August 2011 Store Set Compilation Review!

For now here are the pics...will edit in the review as I go.

Ok. First up we have Gaia and Darren. Gaia is wearing the Soar Away Dress and Pert Pixie Cut as well as the Pumped Up Pom Pom Hat and Jill's Jumpsuit. Darren is wearing the Nerd Chic outfit with the Clean and Crisp Haircut as well as the Slim Fit Legs outfit with the Riddled Waves Front Haircut. 

I Love all the new female items besides Jill's Jumpsuit. As you can see it has a two channeled color system which just looks weird and pretty much looks like the Imaginary Friend outfit... I pretty much hate it. The Pixie cut is a beautiful updo and the Soar away dress is very modern and very Gaga-esque(just like another item in this set). The Pom Pom hat is amazing...I'd say it's my fav new item from the set.

Ok I pretty much don't like any of the new stuff Darren is wearing. Clean and Crisp is nice for clean cut sims and so is Nerd Chic but I feel they are too niche to be useful(to me at least). I HATE Slim fit legs...it's so preppy, ugly douchey god-awful. Riddled Waves Front is ok...it just can make your male sims head look huge because of the way it sits on it so you need to be careful of it...not a huge fan.

Also in this picture is the luxury sofa sectional(which I LOVE) the new coffeetable from the same set as well as the wall lamp from the lux lounge spa set.

                         
                                      

                                      

                                            Ok here we have Lizzy wearing the two versions of the Lacey Retreat Romper(available for teens and YA, Adults) as well as the second version of the Pom Pom hat and the Bountiful Beret. I love the Beret, Pom Pom as said before and this outfit(especially that it's available for teens as well).

We also have Evan wearing the Undone Gentleman top with the Sweetly Swept Back haircut. This is my favorite new male haircut(next to the new beanie). It just looks good. The new top is formal-esque and is really quite nice.

Also in this pic from the Luxe Lounge Spa are the Futuristic Comfort lounging chair and the Rock All Night rocks.

this is the Plants in Glass decoration from the Luxe Lounge Spa set. I really like this. Neat, pretty and functional

Here we have Todd wearing the Suburban Nights top(available for Teens, YA, Adult), the Riddled Waves haircut, and the Bundled Up Beanie. I really like the Beanie, not necessarily on Todd but I have ideas for my grungier looking sims that could use it.. I really like Suburban Nights. Kinda has a preppy, 50's cool vibe to it and it just looks really nice in game. I'm not a huge fan of Riddled Waves...too much like many other hairstyles we have and actually took me a b it to find in the game because it is so similar to other hairstyles we have.

Candi is wearing the Bound up Bows hair with the Born Beautiful dress. The Dress is pure Lady Gaga Just Dance/Poker Face time-frame...I can actually remember an outfit remarkably similar to it. The gloves are seperate from this outfit(base game gloves I just recolored to fit). I wasn't sure I would like the Bound up Bows hair but once I recolored it from the original it just looked so much better. I actually see most of the female hairs from the Luxury Resort Attire set as ones I would use on my sims(and I use A LOT of CC hair).

Here we have Portia wearing the Sweeter Than Flowers Hairstyle(I actually like this hair, it's kind've niche because of how big the flower is, I would have preferred smaller ones like in the Pert Pixie Cut, but it still looks great in game and can fit with a couple different outfits).

We also have Dale wearing the Monster Mash Beanie recolored in it's various channels(all except the white of the eyes, which is in fact recolorable). This beanie is great, it's so cute and works well with some of the Generations wear. 

You can also see the new Bunk Bed, Bookshelf and Arcade Cabinet from the Back 2 Skool set here. I really don't see myself using the items from that set all too often as they have a sort of industrial, jagged edge look I don't usually use in my houses but I could see them in a themed room/set of rooms. 

In the last set of pictures we have Prtia wearing the new Rosy cheeked Hair. It's a really cute hair with an open back to the beanie. 

We also have Candi in the last version of the Pom Pom hat next to the new Shark Slip n Slide from the Back 2 Skool set. 

We can also see the desk, shelf and light from the aforementioned set in the first picture with Portia.

All in all I really like some of the items in this compilation but feel like there are a lot of things I won't be using between all the sets.

I give it a 6.5/10 as a whole.

Model Spotlight: Tim

Tim is a really different sim for me. I usually don't do the "guy next door" look for my male sims, my male sims usually aren't that plentiful as it is anyway, but he quickly became one of my favorite male sims who is mostly CC free.

       Tim is Brave, Family-Oriented, Vegetarian, Athletic and a Born Salesman

He uses quite a bit of store content(free and paid for content). A lot of it is from the hidden free JCP set(do a google search or search the forums and you will find links for it easily).

 Here is Tim's exchange link. As always my uploads are uncorrupted and checked.

http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=4364764

July 2011 Store Compilation Sets Review!!

That's right, I actually bought the compilation. For now I'll just post all the photos of the new items and fill in the review portion later.

Ok. First off here we have Jade wearing the Side Swept Hair and Everyday Ruffle Dress. I love the dress...three different color/pattern channels on it as you can see in the recolor. The Side Swept Hair is ok...it's just very dependent on face shape and hair color to make it look good. 

We also have the new counters and pot rack from the new Meditteranean kitchen/dining set in this photo. I love the new pot rack because the old one looks so dingy. This one adds flair without looking like you spent all of $5 on the pots and pans.

Next we have Nathan wearing the Broken Wind Jacket and A Little Layered hair. I love this hair...not a huge fan of the top but it's nice. The hair looks best in darker colors and just has that different look and texture I've been wanting for the male hairs in the game. 

You can also see the counter island, stove with lovely painting attached,  Fridge and Stove Hood. I especially love the stove and stove hood as they add a distinct style to the kitchen and you can use them to liven up the look of it.

Ok, here we have Jean and Raul. Jean is wearing the Foster the Strife Shirt outfit and Swept Softly Hair and Raul is wearing the Lost Sims Lazy Leather top and the Slightly Sided hair. 

Foster the Strife is my favorite outfit from the new set, it's so 80's throwback but modern. The only downside to the outfit is that the large grey skull portion of the shirt is not recolorable I was worried that the Swept Softly Hair wouldn't look as good as the picture but it looks amazing in game. In any colors. Lost Sims tee is one of my favs of the new guy tops. It looks wonderful on most sims and has an instant flash of style to it. Also love the Slightly Sided hair, looks great in game and very different than most of the other hair we have in the game. 

You can also see the dining chairs, table, China Cabinet(which is categorized under dressors), shelves and table lamp from the Meditteranean Kitchen set. I love the China Cabinet, shelves and lamp a lot. Very versatile, the table is really long so you really need a large dining room to house it. The chairs are also very nice.

Next up we have Tammi in the Dolled Up Dress and Jesse in the Duck Tails hair with the Barely
There Scarf top. I love Dolled up Dress... it's so cute and I'm a sucker for dresses that come with their own accessories. The Duck tails hair is one of my new favs for the men as it's a common style of hair for men. The Barely There Scarf top is nice too... I'm just not sure I'll get much use out of it.

Here we have Jesse in the Louie Little Louie hair...my least favorite from the set. I think that the long hair looks a bit wonky on the male sims.

Now these three ladies, from left to right are wearing the Boyfriend's Blazer, The Bowie top and the Lovely Lucy's Leather with Urban Skirt. Boyfriend's Blazer isn't as versatile as I'd like it to be and only works on certain sim-styles/looks. The Bowie Top is ADORABLE!! The one shown here has the little graphic on the tee but there is an option available without it. My favorite top from the set most definitely. Lucy's Lovely Leather is cute...but can look weird depending on the sim/outfit. I love the Urban Skirt... I've been waiting for a textured mini like this and am very happy with it.

Next we have Summer wearing the Lucky Leather Length dress. This dress is really cute...great for a kinda clubbing/night on the town feel.

You can also see the bed, end table, mirror and table lights from the  Luxury Spa Set in this picture. I absolutely love the Spa set. If you're going to get one of the object sets from this month get the Spa set.

Here we have Damien wearing the Alex's Wig hair and the Cool Cropped Jacket(also available for teens from this set). I like the new hair.... it flips out at the end, great for your rockers/vamps/emo guys. The top is also nice...kind've funny looking depending on sim body type but again great for the rock/vamp look.

You can also see the dresser, standing lamp(those super high candles) and the decorative pane of glass from the Spa set here. The pane of glass doesn't fully adhere to the wall without moveobjects on. With moveobjects on you can use it as a clear half wall or use double of it for a makeshift doorway.

This is the fireplace with the Luxury Spa Set. It's really nice, clean and modern. I had trouble adding it in the premade house I used for these pictures so I had to tear down some walls to get it to stick to the wall like it was supposed to...so just be wary of that when you're building/placing it.

This is the window from the Luxury Spa set. I LOVE IT!! It's huge(as you can see) and just looks great in a room.

I'm Late!

     Ok so I've been so overly busy the past few weeks and had no time to update/organize posts. BUT after arriving back from an internetless vacation I am ready to get the ball rolling on this blog again.

      I'll be reviewing the new spellbook everyone is raving about and also one of the new sets released in the store today(assuming I actually like one). So hopefully I will have both those posts up in the next two days, figure out a weekly slot for a model spotlight and piece together the next edition of my makeover series(The generations review seems a bit pointless now since pretty much everyone has seen it already).

Model Spotlight: Gia

Welcome to the first model spotlight for my blog! This will mainly just be blurbs about my model and pictures(mostly pictures).

Gia is the first Sim I ever used in a modeling comp on The Sims 3 forum. It was a beginners competition that I ended up winning. Over the course of that time, playing Gia and giving her constant makeovers, I found I had created a very versatile sim in terms of looks and personality.

She is Flirty, Dramatic, Clumsy, Ambitious and Artistic.

I found a natural fit for Gia with the Street Couture store set. The style I originally had her in was a gothic school girl type so the clothing just fit the personality.

This is Gia's original everyday outfit and hair(from Peggyzone). But I soon found she could have many different looks depending on the hairstyles and clothing given to her.

I originally created Gia with the glasses, as you can probably tell, because I felt they added some personality to the ensemble... and let's face it, not a lot of model Sims use glasses.

I originally had used a custome skin for Gia(and lots of makeup) but since then have removed the skin and most of her makeup(I only use the Ephemera face overlay now). Her looks stayed almost exactly the same with the change, which I was quite pleased with as I'm not a huge fan of custom skins.

I honestly don't think she can look bad in an outfit... I've had her in more outfits than I can count for modeling and she has looked great in all of them. I really want to start a legacy with her(which I already have a legacy going with two of my other sims, which will be on the model spotlight so I don't want to lose focus). 

Anyway, that's Gia.. Definitely one of my favorite sims I've ever created.  Her look has changed so much since her initial iteration but she always remains the same Sim I first created and id always a blast to play as.

New Dr Pepper EA Promotion Sims 3 Items: Alice in Wonderland

     Here's a  few photo's of the 10 new Alice in Wonderland themed items from the EA Dr Pepper promotion. I know that this is a U.S. only promotion but there are some great sellers on Ebay that will give you codes to get the items(I used the 10 codes for $4.75. Definitely worth it).

     These go great with the Through The Spyglass sets from the Sims 3 Store(which I do not have...otherwise I would have built up a whole cohesive room to show off the new objects).

First up is the Directions Directly Door. Obviously there's not much to say here... it's a door, comes in these three default colors/styles and can easily be recolored and patterned.

Next up is the Hatter-Do and the Not Herself, You See outfit.

I'm not a huge fan of the hairstyle,(I was hoping the little hat would be an accessory but it's a hairstyle with Accessory so you only get the hairstyle shown here) especially in lighter colors since it looks a bit choppy, but it can look great in darker colors.

The dress is nice, fully recolorable and able to be patterned on all sections.

Back View

The hat is fully recolrable and enabled for patterning. The main portion of the hat, the ring around it, the white paper slip with simlish and the accents are all separate sections.

This item is the Arch of Hearts. I did two pictures of it because you can use it in two ways. Without the moveobjects on cheat the Arch has to be connected to a wall of some sort. With the cheat you can place it as a standalone arch or series of arches to create a sort of "arch hallway" if you will. Again this one can be recolored and patterned.

Next up is the Caterpillar's Pad 

I absolutely ADORE these. You'll see why in a minute. They're a lot bigger than I expected but they are just create for making up the scenery for that Alice In Wonderland feel. The greatest thing about these though are that they have four different pattern and color sets!

This leaves them open for so many possibilities with the styling of them(you can just go crazy like I did and go for the weirdest patterning or give them subtle textures and colors/designs). The spots have their own color and pattern set too...  just didn't use them in my pictures.

Next up is We're All Mad At The Table.

The table comes in these three styles on it's own. Again you can go crazy with the colors and sections here since it's all available(even the teapot emblems).

Next up on the list is the Your Majesty Chair.

The chair comes in these three colors and is easily recolorable and patterned. I personally love this char since the cushion part of the seats have such a great velvety texture to them and look great in almost any color.

Next we have the Oh My Ears and Whiskers! Table Lamp

This lamp is really cute. It comes in these four styles(which actually have some great variances...check out the carrot and the monocle). This one can be patterned and colored although it shows up a bit less(because of the size) compared to the other items in the set.

Next up is the Begin at the Beginning Bookshelf.

These are the three colors that come with the item. It's pretty standard fare for a bookshelf. Any parts you can recolor and pattern on other bookshelves are available here.

The last items out of the 10 is the Jabber-Clocky and the Bottle me decor item. This functions as any of the other clocks in the game. It comes with these three colors as defaults. Everything can be recolored and patterned except the clock face. I really just love the look of this thing and the curves and overall feel of it.

The Bottle me item(seen in between the clocks) is the only item that isn't able to be recolored or patterned at all. It's a nice decor item though(I just wish we could have changed the bottle and liquid colors).

Well that's all for this post. I've been working on my review for Generations...been using a family for the pictures so it's been a long trip considering there are two children(one is a child and one is a toddler) so I can't do any of the teenage pranks/prom/graduation yet. But it will all come together eventually.

Happy Simming!

Everyday Hot Summer Days: Store Set Review + Generations Registration Rewards

Ok so this review is of the clothing/hair set Everyday Hot Summer Days store set released today. I went a different direction with the pictures in this review as it was better to not give the models all particular poses so you can see the clothing better.

I think that this set brings some wonderful new clothing items for the men(although 7 items is still too few for them!) and some nice clothing for the females...the hair is pretty hit or miss though...especially compared to the Everyday casual Chic set.

I'll start with the ladies.

The models from left to right are Hannah, Lanthe, Gia and Candice.

      Hannah is wearing the new Aurora Musketeer Shirt and the new Melanie High Waist Pants. She is also wearing the new Bridgette hair from the set. I'll start with the hair...it is most definitely my least favorite from the new hairs and just seems to oddly hang from Hannahs face. It actually looks much better in game than it did in CAS. I can see it working but your sims will have to have a particular face shape to make this hair flattering.

    I love the top and paints(sans the high waist....I'd only use them on shirts like the Aurora because they are long enough to cover up the high waist...with tucked in or short shirts it looks like the pants are actually up to her navel). The top is lovely It has a small ruffle in the back but nothing to bulky/showy. The upper vest is recolorable separately from the bottom ruffles which have their own color/pattern set as does the main shirt portion of the top.

      Next up is Lanthe wearing the Faye hairstyle and the Haylie Hoodie Dress. I LOVE this dress and just think it's adorable. I recolored and patterned it here so you can't see but there are actually pockets on the side of the dress. Those pockets, the main dress, the portion of the hood showing in the front and the drawstrings all have seperate color/pattern set. Her hair is definitely one I can see myself using... it works well with more conservative looks or sims with more "cutesy" features.

       Next up is Gia using the Daisy Country Shirt Dress and the Blake hair. I love the hair...definitely my favorite out of the bunch... you can't really see it too well here because of the angle but the hair frames the face beautifully on close-ups. I also like her dress...definitely a more girl next door look( I really hope they'll release some of this clothing series sets for teens) and will work wonderfully with some of the hair from the Everyday Casual Chic set. The bow, main dress and the bottom frill all have separate color/pattern sets.

        Candice is wearing the Alana hair, a one-sided bang with a short ponytail in the back, that I love and will probably use again. She is also wearing the Deirdre's Explorer Shirt and the Kady Shorts with Button Accents. The Deirdre shirt is pretty much a Daisy Duke shirt but more modest and with two separate color/pattern sets. The shorts, cuffed and with buttons that you can't see here due to the repattern, are nice...the cuffs and buttons look awkward though in lighter colors.

Now for the next set of clothes

Hannah is wearing a hair and top from Sims 3 Generations. Her miniskirt is from the Everyday Hot Summer Days set. It's a cute skirt with visible pockets on the sides.

Lanthe is also wearing a top from Sims 3 Generations but a pair of nice Capri pants from the new Everyday set.

Gia is wearing the new Lulu's Sweet Lil' Jumper outfit... it comes in a variety of colors and is fully recoloable and patternable. I have mixed feelings about this outfit...it's very Farmers Daughter to me so I don't really have any Sims were it "fits" but I could see it as a cute outfit for your outdoorsy Gardener sim.

Candice is wearing the recolored shorts from the new set but she is also wearing one of the registration rewards for Generations. I love this top, it is just so cute and can be fully recolored and patterned(even the flower!). It's a great top for your feminine,  but less edgy, sims.

Now for the boys(and boy do I love the new tops for them!)

The models from left to right are Kris, Robbie and Tony.

Kris is wearing the August Mission Shirt recolored. I love this shirt. It can suit many different styled sims and can be changed a lot with patterns and colors.

Robbie is wearing the Start Up Chich shirt... recolored on all sections. This look is great for your preppy sims or jock sims.

Tony is wearing the Lukaz Layered Tee. This top really surprised me. It's a lot edgier than most of the male clothes out in the store right now...and you don't see asymmetrical tops much on men but I love this. The logo stays always but the rest of the shirt has two separate color and pattern sets.

Robbie is also wearing the new Alex hairstyle for men

To be honest it took me a few minutes to find this hair because it looks so much like a lot of the other short hairs we have in the game already. Not that the texture isn't nice or anything...I'd just rather see something more drastic in terms of male hair to differentiate from the others we already have.

In this picture Kris is wearing the Not That Chilly V-neck with scarf. I really love this top... I'm usually not that into the button down shirts that we have in the Sims but I think the way this one fits on your Sims and just the way it looks with the small scarf makes it a standout item in this set. 

Robbie is wearing the Fresh Prince of Riverview... I really like this vest and tee combo because with patterning you can really get some different looks with it(the above photo has a simple example of this with the vest I patterned.

Tony is wearing the Cardigan Generations registration reward...I really love this top as you can change the look completely just with your use of color to make it either look more formal or more casual.

Last pic has the final two male tops of the set(there was some confusion because the store was wonky and they weren't included in the listing of the set but are actually part of the set and download with it...this issue has since been fixed)

     Kris is wearing V-ery Hip and Tony is wearing Too Cool For Art School Hoodie. I really love the V-ery Hip top... it manages to take the deep V necked shirt and manages to make it look less douchey and more stylish. I am going to have a lot of fun recoloring and patterning this top as I feel you can go in a lot of different directions with it stylistically. The same can be said about the hoodie as you can give the tee a pattern or make it a graphic tee with a large pattern or pattern the sweatshirt in different ways changing the look.  I'm typically not a fan of deep V necks on guys but I seriously love these two shirts. 

All in all I think this set had some amazing additions for the guys in terms of style and variety(Please More!) but fell backward in terms of versatility for the female clothing and hair compared to last months Everyday Casual Chic despite having a few Gems.

I would give this set as a whole a 7/10. Definitely worth buying the whole thing if you are planning on buying the male tops and maybe buying one or two of the female outfits/hairs. Thankfully if the female hair and clothing aren't your style you can always opt for just purchasing the 7 male items in the set.