I’ve been taking UV study pictures of my Bluesmoke Hancroft avatar, trying to understand better how the UV maps work.

Here, you can clearly see where everything goes. I’m using the UV maps created by Robin Wood, which are excellent for positioning textures and elements while creating SL clothing items.

One thing that is important to understand is how the different elements of the UV maps connect. In this example, it’s clear to see how the shirt and arms connect at the shoulders.

This image clearly shows the connection between the shirt and pants. I did 16 UV image studies and posted them all on a special Flickr UV Study set in the hope those would also be helpful for other designers, especial other novices like me.