How I'm Creating My Ideal Steampunk Outfit

I absolutely love Steampunk! Where the past meets the present, and the present meets the future. It takes Victorian fashion and adds steam powered tech to create an awesome mix. For my particular cosplay, I have chosen to go with time travel. If you are wanting to create your own Steampunk outfits, you have the pick a theme. Then work through each item that goes with it. I got ideas from seeing what others have made. This is one of my favorites! Pick a style that speaks to you. Create a Pinterest board even, so you can reference back to it.

I started with a purse, which you can check out here. I thought something simple would be the best way to build my crafting skills. I plan to add a couple more elements to it this weekend. 
Every great steampunk cosplay also comes with goggles.

Being that I wear glasses, I have decided that mine will be worn on the hat my Mom sent me.

But they had to be tricked out still. I still have one more element to add before I feel they are 100% complete. Something like this....

Then came the boots. I'm thinking there is still more I want to do to them.

Like paint the toes perhaps... But for now, the heels are rocking some gears.

My daughters, and even my sons, sometimes like to try and help. The baby likes to play in my craft supplies while my older daughter likes to sort the gears into groups.

It is one way we get to bond. I also use it to teach. Sorting and grouping is a concept she has learned, but can expand on. This is also how the kids gain an interest in being creative. My sons wanted to have their own steampunk goggles when they saw mine. So we designed and made some for them!

They play pretend with them. 

Not everyone is a crafter. At first, I wasn't. So I used some review opportunities to get steampunk costumes.

That is what sparked my interest in the genre. I started to realize how much more there was to it. Then I began searching on Pinterest. Talk about a huge movement! There are now shows and sub-genres to diversify in. People make a living on creating or "making" gear. They are called Makers. The more I dove into researching, the more I wanted to be a part of this community. And my cosplay is just how I do it :) 
My next project is to decorate the corset top my Mom sent as a gift. I'm going to add some decorations to it. Then I have to work on the skirt. I'm also wanting to 'punk out some toy guns we have. My goal is to have it completed by Free Comic Book Day/Star Wars Day this May. And I'm trying to convince my husband to get new pants for his Resident Evil Guard costume. That way, the whole family can dress up this time. It is a great bonding event for us.  

Are you a Steampunk fan? Sci-Fi? What gives you the greatest joy in your down time?? Let me know in the comments below!

How I'm Creating My Perfect Steampunk Goggles

I don't have a lot of free time. Between the appointments and kids... I stay busy. But every so often, I take a moment for me. Which, right now, means that I am working on my next steampunk project. 

Goggles! 

What steampunk costume would be complete without them?! I've always been fascinated by them. In college, I had a buddy that always wore goggles. Not steampunk, but still cool ones. I envied him for strutting his style so freely. 

Now I'm finally doing the same. And I love it! A friend gave me these goggles. I painted them and used gears that my Mom had sent me a while back to add some flair.

I also took apart a pair of aviator glasses my Mom had sent. They were pretty twisted, so I'm giving them a new life. Used the glass lenses to add a greenish color tint to my goggles.

Loving the effect! 

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - what my kids always tell me :) 

I decided each side should have its own unique design to it.

So I switched up the pattern of gears. My engineer husband has plans to help me attach movable parts to create this effect next time: 

So what do you think?

Next, I am going to attempt to make pouches that I can attach to my belt and wear with my corset top. I have multiple sizes of glass bottles to put in them. Hoping to complete it all before Halloween. Around that time, we are wanting to go to Free Comic Book Day for Halloween and maybe catch an event at a local collectible's shop next to our favorite photographer!

Getting Into the Steampunk Spirit

I've always known I was a nerd, but I didn't always know just how big a nerd I was. As I got older, I developed my tastes and interests a bit more. I branched out from Star Wars and Lord of the Rings and discovered other cool things. Cosplay and conventions and such. But my favorite being Steampunk. Where the past and future collide to create amazingly detailed designs. Victorian styled clothing with steam-driven gadgetry and plenty of gears! It is absolutely beautiful. Which is why I have decided to design and create not only a costume to cosplay in, but even a purse that I can wear around daily. I scoured the internet for ideas. Pinterest was a big help, of course. I found one pin that showed how a lady transformed a regular purse into a steampunked piece of art! Mine may not be so decorated, but it is my own work-in-progress. One that I hope to keep working on as I get the supplies.

"Everything begins with an idea." - Earl Nightingale

Step one is always to have the idea. My purse is not the first thing that I wanted to embellish for my cosplay. Originally, my husband and I wanted to give a couple Nerf guns a makeover. Which is still on the agenda. Just taking the back burner at the moment. We will also try to get some top hats to fit our characters. I've decided to go along the lines of time travel.  He's still deciding on his. Then there is the need of a bustled skirt.... Well, you get the picture. We have an idea in our head of what we want. So now for the next step.

With the vision in my head, I have started gathering pieces to bring it to life. My Mom has helped a lot. She shops at yard sales and thrift stores in St. Augustine. Plenty of older things that fit my needs there. 

Following the birth of an idea comes the path of design! 

 

Creating the designs has been the biggest reason it has taken me so long to get this much done with it. First of all, I'm not much of an artist. I hold the vision in my head, but can't seem to transfer it so easily to my hands. And then I am never truly satisfied it is done. But I look at it this way, as long as new pieces come my way, it can always be a work in progress!

I practiced with painting on paper first to make sure I was able to get the look I wanted, then I started painting the purse. Unless you have multiple purses and don't care about trashing some, I suggest you take this route too.

Then I practiced laying out the pieces I wanted on it to see where things fit best.

Not everything I originally wanted, had a proper place in my designs. No worries, I'm hanging on to them for future uses. I settled on a clock design, directional star (or compass star) and a key element.

For the most part, I love them all. The star came out a little shaky, but not too bad. As I get certain other materials, I plan to add to the purse. For now, however, it is ready to be shown off as is! 

And the fun has just begun! I am thinking that in what little free time I have, I might start working on other parts of our costumes. Not sure I'll be ready for Halloween, but eventually I'll be rocking it!

Are you a steampunk fan? I'd love to hear your ideas. Share them in the comments below!

Let's get Steampunked!

I’ve mentioned so many times that I love cosplay. I love dressing up. Being a hardcore nerd is the best way for me! I go to comic conventions, comic store events, even some movies are made to dress up for if you go to opening night! I know I wanted to dress up more for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

And with me, I don’t do store bought costumes unless I modify them. I think the best costumes are the ones you make yourself. The ones you add personalization and characteristics that are specific to you! Make it your own design by adding your own flair and style. Whether you change the characters hair color or add jewelry, there is always something that you can tweak to make it original. I mean, let’s face it, no one likes going to a con when everyone around is in cookie cutter versions of the characters.  

Now if I can start from scratch and build up from just a couple items of regular clothing, I’m definitely going that option. One of the first things I ever had made was a long, hooded cape. I bought the materials and had them shipped to a seamstress I met in eBay who sold me a piece she replicated from the Star Wars movie of that time. To this day, it is one of my all-time favorites. I could build so many costumes around just that one piece.  But enough about that…

Lately, my passion has geared towards steampunk (pun intended). Where the future meets the past, where creativity and functionality clash in a gloriously beautiful mix. Gears, skeleton keys, bronze-stained colors, and your ideas of where the future could take us combine to make some really amazing mixtures. I got a steampunk costume for a review. It is cute. But it is lacking. So I have decided to expand its amazing horizons by creating weapons that would match its genre.

I picked up some Nerf-like weapons and some Rustoleum paints with my boyfriend, who is working on turning his Nerf ax into a zombie-hunting accessory to his Umbrella Corps cosplay.

I also have a couple guns I’m doing for the Lara Croft look I’ve been planning for ages!

And I gotta say, I’m super excited about them so far. Especially after running into a friend of mine who’s dad has a bunch of skeleton keys he might part with…  

My boyfriend and I spent one night starting the modifications.

We aren't done yet, but I'm liking where they are so far.

Steampunk costume review

I absolutely love being a part of the Costume Reviewers group. I get to try out various costumes and let you know where to find them! This time, I went with Steampunk Girl costume. Costume Supercenter has them for $42.39 when you use the promo code: x20 at checkout. 

I love to cosplay. To be another character for a little while. Whether it's for a comic event, Halloween with the kids, or just because with my kiddos, I love the chance to dress up. We let our imaginations run wild around here. 

I've been getting into steampunk recently. Blame watching the new series, Steampunk'd if you want. The costumes are amazing. Gears and goggles are nothing new to me. I had a friend that wore goggles to school all the time. Just because. And he was AWESOME! Steampunk is as though the beautiful Victorian style clashed with a flair from the future. Want the actual definition? "Steampunk refers to a subgenre of science fiction and sometimes fantasy that incorporates technology and aesthetic designs inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery." 
This costume follows that idea. And it's adorable! Made from your standard costume materials, it's comfortable and breathes well. I'm surprised at how much detail it has.To make it more authentic in the steampunk fashion, it's going to need some modifications though. The hat gets squashed and collapses under the pressure of the goggles band.

The goggles are cool, but eventually I shall want to replace them with real goggles.

These can't be worn to see through as they are solid plastic.

The skirt is a hi-lo style that could use a slight crinoline-type underskirt.

A tutu would work just as well. The strings on the hat and top of the dress are cheap ropes that could be better as ribbon.

Add a pair of glovelettes to bring the charm.

They are comfortable and fit well.
As far as your average costumes go, this one rocks! The sizing is pretty accurate. I'm an 8/10, medium up top, so I ordered the Medium. Fits everywhere like a glove. 
Check around too as there are always sales or coupon codes to the site to help save even more.