Rico’s Tea House, Isle of Flux – Moderate
It’s Friday night and a great time to check out some of the destination guide selections. Rico’s Tea House on the Isle of Flux is a must see for those looking for a formal setting to meet old friends. This social gathering venue is elegant and inviting, clearly a Kaya Angel build. Owned by Editorial Clarity-Flux and no doubt features his realistic attention to detail and functional use of space.
The gray weathered stone facade is an impressive build with its accented framed doors providing contrast from the solid stone wall. Inside, mauve curtains add warmth to the towering columns supporting the build. An Eastern motif presents a rich textured ceiling in gold and blue.
The large scale area is divided into two areas. One resembles a well-stocked café. The other is an over-sized living room. Either side encourages groups of people to gather together for civilized conversation. The living room has a repeated, but elegant seating arrangement with a soft gray MESHWORX Jessie Couch with PG cuddles and comfortable gray and green pillows. A MudHoney Leslie coffee table, created by Rayvn Hynes, is nestled in the center of two matching couches and adorned with Toronto-Wire candlesticks by Ria Bazar Mavendorf. The couches are flanked by Stephan Visconti’s A.V. Etienne side tables and dressed with his red roses bucket. A beige floral rug, by The Loft, balances the seating arrangement, matching the couch almost perfectly. Collage – coffee bars, by Adaline May, are against the walls to the sides of the windows. A small Toronto-green grass plant adds a natural centerpiece. An Eliza Wierwight PATRON Raffles terrace table with a PATRON Tahiti arrangement adds a colorful, tropical touch.
In the dining room of the tea house, Trompe Loeil – Louise Chai’s By C. Edo are carefully tucked under a small dining table with an Apple Fall treats platter (warehousefifteendesigns). An Apple Fall Tiffany Tea Pot and cups and a Loft Bacall Bowl of Roses await guests on the tables. Flanking the dining room windows are Antique Gold Display Cabinets with formal plates.
The exterior is just as inviting with cozy seating areas in front and smaller canopies over a patio couch and chairs. There’s even a field with wildflowers and a horse grazing.
Editorial Clarity is Rico’s Tea House interior designer. We spoke on the day before Easter on his and husband, Rico’s, patio. He said that Rico dreamt about having his own little tea house.
“Well I am British by birth, and I always think we do the best tea in the world. So I wanted to present the atmosphere of a traditional English tea house. Looks very grand and formal, yet it is quite casual and inviting,” Clarity told me. “I already knew the build I wanted to use so I rezzed it and simply did the landscaping around the tea house.”
The tea house was the last build to be decorated on the sim and it didn’t require an extensive shopping trip to furnish it. Because Clarity adores interior design, a considerable amount of his virtual inventory focuses on the furniture that has attracted his attention. It took a mere three days to fashion his and his husband’s little corner of Second Life before it was completed.
Clarity has expanded his love of interior decorating by creating “Love to Decorate” blog. With a little encouragement from Rico, and a friend, it went into production. The magazine’s mission is to showcase the impeccable design in Second Life and share the talents behind it.
“My best friend in real life and Second Life, Apple Fall, was planning on starting a magazine of his own and invited me to be part of it. Months and months went by and nothing happened because he simply didn’t have the time. Eventually, that idea just faded and about 4 or 5 months later I decided to start my own, but told him I wanted him to still be a part of it. So, eventually in December 2013 we got the first issue planned, staff in place, and we released our first book within 3 weeks on January 23rd,” Clarity explained.
The second issue was released on March 23 and the third is expected to come out in May. The primary focus will be smaller stores, but some of the older, well-known stores will also be featured.
Asked what he was most proud of, he replied everything the magazine has become in such a small period of time.
“I have a great team of people on board helping LTD grow each day, including my editor Shae Sixpence who does a fab job, my hubby who really supports LTD and everything I do because without his support or him pushing me, LTD probably wouldn’t be around,” said Clarity.
I asked him if he does interior design projects for Second Life residents. He said he had in the past, but does it less frequently now due to time commitments.
Clarity is also the co-founder of Stand4Love, an awareness campaign which he and his partner have run for the past two years. It acts as a support system for LBGT couples supporting their right to marry and love one another.