Outerland: A Different Kind of Estate

The Outerland Estate is comprised of 130 carefully landscaped and designed islands across 90 regions on 111 sims.  The Estate was founded in April 2006 by Dana Bergson, who remained the owner until June of 2009.

Originally called the "Otherland,"  Dana had to sell it in June 2009 due to personal reasons.  The Estate was purchased by the ACS group owned by Anshe Chung. 

Although the name was changed, and a few internal changes came with the sale,  the "base and philosophy of the Estate remains unchanged."   The motto for the estate, coined by Dana Bergson, was "Make Otherland a different kind of land."  The idea was to create something special, beautiful and an estate viewed as a whole and not by the individual components/sims  which it encompasses.  Rivers run through almost the entire estate and there are oceans to sail on.  This provides the residents the opportunity  to explore the estate beginning at their own doorstep. 

What a wonderful thought:  to walk out of your front door, hop into a boat and sail around the Estate...although I imagine in a place that massive, it would be quite easy to become lost.

An important project for the Outerland staff has been the Outerland Archipelago, a unique concept.  Consisting of a group of private sims, it is a beautifully landscaped area, free of griefers and excessive lag.  You will not see large, flat areas without structure there, no typical "tropical islands in the sun.  The result is certainly some of the most beautiful land in SL. Think of islands large and small. Think of lakes, rivers, waterfalls. Think of softly rounded hills and some steep cliffs. "

I had a chat with Julienne Caudron recently, one of the  Estate Managers for Outerland, who was able to provide me with a wealth of information.  Julienne joined the Estate Team in March of 2008.  

Julienne, together with Natasha ACS, are the main players in keeping the residents happy, resolving any issues and answering questions.  

Their different times zones allow them to be available during most of the time zones around the globe. 

Combined with customer support, bookkeeping, and language skills, the two managers have enough skills to keep residents informed, as well as satisfied, and tend to the various administrative tasks associated with the Estate. 

The staff at Outerland place emphasis on quality rather than quantity.  Hiring staff consisting of "poorly paid real estate agents whose main aim is a sale" is just not an option. Ban lines are not allowed so residents will not be booted during their exploration around the estate.  The residents contribute to the Estate's outstanding status.  Friendships have grown between neighbors who share a common love of regions such as New England.

Mother Nature recently showed up at Outerland in the form of snow and an "All-Around-Christmas-Party" is being planned  by the residents.  There is a great sense of community.   "When the lake in Xabbu Park froze over, Sylvia Sonoda opened her famous ice skating course for everybody. She put some awesome ramps with some special surprises for the real skating pros. Hot Chocolate, basic skates, and snowball fighting fun are on the house until January, when the snow is going to melt."

The Outerland Estate has recently welcomed Wandering Star to the Estate.  This group is in the Verdant Homewood, a long established community of music lovers, holding regular music events in a pub on the Khao sim.

A visit to one of the New England themed parcels revealed what one might expect to see in New England in the winter...landscape and trees all covered with snow.  There are some tropical themed parcels as well, including Ellaidhu and Antibes.  The two boardwalks at Dulcie and Anwin are charming indeed, with a rustic seaside appeal.  Eschach Castle is a part of Outerland, a small, cozy looking castle nestled up against a snow covered peak.  There are just so many beautiful sims and islands to see. 

The entire Estate is beautifully and carefully landscaped and it is obvious that great care went into every design.  This Estate sounds to me like an awesome home for those who want a sense of community spirit in a place that has a covenent for ensuring beauty and not commerciality.  

By Shellie Sands

http://www.otherland-group.com/real_estate/

Letter from our top sponsor

Dear Fellow-residents and SL-Newspaper readers,

Astonished by the news of the situation of BNT Holdings, we would like to give a comment as TOP-Sponsor of SL Newspaper.
The consequences of the world-wide crisis has affected us as well. We haven't been able to work and be there for all our costumers for almost a year, have moved in RL and struggled with our position in SecondLife hard as so many have.

Due to technical issues we were not able to maintain our island and create new sculpties or sculpted items. Still SL-newspaper has always supported us, never let us down, even during the times we were not able to pay the usual rate. To meet and talk it over in all sincerity was scary but the best thing we could do. The understanding of Miss Vanmoer and her flexibilty helped us to survive.

We wish all sponsors would have done so, instead of taking sims offline without notice or meeting in advance.
With this comment we try to express the happiness we feel to be still 'alive and kicking'  and top-sponsor of SL-Newspaper and with huge gratitude for Dana Vanmoer and her contributors!

10 & Marcthur Goosson
M&M Creations

http://slurl.com/secondlife/DoubleMM/128/128/2

Vampire Bat Sighted in Outerland Estates

With Halloween approaching, there has been another vampire bat sighting. This time in the Outerland Archipelago, a large collection of sims in the southeast portion of the metaverse, near the Mexico sims.

Find out more in the Community Section: Click Here.

BNT Bankrupt 53 sims offline

A couple of days ago I got a message to say my sim was offline, ok these things happen so I didn't worry too much, next day I logged in to find 'Your location is unavailable you have been moved to a nearby area'.
OK whats going on???
I went to the office and looked at the map about 1/2 of BNTs sims were gone - including my island WTF!!!????
Scrolling through past notices I found one in the Brautigan and Tuck holdings group:

BnT Holdings started with one man and his dream. A dream of building a virtual free state where the residents could proudly call Ancapistan home. Unfortunately even the world's greatest empires have endured hard times. These times are no exception. Due to the current economic status of the world and Second Life, it has become increasingly difficult to sustain 50 sims. BNT Holdings will continue to exist, but we must take one step back in order to take two steps forward. If you wish to remain a part of our family at BNT, we will be happy to relocate you to our original estate in the Surreal BT sims. Thank you for being a loyal part of BNT. Here's to a bright future.



No warning, no notice, nothing just gone.
Next - will we lose the office? Our 1/4 sim on BNT land the answer came the next day when that too disappeared. In this time I had spoken to Duchess Shepard who helped me get the sim back online for 24 hours so I could empty it. The loss of this and all our hard work on Fairyteller was devastating.
Duchess also knew nothing about this until it happened, despite the anger being directed towards her she is doing what she can to help people for which I commend her as many in her position (and some who are) don't log in or hide behind alts.

Many notes followed which I wont repeat here. I asked Intlibber for an official statement that I received this morning, which to be honest, I am not going to publish in full simply because its an out-pouring of spite and blame on others (named) none of which actually answers the questions, the rest you can read here:

"Three years ago, I launched BNT with the dream of building a real life sustainable business that could pay a real world income for myself and staff. Those were heady days when land sold reliably for 12 L$ per square meter and one could double their holdings in a few months. I built some of the iconic buildings of the SL business community, and was featured from almost our first week in business in major SL and RL media for our projects. We grew from a half sim in October 2006 to 53 sims this summer, doing so organically from sales, and capital raised via inworld markets. We had begun the transition to becoming a major developer a few times, the first time stymied by sabotage by the largest competitor, and most recently by a smaller competitor with a big obnoxious mouth."
"At the same time, it appears that the real life economy is taking much longer to recover than we had expected earlier in the year. The disposable incomes of SL users continues to erode in RL and SL, causing some of our long standing tenants to give up their land. We have also seen a systemic failure by our shareholders to follow sage investment advice to rent BNT land rather than land in other estates, in order to support their investment in BNT.
Unlike many in SL, we do not subsidize our SL business with real life income. BNT always operated on a sustainable basis on its own organic inworld growth and cash flow and was not a 'hobby' or 'game' like we see so many in the land business who do not operate with common sense business models and who undercut the market with cost-based prices.
As a result of these pressures, this past month we fell into an unrecoverable condition. We had been expecting additional income from development projects but those have not come to fruition in time to even out our cash flow. We do not expect the real world economy to recover sufficiently in the next 6 months to improve the land business, and we have made the decision to get out of the land business almost entirely.
As a result of a sudden severe drop in income, Linden Lab seized our sims on the 16th of this month. We have negotiated with them to reopen the sims temporarily so tenants may recover their property.
We are working to raise capital to recover them so we may sell them off and to pay off existing tenants tier. Once we accomplish this, we will focus solely on the content, finance, and education businesses. Our work with Woodbury University is poised to take off with major student body involvement in SL.
Unfortunately, the 10 sims we have with Surreal are also under attack from the admins there. Despite being paid up on tier with Surreal, and despite having reached an agreement with their staff about our continued operation there, they have seized our sims and banned our staff from serving our customers. Despite public claims by Deuce Marjeta, we have kept tier paid up to date on our Surreal BT sims and his actions we consider criminal theft. Despite his claims to the contrary, we do NOT endorse our residents moving to Surreal, as he reneged on our earlier agreement."

Many are angry at tier paid in advance and lost, from what I have heard Mr Brautigan is trying to arrange the sale of the now defunct sims in order to pay the debts owed - we shall just have to wait and see if anything comes of this.
Despite what people have said about this newspapers' support of Intlibber we have always tried to give an even picture with all sides being able to comment rather than making judgements or leading 'witch hunts' as many other publications do. Not through a desire to keep a sponsor, as accused, but through what we believe to be fair reporting allowing a forum for people to post their own opinions and arguments.
My personal opinion doesn't matter here even if I think someone has acted very badly I will always try to make sure the reporting here is unbiased.
I would like to say that I truly understand the anger of residents who have not only lost money but also content and much much more BUT please direct that anger at the right people not the ones who have tried to help throughout, I am truly dismayed at the outpouring of hatred directed at those who have not tried to hide.

Dana Vanmoer

SLN has a new headquarters http://slurl.com/secondlife/SkyBeam/161/231/38

My precious launches Autumn hunt

http://agnesfinneymyprecious.blogspot.com/

M & M creations

M&M and Trees are a fine combination, in real-life working and living as much as possible in nature in which we find .. trees.
"As soon as we entered SecondLife, we found the most wonderful Not-Possible-In-RealLife 'parks, gardens, rough nature, fantasy- & fairy and botanical reserves'." says 10 Gooson of M&M
Not long after being here, they bought some land and 10 & Marcthur Goosson decided to keep it as natural as they could.
The wish and process in creating imaginary nature took some time and is still growing. M&M Trees has developed from 10's FlowerShop.
The more sculpted shapes Marcthur creates the more inspiration 10 can find.
Next to real-lifes inspiration she mixes up the two. First pure flowers then plants followed. Not long after; flowerlights, huge complex plants, low-prim flowers Finally the trees, corsages, Bridal-Series and again trees.
M&M wanted to rez all creations and trees need space. Months of hard work followed and it has now found it's final shape.
For a shop the park is huge, it takes time to see it all. All kinds of animals, sounds and 'twinkles' can distract the visitor. The swamp is wet and coulourful here you can find all those tropical delights and such fantastic trees and so much more! Shrubs, small trees, fantasy trees, petal & leaves-furniture, huge trees or just beautifull lights and lanes of trees.
The most central point must be the circle of standing stones this is also where you will find the teleports to other areas.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/DoubleMM/126/245/33

Relax and Have Fun!

One of my favorite sims in sl is Corner of Revolving Time in Relaxation. Since I first discovered it before Christmas of 2008 and relished the freebies I was able to get for Christmas décor I kept returning to see what was going on. There is always something new.
Vickijo Rivera keeps reminding me that this sim is owned by all of its 700 members. Newbies are invited to make their home there. I am a member now and so I spend a lot of time there.
Of course, as a fisherman, I love the frequent contests and get to as many as I can. There are so many custom fish and rods in that water worth a bounty, some 1000K, designed by the great Migizi North
There is lots of camaraderie during those contests. There is a photo contest every month which brings many avatars to visit and vote. A photo booth with some lovely backgrounds is set up at that location that you are free to use. This is one place where you do not have to pay for each vote.
Don’t miss the Chickens for sale. Nearby is a relaxation meditation place where avatars rest. The Japanese Gardens are delightful with some freebies and very low priced plants available. Inside the Corner geo- dome you will find more freebies on all three levels. Many well known designers donate to the collection. Do not miss the cave below the geo-dome which is also hiding some freebies and some very interesting Clocks and party items .
The Corner cave Club hosts dance parties during the week with a live DJ. And for the gamers there is Zyngo nearby! This is a well rounded sim! Holidays are coming starting with Halloween and everyone will be looking for décor and you will find it in the Corner. The Halloween House is in progress Vickijo and Saucy Loire are busy preparing great fun for everyone in the sim but I am sworn to secrecy ! Don’t miss it!
There are several hunts going on now and more in the future, all the way to the New Year. You must make sure you set your landmark because you will want to revisit often and perhaps become a part owner by joining the group. http://slurl.com/secondlife/Relaxation/90/166/42 is a good place to start.

Gemma Cleanslate

Introducing the Outerland estates

The Outerlands are a huge estate with over 100 regions, mostly residential, but its not your usual flat parcels covered with sand, its something much more special; rolling hills, mountains, lakes and waterfalls plus privacy and beautiful surroundings. each plot is landscaped to fit into the area yet still maximise its potential, residents can even terraform within limits.
The Outerland estate is now part of the real estate division of ANSHE CHUNG STUDIOS Ltd. the oldest real estate firm of Second Life.

Beautiful surroundings are not the only thing to consider when looking for an estate; a sensible covenant that looks after your individual needs as well as the communities, keeping the overall working well together is also a must for any tenant and you can find that here.

Some plots come with optional builds like the castle you see on the right built especially for the outerlands.
There are also several 'themed' islands' catering to different needs.
I can't wait for winter to see how the mountains and lakes look in a wonderland setting like many estates Outerland has two seasons of winter and summer.

Julienne Caudron showed me around the estate and told me of their attitude towards sales:
Julienne Caudron: Customer service is very important to Outerland, which is why we do not rely on a fleet of sales agents, whose salary is commission based and who are thus overeager to sell land at all costs.
Outerland counts with a small but reliable core service team that consists of myself and Natasha ACS. In addition to that, residents have access to the 24/7 customer service of ACS, which will help them with routine tasks like e.g. restarting a sim or, if necessary, forward requests and enquiries to one of us.
Natasha (Natasha ACS) has been a full time employee of ACS for quite some time, and I have been with Outerland/Otherland since March 2008.
We believe in a personal service, and fortunately my RL job allows me to come inworld almost any time to help with urgent matters or to answer burning questions.

Julienne also added that as well as English they also offer help in German, Spanish and even a little French making the Outerlands desirable for residents who do not speak English well.

Its obvious both from chatting to Julienne and looking around the estate that a lot of thought and time has gone into the planning of the whole region for more information visit the Outerland/Otherland website:
http://www.otherland-group.com/real_estate/
Or speak to Julienne Caudron or Natasha ACS inworld.

By Dana Vanmoer

Miamai NEW MAINSTORE OPENING PHOTOCONTEST

I am really glad to announce to you the grand opening of the New Mainstore on july 4, 2009
in the new location:
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Pegasos/48/162/24

I am holding a photocontest that will start on Saturday 4th and will last for 2 weeks.
Theme of the contest: "Reflections"
You are expected to participate with a portrait having "reflections" as the theme, and wearing a Miamai creation of your choice (clothes, skins, accessories, shoes).
The texture should be 512x512, full permission, and named "MiamaiContest_YourName".
You have time from july 4 to july 17 to send your entry to monica Outlander.
Just one entry per participant.

The entries will be exposed in the New Miamai Mainstore during the contest, and the jury will proclaim a winner that will be announced on july 19.

To the winner goes:
- a 3000 L$ Miamai Gift card
- an outfit named after her/him, that will become part of the Miamai Collection.
The winner will also appear in the advertising picture of the outfit.

The winner entry will be also featured in Miamai Blog.

Jury:
Chrissy Ambrose, owner of Virtual Impression
Aura Falta, owner of Tacky Star
Kay Fairey, Evane Models Agency CEO
ashianthy Shepherd, owner of Shapemania
SamR Miles, owner of Malice Music Club

Good luck to all the participants!

Our Blog:
http://miamaifashioncreations.blogspot.com/

Fly me to the moon.....................

What happens when you get Azul, Chloe, Indyra Originals, Nardcotix and Phoenix Riseing together all on one runway teamed up with Arai Agency Models?
Fly me to the moon is the theme for todays fashion show @ DC District Style Mall june 28 2pm SLT

Click the poster to Teleport

Edo opens 'Ekho' fashion town

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Ekho/127/7/21

Grand Opening of +grasp+ and free gifts for members of +grasp+

Join us May 17, Sunday, beginning at 8 AM SLT, as designer Asalt Eames, owner of *Sweetaholic, unveils his newest casual collection for his new store +grasp+. There will be awesome gifts that are only available to members of the +grasp+ group, so you must join the group before coming down to the Grand Opening in order to pick up your free gift! The clothing line +grasp+ will show another side to the talented *Sweetaholic designer. If you have ever been to *Sweetaholic and set eyes on the kimonos that are made by Asalt, you will know they are some of the most beautiful kimonos ever made in SL. Asalt's clothing lines consist of very detailed, realistic pieces. He is a graphics designer in real life who loves fashion and uses the fantastic platform of SL to express his originality and to do something he loves. Asalt's deep love of fashion shows through the intricate detailing on his pieces and the time he takes creating each of them.

Asalt launched his *Sweetaholic Kimono line in November 2007, very soon after he first rezzed here in SL. *Sweetaholic is now well known amongst the Japanese community in SL, so now seemed a perfect time for Asalt to branch out into a new casual line, thus +grasp+ was born. Asalt uses high quality, cutting edge prim texture work on his designs which helps set him apart from other designers. +grasp+ gives Asalt the opportunity to expand his customer base and show the spectrum of his skills as a talented designer.

"What sets Asalt apart from other designers," you may ask. "Why should I attend this," some might wonder. Much like in real life fashion is always changing and +grasp+ is one of the newest stores to hit SL and it will be a part of the next level of change for SL fashion. If you love clothing that is made specifically to give your avatar the look of realism +grasp+ is for you. The revolution of SL fashion begins here!

Date: 17 May 2009 (Sunday)
Venue: grasp 100,175,225
Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/grasp/100/176/225

For more information regarding +grasp+, please contact Asalt Eames. Media wanting to interview or setup appointment with Asalt please contact Annette Wilder-Wilder Public Relations Firm Inc™ Owner.

Sweetaholic blog:
http://sweetaholickimono.blogspot.com/

Media may also contact Wilder PR by e-mail:
wilderprinc@gmail.com

To learn more about Wilder PR visit our website:
http://www.wilderpublicrelationsfirminc.com

© A WILDER PR INC. PRESS RELEASE MAY 2009

You can find more information on Sweetaholic HERE also

New releases from AZUL

Risky by name and nature this dress comes in 8 colours including the lavender and red shown here. This halter strapped dress features ties on the back of the neck with long flowing pleats split on one side. long black gloves are also included.


Visit AZUL at joia azul

Dutch Delights has moved!

Get a month rent free in the fabulous mall built just outside of the club at the heart of the sim

Simply the best designs and lingerie from the Up and coming designer Angelita Capalini...

Dutch Delights Club and Mall is the Brainchild of Angelita Capalini the up and coming designer and soon to be Avenue Model......
The mall is managed by her husband Spruce Canning Great deals, great events. great company what more do you need

Oh yes - SHOPPING!

12 high grade stores for your delight, only 100L$ for 30 prims a week

Find out more HERE

A SL World of Good Ole Southern Fun!

New Features Added !

Not only does the "Southern Fun" sims still have the the shopping
mall, houses available for rent, kicking country music, dancing, DJ's,
Live music events and parties... but they've added a beach, canoe
races, and an underwater cave for exploration and fun!

The warm sandy beach is incredible, complete with the "sLwim" swimming
hud for a realistic and fun water experience. And of course there's
the sunbathing towels, where you can earn Lindens while you work on
your tan or watch the bikini-clad ladies searching the sandy shores
for seashells. Additionally, a functional sliding board and diving
board on the pier provide even more options for a day of beach fun.
AND... Southern Fun now holds monthly canoe races - a popular event
for participants and spectators alike!

And don't forget to explore the new underwater cave at Southern Fun.
Squid, fish, and beautiful scenery can be found from the liquid depths
of this unique underwater cave.

Visit Southern Fun where there's a countless number of many fun and
relaxing activities !

Mystique Sassoon

Its a 'Mystery'

I was invited to a dance party in the Mystery sim a few weeks ago. It is always a pleasure to be in that sim. This time I was introduced to the visionary creators of this magnificent place.

Continues by Gemma Cleanslate in the EXPLORE section

Bliss Couture Spring Fashion Show

You are invited April 18th at 1pm slt, to attend a fabulous fashion show featuring the new line of extraordinary clothing by Bliss Couture.
The Bliss Couture Spring Fashion Show will reveal to the audience some of the most beautifully textured, colorful, and whimsical ballroom gowns to hit the runway in 2009.
These gowns are lush and rich with color and they sizzle with personality.
Bliss Couture is known for their long flowing gowns that make the buyer feel special and like royalty. When she walks into the room wearing Bliss she will indeed be noticed. She will not blend in but instead will set herself apart from the crowd.
There are 16 marvelous new gowns that will simply blow the audience away when the models prance out on the catwalk. These beautiful gowns can be purchased the day of the fashion show, but after that they will come out one per week as a new release. So in order to have them before anyone else you must attend the event to purchase them that day!

Bliss Couture is Founded and Owned by Amutey DeCuir who has an amazing eye for fashion and a love for design. In real life Amutey is an artist and photographer. She uses SL as another outlet for her creativity and opened Bliss Couture in order to bring her talents and her own personal style into SL. Amutey is always releasing new releases, at least one per week. She works diligently to bring her customers what she feels are the best cutting edge fashions in formal designs. When a woman wants to make a great first impression she cannot go wrong with the classy styles of Bliss Couture.

Date: 18 April 2009 (Saturday)
Venue: *Heavenly Bliss Romantic Ballroom
Slurl: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Gown/150/77/278

For more information regarding Bliss Couture, please contact Amutey DeCuir-Owner. Media wanting to interview or setup appointment with Amutey please contact Annette Wilder-Wilder Public Relations Firm Inc™ Owner.

Bliss Couture blog:
http://bliss-couture.blogspot.com

© A WILDER PR INC. PRESS RELEASE APRIL 2009

The Corner of Revolving Time has moved

The Corner of Revolving Time has moved to Relaxation but has been evident in second life now over a year and welcomes residents to pick up free copies of many trees, plants and flowers year round. We are opening the new location with Cinco de Mayo!

Grab your landmark now as the ~Corner~ now offers a huge variety of items for your second life needs. As new holidays approach the Corner of Revolving Time now evolves as well and friends from all over second life leave their mark on the ~Corner~ with what they make and share with others. You will find a few items here and there for sale but that revolves as well as time slips forward. Currently the Corner of Revolving Times sits upon a customized cave made by Cejia Drezelan with a customized 60 X 60 geo-dome with additional spheres on the sides built by Ee Maculate.

Flaming Raven Designs, Wrong Turn and Tinylicious are joining us in the ~Corner~ so be sure to check out their fabulous items! New additions to the ~Corner~ would be the Corner of Revolving Time Exclusive Items not found anywhere else in second life. We are pleased to announce ~The Clock Shop~ and the ~Exclusive Eyes Shop~! In addition, we now have a ~Balloon & Party Store~ along with a Specialty Store that residents are sure to enjoy called *Things that make you go hummmmm!* Do you have an item that makes you go hummmm? If you have something you would like to add to the corner collections please send it to Vickijo Rivera. Remember it needs to be copy/transfer. (Does not have to be garden or holiday themed) If you like you can box it up with a landmark to your store or favorite location.

Find out more HERE

Introducing - Sweetaholic

Recently I was invited to a Japanese wedding and did not have a kimono well of course I asked Breezes, who is often at Tai Chi and has a lot of kimono's, straight away she recommended 'Sweetaholic' and dropped me a Landmark.
I was stunned at the intricacy of these kimonos they not only have stunning textures but also many include the hair, shoes, skin, shape and even animated accessories!
These are amazing. Not only does Asalt Eames make traditional Kimonos for men and woman but he also makes more modern kimono's which are breathtakingly beautiful.
You can see more images HERE and maybe visit his store to see the selection for yourself.
Dana

My Precious

My Precious offers high quality fashion that conveys the essence of elegance, glamour and playfulness.
I don't limit myself to certain styles. Everything in the store ranging from casuals to ball gowns illustrates my passion for beauty and creativeness in this wondering virtual world, which I hope this can be shared with ladies by wearing my designs.
Find out more about My Precious HERE