Celebrate the Release of Tete 2

          This post comes a bit late, apparently I've been out scooped by both Celebrity Trollop over at
Second Style Fashionista and Elka Lehane over at
Pixelpinup


Yes, Tete 2 skins are completed, the vendors are set up and the shop is built. All that needs to be taken care of are some random odds and ends before our official opening on Saturday. CJ and I have put so much into Tete 2 and we are eager to share them. We both very proud of our work. In all honesty, when we started to work on Tete 2 I said I would be happy if we were to just improve upon our weaknesses but he insisted on starting again from scratch and in the end, I have to say that I'm glad he won out. For those who haven't made it over to PXP or Second Style Fashionista, here is a sneak peak of our makeup range.
We still have the subtle makeup and butt dimples that our customers adore but now our brows and lips have a bit more flexibility to them and our cleavage is much enhanced. Our singles are selling for 1k and our four packs for 2500. I can't emphasize enough how much I'm looking forward to celebrating our release on Saturday, to finally take a step back and just breathe. Our Fairy Tale themed party will take place at 1pm on Saturday and I can't wait to wear Miriel Enfield's dress and princess circlet. I know our skins have nothing to do with fairy tales (as CJ keeps reminding me) but I love having an excuse to get dressed up and wear something beautiful and I know most women in SL have been complaining that there aren't enough reasons to do so. What woman doesn't want to feel like a princess some of the time?

Insert Cute Quirky Title Here

          I began this blog with the intention of sharing what it is like to be a new content creator in SL, maybe blow off some steam, and help spread the word about pretty much anything in SL that I feel isn't receiving enough attention- builds, fashion, residents, whatever. I have pretty much failed all across the board. I do have a good excuse though. Skins are a lot of work. A lot. We've been working really hard on creating a skin that improves upon our weak points while still retaining the character that our customers love and say sets us apart. I'm really looking forward to sharing more in the coming weeks as the launch time for Tete Deux draws near.

Life

          An awful lot has been going on this past week. I wish I had the patience to do a thorough weekly roundup like Iris over at
Linden Lifestyles. Real quick though... The scam artist trying to sell what he purported to be Lost Skins on Sunday, yeah, we dealt with him. The story is sort of amusing...but a bit long. Maybe one day I'll get around to it. Tete Deux...it's coming along. CJ may want to kill me for posting about it but I'm excited. We are hoping to have it ready before the fall. I did a little bit of hobnobbing with some SLebrities...I won't name drop, yet. It's silly, I know, they are just ordinary people but I get a kick out of it.

          Then there is the new issue of Second Style. This month's Style Girl was my good friend MeiLin Miranda who has an awesome, fun, sense of style. I also had the good fortune to be able to do an inventory raid on the fabulous Fallingwater Cellardoor of Shiny Things. She was easily one of the nicest, most interesting content creators that I've ever had the chance to speak with.

          And then there is Tete a Pied's new skin, Life. 100% of the procedes will go to the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. I'm really proud of the new skin. First of all, we are using new eyebrows and lip texture that I'm really happy with. We also have a rather risque tat on the small of the back which is part of the ACS logo. We are selling the skin in a pack with all 7 skin tones for only 900. I really hope that our customers pick up a skin, just to contribute to the cause, if nothing else. I know that everybody has been touched by cancer in some way, myself included. And if it isn't my skin, or Starley's skin, then let it be ETD's hair...let it be anything really. Just keep in mind what your lindens mean in rl dollars. Donating $3 to a cause like this shouldn't make most people even blink. And for those of you that may be in a tight spot financially...lindens do add up, throw a linden in a kiosk, even if that is all you have.

Death Becomes Us

          Soon after I about the Dresden line on the forums, Joannah Crammer of Pixel Deep wrote, "Trying to post a make up ad right after Roslin's is like getting to play guitar just as Santana leaves the stage but ye gods, still no choice but to try >>;" I practically squealed when I read those words. Receiving compliments are always nice but to receive one that big from someone I consider very talented, well it's a lovely boost to the ego. CJ and I have been receiving a lot of compliments on the Dresden line and we both are torn between glee and discomfort. The polite little Brit finds himself a bit embarassed by it all and I keep bracing myself for the turning of the tide.

        Remember when I mentioned that one other skin we were thinking of adding to the Dresden line up? Well, CJ finally got this one tricky spot sorted out (the drawn in squiggle under the eye) and after debating a bit over the stylized true to comic version he had created versus a more natural look that I was rooting for, we compromised and offered both. Even though the Dresden line was supposed to be a special edition, I can't help but have the urge to add more makeups to the line. Not just for the profit(although that is sweet) but for the praise. It just feels so damn nice to have people enjoy what you create, plain and simple. Still, we promised ourselves from the start, no catering to the masses...I just didn't expect it to be this hard. We've also been trying to figure out just what it was that has made the skins so popular. Was it the new shading (shhhh, top secret but it is basically the start of the Tete Deux Skin), the new brows, the novelty/fantasy aspect of the skin? While we ponder that, we are also trying to figure out just what we want Tete to be about....some pretty heavy thinking lies ahead.

You Look Like a Doll, Baby

        After taking a look through Silent Sparrow the other day (gorgeous stuff btw), I was feeling a bit...goth. Our friend Haver Cole had suggested a Dresden Dolls skin a little while back and it was always something we meant to get around to doing for her alone. I asked CJ to come up with a skin tone that had a little more life to it than the usual goth skin but I still wanted it to be a bit unnaturally pale. My intention was to put together something for just myself and Haver but once I got my hands on that China white skin, I was inspired. I'm especially proud of the work CJ did on the eyebrows for the Doll makeup (inspired by The Dresden Dolls singer, Samantha). In addition to Doll, we have Amidala from Star Wars, and two sort of all purpose makeups, Vamp and Purple. CJ and I consider these skins to be a special addition. That means we have no intention of adding additional makeups to the line although there is still 1 more makeup that I would like to see in that skin tone.

        We've been receiving a lot of requests for additional makeups in the new skin tones, especially Tokyo. I'm pleased to announce that the Purple Smoke and Hollywood makeups are now available in Havana, Tokyo, and Nairobi skin tones.

Tete a Pied Super Sale

OK, I'm lazy. So this is a messy post with no pretty indents or paragraph breaks or nothing, no slurls either. CJ spent the day busting his butt getting Tete a Pied relocated. I got the bright idea of having a special sale to celebrate which meant more work for him of course. All I do is makeup kids. Poor CJ. So, head over to our new store to purchase one of my 4 favorite makeups for 300. The offer is good until 4pm game time, June 5th. Also, Nairobi, Havana, and Tokyo are now available in 4-packs as well as Bronze Shimmer.


Tete a Pied Skins - Fucosa (205, 150, 101)

Flexing

First off, I have a bit of catching up to do. For various reasons, I never got around to posting last week's two newest makeups, Fashionista, which was inspired by Celebrity Trollop, and Bronze Shimmer. This week's new makeup is Spring Fling.




While what seems like more than half of all Second Life content creators have been exploring the world of flex prims, CJ and I have been flexing ourselves in a very different direction. As I write this, CJ is busy setting up the vendors with our 3 new skin tones: Tokyo, Havana, and Nairobi. The skins were particularly challenging and we've been working on them for a little over 2 weeks. Each new skin tone is available in the standard natural, day, and night makeups, as well as a unique makeup created for that skin tone.

New Makeups

      Less than 24 hours have passed and we've already received compliments from customers about the positive experiences they've had using our new makeup boxes. I'm excited to share with you all two new makeups created by yours truly. I've been having lots of fun creating looks using some new layers CJ made. The smoky green is a sophisticated green shadow and the dusky rose is soft and romantic.

Think Makeup

      With so many great skin makers out there, CJ and I realized we would need to go to great lengths to set ourselves apart from the masses. Toast of Fashionably Dead and Nylon of Nylon Outfitters have their distinct skins which compliment the unique look of their clothing, Canimal has her range of punk and alternative skins, and the award-winning Santana of Nevermore has long been established as one of the finest skin makers in SL. What could Tete a Pied offer that was new and different? As a makeup artist, it was clear from the start that our focus would be on the makeup. We wanted to produce a wide variety of makeup looks in new and interesting styles but we soon realized that few people could afford to buy new skin as often as they would their hair of clothing and we believe we have come up with a unique solution to this problem.
      Any customer buying one of our 4 packs will be given a Tete a Pied Makeup Box for their skin tone and hair colour. The makeup box updates itself with all our makeups whenever it is opened and makes them available to be bought by you for just L$350 instead of the full price (L$900) in our store. The makeup box allows you to browse and purchase our skins in your own time and where ever you may find yourself. Here's a sneak peek at the lovely makeup box CJ has created.

I hate HTML

    The lovely Josie Hamilton and Celebrity Trollop have done it again. Another issue of the slick SL fashion mag, Second Style, is available here or in world at various shopping locations such as Tete a Pied.

    New makeups are out...I'm not following any sort of theme here. I'm just stretching my wings a bit creatively, seeing what I can do. I do plan on coming out with sets that have more coherence in the future. But for now, it's just about putting out as many different styles I come up with, pretty much all on a whim. The Josie was created in honor of Josie Hamilton, she requested blue shadow.

Testing the Waters

Ok, so it was only a matter of time before I got around to posting a blog about my second life. I've been blogging about my first one for about four years and I have had multiple blogs. I'm not too sure what exactly the format will eventually become but for now it is going to be a combination of my bitching and moaning, an occasional rave, as well as my struggles as a new content creator. Speaking of which, check out the awesome review Tete a Pied skins received over at Linden Lifestyles

What I really loved about that review, or rather Sabrina Dolittle, is she doesn't shy away from constructive criticism. Also, she appreciates good work, even when it isn't done to her particular taste. This is something that kind of has been bugging me lately. A lot of people fail to appreciate the difference between something being well done versus done according to their own personal aesthetic. I have a feeling that Tete skins may have a hard time because it seems the current trend is towards photorealism in skins. I also appreciate that our skins may be a little subtle compared to what most people are used to. That said, our skins are fucking good, even if the makeup isn't your taste, even if you prefer more realism, or rather have it goth, or if you like your avatar to look like a cheap whore. It doesn't matter. Our skins still deserve a 'hey, job well done' because it is technically well done.

Ok, so what I'm really trying to say is this...I'm pissed that we haven't gotten better feedback from people. Hell, almost no feedback actually. To start with, we sent out skins to well over twenty people: friends, content creators, bloggers, etc. Of all those people, two didn't even accept the inventory and a vast majority didn't even say thank you. Thank you. It's really simple. And you know, I don't want to hear the bullshit about capped IMs or busy people. Torrid fuckingMidnight had the courtesy to thank me for our skins as soon as she received them. If she managed to find the time, nobody else on that list has an excuse. I also keep thinking about this post Torrid made a little while back about What a Girl Wants
Fact is, I adored those dresses and I can't understand how it didn't do better. And it has to be more than sex appeal. Maybe I just surround myself with people like me but most of the girls I know in SL don't like the overtly sexy stuff.

And while CJ and I plan on paying attention to customer's requests and feedback, we are not going to cater to the masses. They are already being catered to. We are going to stay strong and offer skins unlike most in SL, butt dimples, subtle shading, and technically sophisticated makeup. That said, we had our strongest day for sales yet and it really did give me a boost. I can't wait to keep cranking out those makeups.