It’s that time again! What time is it, you ask? Shop & Hop, Trick or Treat on Bellisseria, and a whole lot of spooky goodies popping up all over Second Life! As a Second Life resident, I feel like I have to wear wings every now and then, so I decided to bring out my favorite Mini Wings from 2AM and pair them with the new Celestine Dress from Dhoma, available at FaMESHed. I love the rich emerald green satin, the corset-inspired bodice with lace-up details, and those gorgeous puff sleeves with delicate lace accents. The short, flouncy skirt gives it a romantic fairy-tale look, but it’s also a little cheeky in the back! Paired with my wings, it’s giving me major Tinker Bell vibes, only a little more grown-up.
I’m also really impressed with the updated Shop & Hop build this year! The new layout feels more like a shopping mall, and the outdoor spaces are especially cute with all of the autumn landscaping and twinkling lights. I’ve always had a soft spot for Shop & Hop because it’s one of those events that welcomes such a wide range of Second Life creators, from established favorites to smaller brands you might not have discovered otherwise. And of course, the gifts are always a big part of the fun! If you don’t feel like hunting through every store to find them all, you can grab FabFree’s Halloween Shop & Hop shopping guide and plan your shopping trip!
I remember when Hair Fair was the event to look forward to every summer in Second Life. These days, with shopping events happening every month, it doesn’t quite have the same sense of anticipation. Back then, by the time Hair Fair rolled around, everyone was absolutely starving for new hairstyles.
You can join the Hair Fair Demo Group (secondlife:///app/group/2e30d166-f3e5-e2de-ff72-b3da2d06ded2/about) and have all the demos delivered to you, but I actually prefer walking the event and visiting each store. I like browsing the booths, collecting demos manually, and discovering the gifts along the way. One thing I also appreciate is being able to see exactly how much each hairstyle is donating. Every participating hair contributes a percentage to the charity, but some creators go even further and donate 50% or even 100% of their sales.
There are a lot of charity events in Second Life throughout the year, and I think it’s wonderful when communities come together to support a good cause. At the same time, I think residents should pay attention to where their donations are going and how transparent an event is about its fundraising. That’s one of the reasons I’ve always appreciated Hair Fair. The event’s relationship with Wigs for Kids is publicly acknowledged by the charity itself, and every year Hair Fair posts the donation receipt and thank-you letter after the event concludes. I like that level of transparency. It allows residents and designers alike to see the impact their generosity is making, and you can feel confident that your shopping is supporting a real-world cause.
Kuni – Manu
Exile – Never the Same
I was excited to see some of my favorite brands participating this year, including Truth, Kuni, and Exile. It was also interesting to see Truth represented solely by hairstyles and accessories created by Litterbug. I noticed fellow Truth Collective creator Wasabi at the event as well. One thing I like about collaborations such as Truth Collective is that the individual creators are acknowledged for their work. There are plenty of brands in Second Life that describe themselves as a team, but you never really know who created what. I like following creators and recognizing their individual styles, even when they’re creating under a larger brand.
I also can’t leave Hair Fair without mentioning the Bandana Booth. I picked up this adorable bandana by Alaskametro, and there are several other prints available as well. Pretty much everything Alaskametro makes is beautifully textured. If you’ve followed my blog for any length of time, you already know I’m a fan.
Alaskametro – “Bling” Bandana for Hair Fair
Another new addition this year is Linden Lab’s contribution to the fundraiser. Residents can purchase three exclusive last names: Style, Strand, and Salon, with proceeds benefiting the charity. If I wasn’t already having an identity crisis with my avatar, I’d probably be changing my last name to Style immediately.
Linden Lab will also be auctioning off Premium Lifetime memberships during the event, with more details coming soon. If you’re someone who gets a lot of value from Premium benefits and plans to stick around Second Life for the long haul, it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on.
I recently had the pleasure of attending MachiniconSL, an exciting event hosted by Bay City Studios and brought to life by the talented Feorie Frimon. Known for her passion for machinima in Second Life, Feorie has provided countless tutorials on YouTube that have proven invaluable. Thanks to one of her videos, I even learned how to create a PBR mirror in Second Life!
This is the inaugural MachiniconSL event, open to visitors until September 26th. Upon arrival, you’re welcomed onto a clear path reminiscent of a theme park, setting the stage for a self-guided tour brimming with helpful insights and creative filming tips.
One of the highlights for me was the immediate immersion into various meticulously crafted scenes, perfect for snapping photos or capturing videos. The opportunity to support the event is also present, whether through shopping at the numerous stores or donating to the Child’s Play charity at designated kiosks.
The experience was not only enjoyable but incredibly inspiring. I even ended up filming an impromptu dance video! MachiniconSL offers numerous engaging activities—bring a friend, dance, re-enact a fight scene, explore an underground bunker, or simply have fun experimenting with an array of animations.
Don’t miss out on this fantastic event! Visit MachiniconSL and let your creativity soar!
When it comes to music events in VRChat, its hardcore partygoers are happy as long as there’s good music and positive vibes. With only a few optimization hiccups, Slyfest provided such a space this weekend, with a 3-day roster and slick social presence to boot.
Slyfest is a virtual festival aimed at bringing IRL and virtual djs together. It isn’t the first venue to do this, but the ease of real djs announcing they were playing at an event in VRChat was impressive. Loner Online, a well-established dance scene with its own heavy social media presence, is one of the only other venues which does this regularly. The club paired itself with Slyfest for the event, so it’s no wonder this was observed again. Real-life djs also sometimes announce spinning at other weekly virtual clubs, but the crossover isn’t that frequent.
Slyfest’s map design felt top-notch:
Usually in a virtual club like this, you would peer out the window and find a background shader put up to cover the vista, with the exception of places like DDVR and Loner.
Slyfest’s vista is a gently rolling sea with jellyfish floating slowly towards the surface. It’s beautiful.
There was the expectation that the main floor would be different from TheSlyThief’s tribute map to Porter Robinson’s Secret Sky Festival. The same round dance floor was found again in Slyfest, with two whales from the previous map swimming around at the top. None of this was a paid experience, so there’s not a lot of room here to complain. I probably would’ve kept the same tech but changed the shape of the floor, though, to make it a bit different.
The normals on the map were beautiful, and everything was optimized pretty well when the festival wasn’t at capacity (to provide ease with lower end computers, I would have a button to disable video on surfaces except for the main video screen next time). No one can complain at how luxurious the map’s textures were. This is still top of the line work.
Both Slyfest and Virtual Bass should be showcased as the kind of quality VRChat is capable of with digital events, along with Ghost Club.
The real star of the show with Slyfest was the energy. When there were technical issues, people stayed in the Twitch chat and played word games or provided encouragement while the staff figured out the problem. Every festival day was completed with a group photo and shared around with thank-yous. Pregaming, as with other EDM festivals in the game, became its own event. I even wound up at a small apartment with a group of streamers to pass the time until the day 1 festivities kicked off. These events aren’t built-in to virtual festivals, but the way they organically happen are special.
Slyfest is still going with day 3 events. If you don’t want to log into VRChat to attend, you can click here to listen in and watch the festivities.
