And the metaverse pauses..

Well not the WHOLE metaverse. The fashion world of SL took a mostly day long pause as the festivities of the annual Miss Virtual World pageant took place. My praises to all the finalists because I'm not sure I mentally could have taken all the crashes, delays and glitches that were present today. Heck I left halfway through because I was feeling another crash almighty approaching. Whomever won the MVW placement contest rocks because I will honestly say I didn't expect the top 10 or 5 to come out the way they did let alone the eventual winner. Call me a skeptic but my brain tends to think having a well known name in the end will likely win out for you. And it might have helped but it most definitely was not the only thing that contributed to the winner taking the crown. For the parts I could see and admittedly that wasn't everything, the results were justified and great all around. Congratulations to Miss Virtual World 2010 Miaa Rebane who was representing Puerto Rico and all the other finalists.

Cha cha changes

So here were are and I should spank my hand again. It's been a few weeks since I've posted but please forgive me. I've been busy with RL work and shopping for Christmas and birthday and anniversary and baby gifts. Yeah there's a lot going on RL for me right now. It's just that time of year and for the people in my life I'm truly grateful. That includes all the nifty folks that I've met in SL too especially as I'm nearing my 2nd rez day which is not too long after my RL birthday. There are too many to properly thank but to the folks that have reinforced my love of fashion and friendships across the grid a special shout out to Maniera, Model's Workshop, Miramar, JCNY and my good friends who keep telling my pictures are cute and they love what I'm wearing and come to the shows to support me. As well as to Skip and Maddy for taking really great pictures of me lately that win or fail work with the strange ideas I've got in the way of styling or daydreaming.

For those of you that actually read and pay attention to the blog rolls on the right side of the page you'll notice a slight shuffle. I readded SL Fashion Critique because well I still read it and it's easy to get to when it's linked on the page and I do believe that someone has been causing unnecessary grief in their name on Agency Report. Whether you believe the recent post from the blogger using Fifth Avenue as a handle or not, it seems to make more sense than the whole disjointed thing did in the first place. I have removed from the blog, and myself from the agency groups, all links to ModelPages International. I apologize to the wonderful women who were chosen to participate in the Miss Refined International Pageant. The former staff/staff of MPI have not a clue where things stand with that or if it will be revived. You all did an amazing amount of work of which you should be proud. We were left in the dark with you so I can't provide any insight as to what has happened with the owner but if I hear anything substantial I'll be sure to at least attempt to post it.

And final updates before I sign off and try to take care of this monster headache. I didn't place in Blacklace's contest or Agnes Finney but I loved both shots so I can't be mad at myself or the photographers. Contests are highly subjective and what works for one person just doesn't pop for another. I've reentered Angel Dessous with the outfit I won and another outfit. Imagine me staring at myself wishing for something different and you'll get that shot. I'll also enter Agnes Finney again and hope for the best. I am debating CCD and HOB even though I have great pieces for both of those already put together. You never know with me ha ha. The plane still isn't ready but it looks like that might lead to pinups in a hanger for me and several other girls. Wouldn't that be cool? All right, I'm out of here.

See ya later
Rouge

Okay wow, bad Rouge

I kept meaning to come back and post but SL and RL have been kicking my butt. Not sure what you don't know so I will try to go over as much as I remember lol. Ok since the last time I posted a few things have happened. The issue of Maniera that I was lucky enough to do the photo shoot with Sami and Mikey has come out and I love the picture. Sent the issue to as many friends as I could lol and encouraged them to go ohhh and ahhh. Not really they all seemed to like it on their own so yeah Atomic, pic was lovely. Which made me wonder again about taking my own photos all the time. Depending on the contest and timing not really a choice with my schedule but I made the choice to look for a few photographers to try to catch new images of me for three contests I wanted to enter and then ultimately a fourth I did enter.

The very nice lingerie shot Skip Staheli did for Angel Dessous garnered me fourth place for their December Angel of the month. Congrats to the winners and as I moved from no place (my first entry lol) to 4th I can't be entirely upset about that. I've entered the Blacklace Model group contest as well with a photo done by Maddy Michalski. Think bombshell on a bomber, which for those that know me know I adore vintage wear and sometimes make things vintage when they aren't really lol, and you will know know what we ended up with. I love the shot and the guys that help run the airfield we were at were beyond helpful rezzing new planes for us to use. They were actually kinda thrilled we were there and have asked Maddy and I to find a shot to put on the side of a plane they are making. So while I would also love to win the Blacklace contest (or at least place) I get to be immortalized on the size of a bomber. Woot bombshell on a bomber. Oh and he's willing to give me a copy of the plane. Isn't that cool?

Maddy also did a shot of me for Phoenix Rising in a lovely purple dress and gave me sort of a somber end of the night Blues club shot. I love it, the tones on it are fantastic. I realize as I'm rambling that I'm not posting the pics but go to my flikr page or wait for the application on the side to change randomly. If you click it you can get to the stream too. Anyway, the contest is being delayed a bit but the picture is being held until they resume. Hopefully it registers for people the same way it did for me but even if it doesn't I love the picture really. I have two sets of shots for Agnes Finney so I can enter this month and next month too. Skip did lovely vintage shots in black and white and splash of color and Maddy did more of a princess feel in a great blue dress and big blue jewels. I know we can't always afford to pay for pictures to be taken but sometimes the ideas we have in our heads can't always be translated to visuals because heck I'm not a Photoshop wizard and don't always have access to the things I need to capture a certain look. It hasn't been an inexpensive endeavor but win or lose I have great new pictures of myself and have developed new relationships with great photographers who totally rock.

The Sensations Shows were great. I saw wonderful designs from some unknown to me before the show designers. Great looks that I was wanting to buy immediately. The lag on Sunday was out of control but Monday I got to wear the favorite of my outfits from my designer, Serina Lacava, and got a very nice shot from Brock Sabra for my trouble. I need to add that to my stream too so you can see it. After all that was done I could see the light at the end of my tunnel so to speak and just had the Fashion Showdown to take care of before I could go on a focus on my hiatus. It was chaotic due to some unforeseen complications and I had to actually miss the show due to scheduling conflicts. From all reports the show went relatively well after massive lag spike at the beginning. The issues that came later are just part of the learning curve that happens when you do shows like this for the first time. I'm sure they can be ironed out if phase two happens in and 6 months I'd be good and rested lol.

Other than that things are going fine. Just waiting on contest outcomes and casting calls and the like even though I will really enjoy the calm down if it happens over the next few weeks. Plus there are a few other contests I need to decide if I want to enter and what I want to do with photos and how I can just keep moving myself forward with this whole modeling thing. Be good everyone. Have a blessed Thanksgiving if you celebrate and just a good day overall even if you don't.

Love ya
Rouge

What is Rouge Wearing Episode 3

I much to my chagrin have been shopping my little, well not so little, butt off. When I saw these skirts on a blog or two I wasn't sure I'd love them on me because of that aforementioned backside. But really the flow so nicely that it's hard not to be totally enamored of them. Very girly and flirty and flattering. I bought the fatpack and I'm glad as I was amazed by the number of shoes I had to go with them. I paired the skirt with a very basic black top from W&B which gave me the casual vibe I was going for without being unflattering to the skirt. Hair from fri.day and shoes from Maitreya. The toe cap fatpack has been working it's way through my wardrobe quickly. I LOVE them. The other packs are equally adorable but these screamed out to my inner vintage diva and I couldn't help myself. For complete credits read below.

Hair: fri.day Jasmine2 in Thoughtful Brown
Skin: laqroki Imani in Ebony
Top: W&B Cole Boatneck Top in Black
Skirt: Zaara Larin Skirt in Ash
Shoes: Maitreya Neyya Toe Cap in Caramel

the skin i'm in phase 2

Hey everyone,

I know you've heard me complain about my face looking weird to me in new skins. But I've never really shown you what I mean. I am a demo queen because I have no idea how much different I'm going to look from the display model when I take them home. Some alterations are minor for me and others just make me cringe when I'm in them in the safety of my home. I rarely pay much attention to freebie skins for this reason but after seeing everyone just rave about the Fionna skin from Free Spirit I did check it out. The group seems great and the other merchandise is cool there too, however, after trying on the skin (featured in the middle) I wasn't sure who I was looking at. The tone is fantastic and the shading on the makeup is quite lovely too but my face had little in common with day to day me. And yes I know I could do some alterations and go from there but I like to see how close I am from the start before I decide to tweak at all. Great skin just not my new skin, and I have been looking for a new skin in the tone I normally wear because well it's just getting a little old. The skin at the bottom is the new LeLutka skin Eclat in dark umber. Now I love the tone again I think it's great and this is much closer to daily me (which is Imani from Laqroki in ebony for those that might be interested) but everything felt a little too big. Fantastic skin just again not one I was ready to convert for.

I went through a few others but didn't take any pictures and as I was prepping to go back on my self imposed skin hiatus I got a new texture from Laqroki. Woot new brown skin came in and I scurried my little touchie right on over to check it out. Again love the tone, it's a little darker, not majorly so though, than the Imani skin and the shading around the nose is a little harder but I didn't look so dramatically different that my head hurt or was I slightly saddened that another skin wouldn't work. The Jewel skin (on the bottom) gives me a few different options for looks (well more than a few it came as a 10-pack) in a tone I love and that didn't make me unrecognizable all of a sudden. I wore it in a shoot last night and can't say that I am at all unhappy with it. Go Laqroki and I do have to mention Mallory was very cordial when I asked when the new ebony skins would be released and promised it would be in a few weeks. And boom Jewel is here. Thanks.

I promise to keep this next part brief. French Vogue is catching some flack because they published images of a very blonde very Danish model in what amounts to Black face. Their defenders are saying the images are not derogatory because they portray Black beauty in a positive light. That might be true if it was actually a Black model but it's not. It's a very White model who in no shape or fashion should have been made up this way. It brings up horrible, painful images to Blacks in the US and those around the planet who have been victimized and told they were somehow inferior because their skin was darker. There are too many fantastic Black models available for this to have even been a thought. It wasn't cutting edge, it wasn't high fashion, it was insensitive at best and downright rude at its worse. I won't republish the images but if you want to see them please click the LINK here.

beginning of the onslaught

Okay I have about 10 posts ready to pop out of my brain but finding time to sit down and write instead of shopping, styling an outfit, doing rehearsal or something has been fleeting in the last few weeks. And really a LOT has happened so I have got to update you on all of that of course. The last time I wrote I was getting ready for graduation and thought I was getting ready for the Halloween shows lol. That would have been silly since Halloween was so far off but hey I was tired. Graduation went mostly smoothly. I had a slight tumble off the stage after I got my shiny cap to go with my loverly diploma. The overall experience with Maniera was great and really it hadn't dawned on me that not all of us would be hired or that any of us would be hired. Most academies aren't making promises to students anymore because they would just end up with dozens of models more than they need. So let's say I was a little surprised to put it mildly when the topic of who was going to be hired came up at all and even more surprised that only a few of us would be brought into the agency. I didn't think it would be me at all so I guess that's why I was stunned literally into a giggle when Sami contacted me a short time later about joining Maniera. I would have done a dance of joy at that precise moment but I was in the middle of another project that I have to update you about. Let me just say that I am thrilled to be apart of the Maniera team and can't thank them enough for training me and seeing something in me that they wanted to work with.

The thing I was in the middle of was a runway show only for once I wasn't the one out front hoping not to crash or fall or screw anything major up. I along with slowly Bury coordinated the Maternal Instincts runway show for MPI. Thankfully I had someone who was willing to dabble in script writing because it would have been horribly dry if I had written it all alone. For my part, I mostly handled the styling of outfits and poses and the rehearsals. Right before the show started I got the energy boost that slid me through the show with a few glitches--one was totally my fault as I had a model walk last and then in a group walk a few moments later--and the normal lag fairy that descends on shows. The girls were great and I appreciate all the hard work they put into selecting poses, styling themselves, coming to rehearsals and just going with the flow. They will always be the bestest to me cause they were my first show behind the scenes so thanks Vich, PureBeauty, sereana, Jacinta, Keeley and Rachel. Thanks to Jason and genie for allowing me to try my hand at that and EXTRA big thanks to slowly for working on the script. It was truly a pleasure working on the show.

I've also taken on a few other roles and I hope to do a good job in all of them. I am one of the new instructors for Miramar and I think from our conversations we'll have a good curriculum in place that will benefit everyone. The next runway show for Praga I'm working on the walk for the models and hope it all goes well. And I am blogging for JSE now and actually ready for the Halloween shows now as they really are approaching. Found the cutest costume a few weeks ago just gotta make sure it fits well.

And in a total different kind of shock, I made the initial cut for the SuperElite Supersearch 2010. The lag at the casting threw me for a total loop but I felt the outfits were styled well. Looking pretty and not walking well don't work together though so I'm not holding my breath to make it to the top 10 for this season and I'm not sure what happens if we're eliminated this round as far as applying in the future. Ahh well. It was nice to be called to the casting. I'll keep working on everything no matter what the results are. I'll try to get pics posted to flikr soon so you can see what I was wearing.

See ya later
Rouge

bad rouge

I keep saying I need to post but then I get distracted or get sick and it just doesn't happen. There have been a few changes going on since the last time I posted. For one thing I have a new official job, two technically. MPI is allowing me to work as one of the the stylists that consults with new hires and I'm on the team to organize new shows but I need to actually sit down and go over that with the rest of the team who have a slate of things in the works. It's been interesting and fun to help the girls I've spoken to work on their looks and try to help them out the same way folks have done with me over my time in the industry. I hope they are getting the most from it and we are building a strong agency as a result.

My TE Kingdom is sponsoring a fashion challenge in a few months and I have agreed to help out with organizing the models and the walk for it. We have had a tremendous response already and may just end up choosing exclusively from that group but I still want to have a formal casting to make sure we have the best selection for the designers. But it's giving me more exposure to the side of runway work that I wanted to gain. And after helping out with the Miss Refined International September casting with MPI I'm getting a better idea of timing issues and the importance of a good cue. Being in shows helps with that too. What's too long to pose, what's too short? Finding poses that complete in that time frame and still give everyone a good look at the clothes. I'll keep hammering that out as I try to get my hands in more and more things.

My graduation show with Maniera is this weekend and there's a Halloween fashion show with JSE this weekend. I'm waiting on my outfits to style for the graduation show but have a ton of outfits that I can wear for the Halloween show so that will rock as long as I'm not dealing with a crazy migraine like today. I am also now on staff with Model's Workshop which is cool. I'm looking forward to working with them and seeing different ideas come to fruition. I'll be leading a workshop or two eventually but want to get my feet set under me first. There is also an opportunity to help out with JSE's blog and Miramar as one of their academy folks. I'll try to get my applications in for those before I log off tonight but that's only if I can get the migraine to stay gone.

I've applied for a few more contests and didn't make the cut for two and haven't heard back on the third but hey taking new photos and trying new things out is super helpful in expanding my looks and my eye for detail. I think that's it for now. If I have time to take pictures once I get the outfits I will, otherwise you'll get them sometime next week.

love ya guys,
rouge

now introducing......

Okay so most of you coming here know me already so there's no need to introduce me but I'm tossing in some photos for ya of the runway shows I did the last weekend in August. Remember how I said I didn't understand how people booked multiple shows in a weekend without crashing and burning? Yeah well i still don't lol I was exhausted by Sunday night and granted the Miramar show was a total fluke in me booking it but that's what that whole networking thing played in. I've mentioned the Model's Workshop in the past. It's a great resource and I think I'll be helping out with it more now but the leader, Monica Balut-creator of the wonderful Balut huds, contacted me about filling a spot that had been vacated all of a sudden with a show three days away. I met with the agency owner and he liked me so boom I got a show on Saturday--except I guess I wasn't paying proper attention it was one routine for two shows a few hours apart. It was great honestly as I like being a part of different kinds of shows and this one was entirely in Spanish. The second show was much more crowded and thus more laggy but all was good. And I even managed to drag my partner to a show so he could see me be all adorable and cute or excuse me serious and sexy and selling my outfits.

The next day it was time for the much anticipated JSE Grand Opening show which was hit with an unusually off SL day in that nearly everything that could go wrong did and the lag got so bad the sim finally said no mas and sent us all back to RL for a bit. We made it back and had the finale and attracted new models to the crew and thoroughly impressed those who hung with us. I don't think I've been in a show that laggy ever so it was most definitely an experience. It was great and I think we did a fantastic job. So here are my outfits for that show. If you want details just visit my flikr page and you'll get all the info about them.














The shows were great and paid which was a double shock but it was also a good example of making sure that we are able to form good relationships with other models so that every now and then we can luck into another job or agency or whatever because making a name for ourselves doesn't just come from our ability to fill out an outfit or take a pretty picture. Thanks again to Monica and to Miguel who let someone he barely knew wear a bunch of pretty outfits for a big show.

Classes are going well at Maniera and I'm looking forward to our graduation show. We're focusing on things that I'm thoroughly enjoying and I think will give me more of an edge when I'm done if it comes from nothing more than confidence. We are each having a makeover refinement session with the CEO which is great because we make our avs to suit our needs but there are minor things that people observing us will see that we don't notice. Had mine and it was fantastic. I can highly recommend the courses there for anyone interested. Okay time for bed.

The World Keeps Spinning

So another week has come and gone and all is right in my SL world. Rehearsal is going well. I have a great partner to do my walks with and have already finished doing all the accessorizing for my outfits. I do need to work on poses and get used to timing each other to move as in sync as possible. Regardless, the show is coming along nicely and I'm enjoying the preparations. I have skipped a few castings as of late but it's mostly because I'm getting ready for my classes with Maniera which would conflict with a few tentative practice schedules not to mention the schedule of the show I'm already in. I should try to juggle them I'm sure but I'd rather be focused right now on one show instead of wearing myself thin and not really enjoying any of it.

I forgot to apply for the last week at JCNY so this will be my first month since I started applying not being involved in it at all. But a good friend made it back in and I can try to go support her depending on when the finale is scheduled for this month. I haven't really entered too many contests as of late. I did have a photo done for the Chanel BOSL contest and I'll try to post that before I end this entry but other than that I entered Miss Bliss Couture ages ago and I'm just waiting to see if I made the cut out of the 300 entries they received. Nothing much else is going on. And I'm a little sleepy so I'm gonna wrap this up. Have a good evening, morning and afternoon lol.

Rouge


Not that anyone would be wondering lol but the outfit in this shot is from Ivalde. It's in the L'abel section of the store upstairs and I bought it at least three months ago. The hat I stumbled across when I went looking for vintage hats. I tried the store that Ivalde mentions on several signs but they weren't the right era for what I was looking for. It's the Lady Emma hat from Hatpins. If you have never been there and are into vintage wear please check them out. I heart them.

Combo Post

Okay so on Monday I was telling you about changes I was making in the push to be a more proactive model and all that jazz. I did end up getting cast in the show and that rehearsal starts next week which rocks. There is nothing like being in a live runway show. I'll be sure to post that info in case you're interested in seeing it but right now keeping that mum lol. I had my interview/evaluation with Maniera on Tuesday afternoon as well and that went great. I'll start the Advanced classes in a few weeks so I'm happy about that. I ended up chatting up one of the execs during the interview without my knowledge. He's great though and I appreciate that he took time to speak with me when it was probably clear I had no idea who he was. If it wasn't clear yippee for me but I hate doing stuff like that. In my defense I don't often do stuff like that though lol. Anyway, I'm concluding this post with a What Was Rouge Wearing from my interview. I liked the outfit and felt like I managed to accessorize it well. Feel free to tell me what you think.



Hair: Zoe by Maitreya in Chocolate
Earrings: Dela by JCNY
Eyes: Chocolate by Prismatic
Outfit: Jacket and Pants: Stella in Black by MichaMi
Shirt: White Shirt from Celeste set by Ivalde
Purse: Coco Clutch in Silver by CoCo Designs
Shoes: Coco Spangles Stiletto Heels in Black by Coco Designs

Round and Round We Go

Life is good in the Rouge camp. Well it is and it isn't. There is some shifting in the universe of my agency reputation for various reasons. It's a good time for me to make a few breaks and get refocused with the agencies that I have been enjoying working with and whom seem interested in giving me a decent push. Had a great walk I think at a recent casting but still waiting to find out whether or not I got the show. Waiting for a pic to come back for a contest I want to enter. It was nice finding the right style amongst the things I already own instead of going out to grab something. I love shopping don't get me wrong but I wanted to see what I could pull together and try to pull off the haute couture look. Could have possibly gone with darker and different hair but I think I was too cute lol. I am interviewing with Maniera tomorrow for the class they offer. I also get to ditch mommy tomorrow for three weeks so I'm going to have to fight to stay sober till the interview. You'd have to know my mother to know why that would be the case. Anyhoo, I'm excited about that and will probably spend the rest of the day choosing an outfit. Had to skip work again but we're in phase two of diagnosing the issue now so what can I do but toe the line and see what happens. I need to get some food in my stomach though. Haven't eaten since like 11 this morning. All right boys and girls see ya later. Oh and check out the new link. Just found Icing on the web.

Skin I'm In and Other Things

It occurred to me that I never gave you a review of the skins I had been testing out. Honestly there were some great tones there and I loved seeing that they were available. I especially like Cupcakes and YourShape & YourSkin as I think they did a good job of balancing the tones with the makeups. However, I didn't end up buying a single solitary skin--which is odd cause I'm a bit of a skin whore--because they each ended up having the same issue (except YS). The shape of my face (particularly eyes and mouth) changed so much that wearing them would make even me wonder who I was. They are great skins and as my partner pointed out if I wasn't so accustomed to seeing my face then it wouldn't bother me in the slightest. But because I have a thing about appearing like myself lol skins that don't allow me to do that don't get purchased. YS did it to a much less degree but the fatpacks were hard to choose from in the tone I like so I have momentarily held off on their purchase until something jumps out at me. I liked the skins at MAI too so if you are looking for darker skins try all of those stores and of course my favorites Laqroki, Rockberry and well you can't get them anymore but the old CHAI skins were great.

That actually leads into another discussion I was planning to have. Model's Workshop is a great avenue to learn new techniques and network and the like for new and old models. This last week was about learning to market your face. Our shapes, skins, hair, clothes are changed pretty readily as models but if your face changes dramatically from shot to shot then you are in a world of trouble. Because they don't identify you strongly with any look in particular. Topaz Joubert, CEO of Maniera, led the discussion along with Lola Baudin and Sami Kutanaga. I've never met Topaz but she did a great job of showing us transformations that managed to maintain their face as much as possible while refining their other characteristics into a unique overall appearance. She also emphasized that it wasn't bad to be flexible but to attempt to make yourself into a commodity (my words not hers). All in all it was a very good program and made several of us interested in participating in the academy including me. I haven't been pursuing more formal training for a while. Most of the new agencies I'm with require pretty regular rehearsals--some overlapping each other depending on the day--so I've been afforded opportunities to do a variety of things outside of classes. Each academy handles things a little differently but the overall course description seems to be constant among several of the better academies. Not to mention that there are a few that just aren't friendly to US work schedules. I can't be on SL at 12PST for classes---I'm still very much in the middle of my workday. The Maniera curriculum for the course I'm interested in seems to take what I've learned a few steps further and agrees with my schedule so it's a win win if I'm accepted. I'll let you know how that goes.

Beyond that I finally put up some new pictures on flikr from a few contests I did enter/planned on entering/or just took randomly. I'll try not to take a month between uploads again lol. See ya later.

updates woot

Okay I didn't mean to totally bounce for nearly two weeks. Like with all things in my life I keep meaning to do something and yeah don't quite get around to doing them. I still need to write a letter to one of my friends in RL but between work, being slightly sick again and my ever more disturbed mother I just haven't had the patience. But I haven't been completely dormant. After really just forgetting to send in an entry for a few weeks for JCNY I got off my touchie and sent one in for week three and got in for my 5th time and then surprised myself with the 6th selection this last week. They have introduced something new as part of being a showcase model too. Sunday fashion shows that feature our own wardrobe and a pretty cute walk down the runway. If you want to see my first go round check out the link to the JCNY blog. Sparkie was nice enough to take pictures of it and post them.

I didn't make the cut for a few castings and contests but again if a model can't handle rejection no need to be doing what she's doing. I'm still having fun and really that's all that matters. I'm looking for a new place still but I'm difficult. I want more privacy than I have now but I really need like 600 prims or less and those tend to be plots were neighbors are VERY nearby. I might have found a place but I'm gonna look tomorrow too and then just go for it. It's time for a change in scenery. I'm going to post a picture of me from last week on the runway and tell you what I'm wearing and then I'm gonna actually pay attention to being on the runway now. Love ya lol.

Rouge

Dress: Phoenix from Dangerous Lace---great store found out about it from BOSL group
Hair: Lua in Black from Analog Dog
Jewelry: Young Hollywood Bracelets from JCNY
Skin: Imani in Ebony from Lakroqi

This dress is just gorgeous to me. It's very feminine and a unique pattern. It's available in several colors too. I did longer hair cause really I like long hair and this seemed to be a great complimentary style. No jewels around my neck because it just seemed to much but the bracelets--especially with the ability to change colors--felt like a nice island match.

Woot Woot

Ok nothing much is going on in the world of Rouge right now. I was able to catch a graduation show tonight from my old training school featuring a new friend. I took some snaps, nothing fabulous but I'll post the link in a few seconds. I added a few links to the blogroll and still have a few more that I need to add that I have been reading more of lately. I added one primarily because they did something I had wanted to do which was look at the selection of darker skins in SL and sing their praises or not. I love Laqroki and Rockberry's Uma line is a close 2nd. I have tons of skins because I catch things on sale but I rarely wear most of them because my face changes so much in them or I look washed out. I'll post my own reviews as I can and try to take pictures. I've been hired by another agency and have joined the avvie revolution on Moolto. The show ended up being a no go due to rehearsal times but hey it happens, sorry for the missed opportunity but a girl has to mkae money to feed her shopping habit. Talk to you later so until then have a good one boys and girls.

SE Grad Show

well damn lol

Apparently I went on hiatus from everything. I've been much sicker this last year than ever before and I finally made myself stop this last week and try to get it taken care of but I swear I had little motivation to do anything else. I FINALLY worked on pictures I took a few weeks ago and added them to my flikr page. Then I went and took most of the pictures I needed to for a few more contests I wanted to enter. Still need to work on two others but as those are monthly contests I might hold off on those and let me brain recover from the sting of rejection lol. It's not that bad really a lot of nos in a row just don't feel good. Due to the slow down I was able to attend a last minute casting and as of right now I'm in the show. Need information on rehearsal times and all that jazz but hopefully it will go well. I'm also applying for another show but I think the deadline for that is a week or so out before I can expect to hear anything. I also got out and about and attended the Miss Virtual World castings and took some snaps of the women strutting their stuff. That's on my secondary flikr, I'll post those links in a bit. I haven't been shopping too much which is good lol. I'm still looking for new digs to rest my digital head. I want something sorta private, villa esque but everything I find is either too big or WAY too expensive. Shouldn't be so hard to find a nice quiet residential neighborhood. Other news is still pending but as soon as I know it's a lock on either one of them I will so let you know. Oh and doh I just got through with the Cinderella's Lost Slipper Hunt. Good God that was frustrating periodically. Teeny tiny shoes and hidden in bizzare place slippers. But I made it to the end. Now I just need a date to the ball. Any interested parties want to whisk me off my feet? Hee hee, just kidding my partner would kill me.

Keep it Curvy
Rouge

Casting Day One Casting Day Two
Hunt Information Hints for the Hunt

the thrill of the hunt

Okay I am so not a huge hunt girl. I tend to get distracted easily if I'm doing it alone and some folks really want to make you hunt for the hidden thing and that frustrates me lol. But I'm sad I missed the one at Retrology. It's my fault I didn't check all the fashion blogs I could have but I dying cause I want the Miss USO dress from Ingenue and the nice one from Pinup Dolls and assorted other items I have seen posted that are just too damn adorable. I did hear about the Cinderella hunt and I suddenly developed a taste for glass slippers so I will be looking forward to that one. If you hear about a good hunt let me know. It's how I found my walking elephant that is just too funny for a number of reasons. See ya later

You're Just Not Good Enough

Now the life of the model, especially a new model, is full of rejection. People don't know you or your reliability enough to take a chance on you. Filling out dozens fo agency applications and getting no response well that's par for the course too. On the rare occasion you'll get back a pretty standard you aren't what we're looking for at the moment but we'll keep your app on file response or the more common: we feel you need more training here's information on our academy. All of which makes sense, an agency has the right to hire or not hire whomever they want. And it's up to us as models to decide if we want to shell out more lindens for more training on the off chance that we might end up working for the agency. I don't mind being told no or honestly I don't really expect to hear anything back when I apply for things but yesterday I and several other models got a pretty nasty one liner about our results from a casting call. At first my brain joked that my strike outs had gone into extra innings. I can admit it wasn't my best walk so really I wasn't stressing over not being selected. I think it was the way the information was relayed that annoyed me and apparently even more models who weren't as polite or in this case docile as I was in responding to the IM. I had wanted to be just as snippy back but the industry curse came into my brain then. It only takes one or two people talking about you being difficult or bad at anything for you to just basically be turned down by everyone. And in some cases it's as basic as the situation I just told you about. Nasty initial comment, appropriately nasty response. We do have a few outlets to voice our opinions but again we always have to decide if it's worth potentially not working. It's a catch 22.

And the kid strikes out

My streak at JCNY has come to an end. I will not be a showcase model for the 5th straight week which actually feels kinda weird but I'm sure people were tired of seeing me lol. I already told you that I was out of contention for this round of Miss Virtual World and I just discovered that I'm now out of the running for the Next Top Model Challenge as well. I am having a blast stretching my wings in SL fashion and the rejections are to be expected. Just gotta keep working on my look and putting myself out there. Not my best week as a competitive human but also not my worse by far lol. We'll see what's around the next curve.

Words of Wisdom from Grasshopper

Our challenge topic for the day, well mine since I'm a challenge newbie: What did you get out of your experience? Do you think it will change the way you blog in the future?

I think the blogging experience has been really cool in that 60 odd other people were all writing about the same things at once. And since we're all very different no matter what we have in common in SL it's interesting to see what everyone did with their topics. I have enjoyed it immensely and I hope that people that have stopped by have gotten something more than inane drivel out of what I've said. I don't think it will change the way I blog in the future. I like to talk but I normally get distracted and end up doing something besides blogging life in my digital world. I will be more vigilant about posting I think which could be a result of the challenge. All in all this has been a blast and I can't wait to see what other folks come up with in the future. I still want to do Hamlet's favorite movie scene challenge but finding the outfits I want has proven to be more challenging than I anticipated. Oh well off to forage for food.

Challenge Day Five

Today is a free for all. Not sure what I want to talk about today. I was planning on updating this anyway, like yesterday because I was expecting to be replaced on the runway lol. Got a few days reprieve for the moment. Saw the June casting call for Miss Virtual World and no surprise wasn't on the list but I have taken some much better pictures since then and think I'm getting more handy with putting together a piece quickly and working out my details for the outfits I'm wearing. I'll try again, not sure if it will be for July or August but it never hurts to put your face out there. I made the initial screening for the Next Top Model Challenge but don't expect to hear anything about who made it to the actual competition until this weekend. If I hear sooner I'm sure you will too lol. Totally off tangent, I downloaded the new update on the off chance that it would fix the chat issue---so hasn't---but it has stopped my weird font issues and finally recognizes my graphics card from my shiny new computer. It's also doing some things differently when you mouse click on yourself or objects so be careful. Things look better which I can only attribute to it recognizing my card finally. And wrapping it up for today. I've been wondering if it's better to look pretty consistent as a model or always be willing to show someone something new. I change my hair, skin, shoes and eyes so often I never know what I'm going to look like until I'm done. It's great lol. Okay enough babbling for me, let me focus on what I'm supposed to be doing. I will talk to you about some new possibilities if they come to pass soon.

See ya
Rouge

When I grow up

Or Day Four of the Big Bad Blogger Challenge. Here's the topic du jour:

If there was someone you could trade places with for one day in Second Life, who would it be and why? Bonus points if you find this person and snap a picture with them!

You know I have never even thought about this. Who would I be in SL if I wasn't me? I mean given my current interests I guess I could shot for one of the supermodels in SL or one of the more successful magazine publishers but really I could still possibly do those things as just plain old me. I'm not sure I have the economic fortitude or business acumen to be her but the thought of being Anshe Chung does intrigue me. I mean who wouldn't want to be the first SL millionaire? At a time when I'm just waiting to start breaking even on the lindens I spend versus the ones I make, that just seems like it would be fascinating to me. Would I stay in my RL profession or would I just bail on it entirely (I could always downsize it I guess)? Would I be able to explore my other interests or would I be so tied up with running my enterprises that wouldn't even be a possibility? Would the money allow me to actually finish and shop around any of the half dozen books floating around in my head? Not a clue but having the financial security in place to even bat those ideas around would so rock. I'd adore that, oh and I'd be able to pay off the intrepid student loan company and buy us a large enough house that I could forget I have a guest or two when I wanted. Provided I didn't become complacent and just say screw the business now that it's making money for me. I'm almost always mostly content with just being me but every now and then I wish I had the drive of an Anshe Chung to see where that might push my endeavors.

day 3

You've been given a sim of your very own to use for free for one year. However, there are 3 rules. It cannot be residential, it cannot be commercial, and it has to be open to the public. What do you do with it?

I think I'd break it up into a few museum esque spots or concert venues. I love live music and if I could provide a less laggy area for folks to enjoy a good show and dance around that would be fantastic. Could also be used for a Shakespeare in the Park venue if there were no shows. Beyond that I would love to do a Rhythm and Blues/Jazz museum featuring prominent artists in the genre and slightly related genres so people could see the history of the music and what it has evolved to now--not that I dig a lot of what is on the radio now but it's always good to see the transitions. I'd also love to recreate the historically Black fraternity and sorority movement as it was when our organizations were founded so we can see as much as can be gleamed from historical and publically available sources acted out to some degree. Again to see the transition from what was envisioned to now.

Big Bad Blogger Challenge

I just saw this as I roaming the blogosphere instead of working and I'm a day or two behind so this one will be a two-fer.

How long have I been blogging and how has it enriched my life?

Well I guess it would depend on what you consider blogging. I've had a blog on blogspot under various names since 2005. My primary blog is more about my relationships and life in RL and well this is all about what I'm doing in SL with all my wonderful pixelated friends. I did do some minor blogging on BlackPlanet once upon a time and I'd be surprised if that thing was still up. Blogging lets me meet a lot of people in another virtual platform. They share their lives with me and vice versa and we are typically of good support to one another and can see the world through each other's eyes. I have met some fantastic friends that way--one of whom I need to send a belated birthday card to because I spazzed yesterday--and in general I've been able to develop more of whom I am and who I want to be because I'm alllowed to just spew stuff out sometimes and take risks that I wouldn't otherwise take.

What would my perfect day in SL be like?

Honestly I'm not sure. There are things that would rock mightily if they happened but I'm not sure if I would consider that perfect or not. It would be nice if the following things all occured on the same day and I am sure I wouldn't complain.

• I'd be in a position to have to turn down work as a model because I was already booked solid with shows or shoots or the like with designers I admire and models I respect.
  
• I would be safely over the number of required acres in Tiny Empires with a downline who lovedededed me and never wanted to go anywhere else so I could ascend and become queen of my own empire.
• I could then have a party with the fabulous Kingdom I'm in, my new Queendom and all the folks that introduced me to the game and kept me playing.
• I could spend that party in my partner's arms as we joked and I stepped on his toes---he's much taller than me.
• We could relax for a bit before I head off to a runway show or contest in which I place, doesn't have to be first or second but top 10 would be a blast. If I won I'm sure I'd have to log off shortly there after so I could get amazingly toasty drunk cause I'd be in shock.

Last question from New World Notes: For the inventive bloggers out there, discuss a mixed reality application of Second Life you use now, or think could become generally useful in the future.

Not sure if this is what the blogger is looking for but on my goodness my life would be so fabulous if I could do a few things in RL that we do in SL and take for granted. While I like being a curvy girl, clearly, it might be nice once in a blue moon to get slinky via a mouseclick so that I could be the last amazing dress on the rack which is only available in a size 3. I don't think I was ever a size 3, I got curves in the 5th grade and was a 7 then. I don't really want to be taller unless I can stop from having pants hemmed or wearing heels in order to not have things dragging on the ground. Instant clothing fitting would be great as would being able the accesorize all of those things but really that's just one big category of altering appearance. The thing I would love the most and I think would have the biggest impact on humanity would be the ability to TP wherever we wanted to go. Cuts down on travel time, conserves energy for things we need it for, and could remove people from the system/area who aren't authorized to be so it could dramatically lower crime rates. It wouldn't necessarily work for the family to go at the same time like on Star Trek but getting up 30 minutes before work, showering and then teleporting to the office would be so wonderful. I could sleep in every morning or actually have breakfast instead of rushing out to fight traffic. I'm sure there would still be traffic around for massive transportation things or folks who didn't want to TP around the world but being able to go to work, a concert in Vegas, dancing in Paris and Rome and back before work again on Monday would be fantastic.

Just Keep Swimming

newstand3
Originally uploaded by Rouge Anthony

Well it's been a few days since I've even thought about posting. I was busy with rl job until Friday and then this weekend my brain was just kinda on the fried side. In the middle of my fourth week at JCNY, I'm probably busier than ever. The runway is still kind to me which is good, we have been exchanging note cards about sales, castings, agency applications and workshop notes which have been good to have and exchange. I'm a big believer in spreading the good karma around even though it may not come back to me initially, it probably will sooner or later.

I've put out a few more agency applications lately and have heard back from one of them and was hired. Another one has said they were swamped with apps but would get back to us ASAP and well the other hasn't said much but hey that is the nature of the business. Not everyone will love what they see in my portfolio or will feel I'm a good fit for their agency. Miss Virtual World for the month has now closed and here lies the not so painful wait for them to announce who made it to the live callbacks. I say not so painful because honestly I was just glad to get it out because I wasn't sitting quietly at home wishing I had done it. I'm so not anticipating leapfrogging over the plethora of models (for example 8 rows or so of 17 pictures and another 10 rows of probably 10 pictures) to be in consideration for the actual contest. Would it rock? Only totally and completely. Am I holding my breath? Well not so much. I also entered the Next Top Model Competition and expect to hear something I guess this week about if I'm a yay or a nay and then what to do if I made it.

The picture above in this post is for the DCNY contest. I chose the Farrah in red and thought it would look cute with the sort of page boy hat and hair from ETD. That made me think Newsies (the old movie) and thus a news stand was sought out to take the photos. You can't really see it in that picture but in a few others on Flikr you can read the whole sign behind me and you should cause it's funny. For someone reason the picture overall is looking much darker on this computer than it did when i was tweaking it on my laptop. May have to adjust it later. All the fashion details are attached with the photo. Now I'm going to try to stay awake until it's time for my last client of the day and then try not to yell at people as I speed down the highway.

Have a good one,
Rouge

What is Rouge Wearing Episode 1

I couldn't come up with a good title today so you are getting the not random tag after I came up with something and changed it just then lol. I totally and I do mean totally forgot that today was Wednesday and thus a new group of fabulous girls would be chosen for JCNY's MODEL'FEST. When I logged on and saw that I had been ejected from the group that the models work in I figured my streak had come to an end but then I got to moving through my messages and started getting im's and thanks to Ireland's congrats and Sparkie reinviting me to the group I found out that I was back in for another week before I got to read the message itself from JCNY. The saddest part is I was getting dressed and preparing to go down to the runway as I was doing all that because once again I forgot that I more than likely was getting replaced this week. Because of that I figured I'd do my first What is Rouge Wearing picture posts too so everyone can see what I almost strutted myself down to JCNY full of embarrasment in.






Skin: Laqroki Imani Ebony Skin Makeup 4
Eyes: Prismatic Brown Sugar
Hair: House of Heart Una in Mahogany
Dress: PixelMode Godiva
Shoes: Shiny Things Sugar Pumps in Black
Jewelry: JCNY Queen's Diamond Collection
Location: The Renaissance

I know I mentioned before that I was entering more contests and I am. I'm going to show you the photo I submitted for Miss Virtual World 2010. I doubt that I will make the cut but it was a chance to work on my own photos and get my foot out there some more. I also plan on applying for more agencies after a spate of applications went no where fast. Till next time, toodles.

Frustrated

Okay so I waited about a week to write this post. Because of that other frustrations have arose so this post will be a double whammy and I'll start with probably the less controversial one first. It's been a building issue for me to miss castings. Since I'm US based and work normal business hours unless there's a late evening or weekend casting for a show---or if we're picked based on look and then practices are worked around our schedules---I miss 80 to 90 percent of castings for runway shows or agency open calls. I read every notice that hits my screen about shows and often end up taking a deep sigh and discarding the note card. If I'm heading to JCNY or if some of the models i know would be on during that time frame I pass it on but can't do much with it myself. There is also the periodic casting is when I'm free but the show will be smack dab in the middle of my work day. I know I've read about folks being upset that the same rotation of models are at most shows but I'm coming to think its because they are available when the castings are held or the shows will be held. Plus who doesn't want to go with someone they know and can count on? It's just like running into a brick wall sometimes because short of taking time off my RL job I won't be able to see or be seen by most designers. I know it's typically based on what's convienent to the agency or designer just wish there were a few more opportunities for the post 3pm SL crowd. Enough of that.

Initially I said I'd let it go primarily because the industry is fickle and ruffling feathers isn't always appreciated. But you know the issue is relevant to me on a few levels so I had to say something and if it costs me work, well hey what can you do. I appreciate that being a model in SL means we can morph our shapes, shorten or lengthen our hair, change our eye color and wear the most fabulous makeup available to us. But as I've been hitting more shows and checking out more flikr pages I can honestly say I've been a little irked seeing very lovely Caucasian models in very African American skin. There are tons of African American models that could be used and would be happy to be in a show I'm sure but short of one model at a wedding show I've been at and the shows I've been in with another African American model there has been a stark lack of pigment floating around. I've heard people refer to it as skin wrapping and I will admit it's probably easier to just give the model you've chosen the lovely brown skin instead of consider what that might say to someone like me in attendance. I know no real harm is intended it's just a little insulting on one level. I have no issue in changing skins or makeups or hair or shapes or anything else really but as an African American woman my only request is to always be some shade of brown. It's important for me to be a positive African American woman on here and no I wouldn't be in the other tone longer than a photo shoot or runway show but I wouldn't really be me then. I can be a mannequin, I just want to remain one of the brown ones. The look doesn't change just because I'm darker, it actually shows people range in my humble opinion.

Some people will understand both frustrations others won't or won't get why I even bothered to say a word. That's to be expected in anything. I was just hoping this would be (mostly the skin issue) an area were SL was better than RL. Changing skins doesn't share the experience of what it is to be a minority and it won't let me better understand the majority experience. I've heard several people say make sure your skin fits your shape. I don't think my shape is inherently African American but having tried on a variety of tones thanks to those lovely hunts and gifts we're randomly given as dancers and models I know that Rouge is inherently a reflection of me and both of us are happy to be brown. We'll work on that casting thing but brown is here to stay.

Fashion in Review

This will probably be a semi regular post depending on my schedule, ability to track and not get fascinated by the clothes during a show and the ability to get good pictures during that process. You know lag is a bear at almost all fashion shows in SL so that could because a problem. It managed to mix up the order of a few pics I was taking it seemed so I had to relabel some of the ones I caught.

So Thursday ended up being great for my show attendance. As I checked my notices when I logged onto SL I saw that Sascha's was hosting Sonia28 Jie's fashion at her runway later that afternoon. After roaming the grid, I found a spot near the end of the runway so I could try to take a few pics while the models were doing their turn on the catwalk. For those of you not familiar with Sonia28 Jie she makes fabulous clothes for her store Son!a. Her designs are amazingly detailed and run the gamut of detailed and delicate to fun and flirty. Be sure to check her out in world when you get a chance. Let me stop rambling and get on to the show.

The dresses were all immaculate styled and each was actually almost completely different from the ones that came out before it. The first dress to make its appearance was the Carry Wedding Dress. As someone who doesn't dig traditional white wedding dresses this was nothing short of a treat. It was layered beautifully with just enough vibrant color to make the dress pop but without it being overpowering.


After this dress hit the catwalk I wasn't sure what to expect, but there was a steady stream of dresses throughout the show with some models reappearing three or more times. The wedding dresses stood out in my brain more as I was watching the show progress with few exceptions as each seemed to provide an option to every bride including the almost whimsical Pirate Wedding Dress seen below.

I loved everything from the veil to the way the dress flowed as she walked and posed. That was common to almost every item that hit the runway. They all had a lovely flow to them as the models moved about and will surely cause people to remember you if you are ever hitting the scene in SL. As I said before Sonia28 Jie's store is full of a range of dresses that you might not be anticipating as you strolled inside her massive shop---give yourself an hour to wander around at least. The dress that seemed to capture everyone's attention was modeled by Opal Lei later in the show. Take a gander below.

To call this dress ornate would be an insult. You could literally see the dress morph like tree bark as she moved into certain positions. The netting seamlessly simulated a nice evening glow in the woods and wonder of wonders Opal managed to find the absolute perfect poses to accentuate the dress. It was stunning and a conversation piece when I returned to the runway at JCNY with the other models who attended the show. I think the only design that could outdo the Willow Tree was what Ms. Jie was wearing herself at the end of the show. Check out Flikr for a glimpse of that and all of the other designs that were featured that day. Before you head over to Son!a's and I'm sure you will after you see what she had on display, make sure to stock up on your lindens and take your shopping anonymous sponsor with you. It was a great show and if you weren't there be sure to enjoy the snapshots.

Son!a Show--Flikr link

Drumroll please....

So I have officially completed my first JCNY expo and have to admit the event took longer than I thought it would for some reason. I hadn't actually attended one prior to now but figured it would take an hour. Well two hours and many crashes from many of the young ladies there and we had our winner and runner up. GirlyHolic and Katime took home the honors and both seemed stunned. I'm guessing I would be too though. A lot of perks come with the prize so you would have to be super surprised to hear your name called out in either position. They announced then too that the first week of June MODEL'FEST girls would be wildcards selected from the month of May. Imagine my shock to see my name there once again. I mean the runway was packed during the expo with many more experienced and well known models than myself but I won't look a gifthorse in the mouth. I was wiped yesterday after being up late several nights in a row and did not hit the runway again but I'll be there tonight, being silly while I work on pictures and prep contest applications if any look decent. Might not stay as long as I could though, I do want to take some shots soon in my DKNY clothes for that contest as well. Ahh well, busy busy busy. I did end up taking some pics in my Zaara outfit after the show that I think look very nice so I'll probably post them here and to my flikr along with some others later on today or maybe this weekend. Until then boys and girls.

And the Winner is.....or In Other News

First things first, the runway show went AMAZING. No one crashed, the sim was actually full, no one tripped off the runway (like yours truly did in her 2nd graduation show) and the crowd seemed to have a blast. A few people were there that I knew from JCNY so really appreciate the support. Everyone else just seemed to be enjoying the fact that we styled ourselves and found the right poses to accentuate the outfits and not take away from them. I sincerely thank everyone who told me that I was beautiful or that I had a great walk. I can't wait till I get the chance to do it again because for the first time I wasn't super worried about the falling or the crashing and just focused on hitting my poses. Join the Model's Workshop if for no other reason than it's a great group and you'll likely enjoy it a lot.

Okay so we still don't know who won yet. SL was acting wonky yesterday and JCNY didn't want to have anyone miss out on the activities so the big announcement for May Model'Fest winner will happen this afternoon---which happens to be my early day so yeah I won't miss it. I did give in and go get another outfit cause while I was loving the purple gown I was rocking from Sascha's it was partially purchased because yesterday was wear purple day. Actually I got two outfits. My partner thinks I look good in soft colors and we argued over one until I found one that would work for me. But then the net went down and I didn't get to go into make it look perfect mode. Instead I worked on some pictures that had just been laying around and took some more for the Angel Dessous Angel of the Month contest. I had one that might work but in retrospect I'm glad that I went out and took more pictures. One it was just a lot of fun and two it gave me a chance to play with enviornment settings in world to change the shots I was getting. So far I've only uploaded the ones I submitted and the original raw shots I had to my flikr account but I will be tossing in the best of the others just because I think they kinda rock. Speaking of flikr, you can see what I've uploaded and toyed around with now on the page. I'd recommend going to the flikr page directly but hey whatever works for ya.

Okay so we've talked about my minor shopping addiction especially when something is on sale. The past few days, when I was on shopping hiatus, I broke down and just let it rip. Marly's is going out of business. It's a very cute vintage shop that I had never heard of before now which is probably good as I would have been broke. I found tons of cute hair (including the pixie cut I am wearing in some of my flikr shots) there as well as some cute swimwear, dresses and the like. I also stumbled over into the Einstein group sim (phoenix rising and the crew)---please keep me out of there. Too much cute stuff and a lot of cute jewelry either free or 1L scattered about the store. I might enter their Model of the Month contest if I hear about it soon. Didn't see any news about it on their page in May so I'll just have to wait. And last night right before the sale ended I happened to end up in Zaara. There are lots of beautiful things there but the traditional Indian clothing is what I ran over for hoping I hadn't missed out because I was trying to be good and not be all over the grid shopping. Turns out the fatpack of the bridal wardrobe I wanted was marked down to just over 250 of what it normally cost to buy one of them. So I bought those and one other outfit and skipped on out of there.

So now I really have three options to wear to the finals and I doubt anyone would be in any of them but we JCNY models do have good taste so who rightfully knows. I'll be sure to keep you posted.

it's the weekend baby!?!?!?!

Ok so yesterday I assumed I'd have a relatively good weekend with little to do but attend rehearsals and shake my moneymaker on the JCNY runway---okay so maybe shake is a bit of an exaggeration but I was gonna be down there posing. Well I was wrong of course. First my late evening appointment to straighten my hair was postponed till this afternoon. Now I told her then I had an appointment at 6 and needed to be out of there. But any woman any where, and some of you men who have been waiting for us women, know time moves like molasses on the weekend in a hair salon. What should have taken a few hours, three at most, took 5 instead. So of course I was late for my appointment and rushed back home. The appointment was dress rehearsal for the Model's Workshop runway show tomorrow. Thankfully they were very understanding and I think I did well for the part I was there but I soooooooooooooo hate being late.

I've also been looking at random contest notecards coming my way and some things look interesting and others well just don't. Most of them want you to join their update group, which in the day of limited group space, is a slight problem. If SL ever did expand the group limits no issues at all but I have been leaving groups left and right these days that I don't really need or aren't active just in order to keep the 20 ish I have now. Not a lot of room to play with. That and because I am being more active with the modeling I'm wary of certain types of contests and have just had some odd interactions with a few of the contest promoters I've seen. Granted it could be me and my perception of them may be skewed but it makes me hesistant to enter. And that may be to my detriment, cause hey exposure is exposure. But I have to wonder if exposing myself to repeated rejection at the hands of the same person is even remotely logical lol. Ahh well, we live and learn.

My time as a showcase model for this month is winding down. Monday the May winner will be announced and I will take a break. I've loved doing what I'm doing but it's a bit tiring after awhile especially when you're there basically by yourself. It's great when the other models are there but everyone has noted the fatigue that sets in after awhile. I will definitely be applying again though, sometime next month for sure. It's a fantastic opportunity and everyone should take the chance if you are given it.

The last thing I will ramble on about is my unfortunate shopping habit. I say unfortunate primarily because I don't need any more of anything I buy really. I have a ton of formal dresses and hair and skins and shoes but I so hate when I hear about a sale. I will check it out if nothing else and every now and then I manange to not buy anything there. Alatiel caught me last night and Sascha's mainly cause I wanted a purple dress for Monday---Monday is wear purple day in honor of those still in the middle of a cancer battle. I also stumbled upon Savvy Avvy which oh my goodness if you have never been there by all means check it out. And then I finally got over to Maitreya's hair store. I love several of them and you can't be 700L for a fatpack of hair. I seriously doubt I'll need white hair but dang it I have it now lol.

All righty, enough of me. Have a good one boys and girls

Rouge

Incredible Randomness

I really meant to come update the blog last night with my random shopping adventures. I try not to get shopping happy on SL because I can quickly become bankrupt trolling my favorite shops. And I try really hard to ignore the sale notices because that's like invitations to free crack lol. But this weekend Pixel Mode was having a 50L sale so I couldn't pass that up right?!? One problem, I was fixed in my head that it was PixelDolls lol as I had been there and seen similar sales lol. Well not so much and there were lovely things there and I found the cutes shoes EVER along with a great fat pack of boots. I tell a few friends and fellow models on the JCNY runway and vow to stop spending lindens for the day. One tiny problem, turns out PixelDolls was also having a sale so of course I traipse over there and it's 50L/100L feast. And I joined the update group and oh my that was group gift heaven. By all means if you haven't joined their update group please do, as well as the one at Deviance which gives out lovely things as well. As a random aside, update groups are the bestest. They don't eat up group spots and don't ever seem to crash my inbox with tons of messages. Yeah update groups.

Okay so after my day of shopping and several hours on the JCNY runway I got an unexpected instant message. Unexpected and yeah fantastic. I was selected to be Model of the Week for SuperElite which ummm rocks. You can read all about boring little old me on the blog--link is in my blogroll. As soon as I remembered how to save a texture to my hard drive I was able to use the great picture that was taken for my first JCNY submission. I'm not sure what I did to catch anyone's radar but thanks to whomever thought of me and I am incredibly flattered to have been chosen. I should get back to trolling SL and prepping dinner so we can eat all afternoon and watch basketball.

Love ya,
Rouge

Surprise Surprise

Okay so I was fully prepared to log on Wednesday night and tell you all about my JCNY experience and how fantastic the week had been. And that I had really enjoyed the time and was sorry to see it end. I can still tell you all of those things because it was a great week and I did learn a lot and make some new friends as everyone talks about. The girls were fantastic and friendly, it was a good boost to my confidence in general and has encouraged me to keep entering other contests. Not to mention it's been interesting talking to all the people who wander over to the runway because you never know what the conversation is going to be like and how much you're going to enjoy it. I have to say that it's been encouraging to hear all the well wishes from those that do stop to speak and it's been great encouraging other people to apply. Being on the runway has also made me think I kinda like doing this and I think I might be good at it. So as I was saying before I started rambling there. I was prepared to come and tell you all of those things. But as I was wrapping up my time on the runway the notice came out about the new models for Week 4 and yours truly was on it again. So were a few girls from last week which rocks cause I like talking to people and everyone has been great like I said before. So maybe next week I'll wrap up what it's been like to be on the JCNY runway and all the stuff I've learned.

Speaking of learning. Via the "model looking for work" group in SL I learned about another group "Model's Workshop" that was hosting a runway show for less experienced models. Hey that sounds like me and I did jump on it and got selected along with the rest of the other models that applied. Not all of us will be in the show due to scheduling issues it looks like but I could be wrong as I'm on mid-afternoon to late evening on SL. Anyhoo they also do a great job of informing you of random thing you might want to know about modeling from poses to shoes. They host free workshops that are great and encourage conversation. If you are new the modeling scene join both groups if you can make space. They have helped me greatly in hearing about castings, contests and the like. I'm debating entering a few other contests but I think I will. The worst thing that could happen is I get rejected. Best case I'm all over the place and tired when I log off because I've worked my pixelated booty off. Till next time.

Yeah Me!

Okay so now that you know who I am and a little bit about me I have happy news to share. Since I reserved the name for this blog I was stunned--and I mean that literally--to have been chosen to be in the JCNY MODEL'FEST showcase for Week 3 of May. I had no conceivable idea that I'd be selected but I figured it might be worth a shot, if nothing else it would give me a chance to take new photos and work on my styling a bit. It's been a great experience. I've met a lot of girls who are actually in different agencies or groups with me and it's been a sharefest of sorts. Landmarks for clothing and skins, ideas for shots, ideas on styling and posing in general have all been a part of the last week for me which has been again just fantastic.

The same day I hit the JCNY runway for the first time I found out that I got accepted for a runway show with Model's Workshop. Another opportunity I didn't actually anticipate getting but so not turning it down. My first practice is tonight actually and I have gotten all my clothes ready so yeah. Just need to see if I can find what I want to in way of new poses or altering my huddle. Ahh well let me try to get that ready so I'm not rushing this afternoon.

Welcome Everyone

Not sure who I'm saying welcome to just yet as no one really knows the blog exists just that it was a work in progress. I wanted a custom header so that took a while to teak and then to format correctly for the blog. I called myself being all enterprising and wanting to create the whole thing from scratch, which I may do at a later point, but 2 hours and a massive headache later I scrapped those plans while looking for the right background and discovering this little premade wonder. So here we have it the first blog of Rouge Anthony. I chose the title because well natural everyday Rouge is curvy in RL and SL. I love that I can be anything in SL but didn't want to ignore the day to day aspect of who I am either. That being said I'm a Second Life resident who has recently gotten more seriously involved in the fashion side of things. I have been signed to a few agencies since last year but I have been working much, a large chunk of which I can lay at my own feet because I haven't been forcing the issue or doing as much as I could to make myself model ready.

This year I signed up for formal training and completed my first set of classes at SuperElite. Great group of folks which gave me good insights and an idea of what kind of issues I might have in the great big modeling world. I was hired by the agency aspect of SuperElite upon the completion of my Elite class and will hopefully be doing great things with them in the near future. At present, I'm signed to SE, DejaVu Modeling Agency and Ebony Elite Modeling Agency. I also finally signed up for a variety of model resource groups which is helping move things along quite well. I want to write about that in another post though so I'll hold off for now.

I'll be tweaking the blog roll as things go on and wanted to say a bit about why I included Agency Report. It could be viewed as a trash blog by some because when an agency is getting bad feedback they seem to be getting roasted over an open fire. However, for new models sometimes warning of any kind can stop a bad experience from occuring. And it can also reconfirm that other agencies are fantastic to work for or that training with a particular academy is great as well.

Hope all is well for those that have managed to stop by and keep it curvy.