Home and Garden Expo breakdown, Event exclusives, freebie

H&G Expo End of show notes:

First off – thanks to all who dropped by my spot at Home Expo this past couple of weeks; Home and Garden Expo is always interesting (and sometimes stressful) to prepare for and your support definitely makes it worth the time.

This year the Expo was home to 14 sims, one which was completely dedicated to live music events and another which was home to Breedable exhibits. All of the other sims were packed full with dozens of merchants and sim sponsors were encouraged to get their fellow merchants together to make their sims unique.

I managed to get my exhibit mostly designed and ready for presentation by a couple days before, but was putting together new content for the show as late as the last day before opening. I originally decided to make a larger prefab to serve both as a display and store-space, but regrettably had overlooked the fact that my booked space was not very large. Ultimately, while I worked on the prefab until about 75% completion, it became evident that even if i were able to get it to fit, thematically it wouldn’t make sense to put a whole bunch of my stuff inside and not actually allow people to compare the rezzed item with the item on the vendor.

So a couple of days before the event I discarded the idea of finishing the prefab for Expo and decided to work out some sort of display which would take advantage of developments in Second Life since the last show; namely mesh. While the nature of terrain and estate management in SL really isn’t condusive to a lot of custom changes in terrain, I did take the chance to sink down the majority of my parcel and instead created a wholly mesh terrain covering that would take its place. By doing so, I was able not only to create shapes that would not be as detailed with normal terrain, but I was able to texture the ground of my exhibit the way I wanted, including the addition of a desert-like corner, which helped a lot with making the rocky outcrops work with the set. (I noticed one of the other regions did this on a region-wide level, making sim look more authentic compared to what normal SL terrain can do. It worked out really well!)

All in all, it worked out. There was a lot of last minute repositioning, adding, removing of stuff and there was definitely more content I wanted to fit on my parcel, but I ran out of time, space and available prims, so had to make do with what I had.

As far as the overall event, I was able to raise a significant amount for the American Cancer Society and in addition found it remained profitable but have some lingering concerns.
– At 14 regions, there are a LOT of merchants to sift through. While the sims were arranged in a figure 8 configuration, the pathways (which seemed to have been predetermined by staff and not by sim sponsors) were laid out in a grid pattern and did little to direct traffic. While this has always been the case, I did find that with the immense size of the show, the lack of linear direction made it easy to get lost.
– While none of the sims looked bad, it seems to me like a couple of sims were designed to be pretty and not necessarily optimized for shopping. This is especially important for events such as these because with an event that features rezzable content, there are already so many prim, sculpt, mesh and textural assets being sold. I found myself crashing a heck of a lot, especially in the Southern/swamp-style landscaped regions, due to the plethora of huge trees wherever I turned.
– I’m not sure I understand the need for a completely separate region for live music events when each region was also given live event space. While that region may well have been donated rather than paid for by the other merchants, it inevitably demanded the majority of the event traffic, night or day. It wasn’t uncommon to see the number of avs in the Entertainment sim completely surpass the number of avatars in all of the other merchant regions combined.
– Breedables – while I get that any sponsor might demand presence, whether relevant to an event or not, i kinda felt like the Expo jumped the shark by making Breedables a big part of the event. I don’t contest that the breedable market extends the need for suitable home and garden items, however *all* of the Breedable exhibitors were grouped together on a single region and no major association seemed obvious when viewed in the context of the larger event. If Breedables are to remain part of the event moving forward, I’d prefer to see their relevance stressed throughout the event rather than confined to a single region that battles with one other region for traffic.
– Is the event getting too big? Clearly there are a lot of skilled Home and Garden-type merchants within SL. Should the event continually grow to accommodate that growing number or should it concentrate on presenting quality work visitors will be more interested in picking up? I kind of felt like such a large event led to diminishing returns. It’s not a matter of feeling competitive; after having browsed the 14 sims several times seeking items I wanted to buy, I came away fatigued with only a handful of items.

With all that said and done, the Home and Garden Expo crew did their best to make sure merchants had what they needed to get things ready for the show. I’m thankful they were so considerate with set up times and asking many merchants (including myself) for assets to fill in unused areas. It does look like the event was a success; Team Home & Garden Expo has raised L$8,184,288 for the American Cancer Society Relay for Life so far and the publicity generated for all of the participating merchants will likely help to generate more in the coming months.

All Organica RFL items will remain available in-store for the duration of RFL, so if you missed your chance to pick up any of them, please feel free to drop by and have a look.

 

New Event items:

Organica is participating in two major events at the start of June; FaMESHed is a monthly event which showcases exclusive content from a selection of mesh creators within SL; I’m flattered that I have been considered for participation and will be offering the following item as an exclusive offering for the month of June.

This low land impact item is offered mod/copy/no transfer and comes with detailed foliage & branch structure and a suitable rocky base. Offered exclusively at FaMESHed!

Organica is also participating in Mesh Around, which is a hunt featuring mesh content, running June 1 thru 15.

While this item is not exclusive, this will be the first and only time it is offered for free. To learn more about Mesh Around, check out their website, where you can find out more about the hunt as well as the starting location. 2LI as packaged, comes with full and petite sizes. Mod, copy, no transfer.

Double release for May Spruce Up Your Space

I’ll be releasing two new items through this month’s Spruce Up Your Space:

This plush armchair is modelled and textured with great detail, featuring baked lighting and intricate pattern. It includes six seated animations and is offered both at full av size and Petite size. A mesh capable viewer is required. mod, copy, no transfer. Available at introductory discount in store for $150L this weekend only!

As a follow up to last week’s RFL Anemones (which you can still get at Home and Garden Expo as an RFL exclusive item), this Anemone Flower fatpack is being offered at a hugely discounted introductory price for this weekend only. Fatpack and seperates will be available next week at normal pricing. Individual unlinked flowers are 2LI each. Pot settings are 24LI each. Requires a mesh capable viewer. Mod, copy, no transfer. ( Buy in Store )

Organica will also be participating in FaMESHed, Meshing Around Hunt and Nook & Cranny this coming month. Keep your eyes and ears open for more great deals and activities! I’ll post more news as we get closer to the actual release.

ACS Relay for Life Home & Garden Expo 2012 + housekeeping + land news

Organica returns to Home and Garden Expo this weekend thru ’till May 28 with some new releases as well as some Relay for Life exclusives!

Drop by my display at Dreamseeker Home Expo8!


April showers last month brought May Flowers this month!

 

Eight varieties of pansies are now available! They are sold seperately in individual pots or all in one big fatpack, which includes both individual pots as well as one big pot that includes all eight varieties. You can also unlink the individual plants from pots if you’d like to use one or the other separately. ( Buy in Store )( Marketplace link to follow )

As part of fundraising for the American Cancer Society, this set of four purple pansies (also known as violets!) is offered as a single pack; they are individually potted but also come with a larger pot which includes all four varieties. You can also unlink the individual plants from pots if you’d like to use one or the other separately. As a mesh item, this does require a mesh compatible viewer.  ( Buy in Store )( Marketplace link to follow)

 

These purple anemones are the first of a series of anemones which will be released soon and this variety is available only as an RFL item! The full potted plant is 24LI, but can be broken down to 2LI individual flowers. As a mesh item, this does require a mesh compatible viewer. Pick these up at Home Expo or in-store!

 

This open concept reading house has a 16x20m footprint featuring expansive window roofing and fabric shade. Textures also feature tasteful baked shadows suitable for a structure of this kind. The structure is unfurnished and is 29 LI as packaged. As a mesh item, this does require a mesh compatible viewer. Offered as an RFL item for the duration of RFL this year, available at Home and Garden Expo as well as in-store. Mod, copy, no transfer.


A bit of housekeeping; this item was released during March Mesh Madness but never made it as a post to this blog, so I’m rectifying that now. This frame set features three detailed Japanese maple leaves, carefully mounted for presentation. They’re excellent accent pieces to almost any interior and are great as gifts. They are mesh, so they do require a mesh compatible viewer. Available at Home and Garden Expo as well as in-store. They are mod/copy/no transfer, however they can be gifted in-store; just click the vendor prior to purchase for gifting options.

Land:

Land is still available in Sylvan and for the month of May, successful referrals will gain existing Residents two free weeks of tier on any parcel which they currently occupy. Come by the land office , explore the sim and have a look to see what Sylvan has to offer! If you’ve been here a long time ago, consider dropping by again, as I am continually improving upon unused spaces to create a more immersive atmosphere. Feel free to also make use of the sandbox, which while small, features a 3hr auto-return, a beautiful environment, many board games and media stream control for group members.

Available Land:

Parcel size Prims Weekly price SLURL
Parcel 1B – 1024sqm 410 L$738 SLURL
Parcel 2B – 960sqm 383 L$690 SLURL
Parcel 3 – 1840sqm 737 L$1327 SLURL
Parcel 7A – 1120sqm 448 L$806 SLURL
Parcel 7B – 992sqm 397 L$715 SLURL
Parcel 8 – 1696sqm 679 L$1222 SLURL
Parcel 13 – 832sqm 333 L$599 SLURL
Parcel 15 – 1680sqm 672 L$1210 SLURL

May Land Referral Bonus

For the month of May, I’m making a referral bonus available. From now until May 31, any referrals leading to successful new residency will be rewarded with two free weeks of tier (reward must be applied to a Sylvan tier meter within 30 days of referral). If you know any friends who might be interested in a bit of land, please feel free to direct them to check out what Sylvan has to offer 🙂

April Showers…

It’s April!

And yeah, i haven’t been able to post much about new developments for a while. Various work related things have been keeping me occupied one way or another, so I’ve been rather quiet lately.

 

I have added a new SUYS item to Organica’s offerings; this time in keeping with its ‘April Showers’ theme, you can find a great deal on some new mesh pathways which feature a mesh base, detachable water reflections, plus low prim raindrop objects – all of which serve to make the new ‘Rainy Day Walk’ pathway pieces more ‘April Shower’-ish! This item is mod/copy (internal scripts copy only) and available at an introductory price of $150L, in store only, this weekend only!

Next month things are bound to get pretty busy, but i really hope I have a chance to complete a new prefab i’ve been working on and to release a plethora of new things in time for Home and Garden Expo, which I’ll be taking part in this year! More details to follow in the next few weeks.

March SUYS stuff + new tree + land availability

March’s theme for Spruce Up Your Space is “Spread Your Wings”, so I decided to play on the overall potential SL holds and tie it with the sort of wonder children often have when they are developing an imagination. Sometimes it doesn’t take a lot to make something ordinary seem extraordinary and to help an imagine take flight.

This item  comes with a playhouse, wooden wings, tiny chair and animations.  The chair holds four animations – two each for child and adults (sit and drive). You can also sit on the roof, where you’ll find two animations.

All pieces are mod/copy, although animations, scripts and associated notecards are copy only.

This is a mesh product, so you’ll need a mesh capable viewer to view/use.  Available in-store for only $150L this weekend as part of March’s Spruce Up Your Space! Will be updated on Marketplace after promotion is over.

It hasn’t been too long since I last put out a Ficus, but what can I say? I’ve always loved Ficus trees and it’s almost mesmerizing to work out how their banyan roots can form complex knots in their bark.

This item comes out to 13 LI at packaged size and is optimized for resizing. It’s available mod/transfer and mod/copy and is mesh only, so you’ll need a mesh-capable viewer. ( Buy in Store )( Buy on Marketplace )

Land stuff:

Sylvan is a quiet, beautifully landscaped residential region offering a variety of parcel sizes with healthy prim allocation (1.75x prim bonus). We welcome mesh and breedables (please see covenant for terms) and also have a small sandbox available should you require additional space to work out builds, etc. Purchase price is a reserve fee set to cover one day of rent, which will be credited back to your tier meter once a minimum initial payment of 4 weeks rent is paid (all payment made after that can be as often as weekly).

Available Land:

Parcel size Prims Weekly price SLURL
Parcel 1B – 1024sqm 410 L$738 SLURL
Parcel 2A – 960sqm 383 L$690 SLURL
Parcel 2B – 960sqm 383 L$690 SLURL
Parcel 3 – 1840sqm 737 L$1327 SLURL
Parcel 6A – 1152sqm 460 L$828 SLURL
Parcel 8 – 1696sqm 679 L$1222 SLURL
Parcel 15 – 1680sqm 672 L$1210 SLURL

Crocus updates

As of this writing, I have sent out updates for all crocus products, including the MMM exclusive blue.

I went through and redid all of the level of detail jumps to be more efficient and able to withstand zooming in and out.

Much thanks go to Zii Minotaur for valuable feedback; I only wish the Marketplace were better designed to inform merchants of new feedback, as this fix turned out to be a long time coming.

In any case, if you did not receive an update, please give me a shout!

More release news to come a bit later in the week; there will be some SUYS stuff and there are a few other landscaping items on the way!

MMM Details & some product updates

March Mesh Madness 2012 begins tomorrow!

I’ve finally had a chance to finish up my booth and look forward to exhibiting my work!

Some new items have been released, along with a MMM12 exclusive, a freebie and some discounts too!

Details are as follows:

These trendy star-shaped lamps come in eight colours, all in one set. Click to toggle through on, off or natural daylight. 1 LI each as packaged, mod/copy/no transfer. ( Buy at MMM12 )

 Exclusive to March Mesh Madness, these white-veined blue crocus flowers are offered as part of a potted setting but also include all three crocus flower shapes inside. This colour will only ever be offered at MMM12, so if you like it, this will be your only chance to pick it up. 1 LI per flower, total setting comes to 9 LI. mod/copy/no transfer. Available only at MMM12!

Don’t forget to snag this freebie from the display as well 🙂

Some items have been marked 33% off, again at MMM12 only.

With the exception of the MMM12 Crocus, all items released above will be available in-store at Organica or on Marketplace about a week from now. In the mean time, help make the March Mesh Madness event a success by dropping by, bringing your friends, or just in general passing the word around about the show.

Wilds of Organica Updates:

Updates have been sent for both the Burrowing Owl and Snowy Owl avatars, fixing the top level sit button, preventing the av from getting pushed underground when the ‘birdsit’ button is pressed. The eyelid texture for the snowy owls has also been fixed and should appear black, not brown. If you did not recieve the update, please let me know and I’ll look in to redelivery.

 

MMM12 & February SUYS

February has (outwardly) been a little slow for releases – I took the early part of the month putting together an updated build that would hold more items, then I got accepted as a merchant for March Mesh Madness 2012, which begins March 1st, so I’ve also been running around like a headless chicken trying to get my stuff done for it too, on top of other work and a RL move out to the boonies.

So please visit my booth and explore at March Mesh Madness, beginning March 1! There will be some exclusive releases, some debuts, some freebies. I’ll post more about this as the time draws closer 🙂

In other news, Organica’s participating in SUYS this weekend and from today ’till Monday morning, you’ll be able to snag the following item for a discounted price!

This month’s Spruce Up Your Space theme is ‘Bad Romance’. Come give this seat a try and make sure you bring a friend. It comes with five couples animations in all; three cuddles and two disagreements. Offered mod/copy/no transfer. ( Buy in store )