Where to Shop in Second Life: December 2014 Edition

Janine "Iris Ophelia" Hawkins' ongoing review of gaming and virtual world style

There's something almost reassuring about a regular in-store release in Second Life these days. It's predictable, it's stable, it'll probably be there for awhile... But so many designers are creating so much content for events that come and go. Sometimes what they make is available elsewhere when the event's over and sometimes it's not, and that's... Well, it can be stressful to try and stay on top of it all.

With that in mind I thought it might be time to try out something new here on New World Notes. At the beginning of the month (you know, like right now) we'll take a look at a handful of the events that have just started or that are coming up soon. We'll talk about some of the participating designers, show a stand-out item or two if possible, and generally try to make the ever-expanding tangle of events out there that much more digestible.

So where should you be shopping this month? Let's start with...

The Arcade [Teleport]: December 1st to January 1st

This one's easy, because The Arcade is always a must-visit shopping event. This round there are quite a few showstoppers worth getting your hands on, including the tricked-out tuk tuks (or auto-rickshaws, if you're so inclined) from Zaara. You can see them in action thanks to SL user Ksenia Star, who posted a video of the unicorn-inspired rare tuk tuk in action on YouTube. Also well worth checking out are these wiggly piggies from Schadenfreude (of which Anemysk Karu has shared some ridiculously adorable animated gifs on her Plurk). For more, you can check out the preview I posted last week, or the official Arcade shopping guide.

Uber [Teleport]: November 30th to December 26th

The theme for this month's Uber is "Vogue". That's pretty open to interpretation, and participating designers have taking the theme in a lot of different directions. There are just as many sleek and fiercely fashionable designs as you'd expect, including the slinky, strappy Opal heels from fri.day pictured on the left. There are also some decidedly more quirky items available, including this over-the-top head bow from BOOM that's perfectly timed for the holidays. Visit the Uber event site for a complete line-up of what's available.

Fameshed [Teleport]: December 1st to December 26th

I'm a sucker for Junbug, so it's no surprise that these sumptuously ruffled bodysuits leapt to the top of my "To Buy" list the second I saw them. In case you're unfamiliar, Fameshed is a monthly event specifically designed to highlight original mesh design in Second Life. It's a regular place to visit if you want to find the lastest from some of the best brands on the grid, including Trompe L'Oeil, Wasabi Pills and Monso. You can browse everything available this month with the help of Seraphim's shopping guide here.

Geeks'n'Nerds [Teleport]: November 24th to December 10th

Geeks'n'Nerds opened its doors near the end of November, but there still time to visit before it closes on the 10th. A few of the highlights of what you can find there include Sailor Moon-inspired neck scarves, cats coasting around of off-brand Roombas, and more Doctor Who clothes and accessories than you can shake a sonic screwdriver at. Last week I took SL Go for a spin around the event and recorded my trip, so if you want to know what I snapped up personally, that's a good place to start:

 

Are there any shopping events you're looking forward to this month? As ever, feel free to share them with fellow virtual world shoppers in the comments below!

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Janine Hawkins (@bleatingheart on Twitter, Iris Ophelia in Second Life) has been writing about virtual worlds and video games for nearly a decade, and has had her work featured on Paste, Kotaku, Jezebel and The Mary Sue.

Comments

[Tracy RedAngel]

I enjoy events, I think they sort of make sl fashion and shopping in SL more of an activity. It also encourages in-world shopping. The best place to check to keep up with events is Seraphim (www.seraphimsl.com). They post most of the major events with Slurls and galleries of all the store exclusive items. It usually takes them a day to blog the event and get everything posted (it's a lot of work).
Most stores' exclusive items will make it back to the mainstore right after the event. Stores usually want their new releases in their mainstore so they can keep selling the items. A store will usually put a sign saying the item is limited to that event only, and that doesn't happen as often.

[Rose]

Kustom9 http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Mingle/165/140/28 is always great!

And yes Seraphim has got them all, yay for them.