Shops that ARE expensive as hell!

Hello! I feel like shopping and am bored with high-value shops that sell clothing, furniture, and oddities that are on a par with the excellent freebies that are now widely available. I'm looking for expensive boutiques with superior merchandise. Clothing, prefabs, whatever.

I'll start it out: CE Cubic Effect --- casual sculptie clothing.

*jingles change in her wallet*

Remember, $1 = $L250. Pennies! Bring 'em on, folks!
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Edelweiss

Some of the best school uniforms with options for all seasons and quite a few good EGL and cosplay outfits. (^_^)

Mamesando

L$1200 overall for an avatar and character fitting AO. Not bad for a girl that can be ridden like a motorcycle. (^_^)

Curious Kitties

Not all expensive, but, for L$4000 one of the cutest complete mermaid avatars I've ever seen. >^_^)<

hmmm I don't shop at really expensive places (i'm too poor) but you might want to go to Nicki Rees (not sure if I spelled that right), she has amazingly beautiful things. Yes they are expensive, but she uses original artwork on the textures, I think she has a really nice new release right now.

edit: here is her blog:http://designingnickyree.blogspot.com

There was some post the other day that laughed at some place that you had to actually pay to even see the stuff- maybe some one will know it- but it was ludicrous money.

My store ain't cheap. Mostly tech toys.

I saw a couture dress that was L$40,000 last month.

Oh, try Claudette Cozens.....L$50 to read the catalogue, L$500 to be escorted into the shop, then dresses for between L$3500 and L$25,000. I haven't seen too much of her work about, but then I'm just sl hoi polloi.

/me shakes head in disbelief, knowing full well there are some people who will pay that because they are so vain and trying to keep up with the joneses.

Baiastice, Maitreya, LeLutka, Moody.

There was a "SL couture" thread some time back, if you care to dig it up. People made a lot of good recommendations there.

I do not agree that expensive = good and fairly priced = inferior, though.

Also try Bare Rose and Zaara.

clarification: I'm not saying that expensive = good ... anyone who's ever spent any time with Nika knows she's a freebie princess, tho her inventory is showing its age. I'm saying I think the expensive places get overlooked in the forums, and may have really great stuff.

Baiastice is a good example. She has some really creative stuff, as well as some pretty ordinary stuff, but because her prices are a little higher than most I think she gets overlooked.

Hilarious that someone is charging to walk into the shop! I gots to go to ... or at least cam into ... the place!

Anya: gadget places are da best. I'll definitely stop by!
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iirc, the price is outrageous because she is a rl designer and it's intentionally trying to keep out the riff raff not willing to pay for her custom services.

It was an April Fool's Day joke that turned into Trashionista

http://fashionista-island.blogspot.com/

If Claudette is a rl fashion designer trying to make a rl wage Cristalle, she may have an uphill battle. I can never charge for time in sl like I do in rl...nor do I spend on the same scale, and I feel that is the consensus amongst sl shoppers, rightly or wrongly. (Admits this gets said a lot, and it's getting tired.)

I'd love very much like to see what her clothes are like, as I'm not at all doubting the quality, and I always adore seeing creativity and beauty. Googling brings up no visuals or word from the designer at all. Lots of other rich commentary though, as you may expect from the sl fashion-interested bunch.

I'd like to visit her store, or at least rub my nose against the glass. Still waiting for my invite to come shop ...

hah---i typed while you typed, and the date was not lost on me

edited to add---i love those trashy photos

That's the one! I would laugh my fool head off if the utter idiocy didn't strike me dumb.

Ooh- where is that rifraff list? I need to sign up! Card carrying member you know

In that case they got me good! The stupidity of it was enough to make it real! Laughin out loud for real now- great joke!

Nicky Ree is outrageous expensive for dresses.

Though they are extremely nice dresses. The average price of the ones i seem to like are around 1400-1600L.

I operate on the assumption that every situation in SL has role play potential so perhaps paying lindens through the nose for 'couture clothing' would be part of it in this case. A lot of folk fantasise about going to the shows and buying outlandlishly expensive one-offs from the couture houses. So it isn't quite so ridiculous when looked at from this perspective.

I'm going slightly off-topic here but I once paid 2,000 lindens for an hour with a whore in a wild west sim, which was a shocking waste where good cyber can be had more or less for free if you go about it the right way. Nevertheless, 'paying' was very much a part of the game as I saw it and the avs involved were really good players. We had a great time - right down to the Madam harrassing us because the 'girl' and I sat around chatting and joking well past the one-hour limit.

ok--let me get in first with the ultimately predictable comment--"damn and I've been giving it away"

Ephraim Kappler roars laughing.

No such thing as a free ride if you'll pardon the expression: we always pay somewhere along the line.

Let's call it "Exclusive" and not "expensive." I personally have a huge respect for someone who is willing to price their item for what it's really worth in uniqueness of design, quality of design, and execution. Even at some of the prices you mentioned above, you're still not paying for a talented individual's RL time. If it meets these qualifications it has a Value.

I have my eye on a gown that is 15,000. I really want it. It's gorgeous, and I suspect that a RL designer constructed it, as I used to design and construct rl gowns myself....I can spot when someone genuinely understands fit, fabric texture, fabric flow, exceptional construction, attention to details, and has an artistic flair.

This gown will have a Value to me. I'll purchase it as a reward someday. The value was in drooling over it and wanting it and having a goal and a reward and the feeling you will get when you wear it. It will be special, and reserved for special occasions. I can also be guaranteed that because of the price, when I arrive at a dance club, odds are against 3 other women having the same gown on, which is often the case.

We should be blessed with these items, otherwise things will become mundane.

It's Exclusive....it's Valuable....not Expensive.

IMO the single most overused, totally exhausted, I-wish-I-never-saw-it-again word on the entire grid is "couture".

No yuppie buzzword, media hobby-horse cliché, or meaningless pop culture catchphrase has been splashed about ad nauseum any more than this.
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The most expensive item in my shop is 1250L, for a product that took a month of full-time effort to develop. Clearly I'm in the wrong line of work, or I don't charge enough.

FWIW, my sales of that item increased when I increased the price from 950L. I've been thinking I should raise the price again, both because I think it might do better and because I need to be compensated for my time spent before I become homeless (a real possibility).

I suspect that there's a low-end price above which casual shoppers who don't really know what they're looking at won't pay, and a high-end price at which people will pay more attention, wondering what's so special. I think my prices are in the unhappy zone between the two.

Has anyone else thought there might be a mid-price-range that hurts sales more than a low or high price?

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I rarely see the word but that may be because I generally don't visit female clothing stores. Still, isn't it accurate if a designer builds and textures clothes to order?