Rfyre, Tuli Bella and Dark Mouse Review..

When I was young (don’t ask how long ago) and an Art student, I took a number of classes in drawing Costume (as opposed to nudes, which I took as well). I always enjoyed seeing clothing from different era’s, countries and historical periods. To see this shared interest put into wearable pieces by a designer is very exciting to me and serves a purpose well beyond just clothing oneself. This outfit, Oksana by Raven Pennyfeather of Rfyre is  an interpretation of a Russian Winter/Christmas costume. Check here for more on Russian Christmas traditions and here for an historical costume.I have matched the outfit to Tuli’s newest skin Bella and Jewellery by Dark Mouse.




I decided that the only proper way to showcase this outfit was to go to Red Square. The only problem is that Red Square, Moscow Island is a Hub for Russian Sl’ers and so the whole area was pretty crowded and not my usual empty Sim. Also as it happened a lot of my pictures suffered from the black shot of death. (Usually fixable by dumping cache and re-logging.) So this pic above was the only good shot I got off.

 

What can I say about the beautiful and exquisite Bella by Tuli Asturias? Honestly, words fail me when trying to give an unbiased review of this skin. I can only say that I feel Tuli captured an incredible face, beautiful body and a deep personality within a pretty limited medium. The make-ups are truly a work of art and the body shading is so masterfully done that I can only marvel at her skill. I have heard a few people say that the skins don’t work with their Avatar and that is as it should be. This lady Bella is an individual and she has her own mysterious ways.. To my mind she is pretty perfect all around.



If you see me around the Grid you may notice I’m not wearing very much today…Darn it but I look good though! Tones in Bella range from Dark Tan, Tan, Sunkissed, Fair and Pale. These pics were taken in Oubliette, which is dressed up in its frosty winter finery.



This necklace and earrings are a new offering from Dark Mouse. I think they capture the lustrous metal texture splendidly and compliment well the gown. Speaking about the Outfit, Oksana, the skirt comes in two skirt lengths with slightly different tailoring and pattern. All of the textures are rendered with care and a high degree of precision. The headdress is unusual to say the least, and I’m not sure I’d wear it to any SL functions but I can appreciate the artistry and beautiful features as well as the attention to detail. Through a little bit of research on the subject, I found a whole slew of headdresses of Russian origin and this seems to have been a very important element of Historical dress (which has some Byzantine influence). I had to really think about a perfect hair for the headdress and found it in Maitreya.  Most Maitreya hair is not high at the top which makes them perfect for hats and such. All Poses were by Diesel Rogan of Dieselworks, a new pose pack called Shake 599L {R}.



Credits: Skins Tuli Bella Kellie (in Pics) Makeups available Elysium, Flutter, Gogo, Helena, Kellie, Kira, Natural, Raven, Sofia, Violet. All Skins come with 3 cleavage options and 3 eyebrow options Single skin 1000L, Fatpack 4950L {R}.
Pics (with Dress)-Dress Rfyre Oksana Russian Christmas Holiday Dress 600L {R}, Dark Mouse Wild Leaves Necklace and Earrings (copper) 200L {R}, Hair Maitreya Aisha II (blacks), Boots Bax Coen Ankle Boots Black Patent, Eyes Exodi Vetro Black.
Pics (with silks)-Solange Sheer white (silks), Eyes Exodi Vetro Hazel, Hair Maitreya Bo (Blonds).