From what I can gather Demi Étage is a Japanese fashion catalog. Some time ago I found their presence in Second Life, complete with 25 freebie outfits that look just like the stuff you can buy in real life. Yes, you and your avatar can match. It’s either very cool or very creepy, depending on your perspective.
I never bothered to write about it because my female friends told me that the outfits were of middling quality and didn’t fit well. However, I just ran into the spot again and something hit me. It’s not just the quality of the outfits that’s an issue, it’s that they just don’t fit into the styles we’ve come to accept in Second Life.
Look at them. They look just fine in the photographs behind them, but on the avatars it’s startling to see someone with every inch of their skin covered. Pretty much every outfit with a skirt includes leggings. On an avatar they look positively schoolmarmish (or like the sexist nun you ever met). We must not expose the legs! The legs are evil!
But when you think about it… I’m bouncing around with giant boots and tight t-shirts with my arms covered in tattoos in a kind of metro biker chic and no one thinks much of it. What reaction would it get if I dressed like that down at Wal-Mart (assuming I was that buff in real life, I suppose)? Many of the women I know are usually quite scantily clad (Not that I mind! Not that I mind! Don’t start wearing more clothes on my account!). In real life those outfits would probably provoke unwanted attention.
I don’t know if I really have a point in mentioning this, but it is interesting. Maybe we dress the way we do in Second Life because if we had bodies like that in real life, well, maybe would would dress that way. I’ve often commented that Second Life is the only place where, when I’m shopping for clothes, I will say, “Hey, that looks like it fits really tight…. I’ll buy it!”
Maybe we’re just used to it. After living in a world with furries and tinies and assorted other creatures, maybe wearing a super-mini is no big thing.
Thank you very much for this slurl! I visited it and now I have my SL 2008 designer fall collection for free! It’s incredible.
You know, not every girl wants to look too… explicit… in SL. Some of them (like me) prefer to look decent and ladylike. I know in SL it is a rebellion.
About the “didn’t fit well” problem: I can tell that the bermuda and capri pants are really problematic, they somehow distort the legs’shapes. But on the other hand, the jackets, prim turtlenecks, stockings, skirts are all “designer look and feel”.
Thank you.