Kheledûl Contessa - Lanael of Gladden

Originally, I had planned out the nine outfits that would lead to the retirement of Material Middle-earth. With the recent change in plans, I've been able to sneak several additional ones into my posting schedule. The one you see here this week is one of them. : )

The outfits featured here have been rather extravagant the past couple of months. I've been asking myself if it's absolutely necessary to fill every available cosmetic slot when I make something. Looking back at the past few posts, I've pretty much used every space. I've tried to follow the adage less is more, but it doesn't always work. Based on experience, filling spaces for the sake of filling spaces has resulted in fashion overkill. This week, I've opted to keep this one simple and let the beauty of this Long-sleeved Dwarf-make Dress speak for itself. If anything, Brosh's Cloak was included because it matched the stylings and coloration of the dress so well.

I stumbled upon this dress back in early 2012 when I had began my Rune-keeper's journey through Moria. After a few days of grinding reputation items in Sarnur, I had achieved kindred standing with Thorin's Hall and proceeded to the reputation vendor for my goat to make traveling beneath the Misty Mountains easier. As I was scrolling down the vendor panel, I saw the dress and purchased it with a handful of silver. It was a cosmetic I'd never owned or seen at that point...and it didn't see any use until two years later. Many dresses have not seen use here. I've found them to be undyeable, too plain, or over-the-top in patterning.

While we're on the subject of dress design, I'm hoping desperately that 2014 will not be another "Year of the Robes" for festivals. It was a let down across the community last year by reskinning robes from LOTRO's infancy, despite the beautiful patterning. Ideally, I'd like to see both short and long-sleeved tunics and dresses this year in place of new robes. With the exception of last year, I've enjoyed the festivals more than the average person. Being able to earn shiny, new, and original cosmetics has been a major factor in my partaking of the festivities.

I've had my fingers crossed since the Yule Festival ended!

Shoulders: Protector's Shoulder Guards (Purple, T5 tailor recipe)
Back: Brosh's Cloak (Purple, unavailable as of U12--keep an eye on the AH for one)
Chest: Long-sleeved Dwarf-make Dress (Purple, Thorin's Hall kindred reputation vendor)
Special: Student's Rune-satchel of Dagor (Purple, any Rune-keeper class vendor)*

*Satchel is for Rune-keepers only and has no bearing on this outfit's design.