In my Build It And They Will Shop series, I looked at stores with entertaining shopping environments unlike anything in real life. The products and the environment are different things, though they’re sometimes thematically linked. HappyMood is something different. The environment is largely made up of the product.
Now, you could say that about any place that sells trees, but they tend to be pretty sterile places — well tended gardens, if you will. Not so with HappyMood. It’s a storybook-like dome where reality has been shifted a few degrees toward the cute. The only way I can describe it is that everything gives you the feeling of being in a softly painted illustration from a classic children’s story. Wind in the Willows, or… nothing else comes to mind at the moment.
Most of the products are there for you to see and touch and try, like these beautifully detailed rocking horses. As befits a place like this, they also sell a version for tines.
Wander around a bit and you’ll find some freebie t-shirts. There’s no sign telling you about them, you just run into them. They’re just part of the woodwork, as it were, like the beautiful interior surface of the dome. It gives you the impression of being in a glowing sunrise, all the time. The scroll-work and stars in the sky just add to the effect.
Pictures don’t quite do the giant rabbits justice. The ears wiggle, the eyes blink, the noses sniff. I just hope that a giant doesn’t get the idea to use them for a pregnancy test.
The top of the dome really shows off the trees (but you can see them better in the sky garden). Mainly, though, it’s a great place to wander.
At the top of the dome you’ll find a welcoming little area to hang out. I’ve often found people here, just sitting and chatting and enjoying the view. Once I ran into a couple getting, ummm… amorous, but they quickly shifted to IM. I left them to their fun. It’s a lovely environment, but I’m not so sure I find it romantic.
Sometimes you’ll find surprising little details. This little island seems to serve no purpose except to look cute (and have these little rabbits peek out of you). That’s the essence of the Build It And They Will Shop experience. So, of course, I had to buy one of those rocking horses…
http://slurl.com/secondlife/HappyMood/84/155/31
Happy Mood is very popular with my female friends, and I can see why, but I really like it there a lot. It’s incredibly well done and just so… so… CUTE. So cute that I bought one of their small black birds to perch on my shoulder (it chirps if clicked).