This weekend’s sales introduced me to a new abode created by Charlotte Bartlett, the talented mind behind Scarlet Creative. Now, I have an array of Scarlet’s houses nestled in my inventory – it’s a love-hate saga, akin to a dramatic soap opera minus the dramatic music.
Scarlet Creative’s Lars Boathouse: A Visual Voyage
One puzzling aspect of Scarlet Creative’s architectural ethos always baffles me – the curious case of the ‘low-hung door handles’. I mean, are these homes designed for hobbits? One would need to stoop to the level of a curious toddler to reach these handles. Luckily, in the virtual realm of Second Life, we merely need to graze the door for it to swing open, but the design tickle never ceases to amuse me. Surely, I can’t be the lone ranger in noticing this, right?
Anyway, I decided to inspect this new dwelling, dubbed Lars Boathouse. It’s a snug two-storey structure that I figured might have suited one of my smaller rentals. The name intrigued me—perhaps it’s dubbed a boathouse for its semblance to a boat in an upright stance? The mysteries of Scarlet’s creative nomenclature add a sprinkle of intrigue to the venture.
As it rezzed before my eyes, its lack of windows on the back and side had me skeptical. Two vast barren walls on a two-storey house just don’t scream ‘home sweet home’.
Yet, what truly captured my whimsy was the avatar standing on the balcony of the first floor. The railing hit right at her shoulders.
So, I ventured inside to validate this newfound anomaly. My avatar, of a pretty average stature, found this to be a novel kind of armrest. And lo and behold, the railing downstairs was at a shoulder-hugging height. The design seemed to defy the laws of ergonomics. An architectural choice that left me both amused and puzzled. Is this a new style statement in the realm of virtual real estate? Only Charlotte knows.
Now, the pragmatic ones among you might chime in, “But Pris, it’s modifiable, tweak it to your heart’s content!” Oh, I’ve danced the modification waltz with Scarlet Creative’s designs before. And let me tell you, it’s no easy feat, especially with the baked shadows lurking around. Modification in Scarlet Creative’s world is akin to navigating through a maze, blindfolded. But hey, at a mere 75L, I took the bait, once again embroiled in the love-hate tango with Scarlet’s whimsical world of design.
Scarlet Creative’s Quirky Entrance way: The Sound and the Fury
The sliding doors also caught my attention. Or rather, the sound they made did. Instead of a sleek swoosh befitting the sliding style, they echoed the creak of a classic door swing. Oh, the audio-visual mismatch! Though, let’s face it, not many in Second Life share my ear for the door-decor discord.
With a click and a drag, the resizing saga commenced. The house shrank, the railing found its rightful place, albeit turning the cozy space a tad cozier. A small victory, and the prim weight lightened from 34 to 26 — a silver lining, perhaps?
I decided to resize only the railing, and to my surprise, it worked well for the patio. However, things took a dark (or should I say shadowy?) turn when I reached the upstairs balcony. Hello, baked-on shadows, my old foes. Though a black mark flirted with the aesthetics, a smart placement of a leafy companion could cover up the minor misstep.
At the pocket-friendly price of 75L, who could really bemoan a few quirky quirks? It flung open the doors (creak and all) to a whimsical exploration into the ever-amusing, ever-creative, world of Scarlet Creative. The Lars Boathouse is just a small ticket price for a weekend of quirky exploration and a tale to share.
