk around in their work on a daily basis.  Their location is Nympholism (227, 63, 24).

There you have it, the look I’ve pushed for over the last year and what I now define as a “Grown & Sexy” look.  Thanks for reading.

Renji Land is a photographer in Second Life.

Entry Filed under: Adam n Eve,Dressy,Epidermis Emporium,Exotique,Eyes,FNKY!,Jackets,Jewelry,Kalnins,Muism,Naith Smit Design,Pants,Poetic Colors,Rogue Men's Clothing,Sartoria,Shirts,Skins,Suits,[Guest Style Consultant]