Tutorial - Dressmaking the "subtractive" way

When you sit down to make a dress in real life, what's the first thing you do? OK, I know, you look all over to find where you left your scissors. After that, though .......

Right! You get a tracing paper pattern -- one you bought at the fabric store or drew yourself -- and you cut it out and pin it to the fabric. The pattern acts as your guide for cutting the fabric itself, so that you don't make costly mistakes chopping away freehand with your scissors.

In this tutorial, I want to show you a similar approach to creating clothing for Second Life. My approach is different from the one you may have seen Robin Wood or Natalia Zelmanov describe on their web sites (http://www.robinwood.com/Catalog/Technical/SL-Tuts/SLTutSet.html and http://www.mermaiddiaries.com/2006/11/day-51-little-black-dress-and-creating.html), and it offers different advice from what you often read in the SL Texture Tips Forum. Those resources focus on the alpha channel as a way to create transparency -- which it is -- but I find it more useful to think of an alpha channel as a cutting guide, like your tracing paper dress pattern. This emphasis is not necessarily better, but it's different -- and maybe different in a way that will make more sense to you, as it has for me.

I'm going to make the top for a very simple dress with a half-wrap closure. It's the one in this photo, a fairly conservative red coquette that you can find in my shop on Only Yesterday. I'll be using Photoshop, but the same general approach would apply in any graphic design program that can handle layers and channels. The end product will be a TGA file.

My primary focus is on how to use an alpha channel image, so once I have done that I will zip through the remaining fun, artistic steps that create folds, shading, and other elements that make the dress come alive.

I can't pop down to the fabric store and buy a Simplicity pattern, so Step One is to draw my own. This crucial artistic step defines the shape of the dress. I do it by opening a copy of the avatar upper body template, creating a new layer just above the Background layer, and filling it with black. Think of this like wrapping a dressmaker's mannequin with a big sheet of paper. I find it easier to use tracing paper, so let's set the Opacity of this new layer to about 60%. It looks like this:

The avatar template is visible here because it is in layers above the one I just created. Reducing the opacity of the new layer just makes the template easier to see.

To make the pattern for this dress, I need to cut away portions of the new layer to define the neckline and the sleeve length, so I draw a path around each of those areas (see the red arrows). I have shown paths around all three areas to be cut in this composite screen shot but, in fact, I drew and cut out each of them separately. I just put them together in a single photo here for illustration.

By the way, it's tempting to draw paths freehand, but don't do it. Your hand is probably steadier than mine, but you'll still get wiggles that make a sloppy product in the long run. Instead, use your basic Pen tool to set anchor points all the way around an area and then use the Point Convert tool to drag the handles at each anchor point and create a smooth path. Then, right click inside the area and select Make Selection from the drop-down menu that appears. Be sure that the Anti-aliased box is checked and that the feather radius is set to zero, and click OK. Finally, choose Edit >> Clear to cut away the pixels inside the selected area. When I do that in each of the three areas for this dress, the layer looks like this....

I have just created a mask. I'll use it a couple of times. First, I need it to make a pattern -- the alpha channel. So, with the mask active, I right click the layer thumbnail and select pixels ... then Select >> Save Selection. In the pop-up window, I check to be sure that it says New Channel and then click OK. Voila! I have made a pattern.

To see what the pattern looks like, I can go to the Layers/Channels/Paths palette and select the Channels tab. I turn off the RGB channels and turn the new Alpha channel on. The screen image looks like this....

This really is a dress pattern. The black areas mark out places where I don't want any fabric in the dress and the white areas are places where I do want it. Remember that the avatar template also acts as a pattern of sorts. We don't need to have black "cutouts" in the alpha channel for anything that is outside the avatar body, because the template takes care of those areas for us.

What I'm about to say is a very important point to remember. Because the alpha channel is a pattern, I can turn off the mask layer I just created. I won't need it for cutting. In fact, I don't need to do any more cutting in Photoshop at all. The alpha channel will do it all for me.

Let's go back to the Layers tab to see what this means in practice. (Before I leave the Channels tab, I click the RGB eye icon ON and the alpha channel icon OFF.) I'm going to add a new layer above the mask I just created and then fill it completely with my fabric, like so..

The fabric for this dress is very simple. It's just a deep red that I have textured lightly with the noise filter and then blurred with a Gaussian blur to give it a soft look. If I had chosen a fabric with a print, I would have overlain different sections of the work area with pieces of fabric that I had rotated, stretched, or tweaked in other ways so that the print would line up across seams in the final dress. (I'll do this in another tutorial, and will also deal with using lace, which is a variation on the same theme.) Even then, though, I would be sure that the fabric layer was completely full before moving on.

Why is this important? First of all, cutting anything on the fabric layer is a waste of time. The pattern I made in the alpha channel is going to take care of all the cutting, so why do it twice? More important, though, cutting the fabric layer can create the dreaded "white halo" problem.

Let me explain, in inelegant terms that are technically imprecise but may help you to visualize the problem...

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In real life, suppose you gave a dress pattern to an assistant and said, "Put this pattern on that fabric and cut it out," but you gave the assistant a piece of fabric that was already trimmed to the right shape. This is a confusing command. Instead of complaining that the fabric was already cut, though, the assistant might try to obey by pinning a scrap of some other fabric under yours so she would at least be cutting something. Looking at her work later, you would be able to see the trimmed fabric you gave her, unchanged, and the edge of the extra scrap she cut.

A similar thing happens when your virtual pattern -- the alpha channel -- contains "cut here" information, but there's nothing to cut because you placed pre-trimmed shapes in the otherwise empty fabric layer of your image file. The graphics routine that processes your image, trying to obey, adds a little scrap of information -- pixels filled with white -- so that it has something to cut. The result is that your dress ends up with an ugly white halo instead of nice, clean edges.

As I said, this explanation isn't rigorous, so don't write to complain that I have misrepresented the finer technical details of the process. My point is simply this ... the white halo is created because you have told the graphics routine to use an alpha channel image to cut something that isn't there.

Graphic artists have many clever ways to remove the ugly white halo, all of which involve putting something into "empty" pixels that lie where the alpha channel "pattern" says to cut. These methods are all "additive," because they are putting new data into the image. (Some artists avoid the issue altogether by creating a PNG image, which uses a different approach.)

That seems like extra work to me, though. Why go to the trouble of cleaning up a problem that you could have avoided by leaving the fabric big enough in the first place? Don't use the mask to cut out things on the fabric layer. When you do that, you leave an edge that has "empty" pixels along it, inviting a white halo. Leave the fabric alone and let the alpha channel do its job.

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Back to the project, the rest of which is purely artistic. I begin adding extra layers above the fabric layer to define shadows, folds, and wrinkles, and to create the shape of the collar and simulate the way the dress wraps around the torso. On another dress, I might have layers for buttons, stitching, pockets, or other accessorizing features.

Here's a layer created simply to add shading and highlights to give the bustline better shape, for example. I start with a new layer, fill it with 50% gray and set the layer mode to Overlay. Then I use a series of soft brushes with the Dodge and Burn tools to produce the gentle gradations you see here.

I use the same methods to create the draped appearance where the front of the dress crosses over itself. This is a bit more complicated, because I want to create an impression of visual depth, so it's clear that the dress is wrapping around. To do this, I use a copy of the original mask as a starting point and cut along a continuation of the neckline to create a new mask that separates the left and right portions of the bodice.

This new mask makes it easy for me to do delicate texturing, especially along the line that defines that wrapped edge. Here's a close look at several merged layers defining folds and wrinkles on the right side of the torso .......

and a look at a similar collection of merged layers that define the left side. .....

Before uploading, I turn off any layers that should not be visible in the final texture. This includes all avatar template layers and any masks that I may have forgotten to close. The image on my screen looks like this ...

I can double check at this point to be sure that the alpha channel is going to cut this image the way I intended. To do that, I click the Channels tab in the Layers/Channels/Paths palette and then make the alpha channel visible temporarily by clicking on its icon.

As you can see, the alpha channel is prepared to do the cutting it was designed for. When I upload this texture to SL, the image in the preview window will look just like this, except that the bright red areas will be replaced with the checkerboard background pattern that indicates they are transparent.

All that's left is to save this PSD file and then downsize it temporarily to 512 x 512 pixels so I can save a copy as a 32-bit TGA file for upload. I'm done!

Here's the final product in world .....

The Depot -- Only Yesterday

Before you say anything ...... yes, that's a new me in the photo. I have been thinking about a change for a long time, but just kept putting it off. A few weeks ago, though, I finally decided it was time. New skin, new shape, new hair .... the only thing that's the same is ME inside. ;-)

For the record, my skin is from Laqroki, my hair is Sirena's, and my shape was custom made by Rocksie Slade, the Shape Shifter, who is a genius and a good friend.

I can't believe what a difference it makes. If nothing else, it has boosted my self-image immensely. I just wish I could work this magic in RL!

One side effect, of course, is that none of my prim clothes fit any more. I gained three inches in height and I have fuller hips now. Skirts that used to be just right now sit low on my hips and are too snug. Darn the luck.

This is a good opportunity for me to remind you, though, that prim clothing almost never fits perfectly. It's a mistake to pretend that it does. We all vary in shape, just as we do in RL, so you should expect to make adjustments when you buy new clothes. Otherwise, you'll find that waistbands hang loose or the back panels in a skirt hit your tail end all wrong. Even if you're lucky and everything fits fine, you may still want to take a hem up or let it down to match your personal taste.

There's an art to adjusting prim clothes, but it's not a hard challenge. Next time you're in my shop on Only Yesterday, look for the free gift box that offers hints about adjusting. It includes not only a card with helpful tips but also a pose stand and a privacy screen that can be handy tools. I recommend that you also take a free yellow dress too, so you have something to practice on.

By the way, this cotton dress is new too. It's a nice, relaxed one that I made a while ago just for myself. A number of people have asked about it, though, so I decided to put it in the shop. I'm calling it Bluebird! for no particular reason except that it reminds me of summer afternoons in the Midwest.

OK, enough about clothes and the new me. You don't need to hear more about that.

Today I decided to show you a very nice part of Only Yesterday, the local train depot. It's built to resemble a small town railway station of the 1930s, the sort of place where a few passenger trains and a steady stream of freight trains would pass through every day.

The stationmaster has his office here. A potbelly stove keeps him warm in winter, and big windows give him a good view of the farm down the slope. It's a quiet spot most of the time, so he can put his feet up, enjoy a ham sandwich for lunch, and read the latest copy of Argosy magazine between trains.

I can't resist the temptation to sit at the window while he has stepped away for a moment. Can I sell you a ticket to New York City, maybe? There are special fares to see the World's Fair of 1939. No? Well, maybe Chicago? San Francisco? The trains go everywhere.

There's a very nice display of period photos to look at while you're waiting, and you can get notecards about rail travel too.

Ah, well the train has arrived, though! It's a beauty and it has a full head of steam, right on schedule and ready to head down the line. They'll leave as soon as the baggage is loaded, so I better get on and find my seat.

All aboard! I don't know where we're going, but my ticket is punched and I'm off for the adventure. Go wander around the sim and discover some of our other attractions. I'll see you when I get back!

Bye!

Fashion on Display -- for the 1930s

OK, so once again I have waited much too long since my last post. I would tell you that I've been busy, but I bet you have too, so that's no excuse. Anyway, I'm finally back at the keyboard. I want to tell you about a wonderful new exhibit on Only Yesterday.

Only Yesterday is a history-themed sim, focusing on the American experience of the 1930s. That's a tall order, because America has many different faces and the 1930s was a decade of rapid change. We try to balance parts of the sim that reflect the poverty and dispair of the Depression with the excitement of the Swing Era, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and the decline of rail travel.

When my good friend Georgette Whitfield, who has a great boutique on the sim, volunteered to create a fashion exhibit, I thought it was a terrific idea. In addition to designing some very nice clothes, she has also done some modelling in SL.

The exhibit is on the second floor of the building next to her boutique, Chez Geo, right on the main plaza where most people arrive when they visit us. There's a TP pad at street level.

She has decorated with period illustrations from fashion magazines and catalogues, and has embedded notcards that pass on information about men's and women's styles. The one I was looking at in this photo has fashion tips about what well-dressed women were wearing. For example, hems are supposed to be mid-calf length, and hats are meant to be worn to one side. And never go out without your gloves and stockings!

This corner of the exhibit tells about makeup and beauty hints. Read the cards and you learn about how much simpler women's makeup was in the 1930s than it is today. You also learn some very unusual information. There's a very odd quote by Jean Harlow about hair care that you just have to read for yourself! I won't spoil it by telling you now.

In addition to the notecard information, Georgette has provided a bank of monitors that include links to many fashion sites, where you can see illustrations and read more about styles and trends of the 30s.

The part that I had the most fun with was the corner devoted to sewing. Times were tough, and women of the 1930s were much more accustomed to making and mending their own clothes than we are today. This foot-powered sewing machine is a lovely touch for the exhibit! I felt like sitting here for the longest time, thinking of what to make next.

In the end, I decided that the smart thing to do was alter my Hyacinth dress, the one I wrote about last spring. I lengthened the hem and ...Tada! It works. I added this wonderful hat from Ingrid Elegance, put on my stockings and gloves and a pair of black wedgies, and I was ready for a day on the plaza. Isn't it great!

Oh, I have to show you one other thing I did. It has nothing to do with the 1930s, but I think you'll like it. It's the cute lavender dress I wore for most of the photos in Georgette's exhibit. Here it is, close up.

It's very simple... a marbled lavender top that buttons up the front and a mid-thigh length flexi skirt. (My grandmother would have been scandalized, I know. ) It feels light and summery, and the color reminds me of raspberry sherbet ... my favorite!

As soon as I finish posting this blog, It's going into my shop too.

The Changes Just Keep Coming

Oh, my! It has been way too long since my last post. I apologize. So much has happened that I don't know where to start ... so I'll just write a couple of important things now and save the rest for another day.

First ... I closed my old shop on Elysian Isle. I know, it was a beautiful location and it was where I started selling my designs in SL, so it was hard to let it go. Still, many things had changed on Elysian Isle and traffic had dropped enough that I felt it was time to move on.

So now everything is in my second shop on Rich Id..... Oh, no! .... that's the other big change. The Rich Idiot sim is not Rich Idiot any more. It's Only Yesterday, and I'm the manager of the island. That's it in the new banner photo at the top of this blog.

Now you really do have to come visit. The island itself is really wonderful -- too many things to describe in one post, so I'll save that. We have other fine shops on the plaza, too, and the merchants are all good, friendly, imaginative women. And, there are four completely furnished homes for rent on the island, so you can come and live there yourself if you want to.

Come any time. If you want to help celebrate, though, our Grand Opening will be on Sunday, August 10th from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. SLT. We'll have great music and dancing on the plaza and all sorts of other things to see and do. Mark the date on your calendar now, and I'll tell you more as the day gets closer.



With all of that change, I haven't had as much time to design as I would like. :( BUT, I put my little bits of spare time into making a really high-quality gown that you are going to love. Here it is.

I'm calling this design Wild Daisies. The fabric is a delicate two-tone print of a stylized field of daisies on a rich golden-yellow base. The ankle-length skirt has two layers, the outer one being graceful and semi-transparent, and the inner one a more substantial fabric to give the dress body.

The strapless bodice has a demure but deep-plunging neckline, trimmed with yellow lace -- just the right design for showing off a favorite necklace. The dress is finished with a wide, matching belt with a flat bow in front.


This is such a fun dress to wear to a formal dance! It swishes beautifully, especially in those slow, elegant dances.

As always, you can buy one at my shop. Just remember .... it's on Only Yesterday now.

More new things for you!

Hi! Things have been busy lately, but I took some time the other day to make a couple of new things you might enjoy. First, ........

I made this white cotton blouse last winter, and several people have bought it. Everyone needs a plain white blouse, right? Well, the other day the weather turned chilly in RL and I reached for a sweater. Then it hit me ...... maybe you'd like to be able to do the same thing! So, I have gone back and "updated" the white cotton blouse by adding a second version in the same package ... at no extra price. Here it is .....

I know, my Mom (and yours probably too) told me never to tie my sweater in a knot, but I have always done it anyway. That way I don't have to button it up, and it still wraps around me. Right? Sorry, Mom.

For right now, this version is only in the Rich Idiot shop, so that's where to go looking. [Edit 4/26/08: OK, so now it's on Elysian Isle too.]

While you are there, look for a new freebie box near the front door. This one is super! I have heard from many people that need a private place to change clothes, or just to hide for a while, so I decided to build something. It's a Personal Safety Area. That's what I'm calling it, anyway. This picture shows what it looks like:

To anyone else, it seems to be a solid brick cylinder -- the sort of nondescript structure you often see in the corner of a public park. It's hollow, though, and you (the owner) are the only one who can get inside. Say the proper password and the wall becomes phantom until you -- and ONLY you -- touch it or walk through it. Then it instantly becomes solid again.

Once you are inside, you can see out, but nobody can see in. Well, OK, they can see in with camera view, so you do have to be a little careful about letting people suspect that you are in there if you want to be free from prying eyes. Still, it's pretty safe.

To get out, you simply say the password again and walk through the wall. Easy?

You can rez your Personal Safety Area to the ground anywhere that it's OK to build, like a sandbox or your own land. I don't recommend rezzing it indoors, because it is rather large, as you can see from the picture. When you're done, just delete it and move on.

If you want one, or maybe one to give to a friend -- this thing has copy/transfer perms -- you can get it at the Rich Idiot or Elysian Island shops, or at Cybergrrl Oh's lovely Athena Wares shop on Second Shores.

Free for YOU!

If you read my last post, you know about some of the wonderful things we have been doing recently on Rich Idiot Island. It's a beautiful sim with lots of places to explore.


Now I want you to come visit, so I've decided to make you a no-strings-attached offer .... you come visit my shop, and I'll give you a stunning yellow sun dress. FREE. All you have to do is walk in and look for this sign.

Isn't it cute? Yellow is such an eye-catching color. I made the top of this dress as an undershirt, so you can wear a sweater or something over it if you want to, and then "change" without needing to trade one top for another. The dress comes with the matching scarf you see in this photo. It's a complete outfit!

As the sign says, your dress is on a hanger. All you have to do is click.

You may want to pick up couple of other free items too. One is a collection of scarves, like the one in the photo above, all textured to match clothing in the shop. If you already own one of my dresses, you may find an accent scarf that goes with it. Or (hint, hint) you might find a new dress to go with one of these scarves ... you never know. ;-)

The other free item is a "toolkit" to help you make those delicate adjustments that are often necessary when you wear a new piece of prim clothing for the first time. I remember getting SO frustrated when I was a newbie and couldn't get a skirt to sit properly at my waistline. If that's you too, take a toolkit. It contains a pose stand and an attractive privacy screen, and advice about how to make those adjustments. Give a toolkit to a friend, too. She'll thank you.

Why am I doing all of this? I know, I'm a nice person. Aside from that, though, profits from my Rich Idiot shop and from Rug Rats and the bookstore (A Good Book) go to support the libraries and educational work of the Alliance Library System in SL. So every time you buy something, you are helping to maintain the ALS sims. I think that's a pretty worthy cause.

So pick up the freebies and have fun. I hope you'll find something else to add to your wardrobe while you're here, too. Take some time to browse through the dresses and separates. I've tried to arrange the shop so you know where to look for casual things and where to find dressier clothing, with a few surprises thrown in for good measure -- like the bathing suits I added earlier this season.

I also hope you bring a friend and just wander on the island. In addition to other great shops, there's The Distillery club and Gatsby's supper club. There are loads of other fascinating places to wander into as well, and quirky little surprises to discover wherever you look. And if you just want to chill out and relax, go sit on the beach and dabble your toes in the water.

Just in case you have misplaced the LM for my shop, here it is again: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Rich%20Idiot/144/122/35 .

I hope to see you soon.

So many new things on Rich Idiot island!

I can't believe it has been so long since the last time I wrote anything for you. A lot has happened too, and I can't wait to show you.

I'm so pleased to see that so many people have discovered the second location for Så Roligt! on Rich Idiot island. It has been open for a month now. That's it, there in the background. It's the largest shop on the plaza, so you can't miss it.

The plaza itself has had quite a facelift. This fruit vendor offers free fresh fruit, and there are several picturesque tables with sun umbrellas nearby, where you can sit and chat with a friend while you decide where to shop next. There's even a friendly bluebird flying around.

I have had so much fun selling clothing, I decided last week to open a small shop to sell oriental rugs, which is something I have always had a weakness for. Here it is. Like the name?

It's not very big ... just a narrow little shop between my friend Rocksie's Shapes and Jewelry shop on one side and my other friend Brielle's clothing and portraits store (Enraptured Designs) on the other. I managed to cover the floor and walls with beautiful Indian and Chinese orientals, though, so there's a pretty good selection to choose from.

I'm selling all of the rugs at very affordable prices, and they are all sold with copy/mod/transfer permissions so you can size them appropriately for your home or office, and you can even give one to a friend as a gift.

The place I actually had the most fun with is on the opposite side of the plaza ... a book store I built and am operating for the Alliance Library System. I love books, so I jumped at the chance to design this place.

It's a two-story building, but we're only using the first floor for now. Come on in ... let me show you.

I tried to match the feel of small, village bookstores that I used to visit with my mother many years ago, before Brentano's and Barnes & Noble took over and put a chain store in every town. It has a wonderfully eclectic mix of used and new books, a little reading nook, and a coffee pot just inviting you to sit for a while. Best of all ... it really is a book store. You can buy books here without leaving Second Life!

I'm using one of Bucky Barkley's magical Slider panels, which make it possible for you to click on any image and connect directly to the web page on Amazon.com where that book is sold. You buy the book the same way you would make any online purchase, and a portion of the sale price goes to ALS to help support projects on the island and elsewhere on the archipelago.

I have loaded several good books about Second Life into it, as well as most books by author Robert Shemin, whose publisher has sponsored our work on Rich Idiot island this year. I'll add other books as people express an interest.

Finally, there are changes along the shore as well. Remember this lovely yacht, the Rich Idiot? Well, just beyond it, to the west, they have rebuilt Gastby's, which is a wonderfully elegant supper club.

Next time you have an evening out with a special friend and you want to try someplace new, come to Gatsby's. It offers a delicious menu by candlelight, and a spacious dance floor .... all right down at the water, so you can watch the sun set and listen to the waves. It is an intimate and very romantic place for an evening.

Notice that I wore a new blue dress especially today, because I wanted to match the decor when we got to this spot. Springtime is finally here, so I thought it would be nice to design something bright that would catch the spirit of the season. It's a colorful dress with a straight skirt that I'm calling "Hyacinth." The lace bodice adds a delicate touch. If you like it, drop by the shop.

A new shop on ... don't laugh .. Rich Idiot Island

So much has happened since the last time I wrote. I have a second great location for my shop! You'll have to come visit.

Here it is, right on the main square on Rich Idiot island (http://slurl.com/secondlife/Rich%20Idiot/144/122/35).

Yeah, it's kind of a goofy name for an island, but it's a wonderful place on the Alliance Information archipelago, about six sims east of Info Island International.

In contrast to my shop on Elysian Isle, which is a lovely intimate boutique, this new shop is gloriously spacious. It has a high ceiling, rich wood panelled walls, and big etched glass windows in front. There's enough floor space to hold a dance, which is exactly what I have in mind one of these days soon.

I've tried to make the shop feel comfortable, despite its size. Of course I want people to come and buy my clothing, but I'd also like to have them just come to relax. If you need a break, come on in, put your feet up on one of the soft couches, and have a glass of wine. Bring a friend.

You may have noticed that my friend Katt Tomsen, who makes that gorgeous microprim jewelry, no longer has a display in my Elysian Isle shop. That's a long story. She has her own shop on Rich Idiot now, though, right next door to mine. So, you can pop in and see her full line while you're visiting me.

There are other nice shops on the square too, and more coming this spring. Rich Idiot is still growing, so you'll have to visit many times to keep up.




One of the first places you'll want to visit is The Distillery -- a great 1920s style dance club in an old warehouse down by the beach. They have a regular schedule of live music and literary readings, and the decor is fantastic. I can't resist showing you two or three "atmospheric" photos I took as the sun was going down this evening.





Don't these shots look like something that Edward Hopper might have painted? I just love the way light plays in here.

While we are down by the water, let me show you a couple of nice beachfront houses. I wish I could afford a place like one of these in RL.

They have open, airy architecture and a wonderful view of the water. The far one has a nice spa, too.

The beach is right here, with clean white sand.
Oh, while we're here, let me show you two bathing outfits I made last week, as sort of a celebration after finishing the move-in.

They're both rich Oriental prints. This first one, in deep ultramarine blue, is a one-piece suit. I think the short, asymmetrical sun skirt I made to go with it looks very chic, don't you?

If you prefer a style that shows a little more .... um .. you, then you'll want to take a good look at the other one I made. It's a bikini, this time in a warm Oriental floral print that will make other people on the beach sit up and take notice. It comes with a sun skirt too.

You'll find both of these outfits in three locations: on Elysian Isle, in Cybergrrl Oh's boutique (Athena Wares), and in my brand new shop right here on Rich Idiot Island.




Enough about that for now. I want to show you one more neat place on Rich Idiot Island. Ready?



It's an absolutely monstrous yacht named -- what else?-- Rich Idiot.


It's moored off the east side of the island, just down slope from my shop, and it is gigantic. It has lots of room on deck, and several spacious, wood panelled rooms below deck where you could sit all day sipping rum and coke, or whatever your pleasure is. Look at this bedroom ....

Wouldn't this be a deliciously decadent way to travel?


You know ... the owner is out of town, so I don't think he'll mind if I check out that hot tub on the fan deck .....



Ahhh! I'll be a while, so just show yourself out. I'll catch you another day, OK?