Discovery Series: [Decoy] by Annette Voight

For the second installment of the Color Me Beauty: Discovery Series, I'd like to introduce to you my adorable friend Annette Voight, clothing designer and owner of the store [Decoy].

Pictured above: Annette Voight outside of her shop, Decoy.
(Random Factoid about Annette: She's a music junkie, known to spend hours-upon-hours listening to music on her iPod! You can actually listen to her most recently played music on her Last.FM page!)

I first discovered Decoy last year around the holidays, while shopping around for a "secret Santa" gift for one of my friends. What I liked about Annette's designs were that they were colorful, fun, and fresh and that there was a lot of variety.. whether you wanted a t-shirt and jeans or more formal cocktail-attire. Her work is original and hand-drawn.. she can sometimes take up to 3 weeks on one piece to get it "just right" (refer to her new series of shoes, the Francisco Wedges!). Her attention to detail in her creations is a quality that I believe enables her to stand out as one of the great unique talents in SL!

Annette, from Georgia, USA, has been designing in Second Life since August/September '07. Inspirations for her designs come from: her sister's closet, RL clothing designs, food (the Sweetarts dresses!) and frequently by other SL designers. Her love for music also inspires her designs, as she tries to create pieces that "fit the song." The 'Elisa' dress was named after the Italian singer Elisa Toffoli, as she felt the dress would flow well whilst dancing to her music! :) Keep an eye out for her musical inspirations when you're in her shop! It just goes to show you.. inspiration can come from anywhere!

Pictured above: (right to left) Annette and I--- this picture is just too cute not to post!

Annette describes her personal style as dressy-casual. Her inventory is *filled* with jeans, and she wears them all the time! She claims she has some difficulty assembling high-fashion ensembles and that she just prefers to stick to casual, simple, and colorful--- totally fitting of her personality!

So if you're ever stumbling around SL and you find yourself face-to-face with a cute little neko bopping around with iPod headphones glued to her ears.. say hello :) It's probably Annette Voight, getting motivated to create her next great design...

What are you waiting for? Discover me!
Decoy (mainstore) @ Daffodil Island
Decoy @ Fashion Victim

~LR~

Photo Credits:
LauraRose is wearing....
Dress: Decoy "Aubrey" in Sea (group gift from December... Annette is *very* good to her group members!!!)
Shoes: Decoy "Francisco Wedges" in White/white
Hair: ETD "Ashley" in Expresso
Skin: Wax Poetic// Java Joe (ripped/waxed)

Annette is wearing....
Shirt: Decoy "Flava Pop tank" in Citrus
Jeans: Decoy "Genesis 10" in White
Shoes: Decoy "Francisco Wedges" in Orange/white
Scarf: Decoy "Mraz Scarf" in White (unreleased)
Hair: Cake "Europa" in Brown
Skin: Tuli "Celeste-Dawn"

Discovery Series: [insert cool name] by Malte Antfarm

Thus marks the beginning of a new series of blog posts for me, entitled the "Color me Beauty: Discovery Series"! Over the next few weeks, you'll be meeting friends of mine who have influenced my style in some way, shape, or form--- this is just my little way of saying "Thanks!"

My first inclusion is the up-and-coming designer Malte Antfarm from Germany, who recently opened up his shop [insert cool name] in a few locations around the grid.

Pictured above: Malte in his shop [insert cool name]

Random factoid about Malte: He looveessss cookies! :)

When I first met Malte, one of the first things I noticed about him was his own personal style. When I asked him about it and he said that the clothes were his own creations, I was immediately impressed! Come to find out, he'd been creating some clothing for fun, with no real intention to sell it, in an attempt to stand out and be unique in a world where so many guys have the "same-ish" look. He finally decided to open up shop, and with no surprise he's had growing success! [insert cool name] sells men's/women's/unisex clothing, including graphic tees (which look great layered), jackets, hoodies, polo shirts, jeans, and sweaters (and soon-to-come, a line of piercings!).

Malte describes his own personal style as casual, preppy, and punk, noting that his inspiration for his designs come from clothing iRL.

So, what are you waiting for? Discover me!

[insert cool name] @ THE BEACHCLUB
[insert cool name] @ addiXion
[insert cool name] @ Pull d'Vagin

~LR~

Photo Credits:
LauraRose is wearing:
Jacket: *bp* "dnm jacket"
T-shirt: [insert cool name] "retro stars (tucked)"
Pants: Celestial Studios "Suede Pants" in black
Hair: Diversity Hair's "Penelope" in Charred
Skin: Wax Poetic "Charcol (Ripped/Waxed)
Eyes: Karamia "Strong Blue" eyes

Malte is wearing:
Hoodie: [insert cool name] "Punisher hoodie"
T-shirt: [insert cool name] "Policia shirt"
Jeans: [insert cool name] "Medium jeans"
Hair: Naughty Designs "Deception" in Driftwood
Lip Piercings: [insert cool name] **unreleased**
Skin and Eyes: ^^shhh it's a secret!

My debut into blogdom..

Hey there all you blog readers-- so I'm finally taking the big leap and making a SecondLife blog, with the purpose of just sharing some insight into my little slice of this metaverse.. life, love, and of course style!

As a quick introduction, in-world, my name is LauraRose GossipGirl.. really easy to approach so IM me if you'd like! I've been in SL since October '07.. and I'm truly addicted! I'm fascinated with SL style, always on the look out for something new and exciting! I love outdoor spaces and dabble a little in landscaping and interior decorating on the side! You'll learn more about me as this blog progresses.. won't bore you with too much here..

For anyone who may be wondering, the inspiration for the title of the blog (which is completely original) mainly stems from how my character is progressing. "Color me, beauty" is a statement describing how over time I really feel I've grown and changed, inside and out.. and my total surrender to just let the metamorphosis take its course! "Discover me, reverie" speaks to all of you, the readers. Take it as you may.. I place a lot of meaning in words. Discover me, discover this, in this grande illusion we build upon.

Happy reading, everyone!
~LR~

Photo Credits:
Hair: The Abyss, 'Secret' in Full Moon
Skin: WaxPoetic // Charcol (Ripped/Waxed)
Shape: Custom, self-edited for the skin but created by MissPure Voom
Shirt: [k k cachoo] kick your ass dress tee
Necklace: Schadenfreude-- S necklace (freebie in shop!)
Eyes: Karamia "Strong Blue" eyes
Lashes: Celestial Studios "Prim Lashes size 3" (comes with skin purchase)