I do believe in fairies, I do, I do!

And here I am, sitting on a slippery rock, lost in the cold damp of these castle ruins.

I wonder if those magical creatures have always been floating over this corner of the Earth, even when the hallways were crowded and the fires lit.

I am sure, my eyes were open, and yet it disappeared after the first quick glimpse.

Just a whimsical instant of cheerful grace to assure me they won't leave me alone.

I do believe in fairies.

Photo credits:

• dress by Clio (Sonya White);
• skin by Fleur (Shoujo);
• hair by Truth (Nikhita);
• shoes by Blaze;
• pose by {.:exposeur:.}.

Little news on Slapt

Just a quick post to let you know that, unfortunately, slapt website to buy SL goodies online has been closed down.
I am working on getting some items up on XstreetSL® to make it possible to buy from the internet.
I have already uploaded my latest releases in both their copy/no transfer and transfer/no copy versions.
More items are soon to come :)

Have a good day! And stay tuned for newness! ;)

Clio

Cousins... but not blood cousins...

Holà holà people!
Did you forget about me? Maybe, since I drop dead every few weeks (lol).
Well, rest assured: I'm still alive... working on a few things... a project together with other designers, and the revision of an old dress that I didn't make 'good enough' back in 2008.
But while I am lazily working on those things, Miss Smart Ass (cet à dire moi... yes, that's been my plurk name for a while... so I kind of got the 'smart ass' label now lol) has also been having some fun *smirks*.
Particularly, today I got an offline from my 'ass cousin', the lovely Summer Wardhani (also known as Miss Cutie Ass... LOL) asking me to log on and meet her barefoot and wearing a bikini... now, she must have hired some stalker, or how would she know I had been wearing an old bikini and no shoes for my last TOT days in SL?
Mistery... LOL.
Anyways I did go to her, and was half surprised and half cracking up when I found out why she wanted me there in such a mise: she had planned a photoshooting session to finally officialise us being Ass Cousins! LMAO!
She's a super creative photographer, methinks... one that thinks about the shots and adds details here and there to give that extra character to the picture. And I was very glad she hosted me in her cute studio and had me (well, my butt, really) modelling for her :D
Anyways, I obviously decided to change my bikini and wear a thong (yanno... smart asses are smart ;)) so I went on, changed... took my pictures as she was taking hers... and then when she showed me her lovely work, I was like "wait a minnit.... where's my thong?" LOL.
Evidently in her viewer I kept on the same bikini for the whole time. So here I decided to show you a sample of the pictures SHE took and one of the pictures I took. Summer was such a cutie as to edit my shots a bit cause lazy-ass me wouldn't be able to do it as quickly! LOL.
Here we are: 2 ass cousins in silly poses. Yes, I am the shocked one on the right that changes bikini! LOL.

Oh, before I forget, let me remind you all that the HUGE formals' sale is still UP!
Yes, I decided to keep it going some more time, at least until I have some new releases :) So you know you have one tiny reason to come by if you want to grab some of my formals at half price or less ;)

Other tiny bit of news: I have started (only for 3 collections so far) to add my items to slapt.me. It's a new site to buy SL products online, with easy and free registration! You might want to check it out!

Last but not least, remember the RFL campaign is still going on until July! My special RFL items are located at my main store, both near the landind point and at my formals' session.  They will ONLY be for sale for this year's RFL, so once they're gone, they're gone :)

Pffft, while I tell you this, my ass cousin left me standing there all by myself... bah, family! LOL.

... yeah, I was a bit disappointed in the end! *giggles*

Stay tuned, more news coming up!
Love,
Clio

Heart of Love releases

Jacqueline bicolour line has just been added on my store walls.
These gowns are something I have been thinking of for quite some time.
I wanted to remake the Jacqueline in new colours, and loved the idea of having a double coloration on the dress.
I always procrastinated the release of these dresses until now.

Why is that?
I found out a young SL content creator, with a very severe disease, is in the bad need to get a heart transplant.
This was shocking news. I am not too close to this person in SL. I have very few people I talk to on a regular basis, cause I am just like that. I keep on my own unless others approach me themselves. But when I realised what was going on I thought "Wait a minute. I have the chance to help Shir from home, doing my usual work".

Luckily enough, some friends of Shir's started "Heart of Love", a charity event dedicated to raising money to pay for Shir's surgery.

I have participated to many fund raising campaigns over the last 2 years. All through SL.
Loads of content creators have been raising funds for big organisations like RFL, Make-A-Wish, National Breast Cancer Association and many more.
For once, I am faced with a charity event that is very precisely oriented towards a single goal: give Shir a new heart.

I couldn't just let it go. I am a little peanut, and the dresses I can make and sell to raise funds are little peanuts, too... but a load of peanuts can make a big difference, and I really hope this action to help Shir will succeed.

I am selling the dresses you see on top of this post for 500L$ each, and I am giving 100% of the proceeds to Heart of Love.

I also have a donation box in my store, to donate smaller (or bigger!) amounts, that will directly go to the fund raising avatar.

If you have any questions about Shir's conditions, you can find some more info here.

[NB: the Black & White version is also for sale at Sweethearts Jazz Club]

New gifts in store:)

Hehe, some tiny news:
I have placed in my store a gift I sent out to group members for Christmas. It is now available for everyone who is in my group AND has my store in profile picks :) [here is a post about it]
The gifting script was made by PXL... and I have been using it lately... and will keep using it! lol.

Plus, still talking about new scripted things (always by PXL) I have out in my store a mailbox that will collect notecards and will send them directly to my email! Yes! It actually READS the notecard!

I love Hart Larsson for making that tool, lol... so everyone'd better start using it! ;)

Lots of love, and hoping to have many news soon!
Clio

Messy bag blogger's challenge!

Lol, ok... I am not a blogger (not officially, at least), but this challenge that's been going around lately sounds like fun!

So there's the messy content of my huge messy bag (mind, the purse is newish, that's why there was no random piece of paper with random info written on it... that's another 'must be in there' for my purses).

We have...

• My huge bag I'm totally in love with.
• An umbrella inside a shades-like case (ya never know when Milan is gonna start crying on you).
• 2 (yes, at LEAST 2) packs of tissues... I am constantly sick :-/.
• My shitty 3 years-or-so old wallet (full of receipts.. not too much money...).
• My house keys.
• 2 pair of gloves for my cold hands.
• A tube of hand cream (still for my cold hands).
• My super super old cell phone.
• My tiny and oldish mp3 reader.
• A little pen.

Lol, so, well, that's what was in my messy bag in a winter day...
And uhm... I guess I should start considering to replace my cell phone, mp3 reader... or at least my wallet! My stuff seems to be from a museum lmao.

What's in YOUR bag? :)

Merry Christmas, world!

Just a quick "Merry Christmas" to all those who are reading my blog ;)
The dress is a recolour of the Jacqueline I have made for my group inworld: Ice!
In the shot I am wearing Hart Larsson's gift to group: a very original frozen skin, my favourite one: Linda :) [available at PXL Creations for group members/subscribers who have PXL in picks :) ].

Hope you are all having a very bright day, and happy holidays!
Many hugs to everyone :D
Clio

Little gifty :)

Hey there lovelies:)
I am testing a tool a friend of mine made to send out gifts, and decided to release this little gifty for all those who are in my group and have my store in profile picks :)



The outfit is going to be released soon in store, and so will be the stockings, hopefully in a large variety of colours!

Grab it here!
And if you're interested in the gift sender script, check this out :)

Love,
Clio

A nice thing to do at Christmas

I found this on EFA's blog, and I thought it would be a good idea to share.

Be sure to go by and leave a message for those children: gifting a smile is one of the best thing we can do!

I know this post is not about fashion, but forget the fabulous Christmas outfits, the big diners, the glamour parties and the surprising presents for a while. Christmas is on the way and time to spend some of your time to take a little care of people who will need it in these days.

A lot of children have to stay in the hospital during Christmas instead of being home with their family. You can make these days a little nicer for them by sending a message, let your imagination run free, your message will help to offer some comfort and hope for these children and will put a smile on their face.

How? It is very simple…

The “Fondation Réunica Prévoyance” in association with ”L’enfant@l’hopital” have set up a Christmas Message Tree. Take a taxi to this tree, simply click on the card to write the message you want to deliver to a child (in French or English - don’t forget to mention your country).

The “L’enfant@l’hopital” will collect these message and will take care of delivering the supporting messages to children in various hospitals in France.

Don’t forget to have a look at the drawings of the children too. These cartoons are part of a competition. In January you can visit this place again to vote on your favorite cartoon.

Merry Christmas!

Make-A-Wish new releases!

So, all this time I have been busy with my usual messy RL, and with THESE new releases I made to help raising funds for Make-A-Wish Foundation. Many SL designers (including me :)) have donated unique designs, limited editions or new releases that will be sold until the 31st of December, with 100% of the proceeds to help children through Make-A-Wish.

From the Drousilla, with suggestions and ideas from RubyStarlight Writer, I ended up with 2 very special dresses.
Drousilla Fire is a limited edition dress that will be available on the grid in only 15 copies.


Drousilla Night is the One-of-a-kind design I donated. Similar to the Fire version, but obviously unique. It will be up for auction bidding until the 31st of December! Hurry up! ;)


Then, a new release that will become part of my own line after this festival is over, is a big gown.
Floreale comes in 10 different colours, clothing on all layers & sculpted clutch.
I was feeling like big skirt and tiny prints, and so I made a big skirt and arranged thousands of tiny flowers on the dress :D





You can find all these things HERE :) Be sure to come by to also see the donations of my fellow designers, and to donate (even if not by buying :P)

With love,
Clio

Skin worn in all shots from PXL Creations, hair worn in Drousilla Fire's poster from House of Heart, hair worn in Drousilla Night and Floreale from Exile :)

Charis Teal AD

Just sharing a picture I took in my new gown (teal colour).
I played a bit with inworld lighting and added some shadow during postprocessing... I think it came out good:)

Too bad my snapshots are always such low quality! LOL.










Credits to all what I wore with my gown for this picture:
Skin from PXL Creations;
Hair by Exile;
Jewelry by ~flirt~

Sale started :)

Yay yay!
The sale I had planned to say Bye Bye to Capelli Estates has finally started.
I have been changing prices nearly all day yesterday, and lowered them from 50% to 75%.
Complete packs with a discount, too! Everything!

• Casuals priced from 25 to 100 L$
• Formals priced from 50 to 200L$
• Complete packs discounted as all the rest, priced up to 600L$.

On many items I changed permissions from NO COPY+TRANSFER to COPY+NO TRANSFER. So it's wise to check before any purchase (to avoid 'surprises' :)). Perms should be found in the description line of EVERY box. If you are in doubt (or if I forgot to write them down), just contact me and I'll get back to you as soon as possible:)

Sale will last a couple weeks. After that, the whole SIM will sadly be abandoned. It has been Clio's place for over 1 year, but now it's time to let go of it *sobs*.

Visit the sale by clicking HERE.

Have a look at next door's sale at Silvia's Fashion Store, too! Silvia is selling all for 100L$, and it's just a few steps away from my store (just get out of it and walk South).

Hope you all will like the idea of the sale... Let me know!

With love,
Clio

For this 'ad' I wore Linda Tan Generation 2 by Hart Larsson of PXL Creations and VooDoo hairstyle from Exile.

Hey there people :)
Here is a sneak preview of what *might* be the newest release for my poor store.
I am not sure about the pattern... would probably try to make it more like an embroidery... but not sure yet...
Let me know if you have any ideas or particular wishes!

A bunch of hugs,
Clio

Is it time to coin the term "freebism"?

I don't know if any of you have seen this around lately, the thought of freebies being harmful for SL economics has spread out a lot, and is now something nearly everyone talks about.
You can find it on various blogs by content creators and fashion bloggers: many are disappointed by the new trend of expecting freebies and expecting them to be 'nice'.

I have followed the threads a bit, and thought I would share my opinion as a designer.

I was VERY lucky with all those who came to my shops for freebies... cause I cannot recall anyone being rude about something being 1L$ instead of 0L$, nor I had anyone pointing out seams were not perfect or prims did not move properly.
This is maybe because, even those freebies I have had for ages (which are actually items I created before starting my business!) are things I made with care. Obviously they are not the quality of my latest creations, but they are free, and people have always appreciated them, and I consider it something nice to give out samples of my very first creative steps.

Then I have started giving out for free some items I did dedicate long hours/days to.
The most famous example is my Jacqueline gown in Tobacco... that gown I had released after 2 weeks of work on the dress, when I thought textures were ok but was still figuring out the prim skirt.
I got a load of "Thank you"s from customers, got bloggers interested, got a huge number of teleports to my main store.
And a week or so later, when I had finally finished the prim part -and could release the gown in its full price and many colours- I still got a great satisfaction from it.
People would buy the freebie and then some other colour to show appreciation, or maybe just cause they liked the second colour better.
That freebie has been my only VERY HIGH (lol, hey, at least in my lil universe) QUALITY freebie stable in my store since January... and I still sell many copies of it every day!

After that, since I liked the idea, I released a couple of 'work-in-progress' dresses that were for free in my store for a limited time, and I often make 1 more colour of my new release to hand out for 0L$ (always for a limited time).
This is just a little courtesy I do to show the quality of the design in a non-demo way (although I have demos available for almost all my items...).

What has been happening for a few months, though, is that people got so used to receiving freebies that they no longer show appreciation for them, nor do they accept the gift as it is.
I have heard a lot of designers have been down because people would "expect" the freebies to be FREE (as 0L$), or complain cause the freebie was not "good enough".
This means designers keep spending hours/days/weeks in creating something to give out as a gift, and people are not even thankful.

Why do we do that, then?
The way I release freebies is harmless to me, anyways... cause it doesn't cost TOO MUCH to make 1 more colour when I have the range ready, and I don't need to pay for the cloth I use.
But I think that if it ever happened to me to be treated badly by someone who just picked up something I hand out as a gift in my shop, then "Hey, let's stop it here!".

Now that "It’s unsustainable for business owners if there are thousands of high quality freebies on the grid, as it leads to a culture where a large number of users refuse to buy anything and live off freebies. If content creators aren’t making any money, then there’s no incentive to release freebies." (from Prad Prathivi's blog), then maybe the time has come to start talking about "freebism", as this phenomenon seems a bit too negative to be called "freebie culture".

Clio

Almost back from a BUSY time:)

Hello my dears,
as most of you might have noticed, Clio has been absent and hideous for a while.
I will be back soon, my RL has been hell for many many weeks(acually for a couple months, we could say), and I had no time to design nor to be on SL as much as I used to.

I am now at RL work, one of the last hyper-busy days for now. Then back home for a little vacation till next week, so maybe I will still be hard to get in touch with, but hopefully a bit less stressed :) And I will try and get back on designing between the rest of this week and next week.

Just to let you all know: the Passions of Black Swan event came to an end on the last day of February, and the dresses I had made (Embrace) are now available at my main store, as usual.

Then, right now there's a super expo running, for another couple weeks, the Glamour Expo. I was lucky enough to get a spot at this awesome showcase, and have a little shop there with some of my most recent creations displayed.

Also, a shocking news is: I will be trying to work out some basic reselling program, using Hippo technologies to let resellers sell my products at a percentage and get directly the product they want.
This is something I will still keep limited to a few people (ie: you wil not see Clio sold just anywhere), and anyways not yet up, as I only have 1 actual reseller at the moment, and at her place I am not using the easy Hippo system, but had to place the boxes myself.
For anyone who might be interested, leave me an IM inworld:)

Last but not least, let me leave you with some little forecast of what you will be seeing at Clio 'soon':
I am going to make new colours for the Embrace, to make the range a bit wider, and among these I can already tell you: GET READY FOR CRAZY! I am working with really out-of-ordinary colours lol.
Then, time allowing, I want to obviously release some males clothes. And people, trust me, learning the whole new set of shades and cuts for guys' clothing is not something I can come up with at my first try:)
AAAnd, whenever I get some very free time I want to make a new line that will definitely please many on SL... hehe, won't tell you more, cause this idea is very far from happening, but I want to make you curious ;)

Ok, well... I should get back to RL work...

Sorry for being so away all this time, I will make up for it as soon as I can!
With love,
Clio

Clio & Sams cross-wearing Black Swan creations!

Yey!
People, let me show you what came out from a very funny and (at least for me) unusual photosession I had with Samsara Nishi, of Sams Secret Boutique ;)
We got the idea from a post by Ivalde designer, Neferia Abel (see it here), where she and caLLie cLine cross-wore their Black Swan creations...
So we thought "wow, that seems like something nice and funny to do!" and here are the shots I was able to take on that day ;)
I am wearing Sams Secret Boutique Lava Dress, in the 3 different lengths Samsara made for it.
Plus the skin you see on me is Tuli's Fire skin for Black Swan in fair tone (<-- awesome!) :)Hehe... in this shot Sams said I was flirting with the angel.... you know: I was wearing the 'light' version of her lava dress, and got flirty ;)

Here's my friend wearing my Embrace Darkness... isn't she malicious in that smile? I absolutely had to take a picture :)
Then lol... crazy shot!
2 ladies wearing formal dresses shouldn't be dancing like that! Not in public, at least! haha, but we had to start our delirium somewhere, right? And a dance on the catwalk seemed the most natural thing to do ;)
The one I am wearing in this funny shot is the version I prefer from Samsara's Lava Dress: sheer. VEEERY sexy ;)
Woot at this shot... I complimented with myself lol.
Looks like we're 2 dangerous warrior princesses, or anyways 2 gals you would keep at a distance from... we heard a noise and we're scaping the darkness, looking for the disturber.... run if you can! Muahahaha.
And last but not least: me as a lava princess!
I was still looking for the courage to get in the pool... don't worry, I did, and I can prove it! Check out the shots I flickred, and you'll get some more pictures from our shared-trip :)
Samsara blogged about this, too, and added her own shots!

Plus, there are some nice things to check out on rezzable.com, one of which is a super-duper video of the show, where you can briefly see the creations from ALL the Black Swan designers (GREAT video!), and my dress and Samsara's blogged together by Adaire Decuir!

All the dresses you see us wearing will be available at the Black Swan until the 30th of September, and at our main stores after that date :D
Hope you liked the little reportage, hehe.

Lovable hugs!
Clio

New show at the Black Swan!

Due to the awesome success of the first big Black Swan show.... here comes a second one!
It's an extra show planned for those who couldn't attend the first show on the 15th (like me... sob).

Hope to see you all there! And hope to be able to get to the show, too, this time... so I will have some pictures to post here for you!

Besides, Rezzable has started a photocontest for the Black Swan, with prices for the best shots taken on the SIM. You can find all the information about it here!

Hugs,
Clio

Clio blogged on Second Style!!!

A big hug to Rhi Rossini for her post!
And a bunch of kisses to you all for your never ending support :)

Thankies:)

Clio:)

Charity Colville posts about Clio! yey

Second Life ~ Real Romance and Sucessful Business: Finally my ULTIMATE Shopping Guide...

Click on that link!!! Charity, owner of Sweethearts Jazz Club and founder of old Phat Cats, wrote about me, too! Woot!

Photocontest winners!

Hey hey!
I wanted to post here the pictures that won my photocontest!!!
3 wonderful shots!


The first one you see was turned in from LadyRed Sautereau, wearing the Drousilla dress.
Second shot you see...it's my super friend Kuci! She has on my Jacqueline Burgundy gown... my fave!
AAAAnd, last but NOT least: a pasting of pictures by Shylah Oceanlane, modeling my Katia Peach Evening Dress, the freebie I had out for group members!

A super round of claps for these 3 awesome ladies!
And a big hug to ALL those who turned in a picture... it was a very hard choice (Pall can witness that) but at the end had to come out with the very best, and these are, to me:)

Have a great day!

Clio