Hey everyone!
What a crazy month, right? It’s been “GOGOGO!!” over here and we’re just hitting the halfway mark for October. Life’s been great, though, and I am so pleased to be able to share my first co-written post with my man, my baby; my sometimes-too-wonderful-for-words Lucky! 😀
Since we’re still new to this whole interviewing-one-another deal, the questions might not be 100% perfect but the love, and the banter, is real. Lucky and I have always enjoyed shopping and styling together and if you take a look around Mask and Mien, you’ll see that he’s really started to get into blogging as well. And I couldn’t be prouder. ❤
So what we’ve done here has been great fun already. We’ve styled together and each taken our own pictures. We’ve written questions for one another and then answered the questions put to us. Style credits, as always, are at the bottom so let’s get to it, yeah?
Portia: How excited are you to be doing this post right now?
Lucky: I’m very excited to finally be doing a post together. I had intended to do something like this sooner but finding the time to actually do it was tricky. Originally I was going to bug you about doing it for the October TMD post but things came up and made that not a very easy option. I knew we would get around to it eventually. Even doing this one wasn’t planned. It just started from a jacket. Funny how things work out sometimes.
Portia: Funny considering how you read one of my answers and went back to edit your answer to this question, you butt! What is your favourite part of the outfit you’re wearing right now?
Lucky: I would have to say the hair is my absolute favourite part of it. Most people that know me know how attached I was to my Trailerstar mohawk. I stuck with it for over three years and swore it was the ONE thing I would not change. Then you suggested going to Deadwool and pointed this one out. I learned my lesson about demoing things too. I knew pretty quickly that this was the one hair that I could retire the mohawk for. It’s definitely my everyday style now and one I don’t see going away in the near future.
Portia: DEMO. Say it with me, people: “DEM-OHHHHH.” These things save us money. And time. And sanity. I’m so glad you’ve joined the movement, baby. What is your favourite part of the outfit I’m wearing right now?
Lucky: I have to be honest on this one. I can’t pick just one part of it. In looking at it each part compliments the others very nicely. You’ve always focused very on making everything work and it shows. Seeing as we decided to shoot in the rain, I would have to say the umbrella is a very integral part. It makes the idea come fully into view. Everything works well together, as I feel all of your stylings do. I’ve seen the time and attention to detail that’s gone into many of them and I’ve learned quite a bit about what to look from it. It’s something I hope to learn more of as time goes on babe. We never stop learning. (Yea totally went off the subject of the question.)
Portia: Yeah, but I love it when we ramble. ❤ What would you say was the biggest challenge in putting this post together?
Lucky: It has to be the thinking of what to ask you about. Well that and avoiding the inevitable crash during a perfect shot. It always happens no matter what I do. Back to the questions part though. I usually try to pick your brain on a daily basis. I’m always very curious about what you’re thinking or how you came to whatever conclusion you did. Whether that be taking a photograph, styling the outfits, or the everyday things we do. But coming up with specific questions on the spot was a big challenge. I’m not as savvy with the written word as I would say I am when it comes to just talking. I can think a lot of it through in my head but the part of putting it down is something I still need to improve upon. All in due time.
Portia: So flipping proud of you, honey; I can’t say that enough! It’s so much fun to do these things together! I think everything is coming along just great, too. :-*
Lucky: What inspired the look of your outfit for the post? (I had a feeling she would say it was the coat. In all honesty I just was showing off what I bought haha.)
Portia: Honestly, baby? For me, it was when you first put on that coat that I felt inspired to shoot this picture. I collect clothes and accessories, you know this, and when you had that coat on I remembered that The Annex released a beautiful coat for this round of The Chapter Four. I’d planned to wear something else with my Collabor88 boots (Pure Poison, baby!) but they worked -so- well with the Boston Coat that I had to make it happen!
Lucky: Seeing the amount of time it took us to figure out the shots we wanted, what do you look for in your photos? (Yeah you can all thank for me this wonderful question. It really does have an in depth answer though.)
Portia: Ooh, that’s a tricky question! I’ve definitely gone through some phases in taking pictures since I started posting them online (going to the very first pics I put on flickr is a little scary) but at this point, I have a few things I try to do as often as possible:
- Priority One: Wardrobe pieces are edited as close to ‘natural’ as possible. This means that bags are slung over the arm instead of through it and earrings (biggest pet peeve) do not defy gravity if the head is angled to one side.
- Priority Two: The pose needs to showcase the outfit well and with mesh, it can be difficult. Any pose that warps coats, hair, or jewellery needs to be re-considered; alternatively, if the pose is the highlight of the post itself, it makes perfect sense to swap wardrobe pieces to get the right effect.
- Priority Three: The pose and the outfit need to be presented in a manner that MAKES SENSE. I like context. To use the example of our pictures here, it makes perfect sense to be walking down a city street with our cups of coffee in hand and clearly we’re under the scaffolding because it’s raining outside. My umbrella (REIGN from this round of The Epiphany) is great, and I love it. We added the rain so I could use an umbrella. The shot is a bit cold and dreary but it’s sweet as well because we’re snuggling. ❤ Pictures of outfits taken against a white background don’t do it for me anymore; I want MORE.
- Priority Four: When I shoot a picture, my brain wants at least one of the axes (as in X/Y/Z; no weapons in this post) to align perfectly with the edge of my screen. It’s usually the vertical line that works best for me, even if the horizontal ends up a bit wonky to allow for the ‘good’ bottom-to-top angles that I like to use.
Lucky: How big of a challenge is it to do a shared blog post for the first time? I know you already kind of asked me this but we both think differently in some regards. I quite enjoy that even in our differences we’re both understanding enough of one another to listen, learn, and support one another.
Portia: We’ve always worked so well together so, really, it hasn’t been a challenge for me at all. I’m just glad you’re doing this with me now, honey.
Lucky: I’m glad we are too. We’ve taken many photos together throughout the years, but never did I think of attempting this. I think we’ll have many more in the future! So back on topic what is the one thing in your outfit that you feel really made the look for you?
Portia: That’s a bit of a difficult question to answer because, for me, it’s the combination of elements that makes this look work so well. The umbrella with the rain in the background, absolutely, but our complimentary coats and coffee cups (gacha cups from [Free Bird]) make the post relevant to the cooler weather we’re experiencing in our respective hometowns. And I love my Collab boots. And the short leather gloves from Izzie’s. And my new !Oleander hair. And you can’t have a sense-making outfit without the right jewellery – grey and gold in this case – to break up what is, in actuality, a -lot- of blonde hair in a very monotone picture. And who actually goes out in the city without carrying a bag? This one is super-cute and plays off the fun we had when we chose our snarky coffee cups!
Gosh, I talk too much. I’m sorry. (Not sorry. :P)
Lucky: I would be doing a disservice to the creator of the rain that we used if I failed to mention it outside of being credited. As Portia said about the idea for the post, rain was a very important piece of the puzzle. I didn’t want particle rain as that lags you to death and just doesn’t work out very well. We’re both know our way around Photoshop, but we’re far from experts so adding in our rain would have been a challenge. Especially at three in the morning. In looking through my inventory I found mesh rain that I had previously purchased from [ANC]. The pictures do NOT do it justice. I mean they’re great and all, but you can’t capture the movement of it in the photos. I urge anyone who want’s some beautiful lag free rain to look them up!
P’s Credits:
Skin: Lara Hurley-Fae natural/Rose Pale ~ Lara Hurley
Eyes: IKON Triumph Eyes – Quicksilver ~ Ikon Innovia
Mesh Body: Maitreya Mesh Body – Lara ~ Onyx LeShelle
Hands: Slink Avatar Enhancement Hands – Fist, Gesture ~ Siddean Munro
Lashes: .: Mai Bilavio :. World Tour Collection Strip-Lash in London ~ Mai Bilavio
Makeup 1: DeeTaleZ Makeup NATURAL Lip shades ~ Steffi Villota
Gloves Applier: Izzie’s – Slink HUD – Short Leather Gloves ~ Izzie Button
Hair: !Oleander ~ Boone. ~ Bailee Oleander
Coat: The Annex – Boston Coat – Wool – Gray – TheAnnex ~ NEW @ The Chapter Four (October 2015)
Leggings Applier: Gawk! Black Cotton Leggings – Maitreya Body Applier ~ Mell McMahon
Boots: Pure Poison – Adrianna Boots – Gray – Maitreya ~ Shaleene Kenin ~ NEW @ Collabor88 (Oct. 2015)
Umbrella: REIGN.- COVEN UMBRELLA (ANIMATED) ~ KenadeeCole ~ Gacha Item NEW @ Epiphany (Oct. 2015)
Bag: REIGN.- Coven Totes- Cats #17 ~ KenadeeCole ~ Gacha Item NEW @ Epiphany (Oct. 2015)
Coffee Cup: [ free bird ] Coffee Cup – This is Vodka ~ Cortez Brandriss ~ Gacha Item
Sunglasses: GizzA – Oversized Cat-Eye Sunglasses [Floral Relief] ~ Giz Seorn
Jewellery: {montony} Collin Earrings & Ring – Gold {black pearl} ~ Tonyamilavskaya
Lucky’s Credits:
Body: Slink Physique MALE Mesh Body Release 1.2 – Siddean Munro
Hands: Slink Avatar Enhancement Hands MALE V2.2 – Relaxed – Siddean Munro
Feet: Slink Avatar Enhancement Male Feet XS Flat V2 – Siddean Munro
Ears: [MANDALA] – Stretched ears-Omimi- Plug(Hole_size_1/L) – Kikunosuke Eel
Skin: Tableau Vivant – Sean Skin – Tone 06 B – Aida Ewing
Hair: [Deadwool] Undercut hair – tidy – chestnut – Masa Plympton
Hairbase: [Deadwool] Undercut hairbase – chestnut – Masa Plympton
Beard: [Deadwool] Full beard – brown – Masa Plympton
Eyes: .ID. Tropical Brights / Mesh Eyes / Sky / – Audrey Lamede
Tattoo: Letis Tattoo – Angry Wolf :: MM14003 :: – Leti Hax
Coat: F.A.D. // Aspen Sheepskin Trenchcoat M *Materials* – FadeArcade Resident
Pants: [Deadwool] The Dandy – frml trousers (shad) – blanket grey – Masa Plympton
Boots: ::ZED:: MESH Black Desert Boots – EVK Resident
Eyebrow Piercings: ROZOREGALIA – *Gemma*LIP PIERCE2/C – Kikunosuke Eel
Coffee: [ free bird ] Coffee Cup – Lucky I Have Coffee – Cortez Brandriss
City Prefab: Rowne.Street Style Star – The City RARE ~ Fashionboi Landar ~ Gacha Item
Rain: [ANC] Rain Animated Mesh 1.1 – Axel Naxos
Pose: !bang – VIP November 2014 – Luna Jubilee
LuckySpiritor.Com 