curgoth, posts by tag: steampunk - LiveJournal

A list of ongoing creative sewing projects, in no particular order;

• Great sarong tie review; I have grown gradually fatter since I started wearing sarongs, so the older the sarong, the shorter the ties. The older ones are now too shrot to wear. So, I need to sew on longer ties to the older ones. also, the black sarong I got last year has no ties at all on it.


• Make two new satin cravats. I have the material, just need to rearrange the living room so that I have the space to measure and cut.


• Fix both pairs of thai fisherman's pants. The bigger pair have a gaping crotch hole that needs to get patched. Thankfully, the pants came in a bag of the same material, so I have somethign to patch with. The other pair just need to get some sitching replaced.


• Sew buttons on to pinstripe pants. This is for attaching button braces to. I also need to get at least one more set of button braces.


• Steampunk Kscope outfit. I'm thinking sarong-weight double-breasted waistcoat over wrap pants or a sarong, big boots, bandana, goggles and leather cuffs. Maybe a cravat, and maybe a standalone collar to go with it above the waistcoat. And the bat-utility belt, of course. Sketching will hopefully happen at lunch time today.


• polar fleece arm-warmers. These have been sitting in the sewing bin for probably close to two years at this point.


• Utility belt. Needs more grommets, another pair of pouches and two more belt loops. Also considering making a removable larger pouch to hang down one side to put a paperback in.


• Raven hoodie. Black hoodie with a raven cut out from an old t-shirt, plus glow in the dark skull and crossbones patches on the arms. I want to lengthen the sleeves with some sort of black and white stripe pattern. Do I want to use alternating strips of black and white sweatshirt material to match the hoodie? Will that result in the white getting greyed out when the hoodie gets washed? What about using white spray paint or screen printing ink to add white stripes to black? I suspect that I will continue to add bits and pieces as I find more neat stuff to sew on to it over time.


• I should also make a pair or two of gaiters to wear over combat boots etc. They'd also be useful when biking, as long as I made them snug enough.


• black flannel hakama; because 7 layers of flannel should keep me warm pretty much anywhere... Again, I have the material and a pattern, but no space to lay out the pattern, etc. Also, i still suck at using patterns.

Steampunk photoroam. There may have been a little photoshop in a couple pics.

Tired due to almost too much weekend.

Friday and Saturday during the day were low key. The excitement started with dinner with the LizRents at Terroni. Next was Dark Rave, getting to bed around 4:30am. I was up at around 8:30, and down in Chinatown for dim sum with olletho and crew for 10:30. By 2pm, I was at the Toronto Steampunk Society meetup for photoroaming the Distillery District. We are a bunch of hams. Also, steampunks + segways == hilarity. We are considering going back at some point and renting a pack of them. The five step rule was in effect for a good chunk of the roam - take five steps and another group of people with cameras materialize and take aim. My pics will be up... eventually. This set needs some photoshopping to insert the zeppelin and lasers.

Dinner at Fionn's rounded out the weekend. An early bed time produced extra sleep, though not quite enough - still wiped this morning.

On the plus side, I have learned a valuable skill - making weak tea. If I make tea with 1 tsp of leaves per cup, the tea is weak enough that I can still sleep at night. Before, my habit was to use 1 tbsp or more per cup, and I used to steep it longer.

You're after my robot bee!

Harvard got a $10 million grant to build a colony of robot bees. Sure, they're resistant tot he beepocalypse. But consider what happens when someone gets thr bright idea to start putting cameras on them. Are you prepared?

Marvel fails, again.

"Sexy" Halloween costumes. That look nothing like the charcater's outfits at all. One of them is for a character that doesn't exist. Well, okay, the Emma Frost one is pretty accurate.

Five Comic Book Costumes for Women that Won't Turn You Into a Sex Object

Also includes five costumes for men that *will* get you objectified.

Wanna pet zebra?

Scientists work on the genetics of domestication. StB: don't read this story. They do things to rats you won't like.

The Power of Hypnosis

Scientists propose using hypnosis to study various hysterical disorders (hysterical blindness, etc.) Based on thier tests, I am probably hypnotisable. Someone call King Mob.

Out Of Body Experiences

Brains freak me out.

Google Street View roundup

The Torontoist finds amusing things on Google street view in Toronto.

It's Steampunk month on Tor.com

Maybe some day I'll even find time to read it!

Toronto Steampunk Society Picnic - a set on Flickr

The Toronto Steampunk Society is having a "Promenade and Picnic" Sunday May 17th from 10am to 5pm. From 10-1, it's wandering in a disorganised fashion through St. Lawrence Market (south side). At 1, wander up to Allen Gardens for a picnic.

For those to whom I mentioned a photoshoot at Casa Loma on the 31st, that event has been cancelled, apparently because Casa Loma cahrges extra for photoshoots.

Signs that I'm a yuppie - it's hot, and my nerves are jangly from too much caffeine, so I'm having a beer. A beer aged 30 days in oak barrels, then matured for another 47 days before bottling. And I opened it with the hook on my corkscrew.

Signs that I'm a geek - I am going to go down to the Church St. fet fair to get my riding boots polished later, so I am drinking my beer wearing a sort of gay steampunk biker outfit. Because it goes with the boots.

sqrt_joy gave me "Top Five Steampunk Accessories!"

1. Goggles!


2. Pocket Watch


3. Walking Stick


4. Time Machine


5. Top hat (if presenting as male) or corset (if presenting as female)

The clock claims that it's almost 5am. I think that chocolate cake had caffeine in it.

Regardless, I've finished my first attempt at modifying a modern dress shirt to give it a more Victorian/steampunk edge (by no means historically accurate, but it works better with a cravat). I also finally cleaned up and edged my cravat, and tried it out after pressing it. The neckline looks much nicer when its been pressed first, and the neck is much more comfortable with the modified shirt.

I still can't sew straight, but that'll come with practice. I also picked up a couple more vests and a nice tie today, so I'm getting to the point where I actually have a few neovictorian/steampunk outfits, particularly once I pick up my Gentleman's Emporium order next week.

It may just be time for a photoshoot, if I can get someone to take pictures for me while I run around and change clothes frequently.

I went to visit my riding boots today, too. The stretching didn't add enough room, so they're going to add a slit and a couple of buckles so I can adjust the top five inches or so. This should give me enough room to tuck various pants into them.

Due to the Snowpocalypse, my date for tonight got cancelled, since neither of us had the energy to leave the house again. Hence the sewing.

Tomorrow will be date rain check, and laundry. Of course, if I don't go to sleep soon, it will *be* tomorrow.

There must have been something in that cake...

Still sick. Cold meds are nice, but I have no brain today. I am working on keeping the cough drugged into submission until the doc on Thursday - last night while driving int he blizzard I had a coughing fit so intense my vision went to blue stars for about 5 seconds. I worked very hard on just not coughing after that.

I just realised something. I got a small bonus from work (about 25% of what it would be if the company wasn't doing abysmally), but that's money I wasn't expecting to get. I *could* spend that money on some ties and cravats and maybe a frock coat from the Gentleman's Emporium... This cannot end well. But... puff ties! Cravats! Gloves! Trousers! Frock coats! I should be glad, at least, that I don't partcularly like any of their waistcoats.

Saved! They won't ship to Canada.

I should be getting work done, but I has no brane.