I don’t usually blog about larger shops, but there are a few things that make Technique particularly noteworthy. First of all, they have both high quality furniture and prefabs PLUS the furniture coordinates easily with the prefab homes and businesses. Second, their stuff is unique.

You can get a prefab diner, piano bar, casino, skyscraper and more, all low cost and relatively low prim. Then, you can choose from a variety of well-made furniture which all come preloaded with a variety of cute and realistic poses. For example, the way cute IKEA-like bed up there that’s coordinated with a super huge painting and fun rug? You actually toss and turn when you sleep in it! How cool is that? My favorite piece is the couch shaped like the back seat of a classic Cadillac, also pictured.

The furniture can be high in prims (up to about 40 prims for a couch), but you definitely get the most out of the prims and price. Check out that couch with the gazillion pillows and fun prints. The price is remarkable. Most of the furniture is 150L or less, and cute home accents can be had for less than 50L. I bought a vase with bamboo-like stuff that looked exactly like something I saw in IKEA in real life for 30L, for example.

TECHNIQUE, Isle of Tharen (118, 67, 23)

I moved to a larger place in SL, but I’m crazy busy in RL, which is why I haven’t updated this blog. I’m going to try to update it this weekend, but after that you may not here from me again until July or August. I will be back, though. This is just a nutty summer!

I bought some modeling stuff at Linden Lifestyles’ Sabrina Doolittle’s shop, Picture Perfect. I bought one of her copyable portfolios, and I filled it with purty pictures and turned it into a poor man’s coffee table book. The theme is deconstructed beauty and a harsh commentary on body image - sort of an ironic use for a modeling portfolio.

Some of the pictures are nude, albeit tasteful, so be warned, but you’re welcome to take a copy! It’s located on the coffee table in my SL home. The landmark is below.

Picture Perfect: Modeling Studio, Calla (113, 81, 22)
Slade Estates, Miliaco (105, 110, 86)

The first thing I noticed about Chardonnay’s home was the home theater, pictured. She furnished her home theater meticulously, down to the little bucket of popcorn, and it’s those details that really make a furnished home interesting. The lovely brown modular couch has a variety of poses, and you can hide or unhide the poseballs by touching anywhere on the couch. It’s created by Dione Jacques along with the giant tv, which has animated speakers!

For purely adult entertainment, Chardonnay has thoughtfully placed a bar in front of a window. The trick with home decorating is placement; you can have the best furniture in Second Life, but still have a house that looks incomplete when you don’t consider the arrangement of your pieces. So, big props for finding the perfect spot for the bar and placing it there. Also, check out how the carpet and wallpaper are coordinated; they don’t match exactly, but they’re coordinated quite nicely.

The candlelit bedroom is heaven, featuring furniture by Susan Ramos and a large self-portrait of Char. The tones are warm neutrals and browns - very relaxing. Char’s kitchen is modern with steaming plates of hot food waiting for her lucky guests. Speaking of comfort, it sure was nice to cosy up by the fire in Char’s colorful, Southwestern-style family room.

As I was leaving Char’s home, I was greeted with yet another surprise - cold lemonade and a beautiful beachfront view. The patio furniture is from Del Sol, and appear to be part of a set. The lemonade, though, was the perfect touch of hospitality in a wonderfully inviting home.

Ramos Island (67, 137, 39)
DEL SOL PATIO SECTION, Del Luna (241, 61, 28)
Extraordinaire Isle (69, 143, 34)
Diones Designs (128, 120, 26)

If you’re in the market for a bar, I found a pretty good deal for you to check out. 22 prims, 249L and it comes with everything you need for a commercial or residential bar. All you need to provide are avatars to warm the seats.

Affo, Vsevolod (180, 104, 120)

For the first of Second Life Decor’s “Open House” photo features, we take a virtual vacation in the sunny Key West, FL sim.

Lebechai Vesta, who owns the sim, showed off her old fashioned Southern hospitality and gave me a quick tour of her home. I know I’ve mentioned this a few times before, but I’m on my laptop, so my pictures just can’t do the sim justice; you’ll have to check it out yourself for the full effect: sandy white beaches, blue water - just like the real Key West!

Lebechai’s Second Life home is fun, bright and eclectic. From the purple exterior siding to the tropical artwork, Lebechai left no detail unrezzed. The house itself is a replica of a real bed and breakfast in Key West. In fact, the entire sim is populated with homes that exist in RL - including the dazzling Hemingway House, the crowning jewel of the island.

The living room is adorable, with the mismatch of South Beach sorbet colors and patterns that distinguishes Floridian decor. Yet, the pieces are carefully selected so that the colors are in harmony - not an easy feat since Floridian decor occupies the line between tropical dream vacation and neon tacky nightmare. The furniture is also arranged so that it’s open and inviting instead of blocked-in as is the default arrangement for a living room set.

The bedroom is a whole lot of fun and even has an animated wardrobe. You can see a pic of the wardrobe with one door open and one door closed above. The bed has a delightful yellow bedspread with a fun floral print. I could swear that I’ve slept in that same bedspread during one of many hotel stays in Florida. To top it all off, the wallpaper features painted wall reliefs and other surprises throughout the house.

If you like the Key West style, you’re in luck because Lebechai is renting out units at the sim. She bought her furniture at Del Sol Open Market and the outdoor furniture from Pondlife.

New Key West: New Conch Republic 116, 166, 22
Del Sol Open Market: Del Sol 126, 147, 29
Pondlife: PondLife 100, 199, 22

Due to real life constraints, I won’t be online too much this week. Thanks to everybody who IM’ed me in Second Life about blogging your home. I’ll get back to everybody this weekend!

Just as a reminder, I’m seeking people who have nicely furnished homes so that I can feature you in this blog, “Better Homes and Gardens” style! Comment here or contact me in SL if you’re interested!

IDEA Home Center is having its grand opening today, and you know what that means: freebies, and freebies means Raychel is so there.

IDEA features a variety of furniture, art and decor that is reasonably priced and low in prims. The furniture is informed by the modern, simple lines from IKEA, as are the reasonable prices. They have some nifty little items, like the alarm clock pictured above that’s packaged with a cute modern nightstand. That wall of colorful chairs actually represents their collection of four-piece living room sets, priced at 777L each. The couches, chairs and other furniture pieces are under 20 prims each as far as what I inspected. You can get a lovely sofa for 350L or 250L and 15 prims. End tables are generally under 100L, and coffee tables are about 130L.

Once more, I apologize for the low resolution, but I’m on the road in RL and stuck with a laptop through August.

Kankovan (179, 238, 86)

Le Monde has some neat low-prim furniture that’s influenced by traditional East Asian and West Asian decor. I’m stuck with my laptop for the summer, which doesn’t have the best resolution, so please excuse the blurry pictures.

The Persian-style fountains pictured above are under 10 prims; one is six and the other is 9. Le Monde also has special deals on bedrooms and living rooms, or you can buy furniture by the piece.

Le Monde, Anilis (29, 160, 112)

Style Disorder gave Second Life Decor a really nice shout out. Style Disorder is a super fun blog about SL fashion. I read it often and definitely recommend that you check it out!