5 How to Tips For Contestants and Contest Hosts in Regarding to Outfits: a Subject Suggested by moynistwo

Tip #1, Make Sure You Understand the Theme: Don't be afraid to ask questions or request further explanation. Not only does this help you do your best in the competition but it can help the contest host learn how to explain herself to her contestants. To my Contest Hosts out there, if you can tell that someone does not understand what you are asking then find a way to help them without making them feel humiliated or embarrassed. 

By understanding what you are dressing for, your outfit will be way better equipped for the contest and you've got a very good chance on making it to the next round.

Tip #2, Combine Matching and Colorful: Try to have matching items in your outfits but at the same time don't be afraid to add that pop or surprise item that can take your outfit to the next level. You want their first reaction to be "wow, this person did a great job" or anything like that.

This is something which I apply to more than just Fashion Story Avatar Contests. I also apply it to writing blog posts, drawing, the list goes on. 

Tip #3. Beautiful Can Be Less Coins: You might think that the more coins/gems an item is, the cuter it will be. This is not always the case, so I don't worry about the end cost of my outfit in real life or in Fashion Story. For instance for my Christmas Outfits I used some of the items you get for free in the beginning, at like level 80 (or something like that). Anyway, price isn't a defining factor in my choices for winners of my contests nor of what I wear for contests I am in.

Just something to think about and watch out for.

Tip #4. Accessories, Accessories and more Accessories: I know you have most likely heard this many times, but I happen to know that the accessories you chose can change an outfit from elegant to casual, basketball time to date time, etc. Pick your accessories with care and remember to experiment with what goes and what doesn't. 

Tip #5. Ask For Pointers From Contest Host if You Get Eliminated: If your outfit doesn't 'cut it' ask for the honest reasons and learn from their critic. Most of the ladies I know would gladly give pointers to their contestants and I know I have in the past though only when asked.  

To those of you who are contest hosts, keep in mind that you owe it to your voluntary contestants to make being in your contest as fun as you can. 

To those of you who are contestants, I hope this list helps you and I hope that you will have taken something away after reading this. 

If you have an idea of a good subject for a post please either leave via comment here or at Questions & Suggestions. Thank you! ~ Sky's Limit

The Bat Cave: My Semi-successful Fashion Story Boutique

A few months ago I wrote a series of posts on how to start a Fashion Story boutique. During that time I started The Bat Cave on my mother's phone so I could show you how it works from start to finish. Today I wanted to show you how The Bat Cave's theme is coming along.

As you can see I have quite an amount of work to do still on the store decor, and I am having trouble keeping it stocked up since its on my mom's phone. I have also changed the theme outfit from idea to realty with a few tweaks. I am still saving up for some gem items to finish it off, but this is what it looks like now.

If you want read my posts or want to compare the differences between the before and after you can see the posts here:

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique: Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3

Thank you for reading and please leave a comment! ~ Sky's Limit and The Bat Cave

How to keep it Functioning: Space and Patience (A Subject Suggested by Anna's Fashions)

Having trouble selling your clothing and accessories on Fashion Story? If stocking up isn't your problem, then this post is for you. When I asked my younger sister if she had any ideas of what I could post about on my blog, she reminded me of a tip I gave her when she was starting her boutique on Fashion Story.

Let's Just imagine for a second that the graph below is your boutique and we are looking directly down at it.

The black squares are the walls of your boutique and the break in them is the door. Green Squares are your tables, the pink squares are your racks, the yellow squares are your changing stations and the blue are your mirrors. 

See those red lines? They are where in this set up your buyers can go. The issue is they can only buy what the can walk up to, so in this example only 40 out of the 105 displaying racks/tables are bought off of. 

For those of you out there who use this to your advantage and stock up, there is nothing wrong with doing that. Nevertheless, I think a boutique looks better when spaced correctly and it functions better earning money at a steady rate. 

This is a picture of my boutique Sky's Limit taken on March 30, 2013. My racks and tables are spaced accordingly and now all you and I both need is a little patience. 

If you have a question on this post please comment and if you want to make a suggestion like Anna's Fashions did go to Questions and Suggestions and leave a comment with your idea or ideas there. Thanks for reading! ~ Sky's Limit

Managing Your Time On Fashion Story: Time & Avatar Contests

One of my favorite things to do on Fashion Story next to hosting a contest, is entering one. Every time I learn something and most of the time I enjoy doing the contest even if I don't win. However, there was a time when entering and competing in contests was more work than fun. Why? Because of Time Limits and Limitations.

For example, I can't be playing Fashion Story when I am sleeping, and I don't know anyone who can. This of course becomes a 'problem' when the host of the contest is giving out 2 hour rounds after my bedtime. With no chance at ever winning her contest/s, I choose never to enter her contests again.

But, back to the point. Since you can't play when you are asleep, and some of your contest hosts are on different time zone. Here is a tip: "If the first contest round is under 18 hours and on a different time zone, then the likely hood of you getting eliminated just went up." Granted, sometimes it works out but only once in a great while.

If you ever plan on hosting a contest, keep this in consideration, and if you are entering a contest remember it may not work out as you had hoped.

In addition, entering more than 3 contests at a time can and will most likely get dicy. Though some outfits can multitask, there are some themes you can't use a multitasker for. This makes collaborating your outfits and turning them in on time even harder. I suggest no more than 3 contests at a time, which should be enough to keep you busy and yet leave you time to enjoy the game itself.

If you have a question, please ask it via comment and thank you to all of my faithful readers. ~ Sky's Limit

Giving Gifts On Fashion Story: What is the most helpful Gift to Give?

As you may already know, you can give gifts to your neighbors on Fashion Story such as, Red Sweaters, Contrast Pumps, Black Slacks, and Sunny Hand Bags:

Notice the numbers below each item? Those numbers represent them number of items you are sending, which if you think about it is also the amount your neighbor will be selling once they receive your gift. Since the gift is free for you to give, I suggest sending the gift with the biggest amount of items. Contrast Pumps are what I send as gifts except during Christmas time when I send Red Sweaters in honor of the season. 

Why give the larger amount of items? Because that also means a larger amount of coins for your neighbor, and why not give them the most valuable gift? Unless they ask for one of the other options, sending Contrast Pumps is what I think is the best thing to do.

Even though the gifts above are the only built in gifts you can give to your neighbors, there are others  you can give if only you choose to give them.  For example, a kind word can go a long way to brighten up someones day. A complement on their avatar's outfit, their boutique decor, or just for being who themselves are some examples of things you could say to them as a gift. 

Another gift you can give is advice and new players aren't the only ones looking for advice, trust me. Even if it just a suggestion on store decor or subtle changes to their avatar outfits, it is a gift. The last example, which is by no means the least, is funny or encouraging quotes. I have been encouraged and/or laughed when I saw some of the things that I still have on my wall to this day. 

Just remember that even though you probably have a lot of things to do other than play on your video games for hours at a time, it only takes a few seconds to type an encouraging message on someones wall or a piece of advice. And that by taking those few seconds to say something nice to them you show them how special they are to you. 

Just a thought, hope it helps. ~ Sky's Limit

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique: Creating and Completing a Boutique Theme, Part 3

Now that you have a Boutique and a Boutique Name it is time to come up with (if you haven't already) and find decor/avatar clothes for, your Unique Boutique Theme. In the case of my new boutique, The Bat Cave, I was thinking of using the colors gray, blck and yellow. 

To come up with a theme, think of why you called your boutique the name you did. In some cases, people name their boutique something like 'Anna's Fashions' 'StayBeYouTiFul', which I think are names which you can do anything with decor and clothing wise. On the other hand, names like 'The Bat Cave' or 'Ocean Dreams' should look like they sound. 

When naming The Bat Cave I was thinking about what to name it and since I am a Justice League fan, this name seemed to fit. So, I considering this, I decided to use the colors gray, black and yellow (back and gray being Bat-man's colors and yellow being a bright color he sometimes wears). 

The first thing I did was design my new avatar's outfit to figure out how much coins and gems I need to save up to buy it. Here is what I came up with for The Bat Cave:

As you can see this outfit will cost me 48 gems and 73,000 coins. Considering this I am holding back on buying my avatar other outfit items, and other things as well. Since the decor I want to use, I have yet to unlock this is turning out to not be as hard for me as I thought it would be. I already have 27,000 coins as of this morning. 

as with most things, along the way you will make some changes to what your outfit will be and what decor you want. However, by choosing some of it now you save yourself a lot of trouble and time. Why? Because, if you just buy decor and outfits willy-nilly and then at level 30 decide to have a theme, you will have more trouble saving up, especially gems. 

Since I have yet to complete The Bat Cave's theme yet, here is what my main boutique's (Sky's Limit) decor and avatar outfit look like when I am not in a contest:

Now, in the case of Sky's Limit, I could have gone in many different directions with my theme. However, I love the beauty of the Beach and Ocean, so I chose to make that part of my boutique's theme. I have since then come up with a name for Sky's Limit theme, Blue and Green Beach Chic.

I hope these posts help you when you decide what your boutique name, theme and your avatar's main outfit will be. Please feel free to ask questions via comments, I would love to try to answer them. ~ Sky's Limit

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique, Part 1

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique, Part 2

How to Get Emoji on a iPhone or iPod

Emoji is a group of smiley faces that you can use at anytime on your iPhone or iPod when you use the normal keyboard. I use it in texts, emails, Fashion Story and other games like it. Here is a basic walk through, though it might be a little different for those who do not have iOS 7. I have used this on both iPhones and iPods, and I wouldn't be surprised if it would also work on an iPad.

First open 'settings': 

Go into 'general'

Select 'keyboard'

now tap 'keyboards'

and add a new keyboard:

Then you can test it out! 

Emoji can be used in Fashion Story simply as a way to tell others you have visited or you can use it in Emoji Contests to earn prizes that will vary depending on the contest host. Though, honestly I enjoy texting my friends random emoji to see if they are on or not….. :) Either way it especially fun around holidays (for example christmas) because… well it just is. 

If you have questions please ask via comments. ~ Sky's Limit

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique: Getting a Good Start on Your Boutique, Part 2

Now that you have your boutique name in mind, it is time to start a boutique. First you need to go to the place where you buy apps on your gaming device of choice. Once the game is downloaded, open it. Your screen should look something like this:

Once it finishes loading it will run you through the following basic tutorial.

After you have completed this tutorial, there is no other hints as to how to do the rest of the required things to keep your boutique going. Last time we discussed Starting a Fashion Story Boutique, I mentioned the importance of a Boutique Name and how to come up with one.

To choose your boutique name tap the pink tag that says "main".

It will show you the screen above, now tap "profile". It should show you something like this, though you might need to tap the word 'profile' like in the picture below.

as you can see it says "Boutique Name: Choose your name…" tap the pink choose button and it will do this:       

Type the name you came up with and then hit done.

Tada! you just named your boutique! This name can be changed, but it cost gems which in this game are rare, so choose your name wisely.

Go back to the main menu and tap 'social':

now tap invite friends and make an ID. You haft to have a Storm8 ID to invite friends to be your neighbors which is a very important part of the game.

Now that you have started your boutique and have come up with a name, storm8 ID and hopefully a Boutique theme, you are ready for the next step which is completing the dream of your theme! ~ Sky's Limit and The Bat Cave

Starting a Fashion Story Boutique: Creating a Catching Boutique Name, Part 1

One of the first things you can do when you get Fashion Story is choose what your boutique name is. This may seem unimportant but it is actually one of the most impactive decisions you can make when playing this wonderful game. As I mentioned in my post "Fashion Story Neighbor Management Part 2: Making New Neighbors" your name is the first thing a potential neighbor will see. This is only one reason, but I think it is the biggest one. 

As you can see all the names above are names of my neighbor's Boutique's. Any of them pop out at you? If a couple of them caught your eye, did which ones? Now think about what you would do if you saw that name in the community. 

You would most likely visit their boutique, like their clothes and leave a message on their profile wall. 

If this is what you would do then their name worked which makes it a win-win circumstance for both of you.  

Another thing that a boutique name can impact is your overall theme. How? Well, lets imagine that I have a boutique named 'Ocean Dreams'. What kind of decor would you expect to find? Maybe some sand colored tiles, palm tree and sea shell wall hangings, changing rooms and seats. 

What if you found the exact opposite? Would you be at least be a little surprised? The name 'Ocean Dreams' sounds like it represents a relaxing beach-like boutique. You should be able to match a name to a boutique even if you have never seen it before. Of course if it is under renovations there would be no real way to know if it matched a name or not. 

Since you haft to choose your name at the beginning of the game, when you don't have much stuff unlocked, I suggest you look for the items you want and work towards unlocking them while running your boutique with the basic stuff. Though the decor doesn't really add to your clothes value, it is what, along with your name, makes your boutique, your boutique. 

If one of my neighbor's Boutique's names jumped out at you or you have questions please comment, I value your opinions! ~ Sky's Limit

"What to Delete and What Not to Delete?" Now That is a Good Question!

One of the biggest things that took me until recently to decide was "What to keep and what not to keep" when it came to my Fashion Story Profile Wall. At first I kept everything unless it contain another players storm8 ID or was just a rude comment (thankfully there has not been many of those). This worked perfectly, until One of my neighbors posted a message I wanted to keep on my wall as long as I could. 

After thinking for a while, I decide that I would keep only quotes, bible verses, special messages from my friends and links to contests I was in on my Fashion Story wall. Along with links to people who want to be in my next contest or are in my current contest on my wall temporarily as a means of notifying them (of starting of the next round, etc), made for a necessarily precise monitoring system.

  This system won't help you when you when you have no access to your Fashion Story boutique, but that is another blog post altogether. However I will say this, informing your neighbors ahead of time of your absence helps a lot. 

I have a basic criteria for what stays and what goes that is fairly simple.

For example, all of the comments above I would remove right after I visited those who had posted them. On the other hand, the comments in the first picture I have kept on my wall for certain reasons which I will explain in  moment. Before I do that however, I should explain why these three comments fall into the category "delete".

The three comments in the second picture are what I call "daily posts". Most people have something they post whenever they visit someone and like their clothes, here are some other examples: Like x6, HAGD (HAGD is short for have a great day), x6, liked, and liked x3 please add me, ID on my wall. These are only a few of the many different things I see posted on my wall each day by my neighbors and visitors. Though these comments make it easier to return your friend's visits, in the long run they hold no great value in my opinion.

Nevertheless, I have found some comments very valuable indeed. Because of the vast differences in such comments it is hard to give an example. Even so I can give you list of questions to ask when deciding whether to delete a post or not.

"'The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever' ~ Isaiah 40:8 _ liked x6 HAGD nbr" (example comment)

1. Is this comment a quote? 
if yes continue to question 2
if not see question 3
2. Do you agree with this quote?
if so continue to question 4
if not than delete it
3. Is it contest link?
if yes keep it until it becomes useless (contest ends or you are eliminated)
if not then see question 5
4. Could it help others to read it?
If yes than keep it (how did it make you feel when you read it?)
if not than do you still agree with it?
5. Is this a special message from a friend?
if yes than keep it
if not than delete it

As you can see this list of questions determines what the comment is and gives you a reason to keep it or not keep it. I should note that if the comment is rude, it should be remove as soon as possible unless you are planning on reporting the person who posted it.

Just remember that whatever is on your wall, is one of the first things that a new potential neighbor sees. So make sure that whatever you keep, is what you want to represent you to the whole world of Fashion Story. You can't stop people from posting stupid things on your wall, but you can delete their posts as promptly as you can.

I hope this post helps answer the question "What to Delete and What Not to Delete?" for those of you wondering what to do with your over-flooding walls. Please comment if you have a question or an opinion. ~ Sky's Limit

Fashion Story Neighbor Management Part 2: Making New Neighbors

The ways you can make neighbors on Fashion Story are numerous and based on what form of Neighbor management you use. Here are some of the ways I look for neighbors:

Way 1 Through the Community: When you are online your boutiques name may appear to some people searching in the community as shown above.  Lets say I decide to visit one of the people I see in the community and click on their name, like their boutique and leave a message. They return the favor and leave a message on my wall. Depending on their form of neighbor management, we might eventually become neighbors. 

Way 2 Sister, Friends, Cousins, etc: I started playing Fashion Story and really like it, so I told my sister and cousins about it and they got it. I invite them to be my neighbors and they joined me in this very fun game.

Way 3 Your Neighbors have Neighbors: I make a new neighbor and we start visiting one another and posting on each other's walls. One of her neighbors sees my post on her wall and decides to visit me. Then something similar to Way 1 happens.

There are many more ways that you can make neighbors on Fashion Story, but these are the ones I use when I look for neighbors, though Way 2 and 3 are less under my control. Another thing is, if you are hesitant to become neighbors with a newer boutique (like one of the two 'No Name' boutiques in the picture), think about how much you appreciated your first higher level neighbors.

Odds are that you where really excited and honored, but if not, know that most people are and that it is one of the best things you can ever do for a new player. Last but not least, help your neighbors out as much as you can by sending gifts and requested materials. If you just don't have time for your neighbors, than so be it, but realize that you are missing out of one of the best parts about the game.

No matter what your level, managing your neighbors is important, whether you realize it or not. If you have questions or an opinion please post a comment. ~ Sky's Limit

Round Themes, Part 2: Creating a Good Story Line

Now that we have some Round Themes to pick from, you need to come up with a good story line to go along with your themes. Why? Well, it is the story line that helps your contestants get the idea you are going for. For example, what if I told you to dress up in a winter outfit? You might dress up for a sleigh ride, winter ball, snow ball fight, ice-skating or a number of other things. 

But if I told you that you have been invited to your friends house for Hot Cocoa, and that you need to dress for a night of talk and jokes by a warm fire, you would most likely do just that. See the difference? 

The first option has the potential to become chaos and the second option has less potential to do so. Story Lines, therefore, not only help your contestants but they can also help you as a judge. 

I have found that by giving my contestants a guide line for what I want to see, the options of what they can dress in are narrowed down. Which of course makes it easier for me as the contest judge to pick who did the best and who did the worst. However, be careful to not make it to narrow or your lower level contestants may have trouble. And that is never a good problem to have when hosting a Fashion Story Avatar Contest. 

To get your story line, go back to what first brought the theme in question to your mind. In the case of the Round Theme: S'mores Anyone?!, I was spending time at my aunt and uncle's house and they just happened to have a fire pit in which they made s'mores, among other things. Ironically, we made s'mores that very night right after I posted this Round for my Fashionista O' August contest.

Not only that, but some of my own neighbors used to invite my family over to make s'mores over their fire pit. To sum it up "In the mind, out the pen". 

If that doesn't work, look at the outfits you made to when fool-proofing the theme or make some new ones. When you see these outfits, what do you think of? What would you dress in this outfit for? If you are still having trouble, ask a friend to help. Sometimes two or even three heads are better than one.

I have found that I enjoy joining contests whose hosts make up good story lines to go with their themes more than those contest whose hosts don't. It may be just me, but I somehow doubt it. 

Hope this gets you to start thinking about coming up with Story Lines to go with your Round Themes! ~ Sky's Limit

Fashion Story Neighbor Management Part 1: Deleting and Visiting

When I first started playing Fashion Story, one of the things that confused me was how to 'keep up' with visiting my neighbors daily. At first I just visited every single one of my neighbors, every day unless I was terribly busy. But about the time my neighbor count reached 50, I realized there must be another, more reasonable way to visit my many active neighbors without spending 2 hours just to visit all my neighbors (some of whom never visited back or weren't playing anymore). 

I then tried visiting only 20 neighbors a day, but that got tedious and was still consuming to much time. So, I came up with a solution that I still use to this day. 

I determined that I would only visit people who posted on my Fashion Story wall, and so far it has worked perfectly. Not only has it cut back on the time I spend visiting my Fashion Story neighbors instead of spending time with my family or doing other very important things.

Another issue is when to delete neighbors if at all. I have decided to delete all of my 0 star neighbors once annually, on January 1st. But I have heard, seen and experienced other methods of deciding on when and why to delete neighbors. Here are some examples:

Example 1: deleting 1-0 star neighbors daily, no exemptions.

Example 2: only accepts 3-4 star neighbors over level 30, deletes anyone who star rating drops unless told that person will be not playing because of vacation, etc.

Example 3: Doesn't accept new neighbors and visits only those who post on her wall and deletes those who are level 30 and up who fall below 2 star.

Example 4: deletes you if you don't have enough clothes consistently.

Some of these are extreme examples, but I think you get the idea. Some people just ignore the visiting part of Fashion Story all together, while others make it a priority in their time on the game. While still others, myself included, try to balance both visiting and playing this amazing game. 

As with most things that involve organization, everyone has the way that works for them that might not work for anyone else. This of course means that your organization of your neighbors and when you visit, delete or send gifts to them will be unique in one way or another, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't think about what you do. As a friend of mine reminded me one day, there are "real people behind each 'personage' in the game". 

So, when you do something with your neighbor list, whether it is delete, adding or visiting a neighbor, remember that there is a real person a lot like you behind each boutique in the game and treat them as such. 

As for how many neighbors you 'should' have, it is entirely up to you. I accept all neighbor invites and send invites to anyone who leaves their storm8 ID on my wall, but I honestly think that you should decide for yourself whether you will have a limit on how many neighbors you will have or not. 

As to the best way to find neighbors, I will cover that in my next post. If you have any questions or comments please leave a comment. ~ Sky's Limit

Round Themes, Part 1: Creating a Good Theme

For me, one of the hardest things to decide when I did my first contest was 'What are the themes gonna be?' Hopefully, this post helps you with this part of Creating a good Fashion Story Avatar Contest. The first step to finding a good theme, is to get a piece of paper and your favorite writing device (pencil, pen, marker) or open your favorite note taking program on your computer.

Then take a quick look at your own avatar's closet and start thinking of places for her to go (Egypt, the beach, Atlantis, etc), things she could dress up as (Pirate, super hero, etc), or even things she could do (ice-skate, hiking, going to a movie, etc). 

Next start writing or typing the ideas that pop into your head on your note taker of choice. Some of them will be silly or outrageous, but others will be 5 star themes with a little bit of help from you. Here is what your list might look like (if not that is ok, everyone thinks differently):

1. Trip to Egypt to see pyramids
2. Date night at a fancy restaurant
3. School teacher
4. Business lady
5. Opera singer
6. Seafarer
7. A hike with friends

Don't forget that you can always add on to your list later. However, not all themes are meant for Fashion Story Contests. Remember when I had you look at your Fashion Story avatar's closet? This is so that you can get ideas for Round Themes and also fool-proof them. Here is the rule I use when choosing Round Themes for my contest: Any theme you use, your own avatar should be able to dress for in more than one beautiful way. 

This makes it easier for most people to dress for your contest without much trouble. Don't be surprised though if some people stumble a little… Just remember to do your part and judge as fairly as you can.

 And like I said before, if you ever have trouble making a Theme up, take a quick look at the closet and dress your avatar in a new outfit. I find that sometimes help with this process. 

Now that we have come up with and fool-proofed our Round Themes, it is time to come up with a good 'Story Line' to get your contestants thinking!

 If you have question, please ask via comment. ~ Sky's Limit

Observations and Examples: Fashion Story Catalog Items

It has come apparent to me that one of the most difficult things to do on Fashion Story is to keep your boutique's clothing and accessories in stock, especially if you have a job, go to school or are simply on vacation. Why is it important? Because clothes are the main source of income for your boutique. The more clothes you have, the more buyers buy, which means more money to spend on avatar outfits, decor, etc.

 Over time, I have come up with an over-night order list and a day-time order list specifically for the purpose of keeping my boutique alive.

My day-time order list changes based on what I am doing that day and how much I am on my iPhone. My over-night list however, stays the same most days. What you have on your order list should be based on the Theme of Your Boutique. In my case, since my theme is Green and Blue Beach Chic my order lists include items from ocean jewel, geek chic, boho chic, beach allure, lakeside lady, keep it casual, etc. 

No matter what theme your boutique has, the time the items take to 'arrive' should be about the same. Here is a time guide line.

 Anything from 7-18 hours for over-night orders

 2 mins-8 hours for day-time orders

 24 hour orders I usually right before I go to sleep, but they could be ordered at anytime during the day.

Below are some examples of how using this order guide list could look like.

Blooming Diva: 5 hours/day-time order. Ocean Jewel: 1 day/anytime order.

Simply Casual: 2 mins/day-time order, Born Wild: 1 hour mins/day-time order, Morning Stroll: 15 mins/day-time order,

Cool and Cozy: 5 hours/day-time order, Fun Fur Sure: 12 hours/night-time order, and Fall Fabulous: 8 hours/night or day-time order. 

As you can see, there are some outfits that can be ordered day or night. One of the main reasons your night-time order time is so important is that however long it took to get here, is how long it has until it expires. For example, if a shirt take 1 minute to arrive than it only lasts one minute before expiring. Time also effects how many 'units' of each item you get. I have found that by stocking up (by ordering multiple of the same thing or ordering it consistently) I could leave my shop to run, without any interaction from me, for days. So, pay attention not only to time also the 'unit' amount.

This concludes my observations on the Fashion Story boutique catalog. If you have questions, comments or an opinion, please leave comment.~ Sky's Limit

How to Start Your Own Avatar Contest, Part 2

Keeping track of points and rounds can be very confusing, so organizing them should be top priority. Keep in mind that everyone organizes differently, so your system probably won't look exactly like mine. On the other hand it may be very similar. Either way here is an example of how to organize your points and rounds.

Round 1: Date Night

………….(describe round)…………..

1. (Contestants Boutique name) 5/10= 6th place --- 5/50 overall

First you could write down the round and the description you are going to give the players, so that when you are looking at or taking a picture of their avatar's outfits, you know what to look for without having to go back on your own Fashion Story wall. This information may not be necessary, but can be very helpful in the future. Something else I strongly suggest is a list of your contestants, as shown above. I usually but  a number next to their Fashion Story name based on what order they entered my contest.

Next to that is their boutique name and then their points or score for that round.  In the case of my contest, each round is worth up to 10 points and since there is 5 rounds each contestant could get up to 50 points overall. It is these points that in the end decide who wins the contest. At this moment our example would most likely be eliminated, because of the very low score she has.

 I don't usually count their overall score until the last round, though I do keep track of it. This of course means that some people get eliminated even though they have a pretty high overall score, but that doesn't happen very often. You may have noticed on the example that this player is considered to be in '6th place'. This is something which I only recently developed. Here is what I came up with.

10/10 1st

9/10 2nd

8/10 3rd

7/10 4th, etc

If you get into the 1st, 2nd or 3rd group, you will most likely go onto the next round. If you get 5th (6/10) and below, you are most likely up for elimination. As the contest organizer, you should plan ahead as to how many contestants will be eliminated per round. This should be based on how many contestants you have in your contest and how many rounds you are going to have. In my case I do 5 rounds, #15 contestants and I eliminate 3 players per round except in the last round where winner takes all… :)

Using this organized system I keep track of my contestants, their points and rounds. I have found that by using this system I can easily run my Fashion Story contest and still operate as a human being in my real life. I am planning on going into more detail about contest rounds and how to come up with them in a later post, but hopefully this can at least help you get started.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask via comments, I will answer them to the best of my ability. ~Sky's Limit

How to Start Your Own Avatar Contest, Part 1

When I am starting a Fashion Story avatar contest the first thing I do is come up with a catchy phrase to draw people in -- making sure I spell the words right, use proper punctuation/grammar and that it includes a unique word for them to post on my boutique's wall if they want to join. Here are a few examples: "If you like to win Trophies and have fun at the same time please join my contest! Post 'Spots' on my wall to join!" or "I am having an avatar contest on my wall, post 'Spots' to join.", etc. After I have figured out what I am going to say, I decide how many people I will allow to enter. I usually stick to #15 because it works perfectly with the number of rounds in my annual Fashionista O' the month contest and though it is not easy to keep everything straight with fifteen contestants, it is not too hard.

You also have to consider (based on your number of contestants) how many people you are going to eliminate each round and how many rounds you are going to have. Another thing to consider is what kind of prize will the winner win.  Thankfully Fashion Story gives many opportunities for this type of thing. I would suggest likes for a certain amount of time and/or a unique title and/or a particular type of gift for a pre-arranged amount of time. These are just some examples, so feel free to be creative! :)

After I have determined the before mentioned information, it is now time to line up some contestants. How? Well for starters I tell my best Neighbors, Friends and frequent visitors about my contest. I also tell people on the Fashion Story community,  and if I am in any contests I will also post it on the host's wall. If you want more contestants quickly, choose people who are in other contests, are holding contests and 4* players who seem to like this sort of things. By doing it this way you will get a mix of old and new friends which will make your contests even more fun to host.

Once you have the desired number of contestants you can move on to organizing the rounds. Make sure you have a link or connection so that you can notify each of your contestants about upcoming rounds, etc. I keep track of my contestants in a notebook purposely designated for that purpose. I will cover round organization and points in a later post.