Day 218: One Day Blog Silence

Day 216: Creating Jewelry Part 2

In Creating Jewelry Part 1, we created a pearl necklace using Ged Larsen's LoopRez script.



Have you ever seen the ruby bracelet picture at the top of the Flexi Prim Skirt Tutorial? I used that as an example of what Ariane Brodie's original Necklace Generator was designed to do (before we coerced it into making flexi skirts for us :P).

Now, we are going to coerce Ged Larsen's LoopRez script (designed to make flexi skirts) to make bracelets for us. Go figure... :P



In this Part 2 of the tutorial series, we are going to make that ruby bracelet. This is an example of how to use the LoopRez script to duplicate a multi-prim object with different sides (unlike a sphere, like a pearl). It also shows how to work with gemstone textures.

A sidenote in case you have Ged Larsen's LoopRez Delxue: Unlike the freebie LoopRez script, LoopRez Deluxe is designed specifically for making flexi skirts. It has a lot of enhancements that makes creating flexi skirts easier. But one tradeoff is that it cannot duplicate multi-prim objects and still let you manipulate the objects (this is partly because of SL limitations). So you have to use the freebie LoopRez script to make things like this bracelet for now. Until Ged gets around to creating a jewelry maker or something :) (hint...hint...)

You will need the free “Ged Larsen’s LoopRez Script” and "Gemstone Textures" from Sirena Hair & Fashion to complete this part of the tutorial. Click on Search, select Places, and enter “sirena” as the keyword (SLURL: West Sunset (160,50,22)).


1. Ruby Bracelet Overview



Like the pearl necklace in Part 1 of this tutorial series, we need to know how many rubies we would need for our wrist. We can follow the same procedure we used in Part 1 to measure our wrist and calculate the number: wrap a hollow cylinder around our wrist, then use the Ellipse Calculator to figure out how many rubies we would need.



My wrist is about 0.070M by 0.065M. Your wrist may be slightly different, but unless you have an unusually proportioned avatar, you should be able to stretch the bracelets later to fit.

The Ellipse Calculator tells me that the path around my wrist is about 0.212M. Since our rubies (along with their metal backing) will be 0.010M in size, we would need 20 rubies for our wrist.

OK, we are ready to make the bracelet!


2. Create the Ruby

Be aware that the prims in this tutorial will be very very small. So be sure you have a good place where you can keep track of them (preferably some place with solid color walls and floor). Remember that you can always go into Edit mode and draw a window around where you *think* the prims are. This will select the prims within the window.

Rez a Torus on the ground.

***Update: Be sure that the Hole Size for the Torus is 50 (sometimes a Torus can rez with a different Hole Size). Thanks for the helpful comment, Alison! :)

Make sure you are in Edit mode (you can see the Red/Green/Blue arrows). Press and hold the Shift key, and pull UP on the Blue arrow to make a copy of the Torus.



This will create a copy of the Torus.



Edit the Torus on top and enter the following settings:









     Size X: 0.010
     Size Y: 0.015
     Size Z: 0.015

     Rotation Y: 270.00

     Profile Cut B: 0.15
     Profile Cut E: 0.30

Look for the "ruby" texture from the Gemstone Textures folder you picked up from Sirena Hair & Fashion.

Go to the Texture tab. Click on the Texture square. This will open up the Pick:Texture window. Select the "ruby" texture and click Select.

Enter the following settings in the Texture tab:

     Repeats Per Face Horizontal (U): 3.000
     Repeats Per Face Vertical (V): 0.500

     Rotation: 90.00

Look for the "Full Bright" checkbox on the right side of the Texture tab. Check the "Full Bright" checkbox (cause we want our gemstones to be bright, right? :D)

For the prim on the bottom, we are going to do some weird things to this prim. Its one of the tricks to get a really flat prim (below 0.010M). Basically, we are going to change the prim to a sphere, change the dimple settings, then change it to a cylinder, and finalize the settings. The dimple settings enables us to create a prim below 0.010M thick. The only way we can change dimple settings is if the prim is a sphere.

So here we go:



Edit the Torus on the bottom.

Change the Building Block Type from a Torus to a Sphere. Enter the following settings:




     Dimple B: 0.00
     Dimple E: 0.05

Change the Building Block Type from a Sphere to a Cylinder. Enter the following settings:

     Size X: 0.010
     Size Y: 0.010
     Size Z: 0.010

     Taper X: 0.30
     Taper Y: 0.30

Look for the "silver" texture from the Gemstone Textures folder you picked up from Sirena Hair & Fashion.

Go to the Texture tab. Click on the Texture square. This will open up the Pick:Texture window. Select the "silver" texture and click Select.

Enter the following settings in the Texture tab:

     Repeats Per Face Horizontal (U): 1.000
     Repeats Per Face Vertical (V): 2.000

Change the Shininess to "Medium".

Check the "Full Bright" checkbox (hey, its jewelry!).



Now move the red ruby on top down to the silver backing on the bottom until it sinks into the backing.

Right-click on the red ruby on top and select "Edit...". Then press and hold the Shift key and click on the silver backing on the bottom. This will make the silver backing the last prim selected, thus making it the Root Prim when we link.



Click on the Tools menu at the top of your screen and select "Link". This will link the 2 prims together. The red ruby on top should be highlighted in blue, the backing on the bottom should be highlighted in yellow.

Go to the General tab of the Edit window, and change the Name to "Ruby".

Now close the Edit window to get out of Edit mode. Right-click on the Ruby and select "Take" to take it into your Inventory.


3. Setting Up LoopRez

We will prepare the LoopRez script to generate the bracelet.

If you are planning to sell this necklace, you will want your name as the Creator of the Bracelet. You should perform the additional tasks described in "Step 1. Rezzing the LoopRez Object" in the Flexi Prim Skirt Tutorial. This enables you to create your own LoopRez object, with your name as the Creator. You may want to come back and do this once you have tried this tutorial first…

If you are just making this bracelet for yourself, then you don’t need to worry about making your own LoopRez object.



Look for the “LoopRez v0.6 object, full perms” in your Inventory. Rez the LoopRez Object on the ground.

Right-click on the LoopRez Object and select the Contents tab.

Look for the “Ruby” you just created in your Inventory (Its probably in the Objects folder). Drag and drop the “Ruby” from your Inventory to the Contents tab of the LoopRez Object.



Go to the Contents tab of the LoopRez Object. Double-click on the “LoopRez v0.6” script. This will open the script editor window.











Make the following changes to the top of the script:

     string objectName = "Ruby";
     integer numObjects = 20;
     float xRadius = 0.035; // Half of 0.070M
     float yRadius = 0.033; // Half of 0.065M
     float flareAngle = 90;
     float bendCoefficient = 0.0;
     vector rotOffset = <0.0, 180.0, 0.0>;
     vector posOffset = <0.0, 0.0, 1.0>;

Click on “Save” to save the script.

Close the Edit window.


4. Creating the Bracelet

Here we go! :)



Touch the LoopRez object. You should see the ruby bracelet appear above the LoopRez object. The ruby bracelet is relatively small, so look carefully :)

If nothing happens, you may be in an area that does not allow foreign scripts to run. There is typically an indicator icon at the top of your screen that shows this. Try moving to a public Sandbox just to see if your LoopRez object is working.

The newly created ruby bracelet is made up of separate objects. We need to link them together to make a single bracelet. In addition, we want to add an object in the middle of the bracelet so it would be easier to position and fit the bracelet. We will use a copy of the LoopRez object in the middle of the bracelet.

First, we are going to make a copy of the LoopRez object. Right-click on the LoopRez object, and select Edit. Now press and hold the Shift key. Click and hold on the Blue arrow and pull it up towards the bracelet.



This will create a copy of the LoopRez object. Put this copy in the middle of the bracelet (actually, it would cover the whole bracelet for now).

Go to the Content tab of the copy of the LoopRez object, and delete the "LoopRez v0.6" script (Right-click on it and select "Delete"). This will prevent accidentally setting off the script again. :)



Next, go to the Object tab and make the Size smaller. Because this item is small, we have to use a smaller size X=0.020, Y=0.020, Z=0.020.



Now while you are still in Edit mode, draw a box around all the rubies and the copy of the LoopRez object. Dont include the original LoopRez object. You may find it helpful to go to the Tools menu at the top of your screen and select "Select Only My Objects".

Then press and hold the Shift key. Click on the copy of the LoopRez object to deselect it. Click on it again to select it. This will make the copy of the LoopRez object the Root Prim.

Click on the Tools menu at the top of your screen and select "Link".

Go to the General tab of the Edit window, and change the Name to "Ruby Bracelet".

Now close the Edit window to get out of Edit mode. Right-click on the bracelet and select "Take".


5. Fitting the Ruby Bracelet

Here comes the cool part. Wearing the bracelet! :)

Go ahead and find the "Ruby Bracelet" object in your Inventory (probably under the "Objects" folder). Right-click on it, select "Attach To >", and click in "Left Forearm" (you can do the Right Forearm later if you wish).



When you first attach the bracelet, only a small part of the bracelet will be visible on the inside of your arm. The rest of it is buried in your arm. Right-click on the bracelet, and select Edit. In the Object tab, change "Rotation Y = 90" and "Rotation Z = 90".

Now slide the bracelet into place using the 3 Red/Green/Blue arrows. As a reference, look at the numbers at the top of your screen. It fits me well at these settings: "X:0.004 Y:0.091 Z:0.001". These numbers will vary somewhat for you.

Depending on your body settings, you may need to Stretch the bracelet to fit. To Stretch the bracelet, go to the Edit window, click on "Stretch (Ctrl-Shift)" at the top of the Edit window. Now, click and hold one of the little white boxes around the bracelet and move it slowly away from your avatar.



And heres Daisy, with her new bracelet :) Not very Country Western, is it? :P



You can use different textures for the gemstone and backing. How about a diamond bracelet, for example :)

And of course, you can use the same techniques from Part 1 of this tutorial series to make gemstone necklaces.



Finally, you can use the techniques here to make other things. For example, the spikes on the belt from my Spikes Outfit was made using a similar technique.

Have fun with you new ruby bracelet!

In the next part of this tutorial series, we are going to make earrings using micro-prims :)

99349-071006-910622-70

© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 215: Second Life Ballet

How did I end up here at the Second Life Ballet? This is the sort of thing that Natalia likes!

Its me, Talia the evil Alt :) Welcome to the Second Life Ballet!



It is amazing what creative residents have managed to do in Second Life. And dance is no exception.

The Second Life Ballet is a ballet company that hosts original productions. The dancers performed in front of a live audience in Second Life, just like the real thing.

Second Life Ballet is a non-profit organization. There is no charge to attend ballet performances. They are support through your donations.



The current production of Olmannen is the first for the company.

It is a traditional ballet performance, complete with musical score and original dance animations (not loops or poseballs). The ballet has 3 acts, in a traditional tale of lost loves, dark evils, and tearful reunions. Did I mention this is stuff that Natalia likes? :P



Its really amazing to see the dancers move through the story! Complete with costume changes, particle effects, and scenery changes. And all the ballet moves you come to expect (plus a lot of flying around :) ).



Olmannen is currently being perform on Sundays and Wednesdays at 4pm SL. They are currently being hosted by IBM, probably for performance reasons.



And if you plan to go to the performance, be sure you go to the theater well in advance and get a copy of the wonderful playbill. Then go somewhere where you can rez objects so you can read it (I couldnt read it in HUD mode).

As with all ballets, it is important that you have an idea what the story is before you watch the performance. Otherwise, you will be sitting through a bunch of dancing wondering whats going on... (or in Natalia's case, trying to read her playbill in a dark theater)



And the crowd applauds wildly as the performers take their well-deserved bow.

If you enjoy ballet or just want to see what is possible in Second Life, hurry and come see the performance of Olmannen by the Second Life Ballet company! It wont last forever :)

The Second Life Ballet has a home theater. You can go there by clicking on Search, selecting Places, and entering "ballet" as the keyword. The SLURL is Quat (61,29,110).

The current production of Olmannen is being performed at the IBM 10 sim. There is a TP/Landmark at the SL Ballet home theater in Quat. The direct SLURL for the theater in the IBM 10 sim is IBM 10 (12,192,20).

Day 214: Babbage Square

My friend Ana told me recently about Babbage Square. Its such a cool place, I will be eternally grateful! :)



Babbage Square is part of New Babbage, a new planned series of Victorian-themed sims. Babbage is very similar to Caledon, and follows a similar set of Steampunk ideals.

That means Daisy Duke is not necessarily appropriate attire for attending local functions :P

But whereas Caledon is an established society, New Babbage is just getting started. Some areas are already open, while others are nearing completion and about to open.



New Babbage is a residental sim that rents land to residents, just like Caledon.

Almost all the buildings in Babbage are amazing...nearly all of them are spectacular. Its like there is a building contest going on or something...



The textures are wonderful inside and out, nearly everywhere you look! Especially in this cool little tea room :)



Push the button on this platform in the middle of the sim and take a ride up the elevator :)

You need to "Sit" in the elevator and "Touch" the floor to Activate it...



The elevator goes up to this flying platform and gives you a wonderful view of the whole sim!

Um...is this thing steam powered? Like...what happens if we run out of steam?



There are all manners of wonders in the sim :) You can spend many hours here going through each plot...



And it looks like my blog friend Edward has a store here :) Can spot that uniform a mile away :P



Oh oh...and heres my favorite building: Remmy's Moving Castle. Really cool-looking building thingie :)

If you havent been to Babbage Square, you have to come see all these wonderful places! Click on Search, select Places, and enter "babbage" as the keyword. Pick any of the Babbage Square destinations that come up ("KAHRUVEL STEAMWORKS" is a good one). The SLURL is Babbage Square (58,30,22).



Beware the dreaded Fangorious Duck Beast!

Day 212: Daisy in Dixie

Today, I decided to find out where the cowboys and cowgirls hang out in Second Life. Ive been to Sigil (which unfortunately isnt there anymore). And for some reason, I feel like Ive been to Tombstone too :P These are role-playing sims. So where do the modern cowboys and cowgirls go to?

So welcome to the Dixie sim, home to Silver Dollar Saloon :)



Bring your horse and best Western outfit! I wonder if Zippy the Unicorn could come too :P



Silver Dollar plays Country favorites, along with other tunes. They even have line dancing :)



What sets Silver Dollar apart is the people. And what they wear :)

Heres your chance to show off your best cowboy boots and 10-gallon hat! Thats right guys, see the sign behind me? :P

Theres a mini-mall upstairs that has all the Western wear and accessories you might need.



And whats a good Western saloon without a bull ride?

Actually, Silver Dollar has one inside and outside. The outside one is an actual rodeo!



Be careful about "sitting" on the bull! :P

I have no clue how to stay on the bull (or even how it works). So is 27 seconds a good time? :)



The Dixie sim is owned by Tami McCoy of Hair Styles by Tami McCoy. Her store is on the other side of the sim.

Guess she must like cowboys :P

If you are a modern cowboy or cowgirl, check out Silver Dollar Saloon for a friendly bit of the West. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "silver dollar" as the keyword. The SLURL is Dixie (184,231,23).



The Daisy in the title refers to Daisy Duke, as in the Dukes of Hazard. Heehee, I can hear the groans now :P

OK, I havent seen the movie. But I saw one episode of the old TV show recently, so I have a good idea what Daisy's role is. We do the same things...keep our brothers out of trouble :)

This outfit is not from the TV show or movie. Just kinda inspired by it. All the photos of Jessica Simpson were in shorts and T-shirts. So I decided to make a mini-skirt and a lacy Country top. Its something I can see Daisy wear... Close enough :P



The belt does have a similar design to the one wore by Jessica Simpson in the movie. Thats because I could use a nice belt anyway :)



And this is the offical "Sittin on a bale o'hay" animation :P

Day 211: Scotland

Welcome to Scotland!

Lyndsey told Natalia about the Scotland sims, but no one has seen her for a while(shes up to something, I tell you!) So its up to me, Talia, your friendly evil Alt to explore the Highlands :)



The heart of the Scotland sims is Nessie's Pub and the marketplace. Nessie's hosts events where you can get together with fellow Scots and friends.

The marketplace has all the Tartans and accessories you need to dress the part for the events.

The Scotland sim was kind enough to provide a list of things you can do here. Aside from partying at the pub, you can...



watch a movie at the Scotland Second Life Movies...



find the hidden cave... (um...the hidden cave is on the map :P)



get married in Celtic style...

Hmm...does getting married belong on a list of things to do? As in...watch a movie: check. Find cave: check. Get married: check. :P



And what really brought me here today is the Eilean Donan Castle.

The Eilean Donan Castle is nestled in the Highlands of Second Life (in this case, the sim just north of Scotland :P)



Eilean Donan is a real life castle in Scotland.

My friend Lyndsey (who told me about Eilean Donan) is a photographer in real life. She has beautiful framed photos of Eilean Donan and other Scottish sights in her photography studio at SLURL: Yosu (116, 230, 48).



Not all the rooms in the castle have been furnished yet. But the builders did a really nice job on the structure. You definitely feel like you are in a castle as you move around its walls.



Heehee, Scottish guys are REALLY tall! :P

If you are interested in Scottish culture, or just like to party with a group of friendly people, come visit the Scotland sims. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "scotland" as the keyword. The SLURL is Scotland (192,159,36).

The Eilean Donan Castle is in its own sim. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "eilean donan" as the keyword. The SLURL is Eilean Donan (192,166,30).



Excuse me...are you Nessie by any chance? You are certainly much smaller in person! :P

Day 209: Creating Jewelry Part 1

There have been quite a bit of interest in creating jewelry with the Necklace Generator. So I thought it might be a good idea to write some tutorials on making jewelry :)

Actually, Ged Larsen's fantastic LoopRez script can do everything that the Necklace Generator script can do. It also gives you more control over the end result. So I prefer making jewelry using LoopRez instead of the Necklace Generator.

I do make jewelry once in a while, but I am not a jeweler. So there are 3 things I really havent done: First, I havent made really high-quality gem textures. Second, I havent made highly detailed jewelry pieces. Third, I havent written any custom jewelry scripts. These are probably things that master jewelers should invest time in doing.

For example, Johanna Hyacinth has an excellent blog on all the cool things she can do with jewelry. So there is quite a lot you can do with jewelry beyond the basics.

However, I can show you how to make basic jewelry pieces to go with an outfit. But you probably should buy an engagement ring if you plan on proposing :P



In this Part 1 of the tutorial series, we are going to create a simple pearl necklace using the freebie LoopRez script. In future parts, we will talk about using gemstone textures and micro-prims.

You will need the free “Ged Larsen’s LoopRez Script” from Sirena Hair & Fashion to complete this part of the tutorial. Click on Search, select Places, and enter “sirena” as the keyword (SLURL: West Sunset (160,50,22)).


1. Pearl Necklace Overview



As you might know, the LoopRez script duplicates a simple object around a circle or ellipse. You edit the LoopRez script to control the number of times to duplicate an object, and the size of the circle or ellipse.



A short pearl necklace (like a choker) is basically a number of “pearls” around an ellipse about the size of your neck. So it is perfect for the LoopRez script.

Before we start, we need to know 2 things: The size of the circle/ellipse and how many pearls we would need. We will need to put these settings into the LoopRez script.



We can “measure” the size of our necks by using a hollow Cylinder. I wont go into much detail here, but heres a quick overview: Rez a Cylinder. Set Hollow to 95. Take the Cylinder into Inventory. Attach it to the Chest. Then we can reposition and adjust its size to get an idea of the size of our neck. (If you make this Cylinder shiny, you would have a metal choker :P)

My neck is about 0.110M by 0.100M. Your neck may be slightly different. But unless you are a dragon or giant robot, you can adjust the necklace by stretching it. So you can probably skip this whole measuring step. And if you are a dragon or giant robot, you probably wouldn’t look good with a pearl necklace anyway :P

As to the number of pearls, this can be calculated. We are going to make a spherical pearl that’s 0.010M across (the smallest prim sphere without using tricks). So how many of these would it take to cover an ellipse that’s 0.110M by 0.100M? I needed some serious help for this (so thank you, you know who you are :D)

As it turns out, its really hard to calculate the path of an ellipse. But theres a calculator for this: Ellipse Calculator. Just punch in 0.11 and 0.10, and it will give you the size of the ellipse (just dont ask me how it works :P). In this case, its 0.330M.

So simply divide 0.330M by the size of our pearl 0.010M. The result 33 is the number of pearls we are going to need :) We are actually going to use 34, because the extra pearl will fill in the gaps around the necklace.

So lets make the necklace!


2. Create a Pearl



Rez a Sphere on the ground. Enter the following settings:

     Size X: 0.010
     Size Y: 0.010
     Size Z: 0.010

Go to the Texture tab. Click on the Texture square. This will open up the Pick:Texture window. Click on Blank and Select.

Click on the drop down for Shininess and select “Low”.

Now go back to the Main tab. Change the Name to “Pearl”.

Right-click on the Pearl and select “Take” to take it into your Inventory.


3. Setting Up LoopRez

Next, we need to prepare the LoopRez script to generate the necklace.

If you are planning to sell this necklace, you will want your name as the Creator of the Necklace. You should perform the additional tasks described in "Step 1. Rezzing the LoopRez Object" in the Flexi Prim Skirt Tutorial. This enables you to create your own LoopRez object, with your name as the Creator. You may want to come back and do this once you have tried this tutorial first…

If you are just making this necklace for yourself, then you don’t need to worry about making your own LoopRez object.



Look for the “LoopRez v0.6 object, full perms” in your Inventory. Rez the LoopRez Object on the ground.

Right-click on the LoopRez Object and select the Contents tab.

Look for the “Pearl” you just created in your Inventory (Its probably in the Objects folder). Drag and drop the “Pearl” from your Inventory to the Contents tab of the LoopRez Object.



Go to the Contents tab of the LoopRez Object. Double-click on the “LoopRez v0.6” script. This will open the script editor window.











Make the following changes to the top of the script:

     string objectName = "Pearl";
     integer numObjects = 34;
     float xRadius = 0.055; // Half of 0.110M
     float yRadius = 0.050; // Half of 0.100M
     float flareAngle = 0;
     float bendCoefficient = 0.0;
     vector rotOffset = <0.0, 0.0, 0.0>;
     vector posOffset = <0.0, 0.0, 1.0>;

Click on “Save” to save the script.

Close the Edit window.


4. Creating the Necklace

Now for the magic! :)



Stand back and Touch the LoopRez object. You should see the pearl necklace appear above the LoopRez object. The pearl necklace is relatively small, so look carefully :)

If nothing happens, you may be in an area that does not allow foreign scripts to run. There is typically an indicator icon at the top of your screen that shows this. Try moving to a public Sandbox just to see if your LoopRez object is working.

The newly created pearl necklace are made up of separate objects. We need to link them together to make a single necklace. In addition, we want to add an object in the middle of the necklace so it would be easier to position and fit the necklace. We will use a copy of the LoopRez object in the middle of the necklace.

First, we are going to make a copy of the LoopRez object. Right-click on the LoopRez object, and select Edit. Now press and hold the Shift key. Click and hold on the Blue arrow and pull it up towards the necklace.



This will create a copy of the LoopRez object. Put this copy in the middle of the necklace (actually, it would cover the whole necklace for now).

Go to the Content tab of the copy of the LoopRez object, and delete the "LoopRez v0.6" script (Right-click on it and select "Delete"). This will prevent accidentally setting off the script again. :)



Next, go to the Object tab and make the Size smaller. I typically use X=0.050, Y=0.050, Z=0.050.



Now while you are still in Edit mode, draw a box around all the pearls and the copy of the LoopRez object. Dont include the original LoopRez object. You may find it helpful to go to the Tools menu at the top of your screen and select "Select Only My Objects".

Then press and hold the Shift key. Click on the copy of the LoopRez object to deselect it. Click on it again to select it. This will make the copy of the LoopRez object the Root Prim.

Click on the Tools menu at the top of your screen and select "Link".

Go to the General tab of the Edit window, and change the Name to "Pearl Necklace".

Now close the Edit window to get out of Edit mode. Right-click on the necklace and select "Take".


5. Fitting the Pearl Necklace

Here comes the fun part. We get to Wear the necklace! :)

Go ahead and find the "Pearl Necklace" object in your Inventory (probably under the "Objects" folder). Right-click on it, select "Attach To >", and click in "Chest". You can also use "Spine" if there is something attached to Chest, since Chest and Spine are almost the same for a necklace.



When you first attach the necklace, it will be somewhere around your stomach (dont ask :P). Right-click on the necklace, and select Edit. In the Object tab, change "Rotation Y = 90" and "Rotation Z = 90".

Now slide the necklace into place using the 3 Red/Green/Blue arrows. As a reference, look at the numbers at the top of your screen. It fits me well at these settings: "X:0.000 Y:0.358 Z:-0.140". These numbers will vary somewhat for you. Note that if you used the Stomach attachment point, these numbers would be different.

Depending on your body settings, you may need to Stretch the necklace to fit. To Stretch the necklace, go to the Edit window, click on "Stretch (Ctrl-Shift)" at the top of the Edit window. Now, click and hold one of the little white boxes around the necklace and move it slowly away from your avatar.



And here I am, wearing my new necklace :)



Once you have your pearl necklace, you can add decorations to it. For example, the mermaid necklace that I wear has several pearls removed up front and a seashell added.

Also, you can also change the color and texture of the pearls, and even the transparency :)

Have fun with you new pearl necklace!

In the next part of this tutorial series, we are going to make a bracelet using gemstone textures.

34157-071006-258705-40

© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 208: Gadget: Glam Studio

***Update: Sorry, but the price for Glam Studio has gone up to L$350 since I wrote this entry (I wrote the entry about 2 weeks ago, but pushed it back because of the Hair Fair...things really change fast in SL :P)

OK, I know Im not suppose to post today. I found something really cool, so I hope you dont mind if I sneaked an entry in here :)



Do you do modeling, photography, need a modeling studio, or just have extra prims to spare? Now you can have your own modeling studio for just L$1! :)

***Update: Sorry, but the price for Glam Studio has gone up to L$350 since I wrote this entry :(



My friend Pompo told me about the Glam Studio, a fully equipped photo studio that the creator practically gives away.

The studio comes fully loaded, with background, lights, particle effects, and poses. You can add your own background texture, or even search for it with a built-in search feature.



The studio has 6 lights (3 at the top, 3 at the bottom). Each can be set to a different color and brightness. You can then save them as presets, and re-use them later.



The studio also has built-in particle effects to make your photos more interesting :)



It comes with a really cool pose-stand, with buttons that can be used to rotate your avatar. It comes with 17 poses, and you can add your own as well.

If you want to see how it works, you can check it out at GlamStudio. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "glamstudio" as the keyword. The SLURL is
Wallaroo (247,19,305).



GlamStudio also has the really cool tFinder, or texture finder. Its just L$10. This is the kind of stuff that Torley loves :)

Its a HUD that you wear. You can use it to search for textures that have already been uploaded to SL. It will go out and grab it for you. Just click on the eXtv button, and say the search term.

For example, I said "tile" and it brought back 132 tile textures! All you have to do is click on one of the results, and it will retrieve it for you and put it into your Inventory! Way cool :)

I guess its time to redecorate my floor :)

Day 207: Agora Ballroom

*** Update: Unfortunately, Agora Ballroom is gone :( But do not fear, there are many other ballrooms in Second Life :)



Im wearing the pretty Givenchy-inspired ballgown from Sabrina. So where should I go today? Hmm... :P

How about a ballroom? :)

Welcome to Agora Ballroom. Described as "A conservative environment for Ladies to dance with Gentlemen in a formal setting." Sorta modern Caledon. That sounds good :)



Agora is a formal ballroom, with a strict dress-code. For the Ladies, tea-length dress minimum, with gown preferred. (A tea-length dress covers bottom of knees or longer, so no mini-skirts :P) For the Gentlemen, its shirt and tie minimum, with tux preferred.



Fortunately, Agora provides not just one, but a selection of beautiful gowns in the Ladies' dressing room. I would assume they do the same for the Gentlemen. Second Steve was unavailable for comment :P



Agora has an elegant layout, with a decor similar to the Opéra Populaire. But without the Phantom :)



You will usually find couples dancing away in the main ballroom upstairs. Its a popular place, but fortunately, not super-laggy.



For a romantic evening of dressing up, come visit the Agora Ballroom. :) Click on Search, select Places, and enter "agora" as the keyword. The SLURL is Kyeryong (52,158,30).



Blue Poseball! Somehow, I thought I might find you here! Where have you been? Are you seeing someone else?

Day 205: Sabrina in the Governor's Mansion

I needed to visit a mansion today. Um...because of the dress Im wearing :)

So what is the most famous (PG-rated) mansion in Second Life? Governor Linden's Mansion, of course.



The Governor's Mansion is famous because it is a piece of SL history. There is a well-written entry on the Mansion's history in the SL Hisotry Wiki.



The Mansion was the residence of Steller Sunshine since the very early days of SL. And that's early, because Steller Sunshine is the first SL resident...ever.

The Mansion has changed owners a few times, and now is a monument to SL history.



The coolest part of the Mansion is in the basement.

So follow me downstairs...



The basement of the Mansion houses photos and artifacts from the early days of Second Life.



Here is the famous time capsule that was buried in 2003 and opened a year later during SL's first birthday event.



This is one of the early maps of SL from Nov 2002. With all 16 sims! :)



So if you are in the mood for a bit of history, come take a quick stroll through Governor Linden's Mansion. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "governor" as the keyword. The SLURL is Clementina (188,122,62).



So did you recognize my dress? :)

Its pretty famous, and I gave you a BIG hint with the title!



Its my attempt at making the gorgeous white dress that Audrey Hepburn wears in the movie, Sabrina.

This was the dress that Sabrina (Audrey Hepburn) wears to the party at the Larrabee estate, after her return from Paris. Now you see why I needed to go to a mansion today? ;P

I ran into an interesting problem with this dress: Originally, I was going to make a mesh/slider skirt for the middle, and put a poofy prim skirt around. As soon as I uploaded the texture, I realized that the texture would stretch in the center of the mesh/slider skirt. Since that is the main design on the dress, the only way around was to use a prim skirt.

So no slider skirt :) Thats one way around the texture stretch problem :P



Lets see, events for June 2, 2003...

Ooo...whats the Truth, Truth, Lie Game? :)

Day 204: Tarnburg, Gor

Its Talia, the evil Alt. You can tell from the beautiful eyes :)

A few of Natalia's friends have asked her about Gor in Second Life. Natalia was, in fact, Lady Natalia of Tharna. She eventually became the Chief Scribe of Tharna before the her melodramatic ending (both Lady Natalia and the old Tharna are no more).

So I guess that leaves it up to me. Natalia has never taken you INSIDE a Gorean city. Gor is very much a part of Second Life, and has some of the most beautiful sims. So I thought I can at least give you a tour of a popular Gorean city, Tarnburg.

Like most Gorean cities, you almost always arrive in a boat...



Tarnburg is a large city. With the new marketplace, its now 3 sims in size.



Gor is a different planet (although the map looks like Europe :P), based on a series of books by John Norman. It is similar to Medieval Earth, with some unusual customs. For one thing, the men here *think* they are in charge :)

Im all wrapped up because Im wearing Natalia's Free Woman outfit. Its a blue outfit because she was a scribe. And Free Women are suppose to be well covered.



On Gor, there are a lot of places where proper Free Women (your basic normal women) cannot go. A paga tavern, for example. Only men and slave girls in there.

Who wants to go in there anyway? :P



Every city has a scribery (library). Thats where Lady Natalia used to work. You know...file papers, get coffee, etc. :P



And every city has at least one physician, for role-playing medical procedures and healing and such...



Most Gorean sims also have an arena and training area for the warriors. Since only men can be warriors in a city, it keeps the boys busy and away from the women so we can have tea in peace.



Of course, every city on Gor has impressive facilities for training and housing slaves (kajira is a female slave, kajiru is a male slave). It IS a big part of Gor in SL.

Im not all that comfortable with the whole Gorean slave thing. Its not a matter of right or wrong. Its just a personal thing. I know many people who seem to enjoy the experience, so I guess its a personal choice, as long as you know what you are doing.



Most Gorean sims also have living areas (either houses or apartments or both) that citizens can rent. Its not unusual for some Gorean residents to spend their entire SL time in the Gor sim!

And thats why I dont make a good Gorean resident :P



Let's not forget the most important part of a Gorean sim...the market :) Cant have a proper sim without some shopping!



And finally, there is a place where the city leaders reside. In Tarnburg, its an impressive castle on the hill.



And dont get me wrong, Gorean sims are not all about scriberies, marketplaces, and arenas. Most have very pretty gardens and scenic places around the city itself.

Now comes the interesting part...whats role-playing without some conflicts?

There are outlaw and pirate Gorean sims, who wage a never ending war with the "normal" cities.



Within most Gorean cities, there are also Capture Zones. Most of these are clearly marked (but not all). They are typically wooded areas outside the cities.

You are suppose to wear combat meters when entering these areas. If you enter these areas, you are subject to capture if you fall victim to an attack. And most outlaws, pirates, and Panthers are watching for people to enter.

What does it mean to be captured? Not really sure, actually (Natalia never went into Capture Zones). I understand that they role-play some rough treatment, then either force you to be a slave or ransom you back to your home city (for L$).

But then again, its just role-playing. Dont let anyone force you to do anything you are not comfortable with. Remember, SL is suppose to be FUN!



Oh, about Panthers...most cities have a Panther tribe nearby for some reason :P Think of Panthers as Amazon women who capture men and enslave them. Sort of what the cities do, but in reverse. So there is a constant "conflict" between the city and the Panthers. Makes for some role-playing drama...



The Panther tribe near Tarnburg resides just behind a waterfall. These tribes live outdoor in huts. The Panthers run around wearing skins with bows and spears. Definitely scary looking :P

Hope you enjoyed the tour of Tarnburg :) Its unfortunately that most SL residents would never see the insides of one of these sims!

If you want to see Tarnburg or any other Gorean sim, be sure you read the rules CAREFULLY when you arrive in the city (almost all have rules). Wear the "Visitor" tag when you are there, and do not interrupt residents role-playing. If you want to ask a question, do it in IM.

Each Gorean city has slightly different rules and affiliations. Its the people you interact with that makes role-playing fun. So if you are planning to join a city, check out a few before making a decision.

You can typically ask a citizen for a tour of the city. They can summon or schedule one of the city slaves to give you a tour.

To see a list of Gorean cities, click on Search, select Places, and enter "gor" as the keyword.

To come to Tarnburg, click on Search, select Places, and enter "tarnburg" as the keyword. The SLURL is Tarnburg Woods (97,249,24).

Day 202: Robin (Sojourner) Wood's Texture Tutorials and Clothing Templates

Ive recently wrote a couple clothing tutorials for GIMP and Photoshop. One very important tool in making clothes for Second Life is the clothing texture template.



Second Life uses a flat texture file (typically 512x512 pixels) and "maps" different parts of it onto your avatar. Thats why when you use generic textures, they tend to look stretched out on your avatar.

The clothing template is a guide that tells you which part of a texture file maps to which part of the avatar. This gives you control over the appearance of the texture on your avatar.

There are 3 popular sets of clothing templates for Second Life: Linden Labs, Robin Wood, and Chip Midnight. The templates from Robin Wood and Chip Midnight are more detailed than the ones from Linden Labs. All of these templates are available free of charge from their creators!

Robin Wood (her SL name is Robin Sojourner) is a long-time resident of Second Life. Many people, including me, use her clothing texture templates to make their clothes.

Robin Wood has templates in 4 different formats. The one I typically use is the "layered Photoshop (.psd) Files". This set of templates would work in most graphics programs, including Photoshop, GIMP, and Paintshop Pro.



Whats really cool is that Robin Wood has a Texture Tutorial site within Second Life. You can find some wonderful resources for making clothes, and for working with prims in general.



First, the clothing stuff :)

Robin has an exhibit about her clothing templates at the Texture Tutorial site. You can get a free set of her clothing texture templates as clothing items that you can wear.

BTW, if you have not tried it, I would recommend that you make at least one clothing item out of her clothing texture templates yourself. Just download the template from her website, save it as a Targa (or JPEG file), upload it to Second Life, and put it on a clothing item (like a shirt). You will get a really good understanding of how these templates work by going through these steps. I wrote a tutorial previously on how to do this.



See, with the right accessories and pose, even clothing templates look good :) Maybe we should have a Miss Clothing Template Pageant...:P

OK seriously, I cannot emphasize how important it is to WEAR your clothing templates. I still do it all the time when trying to decide where to make cuts and adjustments.



Let me give you a simple example. Let's say I want to make a short sleeve top. I want to cut the sleeve where the red circle is (or maybe I want to add some designs at that position).

Because I am wearing the template, I can tell that I want to cut the sleeve at the solid line. The solid line is in between the purple band at the top and the pinkish band at the bottom.



All I have to do is find the corresponding solid line on the clothing texture template. Now I know precisely where to make the cut (or where to add in that extra design element).

Cool, isnt it? :)



Robin also has a number of other exhibits that discuss transparency, the many faces of a prim, animating texture, and UV maps on a prim. This is an excellent resource if you do a lot of work with prims, along with the tutorials at Idea City (I wonder who wrote the blog entry about Idea City? :P)

If you are a builder or clothing designer, definitely come check out Robin (Sojourner) Wood's Texture Tutorial site. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "texture tutorials" as the keyword. The SLURL is Livingtree (136,122,24) (Thanks for the update, Barbara!).

P.S. Pyxel has put together a tutorial on how to combine Robin's and Chip's templates here: Combining SL Clothing Templates. This will create the ultimate clothing template for those of you who love the details :)

42355-071006-340691-13

© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 201: Neufreistadt

The walled Bavarian city of Neufreistadt in Second Life is an old sim, rich in history. It is also a really cool and interesting place to visit :)

Neufreistadt, formerly known as Neualtenburg, has a place in the SL History Wiki. It is the seat of the Confederation of Democratic Sims, one of the only active government systems in Second Life.



Its also a nice to place have a glass of wine and go shopping in my sundress :)

Oh, Neufreistadt is also know for its fog. The city itself is covered in fog. There is so much fog here that they give you instructions on how to turn fog display off :P



The city has a visitor center, with maps of the city, and available land if you wish to join. It also has the government's Constitution.

Oh, and free beer right outside :)



Neufreistadt is a wonderfully constructed Bavarian city. You feel like you are in an Alpine village in the Alps :) OK...I *think* thats what Alpine villages in the Alps look like :P

There are many shops here, with a variety of interesting goods...



Interesting architecture...



Even a school (it teaches actual classes in SL).

Is that a grand piano I see in the lobby?



And here is the government center...

The government is certainly an important part of this sim. This is where all the poseballs are located :)



Neufreistadt is home to the new Museum of Contemporary Art that just opened on Mar 23, 2007.



Theres even a place for revolutionaries to hang out, discuss revolution, recite poetry, and listen to New Age music :P

Neufreistadt has its own website at Neufreistadt.info. If you are curious or would like to see what a democratic government is like in SL, check out Neufreistadt. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "neufreistadt" as the keyword. The SLURL is Neufreistadt (187,191,173).



Zippy, do you think Blue Poseball would mind if we went for a ride around the city? :)

Day 200: Im on TV

Wow, Im 200 days old! Ive written about over 100 places in Second Life (I lost count :P) and over 30 tutorial entries :)

I really didnt think theres THAT many places in SL! But for better or worse, I am running out of places in Second Life...

So lets talk about something completely different!



Im on TV...sorta :P

Life 4-U is the first TV magazine for Second Life. They starting producing their weekly shows in March, 2007.

Lary Kungler interviewed me for Show #6 (04/06/07).

The show is in the Life 4-U Show Archives. It is "Show #6- 04/06/07". Just pick your favorite viewer and enjoy the show!



You can check out the Life 4-U studio and watch the newest show. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "l4u" as the keyword. The SLURL is Big Bit (69,77,28).

Just come to the studio and press the "Play" button on your "Movies" control tab at the bottom of your screen. If you dont see a Movies tab, click on Edit/Preferences..., select the Audio & Video tab, and make sure that "Play Streaming Video When Available" is checked.



Lary did a really great job putting the segment together. Its kinda cool to see a video show about Second Life :) Especially when I get to be a mermaid :P Oh, I dont make 2,000 outfits a week...I think thats the number of visitors to the store or something. I wish I could though :P

The show mentions the interview in the introduction. The actual interview is in the last segment of the show.

Day 199: Its Day 199!!!

Aaaahhhh! Its Talia on Day 199!! Will that blonde mermaid keep posting daily until Day 200?

Can anyone guess where I am today? :)

Day 198: Venice Beach

Summer is almost here! Its time to head for the beach :) (OK, spring just started, but think positive!)

And what better beach than Venice Beach...and what better place than Second Life (you wont even get sand all over your stuff :P)



Venice Beach is a mostly faithful reproduction of its Real Life counterpart. Its a mix of surf, sand, boardwalk, and shops.



There are even photos of the real Venice Beach, just to show you how close the SL version is :) Well, except for all the people... I wonder how the lag is at the real Venice Beach...:P



And whats Muscle Beach without the muscles and the exercise equipment :)
OK, all the muscley guys are in the Gorean sims. But at least they have exercise equipment here.

So come work out right here in SL! Strength training is an important part of a fitness routine :P



Its a beach, so I have to do some sun-bathing. Even if Im wearing a really cute sundress :)



So guess what's really fun to do here? Yep, roller-skate :)

Like my pink skates? :) They started as the ugly blue Skoopf Ultra Roller Skates, but thats what happens if you give me Mod permission :P

BTW, if you need a plain pair of roller-skates, you can pick them up from Omoslow Hills in the Harajuku sim (right under the ferris wheel). Brush up on your Japanese while you are at it :)



The surrounding neighborhood has a lot of shops and some real landmarks as well.

If you feel like going some place warm, or just like a place to sit by the water, check out Venice Beach. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "venice" as the keyword. The SLURL is Venice Beach (70,116,25).



Today, I decided to try making a sundress. Something light and breezy for a day at the beach.

The dress itself is a double skirt. There are 2 layers of pleats to give it a nice effect. The top layer is opaque, while the bottom layer is semi-transparent lace.

I originally made both layers semi-transparent, just to see what happens. Well...having a transparent layer behind another transparent layer caused serious display issues. Also, it didnt look very good.

I ended up making the top layer opaque, by "faking" a lace texture (filling in the holes with a slightly darker color). This worked out very well and completely eliminated the transparency issue.



And for a day in the sun, you need proper protection from the damaging rays of the sun :)

This is the first pair of sunglasses Ive made :) All prim, of course. Kinda a cool thing actually, since you can play with the darkness of the "lenses" by setting the Transparency. Wish I can tweak things like that in RL :)

And the hat is suppose to be a straw hat thats been sat on one too many times. Most of my hats have been sat on one too many times. So it is crooked :) And it was a REAL challenge to make a crooked hat in SL! I ended up twisting a torus (literally) to get the crooked look.



Hey, thats the famous guy in Venice Beach on roller skates! Ive seen him in a couple movies. Ive always wanted a picture with him :)

Day 197: Avilion Isle

Natalia has written about Avilion Grove and Avilion Mist before. These are Medieval role-playing sims that are high on romance, and very light on role-playing. You would expect that from a blonde mermaid, wouldnt you?

But now, there is the new Avilion Isle sim, dedicated to Medieval fantasy role-playing :)

Oh, this is Talia, the evil Alt, BTW. In case you havent figured out why
Arwen's dress suddenly got sexier :)



Whereas Avilion Grove and Avilion Mist are strictly non-combat, Avilion Isle permits combat, and even has tournament events.

But dont worry, you need to wear the combat meter to participate in combat.

Avilion Isle is open to humans and other races (elves, drows, dragons, faeries, pixies, dwarves, etc.) But appropriate dress is required. And there are free outfits by the arrival area.



Avilion Isle is divided into 2 areas:

Valinor, for those who dwell above-ground, mostly in the trees.



I had to get this one in here: a harpsicord in a hollow tree... :)



And you really can dwell here by renting one of the treehouses. In case you are one of those sun-shiny elves who thinks everything is pretty and bright...



Then, theres L'Renden, the area below ground.

This is more like it. This is where the evil creatures live :) Like the dark elves, and evil Alts of blonde mermaids :P

Like the above-ground area, there are apartments below ground that you can rent as well.



They seem have a number of ways to execute tresspassers: burning at the stake, hanging, a rack, and a nasty looking cage thing.



And here is the hall of the evil person in charge :)

So what do you think happens when a role-playing sim has a bunch of people living above ground and a bunch living below ground? Thats why they call it role-playing :)

Avilion Isle just opened. So if you are interested in Medieval fantasy role-playing but without the Gorean influences, come check out Avilion Isle. Just remember to read the rules when you arrive and follow them! Click on Search, select Places, and enter "avilion" as the keyword. The SLURL is Avilion Isle (201,150,65).



Oh look, a book of Elvish insults!

Heehee, did you know "Llie n'vanima ar'lle atara lanneina" means "You're ugly and your mother dresses you funny"?

I wonder how you say "Hey Sexy" in Elvish? :P

Day 196: Happy Easter

Have a Happy Easter Sunday :)

Day 195: Creating Clothes with Photoshop

Update: If you are new to making clothing in SL, you should consider using the newer PNG file with Photoshop. Its much easier to do, because you dont need to build a separate Alpha Channel. Heres the new Photoshop PNG tutorial!

I did an earlier step-by-step tutorial for making clothes with GIMP using the UV Templates from Robin Woods.

This is a similar step-by-step tutorial, written for Photoshop. The screenshots were taking using Photoshop CS2. Since I only use basic Photoshop features, they should be similar to most versions of Photoshop.



This is a tutorial on how to create a simple shirt in Photoshop using the SL Avatar UV template from Robin Wood. You can download the templates from here. For this tutorial, you should download the "layered Photoshop (.psd) Files". You only need the "Top (2.4 MB)" file. These are the same template files I use for making clothes in Second Life.

This tutorial will cover how to use the Template to make a shirt, and how to export the shirt with Alpha Channel information for uploading to Second Life.

This tutorial is not intended as an in-depth Photoshop tutorial. There are many many books on Photoshop at the local bookstore, and classes and online tutorials. I do intend to show you step-by-step on how to use Photoshop to make a shirt in Second Life.

So lets get started!



From Photoshop top menu bar, select "File", then "Open...". Look for the "SL Avatar Top Layers.psd" file on your computer (make sure you are using the ".psd" file!). Click the "Open" button to open the Template file in Photoshop.









This will open the Template file in a window.

First, let's save a copy of the Template file so we dont accidently overwrite it (I accidently overwrite the template all the time! :P) Select "File" from the top of the window, and "Save as...".

Enter a Name for the new file (something like "Little Black Top") and click on the "Save" button.

OK, now we can play with the file without worrying about messing up the original. :)

By default, the Template file is 1024x1024 pixels. This is great for detail work where you want the highest resolution to align the edges (such as when you are making skins or textures that need to be closely aligned). However, we are just making a simple top for demonstration purposes.

Also, we will be producing a Targa format file (with transparency information). This file will be huge at 1024x1024 pixels. So let's reduce the size to a more manageable 512x512 pixel file.

Click on "Image" from the top menu bar. Select "Image Size...".



This will open the Image Size window. Enter "512" in both the Width and Height textboxes (Height might change automatically when you enter Width). Then click the "OK" button.

This reduces the resolution of the Template from 1024x1024 to 512x512 pixels.

Now we can start drawing.

First things first...I cant see anything :P Lets put a white background so we can at least see the Template.



Go to the Layers, Channels, Paths... palette. Click on the "Create a new layer" button.

(If you dont have the "Layers, Channels, Paths..." palette, click on "Window" on the top menu bar and make sure there is a checkmark next to "Layers".)







Right-click on "Layer 1" and select "Layer Properties...". This will open the Layer Properties window.

Enter "Backdrop" as the Layer Name (I dont want to call it "background" because that layer has a special meaning in Photoshop). Click on the "OK" button.



On the Layers, Channels, Paths... palette, click and hold on the "Backdrop" layer. Drag the layer to the bottom of the stack of layers (below "SubDivided UVs").










Click on the White square in the Color Swatches to select White as the foreground color.







Click on the "Paint Bucket" button on the Tools bar.

Make sure that the "Backdrop" layer is selected (highlighted in blue in the Layers, Channels, Paths palette). Using the Paint Bucket tool, click anywhere in the Template window to fill the Backdrop layer with white.













OK, thats better. Now we are ready to work :) You might want to save a copy of this file as a starting point for your future projects...

The wonderful thing about these graphics programs is the ability to create different layers for different things. Dont be shy about creating new layers! They are there to make things easier. As you can see, the Template came with a number of layers already. We just added a layer as the backdrop to make it easier to see the Template.

We are going to create another layer to draw in our shirt.

On the Layers, Channels, Paths... palette, click on the "Backdrop" layer to select it. Click on the "Create a new layer" button on the bottom.

Right-click on "Layer 1" and select "Layer Properties...". This will open the Layer Properties window.

Enter "Shirt" as the Layer Name. Click on the "OK" button.





Your Layers, Channels, Paths palette should look like this when you are done.

Click on the Shirt layer to select it.

Make sure that the Shirt layer is below the SubDivided UVs layer, but above the Backdrop layer. If not, then click and hold on the Shirt layer, and drag it into place.







From the main Tools palette, select the Lasso tool. (If you dont see the Lasso tool in the palette, Right-click on the second square down from the top and select the Lasso tool.)

















Draw a line all the way around the front side of the shirt (the figure on the left). Be sure you dont include any parts of the arm at the bottom.

Click on the Black square in the Color Swatches to select Black as the foreground color.

From main Tools palette, select the Paint Bucket tool.






With the Paint Bucket tool selected, click in the area you selected around the front side of the shirt. This will fill the selected area with black.












Now repeat the same process with the back side of the shirt (the figure on the right): select the Lasso tool, draw a line around the back side, selec the Paint Bucket tool, and fill the area with black.

Next, we are going to cut out an opening in the front and back sides for the neck. We are going to do this using the Pen/Path tool.






From main Tools palette, select the Pen tool (if you dont see the Pen tool, Right-click on the square [9th square down] and select the Pen).

















There will be a new menu bar that appears at the top. On the left side, there are 3 options (Shape layers, Paths, and Fill pixels). Make sure that the middle button (Paths) is selected.





Using the Pen/Path tool, draw a path around the front side of the shirt (the figure on the left). It may help to zoom in on the neck area.

Simply click at each of these 5 points. Try to get the 3 points on the Green line. Remember to click on the first point again to close the Path.

Remember, you can always Undo your last action by pressing Ctrl-Z in Photoshop.



From main Tools palette, Right-click on the square with the Pen tool, and select "Convert Point Tool" at the bottom.

















Click and hold on the Anchor Point in the middle of the neck. Drag a line towards the right. Move your mouse around until you have a nice-looking neck shape.






Right-click in the Template window (in the drawing window). Select "Make Selection..." from the popup menu. This will open the Make Selection window.

Select the "New Selection" radio button, and click "OK".

This turns the Path we just made into a selection.






Click on the "Edit" menu at the top of the window. Select "Clear".

This will cut a hole in the shirt for the neck :)



Now, do the same thing for the back side of the shirt:

Go to the main Tools palette, select the Pen tool (you need to change the Convert Point tool back to the Pen tool). Click on the 5 points around the neck. Click on the first point to close the Path.

Go to the main Tools palette, select the Convert Point Tool (change from Pen tool to Convert Point tool). Pull the middle Anchor Point to the right.

Right-click in the Template window (in the drawing window). Select "Make Selection..." from the popup menu. This will open the Make Selection window.

Select the "New Selection" radio button, and click "OK".

Click on the "Edit" menu at the top of the window. Select "Clear".



So here is our completed shirt.

You can create additional layers and draw in additional designs. You can do that now or come back later after you finish this tutorial. I would recommend you run through this tutorial first though...

Its now time to prepare the Alpha Channel. The Alpha Channel provides transparency information for the file. In this case, we want everything in black to be opaque, and everything else to be transparent. By the way, white does NOT mean transparent! White is a color, just like black or any other color. We just happened to pick white to use as a working backdrop color. The Alpha Channel is a separate layer altogether.



Go to the "Layers, Channels, Paths..." palette. Click on the "eye" next to all the layers to hide them, leaving only the Shirt layer visible (use the scrollbars and make sure you check all the layers). When you are done, the Shirt layer should be the only one with an "eye" next to it.








In the "Layers, Channels, Paths..." palette, Right-click on the little picture of the Shirt layer. Select "Select Layer Transparency" from the popup menu.











Now click on the "Channels" tab in the Layers, Channels, Paths palette.

[If you do not see the Channel tab, you can get it in one of 2 ways: The easiest is to select "Window" from the top menu bar, then "Workspace/Default Workspace". This will put Layer/Channels/Paths/History/Actions into 1 palette.

If you want to keep your existing workspace, then click on "Window" from the top menu bar and "Channels" will create a floating Channels tab. You can work on the Channels tab undocked. But it is a bit of a challenge to dock it somewhere in just the right order (or at least I dont know of an easy way to do it).]

Click on the "Save selection as channel" button at the bottom of the Layers, Channels, Paths palette (looks like a grey square with a white circle in the middle). This will create a new channel called "Alpha 1". This is our Alpha Channel, with the outline of the shirt in white.




Here is a somewhat optional step: Photoshop picks up a little of the background color around the edges of a transparent image. If there is no background color, Photoshop will use white. In our case, we will end up with a little bit of white around the collar of our shirt.

We can fix this issue by putting in a Black base layer, below our Shirt layer.

Go back to the Layers tab in the Layers, Channels, Paths palette. Select the Backdrop layer. Click on the "Create a new layer" button on the bottom of the Layers, Channels, Paths palette. This will create a new "Layer 1" between the Shirt layer and the Backdrop layer.

Click on the Black square in the Color Swatches to select Black as the foreground color.

Select the Paint Bucket tool from the main Tools palette. Now click anywhere in the Template window (drawing window) to fill the new "Layer 1" with Black.

This will turn your whole drawing black. Thats OK. Your shirt is still in there somewhere... (If you dont believe me, click on the "eye" next to "Layer 1". Just be sure you turn "Layer 1" back on when you are done).

Click on the "File" menu at the top of the window. Select "Save" to save all of our changes.

Finally, lets export the file in Targa format...

(Note: if you have an older version of Photoshop, check out Jennifer Dunne's comments on this post on how to save to Targa format)

Click on the "File" menu at the top of the window. Select "Save as..." to save all of our changes.



In the Save As window, select "Targa (*.TGA;*.VDA;*.ICB;*.VST)" and click on the "Save" button.

You may want to change the file name and remove with word "copy" from the end of the name.










The Targa Options window will appear. Make sure that "32 bits/pixel" is selected, and "Compress (RLE)" is NOT checked. Click on the "OK" button.

Thats it! The Targa file is now ready to be uploaded to Second Life.


The steps for uploading a Targa file to Second Life and turning it into a shirt was covered in Creating Clothes Part 1 Tutorial. You can jump to the end of the tutorial, where it says "Next, go into Second Life..."

***Update: If you are using Photoshop 7.0 (specifically 7.0) and having problems with creating the Alpha Channel, check out Justin D's comments on this post! Justin suggested some updates that might help fix problems with creating Alpha Channels. But this only fixes Photoshop 7.0 (not CS2 or CS3)!


I just showed you the very basic steps in creating a clothing item in Photoshop and uploading it to Second Life. Now, feel free to go back and change the shape of the Shirt. Add some layers and create some designs. Or play with some of the other clothing templates (SL Avatar Bottom, Skirt, etc).

Have fun with your SL designer career :)

73331-071006-650444-44

© 2007 All Rights Reserved.

Day 194: Hair Fair 2007

Its April 6, 2007. The big day. Start of the most important event of the year. Thats right, its Hair Fair 2007 :)



How big? The Hair Fair takes place over 2 sims! (not for the space, but for the people)



Almost every major hair maker is here :)

Even the directory is enormous!



There is so much hair here, you can spend a few hours just browsing :)

Since it was opening day, the 2 sims were PACKED! But keep trying, and you will eventually get in. Also, you may need to try a few times when crossing between the 2 Hair Fair sims (the sim crossing is right down the middle of the pavilion in the middle of the fair).



There are a number of contests and charity programs.

Like the Guessing Competition and the 20 Question Contest.



There are 4 special hairs on auction for the "Locks of Love" charity, each built by a different team of hair designers.

Locks of Love provides hair pieces to financially disadvantaged children under 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss.



Many hair designers have also made special hair for "Locks of Love". 100% of the proceeds from these hair go to the charity. Look for the pink "Locks of Love" sign near a hair in the show, or at your favorite hair designer.



Also, April 14 is officially Bandana Day. The sales of the bandanas also benefit "Locks of Love". So buy a bandana and show your support :)



And to reward your generosity, there are TONS of free hair here!

For girls and GUYS! So no more excuses guys :) I want to see you guys with nice hairs from now on. Either that, or a bandana :)

Hair Fair 2007 runs from April 6 to April 14, 2007.

To come to Hair Fair 2007, click on Search, select Places, and enter "hair fair" as the keyword. Note that the arrival point from "Search" is on the far side of the sim, away from the main entrance. Use your Mini-Map and look for the green dots to find the show :) The SLURL is Hermit Heaven.

If you have problems getting into the Hermit Heaven sim, you might want to try the Prim Paradise sim. Hermit Heaven and Prim Paradise are adjacent to the ETD and Celestial City sims.

Be patient this weekend, as Im sure the show will be very busy!

Have fun with all your new hair :)

Day 193: Extreme Weather

Welcome to the Weather Channel sim...

"Weather Channel?", you ask. Didnt I get enough weather at the NOAA sim? What makes weather so interesting?

Well, when its extreme weather :)



OK, you can come here and watch "TV" in the lounge. They have 3 programs you can watch on weather conditions.

But you know I didnt come out here to watch TV... :P



The Weather Channel sim has 3 "EPIC" extreme weather activities: skiing, desert biking, and big wave surfing.



Lets start with skiing... Pop into the ski lodge and pick up your pair of free skis, poles, and snow boots. :) I love those boots!

They also have T-shirts and other free gear. You've gotta love corporate sims :)



Bundle up...cause its going to be cold :P (Dont mind me, thats a specially insulated skirt...yeah :P)

And hop onto the ski lift (theres a teleporter also...but use the ski lift, its so much more fun!)

The lift takes you WAY UP there!



At the top, slip on your boots, poles, and rez your skis on the ground.

One tip: make sure your skis point towards the start of the trail (mine are backwards in the pix). Just Edit them and rotate them so they face the right way. Otherwise you would end up like me on my first ski run: this was a pix of me 10 seconds before I flew off the side of the mountain into the water below :P



This was my second ski run down the bunny slope. Much better!

The freebie skis are VERY hard to control. So try the bunny slope first. If you have skis from Nakiska or another ski area, you might want to use those instead.

But its a nice ski run because of the size of the mountain!



Next up: desert biking. This is probably my favorite in this sim, just because you cant do it anywhere else in SL (that I know of...) :)

Grab your free mountain bike...



And gear up.

OK...small complaint: The helmet is totally cool. But dont ever give a girl something that attaches to her Skull. Thats where her hair is. And yes, she still wants hair WITH the helmet on. :P Thankfully, you can change the attachment point to Chin or Mouth if you like.

The bike also attaches to the Pelvis, where my skirt is. I had to remove my belt, and move my skirt to the Stomach attachment point. I guess we are not suppose to go desert biking in a skirt :P



The desert bike ride goes through rough desert terrain with big bumps and some steep trails in the back. The cool part is that you can do tricks with your bike :) So be sure to read the included Notecard...



Lastly, big wave surfing...

Come by the shack and pick up your free surfboard (there is also a free wetsuit here, but mine has diamonds :P)



Hop on the board and paddle out to the waves!

And they arent kidding about BIG WAVE :)

For some extreme weather activities, come check out the Weather Channel sim. Click on Search, select Places, and enter "weather" as the keyword. The SLURL is Weather (113,5,26).

Say, that's not sea water, is it?

*POOF*



OK...I guess I can body surf as a mermaid :P

Day 192: Please Leave a Message

This is Talia, the evil Alt.

That blonde mermaid has shutdown her computer on Wednesdays and Sundays so no one can post to her blog. All because of promises she made to her family.

So please leave a message after the beep, and I will get back to you as soon as possible...

*BEEP*

Day 191: Casablanca

Rick: If that plane leaves the ground and you're not with him, you'll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow, but soon and for the rest of your life.

Ilsa: But what about us?

Rick: We'll always have Paris. We didn't have, we, we lost it until you came to Casablanca. We got it back last night....



Welcome to Virtual Morocco in the Casablanca sim of Second Life :)

Grab an InfoFez (the red hat thing) and join me on a tour... (the InfoFez gives you additional notes about certain locations as you approach. Its also a cool red hat thing :) ).



The first stop is the market area, or the souk, with some "authentic" Moroccan items.



Next to the market area is the Mosque, the giant structure that dominates the sim.



There is a beautiful stretch just across the gardens. Its a little bit out of the way, but well worth looking for.



They even have 2 soccer (football) fields here. There is even a booth that gives you a free ball :)

Unfortunately, the area is marked as "no build", so you cannot rez your ball here :( It looks like so much fun to play!

If you like, try it in an area where you can build (like a sandbox). Rez the ball, Edit the ball, and click on the checkbox next to "Physical". You might want to check the "Allow anyone to move" checkbox too. Then you can kick it around :)



In addition to soccer, the local residents appear to like their satellite dishes :)



And my personal favorite...Cafe Morocco, next to the beautiful courtyard garden.



This is where you and a group of friends can come to belly dance :)

I have a weird feeling Ive done this before... (and Caterin had something to do with it :P)



To come check out Virtual Morocco, click on Search, select Places, and enter "morocco" as the keyword. The SLURL is Casablanca (135,87,26).



Im just learning about the local culture. Yeah...thats it... :P

P.S. Im really not going to post any blog entry on Wed's and Sun's from now on (except for a message saying Im not posting...which means I will be posting...oh never mind). I really have to live up to my end of the agreement with my family :)

I have to make sure that no one can sneak in and post either :P

Day 190: Telos IV

Welcome to the arrival area of Telos IV, a Star Wars role-playing sim with Jedi's, Siths, clones, droids, those guys in white armor, and everyone else :)

This is Talia, wearing Padme's picnic gown. Did you know that Natalia created this gown to go to a Star Wars RP sim, but changed her mind at the last minute?



You see, almost all Star Wars sims (including Telos IV) require that you wear the Roleplay Combat System meter (RCS). The RCS meter is only L$200. But it includes a weapon. And Nat really didnt want the whole combat thing anyway. So she skipped the whole idea and went to a garden instead :P

Of course, Im far more creative. Im just going to sneak around without a meter, since Im just writing about the sim... But if you come to visit, be sure you come with a meter! (You wouldnt want to watch your Mini-Map the whole time and avoid people anyway :P)

The arrival area is a mall, full of Star Wars outfits, equipment, and avatars.



The arrival area and the library are the only non-combat places, where you can visit without a meter...



Telos IV is like a space station. There are some common areas, and then areas owned by specific factions, like a Jedi order, Sith order, or group of droids.

There is an application wall, where you can sign up for one of these factions. Sorta like the university applications wall in the admissions office of your school :P



Once you are on the surface, its sorta what you would expect in a Star Wars space station...

Um...what do you expect in a Star Wars space station anyway?

Theres a cool bar...



Medical facilities, because of all the fighting going on here :P

They even have those water tank thingies that Luke Skywalker was in :)



And a very pretty indoor garden... (wait a minute...Im the evil Alt, right? Stop saying stuff like that...)



Aside from a few common areas, the rest of Telos IV is divided into areas controlled by each faction.



Most are sealed behind security barriers. But this one was open to the public, so I snuck in for a pix.

Most of these faction hangouts have meeting spaces and cells, probably for holding captives. So I can imagine that much of the role-playing involves capturing members of the "enemy" faction...



Oh...oh...I had to get a shot of this...

Isnt this like totally Darth Talia? :P

Telos IV is an active role-playing sim, with people routinely running around. I know, because it was really hard to sneak around... They have light sabers, blasters, and even Force stuff. All the cool things you would expect from Star Wars.

If you like Star Wars with role-playing and lots of fighting, come check out Telos IV. You DO need the RCS meter if you want to go on the surface (even if you dont intend to fight). Its L$200, and you can get it at a number of Star Wars places (or just Search under Places for "rcs").

To come to Telos IV, click on Search, select Places, and enter "telos" as the keyword. The SLURL is Telos IV (29,171,486).



Blue, darling, can you feel the attraction of the Dark Side? :)

Day 189: SL Face of L'Oreal Paris Outfits

OMG, my friend Pompo pointed this out to me: Google's New In-Home Wireless Broadband Service. I almost ordered it...(must be the blonde highlights in my hair...)

Um...Happy Aprils Fools Day? :P



Im so glad the SL Face of L'Oreal Paris Pageant is over. It was a REALLY long day!

But I couldnt have made 3 beautiful outfits and not write about it! I'll keep it short :)

Im at the new mermaid grotto in Avilion Mist :) Its a pretty place with a small beach and an underwater area. This gives us mermaids a place to rest when playing around the waterways of Avilion :)



The first outfit was "Classy Casual". So I used a modified version of the Blossom dress, and added a belt inspired by the current Gucci ads :)

The Blossom skirt has a texture that goes across the front and back of the skirt, giving the impression of a continuous texture. I added the same thing to a pair of cuffs.



I used a matching texture for the boots, with buckles to match the belt. Its amazing how much Ive abused those Dino Boots :P



Im a bit self-conscious about bikinis. Especially the ones in SL.

The contest called for "Glamour Bikini". So I couldnt exactly use a Particle Bikini :P

Then I remembered those multi-million dollar diamond bras that Victoria's Secret made. I cant have one in Real Life...but this isnt Real Life :P And I have all the diamonds I need :)



So I created my own million dollar diamond bikini. The bikini has a regular top, and a mini-skirt bottom (you know me...I cant go without a skirt :P) The mini-skirt covers the back very well, but still remains a bikini. :)

Each diamond has a platinum backing (because I say its platinum :P) to give it a texture effect when the avatar's body moves from breathing. The diamond and the backing sort of shimmers, without having to bling :)

The pageant version of the bikini has a teardrop-shaped design on the chest, and diamonds lining the trim. There are 208 hand placed diamonds in total :)



The original chest design was a diamond butterfly. I changed to a teardrop in the pageant, because it is more "glamorous". I love the butterfly though :)

With the butterfly design, thats about 315 diamonds, plus the platnium back! Because they wanted to minimize lag at the contest, I removed the diamonds from the back. Also, changing the design from the butterfly to a teardrop cut down on the number of diamonds as well.

Unfortunately, the bikini is custom fitted to my avatar, so it would not fit anyone else! Unless they are my evil Alt or something. But then, I doubt they would look nearly as good :P



You probably recognize the design of the formal outfit: it is based on one of the candidate designs for the Miss Second Life Finals gown. The outfit is similar to the modified Ascot dress I wore during the Miss SL Finals, but in a darker texture.



The Ascot dress was cute, and a definitely attention grabber. But since "glamour" was the theme, I thought it would be better if I wore something black.



The ruffles around the neckline are real flexi-prims. They move :) And they have a nice appearance when the upper body moves.



The original version also had a hat. But since this show is about one's face, I decided to leave the hat in my Inventory. Oh well...it was such a pretty hat too!



Oh, did I mention the poses?

The L'Oreal show was being shot for a movie. So they needed very specific poses: No tippy toes. Front pose only (no back or side poses). Front-facing poses only (no head turning or tilting). And do not distort your clothes.

I went all through SL looking for poses. I went to every place in Search/Places and Search/Classifieds that had the word "model" or "modeling" in it. I found a few, but most had issues with at least one of the criterion above.

My friend Roofus told me a while back that he had the same problem with one of his projects. He ended up making his own poses.



So I decided to make my own!

The cool thing is that once you have a working pose, you can make minor adjustments for a particular outfit (so your hands do not disappear into the skirt, for instance!) I should have done this earlier!

This is so cool, since Ive been wanting to make a couple mermaid poses :) If I can actually figure out how this works for real, I can even write about it! :)