Ophelia's Gaze: 3 Ways the Bestselling Second Life Shoe Brand Stiletto Moody Makes Me Moody

Iris Ophelia's ongoing review of virtual world and MMO fashion

Few brands divide Second Life fashionistas as intensely as the chic shoe line from Stiletto Moody [Click here to teleport to Stiletto Moody Bare]. On the brand's Facebook page, they take credit for practically inventing the sculpted shoe -- Protip: they didn't -- and while it's true that they were very influential in the past, the brand has seemed to stagnate since then. Many fashionistas say Stiletto Moody shoes are a rip-off and the signature of an uneducated consumer -- while fans of the brand call its critics cheap and woefully un-chic. It's still very successful, enjoying main store locations that span multiple sims, and yet as I was writing this post, fashionista friends in-world made fun of me for wearing them.

Back in the day, I myself owned a pair of Stiletto Moody shoes, but in the years since, I admit I've joined the more critical camp, looking down my nose at Moody-wearing fashionistas. That being said, I don't want to be so judgemental, especially about a brand that does produce some appealing styles. So I decided it was definitely time for me to revisit Stiletto Moody.

However, I quickly discovered that Stiletto Moody hasn't changed much since its promising early days of 2007 or so... and that's precisely the problem. Here's three shortcomings that really stuck out:

1 - New Stilletto Moody Products are Hard to Find

I set out to buy a pair of Stiletto Moody shoes that were as recent as possible, expressly so I could see the changes that the brand had made since I'd abandoned it. I checked their blog and found it hasn't been updated in ages, while their Marketplace store has only a fraction of their releases. The most activity seemed to be on their Facebook page, where I found tantalizing promises of how the brand had evolved and changed. I teleported to the main store, and clicked a sign that offered a teleport to their latest releases.

Except it didn't. The teleport directed me to a small grassy patch outside of the store. So I wandered around inside looking for the new pair I'd had my eye on, but failing to find them, I chose Lauren, a beautiful shoe with a ribbon-wrapped ankle that was one of the few styles prominently and fully represented in Stiletto Moody's Marketplace store. Surely if any of the older styles was updated to the standard of the new it would be Lauren, right?

But no. Keep reading for the details.

2 - Alpha Layers are Standard on SL Shoes... Everywhere Else but Stiletto Moody

One of the tantalizing promises I had come across on Facebook was the mention of Alpha layers, a clothing layer that makes an area invisible, a standard feature used by SL designers to create stylish high heels. Nine months ago, Stiletto Moody promised customers that Alpha layers would be supported once SL viewers using them were more popular. Most of them do, but as you can tell by the oddly blocky halo surrounding my feet above, no Alpha layers were included in the Lauren line, and the invisiprims were permanently built into the shoes. Invisible blocks used to hide parts of the foot that interefere with the silhouette/style of the shoe, invisiprims are just a hair's breadth from being utterly obsolete. So why are they permanently fused into these L$1299 shoes?

 3 - Customizing HUDs are Standard... Everywhere Else but Stilletto Moody

While Alpha layers are a Linden Lab-developed technology that created a new standard in SL shoemaking, the colour-matching HUD is an innovation that came purely from the designing community. These HUDs are taken for granted with most shoes that involve a prim foot or prim toes, and they allow you to easily adjust skin tone and other shoe features in a very clear and visual way. Stiletto Moody, however, uses a very archaic menu-driven system that lets you to adjust the brightness, redness, and greenness of your skin tone. Compare this menu-based adjustment system with the HUD pictured below it, which comes with SLink's new Lulu heels, pictured on the right [Click to teleport to SLink at SANCTUM]. These shoes come with a HUD, an Alpha layer, optional invisiprims, and unlike Lauren, which comes in three preset and unmodifiable sizes, can be resized through the HUD as well. All for half the price of Lauren. That's still not cheap, but considering the work involved and all the features included, it's more than fair.

Stiletto Moody's heavily scripted menu system was fine in the burgeoning days of prim feet, but we expect more now, especially from a pair of shoes that cost as much as Moody's. As I mentioned earlier, Lauren is an older Moody design, so in fairness, it is possible that the newer designs contain an Alpha layer and even a HUD. However, while I failed to find the newest releases in their in-world or Marketplace stores, I think my review of one of the brand's most prominent and popular designs is still a fair assessment.

It's true that Stiletto Moody makes some very sexy and striking shoes, but in my opinion they're simply not worth it. We have so many options that meet and surpass their quality for a fraction of the price --from designers who are far more in touch with the market.

 

Iris Ophelia (Janine Hawkins IRL) has been featured in the New York Times and has spoken about SL-based design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan and with pop culture/fashion maven Johanna Blakley.

Comments

[Ann Otoole InSL]

Can't wear the ones I have. 5MB each shoe is just stupid and would get me ejected from many venues that don't allow script overusers to spoil the experience for everyone else. Since they are no mod I cannot rip the never used for anything scripts out.

[wakawaka Snook]

Dude has made good money from this vanity:

http://blogs.forbes.com/oliverchiang/2010/10/27/creating-a-1m-virtual-goods-brand-in-second-life/

More then 200,000 pairs for over $1M

[Pamela Galli]

I know nothing about Stiletto Moody shoes, but I do know that large established merchants have the double burden of 1) making new content regularly as well as 2) keeping older content updated. It is difficult to do both at the same time and match the pace of new product releases of newer stores that can concentrate entirely on new releases. To do both well they would need to almost double the size of their team -- and with their sales it may be easy enough to meet the payroll; however, finding the right ppl to put on the payroll might be more difficult than it sounds.

[Adeon Writer]

This is why I outright refuse to buy no-mod content.

[Arcadia Codesmith]

For L$1299, they'd better have the color HUD, alpha option, built-in foot massager, and a mini-taser for those occasions when my wardrobe is not stunning enough on its own.

[Melanie]

There are so many brands out there now with superior products for less money, it's kind of shocking that people still even choose to shop at SM anymore. When I see people wearing SM shoes, I assume they're newbies who don't know any better and figured the big pricetag automatically implies better quality.

Better shoes with sculpted prim-foot parts may be found at N-Core, Nardcotix, Annex, Maitreya, LeLutka, Pixel Mode, SLink... and that list is just off the top of my head!

My impression of SM is that they're just plain arrogant for seeming to think they can dismiss what the market wants, and continue to offer invisiprims and horrid skin-matching menus for shoes that cost way more, with no demos.

[1angelcares Writer]

I'm sentimental. I still love my Stiletto Moody "Gretas" and "Pinups" and will continue to wear them because they remind me of good times in my SL past. I have loads of other shoes and wear those, also. If people want to assume I'm a noob, I'll have to assume they are too dumb or lazy to read a profile.

[Vecky Burdam]

Stiletto Moody is just driving the brand against the wall like Armidi did before. Both hired a team of excellent designers, both are based on an excellent marketing strategy, both had nothing to deliver anymore after the crucial designers moved on and somewhat lost interest to really care, both tried to keep the brand in the minds with more and more weird marketing stunts and promises that even more rapidly made the brand decline. Both still make a lot of money off the 'old days' and once the inworld sales drop to a point, where it doesn't justify the costs of a sim anymore, the stuff will turn up on the marketplace with ridiculous merchant names like 'fashion' and 'fashionz' under which the armidi stuff is sold out now (and still generates a lot of money).
Stiletto Moody is as dead as it can be (and still generates a lot of money).

[Harper Ganesvoort]

I've felt for a year now that N-core has as good a product, if not better, and for a lower price. L$2,000 for a pair of shoes, whether with prim feet or not, was just out of my price range. But I have several pair of N-core, and for half of what Moody was charging.

[Aemeth]

"If people want to assume I'm a noob, I'll have to assume they are too dumb or lazy to read a profile."

I don't mean to be rude, but I don't click on everyone's profile to read--especially now that SL makes them load so slowly. If I see invisiprims, I do assume that the player is new.

[ColeMarie Soleil]

No offense but even when they were popular I found them an eyesore. Besides that... they are super overpriced. Go to SLink if you want nice shoes XD I cant stand Moodys prices sorry. I mean you know? I understand paying 600l ish for a well sculpted well scripted hud driven very option changing item that is beyond reasonable... but Moody charges way too much for shoes that dont warrant such pricing. Just my two cents.

[ColeMarie Soleil]

I just saw your comment Arcadia "For L$1299, they'd better have the color HUD, alpha option, built-in foot massager, and a mini-taser for those occasions when my wardrobe is not stunning enough on its own."

Basically. Yeah that sums it up.

[Talena Carissa]

I run a small shop where I make shoes from full perm sculpties which I buy from their creators etc. When a friend bought moody shoes recently I was appalled. Even in my small shop, I use a hud based system, offer both alpha and invisiprim versions of each pair. I also use an ankle lock system to prevent the shoe from moving around on the foot so that ankle attachments don't look funny as they do in the case of Moody shoes. I had to make an invisible ankle lock attachment for my friend so she could wear her shoes more beautifully. 1500L or more for a pair of shoes that doesn't come with these standard benefits is ridiculous, no matter how pretty the shoe is. Furthermore, I find that Moody's feet have not been updated in the years since they were first introduced and when compared to maitreya or slink or ncore look dirty and unrealistic.

Talena Carissa
Pink Label

[WarmAnimations Lisa]

like the orchestra of the Titanic, playing while sinking!

I am writing at November 22 2013,
A few weeks ago I noticed that the store in world and the Marketplace of Stiletto Moody are gone.. After a long time without new releases, I know from personal experience that it's not easy to keep up to date a great brand, and at the same time find inspiration to continue supprender customers with new releases. I also know that nowadays there are many other more affordable brands with good quality!
Even I now rarely use a Moody's, but do not criticize those who do! For me wearing a Moody's is wearing a piece of SL history, with all the memories of the times when Moody's opened, I still remember like it was yesterday the day that I first saw a Moody's in early 2007, just weeks after have opened the Armidi, and was exactly at Armidi where I saw in the first time someone wearing a Moody's I remember that the first time I was so flabbergasted that not had time to inspect to see who was the creator. spent days in the Armidi sim until finally appears someone with other Moody's, this time already inspected and teleported me to the first store Moody's which had only 2 versions of the same shoe in different colors already at the time were very expensive but I had to buy them! People who criticize at this point probably has not even played SL, at this time the Moody's Armidi Cake have sculpted shoes! everything else was prim made shoe!
Moody's its an Icon of SL best times ever! And now that was gone its not for sure a matter of being newbie! Who lived those times can't ever forget! As I say before its "like the orchestra of the Titanic, playing while sinking!"

[WarmAnimations Lisa]

like the orchestra of the Titanic, playing while sinking!

I am writing at November 22 2013,
A few weeks ago I noticed that the store in world and the Marketplace of Stiletto Moody are gone.. After a long time without new releases, I know from personal experience that it's not easy to keep up to date a great brand, and at the same time find inspiration to continue supprender customers with new releases. I also know that nowadays there are many other more affordable brands with good quality!
Even I now rarely use a Moody's, but do not criticize those who do! For me wearing a Moody's is wearing a piece of SL history, with all the memories of the times when Moody's opened, I still remember like it was yesterday the day that I first saw a Moody's in early 2007, just weeks after have opened the Armidi, and was exactly at Armidi where I saw in the first time someone wearing a Moody's I remember that the first time I was so flabbergasted that not had time to inspect to see who was the creator. spent days in the Armidi sim until finally appears someone with other Moody's, this time already inspected and teleported me to the first store Moody's which had only 2 versions of the same shoe in different colors already at the time were very expensive but I had to buy them! People who criticize at this point probably has not even played SL, at this time the Moody's Armidi Cake have sculpted shoes! everything else was prim made shoe!
Moody's its an Icon of SL best times ever! And now that was gone its not for sure a matter of being newbie! Who lived those times can't ever forget! As I say before its "like the orchestra of the Titanic, playing while sinking!"

[Christi]

mesh has came along way picture can look nice in pictures but that have to look good when people wear them.