New Store Location

Yes, I know - It's like I'm like a gypsy with all the moving. At least this time I'm on the same sim, yeah? A great spot opened up on MO Island and I grabbed it right quick. You can find the new store here - be sure to come visit!

EDIT 8/10/2007: I'm in the middle of moving and changing jobs, which has led to a real lack of updates, yes? I've a dozen half completed projects on my hard-drive - they'll go up as soon as I have the time. Cheers!

How about a proper update, for a change?

I've been neglecting the poor blog - no pretty pictures, no new releases, no more then a bare minimum of information. I apologize, and will do better in the future (steadfastly holding on to the belief that I will one day have readers who care about that sort of thing). So. I've got two new releases to talk about, and a couple of photos from the NC17 Grand Opening (sadly, I have none from the MO Island Fashion Show - I lagged and then crashed, missing both my line and, more tragic yet, Paper Couture's). Also, I've finally finished the mural for my main store. Huzzah!

The new releases first -



High Water was my 'MO Island' themed release for the Fashion Show - a spiffy tank/shorts combo. The print on the shirt is hand-drawn and inspired (although not copied, and yes, I'm bragging) by a door-hanging I picked up in Tokyo (it was late, the hanging was over my window...).



Restless was done for the Grand Opening at Club NC17 (pictures to follow) and is a bit different from my normal fare - I definitely made it with the club in mind^^ Includes both the drape-y top and the dark jeans.

Both releases are currently only at the NC17 store, because I'm lazy and haven't updated the main store (aside from the mural) since the flooding went down.

Now for the photos -



'Mural', you might have said, 'what mural?' The truth is that there's been a half-finished mural on the lower wall since I built the store, and I've finally finished it. For a look at the image used, click here - the piece was done in Painter 8 with a Graphire 4x5 tablet.



The NC17 opening was a blast - aside from the new release we had door prizes every ten minutes, and the club employees modeled Sassafras clothing (mixed in with other items from their inventory - my clothing is very versatile!). Pictured here is Adena, my landlord and the club owner, in the High Water top and Shiny Things shoes (we share a mutual obsession) - I'm afraid I have no idea where the skirt is from >.>



This is one of the fantastic dancers, (whose name I can't spell - I'll find out!) - she's wearing the Painted Jeans in Floral along with a short white top (it looked great!).

Finally, I've hired the lovely Makeda Cole to do some modeling shoots for the store - you can look forward to an infusion of brand new Sassafras ads on Linden Lifestyles and Second Style (once I shoot them. And edit them. And pay for them. But soon!).

Sassafras Grand Opening @ Club NC17

As a kickin' follow-up to last night's show, Sassafras' second branch will have it's Grand Opening tonight at Club NC17 - 6:15pm SLT to 7:15 SLT. The outfit I made for the MO Show will officially be released, and there'll be *another* new release made especially for the occasion.

MO Island Fashion Show

MO Island, Sassafras' home sim, is hosting a Fashion Show this Monday (the 2nd) - Head over to Shopping Cart Disco for more information. And yes, Sassafras will be participating - I've submitted four outfits, including a brand new one named 'High Water' made just for the show. Unfortunately, the event is not open to the public - we've got a huge guest list. I've still got an open invite, though - IM me if you want it.

Graphics Issues

I'm having graphics issues on my account - I put on clothes or enter the appearance editor and viola! Flat black all over. It's the same no matter what computer I log on with, so it's not a hardware issue... And it's just started affecting my alt, as well. I'm doing what I can, but there won't be anything new out of me until this is resolved - it's a tad difficult to make clothes like this.

Anyway, I'll be signing in to talk to folks and take care of business, but for the most part I'll be hiding at home. [stupid, stupid graphics]

EDIT: On a completely different note, several of Iris Seale's (Punch Drunk) clothing pieces have been copied/stolen and sent out as freebies - head over to Shopping Cart Disco for more information.

EDIT 2: The problem is fixed - turns out it's a pretty common issue when using duel monitors - I just have to be careful how I move the SL viewer between the two. Thank you, SL support!.

New Location!

Sassafras has a new location at MO Island, and a sale to celebrate it! And new releases! Just click the sign at the entrance for your coupon. And don't be afraid to say hi - I'll be there in and out all day.

First, introducing my new line of painted jeans (and major thanks to the models, my first!, who posed for this ad). Nothing particularly outrageous (a flaming skull? pfft) but they're tons of fun.



Secondly, my new shape line. I'm switching between shapes and skins (see my profile pic!), and I consider myself pretty good at it (years of anatomy and life drawing), so why not help out those who're not so? For a small price [innocent smile].



The sale is today only, from 10am SL to 10pm SL, so be sure to swing on by!

New Release - Haul Away Joe

I've opened a new store location (and will probably let the New Paris branch lapse - stay tuned for details) at MO Island and to commemorate I've got a brand new release -



And, now that I've hit some kind of groove (I really dig this top), I'll get cracking on some of the items I have sitting on my hard drive. Woohoo!

New Release - Sunday

What have I been working on? Prims! Glorious, frustrating prims. In this case, attached to a dress (holy cow!). I'm very pleased to present the Sunday dress, available in three color schemes.



yay!

Creative Timeout

I want to try something new with Sassafras (I'm feeling my way blind with this clothing thing - don't be surprised by sharp corners or sudden drops) so there will be a lack of updates while I work through some designs and then actually make the things. If anyone passes through in the meantime, I encourage feedback on the collection to date (I crave critique! Workshopping has ruined me for life, please send help!).

Duckie!

Continuing in the spring theme, I bring you the latest in the Painted Tee collection - Duckie! You know you want one for your very own.

New Release - Hanami

I'm back, pulled together, and ready for action. Today's new release is Hanami (Flower viewing festival) - a simple silk jacket in pink and green.




I've got a couple things in the works, more updates should be just around the corner.

Boston

I'm flying to Boston tomorrow on family matters (sorry about the late notice, it was rather unexpected). I'll be taking my laptop with me but, yea, she is old and decrepit - I've got SecondLife loaded on her (it works if I turn the graphics waaaay down and don't move much) so I'll be in world occasionally to check up on things (is this an addiction, or what?) but I'm not sure she's up to prolonged Photoshop sessions. I'll be doing lots of sketching to make up for it, so watch for new (east coast inspired, because I'm easily influenced) stuff after I get back.

EDIT (3/20/2006): Looks like I'm going to be here for a while yet. This means, since my laptop is performing about as well as expected (she's five years old, yeah?), that there won't be any new updates for at least a week and a half. I will be inworld occasionally, so if you have any questions or want a bit of chatting I'll be available. My offline IM's have been getting capped, so dropping a notecard on me is the best way to ensure I get your message. Cheers!

Spring has sprung

At least, it has here. To celebrate, my latest release is distinctly spring themed - two pair of pants (yes! pants!), in green or brown, with a floral pattern at the pockets and the waistband. Nifty, no?



Creatively named after the Roman word for April, these pants are sure to have you feeling young and fancy free.

...

And, looking at the post, I realize that I forgot to include the price on the ad (smacks self). They're 100L each - let me just go fix that...

Sassafras @ New Paris

Okay, so there's no good reason for a designer who's pretty much unknown to go and open a second store. I know this. But I was shopping for furniture at Umpire, and ended up exploring the New Paris Sim while I was there... And what I've really been wanting is a cute little boutique in a really nice sim, and now I have one. It's only 50 prims, so I'll be keeping the Dos Corazones location as my main store and use New Paris for new releases only. I'm feeling no pain, here (it's adorable! The sim is great! Plus high traffic, yeah?).

Be sure to visit!



EDIT: Please note that the New Paris store has since been closed (I move a lot, apparently - like a gypsy. Or ninja.) - Please see the newer posts or my profile for current locations.

Sassafras @ Dos Corazones

The re-design is nowhere near finished, but all my vendors are up - Sassafras is open for business! I'll throw a grand opening sometime next week, when I have a few more things to put up on the walls (my collection is apparently sadly lacking. The walls look so bare!). In the meantime, some photos of the store:



I wish I had taken a shot of the place empty, but what can you do? I'm not going to take down all my prim work (the wood frame around the door, the stripe-y bit on the canopy, the plants, the cement thingies ((I never claimed to be an *interior* designer, yeah? Thingy is perfectly acceptable terminology)) along the top, etc) for what would essentially be a vanity shot. And I have no idea what the (big, black) rent box is doing. Moving on...



Like I said, the store is painfully empty. I'm working on signage as we speak, as well as a couple more brand ads to go in the big white squares. I'm working with the store owner on getting texturizing permission - in the meantime I've put up prims to experiment with wall color (see next shot).



It's really nice to have my own space - I love playing with textures and colors on a larger scale. I'll be camped out here during my spare time, tweaking the thing into perfection - feel free to stop by!

EDIT (yes, I love these things): I've moved from the Dos Corazones spot to MO Island - check newer posts or my profile for a landmark. Cheers!

Robin (Not actually an outfit, after all)

I've been combing the grid for store space (I'm picky, plain and simple), and I think I've finally found a good spot. No link for you - I'm still setting up - but it's on the Dos Corazones sim.

In the meantime, I have another release - the 'Robin' shirt set:



It's in two layers - a fun pleated blouse and a long tank to wear over it - and looks great belted over jeans or corduroys.

Now to go put it up at the ETD spot.

New Shorts

Spent the weekend moving (in SL, not RL) - I live with a group of RL friends (they got me into Second Life, they can damn well put me up) and our glorious leader is never quite satisfied with his prim allotment. My photo studio has been packed and then unpacked again, and I can finally bring you the next installment in the Sassafras collection - Canvas Kickers, in pink and blue.



It's two pair of stylish shorts for one low price, yeah?

I've got another outfit in Photoshop as we speak - it should be out sometime tomorrow.

Welcome!

Hi, and welcome to the very first (official) post at the Sassafras Designs Blog!



Sassafras is owned and operated by yours truly - one Cha Trimble. Pleasure to meet you. I'm a very new designer here on Second Life (I have *no* idea what I'm doing), creating hand drawn (well, mouse drawn. Mostly.) clothing for the fashion community at large. I'm a graphic designer and illustrator in Real Life, and this is just similar enough to be really frustrating, but I'm learning tons (which is the important bit, right?) and enjoying myself thoroughly.

I don't have a permanent store location as of yet (I'm working on it, for truth!), but I was fortunate to receive the free shop space at ETD: Elika Tiramisu Designs for the month of March. Be sure to visit!

The following is a lot of product blather (it *is* my first post), interspaced with my current product ads. Continue at your own peril.



My first three outfits (by which I mean 'sets of clothing.' Do dresses count?) - 'Pink Billy', 'Boardwalk', and 'Pale Witch'. Detailed info is included with each item ('Clothing Chatter'), but suffice to say each was a learning experience. And Linden skirt meshes are evil (which is why 'Pale Witch' is priced so low) - I will endeavor to learn the way of the flexi-prim as soon as possible (I *told* you I have no idea what I'm doing). Comment, by the way, if you want hair/shoe info on the ads - I can make it a regular feature if people want it.



My fourth outfit, 'North Star' (my most recent work to date), and the tops 'Strawberry-Limeade' and 'Upstream.' Yes, I'm wearing underwear in the 'Upstream' shot - I hadn't made any pants and was paranoid about featuring other peoples work. And yes, that's me in every ad.

A lot of my work seems to be very beach/spring/summer-ie - plus, lots of stripes. Looking through my sketches, it seems that we can expect more of the same (it's cold outside!)



The painted tee line is fun, plain and simple. They're my doodle space, yeah? And the best of the best make it out to you. Ideas for new tees are always welcome. And hey, a virtual cookie to anyone who guesses at the (bastardized) skyline on the right!