Category: Landscaping

Last glimpse of winter’s beauty

Posted on by cejalaval

http://Last glimpse of winter's beauty

I’ve been making it no secret that I want winter to end… but not everyone feels the same.  Some are still reveling in the beauty of the sparkling snow and the wonder of a frozen, glistening world.  For those of you who still relish winter — and for the rest of us will be ready to wonder anew NEXT winter lol — there are some truly fabulous bargains in SL to be found on exceptional winter items.  Here’s just one of my favorites…  Me, I’m happy that the skies are turning blue and I’m having warmth on my face (or at least not a chilling wind) when I walk the dog!  I’ll love you winter again next year!!!

Dabble Home & Garden (formerly known as Tylar’s Treasures) – Winter Sparkle Cascading Pond.  Beautiful wintry scene, with a small cascading waterfall into a rock-surrounded pool, framed by bare winter trees glistening with ice & lights together with two deer with fairy lights in their antlers.  Animated with bento multi-speed animations for male, female, & couples in either PG or Adult versions.  ON SALE for just L$99 at Designer Outlet, open Jan14th – 31st.  

A Winter Tableau

Posted on by cejalaval

http://A Winter Tableau

It’s January and it’s a new year.  I’m fighting to be positive, but wow, 2022 had a pretty poor end.  Here we went on a long-anticipated road trip up north to see the kids, and it was one of our worst trips ever.  First off, timing was bad… not only was it , but my son ended up moving into a new house the day before our arrival In Philadelphia so everything was in upheaval.  On top of that, his live-in GF had just been diagnosed with the flu, so we helped as much as possible with moving stuff and unpacking.  Not too big a deal, but it was FREEZING (and I’m not just talking about my Florida standards!!!), so we really couldn’t do much else.  On to upstate NY to celebrate my birthday and Christmas with the grandkids… only for us both to end up incredibly sick in bed.  Worst birthday ever!!!  I recovered relatively quickly except for some congestion and a deadly cough; my husband did not, so we went to Urgent Care… a nightmare in itself, finding an open one that actually had staff, only for them to basically refuse to send out our swabs.  We cancelled the next leg of our trip, which was up to Massachusetts, and instead went back to Philly.  Even being under the weather, it was much better because the weather had improved so we were not only able to continue to help with unpacking but could also all explore the new neighborhood together.  On to home, which was probably our worst time ever on the roads… almost 12 hours just to get through Virginia!!! The next day getting through the Carolinas was just as bad. At least we weren’t caught up in the airline mess, although that definitely spilled over onto the roads.  Great to be home, BUT as it turns out, my husband has COVID; after a day or two recovering from the awful road conditions, I thankfully am almost back to normal and have continually tested negative.  Bottom line though, getting back into SL and blogging has not been easy, but I’ve packed away all the holiday landscaping and decor, and — now that I’m thankfully far away from it IRL — am back to celebrating the beauty of winter in SL.  

TM Creation – Winter Scene.   Arrangement includes snowy rocks, snowy branches, plants & wild grass.  Available as either copy/modify/no transfer or as transfer/modify/no copy, & is EXCLUSIVELY at a 10% discount at the current round of  The Liaison Collaborative, Snowfall, open thru Jan 10th.  See the ad below.

Simply Shelby – Snowy Winter Bench Set.  Includes animation-filled bench for singles & couples (PG or Adult), optional winter ground, winter pine tree, & Valentine snowmen (with pink hearts & red hearts, resizable).  AVAILABLE at a 50% discount at the current round of  The Liaison Collaborative, Snowfall, open thru Jan 10th.  See the ad below.

Hello winter!

Posted on by cejalaval

http://Hello Winter!

I live on a four-season parcel on a truly fabulous estate; last week I logged in after being off SL for a few days with all the Thanksgiving hubbub, and my home had become a winter wonderland.  I love it!  However,  it does require a great deal of re-landscaping for the multitude of home decor items that I’ve used to decorate my property.  I was thrilled to find this gorgeously detailed gazebo that merits permanent placement since it includes seasonal textures that will keep it perfect all year round!

Fallen New York (FNY) Design – Seasonal Vintage Gazebo.    Includes a menu for changing the overall texture of the gazebo (vintage, abandoned, frozen), plus 3 seasonal textures, including snow! See the ad below for views of all three seasons… simply stunning year-round!  EXCLUSIVELY available with a 50% discount at the current round of The Liaison Collaborative, Winter Retreat, open thru Dec 10th.

Also shown:

It’s a mad world

Posted on by cejalaval

http://It's a mad world

So I’m not a huge fan of Halloween.   I just don’t enjoy the horror side of it, and  find some of it way too creepy and unsettling.  That said, some of the items are VERY creative, and I just have to tip my hat to the inventiveness living in some designers’ minds.  So my Halloween has a touch of creepy, but nothing on the genuinely macabre or disturbing side, and you know what? That’s exactly how I like my Halloween!!! (oh, but with candy… Halloween is a great excuse for chocolate, even as an adult!!!)  Happy Halloween season!!!!

Dreamland Designs:   Evil Floating Elephant.  I honestly add some second thoughts about this guy…  he really is quite spooky & more than a little disconcerting.   But since this IS a Halloween scene, spooky is definitely what is called for, & this guy definitely adds a certain something. With big red wings, red all over his horns, splattered with what looks like blood, & with a skeleton hanging on to his trunk, he floats up & down (see the balloons???) & moves around at a decent pace (though you can stop the traveling by clicking on him).  Material enabled, copy-mod, he’s available at a reduced price at the October Designer Outlet.  See the ad below for close-up detail.
Dabble Home & Garden (formerly known as Tylar’s Treasures):  Tylar always makes the BEST stuff for Halloween.  A little tongue in cheek with a very definite sense of style, I’ve featured several of her items into this little scene:
  • Witchy Tree — shown on left.  A seemingly dead tree with lots of activity going on! Includes a hovering pumpkin witch, a vulture sitting on a branch, a sad pumpkin, & more.  (See the ad below.)   Best of all, this tree is available at the current round of Out Shop Cancer, where 100% of every sale of this tree goes toward fighting this scourge of humankind.  Help support the fight & shop with a purpose… Open through Oct 31st, the 2022 Out Shop Cancer event includes main store & marketplace shopping, a grid-wide hunt, an Out Shop Cancer Pop-up Market, special raffles, & more.  With more than 70 stores participating ranging from clothes to decor to cars to breedables, there is something for everyone!  All proceeds from this event go directly to the American Cancer Society’s breast cancer programs & services.  Shopping with a purpose has never been more important!!!  More details about this important but fun event can be found HERE.
  • Wicked Tree — shown on right.  Wonderfully spooky tree, with full bright yellow owl eyes blinking out of a hole in the trunk.  Available THIS WEEKEND ONLY for the special price of just 69L as part of the Hot Weekend Sale.  Sale ends Monday at 12A SLT.
  • Pumpkin Sitter  — shown in green, these are a bit more on the adorable side (the way I tend to prefer Halloween lol), but they glow & the kitty is animated (it wags its tail!).  It comes in 8 colors; each set includes two versions, as shown.   Available EXCLUSIVELY at The Mad Circus, an Evil Bunny Production, open Oct 8th – 31st.  (I will say, be prepared… it’s pretty creepy there lol!)

The Summer Wind

Posted on by cejalaval

http://The Summer Wind

The end of summer is just about here.  Down south where I live the kids are already back at school; soon the snowbirds will begin to return (which means so will the traffic lol and the crowded restaurants).  And here on the grid, it definitely won’t be long before we’re sporting fall styles in the midst of swirling autumn leaves.  Part of me is sad to bid summer goodbye, but part of me can’t wait for all the crispness and colors of fall… of course, living in Florida like I do, the crispness is more in my head than in the actual weather lol, but I have a good memory and can easily recall all those years up in NY…  But for now, the summer wind is still blowing gently, and it’s time to “take a dip”!  Happy shopping!!!!

  • Bathing Suit:  United Colors – Goldy All-in-1 Swimsuit.  Awesome detail, awesome cut, & the fatpack has a totally awesome HUD that lets you choose one of 20 colors/patterns for the right side, one for the left side, & one of 5 metals for the straps, the “connector” between the two halves, & the hip chain/strap for the bottom.  Sized for Legacy, Maitreya, & Reborn.  EXCLUSIVELY available & absolutely perfect for Takin’ A Dip, the current round of The Liaison Collaborative, open Aug 18th through Sept 10th.  Demo available.
  • Pose:  Nantra – Beach Illustrated 2022.  Set of 8 bento poses, with mirrors.  Includes hide/show pose stand.  See below for the ad showing all 8 fabulous beach poses.  EXCLUSIVELY available at the current round of The Liaison Collaborative, themed Takin’ A Dip, open Aug 18th through Sept 10th.   Be sure to try them out!!! Demo available.
  • Cabana:  Dabble Home & Garden (formerly known as Tylar’s Treasures) – SURFRIDER Beach Shack.  Animated with bento animations for male, female, & couples in either PG or Adult versions.  Includes 6 color texture change menu.  Perfect for that special spot on the beach!  See the ad below for more details.
  • Palm Tree:  Dabble Home & Garden (formerly known as Tylar’s Treasures) – Starfish Cove Palm Decor (shown on right).  Includes palm tree with the loveliest lights, ground palm, & starfish.  Available only on Marketplace.
  • Head:  LeLUTKA – Nova Head (EvoX)
  • Body:  LEGACY – Mesh Body Special Edition, Feminine
  • Skin:  DeeTaleZ – Esra in Sunkiss
  • Hair:  Argrace – Tokiwa
  • Freckles/Moles:  DS’ELLES – Charm Moles
  • Tattoo:  Horl – Chest Orn Tattoo; SAXO – Sandy Leg Unisex
  • Sunglasses:  KC Couture – Diva Eyewear

 

Farm living

Posted on by cejalaval

http://Farm Living

I’m a city girl, born and bred.  I’ve had minimal exposure to farm life, but I really wanted to do something a bit different, a bit fun, because it’s been a tough few days.  First I started making some big changes in sponsorships for my blogging.  Then I changed the SL memberships for my three avatars, and in moving land ownership around a lot of things got returned on my fantasy land (and I just finished tweaking things to where I wanted them lol)  Turns out that I had been doing something wrong for years, and it finally caught up to me.  No harm done in the end, but it was frustrating, and looking for a solution (that turned out to be totally unnecessary) was time-consuming and stressful.  I think a large part of why it was such an issue for me is that my emotions were already running quite high. My mom died a year ago, and although I know rationally that I did all that I could, the fact that I was unable to see her the last week of her life due to COVID lockdown at her memory care facility (I had just finally gotten permission for a “last visit”) makes me feel like I failed her.   And this undercurrent has been running through everything all last week, and it wasn’t until I finally recognized it that I was able to let it go.

BUT I was unable to get my act together enough to put together a shoot/blog post.  Now, my land issues are settled, my emotions have settled down, I’ve started building again which I LOVE LOVE LOVE to do (a possible business idea is starting to hatch lol), and I am back in the swing of things… I still wanted to get myself back by doing something FUN, and after driving past a bunch of farms and various grazing farm animals on my way out to dinner the other night I knew exactly that I wanted to feature my newest sponsor’s extremely adorable farmyard (which I of course supplemented lol)…  Though for some reason, I have the theme song from Green Acres running through my brain lol… Enjoy!

CJ Creations – Chicken Coop with Weathervane.   NEW RELEASE!  As I said above, I’m a city girl, so I may not know much about farms but I definitely know a lot about cute!  And this is just soooo cute!!!!  The detail (which is WHAT always gets me!!!) is just so perfect, with both the pecking hen & the little sparrow on the roof animated by touch; sounds touch on/off.  And the dogs!!!  One with a bandana, & one promoting eggs for sale… cute, cute, cute!!! And of course, it’s all copy/mod so you can move things around or add more chickens, etc. if you want.  Just a fun item to add to your backyard (especially if you like those fresh eggs in the morning lol!)… On display at the main store.

Also shown:

A touch of Wanderlust…

Posted on by cejalaval

http://A Touch of Wanderlust

I love weekends in SL.  First off, even though I no longer work in the real world, weekends retain their more relaxed, I can spend time doing whatever I want attitude.   And with that comes the time to peruse all those weekend sales, discovering fabulous finds that you somehow never knew about, all at an enticing discount where you can easily indulge your fantasies.  What better way to beat the heat and the thunderstorms (which is what summer is like here in Florida lol)?  I totally fell in love with this little Buddha, serenely sitting in his little patch of heavenly garden.  Perfect for making that special dreamy little corner or to even provide a happy little surprise on a spreading lawn… he looked so awesome no matter where I put him that I found it hard to choose, though to my mind he seemed happiest where he could listen to the babbling brook and dream!!!!! Enjoy!

Dreamland Designs:     Buddha’s Wild Garden.    With patches of wildflowers, rocks, & a smiling sleepy Buddha enjoying it all.  Material enabled & copy/mod. On sale for just $L50 during Wanderlust Weekend, July 16th-17th. 

NextUP… Glamping!

Posted on by cejalaval

http://NextUP... Glamping!

Glamping is one of those words known as a “portmanteau”, in that it “blends the sounds and meanings of two other words.”  I’ve never been glamping, in fact I’ve never been much of a camper at all.  Based on what I’m seeing here though, it’s a far cry from camping has always meant to me!  As a kid, camping meant a sleeping bag on the ground under the stars, not even a tent to help hide some of those terrifying night shadows.  As an adult, my first camping trip used a pup tent so that my head was covered but my body was still outside, which was totally ridiculous; 15 years later, we added a tent for camping with the cub scouts, but it was still mighty rough, with every stone jabbing your back, rolling partway across the uneven ground while asleep, & still having to crawl to the flap to get out!  This amazing set is such a far cry from my past experiences because it’s anything BUT roughing it… AND you can put it together any way you want, with just one or two pieces or the entire set, to create the glamping experience and scene that YOU want.

Dreamland Designs:     Elisa Glamping Tent NextUP.  Remember that this is a NextUP event & not a gacha.  With NextUP, you can see the next upcoming item so that you know what you will be buying, it’s not a gamble. The glamping set includes 14 commons & two rares — the two tents themselves, PG & Adult versions — all material enabled & transfer.  There’s also a fatpack available for 20% off with copy/mod no transfer permissions.   In my pic above, I’ve used every item in the set (though obviously not all the variations!); you can see the individual details in the key below.  Note that both the tent & the cushions contain bento animations.  On sale at the NextUP shopping event only until June 28th. 

The remains of the day (beach style)…

Posted on by cejalaval

 

http://The remains of the day (beach style)One of my favorite times of day is late in the day.  If I’m at a public beach (as I normally am, since I don’t have beach where I live), it’s after the crowds have all gone home or back to their hotel rooms or whatever, and I’m just wanting to read “just one more chapter”, many times in a row.  The shadows are lengthening, the waves have subsided as the tide goes out, it’s quiet and peaceful…  There’s the memory of the day softly fading, and the promise of tomorrow… perfect for some quiet moments of reflection… Now there are no crowds at my little personal stretch of sand here in SL, but somehow the feeling at the end of the day is still the same… and now I have the perfect little spot from which to sit, relax, enjoy and reflect…

!Tylar’s (formerly Tylar’s Treasures):  I often blog Tylar’s fantasy line so you may not realize that this amazing lady also creates fabulous beach decor!  Now that beach season is most definitely here, you might find that some of your old beachy items look a little too weather-worn and outdated (maybe with that horrid musty smell!), and that means one thing…  Time to do a beach makeover!!!!  And Tylar’s has soooo many fabulous items on sale at THE event for beach lovers, the Under the Sea Event, an Evil Bunny production, open June 4th – 14th.  I’m featuring just a few of what’s available; these items and more are specially priced at 50% OFF for the event, so it’s definitely a DO NOT MISS opportunity!  See the ads below for more detail.

  • Starfish Cove Beach Chair.  Simple wooden beach chairs, a bit faded with seaspray.  I just love the way there’s left & right chairs, with the umbrellas angled for just the right amount of intimacy.  Chairs are bento for male & female.  Touch change the texture for the umbrellas & the wood.
  • Starfish Cove Palm Decor.  A beautiful addition to any tropical setting, includes a lit palm tree with a small palm & starfish at the base.

Also shown:

  • Crate w/ drinks – Xantes – Mojito Drinks
  • Shells – Sway’s – beach shells
  • Drinks – Sway’s – summer drinking jars
  • Paddles – Dust Bunny – dreamy outing, beach paddles
  • Beach bag – Focus Poses – beach bag

There Be Dragons…

Posted on by cejalaval

http://There Be Dragons

I do love dragons!  They are a part of fantasy lore — or even history if you believe some of the tales from ancient times (perhaps a type of dinosaur that managed to survive for a few eons???) — that seems to have universal appeal.  I myself prefer the gentle-souled version (Puff the Magic Dragon et al) as opposed to the fierce selfish destroyer (like Smaug).  But here in SL, mine are more like the mountain banshees in Avatar… wild but able to be tamed and then bound by loyalty to the one who mastered them, partners in battle, domesticated to me and ONLY me in the garden.  And oh, what a garden I’ve built for them, a riot of color, a private little hideaway where we can simply be…  Now that IS a fantasy worth having, don’t you think?

!Tylar’s (formerly Tylar’s Treasures):  I absolutely adore Tylar’s fantasy line but it always creates a problem for me… I love sooo many items, I never know quite what to choose.  Her dragons though are ALWAYS a favorite of mine, they’re SO colorful & SO unique!  Here I’m featuring four items from her store in the Faireland of Broceliande at the Fantasy Faire, open just a few more days till May 8th.  Everything there is at 25% OFF, so it’s definitely a DO NOT MISS.  You can TP direct to the booth HERE.

  • Hovering Dragon with Egg in Nest.  The adult dragon not only hovers, flaps its wings, & breathes fire, you also can hear its roar & the sounds of flapping.  6-color texture menu for the dragon, & another 6 for the egg, each of which has a glorious multi-toned texture.  Shown on far right.
  •  Animated Baby Dragon on Rock (includes plantings as well).  Absolutely adorable!  It even includes a touch menu to change the dragon’s color (5 options).  Shown in front on far left.
  • Ruins Garden, Bento.  Includes the ruined wall, the bench (which is FULL of multi-speed bento animations for singles & couples), the bird bath with animated parakeets (chirping can be turned on/off) & animated water, the climbing pink vines, the yellow flowers, & the “zebra” plants around the front.  Available in Adult & PG versions.
  • Fairy Trees with Texture Change.  Two sizes — large (featured in red in the center) & small (featured on both sides).  Both sizes have touch menus for 16 glorious fantasy colors, perfect for any fantasy garden or landscape.

Oblivis Solem :  Dreamflare Lamp.  A new release, these fantasy lamps are PERFECT for any garden, any home.  The Heavenly (white) & Regal (black) lamps are the 100% RFL DONATION items for the faire, & will only be available at their store in the faireland of The Chrysalis Gardens for the duration of Fantasy Faire (ending May 8th).  Each one includes two sizes (large shown on both sides; medium in back center) plus a controller to change the color of the light to any of 11 choices or turn it off completely (I used candlelight).  A fatpack is also available offering 8 metal variants.  You can TP direct to their store HERE.