The Alphaville Herald

Love and Love Seats

by Alphaville Herald on 17/08/07 at 8:16 am

What do you do when you come home and find a couple humping in your bed?

by Wendell Holmer, metaverse home and garden reporter

Prim Perfect publisher Saffia Widdershins and a pet

In one day, Prim Perfect’s blog got as many hits as the number of magazines sold in the previous month—and three new advertisers to boot. What caused this surge was a New York Times story comparing the magazine to Architectural Digest and noting that it showcases some of the highest-end residences in the virtual world.

Reporter Seth Kugel observed that, once SL residents have exhausted their sexual appetites, they are still hungry for home furnishings. “After a few months of … sowing their virtual seed … they are settling down: building virtual houses, planting gardens, shopping for furniture and electronics and decorating,” he wrote.

But sexual appetites are never exhausted for long, and the choices residents make reflect that fact. “Since you don’t sleep, do you need a bedroom?” Kugel asked with a wink. “Most opt for at least a bedroom (although not for sleeping).”

Then what are bedrooms for, for gosh sakes? In the view of Prim Perfect publisher Saffia Widdershins, they are for decorating. The current issue has Jeannie Moonflower of Bygone Days Antiques designing a medieval castle. “What of the dungeon, deep below the ground?” Widdershins asks. “Jeanie eschewed the chance to run riot with all sorts of items that would be somewhat out of place in a family magazine. Instead she made [it] a combination of a wine cellar and a library.” We learn that Qabalah Quintus, who builds the castles, offers three lines: gothic, gorean, and medieval. His buyers may be surprised to know their dungeons can double as wine cellars.

Even in the most gracious home, sexual tensions may arise. Prim Perfect’s advice column addresses one familiar quandary. What do you do when you come home and find a couple humping in your bed? Simple. Invite all your friends over to watch the show. The magazine also provides options for home security.

Prim Perfect introduces readers to Tol Eressa, a landscape based on the Lord of the Rings, and a fabulous mansion called Arcana Nuevo. Both places are open to the public, although Arcana Nuevo prominently posts the international “no bonking” sign at its entrance. Photographer MoodyLoner Koroba handles the landscape work deftly, despite the emo moniker.

Widdershins founded the magazine a few months ago, when she saw a gap in the market. “It was screamingly obvious that something like PP was needed,” she says. “Think of the popularity of makeover shows on TV, DIY shows, Ideal Home magazines in RL. My only shock was that no-one had done it sooner.”

She had to provide her real name and occupation in order to talk to the Times, much to the chagrin of her boss at a prestigious English university. But the newspaper’s real-life cred was worth it. Now she is making changes. The magazine, which used to cost L10, is going to be free. Widdershins expects to make it up by selling advertising on her website. A portion of the profits go to an African relief fund called Ubuntu, and Prim Perfect vocally supports a number of other charities as well. Would Architectural Digest do that?