Early Halloween Shopping

 

By Gemma Cleanslate

 Halloween looms. In one chat I heard the other day someone said they saw a store full and posted a slurl. Another remarked ,”I had better check my Christmas decorations” Well, it is not around the corner but Halloween shopping has opened at various popular stores so it is time to start looking. I flew over to one of my favorite Halloween shops I knew would be open to look . There is so much! Dench is a shop where I always find cute décor for any holiday.

 The Halloween shop is massive as usual. Before you enter the building itself check the outside lawns filled with outdoor décor for your parcels. Inside find skellies , wanderers, wearable spooky dancers that you can try out by sitting on them, and so much more. Check out the ghouls and goblins and lots of pumpkins.Some moan, or groan and add to the spookiness. How about getting a full avatar for the holiday. There are always gifts for group members and so many bargains! There is a whole wall full of 5L decorations. Large and small . Do not miss it!!

 

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Rookery/20/33/222

I have a friend who always gives me a rezzday or Christmas gift that she created from a collection of fun things. I finally asked her where she gets the pieces she puts together so well with animation and sound sometimes. She pointed me to full perm places to look at the offerings. I went over to two just to see what was available. The places are amazing ! The walls of both full perm sites were full of items that could be used to build a display of your liking. Some of the stores have vendors on the wall that are collected for the holiday or type. Others are spread around all the walls. So searching for Halloween or autumn related items takes a while. Caming is necessary. I did see a couple of shoppers flying to be closer to choose what they wanted. Regular builders probably are used to this and have no problem. That is not me . Go take a look though if you love to combine items or pass them along to others .

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Optimal/230/244/21  

 

Also, there is the Sweetlips store which had great pumpkins!!

I love the name of this place, Meshed Potato.
 

https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Graybar/135/93/21

There are many more autumn and Halloween sales to check out and I will be back with a few more.

Gemma Cleanslate

More Christmas Shops

 

By Gemma Cleanslate

I have been doing some of the Advent Calendars this year but since I am almost out of groups I decided to stick with those where no group is necessary. While I was at a region I took a good look around at some and saw the nice arrangement of items they had in Kiosks or all over the property. I picked some that had really nice or unusual décor for sale and am passing the along to you in case you are a late shopper or are looking for that special gift.

“Santa Claus dropped his presents through the Christmas Wonderland event. There are free gifts in the large calendar and EXCLUSIVE very cheap Christmas outfits in front of it. Don’t miss them and grab them all – Date: Dec 1 to Dec 24 – Contact Person: Rani Rosenhauch “

Rani said it well. Santa has left some great items all over the region. There are many boxes in front of the calendar for sale really low prices! Then take a walk around to see the nice items for sale at the stands.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Forgotten%20Mountains/21/118/27

LouChara sells Furniture and decorations and has weekend sales right at the entrance . Her furniture is divided in to the various types in each building there which makes it easier to shop. The Christmas area had terrific items on display.

I really enjoyed looking at the variety of styles and ended up buying one new holiday bench.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Tropical%20Bay/137/171/4001

Another wonderful furniture venue with a calendar is C.M.D. Christmas store. All sorts of Christmas décor is scattered over the region. 

 

What caught my eye was a cute little fairy pushing huge snowballs. Maybe it is not unique but I have never seen it before. There is another one throwing snowballs too.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Thee%20Enchanted%20Forest/203/183/21

 

One more super area to visit for those last minute decorations inside or out is Christmas Delights. Again this is a marvelous place filled with sweet décor. I am happy to see a nice selection of flat décor that is only one prim and looks great . It is good if you need to watch your prim count.

Santa’s Closet is a whole wall filled with all sorts of Christmas clothing with a choice of elegant or cute.There is also a rezz area for greeter bots , AI bots and animesh bots so you can try them out before buying. Stop over there to check them out. RAGDOLL/183/193/1801

I hope you are finished shopping now and can begin enjoying all the winter fun areas that I will be writing about for you.

Gemma Cleanslate

 

Three Halloween Shopping Places

 

By Gemma Cleanslate

 

Here we go into the dark days of Halloween. There are some wonderful regions set up for the holiday. If you are looking for places to shop for your region or just your home. I always like to visit Dench Halloween store . Since I am a member I can grab the fun many gifts. There are so many wanderers moving about that fit well in home or around a region or club. Check outside the store and inside . They are everywhere.

Wearable dancer companions are so numerous this year there are rezz areas to see what they look like. If you are in the group look at the gift area for four free ones too. I love the wearable dancers who have a great dance hud to fit any music you hear.

One can get a whole group like the Asylum inmates or the skeleton band. Don’t miss the Halloween bargain counter for 5L items. The shop will be open until November 1st. 

 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Rookery/22/33/222

Another store I always love to visit is Khargo . The Halloween store is amazing. Many items are set outside among the brilliant autumn trees and foliage. Take a walk all around to check out the variety of display items and figures. How about a whole Haunted house. The prices are also great here too.

Be careful of the some of them.. you may become part of the setting. Many of the items will fit well on small parcels and many for larger parcels . The shop is full of items to decorate inside a club, or shop and definitely a home.

I could not resist this decoration.. no clue where I will put it but the price was right too!!!Do not miss visiting Khargo. 

 

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife//216/113/21

One more store to visit that is full of sets of scenery. The landmark is listed as “Fiendish Rides and Haunt” If I had a region to fill or even a quarter of a region to decorate for the season or even just an event I would start here and then move on to the two stores above . A scene from here would be the base and more décor would go around it. Arriving at the store one has many doors to choose from..

I started at the Main Ride area. Here you get a chance to take the varied rides and see what you like.

They are scary! Try some. One that I was impressed with and glad to survive was the Grim Funeral!

I was informed by a mysterious voice that it was MY funeral!

Then I moved into the demo area where one can rezz different rides and experiences and try those also. Just going here will give one loads of rides experiences even if you don’t buy them all. A whole day can be spent over at Grimley. Checking games and characters also. It is a trip worth taking!

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Koko/53/204/3003

Gemma Cleanslate

Note:  Two pictures were missing when the article was first posted. They have since been added.

More Christmas Stores

By Gemma Cleanslate

Here are a few more shopping areas for you and you can check the destination guide for more.

 

Gnomes and Elves greet you on arrival at Christmas Lane near the Gotchas. Just a sprinkle of snow was falling when I visited. Santa and reindeer were parked in front of a shop ready for you to take him home for a good price. This is another great place for shopping for the home decor, inside and out. Dinner tables all set for you . I saw some wonderful fireplaces all set to put in your home decorated with the stockings ready for Santa to fill.There was a sweet little chapel . I passed  Santa walking his dog .Just waking along the roads and looking at all the goodies is a lot of fun even if you don’t buy anything but I bet you will! I could not resist! I bought a Christmas bench for the front of my home. http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Christmas%20Lane/48/134/23

 

Christmas at snuggles was also a lot of fun for roaming and shopping. I was taken with some cute Santa and helper avatars and am thinking about that idea.Along the walkway there are wonderful little poinsettias and Bulbs for sale. They have outdoor, indoor , lighting, cards and so much to look at here and the decor in the sim is lovely. I found some more Christmas cards for sharing too. (these articles can get expensive!) That shop had some absolutely lovely snow globes with music for sale to give to loved ones and friends .That store was packed full with wonderful gifts to share. There is another large shop also just jampacked with decorations for the table and more. This merchant is very creative!  I plan to go back!  http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Snuggles/151/225/26

 

One of my favorite shopping places in Second Life  at this season , and has been for 9 years is the Winter Holiday Village. I still have winter outfits from 5 or 6 years ago that I have saved because they are so attractive and comfortable to wear. And I know I will be getting something new.

There is so much going on in the region I will be sending time here for events and for the wonderful skating and visits with Santa. Visiting here is like a vacation in a mountain village and a place to relax and enjoy winter sports and scenery. There will be lots of performers and parties taking place on the ice . Join the group to hear all about it. Pick up a notecard that will help you get around to all the venues.

 

The owners say,”We also have cross country skiing (free ski's provided), fun horse drawn carriage rides and the Magic of Christmas Shop loaded with all your winter holiday needs at reasonable prices. Santa had begun his live appearances Dec. 1st. Come sit on his lap, have your picture taken on Santa's lap while being entertained by the elves of the North Pole and Mrs. Claus! A free gift for each person who comes to visit with Santa.

Loads of wintertime fun to be had with the largest network of ice ponds on the grid. Free skates available. Skate tours for single skaters and couples. We also have cross country skiing (free ski's provided), fun horse drawn carriage rides and the Magic of Christmas Shop loaded with all your winter holiday needs at reasonable prices.”
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Mazur/133/168/32

 

Another shopping  village I found  the Winter Wonderland and Christmas Bazaar in Andarah. If you are looking for an igloo I saw one there. You are invited to shop, skate , takes some rides as on the reindeer carousel or the miniature train . I went skating with the skating snowmen on the iced over pond. In one shop I found a wonderful selection of gift bags that saves wrappmy favorite thing. It is a good area to go through on your shopping travels. Don’t miss the very attractive snowglobes scattered about the snowy area.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Andarah%20Island/206/97/22

 

That is enough of shopping! I will be visiting the other lovely regions decorated for the winter season , just for walking, sleigh riding , horse back riding , winter sports that are around the grid until Christmas . There are some places that stay yearlong for your winter pleasure . I will note those too. Enjoy your shopping.

 

Gemma Cleanslate

The Steampunk Meets Flowerpower Hunt

By DrFran Babcock

 Admit it, you love hunts. For me, a hunt is a way to chill out from a hard day in the non-digital world, or when things get drama-laden here. Which never happens, right?

 
Well, if you are like me, the lure of freebies, meeting people, and finding just that special treasure keep me searching. The Peace on Earth Hunt, over for now, is my favorite, but the name of this hunt grabbed me. I love Steampunk, and I am a hippie. What could go wrong?

 DrFran was a little busy with real news, so she sent her alt: Mai Waffle out to do the hunting. Below are the things she found. The hunt item you are looking for is a gear that is pink.

There are 25 items in the grid-wide hunt, and Mai was able to find all but one. She enlisted the help of Oakesy Ogg to help her show off the items that had both male and female items.

IMPORTANT: The Newser is usually not on the Hunt trail. If you are interested in seeing more hunt reports, please let Editor Bixyl Shuftan know. Thanks.
 

The Steampunk Meets Flowerpower Hunt runs from January 1^st – January 31^st. The blog for the hunt, with hints and teleports is here:
http://insidethepeapod.tumblr.com/post/39071952659/steam-punk-meets-flower-power-hunt-212

 DrFran Babcock

Editor's note, Luminous Designs has informed the Newser it will soon be joining the  hunt.