Chat is all the rage these days, and the best way to keep in touch with
friends, and maybe even family, is to use internet messengers like AIM
or Yahoo. By using messengers or chat, you don’t have to break your
phone curfew, but you can still talk to your friends. Other places that
are fun to visit are forums, discussion boards, and sites- communities
like MySpace. The greatest thing about these sites is the opportunity to
personalize your screen name by using avatars. Avatars are those little
pictures that pop up by your name when you type or post.
As your avatar is your self portrait in a sense, it should reflect who
you really are – trendy, stylish, and beautiful. If you are anything
like most of the girls in the world today, you probably change your mind
about five times a day on what would truly reflect you, but there is a
perfect solution for that – use online paper dolls. Use these online
paper dolls, such as the ones you find at The Doll Palace (http://www.thedollpalace.com)
as avatars, and you will have endless style and image opportunities
available. That way, you can change your online image as often as you
change your virtual hairstyle.
Getting Started
To begin, you can use many of the provided dollmakers (http://www.thedollpalace.com/doll-maker/dress-up-games.php)
and create your personalized avatar. Most of the activities on The Doll
Palace require you to create an account, which is free. The folks at
the Doll Palace seem to add new outfits and dolls on an almost weekly
basis, so there is always something new to try out.
Saving you Avatar
Once you have your doll completed, whether you are punk or princess for
the day, simply save her, and you will have the option to create an
icon, or avatar, for any of the popular messengers or forums. If you
need your best friend’s approval before committing to an avatar, you can
also email you doll to her so she can check it out and give you
compliments or suggestions.
Creating the Avatar
Once the image is saved, and emailed as the case may be, to create the
actual Avatar, you select “Create Free Icon,” and go to town. A sizing
box will appear that will allow you to frame your doll in the middle of a
window, then save it again. Now the doll will be downloaded to your
computer so that you can upload it into your messenger or forum.
Using the Avatar
There are no limits on the number of avatars you can create, so you can
have one for every day of the week or every single one of you online
boyfriends. Try on new hairstyles and outfits, then show how
fashion-forward you are to everyone you talk to online. You are one
totally stylish chick, and it’s about time the whole world, or at least
your buddy list, knew about it.
