Hi again, can you believe it’s the last day of January already? I can’t! This month sure flew by quickly. Did you know that today is National Hot Chocolate Day, in fact I’m sipping one right now. Any excuse for delicious chocolate works for me! Today, I wanted to share with you my home sim, Silverlake Village. I mentioned earlier this month that since I’m slowly returning to SL, I didn’t have a opporunity to ‘go-all-out’ for Christmas 2016, so there are just a few items in my Winterfest scene. On my little slice of virtual heaven, I created a country village with four builds nested into the snowy mountains. The first home {shown above} is the Home for the Holidays December 2015 arcade gacha items from What Next. All the gacha items are displayed including the adorable five-room winter cottage I dubbed grandma’s house. The two-story stoned build with porch, snow roof, outdoor string lights and working indoor fireplace is the perfect winter backdrop for the cute snowman, holiday bike decor and snowflake bench {some of the other gacha items}. Grandma’s house is ideal for all seasons with a no snow option and is sure to remain on my homestead. 
Next is Josette Boutique {in green} by Trompe Loeil, also available in 3 other colors {red, blue and black}. Every good village needs a coffee shop, so I converted the space into a cafe with my living quarters upstairs. The cafe has lovely etched windows with an open floorplan in warm woods and a ladder leading up to the loft with fireplace. So far, I spotlit the lower level and this coming week, I’ll focus on the bedroom for upcoming Valentine’s Day post. For outside decor, I used Tylar’s Treasures Cold Winter Night Bench {3 couple cuddle poses only}, hunt gift for Ball of Yarn Hunt (ends today, 1/31/17). Also shown is Apple Fall Farrow Garden Wall set {free}. 
My third stop on the tour is the Iona Conservatory by Trompe Loeil which I’m transforming into a romantic spot. Either a fancy restaurant or a small theater lends itself to the beautiful glass and brick single room copper roof architectural gem. Also shown in the exterior is What Next Wintry Pembury Bench, Winter Harvest Lanterns and Trompe Loeil Valiano Fountain. 
Last but not least is the Alpine Cabin by What Next, which I nicknamed the Ski Patrol Cabin because every country village burrowed in the snowtops needs a friendly snow bunny! This home is decked out mostly in wintery decor with nods to Nordic decor, details here. Thank you for allowing me to share my homes with you. In the past, I’ve never had time to capture the place I call home, just whatever I was blogging at the time. This year, I want to remember everything and have fun!
Gacha Good The Best is Yet to Come event is still running until 2/15/17 and today I wanted to spotlight the Go Frock Yourself Heart on a String outfit. The exclusive outfit for the event is a red knit deep V-neck tunic with printed interlocking ribbon hearts and black ankle length pants. There are two other style outfits available for sale at the event. Heart on a String outfit is fitted for mesh and classic avi’s. To finish off the Valentine’s Day casual styling, Go Frock Yourself has Slink & Belleza nail appliers in a number of different styles. The one I’m modeling below has 10 varieties of hearts. I’m also wearing Pure Poison Felicia Pumps, [elikatira] Tonya Hair and Maxi Gossamer Sugar Heart Necklace {group gift}. Valentine’s Day will be here before we know it, so pop over to Gacha Good The Best is Yet to Come event and pick up some goodies!
Gloria Silverstone 