~Aries Celestial Designs~ Official Blog

Grand Reopening Treasure Hunt!!!

2010-09-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

Ok, after a very busy month getting things up and going again, and FINALLY it seems the end is in sight. One last, very quick post here tonight...

~Aries Celestial Designs~ first ever treasure hunt!!!! I have created a special edition of both the Dragon and the Dragon Warrior Costume just for this event and split it up into thirteen irridecent dragon eggs spread throughout my land. Now, all you have to do is find them. I have tried to make this resonably simple by keeping each of the thirteen eggs within sight of one of the teleporters on my land. Happy hunting folks!

New Group Gift!!!

2010-09-26T18:19:00.000-07:00

Just a really, really quick note here folks... there is a new 4 piece texture-change set for members of the group.. my way of saying thank you for your continued loyalty and support. Can't wait to see you for the grand reopening!!!

~The Dragon Warrior Collection~ & ~The Dragon Collection~

2010-09-26T17:49:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's been awhile since I've created any new content, but personally I think it was worth the wait.

This is actually two sister collections; ~The Dragon Collection~ and ~The Dragon Warrior Collection~. I am not going to go into huge details about these now, simply because these collections, whilst small, both speak loudly for themselves.

There are four dragons to choose from in total: The Animated Fire Dragon, The Animated Water Dragon, The Texture Change Gem Dragon, and the Texture Change Gloss Gem Dragon. The fire and water dragons have gently animated textures, making them beautiful and somewhat hypnotic to watch. The texture change dragons both come with fifteen different dragon scale textures built in that change smoothly via simple voice control.

As well, there are four dragon warrior costumes to choose from;

The Animated Fire Dragon Warrior, The Animated Water Dragon Warrior, The Texture Change Gem Dragon Warrior, and the Texture Change Gloss Gem Dragon Warrior.

These dragon warrior costumes opperate pretty much the same way as their dragon counterparts, however, each costume gives you the ability to show/hide one or both the wings and the cape. Also, the fire gems on all four of these costumes are animated. Each costume comes with all accesorries shown, and a free, fully modifiable shape.

Whether your interest is in the dragons or the warriors, they are all pretty amazing if I do say so myself.

~Here We Go Again~

2010-09-26T17:16:00.000-07:00

Well folks, it's been awhile, I know... but I am officially back from my extended haitus and I come bearing gifts.
Originally I came back thinking I was going to downgrade my buisness. This was what I had in mind when I started the rebuild... however, by the time I was a third of the way into the project, I realized I loved creating too damn much to downgrade and remain at a distance. What ended up happening was an entire rebuild of not just the store, but the entire land and the way the buisness is meant to opperate.

I lowered the prices and raised the visual appeal. I added a Guess & Win game because, well I thought it looked fun (and after testing it for nearly 45 minutes, I can assure you it's just as fun as it looked). I added some gift campers for those who would like to own ~A.C.D.~ products but simply don't have the extra linden... and I placed these around a brand new, enourmous Tree of Enchantment. I added a fortune telling fountain that works by donations, yes, but as little as a single linden gives up the forutne. As part of the Grand Reopening ceremonies, I put up a hunt containing of 13 dragon eggs holding a special addition costume and dragon from the new collection (more about the new collection to follow). I put out a new group only gift (more to follow about this gift as well).

I added a hangout area below the store... a beautiful oasis complete with one of the new animated water dragons and multiple spots for just chillin' out. (DEEP BREATH). I updated... no, completely overhaulled the teleport system to make it easier and more fun. I added a voting station and though I am still not entirely clear on whether or not these things actually work, please be sure to vote if you enjoy the new store layout and the goodies found there. I added more discount items... well, y'know what, just drop on by and find out for yourself what's all changed so I don't go on all night.

Look forward to seeing you folks there.

Oops, nearly forgot...

2008-12-31T15:10:00.001-08:00

I forgot to mention that despite being as busy as I am right now, I took the time to do up a fun little freebie ring for y'all to celebrate the coming of the new year. Swing by the store to pick up your copy of this 2009 Celbration Ring... complete with texture change abilities built right in.

A.C.D. on the Sl Homepage...

2008-12-31T12:45:00.001-08:00

By now, dear readers, surely you know what I a glutton for media mention I can occasionally (or always) be. But, imagine my extreme elation when a good friend directed me to the new SL hompage, only to find that one of my costumes had made the cut!

I count the original Mayan costumes that I created for the Visit Mexico sim amongst my greatest achievments to date in SL, so I am extremely pleased see it here in the glorious spotlight.

Taking a mixture of this great honor into account, and combined with the fact that the really real world is going to be incredibly busy for me over the next month and a half or so, I have decided to place EVERYTHING in the entire store on sale for you, my dear customers. I will be placing EVERYTHING to a staggering 50% off. Don't forget... to recieve the discount, you'll need to purcase your item(s) from the vendors provided around the store. Unfortunately, I will not be around so much over the next few weeks, so whereas I would normally have no problem doing refunds should you purchase from the sales boxes by mistake, this time around I will sadly have to say zero refunds. I do appoligize for that, but it is unavoidable at this time.

Though I will be trying to check in at least a couple of times a day when possible over the next few weeks, If for any reason you should encounter problems of any kind with your new purchases, or even with making said purchases, and I am not around and you don't want to wait for me to be around (hehe) please contact Tigey Honey... he will be able to help you with most issues.

That being said, Happy New years!!!! I have some amazing projects planned (some already begun) for you in 2009, and once again, thank you for being the greatest, most loyal bunch of customers a girl could hope for.

Countdown to Christmas Continues...

2008-12-18T10:20:00.000-08:00

G'day fine people! For today's special, I've placed everything from the ~Beyond A.C.D.~ section of the store on a 50% discount. http://ariescelestialdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/06/introducing-beyond-acd.html

Also, in the spirit of the season, I've come to the conclusion that we all need a bit of a break from the heavy expenses both in RL and in SL.... with that in mind, I've placed my original silks collection, brilliantly titled ~The Silks Collection~ (hehe) on a permanent discount. You can now pick up any of 17 sets for a mere $25 L each. http://ariescelestialdesigns.blogspot.com/2007/05/silks-collection.html (please note: I have removed the fullset package of these silks.

Until next time folks, happy shopping:).

Seasons Greetings...

2008-12-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

Running behind schedule yet again...just a couple quick notes for y'all.

Firstly, I created a cute little Christmas costume for all of my beloved group members. It was sent out to group this past Saturday.

This ensemble comes complete with all the fixings; boots, hand muff, ear muffs, tiny jingle bell necklace (the emits soft bell sounds with movement), jacket, flex skirt and belt.

Though this costume was created with group members in mind, and sent out to group members free of charge, in the end I did decide to put this costume up for sale in the store for a mere $199 L.

Second bit of info today is about the Countdown to Christmas special. Today's deal is 50 % off anything from ~The Watchers Collection~. http://ariescelestialdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/05/watchers-collection.html

More Random News...

2008-12-11T09:50:00.000-08:00

Just a couple quick points to mention today folks...

~The Birthstone Collection~ has disapeared into the vaults (sniff), and it's time to move on. Today's Countdown to Christmas special is a 50% discount on the entire ~Atlantis 1 Collection~. http://ariescelestialdesigns.blogspot.com/2007/05/atlantis-i-collection.html

The Feature of the Week also changed today... come pick up your Cross Piercing fullset for only $ 500L while it's on special!

The final note today... group members, be sure and keep your eyes open saturday for a special christmas gift from me.

Until next time, happy shopping:)

~A.C.D.~Random News

2008-12-06T13:21:00.000-08:00

Ok guys, it's been really chaotic around the store the past few days, what with the hunt ongoing and whatnot, and there are a few things I should mention here.
First, most of you know that I've been hosting a Countdown To Christmas Daily Special since the first, but I have neglected to make any mention of it here. I'm sorry guys...just not always enough time in an Sl day for me to get to everything. I shall try to be better about that.
Today's (December 6) special is actually going to run for a few days, even if I wake up tomorrow and decide to do another special along side it... My first collection, ~The Birthstone Collection~ (http://ariescelestialdesigns.blogspot.com/2007/05/birthstone-collection.html) can now be purchased for a mere $ 50 L a set. This is because I am intending on removing it from game. It was the collection that began it all for ~A.C.D.~, and it has more then served me well, but I feel that it's time to put it to rest. Make sure you swing by and pick up a set for yourself, or take advantage of it as a great xmas bargain and pick up sets for your friends and family.
I also want to mention that if you have ~A.C.D.~ in your picks, make sure and message me when you're in store... direct my attention to it, and you will recieve a free gift from me.
I am currently interested in teaming up with up with and coming skin and hair creators... If you know of some new talents (especially those not getting their just credits for their talent) in game that might be interested in a conjoined project, please let me know.
And the final matter of buisness for the day is that I would like to welcome all of the new members to the group...I definately want to celebrate all the buzz currently about ~A.C.D.~ so be looking forward to an extra special xmas gift from me in the comming week.

A little more press..

2008-12-06T13:01:00.000-08:00

A couple of things caught my eye this week...

Firstly, I'm very glad to see the new ~P.A.P.2~ collection getting a little press attention... being as that I'm incredibly proud of how this stuff turned out.

To read this article go to:
http://juicybomb.typepad.com/blog/2008/12/the-pierced.html

Secondly, these shots just look beautiful! I definately couldn't have showcased the Jingle Bells free jewellery any better myself.

To view this page go to: http://karlascorbal.wordpress.com/2008/12/03/rejudor/

And thirdly, It's always fun to see shots of the store or my creations on Flickr. And I'm putting this one up even if it's a dead give away for the globe, hehe.

To view this page go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rigz/3082108675/

Peace On Earth Hunt

2008-12-02T11:13:00.001-08:00

Well the Peace On Earth Grid hunt began today, and much to my relief, I DID manage to relalize my vision and get my project put together on time. There was a point this past weekend when I was certain I wouldn't get it finished:(. Appearently I think too big, and wanted too much out of myself for the six or so days I had to work on it.. but it's my motto that anything worth doing outta be big and bold. And this was DEFINATELY worth doing.
I created two costumes; one male, one female. Both based on a Hungarian folk theme. I shamefully admit to spending a lot more time on the female costume. I did this for a few reasons... a) I mostly create designs for female avs... I like to be very detail oriented and it seems to me most men prefer simple. b) most of my customers are therefor female. c) I rather hate being in drag while I'm creating for men. And d) the costumes that inspired my creations were a lot simpler for the mens, and from the start, I knew if I was going to get done on time, I would have to give the female costume a whole lot more attention.
Anyways, the hunt is on, the goodies are out.. I hope y'all enjoy them.

~The Pierced & Painted 2 Collection~

2008-11-24T18:25:00.000-08:00

Original release date: November 24, 2008

BIG sigh of relief... Ok folks, here it is, FINALLY, the long awaited second addition to ~The Pierced & Painted Collection~. It is without exaderation that I tell you, this was the TOUGHEST project I have yet to get out. Not that it was the most complicated thing I've ever built... because I've built some pretty insane things in my time. It's not even completely that the texturing was torture, though, some of the texturing work that went not only into the pieces in this set, but the vendor shots as well, was truly grueling. I think what leant most to this being such a complicated project for me to finish though, was the fact that the entire month of November has been insanely busy for me. I have been in the midsts of revamping the buisness, I put out the Flutterbye Collection, I've been researching a very cool, very complex project that I will be starting on tomorrow with any luck.. (that I'll really only have about a week to see from begining to end)... and I've created the most extreme tattoo and piercing collection concievable.

To be honest, I'm beat! But that's never slowed me down before. I'm going to sumerize this collection as quickly as I can for y'all, simply because if I still have a chance of actually getting it all out tonight, I still have a bunch of little ends to tie up. So here we go....

Realistically, this collection really could have been released as three seperate collections, but that's just not the way I roll:P. The first section of this project, is the new corset piercings.

When I did the original P.A.P. collection, I wanted to experiment with bringing these odd, yet interesting, piercings into Sl. I did that, and for a long time, I was happy with them. I've also sat back shocked at just how popular these piercings turned out to be. But with time, there grew in me a desire to revisit this idea, because I knew, with a little more time, and a lot more patience, I could take these piercings from something mearly cool, to something truly amazing. I am SOOO glad to say, I have even managed to impress myself here. These things look absolutely stunning.

There are three different corset piercing types to choose from; set 1 is done with glossy satins. Set 2 is done using animal skins (It is important to mention here that no animals were hurt in the creation of this product. Here at ~A.C.D.~ we are 100% animal friendly and use ONLY faux furs and leathers.). Set 3 is done using a selection of my most elegant fabrics, each one very femine and pretty. Each of these sets comes fully stocked with 15 textures built right into the laces. Using very simple voice commands, you can pick the color/style of your choice to fit your outfit, mood, or whatever.

The metal hoops on this jewellery come with 12 popular precious and semi-preciuos metals built into them. Using simple voice commands again, you can easily swap from gold, to bronze, to silver to... well you get the idea.

In each of the 3 texture sets, you'll find a chest corset piercing, side piercings (sets of 2), leg piercings (sets of 2), arm piercings (sets of 2), a long back corset, a short back corset, and a stomach piercing.

You can purchase them seperately, or in a full pack (all the piercings for that particular set) for a discount that is nearly 50% off.

Ok, that brings us to the second section of this collection; cross and dice facial and body piercings.

I created these out of the simple desire to have a little more variation in my own piercing collection. Of course, however, I'm sharing with all of you.

For either the dice or the crosses, there are a ton of different piercing options (sorry folks, it's getting late so I'm not sticking in EVERY vendor shot right now). I also threw them together into piercing fullset packs for those of you, like me, that can never pick one or two from a set. And with the fullsets, I tossed in a bonus matching ring and choker.

BUT WAIT!! Lol, that's not all. You get even more with this jewellery because once again, as I seem so prone to do lately, I've added in some texture change options. Firstly, the gemstones all come loaded with the 12 traditional birthstone textures. Secondly, the metals are pre-loaded with the same 12 popular precious and semi-precious metals you'll find in the corset piercings. Mix em, match em, add your own textures to the bunch... it's always good to have choices.

The third and final section of this collection is something just a little different. I'm not really sure if there is much in the way of prim tattoos floating around or not, but it's something I've wanted to play with ever since I did the last P.A.P collection.

I ended up creating 'tattoo packs' rather then singles, becuase, in case I haven't mentioned it enough already, options are good!

For each of these 'tattoo packs' there are two more subdivisions; 1) the regular packs, and 2) what I like to call the 'Rave tattoos'.

There are nine packs of each, coming to a total of 18 tattoo packs to choose from. In a regular packs, you will get 3 different sized tattoos. At first, they may appear the same, other then av allocation and size, but there is a little more to them then meets the eye. All 3 of the tattoos in each of the nine sets comes loaded with 8 options (10 in the case of the animal pack), and you guessed it, I got it all set up on voice command texture change. You get 4 full black textures fitting the pack theme, and the same 4 textures redone in a tintable white haze. They are also scripted with a drop down color change menu activated by touch.

The Rave packs are my favorite though...

...you get the same 4 picture options in each of these packs, but I did not add in the full black versions. These tattoos are set to glow, AND they are set on a very cool color cycle that smoothly moves from one color into the next. So smoothly, in fact, that even while you're staring right at them, you often don't notice the change until you suddenly realize it's a completely different color.

With all of these tattoos, they are, as per usual with my goods, fully modifiable. So go ahead and move them, resize them, add your own alpha textures into them... whatever you like so long as you're having fun with them.

Like I said, I'm pretty beat, so if that description sounded more confusing then helpful, just look at the sales textures... I was a little more awake when I did them:P.

There are two more things I'd like to mention before I get my butt back off to work: 1) Beacause of how truly proud I feel about this second addition to the P.A.P. Collection, I now feel like the first addition pales in compairson. Something I was told by some of my favorite costumers was not at all true, but something that I feel just the same. For this reason, I will be putting the original set (found in vendor form only now, on the second floor of the main store) on perminant discount.

2) Look for the Kitten & Co. Accessories on the third floor of the main store. These are lovely designs brought to you from brand new SL designer, Merma Wijaya.

Ok, that about ties it up. Later on, when I have a bit more time, perhaps I'll come back and add in the rest of the sales textures for y'all.

~A.C.D.~ Is now ALSO on Facebook

2008-11-20T10:42:00.000-08:00

Yep, I've been a busy little girl, and now Aries Bricklin/~Aries Celestial Designs~ can also be found on Facebook (I'll be setting up a store group there as soon as I find a few spare minutes, but right now, I'm in a mad rush all of a sudden to get the newest collection finished and out for you). Officially, Aries can be found in more places online than her typist (that'd be the really real me) could ever even try to keep up with.
And just to see if y'all are paying attention... the first five of you to leave a message on my Facebook page will get a free gift from me. What gift? Bwahahaha.. that's for me to know and you to find out. Oh ya, PLEASE don't forget to add your Sl name, else I'm not going to have a clue who to send goodies to.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=1657187167&ref=profile

~A.C.D.~ Is now on Myspace

2008-11-16T19:20:00.000-08:00

Hiya folks, just wanted to let you know that as part of the buisness updating stuff I've been playing with, ~Aries Celestial Designs~ is now on Myspace.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=430401592&MyToken=7cd18732-3e78-4342-8a14-fc3143061ee3

Y'know, just because I don't already have enough to keep track of, hehe.

The page is open to the public, and I look forward to hearing from all of you.

A little ego pat now and then never hurts...

2008-11-15T23:50:00.000-08:00

As some of you already know, I've been spending the last couple of days trying to get the insanity that is my store inventory under control. It is one of those long, somewhat boring, very thankless jobs that I will fully admit, I tend to let slip a little (a lot) behind from time to time (quite often). When I signed into Sl this morning it was to work at this chore again, and so I can't really say that I was looking that forward to the day. However... waiting for me when I got online was an IM from Natalie Oe.

It contained a link, and a note that she had reviewed a couple of my newer items. By now y'all know that the designer ego in me LOVES when this happens, so of course the rest of the day has just been peachy, regardless of the work at hand. They were both glowing reviews too, which certainly helped in lifting my spirits.

To read this article go to: http://recommenditdsl.wordpress.com/

~The Flutterbye Collection~

2008-11-12T12:29:00.000-08:00

Original release date: November 12, 2008

Got some amazing stuff for you this month folks, and this here is just the beginning of it. I’m going to try to make this as quick as possible, as that I am DYING to get back to work on the next project for you this month… but I’m not going to let the cat out of the bag on that one just yet. So, without further ado, let me introduce to you my latest full scale project; ~The Flutterbye Collection~.
This entire set was inspired by a single ring I recently purchased in the really real world. It was intended to be just rings… but… well, that just wouldn’t be me, would it? I got to say, by the time I was even partly through working on this stuff, the ring that started it all seemed terribly pale and boring by comparison, but that’s the disappointment of reality vs. a world of our own creation sometimes. What came out in the end was necklaces, chokers, anklets, armbands, bracelets, rings, toe rings, earrings, nipple rings, belly dangles and of course my big box fullset package that saves you nearly half of the total price. And, with it all, you get the choice of either gold or silver.
Many of the pieces in this set are adorned with delicate flexi-dangles (for lack of a better name) that shimmer quite nicely when your AV moves. And, as I’m so fond of doing, I added in the texture change ability for the gems stones on all pieces. Truth is, this, like many of my sets, looks great in a variety of gems, but I just don’t see the point in asking y’all to pay for them individually. Plus, I just like options damn it! Personally, I’m a lot more likely to dole out my hard earned lindens on things that allow for a little play and variety then on something that is nothing more then it initially appears to be. I was asked recently why I so often do my vendor photos using the garnet stone… it is my real world birthstone, and I didn’t even realize I was showing a preference to it till it was pointed out to me. If you’d like to see how the jewellery looks in other gemstones, ask one of my in store models to demonstrate it for you while you’re in, but I assure you, each gem looks as lovely as the next. I put A LOT of time into perfecting the stones I use in my jewellery, and I’m pretty confidant you’d be hard pressed to find better textures. There is also a very subtle glow added to the sheer diamond shards in each piece of this set. It gave a lovely shimmer effect I just couldn’t pass up.

The Breakdown:

Necklaces: $ 300 L

Chokers: $ 275 L

Armbands: $ 250 L

Bracelets: $ 250 L

Anklets: $ 250 L

Toe Rings: $ 150 L

Earrings: $ 150 L

Rings: $ 150 L

Belly Dangles: $ 150 L

Nipple Rings: $ 200 L

Jewellery Fullsets: $ 1250 L (worth $ 2175 when pieces are purchased individually)

This jewellery is a very delicate, unique twist on a very classic idea. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

A Quick Note....

2008-10-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

Before I entirely forget, there were two other itty bitty things I should have mentioned already. A) I released the first of what I hope to be many such costumes a short time ago. My lavender fairy;

and B) some funky little halloween goodies (for men and women).

These goodies are free to group members by the way, but they are available in stores for a small price as well.

And, P.S. before I go, these funky little prim filled spiderwebs look pretty amazing.. though I did opt for some pretty dark shots.

Ok, that's it.. on to those things I need to do.

~The Tagged Collection`

2008-10-20T10:51:00.000-07:00

Original release date: October 20, 2008

That's right folks, yet another release for this month. Aren't you spoiled? Or, perhaps more truly, I have too much time on my hands lately. Who really knows?

This set is pretty straight forward (as i promised in a previous post). Personalized 'Initial' bracelets and chokers. I have been long meaning to add something like this to the store, but it's been put off time and time again... until now.

There are 13 different metals built into each piece, as well as 12 different gems, so you can mix and match to your hearts content. Also, as always, they are fully modifiable, so go ahead and add in your own textures if you'd like. I think it's important for us to all be able to find a bit of originality, so knock your socks off.

I'd love to write a little more here, but I've got a stockpile of things I need to attend to, so I'll just let the jewellery speak for itself.

Happy shopping until the next time.

~The Warrior Collection~

2008-10-14T09:44:00.000-07:00

Original release date: October 14, 2008

There was an entirely different project that, perhaps, this post truly should have been about. A great, very straight forward (for me) sort of project that was nearly finished before the following project was even imagined. HOWEVER… nearly at the end of that project (I should be able to get that out to y’all in the next week or so, barring RL complications), for some reason I started messing around with this one little prim that I’d tortured some time back and had left sitting on my work table. Just a little, insignificant prim… and yet somehow, it inspired me to create an entire collection around it. What came from this accidental inspiration, I would now like to introduce to you as ~The Warrior Collection~.

Thirteen highly detailed parts make up these costumes… each piece entirely prim. In fact, the only non prim part is the shoe base. Personally, I believe this to be the best work I have yet to do here, and I am extremely proud of what I accomplished.

The bikinis in this set stand amazingly well on their own, as does any of the jewellery or the shoes.

But the way it all comes together is something else entirely. The sets definately boast a dangerous, warrior look... but without giving up any of the sex appeal most armor forces you to do without.

When I first put this set together, I did so all in a blank texture, with no real idea yet of what the finished product would actually look like. In fact, not even entirely certain it would ever become something that would go any further then my own inventory. However, after a while it became clear that I was in the process of creating something rather amazing, and by the time I was finished the initial construction, I knew it was something that deserved great thought and respect when it came down to texturing. Great thought and respect it got… and an insane number of work hours… before I was happy with my texturing choices. I decided in the end to make the metal parts a nice mixture of different shades of bronze. I opted for this, mainly because the bronze hues gave the items such a perfect pop that after I started to apply them on the first test set, I had begun to dislike all the metal tests that came before as remotely viable options.

Once the metals were decided upon, the fabrics fell into place quite simply. This is where the collection actually sort of divides into two separate sections. The first section is the rich textures, the ‘gloss’ fabrics if you will. These are a set of 14 beautifully bright, lovely silky-satin textures that I added a low shine too because it made the textures stand out so nicely. I also added into this first ‘gloss’ section, variations of the two bronze hues I used in the metal parts, simply because in the early texture testing, I saw how nice they could look (with a slight modification) as the fabric parts as well.

The second section is the animal skins, or ‘flat’ textures. These were a natural choice that had been floating around on some vague level in the back of my mind since I first started to realize this was to become a full project. A natural choice because I simply love the look of the animal textures for one thing, plus I find about 95% of the animal skin clothing options in SL to be pretty boring and have wanted to do a sexier, more original set for ages. There are 9 of my favourite skins and leathers used in this collection.

Also, rather then doing up gigantic boxes of full sets to give people the option of purchasing all of the different looks at a discount, I have taken a shine to cutting down the parts by adding in the texture change abilities when possible. I found another chance for that here. You can purchase either the ‘flat’ set, or the ‘gloss’ set for less then the cost of 3 single sets. That’s a hell of a deal if you ask me, especially considering I’ve also added in a free Modify, No Copy, Transfer shape… a $500 L value in my stores… just to make sure you can achieve an absolute perfect fit directly out of the box. The great thing about having these shapes at your disposal is that before you start trying to resize any of the prim parts from the set, you can see exactly how they’re met to look (perfectly fit), then either make adjustments to the shape I’ve included, or adjustments to the costume on your own shape with a bit more understanding of how each piece was intended. As usual, I will make myself available to you if you need a hand adjusting any of the parts, but I think this will simplify things a little for most people.

I have priced this entire collection on the low side, despite the extreme pride I feel for it. Each of the single sets is a mere $400 L and the texture set packs are only $1000. Considering that the jewellery, shoes, and the shape are all included, it’s a pretty killer bargain. I’ve done this for two basic reasons; a) the world economy is a nightmare right now it seems, and like the rest of you, I know I’m on the hunt for bigger and better deals all the time. And b) I wanted to make sure that these sets were affordable for everyone, because I love them so much I almost NEED to see them shared and enjoyed.

That about sums up ~The Warrior Collection~. I hope y’all enjoy it even half as much as I already do. See you soon with the other project I mentioned, and until then, happy shopping :).

~The Zodiac Collection~

2008-09-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: September 4, 2008

This is the 23 full sized collection I've released since starting this little adventure. Do you have ANY idea what that means to my poor inventory? A smart woman would have hired someone already to help keep things moving along, but I have yet to be accused of being any such thing:P. Anyways, this was a fun one, although, a very long one in the making. I'd intended to have it out last month, but a busier summer schedule and an excessively complex set such as this was, just wouldn't allow for such optimistic time constraints.

Anyways, without further ado, let's take a look at the brand new ~Zodiac Collection~.

Somewhere along the line, I decided I enjoyed jewellery that was a little more interactive then most of that available to us in the boring old real world, and being as that Sl allows for nearly anything my fevored little mind can think up, this collection is yet another that tickles me completely.

Every single piece of jewellery in this collection does some pretty nifty things; a) its all set up with color change abilities. I used the drop down menus for this one because, though it doesnt give you quite as many color options (c'mon people!!! How many choices do we really need??) it's a lot simpler to navigate. The less I have to remember, the smoother life goes on my end. Besides, even with the drop down menu, there's still something like 70 different colors to choose from. b) every pendant is set up to swap between the regular and glyph zodiac symbols via simple voice command. c) every tiny metal piece on this jewellery is scripted to change between 4 different metal choices via simple voice command (gold, silver, white shine and silver shine). d) (and this is my very fave feature) tiny, lightly glowing stars move up, down, around.. basically all over the place in a very random flow... hightlighting the zodiac symbols on the pendants.

These built in extra features allow the owner to match the jewellery perfectly to their outfit, their hair, their own personality, whatever... and to ensure that each owner has something unique.

Being as that, as most of my items, these are all Modify/No Copy/Transfer, you're of course welcome to change your pendant to whatever you'd like it to be.. I'll leave that entirely up to your imagination dear reader.

The final part of this collection is a set of clothing. It's fairly simple stuff, and yet, I really love these outfits. Rather then making them available in a wide range of fabrics, I did them all in a light shade, but being as that they're fully tintable, you can pretty much get whatever look you're going for with a little tinkering around.

As per usual, there are fullsets avialable as well. And as per usual, I suggest if you're interested in purchasing 2 or more items from the collection, you opt for the fullset instead. I price these at a huge discount overall. The fullsets include everything for the choosen birth sign; ring, earrings, necklace, armband, bracelet, belt and outfit.

If you're planning to purchase something from this set as a gift, please help yourself to a free Zodiac Chart in the stores to make sure you're getting the right sign.

For now dear reader, that's all I have the energy to write... until next time, happy shopping.

Because I like ya:)

2008-07-02T17:28:00.000-07:00

So 2:00 p.m. on thursday July 3, 2008 marks the end of the great grand reopening sale... sale ending brings sadness, yes?:(Well, truth be told, the only reason it's gone on this long is because I was so obsessively working on the latest release that I forgot to end it two weeks ago) But rejoice!! There is good news as well. The minute the grand reopening sale officially ends, a discount will go into place for group members. From this moment forward, all ~Aries Celestial Designs~ group members will automatically get a 15% discount off any and all items purchased via the vendors in the homestore in Osato. (REMEBER THE VENDORS PPL!!! No refunds if you forget!!!) And why might I do this? Simple... you guys are the reason I sit up in my dungeon for hours at a time creating the goodies I create. Your love and support makes this hobby on steriods worthwhile, so why, I figure, shouldn't you enjoy the benifits?

~The Beauty In Chains Collection~

2008-07-02T15:57:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: July 3, 2008

My designer roots in sl are very much planted in birthstones and silks, and so it is no great mystery why I continue to return to these stations time and again.

This, however, is the first time I have combined the two together.

An interesting project, this started out a lot simpler then it in time became. It was also a long time in the coming. Basically there have been a few things rattling around in my brain for quite some time; I wanted to do something with bells, as that I find their sounds so pretty and unbelievably soothing. I made a point of tracking down some great scripts for this, but seemed to be continuously sidetracked ever since.

Simarily, I wanted to do a project with the tear away option, and managed to track down the scripts for this some time ago as well... but it also ended up on the back burner. And the final inspiration here, was the fact that though I have done several sets of silks, I had yet to create any along the traditional sl lines, opting in the past to always go with something a little different, and I really did want to try a more traditional approach. In the end, all these factors and more went into ~The Beauty in Chains Collection~.

These are full prim work, no texture illusions, just pure and wonderous prim torture.

All sets come with 13 menu-driven, tear away prim parts. This includes 2 seperate skirt options (one fuller, one more revealing), all jewellery pieces, body chains, nipple silks, shoulder silks and armband silks. There is also a scripted slave collar that comes complete with master & slave huds.

It is important to note here that I did this only for it's added fun factor, the collar scripting is in no way meant as a selling point. In fact, the scripts used here are the freebies that can be found on Slexchange of late. Free or not, they make for great fun.. and should I ever get my hands on a better set of scripts, I do plan on doing a full update.

Beyond that, if you look closely at the pictures (photos that once again, sadly do not convey the detail as greatly as I would prefer) you will see tiny prim bells adorning several of the pieces.

I LOVE THESE!!!! It took me about a week to settle on the perfect bell sounds, but it was worth the time and effort. They tinkle so softly, so seductively when you move that I cant make myself sit still very long when wearing them. I am a little goofy when left to my own devices however. Each set also comes with pantys and bras in the matching fabrics, but these parts are merely for the meeker silk wearer, and are almost unnecesary.

I used 12 different silk and gem textures here (based on traditional birhstones), and rather then doing up a bundle set as I have done in the past, I created one set with the texture change abilities that I have so come to love and adore.

This set is SERIOUSLY the most complete set of silks I can even imagine (and I do have quite the imagination) I set them to change on a simple voice command that allows you to change all the fabric and gems as a whole, picking from the 12 options, OR you can change gems only, or fabrics only, letting you mix and match looks to your hearts desire.

Best of all, this entire set is (as most my items) modify, transfer. Meaning of course that you can add your own sounds, your own textures, your own dialogue on the tear away parts, and create something completely unique. Have fun, but PLEASE be careful.. I mean seriously, I don't want to have to replace a billion parts because something got messed up.

I think that about covers it on these silks, at least so far as I can think right now.

Grand Reopening... Again

2008-06-10T12:21:00.000-07:00

Ok, I build too much and too often. I'm aware of this always, but never so much is on the days when I am finally forced to up my tier, and buy new land. A day such as this has just passed.

I have remodeled the entire store. Well, not really so much remodeled as entirely rebuilt. It is now a 3 storey structure, making it a full storey higher then the last store. Though it is a lot larger then the last store, it feels a world more comfortable to me. More peaceful.

On top of that, the entire layout has been redesigned to hopefully make shopping easier, less overwelming.

To celebrate this change, everything in the store is 50% off. I have yet to decide just how long this generousity will last, but we shall indeed see.

And that's it dear friends, stick a fork in me, I'm done. I hope you enjoy the new layout as much as I do. Happy shopping:).

Introducing ~Beyond A.C.D.~

2008-06-10T11:37:00.000-07:00

Since the beginning of my Sl building career, I have been obsessed with the little things. I don't just mean that I pay excessive attention to my builds, I mean that I obsessively build little things. There is just something about the torture and manipulation of those little prims that no giant building, or (pfft) sculptie could ever give me. However, this does not mean that I don't enjoy building other things from time to time. Quite the contrary...when I have need or reason to build things other then jewellery, shoes and clothing, I find I very much enjoy it.

~Beyond A.C.D.~ is just a little store add on to allow me to share some of that other fun with you guys. This is the place you'll find the other odds and ends that take up my Sl time.

At the moment, there are only 8 items in this section, but I assure you, the stock will remain small only for a short period of time. In fact, if my attentions weren't so otherwise driven right now, I have a handful of other items that would have already made it into boxes. Until I get to that point though, dear friends, I'm afraid you'll just have to make do with whats here.

This dance cage was inspired by a friend. 2 friends more acurately. They both have an obsession with jumping on every available dance pole they come across, and have long made mention of wanting their own. So I had a little free time one day, and this was the result. I seem to have a problem with simple. Nothing I ever attempt manages to come out very simplified. This item is further proof of this sickness. Sure, there is a dance pole in the center of it. But the surrounding cage can be lifted up or down. The lights can be turned on or off, and the colors can be changed at will. It's actually a little hypnotic to watch yourself dancing (I admit with a bit of a blush), as I found out one night. The only thing about this item that doesn't entirely please me, is that I have seen some great pole animations out there, but try as I might to find some with resell permissions, or even hire my own animator for the job, I was unsuccesful. Fear not!!! For it's fully modible. If you're a serious pole dancer, you can just drop your own fave animations into it and viola! away you go.

The Arbutus Rose Rocker is my fave!!! Arbutus is an interesting hard wood that's found on an island where I spent a great part of my childhood in western Canada. It's utterly beautiful. The chair is crawling with vines and roses, giving it a cool kind of rustic look. It rocks; just a nice gentle motion. And it comes with a great couples cuddle.

The Starlit Hottub I built with a purpose. I have long had this gaudy looking hottub on my property, why I kept it out, I'm not entirely sure, other then that I always meant to get around to building my own. Finally, I did just this. It was my first real attempt at playing with heavy scripts.. which, btw, I'm on all too fond of doing because it makes my brain ache. However, what came out of the experiment was this amazingly awesome textured piece of outdoor furniture, complete with properly set poses. Over 2 dozen of them. They're built into the base, so no pose balls to deal with, but feel free to add your own should you prefer.

The hottub felt a little lonely up on my garden roof... I felt it needed a little company. That's how the swing came to be. Didn't know at the begining that I'd end up loving it so much, but what is life if not shocking? Other then the fluid swing motion (which you can start or stop to your own desire), I added in some great pose balls, including the popular 3 person snuggle. It's not only pretty to look at, but no one needs feel left out:P.

The bamboo shots were inspired by my sister. You see, one day she was out shopping and came home with a set of them. One for me, one for her. Tis meant to be great luck to have one in your home, and better luck if you give one away (which is why these are sold in sets of two; one for you, one for a friend).

The next day, she was out shopping again (her poor husband's wallet:P) and she lost her purse. Inside her purse was more then credit cards and I.D.. She had their passports in it (2 adults, 2 small children). She had her cash, but not reallyl a big enough portion to matter that much. What was most unsettling at the loss, was that she also had almost $20, 000 in gold and jewellery in it. I know, maddness right? Well, they travel a lot, and were currently in the midst of a flux, she was only holding on to it until putting it into a safe, but just hadn't quite gotten to that point yet.

Anyways, she lost it all and as you can well imagine, was entirely disfunctional when she called to tell me what had happened. To make this long story a little shorter, let me say that we are in a large city. The area where she lost it is well known for it's poverty, and the thought of her ever getting her purse back was pretty much a joke, to my way of thinking. However, after less then 45 minutes of her having a total meltdown, while she was giving her statement to a police officer, a call came in from the cop shop that a purse matching her description had just been turned in. Lo and behold, it was hers. Not a thing was missing.

So maybe there is still some good left in the world... and maybe the bamboo she'd brought home the day before had given her a little extra luck, but from that point on I think we both started looking at the lucky bamboo shoots with a little extra superstition. I now own a horde of them, as does she... most of mine were gifts from her, lol so since I never spent much on them, I guess that makes me lucky already.

Truly good luck or not, these are just cute as hell and look great around your abode. I made the pots touch/color change so that you can set them to match your decor, and I made them in 4 different options because, truthfully, I had a few tables needing adornment in my place and that's just how many came to be in the end.

~The Shapes 2 Collection~

2008-06-09T15:50:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: June 10, 2008

The release date on this one could be a little off, as that it's availability coincides with a HUGE (soon to be announced) event here at ~Aries Celestial Designs~. But let's just say, for the sake of argument, that I get things all finished up according to my personal time schedule. If this is the case, then the first day these shapes are available to the public will indeed be, June 10, 2008.
At any rate, voila!!! 20 new shapes for your shopping pleasure. Ten male, ten female. Once again, please note that the sale is for the shapes only!!!
Being as that I am a sales junkie myself, and that I can't seem to go five minutes without browsing through pages on the SL Exchange website, I have managed to obtain disgusting amounts of goodies. Many of these goodies, I have purchased for the soul purpose of making them available to you, my wonderful costumers. That said, I have put together boxes of these goodies; 1 male box, 1 female box, and have included them along with these new shapes. Both boxes contain a handful of hair, skins, eyes, clothing, and I'm sure the odd other thing here and there. Do with them as you wish; share them, wear them, toss them, it's entirely up to you, but I do hope you enjoy them. The skins, eyes and hair used in the photos for these shapes, are NOT included in the box, except for in a few cases where these items just so happened to be mine to freely redistribute.
Now that we got that out of the way, let me break this down for you a little (as best I can), in case you wish to acquire the exact look on the box.

(The Vampire; Eyes: Dragonfly Red Demon, Skin: SYD-Male Goth Skin, Hair: Zyrraphotic Hair-Mohawk Freebie. Brat Oracle-black.)

(The Deep Thinker; Eyes: Dragonfly Dark Brown, Skin: (LfO) Dark Tan-Emo Kid, Hair: Dirty Biker Flexi Hair, ***This Hair Found In Male Goodies Box***)

(The Surfer Boy; Eyes: Dragonfly Baby Blue, Skin: Skin 010-c, Hair: Electric-Goldenbrown)

(The Skater Boy; Eyes: Dragonfly Ocean Blue, Skin: (LfO) Light Tan-Emo Kid, Hair: Beanie (beached))

(The Punk; Eyes: Dragonfly Grey, Skin: (LfO) Pale Skin-Emo Kid, Hair: Punk (platinum-Red))

(The Mr. Right; Eyes: Dragonfly Sand Brown, Skin: Photorealistic Steve Skin, Hair: none, ***This Skin Found In Male Goodies Box***)
(The Marine; Eyes: Dragonfly Dark Brown, Skin: Michael Photorealistic Skin, Hair: none, ***This Skin Found In Male Goodies Box***)

(The Football Star; Eyes: Dragonfly Tropical Paridise, Skin: Alex Skin, Hair: none, ***This Skin Found In Male Goodies Box***)

(The Boy Nextdoor; Eyes: Dragonfly Steel Grey, Skin: Skin 010-B, Hair: Red Ruffles (tinted black), ***This Hair Found In Male Goodies Box***)

(The Bouncer; Eyes: Dragonfly Emerald Green, Skin: Unknown Male Caramel Vandyke, Hair: Braids (Cocoa))

(The Wild One; Eyes: Dragonfly Dark Brown, Skin: [ND]Haley Drama Skin(4)Night, Hair: Calico Tesha-Flaming Midnight)

(The Temptress; Eyes: Dragonfly Tropical Paridise, Skin: Tuli 55 tan~diva 3, Hair: Calico Ember-Dirty Blonde)

(The Succubus; Eyes: Dragonfly Red Demon, Skin: Fantasy Tattoo Skin Tattoo Eyes Dripping, Hair: Calico Trinity-Dark Brown (tinted red))

(The Petite Lass; Eyes: Dragonfly Auburn, Skin: Another Skin-(CfO), Hair: Calico Sarah II-Dark Brown)

(The Party Girl; Eyes: Dragonfly Steel Grey, Skin: Another Skin-(RfO), Hair: Calico Raven-Obsidian Dirty Blonde)

(The Maiden; Eyes: Dragonfly Dark Brown, Skin: Another Skin-(FfO), Hair: Calico Amy-Dark Brown)

(The Innocent Beauty; Eyes: Dragonfly Sea Blue, Skin: Another Skin-(LfO), Hair: Panache Hair *Whitelies*Candie Vonta*Hair Coppertone Auburn)

(The Geisha; Eyes: Dragonfly Dark Pink, Skin: Glam- Pink Make-up, Hair: Calico Kimiko-Sterling Midnight (tinted purple))

(The Belle; Eyes: Dragonfly Mohogany, Skin: Another Skin-(SfO), Hair: **WigOut~Bryce-Shagged (F)**-Spellbound)

(The Athlete; Eyes: Dragonfly Starry Green, Skin: (CS) Vogue Skin-Cashmere (Brown-Smoky) Freckled, Hair: Calico Sarah-Dirty Blonde)

You'll note that all eyes used in these photos are from Dragonfly... there's an easy explanation for that; Their eyes are the best, I love them and own them all. Visit: DFO Shopping,DragonFly Designs,T, DragonFly Oasis (127, 113, 73)

You'll note that nearly all female hair is from Calico. Again, there is an easy explanation; Their hair is the best and I own a ton of it. Visit: Calico Creations Main Shop, Calico Kitty (124, 70, 35)

Many of the skins and hairs used in these photos came from Gnubies Store. Visit: Powder Mill (121, 142, 34)

And finally, you'll note that there is a little star over the bits and pieces on every male photo, while the female photos all get to go bare. Simple again; the goofy prim penises make me laugh, and the body without them reminds me of a creepy Ken doll. So sorry boys, its a B.Y.O.P. (Bring your own penis) event.

~Freebie Updates~

2008-06-09T13:40:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile in the coming, but I've finally gotten around to doing a little work with the free goodies I provide in store. What work have I done exactly? Well hey, I'm glad you asked.

A) The gold and silver Tantari bracelets have been updated.

B) The mens and womens Tantari rings have been updated.

C) The Onyx & Spade necklace has been updated.

D) The ~Aries Celestial Designs~ T-Shirt has been updated.

E) A new choker has been added.

F) For the Osato store only!!! ~A.C.D.~ Roller Skates for men and women have been added. (These so rock, I haven't taken them off since I finished them)

Drop by and pick up yours today!

P.S.....

2008-05-13T20:35:00.000-07:00

In my all my absentminded insanity, I think I forgot to mention that I did a second set of costumes with the good folks involved in the Mayan project. These new costumes are better and sexier then the first, and a definite must have for every SL'er. Drop by the Visit Mexico sim to pick up your free copy!!!

Check out issue #17 of Second Style for some very nice shots of the original Mayan costumes.

~The Classic Collection~

2008-05-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: May 13, 2008

Fresh off the presses!!! Ok that was a bit cheezy, but forgive me, I've just completed the part of the job that makes me cross eyed and crazy; sale prepping. Not more then an hour ago I placed out 130 new boxes for your shopping pleasure.

This collection can be neatly divided into two parts; the classic part of it, and the Celtic part of it.

The classic portion of this project is where it all began. Actually, to be more accurate, it all began with this neat image i stumbled across a few months ago that suddenly reclaimed my attention a short while ago. I knew from the moment I saw that image that I wanted to do some interesting things with squares, but it took until sometime about 2 weeks ago for the idea to completely solidify and start to become something.

The classic portion is made up of 5 very pretty gems, each seeming to emanate their own special glow from deep within. On this portion of the project, I opted for two different metals; a classic gold, and a classic silver, as that I am always big on options (don't forget, I'm not just a customer, I'm a client:P) and quite honestly couldn't decide if I liked the gold or silver versions better in the early stages, and thought that making both versions would be best.

There are 2 bracelets, a necklace, 2 rings and 2 sets of earrings in this classic look.

The second portion of this project is loosely based upon my personal love of all things Celtic. There are only 4 different gems in this second set, all set in a classic silver, but each piece of this set is truly amazing (yes I am just that modest). Since the conception of this project, I have forgone all other jewellery in it's honor.

For each of the four gems, you will find 2 different necklace styles, 4 different bracelet styles, 2 rings and a 'must have' pair of earrings.

Both portions of this collection can be found in jewellery fullsets, and I strongly suggest if you find yourself drawn to a couple of pieces in a set, go for the fullset.. hell, that goes for pretty much any bundle or fullset package in my stores. I tend to be very generous with the pricing on these bundle packages.

~The Rockstar Collection~

2008-05-13T18:35:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: March 1, 2008

So I wanted to buy a nice jacket... this is how this particular tale begins... I searched high and low, but just couldn't seem to track down just the style I wanted. Oh ya, and I completely hate prim parts that stick through my butt, I've mentioned this before, and though I realize that's how most of the skirts and such are made in Sl, I refuse to change my opinion on this matter and so it was that the few jackets I found that even came close to what I was looking for were eventually found wanting.

When at last I gave up on my jacket hunt, still unrewarded for all my questing, I opted to try my own hand at the creation of what I had been so passionately seeking. This resulted in the first of what would become 16 different jackets that were soon met with short train versions, and then by boots, and finally followed by an array of clothing in the ten non-leather textures.

The outfits remind me a little of cheerleader costumes in some of their forms, and are cute, sexy and fun in all their forms. I'm not even sure what the total count on this project ended up as in the end, but it is a tad on the side of massive.

~The Elegant Collection~

2008-05-13T18:09:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: February 17, 2008

This is just another project by mistake of mine. I call it as such because I never actually intended for any project to come of it. It all began with a little clip of fabric that caught my eye, I started playing around with it just to exercise the mind, and before I knew it, something amazingly beautiful had come of it. In the end, I did as I often tend to do; I got entirely out of control with it.

The Elegant Collection boasts beautiful gowns, shoes and jewellery in 15 different styles. I opted to include the shoes and jewellery sets along with each matching dress, not because I didn't feel they were strong enough to stand on their own (I believe they do that very well) but because, in the end it really simplified my life, awful as it probably should be to admit that. My own laziness in the matter proves only to benefit the customer however, as that for a mere $ 650 L you'll receive a beautifully crafted dress, shoes, necklace, earrings, ring and bracelet already coordinated for a quick step into pure elegance.

~The Watchers Collection~

2008-05-13T17:52:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: Febuary, 17, 2008

There are 40 sets in total for this collection; 20 images in either gold or silver. Each image used in the pendants depicts either an angel or a fairy that caught my eye at some point along my travels. Each set comes all inclusive with the necklace, bracelet, ring and earrings all for only $ 350 L.

The winged ones range from sweet and watchful, to dark and sassy, and I can not tell you how much I personally love this entire collection. The jewellery is very pleasant to the eye, perfectly fit, and yes, perhaps even a little tame compared to some of my creations.

A few press mentions

2008-01-08T08:03:00.000-08:00

Just a quick little note here today to catch up on some minor press mentions I haven't gotten around to blogging yet.

Firstly, from way back in September on Closet Crisis, a mention of one of my fave freebies; Womens Tantari Ring.

(found @ http://closetcrisis.com/?p=224 )

From Issue #11 of Second Style Magazine, a little mention of some of my items created for the Mayan project;

(found @ http://www.secondstyle.com/downloads/Second_Style_Issue11.pdf )

From one of my faves, Ameila Book, mention of my Changing Squares set;

(found @ http://slfashionnotices.wordpress.com/2007/09/12/new-pretties/ )

And again mentioning my newest jewellery set, The Enchanted Collection;

(found @ http://slfashionnotices.wordpress.com/2007/12/23/sensual-aspen/ )

That pretty much catches me up to date on all of the SL press I know about.

~Enchanted Collection~

2007-12-14T13:19:00.000-08:00

Original Rlease Date: December 13, 2007

This is probably the biggest set of goodies I've released all at once in awhile now. The entire collection was inspired by my rl daughter, six years of age, and currently going through a very heavy princess fad. She has been nagging me for awhile now about not having anything fitting for a 'royal ball' in the stores, so this one I dedicate entirely to her.

There are 12 different dresses in total. A color for every mood really. They are built in such a way that they could easily double for a wedding dress if the desire to use them as such were there, but they are in my opinion, just plain pretty.

As some of you are probalby already aware, I am not a big fan of the typical sl prim skirt. It bothers me more then I can even communicate to have it sticking out of my body all higgly piggly. I know that this is just the way things are done around here, and have been done since long b4 I came on the scene, but this doesn't mean I have to like it. Though I've used the typical method for skirt creation several times, the only other time I've made something even remotely formal, I opted to do it in my own style. Again, with this set, this is what I've done.

Rather then hiding the skirt pannels in the body, each attaches ever so perfectly (trust me, this is a time consuming method) to a delicate, gem lined waistband. As with all of the gems in this entire set, those on the waistbands are scripted to change through the 12 traditional birthstones via simple voice command. And yes, for the record, I am very much in love with this method of creation lately. I like to give a lot of options in my creations, but it makes it a little cluttered around the shop to be creating them in every different version. Much simpler, and more efficient I feel, to have them all inclusive with the different options.

Each of the 12 dresses sells for $500 linden. The packs include the skirt base, done on a pant layer as I very much prefer over the skirt layers, lace lined top, flex skirt, optional flex hairpiece, AND matching shoes. This is another thing that has become a recent obsession for me, adding the shoes in with the packs that is. I have a few too many outfits in my own inventory that I have such a hard time matching shoes to, that I often just go barefoot or dont bother to wear the outfits at all. Matching shoes included? Viola! Excellent. No fuss, no muss.

Along with the dresses in this collection, there is of course jewellery; Two necklaces, two rings, bracelet, and earrings in both gold and silver. I did the jewellery just a little different this time around. Let me explain. When I first started tinkering with options for the jewellery, I created a longer necklace that dangled ever so nicely on the chest, but seemed to be missing something to me. I then scratched that idea, and recreated a completely different necklace that I very much prefered. However, at one point I wondered how they would look together, so I placed the original necklace on the spine attachment, the favored on the chest, and I so much liked the combination that I decided to toss the original necklace in the collection after all. Also, though I may be entirely alone in this, I am a big fan of some of my metal shoe versions. The cold and silver can fit in so nicely with almost anything after all. So as an afterthought, I decided to do up a set of the shoes in both gold and silver to match the jewellery sets. Interestingly enough, these shoes turned out to be my faves in the whole collection. Again, all of these pieces come all inclusive with the texture change gems.

Finally, also upon my daughters beckoning, I did something I havent done in a very long time; I made an enourmous bundle pack that includes litterly every single piece from this entire collection. I also set this bundle at such an amazing discount that truly, it makes it very worthwhile I should think.

So in a nutshell, theres the Enchanted Collection broken down for you. Don't forget to pick up your free xmas goodies in store while you're visiting! And on that note.... have a very merry christmas folks, I look forward to bringing you some interesting things in the new year. :)

~Goddess Collection~ ~Winter Wonderland Collection~ ~Diva Collection~

2007-11-26T16:13:00.000-08:00

Original Release Date: November 25, 2007

This is a strange sort of release month for me; instead of one large collection, instead I've released 3 mini collections and a couple of freebie goodies. The ~Winter Wonderland Collection~ (shown above in red and below left in black) is just a cute little ensemble released in 4 different colors; red, black, white and green. Perfect for spreading a little extra warmth this winter, this outfit comes with top, skirt base, flex skirt, crochet sweater, scarf AND boots.

The ~Goddess Collection~ was initially meant to be released in several different versions, but in the end, I really prefered the idea of just putting a whole wack of options into one perfect set. 46 different texture options in all, there is not an outfit out there that this set can not be made to match. On top of the texture change ability, this set is all lightly scripted to move, making it rather hypnotic to watch. (fullset shown below)

The ~Diva Collection~ consists of 3 different options (shown below in black) and is simply a sexy little outfit that's been kicking around in my personal stash for awhile now.
I also mentioned freebies:). Shown below are the goodies from the two boxes found near the Christmas tree in my mainstore right now, stop by and grab yourself a set.

Another Renovation

2007-09-05T03:58:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure how I keep doing it, but I seem to keep running out of space.
So, once again, I doubled my land, altered my store and renovated everything.
This time around, there's a few new things of worthy mention; on the second floor (yes, the second floor is new too) I added a Newbie wall. This is just horde of goodies I've purchased for just such a matter in order to help out some of the more linden challenged amongst us. It took me a sick amount of hours to sort through all the stuff I collected to create this wall (it's been an ongoing project for about 2 months now), which is the only reason you'll find much of it with a 1 linden price tag on them. For folks 30 days old or less, however, I've put together a male and female 'freebie package' that can be aquired through either myself or my partner. The packages contain a few of the esentials; skin, hair, eyes, shoes and clothing, and are provided absolutely free of charge. The entire idea, after all, was brought on by a desire to help out those just coming to our wonderous little community.
Also new, and located on the second floor, is the official ~Aries Celestial Designs~ discount wall. These items are not new, but the prices are. At the moment, the items on this wall are all from my first two collections created in game, but as that I can't seem to stop myself from building, look forward to finding more goodies up here eventually. I've cut this stuff down in price by about two thirds.
And finally, since I'm in such a jolly ol' mood about acomplishing so very much in the past few days... from now until the 15th of September, mention this post and recive half back on any ONE item purchased in store. (just IM me either before or after purchase and be patient... I'm away from the comp quite often these days.
Happy Shopping folks:)

~The Pierced and Painted Collection~

2007-09-05T03:29:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: September 4, 2007

This is a pretty large collection; 61 boxes to date. It's something I've been thinking about doing for a long time, but have kept putting off for some reason.

There are so many pieces in this, I'm not even going to attempt to show them all here. Just a couple highlights instead.

The begining inspiration to this entire collection really, is the corset piercings.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm all for piercings and tats in RL, but this is one set of piercings I would NEVER want to get for myself. It looks damn right uncomfortable and difficult to manage. Still... they've been drawing my interest of late, and I was curious to see how well I could adapt the idea to Sl. Turns out, pretty damn well actually. While not a huge fan of them in Rl, I find myself in growing lust with these intersting jewellery tidbits. I've scripted them to change via voice command through 10 of my own fave lace and satin textures, though, they can be adapted to add any of your own faves to the mix. They're actually incredibly sexy.

Moving on to the brow art; again, this is something that's been kicking around in my head for some time now... and these were incredibly interesting to make. I went above and beyond with these and all of the facial jewellery created in this set. Not only are they scripted to change through each of the twelve traditional birthstones via voice command, but I've also included another 34 of my fave gem textures just to keep things fresh and intersting. I absolutely love these things; they're original, sexy, and very feminine. Not to mention, they draw just the right amount of attention, hehe.

I don't know about you, but I love my cartoons. Any of you who might know about my home in the Bedrock in Sl might have guessed this by now. I feel there is always more room for our fave cartoon charactors in game... and so I brought in a few more.

12 in total to be precise; Scooby, Scooby with the gang, Betty Boop, Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Yo Sammity Sam, Smurfette, Papa Smurf, Mickey mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Daisy Duck. Now each of these wonderful creatures is appearing on both belly rings and chin studs. (ps. in Rl I own the labret studs with Scooby, Papa Smurf and Mickey Mouse... I'd kill for a Betty Boop, just in case any of you fine people might know where to locate one.) There are a slew of other facial piercings in this set; monroe, labret, reverse labret, eyebrow, nose, nose bridge... you name it. There are some nice simple metal versions, and some wonderful texture change gem versions. If you'd like to see the rest of them, stop on by the store and check them out.

~The Changing Squares Collection~

2007-09-05T03:09:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: August 31, 2007

Ok, truthfully, this isn't what I'd typically call a 'collection' which is why it (just as the last set) is unofficially titled and sort of blends in with previous items. In all honesty, it's just been an insanely busy summer for me in RL, and when I went to work on this particular set of jewellery, I never expected it to bare any edible fruit. I was just trying to brush off the cobwebs.
Like with many of my sets, it began as just an experiment with prims, twisting and bending the poor little buggers as I so enjoy doing... but then something began to take form, and before I knew it, I was actually working on a set.

The end result was small'ish compared to many of my past projects, but stil impressively complete; rings, bracelets, earrings and necklaces, coming in the options of gold, silver or my new fave medium, black shine.

Though I'd initially just been working with a pretty amber texture I've recently fallen in love with, in the end I saw the jewellery as being capable of so much more. I first thought of doing multiple stone selections, but finally decided to give this jewellery the ability to change through the traditional birthstones. After all... those traditional birthstones are what gave my building career in sl it's birth, and I can't help but find myself constantly drawn back into using them.

Second Life Sightseer Rocks!!!

2007-08-14T12:42:00.000-07:00

Imagine my giddiness at returning from my vacation to find this waiting for me!!! I was seriously tickled.
When I read down to the comments about the pink sweethearts silks, I actually chuckled outloud; god how I hate pink, but my more comanding partner (my six year old daughter who is more my boss then my partner I think) demands on a certain amount of pink added to my builds with such insistence that it is indeed a must.
All in all, this was the greatest honor I've recieved in my SL buisness life, it was a great article... yes, I am biased, but it was awesome nonetheless.

Jewelry: Aries Celestial Designs - Heart Birthstone Set
Hair: Sinsation - Carlie II Chocolate
Skin: Naughty - Alina Eye Shadow Smokey, Red Lipstick

Posted by Morgana Fillion at 2:38 PM

To read the rest of the article, go to:
http://slsightseer.blogspot.com/2007/08/i-heart-aries-celestial.html

I (heart) Style Disorder

2007-07-25T15:48:00.000-07:00

A little more press from Style Disorder.

~The Randomania Collection~

2007-07-23T20:56:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: July 22, 2007
Ok, wow, where to start. This is actually the second release of July, 59 boxes in total just put in Osato late last night. I have been unofficially referring to this as 'The Potluck Collection', 'The Randomania Collection' and 'That scary huge folder of stuff getting out of control in my inventory!!!'.
Truth is, in the end I never gave it an official name, and this is because this realease really does go all over the place.
It starts out with a trio of outfits I've dubbed the 'Vines outfits' that sort of fall more in sync with the 'Twisted Vines Collection' released earlier this month. The collection then goes on to include a set of silks and a pair of shoes from the silver 'Sweethearts Collection' released months ago. These are not new, not by any means. They were just sort of forgotten about during the original release and have been on my to-do list ever since.

There are lace dresses in ten different colors, all very kindly marked at a mere $75 L a piece. These were actually part of a project I also started a long time ago and sort of forgot about. Hey, dont look at me, I get busy...and well, easily distracted.

Now we're getting into my fave part of the realease; cross and heart-birthstone jewellery.

There are five unique pieces in the heart set; choker, armband, bracelet, ring and earrings; done in both gold and silver. Each piece is scripted to show all 12 traditional birthstones by voice command. Each piece is sold individually, and in fullsets at a discounted price.

I LOVE this stuff, its gorgeous, plus it takes me back a bit to my roots- remember, I began this little adventure making birthstone jewellery.

However, love it or not, I am NOT a scripter. In fact, I'm all but script illiterate. This stuff was hellish to create. Part of the difficulty was due to my lack of experience, but it really didn't help that I started (and at one point almost considered myself finished) with a less then great script. It was confused. It was confusing. It spewed all the info into chat. And worse then all else, anyone could change it, owner or not.

Last night I actually finished the jewellery up in it's entirety, boxed it, and put it in my main store. Unable to sleep last night due to a broken fire alarm going off in my apartment building, I kept thinking about that damn script. First thing this morning, I got my hands on a superior set of scripts, completely redid each and every piece of jewellery, reboxed and resubmitted all of it to the store. Phew!!

The cross set is also made up of five unique pieces; armband, chain, choker, ring and earrings. Each piece also comes in gold and silver, as well as being scripted (properly now thank you very much) to change through each of the 12 traditional birthstones. Unlike the hearts stuff though, there is a male version of the rings, bracelets and chains, and there is also a non scripted version of this same jewellery done in an extremely nice 'bejewelled' texture.
Last, but not least, are two outfits simply titled 'cross outfits' which I dearly love.

So that's the rundown. Sorry if this blog entry seems at all rushed, but um, well, it is. Places to go, people to see, prims to beat into submission, that kinda thing.

More Press

2007-07-17T05:24:00.000-07:00

A few more public mentions to add to my portfolio today; nothing huge, but a couple nice little name drops that gave me a grin.

The first I nearly didn't add to the blog simply because, well, I nearly missed it. But after careful deliberation, I decided that, well gee, I just like seeing my name in print so why miss an oppertunity to pass it on? hehe
Originally posted: http://slsightseer.blogspot.com/

The second is rather sweet actually; just a few mentions on Snapzilla posted (unsolicited) by a friend. http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/Default.aspx?source=pic&sort=Pictures.PictureID+desc&Name=Shava+Suntzu

And the third and final for today is a small triumph that only I (and my partner who's had to watch me climb walls in anticipation of the day it would FINALLY happen) can really truly appreciate. My first (yes, only first of many if I have my greedy little way) mention in Linden Lifestyles.

Originally posted: http://lindenlifestyles.com/?p=651

All in all, not a bad week for ~Aries Celestial Designs~.

EXTRA!!! EXTRA!!!!

2007-07-10T13:34:00.000-07:00

A friend IM'd me about this, this morning, knowing what a glutton I am about finding mention of my store in the Sl press. All I can say in response is WOOT! Hehe, thanks Willow! Style Disorder rocks!

orginally posted: http://www.styledisorder.com/blog/

~Aries Celestial Designs~ Store group - special offer

2007-07-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

Join out store group for updates, member only specials and occasional free items ~Aries Celestial Designs~
From now until the end of July, join the store group and IM me, Aries Bricklin, mention that you seen this blog and recieve 50% off the first item you purchase as a group member.

Discount is available for first time group members only, only one discounted item per person. Note: I do not recieve messages about new members, in order to recieve the discount, it is your responsibility to contact me.

~The Twisted Vines Collection~

2007-07-09T17:45:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: July 9, 2007

Fast on the heels of my last release; Shapes by~Aries Celestial Designs~ comes this small (for me), yet beautiful collection of shoes and jewellery.
This marks the first release ever for me without traditional metal materials. No golds, no silvers, just three pretty versions of white, black and green with a nice mild shine. It is a lovely, organic collection including rings, bracelets, amrbands, necklaces, earrings and shoes.

This is also a momentous occasion for the fact that it is one project that didn't manage to get completely out of my control. Chalk that up to a busy Rl right now, hehe, but don't get too used to it.
In fact, I had originally intended on including silks, as well as outfits along with this collection, and am still holding that thought at the front of my mind even as I type this. There is a large possibility that I will attack that very thing the moment I've finished washing my hands of this part of the process, but I suppose we'll all have to wait and see.

This project began sort of by mistake/fluke back while I was still working on ~The Atlantis 1 Collection~. Some of what I create comes from my Rl tastes, some comes from careful planning and conception, but the majority really does just come into its own being. For some reason I was playing with a sphere... that turned into a flower... that eventually became this collection.

My personal fave in this set though is the shoes. It is no secret that I mostly dislike shoes in Sl greatly. This comes from the fact that feet are ugly enough in Rl, but our av's really manage to make feet look hidious, and the shoes usually draw attention to that nightmare. When I make shoes, I am not making footwear; I am making jewellery for the feet designed mostly to cover up to myself how very ugly our feet really are. That may be a very odd statment, but I never once claimed to be even:P.

Hopefully y'all enjoy this stuff as much as I already am, and keep your eyes peeled just in case the collection is added to later this month.

~The Celestial Bodies Collection~

2007-07-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: June 30, 2007

(~The Celestial~Photographed with 'touch it' hair from Gurl 6, and CS Passport -Malibu/brown (Understated) skin.)

Well, the month of June was again a very busy one for me, mostly in Rl, thus allowing a lot less time for my sl adventures. However, I did make time for a very special release; Shapes by ~Aries Celestial Designs~.

This selection was something I have been wanting to branch out into for a long time now, but have previously never gotten around to. As of the original release (yesterday) there are ten shapes. Each one very carefully created so as that the proportions are actually correct, and the lines are smooth.

The first, ~The Celestial~ is actually based on my own av's dimentions. As that I am more a prim artist then anything else, the majority of what I create and sell is attachments. Many of them very delicate. This shape is perfect for wearing every item in the stores straight out of the box. Now, of course given that I am human and do possess an ego of my own, I couldnt' very well have a bunch of me clones running around out there, so while the dimentions are the same, I completely reinvented the face.

(~The Vamp~Photographed with Panache ZF-Wild child ponie hair, and *Mis* Goth makeup 2 skin from Midnight city.)

The shapes range very nicely in dimentions, from the uber petite China Doll and Anime Angel, to the bodacious Bootilicious and everything in between.

(~The Princess~ Photographed with Kin-Ayako-[black.blonde] hair and Haley 'night&day" skin from Naughty island.)

My personal faveorites would have to be The Celestial (of course), The Seductress, and surprisingly, The Anime Angel.

(~The Bootilicious~Photographed with Felicia black/natural color tips hair by panache, and modified Haley "night & day" skin from naughty island.)

Like the majority of shapes for sale around Sl, the skins and hair are not part of the packages... unlike the majority of shapes found around Sl though, I tried each shape with a slew of different hair and skin styles to be certain they would work well with the variations.

(~The Anime Angel~Photographed with modified Kin Sora hair in pink and Sharn Medium skin.)

Also, in my Osato and Drymonia locations, I started three freebie boxes (to be added to greatly later on); hair, skins and eyes collected from various locations around Sl. (note: not my designs, simply freebies available in world that I thought might be helpful to first time shape buyers.) A few of the skins and eyes I used for the pictures can actually be found in these boxes.

(~The China Doll~Photographed with modified Kin-Tritails-[midnight] hair and Diviant Kitties; lashes-mocha skin.)

These shapes, and all the shapes still to come (including men's) are sold with different permissions then the majority of my work; I have made them modify, copy, no transfer as opposed to my typical modify, no copy, transfer. I did this for a few very simple reasons; firstly, I HATE things thare are no mod.

(~The Girl Next Door~Photographed with *~*Damselfly*~ Bella Blonde Lt hair and Deviant Nations Vogue skin-cashmere (drama queen -slander) skin.)

As mentioned before, I actually won't even buy most things that are not modifiable. This holds doubly true when it comes to shape because loving a face on an av means nothing if you're stuck with boobs the size of watermelons (and that is not your (my) prefference). Secondly, copy was important to be added here so that the purchaser (is that a real word?) could maintain an original copy of the form and play with adjusting on a copy, rather then risk messing up the one and only.

(~The Malibu Barbie~Photographed with modified Faithe Midnight Panache hair in Blonde iced, and Pink Ivory skin by dragonfly designs.)

Now, my pre-occupation with Rl this past month has only really allowed time for completing this one project, which is truthfully rather small compared to my usual excessively large releases.

(~The Seductress~Photographed with Bathwater hair in black cherry by Gurl 6 and modified Haley "night&day" skin.)

But fear not... it just means the month of July will be extra full of primy goodness from ~Aries Celestial Designs~. There is a very interesting release coming for early this month, (hopefully within the next week, time willing) involving some of the most complicated prim manipulation I have done yet, as well as a little something I've had brewing for a long time coming.

(~The Little Goth~Photographed with ETD WLSB Collection; Simply Sassy hair in black red and !x2-aa-HFGLBB-Facehighlight_goth skin.)

Chichen Itza meets ~Aries Celestial Designs ~

2007-06-10T19:37:00.000-07:00

Just as I promised folks, it’s time to explain that last post. Why would I go through the trouble of reposting all of that information about something so seemingly unrelated to me and my stores you wonder? Well, that project I’ve been hinting at lately was in direct relation. Those costumes pictured above (worn by two of the hardest working people I know in SL) are my creation.
Some time in mid April I was contacted by Valiant Strangelove about the possibility of doing a new Mayan collection exclusively for an up and coming project created to boost the awareness of the Chichen Itza and inspire people to vote it into history as one of the new seven wonders of the world. I admit it, at that point in time I was a little bit like, “uh der, what who now?” But still, right from the start it felt right to me… like it was something I had to do.
Almost 2 months later, and a whole lot richer in my Mayan history knowledge, the sim made its official Secondlife debut today, and everywhere I looked were people wearing my creations. (the costumes are given as a thank you for voting at one of the many kiosks around the sim).
Biased by my involvement in the project or not, this is an amazing build. There is a beautifully scripted butterfly that gives a brilliant and educational tour of the sim, complete with a professional voice over and WOOT!!! mention of little ol’ me right at the end.
So make sure you swing by the Visit Mexico sim to vote; even if being part of selecting history doesn’t inspire you, the gift packages are well worth the trip. I worked my butt off on this one, pulling out all the stops to create some very unique items. As far as I know, the sarapes are entirely new to SL, and the jewellery for both the male and female costumes is utterly amazing. Yes, I am just that modest, hehe.
All in all, this has been an amazing experience for me, and I am greatly appreciative of having been given this once in a lifetime opportunity.

Visit Mexico!!!!

2007-06-10T19:15:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the following post doesn`t even mention Aries Bricklin, or ~Aries Celestial Designs~, so why exactly is it under the Press tag? Hehe, I promise to explain that in the very next post dear reader.

Original Post:

http://travel-offline.blogspot.com/2007_06_03_archive.html

Destination Bedrock

2007-06-10T15:40:00.000-07:00

I’d like to take a moment to talk about my favourite place in SL; Bedrock. Ok, perhaps I am just a little biased, as that Bedrock has been my home since pretty much the beginning, but regardless of that fact, I do believe it is a place that every single person in SL should visit at some point in their second life.
There are some pretty amazing builds all across the grid, but for those of us who grew up with the Flintstones, which is most of us, it is definitely like stepping back into our youth. There is really no other place in Secondlife I have found that gives me that same feeling.
Now let me give you the written tour as best as I can, but if you really want to experience the land, Tigey Honey is the man to see.
The landing point drops you just outside the yards of the Flintstone and Rubble houses where amongst the first things you’ll notice is a cut out of Fred Flintstone, and a green space ship. I strongly suggest two things if you want to get the utmost out of your visit; firstly, touch ol’ Fred there and get the note he passes out… included is a link to my store by the shore, and a map of the land layout which will prove very helpful as that Bedrock is rather big, with a lot to see and do. Second, I suggest you jump in Gazoo’s ship and take the official tour. This will give you some of the highlights along with commentary, plus it’s just plain fun.
Once the tour ends and you jump down out of the ship, please be sure to vote. A lot of work has gone into this sim, so it’s always nice to show your appreciation.
Now the tour by foot; I have long been in love with the dance pavilion in Bedrock. I have a habit of setting the sun to midnight to fully enjoy the light show whenever I dance there. Looks can be a little deceiving, as anyone who’s spent any amount of time searching for the many hidden areas in Bedrock will tell you, and there is more to this dance area than first meets the eye. I’m not going to tell you though, dear readers, how to find the entrance to the submerged dance floor… half the fun is in the seeking.
Next up we have the quarry office… home to the infamous Mr. Slate, and next the quarry where Fred and Barney labour the day away before heading off for some fun and relaxation.
Be sure to take a ride on the Ferris wheel while you’re in town; it makes for a very romantic stop for any couple. Plus, it’s dino-powered!! How cool is that?
Now, I haven’t played in awhile, too busy, busy, busy, but there are few things in SL funner then a round of golf at Bedrocks mini-golf course. Given, it seems pretty tough at first, but trust me, give yourself at least three holes to get a hang of things, and the next thing you know you’ll be the stone age version of Tiger Woods. Of course, that still wont help you beat me :P.
Just around the corner you’ll find the boutique wherein you will find some of the character AVs and some Bedrock style clothing to make your stay all the more enjoyable. That big building in the center you ask? Why, that’s the bowling alley, and up top is the future office of the Daily Slate.
Next up we have the Bedrock Fire Hall… home of the cutest elephant in all of SL. Our Fire Chief, Elly watches over things and keeps us safe from the inevitable volcano eruptions and various other emergency’s that arise from time to time.
Just across the road you’ll find the police station and kitty corner is the Water Buffalo Lodge. (side note: just inside the reception area of the police station you’ll find a slew of wanted posters featuring the faces of some of SL’s most famous)
Now these are just a few of the highlights, words can not truly express how cool this sim is. There is a mud spa, a drive in movie theatre that plays free movies, so many hidden areas I really honestly couldn’t even tell you how many there are anymore, and a ton of interactive features.
Bedrock is as much a part of my Second Life as is ~Aries Celestial Designs~, the land is amazing, the company is unbeatable, and I am honoured to be a part of it.

As The World Turns

2007-06-01T11:58:00.000-07:00

(taken from http://slfashionnotices.wordpress.com/2007/05/31/new-layniewear/#comment-481)

I admit it; sometimes I am far too easy to excite. Regardless, Amelia Book has to be my new favourite SL’er for her short yet sweet review of one of the new rings.

~Aries Celestial Designs~ Surprise Relocation

2007-06-01T11:48:00.000-07:00

Funny how some things can happen entirely out of the blue. Like, for example, I have been warring with the idea of purchasing new land in a faster sim for months now because of the extreme lag I’ve been experiencing in Crumbi. However, after a few days at a time of deliberation, for some reason in the end I just ended buy a new chunk of land in the same lag prone sim and tacking it on to my existing prim count. I kid you not, I started out with 768 there back in November, and own 3072 there currently, all bought a little postage stamp at a time.

I guess the biggest reason I hesitated so long was due to, in part anyways, the fact that I am always busy. Between seeking out and making new textures, banging away in Gimp, building new merchandise for ~Aries Celestial Designs~, helping my nearest and dearest around Bedrock, and this last month where a little ‘extra’ project needed special attention (and a whole lot of it) I pretty much run the clock ragged. I really didn’t want to take the time to shop for new land, build a new store, redo all of my landmarks, and set things up. And I suppose a part of my hesitation came from the fact that Crumbi was my first store, and despite the horrid (oh god it’d murder) lag, it’s been good to me.

The day before yesterday, however, was the final straw. I just stopped in to pick up a copy of something, and the lag was so atrocious I guess I snapped, because ten minutes after leaving my store, I found myself standing in the middle of a nicely sized lot in a class five sim. My partner and I debated the pros and cons of the matter for some time and the next thing we knew, BAM, plans began for a brand new store in a brand new sim.

Now, I did figure it would take me a lot more time to prepare everything, but as my partner likes to point out from time to time, I’m quite prolific when I get my mind set to something. Last night, after a little more then 24 hours since buying the new land, I had everything sufficiently in place and officially opened the store to business. So happy was I knowing that I was escaping the lag that had been making me nuts for months now, that I decided to put on a sale to celebrate. For one week, and one week only, everything in the new store is marked down to $100 L or less. It’s a pretty good deal all around, but in some cases it’s just a stupid good discount. Everything I sell was included at the sale prices, but I did take the bundle packs and combo packs out for the duration of the event... and one other thing; normally everything I sell is modify, transfer, no copy… for this event, things are set to modify, no transfer, copy. If you’re shopping for a gift for someone, fear not, the same items are still available with normal perms in my Bedrock store, and for the time being, at the Crumbi location, however, they’re full price. Sorry folks.

The evolution: this is the first time I’ve even looked at this original shot in months, and if it wasn’t labelled every so nicely, I’d never have even recognized it since the entire sim has changed so drastically since this was taken.

When the land in Crumbi first became ~Aries Celestial Designs~, it was little more then a handful of vendors… and due to having very little in the way of prims, we skimped a lot on the building itself as you can plainly see. Hehe

Almost current Crumbi

And BAM!! My new baby.

Ok, I’m done being nostalgic.

~Aries Celestial Designs~ Official Blog: ~The Atlantis I Collection~

2007-05-29T23:34:00.000-07:00

~Aries Celestial Designs~ Official Blog: ~The Atlantis I Collection~

~The Atlantis I Collection~

2007-05-28T19:42:00.001-07:00

Original Release: May 2007

This is a momentous occasion; the first post on a current item! Meaning, essentially, I am finally up to date and can slow it down a little.

Allow me to introduce ~The Atlantis I Collection~. It has been an incredibly busy month for me, and this collection nearly didn't make it out as a May release at all, but given the fact that I have kept a record of releasing at least one collection a month since I began my SL designer career, I worked my butt off to make it happen.

I have long wanted to do an Atlantis project, but it wasn't until early this month that I found my inspiration. It all began late one evening when, having tired of sorting my inventory, i started playing with prims. I wasn't intending on building anything truly. Wasn't even in an experimental sort of mood. I was really just playing with prims for lack of anything better to do, and an interesting shape began to take form. The next day I began work on the project, but was intterupted before long to.... well, what that interruption was I promise to share with you soon dear readers, but for now let's just say that I was called away to other things for a couple of weeks.

When finally I had the time and ambition to get back to work on the Atlantis project, I was nearly certain there was no way I'd be able to complete it in time to release a new collection by the end of May, but as someone near and dear to my heart pointed out as the work on this project came to a close, I am a very driven woman when I get something in my mind, and would stop at nearly nothing to meet my own deadlines.

This is the first of a planned 2 part collection, however, I have no plans of beginning on the second instalment immediately, as that there is something else pulling at the strings of my grand interest right now.

This collection consists of some very cool silks and jewellery, all focusing around 4 brilliant crystals (Obsidian, Amethyst, Blue Calcite and Quartz) working in unison with 4 different power sources. Each piece from silk to ring features spinning orbs of Earth, Lightening, Galaxy or Moon powers. This time around I chose to go with three different metals; gold, silver and Black shine.

(shown above: Obsidian Crystal with Spinning Lightening Orb Necklace in Silver)Very fine delicate lines on each piece. So delicate in fact, that taking the perfect pictures this time around proved to be a major test of patience. The rings for this collection turned out to be an instant fave for me, surprisingly enough.(shown on right: Spinning Earth Orb Ring in silver) (shown on left: Quartz Crystal with Spinning Galaxy orb earrings in gold)They were not even part of the original plan at all, but were done at the end when a smart woman would have counted herself finished and moved on. It was at the insistence of my RL daughter though that I make the rings, and I absolutely love them. (shown on left: Quartz chip and spinning galaxy orb bracelet)But then again, I love everything I make, if I didn't, I would never bother to put it in my stores. The coolest thing about this collection in my personal opinion is the moving parts. There is no cheazyness to it, just a very cool, very subtle effect that I personally adore. The tiny crystal chips in the bracelets and earrings move slightly slower and in the opposite direction of the orbs themselves, but it is so subtle that you would never notice if you were not intentionally looking for it.(shown on right:Blue Calcite crystal with spinning earth orb choker in silver)

The real accomplishment in this project however, was not in the jewellery, but in the silks. They were not an original part of the plan, but I am used to projects getting a lot more out of control then this one managed to do. (shown on right:Blue Calcite and spinning earth orb silks in gold shown on on left:Obsidian and spinning lightening orb silks in gold)

Each set of silks comes with the gold, silver and black shine versions.

Unfortunately, pictures rarely do my work justice, and that is even more true in this case, but these silks are all prim perfection.

So that's ~The Atlantis I Collection~ in a nutshell... no shoes this time around, but that's something I intend to remedy in the second instalment.

~The Spring Fling Collection~

2007-05-28T04:01:00.000-07:00

Original Release: April 2007 I learn a lot every time I do a project, as that I tend to do things entirely different each time and am often forced into learning something new (or several new things) in order to turn my ideas into a reality. This project however, was a truly amazing learning experience for me.

I took to prim work from the start in SL, few things in this world bring me as much pleasure as torturing prims into doing my bidding. This set however, was a whole new ball game.

The original idea was simple, in theory. I wanted to do a tri-metal blend. I originally thought I'd do it using simple thin bands of metal sort of layered... but right from the start it didn't feel like enough. (shown on right: spring fling tri-metal belly dangle) It took me days upon days upon days to get the first success out of my experiments, fighting against unusually high lag at the time didn't much help, but the result was truly amazing. In the end I managed to twist the metals together for the effect I had envisioned in my mind.
(shown on left: spring fling tri-metal choker) That is not a texture folks, but the result of an incredibly stubborn woman and some greatly abused prims. Citrine seemed like the natural addition to this jewellery, fitting ever so nicely in with the theme and the twisted metal sun pendants. There were only seven pieces to the full jewellery set in the end, much smaller by comparison to any of my past projects, but the hours that went into creating them were astronomical.

Now, I couldn't have a true Spring Fling collection without clothing could I? Up to this point in time my dealings with Gimp and the clothing templates were minimal. Wait, more truthfully, my successes were minimal. (Shown on right: Spring fling dress in Wild Berry Net) The reason for that in part at least is that I had never truly set my focus on it. I was too busy beating prims into submission. Several hours and tension headaches later, I FINALLY figured out the elusive secret to the perfect shirt straps, and suddenly everything started to fall into place for me.

There are 15 variations of this outfit, each including tank, booty shorts, flex top and two crochet butterfly sweaters (one in white, one in black).

I have this weird compulsion to always do more. It tends to drive a lot of people close to me a little nutz, but I admit to having a hard time knowing when enough is enough. That may be the largest reason I have accumulated so much merchandise in such a short amount of time. When it came to this project, that held true once again, because I couldnt simply leave the outfits, ever so adorable as they were, without shoes. How would I ever find the perfect shoes to match???? Simple; I'd make about a billion pairs of them.

Ok, in the end there were atually only 30 pairs, and I ended up selling them two pairs in a box. Each set of two is made using a fabric matching one of the 15 spring fling outfits, and then overlayed with white lace and black lace (done to match the two crochet sweaters in each outfit). (shown above: spring fling sandals in Blue Rasberry)These shoes manage to do what so few shoes in Sl can claim to do; they actually make your feet look better rather then draw attention to the ugliness that is our AV feet. There are cute flex straps on the ankle bands to accompany the little prim rose that crowns them.

~The Wild Rose Collection~

2007-05-28T03:25:00.000-07:00

Original Release: March 2007 This was a fun collection to work on, and actually served to teach me a lot along the way. It consists of jewellery in three different metals (silver, gold and red-tinted gold), clothing and shoes.
I used delicate chain links for the bulk of the jewellery collection, and adorned each piece with petite wild rose diamonds and wild rose pendants. This was the first (and likely only) collection to date I've used bling with. I know that bling is hugely popular all over SL, and I respect that, but I quite honestly hate the stuff. It's gawdy and flashy and drives me up the wall. However, at the suggestion of others, I did add bling into this set, and I admit, it does look a little pretty to me when it flashes, but when I wear this stuff, I tend to turn the bling off within minutes.

There are 12 pieces of jewellery in all, each piece made one tiny prim at a time and taking hours upon hours to complete.

There are only two outfits with this collection, the rose and the red rose sets (each set comes with corset, shorts, pants and flex skirt) and 4 pairs of shoes, rose and red rose stilettos and stilleto sandals.

I'd be tempted to say this was one collection that didn't get wildly out of control on me, if it were not for the fact that this was NEVER intended to be a collection. I'd taken a couple of weeks off designing for my stores to do some other things I'd been putting off, and and was feeling 'out of touch' with my building skills. I started the first piece of this collection (the wild rose metal ring necklace) to just sort of warm myself back up... and then before I knew it, it had become a full blown project.

~The Sweethearts Collection~

2007-05-28T02:16:00.000-07:00

Original Release: February 2006 This entirely line was delicately crafted through hours upon hours of hard work and dedication to bring once again, something new to the table, and something of complete quality to my customers.

Originally it was released only in gold, but after several requests, I added a silver addition shortly after. The collection started out once again with the simple desire to make myself a great necklace (this time however, I did have intentions of course to release it to the public as well), and once again, this collection managed to take on a life of its own and get entirely out of my control.

The Rundown:

This heart shaped box is scripted to open on touch and provides eye pleasing storage for everything from jewellery to special keepsakes. The inside of the lid is inscribed with one of my own personal love quotes. (the silver version comes sans quote)

A great frame to place your fave photos

These were my first attempt at heels and are available in

two different versions; stilettos and stilettos sandals. There are tiny ruby heart gems stratigically placed throughout both versions of these shoes, and wear a lot more like jewellery for the feet.

There are 17 pieces to the woman's jewellery in this collection, in both the gold and silver versions; 2 different bracelets, armbands (counted as one item) choker, delicate chain necklace, belly belt, lip stud, nose stud, 2 different anklets, 4 different rings, toe ring, belly ring and earrings. (Each piece was crafted with combinations of the following; heart etched gold or brushed silver, tiny ruby heart gems and pendants or tiny tourmaline heart gems and pendants. Ruby heart cluster gems and pendants, or tourmaline heart cluster gems and pendants.)
The men's jewellery is made up of only 4 pieces for each metal and feature a gorgeous, yet masculine, Celtic love knot. I am told at least once daily that I should concentrate on putting out a lot more items for men, and the only response I can honestly give is, "It's on my list."
At the time when I made these, I believed them to be the sexiest set of silks in Sl (yes, I'm just that modest:P). I have updated that opinion only because of a current project, but that's another store altogether. Like all of my previous silks, these wear a lot more like jewellery then clothing. they can be purchased alone, or in a combo pack along side the silk gown from this

collection to enable the whole 'mix and match' option. The gown is positively the cream of the crop. One of the things that bothers me a little about Sl clothing is the fact that flex is almost always designed to sink into the AV, which to me often appears messy. I wanted to make something that existed on its own, without a skirt base, but that wasn't enormous, just simply feminine and sexy. This was the outcome of that desire.

So that's the ~Sweethearts Collection~ in a nutshell.

!!Press!!

2007-05-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

One of the most important thing in any buisness, RL or SL is publicity. And one of the hardest things I have faced in my SL buisnesslife is well, getting press. Go figure. Truth of the matter is that I would way prefer to have my head down messing with prims then doing publicity type stuff, and the few times I have put a lot of time and/or effort into gaining said publicity, I've ended up feeling a little flat (for example, sending nearly $15,000 L worth of goodies to the girls at Linden Lifestyles and being met with eerie silence). Tsk tsk for that. I've been advised to put a little more time into my self promotions, and as such, this blog was created along with a wave of other 'experiments'.

Anywho, from here on out I'll try to keep track of any and all press mention I manage to snag.

(from my first involvment with an SL fashion show...)

Thursday, February 22
6PM - CZ Designs Fashion Show CZ Designs presents a Gala Fashion show featuring a sneak preview of Mamaa's Creations spring lineup and the latest creations from Aries Celestial Designs. Also introducing corset tops from their newest designer Dana's Studio. At Solang (74, 17).
from: http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/02/riks_picks_for__2.html

from: http://www.the-avastar.com/slife/jsp/microsite/pages/index.jsp

~The Mayan Collection~

2007-05-23T11:03:00.001-07:00

Original Release: January 2007

(above: entire Mayan Gold collection- 2 pairs of sandals, 4 sets of silks and 2 sets of jewellery using our famous Mayan gold, 2 stones and 3 fabrics)
This collection began entirely by accident really. It is one half of a two collection project that was initially only meant to be ~The Egyptian Collection~. They Mayan set was breathed into life after the simple discovery of a single beautiful texture, and everything else is history.
Everything in this collection is made entirely of prim work that took hours upon hours to perfect. ~The Mayan Collection~ is composed of two precious metals, (gold and silver) 4 beautiful gems (Mayan stone and Mayan zodiac, Mayan shield and Mayan Jungle) and six amazing fabrics. The entire Mayan collection includes 8 sets of the most unique silks you can find in the game (linked gems line the waist and chest), 4 sets of prim sandals (still one of my most popular items) and 4 full sets of jewellery. I do not sell the jewellery in stores in individual pieces, but do have a price list for each piece and am happy to doll them out via IM’s (I have been meaning to put the individual pieces up on SL exchange for some time… it is still on my unofficial list of to-dos that I never seem to have time to get to). (above: Mayan silver sandals with jungle scene gems)

~The Egyptian Collection~

2007-05-23T10:46:00.000-07:00

Original Release: January 2007

(above: entire Egyptian Gold collection- 2 pairs of sandals, 4 sets of silks and 2 sets of jewellery using our famous Mayan gold, 2 stones and 3 fabrics)

Truly one of my most prized creations, ~The Egyptian Collection~ all began from the simple desire to abuse the hell out of prims.

I have long been in love with all things Egyptian, and wanted to create something different to bring into SL. I can’t recall where (if anywhere) my inspiration for this set came from other then the textures themselves. It began with the top, linked gems leading from a collar, following the dip of the breast and leading around the back. By the time I got to making the skirt, the project had already gone out of control in my mind. There were actually more parts to this collection then ever made it to my stores… they’ve fallen into my personal use folder with the possibility of eventually making it into a second ~Egyptian Collection~ (always an intention for me to create a second) down the road.
This collection includes 8 sets of original silks, 2 sets of prim sandals and 2 full sets of jewellery. There are two precious metals (snake skin gold and scarab silver) 4 gorgeous gems and 5 pretty fabrics.

(above: 9 piece Egyptian gold with peacock gem jewellery set)
Though a few months old now, this collection is still my most popular in stores, especially the sandals, despite my ugly newbie toes in the pix.

~The Silks Collection~

2007-05-19T14:08:00.001-07:00

Original Release: December 2006

(shown above: silks fatpack, 9 of the most popular sets, including a tintable white satin set, bundled together at a discounted price of $1000 L)

I may not be the submissive type, but since the first time I seen them in game, I found silks to be one of the sexiest, most feminine creations imaginable.

While I was still in the process of completing ~The Birthstone Collection~ I collected a few sets of silks for myself, even if I didn't have any real need or purpose for them. What I found though was that, while flowing and pretty, the sets I collected were a) no mod and thus impossible to get a perfect fit (god how I hate not being able to force things to fit my av perfectly. So much so in fact that I refuse to purchase anything in game with no mod prim parts unless the layer work is so phenominal I can't resist) and b) kinda boring on the fabric side of things. The sollution? After completing ~The Birthstone Collection~ I started playing with flex a little and trying to get a hang of the whole silks idea. Turned out the skirts were incredibly basic (go figure, a few simple panels put in the right places and BANGO! you got it baby). The real challenge didn't come in for me until I started on the tops. I started out by making something really simple in Gimp, sort of resembling the tops that came with my purchased silk sets... but looking at it on, I found it incredibly bland. I was so in love with flex that I decided to attempt a full prim top. The outcome was a very pretty flex and bubble bead top that sways so nicely when you move I can't help but fall back in love with the silks every time I put them on even now. The way the tops are put together allows for just enough sway of the front panels to hint at the nipples below without ever truly exposing them.. I love that, hehe.

When it came time to texture the sets, I used some very lovely silks and satins I'd come across for the majority of them, but then imported a few of my own fave fabrics to give some of the sets a really unique look. (shown on left: Fall Fairy silks) When I first put them in the store, I expected the more unique ones to not sell too well at all.. after all they were created based on my sometimes weird tastes, and I just didn't expect them to be very popular. As it turned out however, the different fairy silks did (and still do) much better then the simple silks and satins I used. Go figure. (shown on right: Black Japanese Silks)

There are 17 sets in all to chose from, each coming with matching panty, flex armbands, ankle bands, flex skirt and top, plus as a bonus, I tossed some simple bubble bead and lock chokers into the boxes when I prepared them for sales for those a little more bold then myself that prefer the topless look, but still want a little extra decor above the waistline.

Though my prim work skills have advanced greatly since those early days, I still have a soft spot in my heart for these silks and the experience gained in creating them was priceless.

~The Birthstone Collection~

2007-05-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

Original Release: Mid November 2006

This set is exactly what the name claims it to be; a birthstone collection. The project now includes variations on sets in all 12 (by month) birthstones; sterling silver, etched silver, and etched gold; with a couple variations; lock and eternity ball pendants, or simply eternity ball pendants.

Each set comes with a choker, 2 matching bracelets, 2 matching anklets, and hoop earrings and sells in stores for $450 L. (shown on left; ruby etched gold set with lock and eternity ball pendants)
A gem chart is available in stores to help you decide which gem is best for you or for a special someone.

Meet the designer

2007-05-15T20:52:00.000-07:00

I'm just a little behind the game in this blog thing so bare with me while I try to catch you up to speed. My name is Aries Bricklin (in secondlife at any rate, I just don't think we're close enough to start exchanging real life info as of yet dear reader) and I am the owner and designer behind ~Aries Celestial Designs~.
I stumbled upon Sl one late night in August of 2006. Bored to death of my usual online adventures, I'd actually got it in mind to find a free trial of the Sims online... suffice it to say, I never did end up finding it, but instead I found myself submerged into the most awe inspiring 3-d world I had never thought to even imagine.
My introduction to the wonderful world of Sl designing came a short time after and was entirely self serving; in Rl I am a huge fan of chokers and was searching to find something just right in game, but after 2 days of scouring the grid, I didn't come even remotely close to finding what it was I was after. After returning to my home in Sl (Bedrock) frustrated, my partner pointed out the obvious; if I couldn't find what I wanted, I'd just have to learn to make it myself. Hmm... interesting idea, but I had no clue how to build really. At that point I was still wearing the occasional box on my head, so I almost dismissed the idea out of hand. However, with his patient tutelage, I began the first of my 'experiments' and soon found myself smack dab in the middle of a new obsession.
My first collection ~The Birthstone Collection~ (yes, ever so original) got very carried away. It began that day with my partner's kind urging, just a simple necklace with a nice lock pendant reminiscent of an angel picture that was given to me my first month online (and later became my store logo), but as per usual with me, simple got out of hand before long. Couldn't very well have JUST a lock right? No no, far too boring... it needed a little something. Hmm... ah, what about my birthstone? That's when the garnets were added in, and at some point (not even entirely sure I arrived at the idea myself, or if it was in fact my partners suggestion) the idea to do a necklace in each of the 12 birthstones arose. As the work on the chokers came to a close, it occurred to me that not everyone would like the lock pendants, after all, in a world like Sl, suffused in BDSM role play and stuff, it may be considered by some as a symbol of submission (I definitely did not arrive at that thought myself) and so I created the eternity ball pendants as an alternative to the locks. Just as I was coming to a close on that set of chokers, it occurred to me that JUST a choker couldn’t be acceptable. I mean, after all, I had no other jewellery that came even close to matching my pretty new lock and garnet choker. The simple choker soon became a simple set including the necklace, bracelets, anklets and earrings. Simple… HA! The final brainwave in this collection came when I realized that some people prefer gold to silver, and oh look at that other pretty silver!!! Oh boy. What ended up coming out of that simple little ‘me’ project was actually a bit mind numbing. 3 metals (2 silvers and an amazingly gorgeous gold) in 2 separate styles (one with the locks, one without) and 12 gems. 72 full sets in total, each with seven pieces (choker, 2 bracelets, 2 anklets and 2 earrings)!
Now when I started the whole thing, I never intended for a second to sell them. Even when I got carried away with it, I don’t think I really considered selling them, however I do recall an internal voice taking stock of friends in game and their birthstones so that I could send them each a set when I was done (which I did). How things metamorphosed into me opening a store of my own, I don’t clearly remember at all. I do know that my partner bought a piece of land and decided would be a great place for a store, giving me a bit of a push to do it.
That little 768 sq m plot in Crumbi opened as ~Aries Celestial Designs~ sometime in mid November. It had a cute open design to the store, in a rather Egyptian style, and was ruined only by the fact that it was fully of ugly clunky vendors. Suddenly eager to make a buck and put that land to good use, I loaded the goods into vendors. Not just the 72 sets, but individual pieces were also available. I don’t even remember how many vendors it took to do that. I do know that it took me days of fighting with the vendors to load them properly, (oh how I have grown to loathe vendors over time) and I do recall feeling pretty proud when the time to stand back and stare at my work in awe came to pass.
Over time, that 768 plot grew (GIVE ME MORE PRIMS!! I MUST HAVE MORE PRIMS!!!) And ~The Birthstone Collection~ selection shrunk drastically. I still feel I sell too many options of them, lol, but at least it’s down to 3 full sets, and in all fairness they are still a pretty popular seller. In time, at that location at least, the vendors were phased out and the entire store went through a face lift or two. I experimented with renting vendor stalls and mall space across the grid and am currently in the process of fazing them out as I type this. Henceforth it will only be my main stores (yes, 2 main stores) in Crumbi and below Bedrock in Drymonia. Those of you that read these blogs will soon learn one thing about me if you’ve not figured it out already; I am VERY wordy. I apologize for that. Can’t stop it, won’t try because I already know I can’t stop it, but I do apologize. Now as they say, on with the show.