HB #1 - Heart Necklace

★★★★★★★★★★

The first hot buy of the month has been released in the starplaza - costing a reasonable 10 stardollars. You can find it in Stardoll's prime jewellery store Epiphany. I can't say I was particularly excited for this necklace when the month preview was first debuted, but it does surprisingly look very nice on my doll. Have you made an outfit with this necklace? Comment below if so and you will be entered into a competition with stardollar prizes at the end of the month!

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Entrer Hot Buys - February 2014

There was an unusual lack of Hot Buys collections last year but Stardoll have appeared to reverse this trend and are once again back into the swing of their monthly collections. Though whether they're good or not is a completely different question it is always somewhat exciting to peer into the fashions from that coming month.

After an interesting yet mediocre collection of January hot buys (which you can view here), Stardoll have released their February edition, which are unsurprisingly embellished in hearts and jewels galore. However similar to the January collection they are laid out beautifully, aside from the rather creepy model and her somewhat intimidating glare.

Personally I am fond of quite a large selection of the monthly picks and there is nothing which I can immediately say that I dislike. Every item looks well crafted and I am especially excited for the Hearts Shirt, available on the 4th of February, which takes direct inspiration from the beautiful Burberry real life version. Alongside this, The Valentin jacket also looks very on trend and I can see the Paris clutch and accompanying jewels going down a treat too.

All in all, February looks like a very promising month for Hot Buys and I am excited to try on all of the above items. Stay tuned throughout the month for a review of each and every Hot Buy on their day of release, starting today!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

WINTER HIATUS!

Back soon!

Enjoy your holidays (-:

SALE PICKS

The monthly sales are undeniably what every Stardoll player waits for every month. In the past, Stardoll have been lazy with their approach to the monthly event, but things seem to be up and running again and the sale, including stores such as Miss Sixty and MSW, is back. Today I’m going to be giving you my top picks, hints and tips to get all the items you want while these wonderful cutbacks are on!

Unsurprisingly, the wish list is very useful. Don’t only use it for items that you can’t afford and are saving up for, but instead leave some space for items from regular stores that you like as well. It comes in handy when the sales come round, and with the click of a button you can browse through all the items you wish for immediately seeing whether they’re on sale or not. Other than this - Be sure to check into every store, you would be surprised at the amount of nice items hidden among the messy floors. 

1. Miss Sixty is a mediocre store. It's one of the remaining real brands yet it seems to introduce the same thing as every collection goes by. In saying this however, their coats from the most recent collection were wonderful, and if you haven't checked them out yet, I'd consider picking one up now!

2. Transform is a great store, but with great stores nowadays, come horribly overpriced items. A lipgloss from this store will set you back twenty four stardollars, and an eyeshadow a huge nineteen. Sales are the only time I would consider buying from this shop, unless I was really desperate for some admittedly beautiful but far too expensive items. 

3. Don't forget to check out the interior stores too! Almost every decor shop in the starplaza has a sale going on so don't forget to take a look in these too. 

4. In my eyes Killah is probably one of the worst real brands to ever grace the pixels of Stardoll. Nevertheless, upon hunting you can find a few desirable items among the rubble, and for half the price! 5. The new Fallen Angel collection was somewhat mediocre, but the black latex bodysuit is an undeniably chic item - a staple for everyones wardrobes! 6. These last two items are from Bonjour Bizou and It Girls, and are two simple but stylish items that fit into my personal style. Make sure to choose items that you love and don't focus on spending more on items from expensive shops. 

TTT WEEKLY #1

THE PERFECT JEANS

Callie's Picks was a somewhat controversial store when it was first released - with Stardoll once again using their trusted method of rereleasing for the new shop. Two weeks on, and the second edition of the store has been released, this time paying homage to none other than denim.

Quite honestly, this release is surprisingly underwhelming. After a pretty solid first release and a cool vibe on the spoiler of the new edition - I was left disappointed with the higher prices and poor selection of items.

Quintessentially Callie's Picks is Stardoll's attempt at repackaging Archive so that they can charge higher prices and release items of moderate rarity (...not that they didn't already attempt that). Prices in this collection have sky rocketed to 40 stardollars and unsurprisingly there are a very small number of starcoin items which are mostly tagged at 100sc+.

What are your thoughts on the second release of Callie's Picks?

UPDATE: The Archive store has just been removed from starplaza. It seems as though I was correct when saying that Callie's Picks is just archive repackaged for a higher price.

X III

Every magazine will one day come to an end, and the third issue of X finalises its legendary take on Stardoll in its most intriguing issue yet. Cover model Keshan takes centre stage, with an interview focusing on the intimate topic of her androgyny and personal pursuits. Venturing further into the magazine you begin to notice that X is no longer your every day Stardoll magazine, but rather a genuine online fashion magazine covering multiple controversial subjects that every other Stardoll magazine has been scared to write about in the past. This issue successfully manages to provoke thought on the well written and structured articles on the topic of war against ourselves and the gender binary, alongside an article on Céline, which slots in perfectly to X's polished and minimalist approach. It is needless to say that the final issue of this magazine is the perfect ending to its time on Stardoll and the legacy of X will undeniably leave its mark on Stardoll forever.

★★★★★★★★★★

THE CLOAK OF ANONYMOUS

To start off November with a bang, I decided to rack out a topic that I'm very opinionated on. If you've bothered to read off the title, you'll know I've chosen—possibly—Dollywood's most controversial topic since the beginning of the blogging era.

I'm completely honest when I say each and every one of you've been an anonymous at least once. Whether it was leaving a snarky comment on one's poorly written post with an unknown mask intact, or using your anonymous shield rattling off each and every person's flaws.

What's the incredulous look for? You know you've been there before.

Even I'll openly admit I've written behind an anonymous mask before. If anyone remembers back to my Anonymous by Name days, then you'll know I've been in the very position that ironically sways each and every one of Dollywood's opinions.

Many like for the kicks of it, to act as if they're the polar opposite of the said anonymous, countering against every syllable uttered by unknown. Others will agree completely with anonymous' opinions, for once someone (known or not) decided to speak the blatant truth. While there's some out there that are completely blunt about any and everything, chances the majority of voices are seeking to keep some sanity in their reputation.

After all, what's the fun of having no friends; each and every human being utterly disgusted with your simplest of moves.

It's not even limited to a blog. With the feature of anonymous in almost every comment section of Dollywood, it's becoming painstakingly easy—and dare I say, tempting—to publish a string of profanities upon a carefully crafted post. Medolls are constantly being ridiculed by the anonymous feature, sometimes even tearing their fragile egos. Why exactly is hiding behind an unknown mask so tempting?

Some may argue that it's to gain attention (without ruining their reputation), while others may come to the simple conclusion that these unknown have nothing better do with their time. I personally believe it's a healthy mixture of both.

I'll be honest here, the thrill of bringing down one's self-confidence is a drug of sorts. Do it once, and you're fueled with such a strong sense of sadistic elation. Do it again, and you're hooked. Constantly rattling one out for their minor flaws. Of course, with time, you're bound to realize harassing one really isn't as high and luxurious as it might've first appeared. It may be a simple one-time bitch slap, or numerous, uncountable times of full out f-bombs.

This isn't television kids; one time or another, you're bound to break. Even the coldest of souls will realize their wrong doings one of these days. May not be until they're lying on their death bed, but it'll eventually catch up with each and every one of us.

That's when another dose of anonymity will reign control. It's a never-ending cycle. You're never going to just be ridiculed by a single bored-out-of-their-mind forty year old man, but also those ten year old children who've been abused by their own peers. The problem being the fact you'll never know exactly who they are.

And one of those times, you'll be in the very same position.

The ultimate question is, why are you an anonymous? What's your purpose of hiding behind an invisible shield?

CALLIE'S PICKS, Store Review

**Warning: Like many of my posts, the following is subject to a hefty amount of swearing and finger-pointing. If you are uncomfortable with foul language, this is not a post for you . . . 

Today marked the opening of yet another store in the Starplaza. While I'm all for new collections, Callie's Picks was definitely not anything I was expecting.

And when I say, "Not what I was expecting," I mean it in the humblest what-a-piece-of-shit type of way. Now, it might just be me, but I'm not too keen on seeing doubles. Might I mention the use of mildly-rare items in this modern day collection?

Take the Tartan Cap Sleeve Dress, for example. Remember seeing that in Stardoll's Versus S/S 2011 collection? Ah, let the nostalgia sink in. And while we're at it, how about the Tartan Dress inspired by McQueen? If memory serves correct, at one point, that too, was considered valuable.

Though while I'm all for a re-release of something that suits my fancy, I'm not all that fond of rares releasing for round two. The very reason is in its name.

Lets start with why a rare is labeled a rare. Because it pertains to a certain value, therefore making it desirable. Kicking up the dosage of nostalgia: I can clearly remember asking my parents why the government doesn't make more money? To me, it made so much sense - hell, no one would suffer poverty; everyone'd earn a healthy dose of food each evening; and be able to afford all the 'wants' in life.

That's the thing, though. If money was spewing from trees, it wouldn't be seen as desirable. Same thing relates to Stardoll's rares. If everyone had lets just say, the DKNY Scuba Dress (Ah, yes, that'd be nice, wouldn't it?), it wouldn't be seen as a got-to-have item. And yeah, I'm well aware of the eye rolling; you don't need a lesson on value.

Aside from the point, though . . . lets not forget the other items featured in Callie's Picks.

To be completely honest, the entire collection makes my head spin at the sight of two completely different sides of Stardoll. I'm sure you're all highly aware of my - quite - obvious distaste towards newer collections of Stardoll's - hence the super shiny objects that appear as if they'd just gotten a hitchhike from Barbie. Often times I'll find myself wishing for elder feats of Stardoll - a little something I like to call quality. And yes, you can get that too, all here at Callie's most coveted closet. From the Gold Foil Plaid Dress (Which features the best of Photoshop's dodge and burn tools . . . ), to the Ruffle Hem Blouse (And ironically, doesn't even cater a speck of plaid), you can get all pieces of tartan known to man. Or dolls, in this case.

I'd also like to touch up on the fact that Stardoll seared the face of a fictional character into the seams of their "new" clothing. Cause' lets face it, Callie.Stardoll is just a myth in their game. If there was some solid proof that in fact Callie existed, then maybe I'd change my mind. Though, it's going to take a lot of convincing seen as it's been confirmed many times over that she's just a made-up name. That said, if it really is an invisi-woman making all the decisions, then how the hell is Stardoll translating her words of silence into a solid fourty plus items?

Also couldn't help but point out the cliche'd title of Stardoll's latest and greatest? I swear even "Original Future" is more original than that . . .

On a high note, however, I was actually thrilled by the little quick-fact article written up - all if you click on the "About the Trend" icon as featured in the store. It'll make up for some educated dollies as to this season's hottest trends, even if it's just the tip of the iceberg, at best. I'm just happy Stardoll brought in some facts strait off the runway - albeit the items featured come from previous seasons, and are so-called out of style.

Despite some - in my opinion - major flaws in Callie's Picks, I was alright with this release. I'd just wished it'd taken more than ten minutes top to create a collection of fourty-six misfits. And of course, add a dose of quality, and then I'll hand Stardoll over my seal of approval.