Laurel Aurelia

I shower twice daily. The one in the morning is very short , to knock the sleep out of me because I don't drink coffee. The one I take in the evening is more of an event. I have really long hair that I like to air dry, and that only works if I shower in evening. If I did that in the morning, I'd look like a creature from the swamp for half the day.

That picture is really troubling . @Chic Aeon I had to log out of the website in order to see it .

Lelukta's heads come with gestures that are activated by using certain emojis . So if I ever use in local I do smile momentarily which I like. Otherwise I try to keep my face fairly neutral when I am just out and about.

The top hair is from Tram. Not sure who makes the second though.

Welcome back to SL Adrian! It can certainly be a daunting task to create an updated avatar. It can be complicated process due to the nonintuitive-ness of it all. But rest assured, with some patience and time, the mystery of avatar customization will unravel itself. Signature Gianni is a great choice for a body. I would caution anyone against Belleza bodies at least right now, because they have not been updated to fit the universal neck that was introduced last year. Without the update, you would always have a seam on your neck with newer heads. As for getting help with your neck problem, since I am lady and don't know what your HUD looks like it might be best to create a post in the avatar section of the forums. In your post there, please include a picture of your avatar's issue and a picture of your "Worn" folder. Those two things will give helpers a great deal of information to assist you more quickly. Feel free to message me in world if you have any questions. While not a guy, I am a seasoned SL shopper, and know all the quality brands.

I know these do not have the circle loop you are looking for, but I thought I would share them with you anyway. Tonktastic's owner takes great care in making high quality, super detailed mesh. I love his captain boots. I was not able to find a demo on the MP for these but you might check out their store in world. Here is a picture of them from Flickr.

For closer to the knee length, I'd maybe check out Coco or Fashionably Dead. They have a lot of cute styles, even some longer shorts as well if that is your bag.

The first picture looks like when I don't have on Advanced Lighting. Has that been ticked off by chance? I know when you mess around with the graphic slider, it might turn on/off certain features.

Backdrops are a lot of fun, and add ton of interest to your picture without a lot of work. I like them better than say a flat prim because they make me feel as if I am in the world . If you are interested in buying some for yourself, I definitely recommend checking the weekend sales as a lot of the big name stores that make them will put out their older releases on a temporary discount (typically under 100 lindens) in world. Those stores often have group gift back drops too.

I would say the difficult part of using a flat background is creating the illusion of being part of it. Dissonance in color, picture scale, and art style can make your subject look pasted on instead of creating a unified image. There are ways to use flat backgrounds however. When composing your image, try pulling the background back away from your subject/ avatar, creating a foreground to focus on. Use depth of field that blurs the background out a bit. You can create DOF in post, but I think it usually looks better when you create it in the viewer.

Only thing I can think to add is trying a different, less crowded region. I will sometimes get that message when I am in area with a lot scripts/other avatars in it. It usually clears itself up once I somewhere lag free. If you are wearing any other HUDS as well, take those off.

I love Black Dragon, and all of its picture tools. I have figured out how to get movement controls sorted for my use, and would use it full time if I had area search and the built in ao functionality. I use area search a lot when decorating as I am prone to send an object scuttling across the region when I am trying to move it into place. It's also helpful when I am at sales events, and I know what I want to find. Places like the skin fair are legit a nightmare without it.

I highly recommend her blush remover and she also has some highlight correctors too. All reasonably priced and tintable. She's saved many a skin for me.

Nuve has a lovely darker toned skin called Destiny. It's made for the 3 major head brands including Catwa HD Pro, and comes in I think 6 shades. As a picky person myself, I understand how hard it can be to find a skin with all your qualifications. Izzies makes quite a few correctors that might work to remove some of the harsh contouring on a skin you otherwise like.

@Panteleeva Some people become triggered when hearing about other people's losses. You did nothing wrong by expressing your sadness. I thought it was a lovely thing what you did for your cat. As someone who has a whole herd of furbabies at home, it is never easy to say goodbye to them.

I am sorry for your losses Panteleeva! Take care of yourself.

Know your interests, and join groups that reflect them. Don't wait for people to engage you. It might feel uncomfortable at first especially in settings where there are preexisting communities, but the longer you are around and the more visible you are the better chance you have at integrating.