Got a new mesh head and/or body and you are not sure where to start? Or perhaps you are looking for a fresh new look? We've all been there, tweaking our shapes and making continuous adjustments resulting most often with mediocre results. Some of us manage to create a
decent form but bento can be finicky at times and creating that perfect look can be very time-consuming and discouraging too. A good shape is so important; it's what defines us in this pixel world. Unfortunately like in real life (RL), there is shallowness and so many of us are judged by how we look even in Second Life (SL). UpBeatZ Shapes can save us many headaches! They offer reasonably priced shapes for Catwa,
Genus, Lelutka, and many more! Their prices are mega affordable at 99L
per shape and each come with their own styling cards but what hit me the
most about UpBeatZ Shapes is their motto "You are beautiful, You are
Strong, You Are Loved" those positive affirmations are needed and appreciated even in SL. Kudos to the owner Mel for recognizing that such positivity is important no matter what world we live in. Meeting the owner Mel for the first time was amazing! She is so passionate, kind, and very friendly. I really wanted to know more about her and UpBeatZ
Shapes.
Roxy Mystic: It is such a pleasure to be able to meet with you again Mel and learn more about UpBeatZ Shapes. I have to admit that I am so impressed with you as a person and how you are running this business. It is obvious that you have a big heart, even the name is upbeat! I need to ask where does this amazing positive energy comes from and why is it so important for it to be shared here in SL?
ღMelღMelღ: That is a very good question. I do not see SL just as some pixel world, I see each person here as a heart that needs attention and love that deserves care and equal attention. In my own personal life history, I learned that you must love yourself and feel good about yourself and sometimes you need a few inspiring words to help stay positive (hence my motto) because my motto is so true. Beauty comes from within first. I have never considered myself as having the most beautiful shapes here in SL but I put every effort into making them as beautiful as I can. I do see myself as offering others a chance to feel more beautiful with a new shape. But I want each person to know they are already beautiful too!
Roxy Mystic: I am sure you did not wake up one day and decide you were going to make shapes in Second Life, there must have been a progression of sorts. Can you describe your journey? And when were UpBeatZ Shapes officially started?
ღMelღMelღ: I was inspired by watching many other shape creators in SL. I have always loved design work outside of SL and in SL as well. I enjoyed building but just never went anywhere with it. I love shopping and always enjoyed experimenting and playing with skins; believe me when I say I shop for tons of skins! So one day, I started playing more and more with the shapes and thought well, there are so many new people coming into SL that perhaps cannot afford expensive shapes and even those already here don't want to spend too much on shapes. So I decided to keep my prices low and I love knowing people are smiling when they put on a shape that I designed and feel good with it. It warms my heart when they message me and say they are happy. When they are happy I am happy and that is how it should be.
Roxy
Mystic: I have so much respect for shape designers. Not only are you designing a face and also sometimes a body but you are also creating a
full avatar look! I can only imagine the investment involved such as skins, hair, and eyes that are needed to bring a shape to perfection. Can you describe the process without giving us the recipe? For example, how long does it take from the beginning to the end in getting a shape to market? Do you have a vision before you start?
ღMelღMelღ: I
don't usually have a vision of what the shape will look like, I normally start working on the head first then work my way down. Shapes vary from start to finish some are more difficult than others. Depending on the mesh head, some take more time to shape than others as there are more tools and huds to work with. It can take anywhere from 2 hours to a full day sometimes to make a great shape and get it boxed to sell.
Roxy
Mystic: Second Life has so many mesh head and body options out there,
it is very difficult to decide which is best. Is there a body or head that you prefer working with? And if yes, can you tell us which ones and why?
ღMelღMelღ: Another good question and one that is honestly hard to answer. I think I'd have to swing in the direction of LeLutka though. I find the LeLutka heads easy to work with as well as easier to shape. Don't get me wrong, I do love a good challenge with the other heads at times and I am often challenged with Lelutka too! Catwa's HDPRO is amazing as well and it offers so many fun new tools for shaping their hud. However, skins are not available nearly as much for Catwa HDPRO as they are for LeLutka.
Roxy
Mystic: It is important for our SL Enquirer readers to know that
UpBeatZ Shapes focuses on both women and men shapes of every culture and lifestyle. I think that is amazing and very important. I will share with you why this is paramount. In 2019 New World Notes blogged that
traffic and users of SL were from the following top ten countries:
United States, Brazil, Turkey, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Canada,
France, Netherlands, and Italy. I am sure these statistics have changed a
bit since then but it still gives you an idea as to how diverse we are in this pixeled world. Does this surprise you?
ღMelღMelღ: This does not surprise me at all, in fact at UpBeatZ Shapes we've focused our shapes on every race and culture right from the start. We want everyone to know that equality is so important to us. I am so excited and so proud to announce that we have a new line of LGBTQ shapes coming soon as well as a new line of Breast Cancer Survivors shapes. We want every man and woman of every race, culture and from all walks of life to feel welcome and right at home here at UpBeatZ Shapes. We are strong advocates in raising awareness to end Domestic Violence. Domestic
Violence is never EVER acceptable. Roxy this is one big world and with the pandemic going on right now and so many people being forced to stay home, we are all in here together. This is where we all really need to
show our love and support to one another, no matter our race, culture,
sexual choices, it doesn't matter, UpBeatZ and I want everyone to know you are Loved.
Roxy Mystic: Very well said Mel and I totally agree. Let's talk about your prices, good heavens! UpBeatZ Shapes has such amazing prices! The shapes are modifiable and you also provide a
styling card as well. I cannot believe you are selling them for 99L! I
need to ask why?
ღMelღMelღ: Why not? Why do I need to break someone's pocket? I am not here to gain a dollar, I am here to gain a smile.
Roxy
Mystic: Mel, you are clearly putting in lots of hours, investment and
hard work into UpBeatZ Shapes and to be honest with your low prices I
get the feeling this is not about money as you just said you prefer
seeing smiles. Why are you doing this and please share with us your
dreams and goals.
ღMelღMelღ: You are correct Roxy. While
making money is great for everyone and yes I have invested lots to get
UpBeatZ Shapes started. My dream is to be able to offer over 1,000
shapes in a year from now and then be able to relax knowing that there
are tons of people smiling and saying I am Beautiful, I am Strong, I am
Loved!
Roxy Mystic: I noticed that many of your shapes on your vendor boards have smiling faces. Can you explain why?
ღMelღMelღ:
I love this question. First, let me clarify when I sell my shapes, I
make sure when I include a smiling shape photo in my package that the client knows it is done for a photo/promotional purpose. Unfortunately,
huds do not permit smiles of this nature on our mesh heads. So to answer your question, we always see shapes for sale with normal and limited animations; we walk into stores and all we see are straight serious faces. Even though there are welcome signs and we sometimes see store bots welcoming us, I wanted something different by displaying pictures of happy-looking avatars. When my customers come in, I want them to instantly feel happy. They say a smile is infectious and contagious so
hopefully seeing this makes everyone happy when they visit UpBeatZ
Shapes. That is what all of this is about, being happy. I just want everybody happy.
Roxy Mystic: I
always like my last question to be a little fun! Would you call yourself a shape-shifter? Also, do you have a shape that is you or do you change your look all the time?
ღMelღMelღ: Well, funny you ask this because there are times I'll make a shape and say "I seriously do not want to take this one off and claim it as my own". Ten minutes later it's boxed and I have no choice but to start another shape. It's a
cycle, then the next day I've fallen in love with several other shapes.
There is one I have made recently that is my favorite but if I say her
name I will jinx myself and end up making another that I will like more!
UpBeatZ
Shapes is quite an amazing business with an equally amazing owner who only wishes to spread happiness and smiles with the avatar shapes she designs. I'd like to emphasize that UpBeatZ Shapes are proud supporters of Stop Domestic Violence and Breast Cancer. As mentioned earlier, the
designer's motto is "You are beautiful, You are Strong, You are Loved"
those positive affirmations are very visible at the store and certainly welcoming. The owner Mel likes to say that she is proud to offer these unbelievable prices of great quality and love. There are currently two locations with more coming and you can also find them at the Vanity Fair event from March 15th to April 8th. It's certainly worth the visit or
in this case, come over and share your smile!
Additional Information:
Mainstore LM: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Kyrr/94/111/28
Second Location: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Wet%20Willies/189/67/22
Marketplace: https://marketplace.secondlife.com/stores/161271
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