Caer Balogh's photostream  

Skin: 5th & Oxford - Audrey Holiday (medium)
Hair: LeLutka - Rain (bournville)
Top: Mon Tissu - Lycia Tank (navy)
Pants: Maitreya - Leather Legging (oil)
Shoes: Celoe - Zoe Pumps (gondola)
Bow: Y&R - Big bow hairband by Ruru Brentley
Watch: Kari - Barb Watch
Nails: Mandala

Pose: Reel Expression
Photo Studio Props: Vintage by Curio Thistle (marketplace)

Skin: 5th & Oxford - Audrey Fresh 6 (medium)
Eyeshadow: Cheap Makeup - An Indie Summer
Hair: LeLutka - Rain (blondefun)*
Necklace: Caroline's - Juliet Layered Necklace (silver)

Pose: Reel Expression

* Messed with

Just four months ago, mesh was released onto the main grid. It was exciting to see the earliest examples, though the quality understandably suffered as creators embarked on the Himalayan path toward mastering new tools and techniques, often replicating things we'd seen before as sculpted prims in the new medium of vertices and unwrapped UVs, and of course the only way to see it at first was to use the horrid official Viewer 2, so several weeks passed with not much activity from creators or users.

The trickle of rigged mesh, that divine stuff that moves with your avatar, began soon after. I saw mostly technicians producing stock parts at first, like generic shirts, pants, and skirts designed to be textured and reused. From my perspective among the mesh dilettanti, these folks seem to have skills bordering on magic, but with sincere respect, they aren't generally designers.

I'm pretty sure you could find a few people to whom I have made the prediction that mesh will spark a renaissance in SL fashion, so I can tell you I was getting a little nervous at the slow adoption rate (I think our esteemed CEO recently reported it was around 18%) and paucity of must-have couture. But over the last several weeks things, as they say, have changed.

There are now at least three perfectly reasonable mesh-enabled viewers: Phoenix 1.6.0 adds mesh to the popular 1.x-based Phoenix viewer, the Phoenix project's Viewer 2-derived Firestorm still feels like a work in progress but is pretty darn stable, and even the Lab's own official Viewer 3 has gotten a huge usability boost. I have no real data on this, but it seems to me a solid majority of the residents I see these days are mesh-enabled. I think it's hit critical mass, and there is no longer a need to worry about appearing in public wearing a large smeary ball on your mostly invisible torso.

But all that good news pales in comparison to what the designers are starting to do. This sexy, close-fitting mini joins Mon Tissu's recent pencil skirt. I've wanted this silhouette since I joined SL going on five years ago, and I have to say the clothing layer + rigged mesh construction works perfectly. Maitreya has done two mesh releases, most recently featuring this darling draped V-back sweater. The movement of both the skirt and sweater are just beyond luscious. The shoes are non-rigged mesh (no need to rig it since nothing bends), featuring a low-cut vamp (without those accursed Frankenfeet), perfect svelte shape, and sexy little bow. The detail, shading, fit, and texture of everything is truly wonderful.

The audience is there, the viewers are coming along nicely, and the designers are already starting to knock our socks off. I think 2012 is going to be the Year of Mesh, and I doubt any of us will ever want to look back. Bravo to all the designers and engineers who made it all happen!

Skin: 5th & Oxford - Audrey Holiday (medium)
Hair: LeLutka - Rain (bournville)
Top: Maitreya - Athena Sweater (beige)
Skirt: Mon Tissu - Westbury Mini (charcoal)
Hose: Insolence - Carmen Pantyhose (shiny/tan)
Shoes: Celoe - Zoe Pumps (gondola)
Bracelet: Eolande - 4th Anniversary Larimar & Topaz Bracelet

Pose: Reel Expression

Bigger is better! There are loads of little details that you just can's see at preview size. <3

Skin: 5th & Oxford - Sorbet Touch of Sun (medium)
Hair: Lamb - Witch (kit kat)
Dress: Maitreya - Nolita (red)
Hose: Insolence - Carmen (shiny/tan)
Shoes: Fri.day - Basic Pumps (brown)
Earrings: Eolande - Graduated Pearl Necklace (white)
Necklace: Eolande - Large Pearl Stud Earrings (white)
Bracelet: Mood - Paua Coral Bracelet
Ring: Mood - Parade Pearl Statement Ring (frost/plat)

Pose: Reel Expression

Skin: 5th & Oxford - Audrey Holiday (medium)
Hair: Friday - Dixie (ginger)
Top: Pig - Ribbon Sweater T (cream)
Pants: Celoe - Lolong trousers (tapa)
Shoes: GField - Ribbon Slingback Shoes (strawberry)
Necklace: Yummy - Creator Charms - Builder and Fashion Design
Ring: Mood - Parade Pearl Statement Ring (frost/plat)
Moustache: Dali Moustache by Fau Ferdinand