June 16, 2008 An interview with Tuli Asturias of Tuli
In our newest article we will be speaking with Tuli Asturias the owner of Tuli which offers a variety of high quality women’s apparel, poses and quality female skins. Tuli is an original member of SLS and is a very active designer, working hard each day to release new products and introduce new items of amazing beauty to the citizens of SL. Her advertising and design skills are wonderful and the members of SLS have seen her work here before as she created the banner for the SLS Party at the Sweetest Sin (see article for Aug 6th, 2007) So without further delay let’s talk with Tuli and hear more about her and her amazing accomplishments.
Thank you Tuli for taking the time out of your busy schedule to speak with us, we do appreciate this opportunity. When you began designing in SL, who influenced you and was there anyone who helped to show you how to take the first step? Tutorials? Friends?
Tuli: When I finally decided to start making something, I figured since I had some experience with Photoshop, clothing was the most obvious choice, and I downloaded the templates. And that was all I had, for real. Tutorials? No idea about those, I think I didn’t even know the existence of the forums yet, lol. SL was a different place back then, and I was still overwhelmed. Self taught through trial and error, although much later I did share tips with other designers, mostly about shading. In those days, Pixeldolls, Mischief, Tickled Pink and Nyte ‘n Day were THE places to shop, and I admired Nephilaine Protagonist of Pixeldolls especially. Those stores are still great to shop, but as you know the fashion world has expanded explosively in the last 2 years. When I was opening my first little store at a mall 2 years ago, I ran into Celebrity Trollop who was thinking about something to write about for her first ever article. Yes, I knew her “way back when”, haha. I think we debuted at the same time in our respective work areas. Her enthusiasm inspired me to keep working and improving. I don’t get to talk much to her these days as we’re both extremely busy people, but she will always be very dear to me =)
SLS: Your skins have always been unique and very detailed, not to mention the many different styles, what guides you while making your new skins? What are your sources of inspiration?
Tuli: Thank you =) Skinmaking is a loooong road of trial and error if you have to start from scratch, which I did. Getting the idea of how exactly the template for the face works, how 2D shapes of lips, eyes and eyebrows and the application of shading influence what the final skin will look like on an actual 3D avatar… Adding and taking away, changing shapes and colors. This way I came across the style my skins have now. I like a soft and sweet look that’s not too realistic.
SLS: You’ve been in SL since 10/26/2005. I remember a couple of years ago when your style was a little darker, kind of sexy-gothy. How has your style evolved and why?
Tuli: That’s not completely correct if you’re talking about my Lollypop brand. It had different lines with their own names, like Jellybean and Bonbon. One of those lines, Jawbreaker, was a little gothic, yes, but most were colorful and sweet. I was still feeling around for which style suited me best, and to be honest, it took me to this year to find out. The current style which is available at my main store was another trial, and although I like my designs, it’s still not “me”. I will be starting something new soon and this time I think I have found the type of clothing I like to make. Stay tuned =)
SLS: What do you consider to be your most popular selling items? What do you consider to be your most unique selling item?
Tuli: My series 5 (S5) skin line is a huge success, and my new skin Emily (yes I started naming them hehe) is getting popular fast. My Celeste skins sell well too, but they have a very specific look which appeals to a smaller group. I am working on more faces to appeal to more people. At the Dogtown mall there are a few skins with cuts and bruises which I guess could qualify for unique selling =) Not many people find them!
SLS: Your work was recently nominated for the Best of SL Magazine, how did that make you feel?
Tuli: I was extremely surprised! My store is not that big and I am not a household name in skinning, certainly not compared to my fellow nominees. To be in a line up with Abyss, Naughty, Laqroki and Chai was almost weird to see, lol. It felt good though, and I felt appreciated. I didn’t care if I won or not.
SLS: On that line, what is your take on contests in SL…fair, not fair, worth the hype, biased?
Tuli: I was recently asked to be a judge in a 10-judge team to judge a modeling contest of sorts. We did our best and also had fun. The drama that ensued by two of the models who weren’t selected made me never want to donate my time and sleep (this was way into the morning for me as I am 9 hours ahead of sl time) to this sort of thing again. So, conclusion: hyped, mostly not worth it, and people should stop taking SL TOO seriously. Take it down a notch pixel people, ktnxbai.
SLS: I know you are most humble about your work, which in my opinion is a rare trait that endears us to the best designers. I couldn’t help noticing that as of this writing there are 809 hits for “Tuli” on the Fashion World of SL feed. What do you think about being a trendsetter for SL?
Tuli: Is 809 hits much? There could be a lot in there about Tuli being a weird hermit chick. I am not a trendsetter, real life fashion designers are the trendsetters for SL, and the word designer still has trouble coming out of my mouth. I have no education whatsoever in that area, I am a hobbyist who just happens to know how to work with graphic programs, and have ideas about which clothing looks nice. I prefer the title content creator to be honest =)
SLS: You told me that you’ve actually had a positive experience working with the Lindens to help you overcome property theft. So rarely do we hear that they’ve taken positive action to guarantee our intellectual and creative property rights which is the very basis founding of SL and what sets them apart. How did you find this experience? Do you have any words of advice to encourage and help others who have experienced property theft on how to work with the Lindens?
Tuli: Linden Labs really can’t do much but take infringing items off the grid. They are not a legal institution. It’s up to the legal council of the duped person to prevent the infringer from doing it again. What I hope LL WILL do though is make it harder or better, impossible for people to steal textures and prims inworld. However, since SL is open source, I think we’re doomed. Follow their guidelines for DMCA filing is all I can say… There is a group in SL of which I forgot the name at the moment (I am sure if you search for DMCA in groups something will pop up) who can help with advice and an example DMCA form. I had my solution within a week. Actually, whenever I had to contact support though a ticket, the response and following solution was amazingly quick. I might have to mention that I am a premium account holder…
SLS: Is there anything in SL that you haven’t tried yet and would like to get into? What skill sets in SL do you wish that you were stronger at and how would you supplement what you already do with these new found skills?
Tuli: I wish I wish I wish I was good at building and sculpties. The learning curve for sculptie making is so steep for me as I’ve never even touched a 3D program, that it would take a lengthy leave of absence for me to get that going. Sculpties make clothing designs so much richer and fun, I know I will have to do it some time, but I don’t want my skinmaking and other projects to suffer, so for now I have people making them for me.
SLS: With all the work that you do with Tuli how do you manage to find the time to socialize with friends and still enjoy SL? Do you get the chance to go out and explore the many unique and wonderful builds in SL in relative peace? If so, what is one of your favorite things to do?
Tuli: I have friends in SL and I do try to hang out with all of them but it’s really hard. Often in SL I am working. I don’t get out much, lol. My best friends do recognize my hermitism and manage to drag me to some great places like Greenies from time to time, or to do a photo shoot =)
SLS: Thank you very much Tuli for taking your time and speaking with us today. We’re sure that our members will enjoy hearing what you have to say about your incredible efforts. We would also like to provide our readers with a few articles that have been done on Tuli and her stellar efforts to make SL a more beautiful place. Please have a look at the articles listed below.
809 Hits for Tuli on the Fashion World of SL blog feed.
http://fashionplanet.worldofsl.com/
Cover and interview in Second Style Magazine issue 19
http://www.secondstyle.com/
Nominated for Best of SL Magazine best skin…she didn’t win, but her nomination post was sooo sweet.
http://tules.blogspot.com/2008/06/due-to-massive-requests-i-made-red-lip.html
Also, from Tuli’s in-game profile, we would like to provide you with URL’s that she freely provides to other sites and resources where you may get the latest information regarding her efforts.
tuli.asturias@gmail.com
http://tules.blogspot.com
http://tulisfavorites.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tules
http://www.flickr.com/groups/tulipics
http://www.slsociety.snappville.com/tuli
A few notes regarding Tuli’s business:
Business hours: none specified
Email: tuli.asturias@gmail.com
Available for customs: no
GIFT CERTIFICATES available (Y/N): no, but on Onrez http://shop.onrez.com/Tuli_Asturias
REFUND policy (Y/N): yes
Per Tuli, her IM’s often get capped so please be sure to drop an NC or email her if she is not online.
As mentioned, Society will be doing a series of articles focusing on content creators in Second Life. If you have input in regards to good subjects for these articles please email Biggin or Shelby here for consideration. Thank you =)
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