Hooray! We begin the new year with a new(ish) naturist location, Orchid Isle.

Models Birjina and Dirk spent some time there today, and the photos (by Diane) look terrific! As a result, I headed on over myself, joined the (free) group and had a look around. And I have to say, I like it!

A lot! 🙂

Now, I keep saying this, in the hope or expectation it comes true, and this time, it just might! I like a naturist sim where there’s ‘not a lot happening’ in terms of the geography. And that isn’t a criticism, but praise. High praise. An island spit containing nothing more than a few sun beds makes for perfect nude walking, something I adore doing on my RL naturists holidays, rising early to wander along the shoreline before it gets too hot, with no real sense of purpose or intent. You can’t begin to guess how many sunrises I’ve photographed on holiday. In fact, if I remember, I’ll work some of those into my ‘Postcard from Spain’ series when we’re back there in June!

At that time of the morning it’s generally me, the night fishermen wrapping up for the night (or should that be ‘day’?), a few early morning walking couples, and the odd dog walker which I seem to think generally seems to be a nude female, on balance.

And so Orchid Isle have captured that element…an unspoilt stretch of sand, perfectly. I was so taken by this sense of the unspoilt that I had to take a couple of sunrise shots at the sim, in an attempt to replicate, in my head, that feeling of freedom and the air on my skin as the sun rises from the Med.  Ella strolls on Orchid’s beach at sunrise

And then there’s the swimming pool! I love swimming pools in naturist sims, and there aren’t, in the main, enough of them. Eden has one at the conference halls, but off the top of my head there’s no others. Why? Well, naturist locations in SL are almost exclusively by the shoreline, so swimming is readily available should your naked avatar wish. But that’s not quite ‘real life’. Each individual, private complex will centre around a fresh water swimming pool. Without them, there’s no focus to the complex. Most activity centres on them, for sunbathing & swimming. So I get particularly excited when I see a swimming slapped in the middle of a naturist sim. I mean, really excited. So once again, Orchid ticks the boxes for me.
Birjina takes to Orchid’s pool

What’s more, group membership is currently free, so it’s easy to become a member of what appears to be a relatively new sim. 🙂

There are also several tiki styled lodges to rent, should you wish to become a resident at Orchid. Not many, so residential status looks like it will be a relatively exclusive experience. Again, that’s a good thing. And the sim isn’t so large that it loses its focus. I’m gonna guess that social activity will centre around the pool area, and that’s going to be a great thing. Yep, you can slip off to sunbathe in solitude should you desire, knowing that it’s only a short walk back to where the fun is likely to be centred. The tiki lodges come fully furnished, complete with beds, baths and such like so if it’s intimate fun you’re after, you can have it…but privately, discreetly. Which means that it’s another big tick for Orchid. Yeah, we shy away from sexually centred sims in our reporting of SL’s own brand of naturism, but we’re not naive enough to think it doesn’t go on, even in those locations we regard as ‘genuine’ naturist sims. And because it has been done in the manner it has been done, the presence of a few discreet pose balls does not make Orchid less genuine in its naturist intent.
Birjina catches some rays by one of the tiki lodges

Usually, after Christmas, my enthusiasm for naturism reaches its very lowest ebb. We’ve blogged ourselves to a standstill over the Christmas period, we’re posting daily, the summer seems months away (in reality, it is!) and just booking flights or having the promise of that first holiday awaiting never seems like it’s enough. I enter a trough of naturist despair. I’ve IM’ed sim owner Sahara Savage, and I hope that he’ll provide some background into the hopes and aspirations he has for Orchid.

Dirk and Birjina enjoys some dancing at Orchid, followed by a trip to meet the resident horse, and offer up some carrots for it to enjoy.

I want and need to take a break from blogging, slow the pace down and re-charge my batteries. And it usually takes something special to jerk me out of this malaise. Do you know, I think Orchid Isle has done it! 🙂

Ella