Eyescapade

So I wanted to review eyes. I didn’t know why… but I guess it has something to do with those new eye collections recently introduced by various designers, and by the fact that I rarely change that part of me (I’m talking about the eyes, ok?). I have dozens of everything else, yet I only use a couple of those chromatic balls. Why’s so?

I think I’ve been using the same pair of eyes for over a year+ now, without feeling any significant urge to try something different. After all, we only have a pair of eyes, don’t we? (not counting contact lenses, come on…). Yet, it is evident that the ones I’ve been wearing for so long are showing their age. While the rest of the world bear peepers with some 3D look, including reddish veins and conjunctivitis (yep, we’ll talk about that later), my iris has been floating on a perfectly white sclera that more than once has scared the hell out of me. I mean, why does that ball has to be so plain and bright? It almost glows in the dark…

Well, I guess I got tired of my bleached eyes and decided to try something new and up to current trends in iris design. So yesterday I went eye scouting and visited several shops that have them for sale. Unfortunately demo eyes are not as common as demo hair –yes, they are there, but usually the samples aren’t particularly the best of the crop. Only one store had demo eyes of their newest line (Endeavor). I think that’s very convenient, since the pictures on display rarely present what the eyes will look like on you because light conditions vary a lot from place to place. So it is a big plus if you can try them under different settings before buying.

Given that almost no other store had demo eyes, it means I had to buy at least a pair from every shop that had something appealing. That imposed some limitations as to what to include in this review:

• I only chose natural looking eyes because those would be the ones I might wear regularly. This limitation corresponds to one trivial thing already expressed: I’m paying for what I’m reviewing. Therefore, since I have a limited amount of cash, I better get items that could be regarded as money well spent, instead of getting cool oculi that would seldom see any use.
• I only picked up single units. There are several shops carrying attractive eye collections, but they only offer them bundled for one price. That is the case of FNKY!, for example. They have eight sets of eyes, most of them very good looking, yet you have to buy the whole package even if you’re only interested in one color. It isn’t that bad if you consider each set sells for 500L (that’s as low as 23L per item), but at least I know I would be trashing half of them right away (all those red, purple, peach, orange and in-between shades). Other shops usually sell sets for well over 1200L, not a practical choice for me. But if you’re into modeling, sets would be a smart option.

For the photos, I’m wearing a darker skin (Belleza’s Mathieu – Tan) and a new shape I made with eyes a little bit more open to enhance contrast and have more iris exposed.

To begin with, let’s go to Miriel. I have two reasons for picking her first, the most important one being that designer Miriel Enfield is going out of business in the next few weeks as stated in her own blog just today (read), so her eyes will be a thing of the past once that happens. She doesn’t say why she’s closing down her beautiful sims, but if you want any of her products, better hurry up before it’s too late. The second reason is that these have been the eyes I’ve been wearing for months uninterrupted. I lost my newbie eyes to Miriel, so to speak. They were (and still are) so bright and vivid that I couldn’t resist their gaze. I’m also fond of eyes with mixed colors, so the Midnight Sun (below) have become part of my identity. The second ones are the Duotone Summer Wood.

The only aspect I don’t like that much in these eyes are the plain sclera (the white orb) –as I’ve said before–, but other than that, they are lovely. Miriel’s Eyes come in two sizes: Normal (pictured above) and Standard (below), which go to the large side. At the time of purchase you have to select which ones you want, since they are sold separately (50L for a pair).

There’s also a great set of some 19 or 20 free eyes at Miriel’s main store, both normal and standard; same high quality as the non-free versions.

When I decided to write this short review on eyes (hell that sounded as Disney on ice…) I asked a few friends who were their favorite eye designers. Among the most frequent replies was Tuli, so I head there next to see what the fuse was all about. And I think it’s the price. Tuli’s eyes are also 50L, a pretty low price in the iris market. Photographed are Steel eyes, from the Luminous collection.

A favorite among female skin wearers, Tuli Asturias’ collection is not so extensive as her flesh offerings: only four lines of four eyes each. What strikes me most about these eyes is that they are marble-lous: they look like polished marble, that is. That makes them less shiny than other eyes, or kind of soft or even dull. Nevertheless, they are also among “people’s most wanted” because they have a life-like blood vessels area making a distinctive conjunctiva (I guess that’s a plus for photography). Some people find the veins a little bit too conspicuous; I say they’re more like a little bit inflamed, but well, allergies should also have their presence in SL to make this virtual world more real, isn’t it? But then, the veins, coupled with a normal iris and a small pupil makes them one of the most anatomically complete eyes in Second Life. If they were more lustrous while keeping the 50L tag, they would be marvelous.

Tuli’s fans should also consider visiting Mojo Real Eyes. This little shop offers normal size eyes with well defined conjunctiva… sans conjunctivitis. Price is higher, at 79L for a regular pair (with light, they called them), or 179L for two variants: the same one in the regular package, and another pair named “without light”, to be used in conjunction with a “something something” device (included) designed to produce six different light effects. That may be perfect for photography, but for everyday use, the regular variant is the way to go.

Mojo’s motto is “The best eyes in SL”. From my point of view they are pretty close to that deed. Italian haute couture has always been esteemed among the best of the world. I’m sure these eyes are also another example of that “padronanza”.

More on eyes soon, so stay tuned…