I am in favor of little armor customization of items after the item has been created. A creator should have the item remain the same after releasing it to the public. Maybe changing colors should be permissible. But general shape and size should remain the same. By keeping the shape and size the same the game perception of power and style is kept easily recognizable. Changing colors is a relatively easy fix though it could create items from silly to serious.
I like identifiability and choosing armor looks if they are earned. The consistent look and feel contributes to lore and lore based immersion. The earning part is needed to scale an MMO’s progression curve unlike Second Life where everything is attainable from the get-go.
How far the customization and stats of a new item can go is another question I would have? If there are no stats to a created item it’s no fun as it can have no core impact on the world.
But when there are stats perhaps a ranged random roll would be desirable. By semi-random I mean an item gives for example, +4-8 STR or INT. The final item would read +8 STR/+5 INT. And each though would be slightly different. The item hunt aspect is better with random rolls. Given the item to each new player or the same player multiple times goes with the idea that a given item looks the way the player desires within bounds of the item’s creator. And armor customization would allow for semi-random items that are unique but still used and desired as intended but identifiable still. This post inspired by http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq4l3CiIM2g