Just got back from North Carolina!

Since it's Honesty Hour right now, I'm going to come out and say that I've been insanely forgetful, and not really in the mood for blogging for the last month or so. But I did go on vacation to North Carolina for two weeks on July 31st, and I just got back yesterday. 

To make up for my disappointing lack of posting, I'm going to tell you about my trip...and the fact that I've been so non-caught-up on Stardoll matters. Hopefully more posts about that will go up soon. Anyway, I went to a couple universities to check them out, (three more years!) and then we walked around downtown Asheville, and repeated this for a few days, seeing as we were rained upon several times during our little expedition. Seriously though, downtown Asheville was full of unwashed hippies and 1960's re-treads, but all the stores and restaurants were surprisingly trendy and I was impressed with the variety of food choices down there. 

We also saw a local farmer's market, which was really interesting. Mom got her brisket rub, and the bottle remained intact in our suitcase and arrived home safe and sound. Anyway, we went to a bunch of "dead people's houses" as I like to call the grand estates owned by deceased billionaires, ahem, Mr. Vanderbilt. 

We were drawn to a few more attractions before we had to leave, but I made sure to check out a few lovely vintage antique shops and some quaint little craft stores during our trip. I picked up tons of vintage goodies and boheme-looking accessories. 

It was mainly a big shopping trip, to be honest. And I'm not saying I didn't enjoy it, which I did. So now that I'm back in the industrially lovely New York, I can't wait to just chill out and relish the rest of the fleeting summer. 

Hit or Miss: Windows on the World and LE Summer 2012

Finally, a new LE collection! I've been waiting forever for this.

I'm sure that was most of our reactions when we all received the advertisement in our mailboxes when we logged on today. So, being the ultimate shopper that I am, I went to go check it out. And there I am, practically salivating as my screen loads the first floor of the new Limited Edition Summer items. Now, mind you, at this point I was expecting diamonds or something, so it was a huge disappointment to find that the outfits were tacky-looking, chintzy, and full of ruffles and weird patterns that I could care less about.

See, with LE items, it's either a hit or a miss. This was a miss.

Honestly, it was incredibly difficult to figure out what the theme was, if there was one at all. Stardoll has certainly been getting lazy and rather un-creative in regards to these rare "Limited Edition" items. I mean, they expect to wow us with a plain, unadorned purple sunhat? the very same one in a different color and more textured than the free Rebecca BonBon red sunhat they gave out in a free promotion a few months ago? They're limited because they must be good, but these were a complete failure. But I'll give them a little credit, at least. Finally they put some mens' clothing in, which sold out in the first thirty minutes. And the LE earrings were nice, as well. But my favorite pieces in this collection would be Circus Tent Pants and the Lace Me Shorts. Both were very versatile and a staple in many virtual closets. That's all I really have to say about this average collection. I've seen worse LE (last month's hideous collection), so it wasn't terrible.

Micromanaging the Summer Lazies

I think I've contracted a case of the "summer lazies", where I've been caught up in way too much stuff for me to write on my blog regularly. I cringe when I say that this poor little blog has been rather neglected of late. So I'm putting lots of stuff on hold for this; between roleplay clubs, general Stardoll drama, and the usual "let's throw in the towel and have a good time". In either case, I've been really neglecting a lot of things besides Aledale and another blog I write for, but I should be writing a few more posts, though not as regularly as I used to.

Hey, being manager of one club is hard enough, and now that I am no longer the manager, it's kind of freeing. So that's what I'm going to talk about today. Managers.

Now, contrary to popular belief, I'm not one to micromanage things. I'm more of a "go-with-the-flow-and-float-where-the-wind-takes-you" kind of gal. Although in rare occasions, I get a little power-crazy and start attacking the little things that are so seemingly insignificant that I am under no obligation to fix. And don't ever believe someone who says managing a club on Stardoll is a piece of cake, unless your club is collecting dust in a corner of an old closet. Let me tell you, it's hard work. You've got to put in the time, not to mention blood, sweat, and tears, to oil the kinks in the machinery and pick the stray crumbs off the dirty iced layer of the cake. And if you've ever done either, you'd know how messy it can get.

Especially in RP clubs, managing things is incredibly difficult. You've got to delete old topics, run things while the owner is away, deal with that one member that's always breathing down your neck, and be active in roleplaying in addition to all that. But being a manager can also be rewarding. You get special manager privileges, and the satisfaction of a job well done. So all in all, it's not too terrible being a manager, but I won't lie, it's a messy job.

My Current Obsession: Dot's Summer Pastels Collection

When I logged on to Stardoll this morning, I had at least seven of those Starplaza Advertisements mails collecting dust in my Inbox. As my finger was poised over the mouse to click "Delete All", the word "pastel" caught my eye.

And it was like spark to flame in about a minute. I was clicking as frantically as I could to get to the Starplaza so I could check out Dot's new Summer Pastels collection. I find it to be a great way to start off the summer. After months and months of endless, mismatched, and sloppy color collections, the extemporaneous Dot is finally starting to enhance their selection with a more neutral palette of colors that will be bought with tempermental judgement.

Click for close-ups on these screenshots that I took of the new products Dot is offering.

Although it seems a little ironic that Dot is behind the fashions right now. Pastels are and to me, always will be in, but not right after the trending fad of bright, neon colors fades away.

What do you think about Dot's new collection? Hit or miss?