Spring is in the air in London!

There was a definite feel of Spring in the air today in Mainland London ~ West End.
The gardeners come back after their break, to start work on the gardens... Apparently Spring will start to get sprung today and its only the first of January!
The beauty of virtual worlds is the ability to roll the seasons forward because everyone has seen enough snow in both lives!

Happy Holidays From Mainland London

London's Ultimate Christmas Party!

Saturday night saw the first of London's Christmas parties! Mainland London's Regent's Park played host to an amazing night. Christmas cheer abounded not only in the music but in the costimes as well. There was dancing in the open air amidst the snow and everyone was warmed by the bon fires.

Bar Soho Manager Tayla Tigerfish ran a great party, with plenty of festive cheer and tunes both old and new. Party goers danced into the wee hours of the morning while sipping hot cocoa under the clear London Sky, dotted by star light.








We'd like to thank everyone who joined us for the first Christmas party held in Regents Park. And from all of us in Mainland London, to all of you...Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Camden , Mainland London

Construction of the first residential district of Mainland London, Camden, has begun!



This area will represent a residential street in the real life Camden. Along with the standards we set forth in previous estates, these London Homes will have a few more aminities and perks for our residents.

Construction of these brand new homes is scheduled to complete by 17 December, just in time to celebrate the Holidays in London!

The Merchants of Mainland London - Rett Gentil

I sat down with a long-standing merchant with London Soho, Ms Rett Gentil earlier this week.

Zach: Why did u decide to start a shop?

Rett: I came to SL almost five years ago, with some knowledge of building, in another virtual world, I even taught building. When I came to SL, I was very taken with the idea of designing clothes.

Zach: What does your shop sell and where do you get your inspirations?

Rett: I sell women's clothes that are sexy, but still classy. I design everything from scratch, including some textures, but not all. I like to design clothes that I would wear.

Zach: What advise do you have for aspiring designers in SL?

Rett: Photoshop is a very important program for designers, I went out and bought the book, "Photoshop for Dummies" and learnt from scratch. I have my own very successful business in RL, so as soon as I had a few dresses, I rented a tiny store.
I made enough money to cover the rent, since I have always believed in personal service. If someone wants to see how a dress looks, I will model it for her.
I design my clothes for the woman who wants to look well dressed. I also do a bit of fantasy. I have two Cowgirl outfits that are wildly popular. Also, I have a British schoolgirl outfit that sold well too.

Zach: What made u decide on having a store in London Soho?

Rett:I think Torric invited me to come see Soho. I felt really welcome and warm when I was there. I felt I had always been a part of London Soho. I absolutely love London Soho. Billy built my store, and it was wonderful.

Zach: What do you have to say to people wanting to rent and start a shop?

Rett:The first thing I look at, when I am thinking about a new store is the traffic. It is of utmost importance Secondly, There is the amount of rent to consider. Also, what kinds of attractions are going to draw people into the Sim.

I like that the owners of the Sim are going to be personally involved in settling merchants in. I also like to look at the architecture of the stores, and how many prims are allowed. I also like to be allowed to customize the interior colors, and the floors.


The writer, Zachary Zufreur is the Owner of SACHI Luxury Group, at MainLand London, London West End.

West End Opens Friday - 10 December!

Construction of Mainland London's West End has been completed and it's official opening is Friday 10 December.

We have sampled builidings from all over West End, from Regents Street To Saftesbury Avenue. We've also included such notable buildings as the London Palladium, The Lewis Buidling, The Klein Building, Nelson's Column and more!





West End has been constructed around a central point, the pub. The Drunken Duck is located center stage and will play an important role in continuing the development of the Mainland London Community. It's your good old fashioned neighbor hood pub. A place to come enjoy good drink and good friends.

West End has actually been open for a little more than a week, and the inital response has been over-whelming. Join us on Friday 10 November for the official opening party and through the weekend as we celebrate the arrival of this amazing sim.

Merchants of MainLand London: K-CODE.

by Zachary Zufreur

In the spirit of the holidays, let's take a closer look at the shops in MainLand London.




Had an interesting time hanging out with the owner of K-CODE, Ms Kara Dresler. Here’s what she has to say about her high fashion mainstore at London Soho.





Zach: Hi Kara, why made you decide to start a shop in the first place?




Kara: To be honest, K-CODE was a project I started in order to release my daily stress but I ended up being more stressed, finding good places to display my outfits and searching other ways to promote the brand is not easy.




Zach: What does your shop sell and where do you get your inspirations from?




Kara: For the moment, I am creating and selling women clothing. Designing digital clothes, besides of being a bright-funny-colorful experience for me, is also a very challenging one. It is always a good idea to take a look around and challenge our mind in exploring new area. We never know the special things we might encounter by trying something new!




Zach: How do you define yourself with K-CODE?




Kara: The K-CODE project is now just the adventure of me, a simple traveler in this three-dimensional cyber world. I was so amazed to realize that this space, digital as it is, it is also incredibly full of human emotions that we really have to watch our actions and words! If we are not careful enough, we just might step on somebody's dream.




Zach: What made u decide on having a store in London Soho?




Kara: Why do I have a store in Soho??!! Because Soho is a GREAT place for business, of course! A lot of people come here every day either to have fun in the club or just to have a taste of London! The Sim owners successfully added such a great British flavor to the SIM!

*Pauses momentarily*

If you want good sales; if you wish to have a store in a wonderfully designed Sim; if you like to work with reliable sim managers that are always there when needed;

*laughs*

All you have to do is rent at London Soho! I’m enjoying it!



Zach: What do you have to say to people wanting to rent and start a shop?




Kara: Like all good places, both in SL and Rl, the people that brought it into existence create the highest value. Billy Arentire and Torric Rodas. the owners of the SIM, are a great team , friendly, helpful and highly professional. I am so happy for the opportunity to work with them! There have done a lot of great things in London SOHO.






The writer, Zachary Zufreur is the Art Director of SACHI Luxury Group, London SOHO, Regents Park and West End London.

Regent's Park Makes Destination Guide!

We are fortunate yet again to be included in Second Life's Destination Guuide. This time it's Regent's Park and we are featured in the Winter Activities Destinations.



Regent's Park is playing host to the 2010 Winter Fest, filled with fun activities such as the sleigh ride, snowball fights, ice skating and so much more! We have tons of free holiday goodies in the ginger bread house and a naughty snowman you just have to see!

Click Here to Visit Regent's Park in Second Life

Regent's Park Christmas Tree Farm

Regent's Park, located in Mainland London, celebrates the Holiday Season with a FREE Christmas Tree for everyone! Just visit the Regent's Park Christmas Tree Farm and choose from one of 12 decorated Christmas Trees! Can't decide? No need to, these trees are FREE so you can have a different one as often as you like!

Winter in Regent's Park

by Zachary Zufreur

Are you ready for something grand, white, and fun?


Wait for it…


Wait for it…



In the spirit of holidays, Mainland London brings the beauty of winter to Regents Park!
If you haven’t seen it, you are in for a treat!






Amidst the white grandeur, is a sophisticated and carefully crafted Winter Fest!


What’s exciting?
1. The breathtaking snow landscape
2. The gorgeous night view!
3. Free Skates - Grab you free pair of skates as you explore the area.
4. Free Tour - Hop on the sleigh as it gives u a free tour of London Soho and Regents park!!!
5. FREE Candy! don’t forget to drop by the candy store to get your freebies. =D



So come on down now and check it out!


Xoxo
Zachary Zufreur


The writer is the Art Director of SACHI Luxury Group - SACHI Luxury Photos, London SOHO, Regents Park.

Nelson's Column

We are pleased to announce that Nelson's Column has arrived in West End! This bespoke recreation of the column was completed by builder Billy Arentire over a 24 hour period spanning 19-20 November 2010.

Click Here to visit Nelson's Column in London's West End

Welcome to The Regent's Park

In real life The Regent's Park covers 410 acres and includes stunning rose gardens. It is one of the Royal Parks of London and is in the north-western part of central London. It contains Regent's College and the London Zoo. The park has an outer ring road called the Outer Circle (4.3 km) and an inner ring road called the Inner Circle, which surrounds the most carefully tended section of the park, Queen Mary's Gardens.

In Mainland London we have captured the feeling of The Regent's Park and included some of its key features such as Queen Mary's Garden. Our greens keepers tell us that the roses in the garden will be tended every day and will last well into the winter months.

The New User Experience is located along the main edge of Regents Park and contains additional information new players will need in order to learn the more detailed aspects of viewer 2. This valuable information will help integrate them into the Second Life community, and Mainland London in particular.

Two new residence stand on "Park Road" and have breath-taking views of the park and canal. Each of these homes has a front and back garden as well as a front facing balcony. Privacy gates face onto the park and the foot bridge that allows access to the entire park.





We also see the return of the London Cows, life sized ornamental statues that once dotted the London landscape can now be found in Regent's Park. A representation of "The Lost Bow" statue is also present nestled amongst the lush landscape.




Shafts of light break through the autumn tress lighting the pathway to a small shopping district where select merchants and designers will be able to display their goods to our growing community.

A visit to Mainland London's Regent's Park is as close as you can get to the real thing, except you don't have to pay for the train ride! To visit The Regents Park, click here.

West End Construction Continues...

The construction of London's West End continues at a rapid pace. As you can see in the photos below, the Marquise Pub has been finished, except for the interior fittings. We've also begun construction of the London Trocadero which should complete in the next few days.






The basic building layout has been complete and the task of finding the real life buildings continues. These buildings will give the West End the flair our community expects and will enjoy.




Our exclusive London Taxi guided tour system will be installed very soon and visitors will be able to take a guided tour of Soho and the West End. The taxi will make stops along the way so those interested in shopping, clubbing or having a pint at the pub will find them easily and quickly. These exclusive London taxi's were commissioned by Billy Arentire and won't appear anywhere else on the grid. These taxi's are an exact replica of the black cabs found in real life London.

West Ends First Venue

Construction of the West Ends first venue, The Marquise, began October 30th. In the following pictures you can see the progress that has been made.




We will update this post when the building is completed

West End Construction Begins!

We've started construction on Mainland London's WEST END! Below are a few snapshots of the work in progress.



The view from London's West End into Mainland London Soho



The view from Mainland London Soho into London's West End. At the back is the proposed pub with flats above.



Looking into London Soho



The view from one of the proposed flats above the pub.

New Advertising Campaign

Today sees the launch of our first advertising campaign on SL Marketplace.
Mainland London reinvests profits into growth and advertising.
Thank you for being part of our expanding community.




Soho: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Mephilo%20Tor/201/228/1600

The WEST END district of Mainland London

We have added another quarter sim right next to and joining onto SOHO and have started the initial build of WEST END district.




Appreciation to all our patrons and commercial clients for your help in making MAINLAND LONDON grow quicker than we had ever anticipated!
...
Thank you Linden Lab for the assist!

More news soon.

Zombies Invade London!

After the strange appearance of ghostly figures in London Soho, we discovered a few more strange events have taken place. A disused guillotine appeared in the square and a crypt seemed to have worked its way out of the ground.


Upon closer inspection of the crypt we discovered it was open and no body could be found inside! Around 8pm UK tonight we began to hear eerie sounds coming from the area, distant moans and the sounds of scraping, as if something was being dragged across the ground. But with the club opening in an hour we had to put these strange events aside and concentrate on the task at hand.

Shortly after 9pm UK, bar soho had opened and we were all having a great time. The atmosphere was broken as the sounds from the crypt began to get louder and louder. Then, without warning, the first of the Zombie began to appear! We armed ourselves and sat out to defend the district against the most unholy of undead. The initial battled lasted only a few minutes, but then wave upon wave of zombies began to emerge. We fought well into the night as people partied in bar soho, only mildly disturbed by the strange phenominon.



It doesn't appear the zombies will be going away anytime soon, so arm yourself and come have a good old fashioned shoot em up!

London Soho Branded Items Now Available!

**UPDATE**
We have a new free London Branded item available...The Mainland London Big Ben T Shirt!



It is available on Marketplace.Secondlife.com and in world in our Freebie Store


The London Soho branded items shown below hit the shelves today in our freebie store!

Originally created as limited edition items, demand for them has been so high that we have finally made them available to everyone.



The London Soho Tank Top features the Soho cherry on the front and the words "I lost my cherry in Soho" on the back.



The London Soho Shirt in black has the pink cherry on the breast and a prim collar turned up to give just the right attitude.



The London Soho shoulder pet is a sweet little cherry that rides happily on your shoulder.



The London Soho Fedora is a custom creation by Toritire Clothiers Soho District. This primmed fedora features the Regent Revuebar sign tucked neatly in the pink head band. This fedora can be worn with any hair style because it doesnt attach where your own hair does.

CLICK HERE to get your very own London Soho branded goods, free in the London Soho Underground.

London Soho Holiday Hunt Announced!

In the last few days we have been planning the first of many London Soho Hunts, our first is to celebrate the Christmas Season with the London Soho Holiday Hunt!

This hunt will bring together the designers and residents of Mainland London Soho is the spirit of the season. The hunt begins on November 7th and runs through Christmas so that everyone has a chance to take part in this first ever Soho event!

To be part of the Soho Holiday Hunt join us in Second Life by clicking HERE and then join our group, London Soho Entertainment.

We will update the blog as the hunt progresses.

Happy Holiday Hunting!

Inexplicable Happenings in Soho

Reports of inexplicable happenings, are beginning to emerge from the Mainland London Soho district in Second Life.

Each year, people flock to the area in the hopes of seeing the spectres from 1677, of Landlord Joseph Girle having an itense disagreement with shop keeper Richard Frith about an unreasonable rent increase.

This historic row took place at the top of a spiral staircase in Brewer Street, London Soho and resulted in Frith falling to his death having either sufferering from a heart attack, or from being pushed.

This macarbre scene is witnessed about every ten years and has been since it happened in 1677. It was last documented 12 years ago and is now overdue.

This blurry image of a possible apparition outside 10 Brewer Street in Mainland London Soho was sent to us by an anonymous source.



This could just be a cloud of polution. Or is it possible that Girle and Frith are getting ready to reenact this scene once again as the nation braces itself against another halloween.

Keep an eye on this area. All is not as it seems. The locals seem spooked and tight lipped. Perhaps they know more than they are willing to say.

Please continue to send your photographs. We will publish them and let the readers decide.

Mainland LONDON SOHO Makes Destination Guide

Mainland London Soho has made it into the Second Life Destination guide and we couldn't be happier! You'll find us listed in the Real Life section of the guide at http://secondlife.com/destinations/real



I was suprised to see us listed after just two weeks of being open, and traffic to the district is buzzing! We've met some really great people and the response has been nothing but positive. Everyone on the team has done an amazing job and I am so so pleased to be part of this brand new budding community.



Check us out in the destination guide, and if you have a Facebook account, be sure to "like" us!

FREEBIE STORE OPENS IN SOHO!

Now that the flooding is under control and all the water has cleared out, we've turned the Soho Underground Station into a freebie store and new user experience.



We were unprepaired for the number of new users roaming the mainland so to intigrate them into our community we have added a free shop and some additional information to help them in their journey through Second Life. We've chosen the best of the best free items for men and woman and we've included some nifty gadgets as well!

SOHO UNDERGROUND FLOODS!

It was another autumn morning in Soho when Tor and I arrived. As we walked closer to the Underground entrance we began to hear the rush of water. Curious we decended the steps only to find that the tube station had flooded in the night!



It's a good thing the trains are on strike as it seems it will take Thames Water several weeks to fix the broken pipe responsible for the disaster.

So until we can dry out the Soho tube station we'll just have to adjust our plans for the underground. Watch this page to see what we come up with!

SOHO UNDERGROUND...

Construction begins on the Soho Underground Station



What ever shall we do with the underground?



Watch this page to find out!