Dark or Not, It's a Piece of Paradise

Dark Paradise has great prefabs for that special build


Back on the trail of great sims, I couldn't help but notice the great build that a neighbor had put up in my home in Winterfell. A quick peek beyond the wonderfully intricate textured facade took me to Darkling Tempura and Desari Deledda, who is putting together some furniture and artworks worthy of notice.

As you know, a shopkeeper who sets their creations into a lovely themed surrounding gains quick access to my paypal account. Desari and Darkling have made this happen at Dark Paradise. You can stroll along a lovely water feature, gaze at the intricate scrollwork on the columns, or be impressed by the huge Starax Statosky sculpture dominating the pool.


The furniture is well constructed, perfectly textured, and the poses built in worked fine for my friend and I. This is not always assured, since out heights differ greatly, so worthy of mention.



In addition, the prefab houses were marvelous, showing clean design and masterful texture work. As I said, any house that can capture my attention from a distance of 300m is worthy of my notice.


One critique, in investigating the story and review I came across the Dark Paradise website http://www.darkparadise.us which was rather dated in its information. More current info might have been nice, but may be available through regular client log in.

Regardless, Dark Paradise is well worth a visit.

Summary only...

Kiss the Sky, Persian Style

I spent a few hours at a furniture/skybox seller named Lavanya’s Prefabs the other day, and have some good news to report. If you’re looking for lovely builds for that special skybox, you have some great options at Lavanya’s.

There’s no shortage of prefab skybox vendors out there. Loyal readers know that the three things a vendor must deliver to gain an unqualified ‘yes’ vote from me are, and I quote;

1. Great Quality
2. Low Price
3. Interesting Shopping Experience.

Lavanya’s delivers on counts one and three, and needs to make no apologies for not hitting on number two.

First, the furniture and skyboxes are, with only one or two exceptions, some of the highest detail stuff I’ve seen to date. There’s no question that if you’re looking for interesting furniture or lovely skyboxes you’re likely to love their pieces. The designers, Ardent Mars and Lavanya Hartnell are talented and interesting, and I love supporting vendors who really put themselves into the package. The selection is not huge, but you might find yourself considering a remodel to build around one of these pieces. They’re that good.

I especially loved the tree house build and the slave arena. The tree house stopped me in my tracks, and made me consider breaking the covenants on my land by placing it in the middle of a medieval sim. The slave arena took me to my collection of silks for a quick dance on the slave auction platform, but probably enough said about that little moment of weakness… :)

The prices are a bit steep, especially on the bigger skyboxes. They say so on their sign; you’re going to pay a premium price for a premium product. I do appreciate honesty in a vendor. But again, the quality is there, and I don’t mind paying for quality if I find exactly what I’m looking for.

The shopping experience is nice at Lavanya’s. The shop is very uncluttered and attractive in a minimalist way. I especially loved the way they enclosed some of the shopping areas with transparent walls. You can see the entire build from most any location, but you won’t fall to your death if you accidentally step off the edge. It’s dangerous for someone as distractible as me; I call it the “ooo look over there” factor.

All in all a lovely build with great products. Have a peek at Lavanya’s if you’re needing to put up that special private place. They can be found at Cervinia (230, 48, 301).

Summary only...

Whoo Doo? Yoo Doo with Voodoo at Temenos

Your crack reporter has stumbled upon another Second Life shopping gem. As you know, the run of the mill shopping experience is not for my crowd. Not only do we want high quality at low prices, we want an unusual shopping experience while we get fitted out. Temenos Island delivers on all counts.

I ran into Amy Faulkes, a loyal Temenos shopper while on my last research trip to the shop. When I asked her about Temenos she said it’s always been her first choice for neko gear, and she was on her way to sort out some new boots to go with her outfit. I had previously seen a couple pairs of gorgeous boots in the shop, so I’m sure she left a happy customer.


It’s a delight to find a sim owner who can not only design great clothes and send them out the door at a great price, but who knows how to design and build their shop to present a unique face. Zoe Llewelyn has put together a beautifully strange shop, one that grabs your attention and holds it like a spooky movie.

It takes more than just a quirky shop to take this reporter to her paypal account though. Even for a non-neko Temenos has a lot to offer. Great clothes, skins, tattoos and accessories with a twist. For me the hoodies were an excellent deal, and at the time of this writing I’m sitting in some lovely lace delicates purchased at a seemingly insane low price from Zoe.


Ms. Llewelyn doesn’t stop the show at the shop though. Her profile presents a picture of a talented designer, and her first life page makes one both sympathize and feel the voodoo vibes. She lives the role, and leaves room for belief that it’s not just an act. You can find her own net efforts at Boneflower , a beautifully designed blog at Google blogspot.

It’s a master craftswoman who paints such a total picture. One feels as if one is buying not just a great set of clothes, but a great story to go with it. Temenos Island comes highly recommended by this reporter for your shopping and sightseeing pleasure.

Summary only...

Builder of Dreams: Second Life's Insky Jedburgh

About a month ago this reporter decided it was time to create a special home in Second Life, one that would meet my somewhat unorthodox needs. A good friend who knows my need for exploring the weird and wonderful sims of SL led me to a special place and a custom castle manufacturer named Insky Jedburgh, the Builder of Dreams.

Insky built a place called Fizzdrake Castle, which I explored last summer. Although it's not a commercial sim, it's certainly worthy of its own writeup. When I knew that I needed a medieval build to fit into the covenant of the sim I’d picked out for my own land I looked up Mr. Jedburgh and found his sales lot at Twilight Gates.

Any SL Master Builder is going to excel at picking and placing textures, and Insky is no exception to this rule. Inside and out, the textures are marvelous… rich designs well matched and fitted to the structural look and feel of the builds.


Textures worthy of a master builder

To make matters even better, you’d expect to pay much more for such lovely designs. I found the prices to be a very pleasant surprise, considering the quality of the builds and the ease of the interface. There’s a huge selection on the lot as well, to make sure you get the perfect building for your perfect need. I even saw a complete “village kit” with multiple buildings to set up the centerpiece to your own medieval sim.


Hello Sailor.... : )

Topping things off is Mr. Jedsburgh’s courtesy and helpfulness. I asked for a few special favors and he was spot on in helping me out. I’ve found a few stuffy sim owners in my time, but Insky is top notch and friendly to boot. I felt like an important man had taken his time to help my SL experience be truly special.

In short, if your tastes (or land covenant) lead you to a medieval build, you can’t go wrong at Twilight Gates with one of Insky’s designs.

Summary only...