Marni Grut has just wrapped up (or is wrapping up?) a massive sale at her brand Royal Blue. Only to make way for a whole slew of new inventory - including some of the goodies I fancied and will show you here.

It bears repeating that for me, Marni is one of the most interesting people I have met in SL (and one of the funniest). Some of her humor shows in her work at times - but no matter how you view the wares of this RL art student, she’s incredibly true to what her inspires her and not what might make her bank. Although I hope there’s lots of that too!

The trousers above are the “Harem High Waists” (Harem, of course) in taupe. There is no top, so build your own look around them. I opted for the rather simple, and I think perhaps even early Autumn look here with stark white tights and leather bag.

My skins are all new from Blowpop, and I told Annyka this, but her make-ups just get better and better. I love the strong lips in the “Shades of Valena” collection and especially the subtle blush of the “Keeping Up with the Rossinis” collection - both variants of the new Tuesday line.

See more after the jump…
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In a world where we really can wear anything, I said recently that I still generally stick to items that I feel I would wear offline, even if the opportunities were few and far between. The point is, much of my SL (and offline) wardrobe is “wearable” in a fairly broad sense.

However, among the SL designers I have come to follow and respect, there are those who have pushed fashion into places where the result is more abstract or interpretive - not to mention, completely unexpected. It’s not as easy as “click to wear,” which I think might be the point. Marni Grut - a RL fashion student - is one of those designers, with her brand Royal Blue.

Marni wearing Draconic Kiss skin, Hair from Zsa Zsa’s House of Beauty, Lico Lico crown, Fleur gloves and Royal Blue Frills top

I first met Marni sometime last year and was a fan of her style and her completely unapologetic use of shapes to create items far off the beaten path. Her earlier releases were original but still wearable. I definitely remember thinking, “Oh, interesting…” but it wasn’t, “Wait, what???” In fact, Marni’s very first design was crafted on only her second day in SL - a Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis inspired suit, not surprisingly.

Moving along though, many of her releases became more abstract and in some cases, left me thinking - I might not be “getting” this. It’s the same with other kinds of art, I think. There are painters you understand and those who leave you thinking, “how am I supposed to see this?” or this case, wear.

So when Marni began releasing items like her Eternal Universe dress and Poof Poof skirts, I found myself wondering if I could pull them off. At the same time, when you see someone bringing something truly unique to the mix, you have to respect it, if not embrace it.

I sat down with Marni to talk about her designs, look at what’s new and get a sneak peak at what’s next…it turns out the only requirement is a sense of humor.

Our discussion and her designs after the cut…
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