Mardi Gras at New Toulouse

Mardi Gras is but a few weeks away and the Estate of New Toulouse will be having our Third Annual Mardi Gras celebrations from Sunday, March 6, 2011 through Tuesday, March 8, 2011. Our actual Mardi Gras Parade is on Sunday, March 6 from 11:00am - 1:00pm SLT. I invite all of you, Taloosters and residents from other lands, to participate in our parade!  Please visit our sim, and feel free to come in costume!  Like New Orleans, New Toulouse has "Krewes", or teams, that work together to create floats and that ride them together during the parade. Krewe members toss items to the parade audience and shout to them, as well as to the Krewes on other floats.  In RL, the traditional throws are beads and doubloons, and the famous Zulu coconuts; in recent years, throws have expanded to include plastic drinking cups, super balls, stuffed animals, mini-frisbees, yo-yos, bean bags, whistles and other noisemakers, rubber duckies, even underwear (new, not used!), often decorated with the emblem of the krewe giving the parade, and/or in the colors of Mardi Gras, purple, gold and green.  If it can be made from plastic (and isn't too hard to hurt anyone), it can be thrown from a parade float!  In SL, you are in for some really beautiful virtual treats--I can't wait to see what--and some really beautiful visual effects!  Laissez les bon temps roulez!

I Want It All!

Before I can go up to the second floor of Kiko Life Digital Cosmetics Company, I discover one more room of some very beautiful makeups to go with my new Remix skins.  Just beyond the room with Lucky Chairs and freebies and along the way to a tall, tall staircase, there are 20 different haunting and otherworldly Fae Fling makeups, and some really interesting and lovely Mendhi, plus a very colorful Chante line with 5 different choices, and the Empress makeup line.  If you want some really different choices for fantasy looks, I highly recommend exploring the Fae Fling makeups, and if you're considering putting together a complete and authentic look to go with your favorite saris, definitely investigate the 10 different full makeups offered Mendhi line, which can also be purchased as separate lipsticks and eyeshadows in various combinations.  The Empress makeups, named Nandi, Nefertiti, Sheba, Nzingha and Tiye, will make you look and feel like an African princess!  I absolutely have to follow Kiko's style tips and find that elegant braided hairstyle too, because someone worked really hard to make a convincing and becoming texture.  If you truly love colorful makeups, then you definitely want to check out the Chante makeup line, especially since bright colors are so hard to achieve on darker skins, and the work(wo)manship invested in these shows.  They would be great for runway shows, and should go really well with 80s inspired spring fashions.  Okay, I think I've bought some of everything now, so on to the next floor, where I expect to see some stylish shapes!  Actually, Kiko Life features complete avatar kits (particularly helpful for all you newbies, but even those of us who have been in SL a while might be considering yet another transformation), with shape (modifyable or non-modifyable), skin, makeup, 4 hairbases, eyes, a style card and a goodie bag.  And there's room for more things to be added, so I can't wait to see what Kiko Life has in store for us!

More at Kiko Life

I'm checking out the Remix makeups to go with my new Remix skins.  In the Remix:  Berry Baby sets are full makeups featuring berry-toned lips and smoky eyes with names such as AFK, Hate on Me, Like a Boy, and Juicy, while in the Remix Beaute line, you can choose from bright or natural eye shadows and lipstick shades such as Piquant, Bronzed, Beguile, Understated, and Sweetened, all of which are great for daily wear.  For a more dramatic look perfect for parties or fashion shows, the Remix:  Bitch Mama sets include Man Stealer, J.E.A.L.O.U.S., Envy, Poison and 4 More Haters.  These are lovely and edgy at the same time, offering a great change of pace from the usual pretty looks (not that I don't love pretty, but sometimes you do need some edge!).  I'm totally intrigued by the Remix:  Wild Cocoa line, which features really imaginative use of neutrals that go beyond the ordinary, including rich, deep lipsticks and eyeshadows that are really great accents for the Remix skins.  With such names as Amenolado, Criollo, Forastero, Trinitario, and Venchi, the makeup artists at Kiko Life pay tribute to the international beauty of women of color.  The Remix:  Red Bliss line represents another current makeup trend featuring shades of deep reds on the lips, and complimentary touches of lighter reds or pinks on the eyes, made popular on Fall 2010 runways, including Seduction, Sissy Poo, Snobby, Sophisticated and Stoosh.  Finally, the red theme is also used for some fantasy-based makeup in the Remix:  Hearts line.  I could see myself using these for some otherworldly roleplay or perhaps as part of a really seductive burlesque performance!  Among the 10 choices in Hearts are Dark Heart, Passion Play, Rio Heart and Tokoyo Red.  Perhaps I should take some flamenco lessons?

Because I hadn't visited this store in so long (thanks slow DSL provider!), I've missed The Essence of Ebony contest in its developing stages, but at least I can announce to you that tomorrow, February 20 at 1 p.m. SLT, Miss Essence of Ebony will be crowned.  Also, Kiko Life is participating in the Inferno Grid-wide hunt until February 26.  As always, there are Lucky Chairs giving you the chance to win skins and other freebies available in the store.  Come by, check out the demos, and do some serious shopping!

Seeing What's New at Kiko Life

Revisiting my store of landmarks takes me to some familiar and comfortable places.  Today, it's my friend Osuntomi Melendez's store Kiko Life Digital Cosmetics Company at Amina City.  Tomi is always busy making new things to make avatars, and especially avatars of color, look good, so it will probably take me more than one post to report on all the goodies!  Of course, skins are my first stop, so the first thing that greets me in that section of the larger space are the Remix Neutrals skins.  They are bundled with these seven options:  with and without cleavage, and each of those with freckles and moles, or shaved, and with tintable eyebrows.  Each skin bundle also includes a goodie bag with one pair of prim eyelashes with built-in facelight, a height detector, a totally adorable sculpted makeup set you can use to decorate your home like the ones in the store, some freebie model poses, and a posing stand.  The Remix Neutrals skins come in Cinnamon, Coffeebean, Creamsicle, Custard, Flax, Honeychild, Macadamia, Malta, Spice, Sunkiss and Walnut, so a range of skintones is represented; there's not just one dark brown skin, but there's also not just one fair skin, which is just brilliant!  According to Tomi and Kiko Moleno, this line of skins offers these benefits:  it gives you the MAXIMUM number of options by allowing you to wear the new makeups for Viewer 2 (or any SL client that supports the tattoo layer), but you also have an everyday face that you can wear in any situation and look so beautiful no one will notice you're not wearing makeup.  You can customize your look with shapes, hairbases and/or makeups (I'll tell you about those later!), also from Kiko Life.  They definitely are a great option and a great value.  Now I just have to make up my mind about which one to buy first....http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Arima%20City/117/201/26

Roaring Twenties Roleplay in SL Chicago

When I'm not touting the wonders of New Toulouse--my home in SL with its wonderfully creative and friendly people and an extremely beautiful Jazz Age setting--I'm always on the lookout for other builds with the vintage spirit.  On Rich Island, you can step back in time to 1920s Chicago.  As a historian, I find one of the best things about SL is the way in which roleplay can motivate research and reading into different periods and places in time, making studying history immersive fun.  Visit here and come play gangsters and FBI agent while you listen to jazz at the Fiume Club; come outfit yourself properly with period day dresses, night gowns, hats, gloves and stockings from Zan's Closet, Cill'angel's Boutique or Eclectica if you want to be a gangster's moll.  If you would rather be like Al Capone, Swank Brothers has the suit and hat for you.  Monarch features car designs that are also true to period, so you don't have to make your way down Michigan Avenue on foot if you don't want to.  The shopping area is RP-optional and combat-free, but cross the river and you will be warned that you have entered a combat area.  At the corner of Willow and Morgan you can catch a taxi that will take you on a guided tour of the sim, and you will feel like you just stepped into the frame of one of my all-time favorite movies, The Sting, as you find yourself stepping over streetcar tracks and dodging falling cigarette butts from the El.  The builder (and local Police Chief), Shepham Moorlord, has included a church and cemetary, Cook County Hospital, a gas station, a hotel, a movie theater, a deli, a barbershop, a bookstore, a police station, and (of course) City Hall.  And since the 1920s means Prohibition, gun-running and illegal liquor, there are speakeasies on every corner, and a new casino.  All the urban amenities are there for the playing!  Keep up with the happenings and fashions in SL Chicago by reading The Chicagoan(http://slchicagoan.wordpress.com/).

London--Knightsbridge, Kensington, Mayfair, Hyde Park and Westminster/ Camden, West End and Soho

I was recently cleaning up my massive inventory, trying to impose some control, when I was inspired to investigate some of my many LMs.  It seemed to be a good idea to revisit a few landmarks from my earliest days in SL, see if anything had changed, see if anything new and interesting was happening,  For as long as that idea may hold some interest for me, I suppose I will devote a few posts to it.  When I first came to SL, the idea of living in a virtual London seemed to be a ready-made fantasy for my new virtual life.  Since that first time so many years ago,  the London sims do seem to have grown a few more regions.  In addition to the landing hub at Hyde Park, there are shopping and residential areas on Kensington, Knightsbridge, Mayfair and Westminster.  Tonight, I did actually find a few people hanging out around the Hyde Park hub, but what I would really like to see are some events, and especially some events with flavor!  It is pretty, and it seems visually faithful, at least to some of the architecture, so maybe it's just the time difference that explains why it still seems so empty on this particular visit. To the credit of the estate managers and builders of the sim, the Hyde Park sim is set up as an orientation space, and it is a fairly attractive and useful place for new avatars to practice moving in virtual space.  As to considering renting a first apartment there, it sounds like a wonderful fantasy, and perhaps as good a place as any to start.  Surfing the Web, I find out that Camden, West End and Soho regions have been added recently to also represent the metropolis that some still consider the center of the world, and that many events have been sponsored, including recent parties for Christmas and New Year's Eve and a Holiday Hunt.  I'm not sure that the sims are owned and managed by the same people (probably not), but Mainland London has its own blog http://mainlandlondon.blogspot.com/p/london-soho.html

and very detailed information for orientation at its landing hub.  Although the Underground entrance does not lead to a working train, the curious explorer will find some free outfits for clubbing, another plus for newbies, both male and female.  (And I was also pleased to see those women's fashions modeled by an attractive brown-skinned Lizzi Klaar!) I suppose that if SL is truly going to live up to its potential as an inclusive place and immersive experience, it is up to us as residents to occasionally step outside of our comfort zones and regular hangouts to find those new places, experiences and people!  Mainland London is in the Destination Guide, so check it out!

Images of New Orleans Musicians

The Art on the Horizon Gallery at Blue Horizon is featuring a show by artist Theresa Jones with her paintings of New Orleans musicians in French Quarter scenes.  Although the RL art cards that were advertised for sale do not seem to be available any longer, you can still purchase the individual images for your SL home or purchase a catalog of the gallery's show.  The collection includes 20 pieces; some of the titles include "Mama Singing Out," "Doreen on the Clarinet," "Sax at Fritzel's," and "Blues Charmer."  Her vibrant colors and rich textures capture some of the energy of contemporary New Orleans Jazz, as her subjects reveal the creativity and dignity of the many street musicians who perform in the French Quarter.  The artists pay tribute to the traditions of music so important in New Orleans history:  the benevolent societies and social clubs of the nineteenth century sponsored brass marching bands that continue to second line at funerals today; in the twenty-first century, the blue notes and syncopated rhythms of saxophones and trombones reverberate along the same streets where jazz was first created in the twentieth.  They are not simply making a living entertaining the Crescent City's tourists; they express the strong spirit and deep cultural roots that allow the city's residents to survive and endure as they continue to recover from Katrina. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Blue%20Horizon/200/161/27

Get Your Groove On Tonight!

Calling all Dancehall Queens & Hooligans, Ladies and Gents, Boys & Girls!  The Lion's Den is now reopened on a fully revamped & fun sim with spectacular views & rides.  Come by and browse the land and shops. Staff will be on premises for any type rentals.  Opening ceremonies will be orchestrated by the top dancehall king himself DrScott from the Kinky Sound Crew.  Hurry down and join in the festivities,  today from 3 to 5 pmSLT!  There is a L$1000 prize for the Loudest Kinky fan, with voting starting @ 420pm.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Edgecliff/125/128/85

Calling All Dancers!

Greetings & Salutations!






Chocolate Entertainment Inc., home of Chocolate Boyz and Chocolate Gurlz Entertainment, is a high class group of dancers and escorts catering to the special and sexy needs of our clientele.  Their clients are set to host some of the best and most memorable ladies nights and bachelor parties here on Second Life, and Chocolate Entertainment is looking for dancers.  Each dancer will be hired for $1800L each PLUS tips for a two hour PRIVATE event. Dancers will recieve $500L plus tips earned for the event.  Each host will be paid $300L for each event they host plus tips.  They are hiring male & female human avatars that are at least one month old in SL age, with upgraded skin and quality clothes.  English Speaking is mandatory, while additional languages are definitely a plus :)  Their recruiters also ask that:

ALL STAFF MUST BE ABLE TO EMOTE EXCELLENT ACROSS THE BOARD NO MATTER THE AMOUNT OF A TIP OR SITUATION

ALL STAFF MUST NOT WORK FOR ANOTHER SL CONTRACTED PRIVATE DANCE TROUPE AND/OR COMPANY.

ALL STAFF MUST OWN AT LEAST 5 PERSONAL DANCES OR A CHIMERA TO USE DURING EVENTS

YOU MUST BE AGE VERIFIED AND USE PAYMENT INFO as LL is changing to a 3 tier rating system. PG, Mature, & Adult.



Drop by their offices at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Dysomia/202/122/900/ to fill out an application, and drop it into Godiva Rugani's profile OR drop it into the mailbox.  Good luck!

Help for Haiti--SHOP FOR A CAUSE!!!

Please join in the effort to help the people of Haiti.   Today is the last day of the Project Tents HAITI Benefit Expo organized by Project Tents and Peace Train Charitable Trust for ShelterBox – May 21st through May 30th, 2010.  Special designs including clothing, jewelry, shapes, shoes and poses are available, featuring items by:

Aimesi, Angel Dessous, ABJ – Aurora Borealis Jewelry, AZUL, Bamboo Soup, Baubles Boho Jewelry, BELLISSIMA!, Body Talking, C’est Moi! Boutique, Callie Cline, Di’s Shape Design, DmD Poses, Ear Candy, Essential Soul, Faster Pussycat, Fellini Couture, FK Virtues, Gabriel, MiDis, Moonbeam Fashions, PRISM, Premiere Modelling Agency, R.A. Crystal, Shiki, , Styles of edo, Tres Beau, Tukinowaguma Hair Style, U&R DOGS, Vamp Shoes, wonderkids, W&Y Hair

To learn more about the event organizers and sponsors, please visit:

* Shelter Box: http://www.shelterbox.org/

* The Peace Train Charitable Trust: http://slpeacetrain.org/

* Project Tents: http://sltents4haiti.wordpress.com/

* Time Magazine: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1989131,00.html
 
To Visit the Project Tents HAITI Benefit Expo, use one of these 9 Project Tents HAITI Landing Points listed below, with SLurls:


Project Tent Central Plaza:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/129/127/30

Project Tent North Central:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/128/177/31

Project Tent North East:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/183/177/31

Project Tent East:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/183/126/31


Project Tent South East:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/182/76/31


Project Tent South Central:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/126/75/31


Project Tent South West:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/70/75/31

Project Tent West:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/71/128/31

Project Tent North West:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Project%20Tents/71/178/31

Happy Memorial Day

Please visit Sunrise Mansion & Art Gallery's fascinating display of history and a recreation of the famous cemetary and monument dedicated to 251 black soldiers exhumed from a Charlotte, NC mass grave. Pay tribute to the sacrifices made by men of African descent to demonstrate their patriotism, in pursuit of freedom.  Come learn about our current holiday's origins as Decoration Day and a commemoration of black Union veterans of the American Civil War, especially these most recently acknowledged, who finally have the resting place that they deserve.  The installation will be on display until June 1st  at

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Diamond%20Serenity%20Caye/241/154/22/

Into Fantasy Skins?

If you are interested in trying out some unique makeups for role-play, you might want to check out CStar Skins.  The store specializes in offering limited-edition skins, an interesting concept if you want to keep your look truly unique.  Unfortunately, their dark tone in the fantasy skins like Bloody Mary, Inferno or GoreJus is still only a light brown (but it is genuinely brownish), while their tan will work for light-skinned girls.  The demos I tried  came with cleavage, hairbase and no-hairbase options which looked fine on the body, but I think some skin tone in the face may have been sacrificed to render the makeup colors--so the face didn't really match the body!  The store is busy right now because of a recent posting on a freebie blog announcing the Lucky Chair giveaways, but experimenting with skins there, and adding some adventurous choices to your inventory can be worthwhile and fun.  The most interesting thing I saw there was a shape and skin --inspired by the recent James Cameron film Avatar--called Neptune Savage, and though the Ocean Teal (blue) version that most closely resembles the Na'vi character played by Zoe Saldana is sold out, there are versions in Ruby (red), Emerald (green) and Poisoned (purple with some green highlights) that are a pretty cool way to totally transform your own avatar.  The Geisha skins come in Modern and Modern Stone versions; while the former comes in natural skin tones with dramatic and unusual but still pretty makeups, the latter offer a total transformation of your look for really challenging your imagination--the skin of your body is grey, like stone, but it is still quite pretty too.  Unico Solo's store is at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cstar/156/103/1661/

Shopping for Skins?

I was pleasantly surprised to find so many choices for representing women of African descent when I dropped in on the sale going on now at Pulse!  Lorac Farella has developed a great deal of skill with her designing, and has made a great effort to offer a range of darker-toned skins that are flattering and realistic.  If you like freckled looks, you should check out the Emotional skin in T4; if you are expecting a wedding proposal any time soon, you might want to purchase the one of three Tears versions, which have cleverly drawn smudgy eye makeup.  If your SL is more adventurous, you may need to add the Lessons, Chafed, Fight or Punished versions that include some strategically placed bruises, band-aids, cuts and scratches, or other marks.  I found the Valeries skin in Bistre to be a bit flat and gray rather than brown, but Valeries in Sienna or Sand will work if you are going for a mixed-chick/light-skinned girl look.  I really love the dramatic makeup too, really strong eye or lip colors, and the variety of brow colors; they will make your AV's face distinctive and memorable.  I feel like I'm looking at an albino version of my familiar digital self when I try on skins that are light; it took a few tries with the i skin before I found that Nos. 1--11 were all meant to be super-pale, so skip those.  Elegance 7 is a nice warm, honey brown, with makeups named for the months of the year that are subtle and natural, and ones for the seven deadly sins that are very dramatic--they will get LOTS of attention!  There is also a choice of makeups named for the virtues (are there seven of those too?), and they are really pretty and romantic.  I think the Life skins are my favorites, and Tones 8, 9, and 10 are all warm brown skins with 8 different makeups each.  They have just the right amount of shading and highlighting to make your AV look great, and you can get it clevage-enhanced too!  Almost all skins are marked down 50% right now, so check it out!

You Are Invited!

You are invited to the opening of an expanded new gallery at Sunrise Mansion!  Join Indea Vaher tomorrow 5pm SLT, for the opening of SRM GALLERY II,  featuring the artwork of Sistagrlo Wei, Miles Eleventhauer, JudyLynn India, Miles Barbasz, Aruba DeCuir, C.C. L. and Indea herself.  Guests will be entertained by world renowned singer TJ Oanomochi.   Indea hopes you can make it:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Diamond%20Serenity%20Caye/224/190/1201

Is This Really a Dark Skin?

My pet peeve about SL (besides lags and crashes) has always been skins.  Now I do recognize and appreciate the difficulty involved in making good skins.  I'm not a designer, but I have talked about the process with those who do have experience making them, and I do have faith in many of the creative types out there who have taken on the challenge of designing quality skins.  I also appreciate being able to go into a new skin store and being pleasantly surprised to find a range of choices for women of color (those of African descent as well as those who are not) to represent themselves.  The idea that there is only one variety of *darkness* is completely passe--besides simply being inaccurate!  There is not one single version of blackness any more than there is only one kind of pale whiteness, so if designers can make variations and degrees of *tan,* consumers ought to be able to see a full range of *dark* skins too.  Whether we are Asian, South Asian, Latina, African or African American (or some combination thereof), we want to be able to create avatars that look like *real* women!

New Happenings...

It's been a crazy busy semester in RL, so I haven't been playing in SL nearly as much as I would like. Now I'm playing a little catch-up, passing on some of the announcments of events that I've received recently:

1) chief Inglewood posted a call for participants in the Fresh Faces 30000L$ Photo Contest. There will be a two-way split of this generous prize: the First Place Winner gets 75 % & the Second Place Winner gets 25%, and the contest is sponsored by GCRadio, Talk of The Town Magazine, Marketing Brings Results, and MBR Records, with a portion of the proceeds going to the AMP-4-A-CURE CANCER GROUP. It costs 25L$ to enter or to vote. Go to the Eastmont Mall Upper Level http://slurl.com/secondlife/Eagles%20Summit/51/239/28/

2)Jayce Slade says: A 'IGHT Y'ALL, MAKE SURE Y'ALL TUNE INTO THE SISTER STATION OF WJAY 106.9,..... KRNB 97.7 *THE GROOVE* features neo-soul and R'n'B. WE WILL HAVE THE FIRST LIVE BROADCAST OF MELLOW MONDAY WITH THE ONE AND ONLY DJ TMB. Y'ALL ALREADY KNOW HOW HE GETS DOWN SO COME ON OUT OR TUNE IN AND RELAX TO MR. MELLOW HIMSELF. http://teal.neostreams.info:11452 LIVE ON KRNB 97.7 *THE GROOVE* 8-10AM DON'T MISS THIS !!!!

3)Maris Lane invites all budding entrepreneurs and experienced store owners to Come join us at ￡avish Mal; for their GRAND OPENING SPECIAL!!! PAY FOR 3 WEEKS (OR MORE) AND GET ONE WEEK FREE!!
♠ Three spacious store sizes and stalls available with excellent amount of prims per unit.
♠ These high quality shops and stalls are in a low lag sim, so please have a look around!
♠ Sleek, and classy look and can be modified to your request. [inside only]
♠ Affordable rent!
♠ Midnight Mania Boards offered for you store upon request, to help bring traffic to your location.
Prices are starting at.....
1.) Regular Shop - 130prims/ L$400 ...per week
2.) Large Shop - 375prims/ L$725 ...per week [limited only 4 of these units]
2.) One Stall - 25prims/ L$110 ...per week
Mall will be adverstised by us, but we also recommend you advertise your own shop also.
Please IM or send a Note Card to owners Tiyah Triellis or Maras Lane with rental questions.
**ONCE YOU HAVE RENTED A UNIT PLEASE CONTACT ONE OF US FOR A GROUP TAG SO YOU CAN REZ***Sorry, once units are rented there will be no refunds should you wish to end the term early.*Prims will also be monitored so please adhere to them or items may be returned.http://slurl.com/secondlife/Ilo%20/178/36/21/

4) DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT IS HIRING DANCERS TO WORK PRIVATE AND PUBLIC EVENTS AND PARTIES.
PLEASE CONTACT ENTYCE GOLDLUST FOR MORE INFORMATION
and an application. You can HAVE FUN AND MAKE MONEY TOO!
WILL TRAIN!!

5)(¨*•.¸´•. :: Chocolate Entertainment Inc. :: ¸.•´¸.•*¨)
♥ Got a party?♥ Need a proper bachelorette send off?♥ Your next rezz day party needs just a hint more sugar?
Naughty or nice, Chocolate Entertainment is here to fulfill your entertainment needs!
You can check out our office or contact Godiva Rugani or JaMarcus Jonstone for questions.
(¨*•.¸´•. :: WE ARE HIRING! :: ¸.•´¸.•*¨)

6) SRM Museum and Art Gallery celebrates Thanksgiving with a special film, The Thanksgiving Story, which depicts Native Americans teaching the pilgrims to survive. A lesser known story is the alliance of enslaved Africans and Native Americans, this week's film in the Media Room, as a special feature, we examine Black Indians, narrated by James Earl Jones. Next week will continue with our regular schedule. PLEASE VISIT THE GALLERY'S two new harvest paintings; At Harvest Time, and Harvest 1998. Shops are now available at SRM’S New Marketplace. These quaint little shops offer classic flavor and rustic charm. SRM has an eclectic and diverse visitor base from all over SL, and RL which is great exposure for your business. Shops are located near our Spa, new Café and Remembrance exhibit. Very reasonable. Contact Indea Vaher for more info. http://slurl.com/secondlife/ZoHa%20Islands%20/25/194/21/

Barry White's Birthday Tonight

It's Silky Smooth Saturday at Nat's Jazz Club ya'll, and we're celebrating Barry White's Birthday! DJ Ice aka Lucas Scarborough is spinning those silky smooth tunes we've come to love with a few of those timeless Barry hits. Oh yeah...Smooth Jazz, R&B, and Neo-Soul like only our boi can do it. Dress in your best Semi-Formal or Formal attire, and as always, DJ Ice is taking your requests and dedications. So bring a friend or meet a new one, and grab that limo. Doors open at 6PM SLT. Nat's is a great space with some great people, always! And tonight's celebration of Barry White means you should be ready to slow dance and talk romance....http://slurl.com/secondlife/Ephesus/180/220/21/

Announcing Nocturnal Souls

I'm passing along the announcement of a new club, NOCTURNAL SOULS, a unique club located high in the clouds above SugarHill Island, which is having a grand opening on Friday at 7:00PM SLT, with DJ Miles Eleventhaur and hostess Dulcedosa Descenna. Nocturnal Souls is a gothic atmosphere filled with a true musical fusion to nourish every soul, SOUL * ROCK * HIPHOP * CHILL MIXES and more!

VAMPIRES, Friday it will be nightfall, safe to come out of those coffins & play, and even if you aren't a vampire, everyone is welcome at NOCTURNAL SOULS. The sploder will be loaded with linden; a raffle ball will be exploding prizes all night, and there will be dancers to entertain the crowd. You are invited to wear your own fangs or pick up a pair when you arrive from the gatekeeper at the door. Of course, the best dressed in GOTH wear wins L$1000!! Jimi Hendrix, Prince, Jay-Z, Sophia Ramos and Living Colour will be jamming at the event, brought to you by BlackSoulRhythms Radio. The Nocturnal Shadows have finally found their way to SL and are taking over! The Shadows is a group of roleplayers (mostly vampires) who are here to struggle to keep our legacy alive; their bond is strong, and so they look after one another. The Shadows are also inviting those interested in joining the group to contact Marjorie Dibou or Capone1 Noriega for more information. http://slurl.com/secondlife/SugarHill/17/130/881/

Of Body, Spirit and Water

A new exhibit called "Of Body, Spirit, and Water: Early African American Healers," is opening today in a new venue at the Sunrise Mansion, which has also moved to a new location. The exhibit examines healers and practitioners of tribal Native American and early African American (Hoodoo) medicine that were precursors to modern natural herbal and holistic healing so popular today. At the new Mojo House, Indea Vaher will be hosting an opening reception, with music by DJ Bodenhall and an exhibit in the mansion upper gallery by Troy Silverfall, artist in residence at the Mansion. Of Body, Spirit and Water will be up at the House until October 10, so TP yourself and your friends to SRM ART GALLERY AND MUSEUM, ZoHa Islands WW (25, 194, 21)http://slurl.com/secondlife/ZoHa%20Islands/25/194/21/

Rhythm & Rhyme Lounge Has Moved!

Jewel Reyes welcomes everyone to the NEW SIM! If you have not checked out the amazing job WD Designs has done for the lounge and mall on a new sim, you need to get down there! Make sure you check out the lounge's garden area for relaxing and try your hand at winning lindens playing Zyngo, DMC and others! Interested minds should get ready for some old and new exciting spoken word. Rhythm and Rhyme is growing, thanks to all of the support the lounge has received these past few months; now they are doing even more events than ever before, and Jewel wants to see all of you at these events!! If you haven't already, you can join the mailing list and get in on the Profile Picks Rewards!
Upcoming events include a contest for live musicians who need a regular and appreciative venue to perform and the incentive of a great promotional and financial opportunity to share their talents. Poets, Spoken Word Artists, Musicians, Singers, Rappers, Hip Hop Artists, Instrumentalists, and others are invited to make submissions from Sunday, August 9, 2009 to Saturday, August 29, 2009 SLT. Those interested in participating should IM Jewel Reyes for more info or come by the lounge and fill out an application!

On Sundays at 3pm SLT Jewel will host a weekly contest for the BEST RHYTHM & RHYME ARTIST. Calling all spoken word artists, poets, singers, rappers to come share your creativity and compete! The first place prize is a $500 WD Designs Gift Card & 200$L. On Mondays from 11am-12pm SLT for all you early birds, there is a midday poetry session, hosted by Klannex Northmead. Show R&R's newest host some love as he leads a discussion about poetry that is read. So come with your pieces or someone else's pieces and share inspiration, your perception and overall thoughts! Later on Mondays from 5pm-6pm SLT the Rhythm & Rhyme Lounge presents live musician SEBA SIDEWAYS. Seba's been playing Tenor Sax for more than 14 years; at the present time, he works in RL as a Session Player in Reggae, Rock, Funk and Latin Bands. His repertory in SL includes different music styles, as Jazz, Ballads, Bossa Nova, Blues, Funk, Reggae Roots. At his gigs, Seba pays a tribute to great Musicians like Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Thelonius Monk, Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, all of them highlights in North American Jazz History. Join R&R for an evening of jamming to the sultry sounds of his sax.
Klannex hosts another midday poetry session on Tuesdays from 11am-12pm SLT, and later on Tuesdays from 7-8pm SLT, Jewel Reyes, Dilana Llewellyn, and Kalli Birman co-host the Nightcap. They invite you to come sit and have a cup of coffee or a glass of wine as they dish on current events and anything else our minds can dream up. Anything and everything is up for grabs! Think Sex in the City meets SL....a time to sit around and discuss ...what topics you ask...well...what would you sit around and chat with friends about....relationships, love, last nights escapades, or just a good corn bread recipe. So sit back...smoke them if you got them...grab a drink and enjoy The Night Cap.
Feel free to join the discussion or simply grab a seat and listen!

On Wednesdays from 7pm-9pm SLT, the Rhythm & Rhyme Lounge presents RISQUE/EROTICA CONTEST, hosted by Jewel Reyes and China Faith. If you missed the last Risque Event? Mmmmm be sure that they steamed the lounge up! Don't let it pass you by this time around; bring your racy, sultry, sexy, pieces down and steam up the lounge, or come and observe! Attire for the evening is SEXY! Umm not naked, but SEXY! We'll begin by watching a Risque Spoken Word Video, a review, and on to the sharing. Feel free to IM Jewel Reyes to guarantee your spot or for more information; a first place prize of 500$L will be awarded to the best spoken word artist, and 250$L for the best sexy attire.
Best Sexxy Attire: 250L

Thursdays begin with another midday poetry session from 11am-1pm, and the weekend begins with CHILL NITE on Fridays from 7pm-9pm SLT Hosted by China Faith, with DJ Star joining China from time to time to spin one hour of tunes from 8-9 p.m. SLT. Oh and yes there will be poetry and spoken word...so reserve your spot, observe, or share! Just be there. The weekend at R&R continues with Karaoke Saturdays in the lounge from 7pm-8pm SLT, so grab a drink and get that liquid courage up to belt some tunes out! Showing up is the best way to stay up to date on when R&R is having random 500$L contests for the best karaoke artist, sponsored by Chez Gabrielle; her satellite store is located right next door to the lounge and if you like classy, sexy, stylish fashion, you need to check her out!
Rhythm and Rhyme's new location is at Millennium Mall & Entertainment , Pinnacle Place (146, 115, 24) http://slurl.com/secondlife/Pinnacle%20Place/146/115/24/