MaxMare

Even if you are a skilled 3D artist, you still need to spend some time figuring things in game...speaking of sizing, SL users transitioned from default game created avatar to 3rd party avatars and I`m sure you would be expected to rig the clothing to at least 3 different bodies/brands...as a newbie (new account) and no SL store, you are going to have a problem getting dev kits for relevant mesh bodies (avatars) meaning, you will have A LOT of guess work in order to rig clothes properly...You cannot purchase dev kits, you can apply through web form for each body, but again without any work on sale in game or Marketplace and your account fresh new, it will most likely not happen...also, you will be required to share real life info (name, address, some even ask for ID scan/photo) and sign a legally binding document.. There is no need for 3rd party software, Avastar is created as a helpful tool but sadly only works with versions lower then 2.8...Not sure if you ever created game assets, Zbrush is mainly sculpting software and handles/works with ridiculously high polycount, it is hard to tell from your work examples if you bother with retopo/optimization but that`s something you would be expected to do for SL...Mesh you create will also have to react to SL avatar shape sliders... anyways, here`s what you need: make a SL account Find out which bodies/sizes you are expected to create for find web site for each body and fill in web form (SL store info and real life info is always required) learn how the upload process works and about SL limitations/rules I would suggest to create a MP store and put some of your work on sale, otherwise you have literally zero chance of getting dev kits... I honestly think for just one commission, there is too much work/learning involved...if you plan on doing this permanently, then by all means, give it a try...

If you have a LL home (the free one you get with premium membership) or some of your friends has one, or perhaps look for a public sandbox..once you are in such area, take the box out of your inventory and drag it to the floor (this is called "rezzing"), right click on the box and select open/copy to inventory and it`ll get unpacked, once you are done either pick the box from the floor or delete it... Hope this helps!

I assume you are using MD pattern as your UV without editing it, which is probably why your textures look blurry...When you upload your mesh to Blender, open UV editor and re-arrange islands so you have the least amount of empty space possible within the 1024x1024 square..you only need 2-4px for padding (or 6-8 for 2048 textures) which means you can pack islands quite dense... Most creators spend little to no time on texturing and it shows...I would refrain from using MD or Blender for texturing when it comes to clothing and accessories. Photoshop or Gimp are the tools you want to use, it will take some time and practice for you to learn how to make realistic looking clothes, trust me a good texture can do so much for the simplest of meshes and make your work stand out in the sea of identical looking plainly textured stuff...

Why not browse Flickr? There are quite a few "men only" groups..Most bloggers/photographers add store names to description area or link to their blogs so you can find whatever they are wearing....

Ok, I rushed into replying but it seems questions have been answered already...you clearly own a promo version with limited options which is completely understandable...I would suggest to get a decent, well supported mesh body, it`s a one time investment, it may sound a lot in Linden dollars, but in reality, it`s the cost of one pizza with a soft drink, so not much really and definitely worth it... Speaking of hairbase, as per your post, it includes Catwa and Omega, there was no mention of Altamura, which means you shouldn`t expect it to work as is, you need to have Omega installed and most likely full version of your meshes...

CGboost <---a really good tutorial series, it is made for Blender 2.8+, videos are not too long, very straight to the point and easy to understand, and last but not least, they show how to do things the right way... There is sea of tutorials on youtube and which one you pick matters...sure many offer valid info and good workflows, but there are just as many (if not more) outrageously misguided ones.. Anyways, I agree with Chic, you should take some time to learn the basics before jumping into clothes/shoes (organic shapes in general) and rigging...I don`t mean to discourage you, I`m just saying, if you are willing to learn, why not do it properly?

Try searching for "animesh tail" instead, I got quite a few promising results on the first 2 pages alone...

Inverted face/s maybe? In max, resetting Xform before export would do the trick, I suppose Blender has some similar feature....also, uploader "doesn`t like" long thin triangles...oh and as Kehl said, don`t triangulate, let SL do that... There is one silly trick someone told me way back, export your item as .obj, import back to Blender , export as collada and try SL again... btw, I noticed you did not upload any of the lower LODs which will be a problem with unrigged (small) item like earrings, they are going to disappear as soon as you zoom out a little...Also you can have 8 faces and one single UV..Considering it`s a very small object, 8 separate UVs/textures might be a bit of an overkill...

I am not American, EU has much better laws when it comes to food (production, allowed substances etc) and getting a "free range" or "eco friendly" certificate is not easy.....personally I don`t eat eggs as stated in my original post but the fact remains, with free range production practices, conditions are better then in standard facilities ... on top of that, I live in a small country (less then 4mil people) there is no mass production of any kind pretty much... USA is not the only country in the world you know... There are so many fundamental differences between how things are done in the US and in EU...just take healthcare and education for example, in EU it is considered a human right, in the US it`s merchandise... This is why vegans got a bad rep, you completely disregarded everything I said in my original post and focused on one thing that may or may not be 100% correct, depending on your location on the planet....Take it from someone with 25 years under the belt, cook something nice for your friends, there are better ways of getting ppl to try this lifestyle...judgement and attack are not the way to go...

Vegan for 25 years now...raised 2 healthy vegan kids... I became one spontaneously, last meat meal were shrimps and ugh was ugly lol, I couldn`t do it anymore...havent`s touched meat, fish or eggs all this time but I do use dairy products , luckily nowadays it`s easier to find ethical products..I buy all my veggies from local small time farmers who do things the old fashion way, there are also small companies that make tofu, seitan and tempeh (at least in my country, plus you can easily make tofu and seitan your self)...spices are extremely important and over time I incorporated bits and pieces from all over the world like sea weed, (kombu and nori are my favorites), tamari, miso, sprouts etc......btw, not everyone knows how to cook and make a tasty meal (vegan or not), it bothers me when ppl try one thing which may not be the best example (like kale burger, lol sorry, no offense intended, but what were you thinking?) and decide on the spot all vegan food sucks....it takes time, research and finding your own way, but it`s worth the trouble in the long run (overall health, weight management, more energy etc) I am not some big time animal lover, I don`t even like pets, but I do oppose to cruelty towards ALL animals, not to mention meat industry impact on environment.....the way I see things, you can`t change the world, but you can start with your self, your family etc... btw, if you want burgers try this: oat flakes, onion and parsley, smoked tofu or seitan, salt, pepper, warm milk or water a bit of flower, let oat flakes get soft, mix all ingredients, form burgers and put each in bread crumbs+flower before frying...if you eat eggs, you can put one egg inside as well (there are free range eggs on the market now which means no cruelty and no death)...Bon Appetit!

My initial reaction was same as yours, but once I figured the reasoning behind it, I have to admit it is actually a smart solution....ok, so here`s an example; let`s say the skin is sold in maitreya+lelutka combination on skin layer, but maybe you are wearing belleza body with lelutka head, so you would have to add maitreya+lelutka skin and tattoo with belleza body skin on top of that... Here`s why: as Theresa mentioned, bodies do follow SLUV guidelines, but some areas differ, usually feet and hands which is why there are no universal appliers, Bom (same as Omega) only ensures the ability to use textures across different brands, it does not solve UV incompatibilities for problem areas....Then there is the issue with having tons of bodies and heads (even if we only count the most popular), If creators were to make each body+head combination in each skin tone and every single variation (cleavage options, fit body, chubby body, freckles, tan lines etc) your skin folder would end up with 100+items...

Aeros has this "Local Texture UUID Reader Tool HUD" for just 100L, for testing without uploading if you are making anything for mesh bodies/heads: Aeros Six Frames

Check MP for deformers...Most are created for female mesh bodies BUT they offer demos, so it`s worth a try... Birth bum deformer Bubble Bum Deformer There are others ofc, those are just two random examples...I do think Birth is the best option as it comes in the form of HUD which allows you to sort of create your own effect whilst others offer a few pre-made options but cannot be modified any further...btw those are bum deformers, but there are others for breasts, shoulders, waist etc I forgot to add, deformers work with fitted mesh clothes, meaning you can still wear clothes intended for your body brand and it will adapt just as it does with sl shape sliders... Regarding male bodies, my personal favorite is Belleza Jake, and yes it is well supported with skins and mesh clothes..

This is clearly alpha hair (+hairbase) which is why I`d check Doux, Stealthic and Modulus...Burley/Taketomi and Dura are also worth checking out for male hairstyles! Btw Modulus has some really good natural looking hairbases which is something you are definitely going to need to get the look from the photo..Doux has female bases so I can only assume they offer male as well..

Doux must be the best selling hair store atm, I like a lot of their styles but some tend to look a bit flat from side view, so as with anything else, demo the hell out of it...Some of my favorites are Foxy, Monso, Tram, Navy & Cooper, Lamb...Wasabi pills has some cool stuff too...Stealthic has high quality hair, but somehow it just doesn`t work well with my avatar/style...

I can give you my experience (and some advice)....similar to you, I moved to SL from another game, so I had to start as a complete outsider with no connections in creator community..... You have to have a store on MP or in-world or both with at least 3-5 original mesh releases, preferably clothes...Slink is the most welcoming when it comes to new creators, Belleza and Legacy are not bad...Maitreya, well yeah, this one is still a tough one...Your best way to go is to create something, doesn`t have to be clothes (furniture, accessories etc) so you have something to show for , submit a dev kit request for Slink which you have the most chance of getting, create some clothes for Slink mesh bodies and apply for other kits...ofc later on you can update previous releases with additional sizes...btw each mesh body has their own web site and their own application form, any other way (sharing with other residents, downloading copybotted kits etc) is illegal.. Bare in mind you will be expected to sign your real life name and share real life info (even photo ID in some cases) and the documents signed are legally binding. Things that increase your chances of getting kits are; having a store/brand for a longer period of time, sheer amount of original mesh releases (especially rigged/fitted clothes), high quality work (mesh/textures/presentation), having worked with other dev kits, good standing in terms of never having had any legal issues (DMCA filed against you)... Good luck! Edit: You are going to see others getting kits and in top events with their very first release, nepotism runs deep in SL, it`s sad but that`s how it is...I think your idea to have the same name as in your previous game is a good one (I did the same and it helped), but you definitely should have just changed the name on your main account cause you had it longer and that is something customers and other creators notice...

Flickr links: e.marie <---trendy and dainty stuff, most likely to have what you`re looking for kibitz <---my favorite jewelry store Nanika <---she moved to clothes lately so check previous pages

Toksik <--I think this is the closest to what you`re looking for, I have it and is currently one of my favorite items

I had issues accessing the upload page for payment info update, disabling AddBlock for that page (as per LL live help suggestion) solved it for me...I would also try another browser (i.e. Firefox)...if the issue persists contact support (live help if you are premium or open a support ticket).. Hope this helps..

@Orwar I tried some deformers and I was quite happy with what they did with breasts, belly and butt, however, shoulders looked rather weird...My issue with Maitreya shoulders is lack of modeled anatomy and sadly deformers do not really solve the problem for this particular area... Some skin creators did wonders with painted details, however those are just sort of fixes, only remodeling problematic area/s would do the trick properly... Anyhow this was just wishful thinking, I`m aware they most likely won`t bother..why would they? Their product is still selling, residents are using it, creators creating for it...so far all their updates have been good enough too maintain their product`s presence, they have never shown any desire to be innovative, push the boundaries and offer the ultimate product in it`s field as a result...That said, I am grateful update was provided as I already expressed in my initial post. @KweopiI was just trying to help and explain the process in case someone wants to know, cause it`s really not that complicated and if you repeat it a few times it gets easier. Alphas can be reused and with BoM also stacked, so there are ways around it....also the one hour per alpha estimate is a bit too much and with SL fashion which is mostly repetitive I highly doubt you`d need 100 different alphas no matter the size of your closet. Creators have been adapting to changes brought by LL so far, I`m sure they will start adding BoM alphas from now on (some are already doing it)... Regarding too much of everything (geometry, particles,scripts etc) that ship has sailed long ago...If LL decided to update default avatar years ago and did a better job with the uploader (forced creators to actually create game assets and not stuff fit for a CGI movie) we`d not have this mess right now, but yeah, too late to change anything now..Their biggest chunk of income is brought by creators through MP percentage, land ownership/renting etc, doubt they would opt for some major overhaul if it meant biting the hand that feeds them...In that sense, it comes down to end users to make better choices (what to buy, what to wear etc), however there are way to many ppl with "me-me-me" and "everyone is doing it which makes it ok" attitude so yeah lol we`re doomed!

I am overall satisfied with the update, it is not all about BoM, they definitely took notes on what other bodies offer and what ppl expect .... Implementation of BoM seems to be well thought through and offers a variety of options...They also separated certain parts which allows you to use just core body without all the extra stuff, this alone was a great move by Maitreya...I mean before we kinda walked around with not one but 3-4 bodies one on top of the other (each layer is pretty much a whole body), meaning, if you wear just the updated core body, it`s 4 times less triangles....Another cool part is the ability to use each arm, hand or foot separately ...There are 3 built in material options that also work with BoM, and they also added additional sliders to further personalize specular effect (intensity, environment, glossiness), both for skins and nipples...They added 3 nipple versions, so you won`t need 3rd party nipples anymore...There are 2 more feet positions.... Creator kit got a few more options as well, shoe script that will put Maitreya feet in correct position when worn, materials only applier script... Speaking of updates and wishful thinking, I`d love to see shoulders remodeled, that is my biggest issue with Maitreya...someone said old clothes would be unusable but that is not true...shoulders as they are right now are too bulky and lack any realism in terms of human anatomy, so in that sense they would need to "chisel" out the excess and shoulder would only have less volume...not just that, by utilizing alpha cuts, you could also cover any problematic area if needed, which is being done as it is anyhow... ****** BoM alpha, or basically same alpha we used before with default avatar, it is really simple to make, you don`t have to have some mad skill, just a UV map and some graphic software (i.e. PS or Gimp which is free).. open SL avatar UV map in PS/Gimp (avatar is separated in 3 textures, upper body/lower body/head) create a new layer use selection tool like polygonal lasso (it`s the easiest one to work with, it allows you to fix, add, remove parts until you`re happy, then close selection by joining start point with last point) fill the selection with black color and deselect (Ctrl+D) hide UV map and save as .png (this is important, png supports transparency) upload texture, create a new alpha from closet and apply your texture, save Important note, parts that are supposed to be hidden should be empty, parts of your avatar that are supposed to be visible should be solid color (usually black)...when selecting you can select the part you want to texture, meaning visible part of avatar, but if it`s easier for you to select parts that are going to be hidden, you can do that as well, just before adding fill/color, inverse the selection (Shift+Control+I).. Another tip to save you some upload Lindens, you can use Local textures in SL Edit to test, any time you save over that same texture on your computer, it will get updated in SL. This way you only upload once, when you are sure you got it right... Hope this helps!

I understand why you say this, I have 2 stores as I wanted to separate my main brand from full perm resources I create for merchants and initially I wished we could just have several stores under same account, but after a while, I realized existing system (alts) works, plus it allows me to separate stuff in two inventories so I have less clutter on my main account..If you want to have all stores under one brand, just keep the name and add a sufix (home, fashion, cosmetic etc).....You can also just transfer lindens from alts to your main and cash out from there, I had no issues getting my limit raised based on income from both stores. (ofc I only cash out on one, if you did on both, I guess they`d view it separately)...the only inconvenience of using alts is having to log in and out a few times... again, I had similar idea initially, but after a while I realized system works just fine as it is...also, allowing multiple stores per account would create tons of issues with full perm resources (meshes, textures, scripts, vending systems etc etc) as those are licensed to one avatar, so if that avatar has 5 stores on the same name, it would mean they are allowed to use the item in question in all 5 stores...I wouldn`t be happy about it as I already see where it could lead; ppl spamming same stuff on multiple accounts which they aren`t doing now only cause it would mean re-purchasing meshes/textures more then once...another downside of one account/multiple stores would be inventory...and last but not least, it would require some major changes of the entire inventory based delivery and MP system and I don`t think there is much to gain from such an investment compared to simply using alts... If they ever choose to update MP system, there are a few things I feel are more so worth the effort, i.e. creating multiple items listings and unlisting, or sale option to just apply a percentage to entire store instead of going through each listing individually, setting a default view for my store (i.e. newest first, which can be changed by users ofc), demo system (something like local textures perhaps, a temporary test that allows only person who`s testing to see it in world) etc... btw no LL would not get more commission, they get 10% of each sale, whether the item is sold in store A or store B, LL cut is the same...

Selection/cutting method matters! A lot...do not use magic wand for selection ever, do not use warp tool ever...those 2 are the most common mistakes ppl make when working with textures... Best way to select (cut) is by using alpha channel/levels or using pen tool/path (with use of bezier point function)... Alpha channel: copy entire layer with tattoo design, open channels tab, new alpha/paste, go back to layers, ctrl+L to open levels and play with values until you get decent contrast between black and white (this will also allow different values of opacity as you see in the original artwork), open "select" drop down menu, create selection and add a mask or just copy/paste in place (at times you will have to invert selection before masking or copy/paste-ing to have the right part displayed)...you can alternatively color the cutout to any color (usually black) just to avoid any white outlines...(btw this works best with solid color backgrounds, if tattoo background is a pattern it could be problematic and you may need to clean it up by hand) Pen tool: select points along the edge of tattoo design, then use point selection tool to select each point and adjust the curve using point handles. you can also change how any point behaves, does it create a curved or a straight line or an angle (pen tool menu add/remove point/convert point)...This may seem a bit too complex, but it does give you a permanent selection (paths tab) which can be used and adjusted later on... (this is not suitable for intricate patterns, more so for larger solid color shapes) Work on a bigger template, 2048x2048, do not downsize in PS, let SL uploader downsize it for you (it will be 1024x1024 once uploaded), for some reason this makes textures crispier... Regarding format, I can`t say I noticed any significant difference between .tga and .png.... Here is an old page by Robin Wood, tutorials (both techniques I mentioned are there) are made with a super old version of PS, but nomenclature is the same and I am sure you will find more then a few useful tips for creating/editing textures/tattoos as well as using PS and PS3D..

They are talking about LeLutka axis HUD which is a must-have for any SL photographer...it allows you to create any possible facial expression you can think of and works with any bento head not just LeLutka... Lelutka Axis Hud Video Lelutka Axis Hud on Other Heads Video

I saw Magika advertising their hairstyles no longer cause alpha glitching, can`t say I tested it, but I do trust that brand so they must have found a solution and I really wish I knew how they did it... btw I`m not a fan of alpha hair in general, most styles look great in front view, but if you check from a side, there is no volume, just several slices of folded paper hanging over your boobs..then there is this trend with sheer or fishnet/lace clothing which is both horrible and dysfunctional, but then again, I see some bigger brands actually modeling lace or fishnet and I can only imagine sheer amount of geometry that took which is even worse then glitchy alpha option... at least BoM resolved issues with applier clothes, tattoos and make up (except lashes), perhaps you need your meshes (head and body) updated to BoM version and give it a try?