FATEwear: A Review
Contributed by Xomar Mycron
So, Damien Fate, the co-creator of Cold Logic and the man behind the new FATEwear men's clothing line somehow decided that I was a blogger and sent me over some stuff to...um...blog, I suppose. I'm not sure how the hell that happened, but I'm thinking a certain redhead might have been responsible for it. No matter; I've got free crap so I might as well review some of it. This is a little weird for me because not only am I not really a blogger who offers reviews, but also I'm stone sober. I should probably rectify that last problem. Excuse me for a moment.
*heads off the kitchen for some scotch*
First off, I have to say that everything I was handed was crafted with exquisite care and talent; this wasn't your average template texture type gear. However, I have to say that the textures and color scheme he uses are a little bland for my tastes. It feels very cold and sterile, like I just walked into the doctor's office and am afraid to touch anything, one because it looks like it's freezing to the touch, the other because God knows what sick freak has put their hands all over everything before I stepped inside.
Another problem I have with the collection I've seen, including pieces I wasn't sent for the blogger review, is that their seems to be overlapping items in order to make an outfit. This might work for female clothing, but I'm not sure I really want to buy the same shirt twice because it comes with different pants or a different tie this time. The model that Hoorenbeek has set, most of their clothes having multiple options that can be mixed and matched with their other pieces, seems to be the optimal design for men's clothing. Case in point; Hoorenbeek's shirts all come with options to wear underneath one of their existing mesh coats. With FATEwear, you pretty much have to buy a preexisting outfit with a shirt that will fit under the coat instead. It's a minor thing to pick at, but mixing and matching my clothing is hard enough with mesh clothing all fitting differently; making it even more complicated within the same designer seems unnecessary.
Now that I've done a good job being the Baby Ruth in the swimming pool, I should probably tell you what I do like. As I mentioned above, the clothes themselves look like real clothing. The subtle wrinkles, the shading, the details with the buttons and cuffs, they're probably better than anything you'll find in SL at the moment. I decided to choose two of his more basic items to show you just how well they fit. The shirt I'm wearing, Hank, is your standard baseball t-shirt, but just look at the way the carefully crafted wrinkles about the midwaist and the subtle shading on the chest. It actually looks like there's a body underneath as opposed to some sort of claymation Gumby figure like much of the mesh templates out right now. The pantleg breaks at the bottom of the jeans are probably my favorite of any jeans I've seen in SL. Even better, these jeans don't make you look like you just took a massive dump in them. That right there puts them near the top of the list. I did have to adjust my shape a bit, but that seems to be the standard with mesh. FATEwear seems to run a little smaller since I was just too damn big. That's often a problem, but mostly with the ladies. They're always screaming about me being too big which is usually a sign I need to tighten their ballgags.
This combination reminded me of my high school days and playing two hand touch football in the alley behind my buddy's apartment building, so I figured, what the hell, it's just recreate it, complete with inappropriate footwear choices. I don't care how cool Vans look, playing anything in them is usually a good way to end up with a nice sprained ankle.
Credits:
Shirt: FATEwear - Hank
Jeans: FATEwear - John
Shoes: BC322 - Slip-on Sneakers
Hat: CS420 - Yin & Yang Baseball Cap
Glasses: Hoorenbeek - Risky Glasses
