Mako Magellan Menswear

Here are some pictures of my just-released bowler hat. Since it is at present quite hard to get a good close-up view of clothing in Blue Mars, I have shown some details of the hat in separate pictures: the bow and the stitching of the brim. All my hats are similarly detailed.

Thanks to Magellan's Patent Cranial Ordinator, this hat works with all my hairstyles on the standard avatar body.

The bowler hat was worn from about 1850 up until the 1960s. Its use therefore covers more than half the Victorian era. It was never a formal hat per se, until it became identified with business dress of city gents in the 20th Century. It is just as iconic as the top hat in its own way, through its adoption by Charlie Chaplin, Laurel and Hardy, Steed of The Avengers, and the droogs of A Clockwork Orange.

Here is the first of a sequence of descriptions of outfits I am providing in Blue Mars. This is a general purpose Victorian gentleman's outfit, available in a limited run of only 100. There are numerous points I would like to bring to your attention. I shall start at the top. Note that the shirt has a winged collar; since this is neither 'prims' nor texture superimposed on the avatar mesh, but a custom mesh, it has both shape and fabric-like flexibility. The outfit includes a silken red cravat. This, like all quality clothes in Blue Mars, also flexes like a fabric. It has a higher specularity than the other garments, which means its surface appears glossy, reflecting strong light sources, but also appearing darker when in the shade (see inset in the picture below). A black silk waistcoat can just be seen between the open sides of the frockcoat.

The frockcoat exhibits many of the qualities of clothes-making in Blue Mars. The texture of the fabric is extremely detailed. If you were able to zoom in closely enough you would be able to discern individual threads in the fabric. It also has the fuzziness of soft materials, often appearing darker on areas flat to the screen and showing highlights around the edges. The lapels are of a slightly darker shinier material and sit just proud of the surface of the coat. Note also how the sheen sits around the shoulders and forearms.

The buttons of the coat are three-dimensional, covered with the same barathea cloth as the coat, and backed with metal. They align with real buttonholes, not created with an alpha effect, but actually cut through the fabric. They move, as one would naturally demand, with the surface of the coat at all times. The coat has buttons at the cuffs and the rear, too.

The cuffs of the coat and the shirt are smooth and undistorted, and crisply finished. The trousers feature a strong pinstripe. They have true interiors at the flies and pockets. Not visible when worn with a waistcoat, there are six three-dimensional buttons for braces, finished in tortoiseshell and securely stitched. Another button fixes the trousers closed at the waistband - which is high, and separated at the back. At their hems, the trousers drape attractively around the shoes.

The shoes are simple, practical black oxfords, with dynamic reflections in their highly polished surfaces. They have textured three-dimensional laces, correctly tied, and come in separate left and right fittings. The soles are solid leather, textured accordingly.

Blue Mars offers previously unachievable realism. It enables truly elegant shaping and tailoring, and full accommodation to the movements of the avatar. The variety of effects in surface qualities is extremely wide and permissive, and the scope for detail is really quite unlimited.

Please do take time to have a look at these garments in the shops at Beach City. You may inspect them in full rotatable 3D form before buying.