Well, I've come up with my new SF convention "persona"

[voxwoman]

I had a flash of insight today, as I put my hair up for a nice luxurious bath this morning (yes, it's finally long enough again to tie up on top of my head). I'm creating a Steampunk inventor character with Badger in her name, or her nickname or something. Mainly because, when I had my hair up, I noticed the 2 white stripes on the side and the pitch black swath in the back (the center front is a dark salt-and-pepper look).

I think I'll look good in some of the costume possibilities that Steampunk allows. And who knows -- maybe I'll draw up some cartoons or write some stories about her. I've already got her entire backstory in my head (adapted and embellished from my real biography and conflated with a bit of 19th or earlier century geography). I've decided that my entire second marriage becomes, for this character, as "kidnapped by a Persian/Ottoman and kept for 9 years in his seraglio (where I learned belly dancing and finally escaped)" and ran into my current spouse (who has decided to create another companion character so we can do a group costume thing - he's my "pilot", so we apparently own some sort of airship - but this also lends itself to some interesting costume possibilities) who brought me back to civillization and helped me get set up in my lab.

I'm not sure I'm going to go the corset route or not, but I sketched out some designs...

I haven't been this excited about costumes/conventions in a very long time... And I believe I haven't given away all my suit-weight wool, so I have some fabric to start working with (oooh. some of it is very RED.) I can be my current size and still look just fine in this type of fashion, too.

Comments

[feather802.livejournal.com]

Ooo! Sounds like an awesome costume/persona. There are a lot of good options for Steampunk corsets if you do choose to go that way.

I've found http://community.livejournal.com/corsetmakers/ to be very helpful and has a lot of pretty eyecandy.

[maedb.livejournal.com]

what are the odds? I'm quite into steampunk as well, but very much as a fashion feeling, rather than a costume that only gets worn once in awhile. But uhhh ... there isn't that many who even know what steampunk or even neo=victorian is, so I ask again. What are the odds that two such similar oddballs would happen upon each other in a quilting round robin? Now a SF community I could understand, or a Jules Verne fan club, but quilting round robins? LOL

[voxwoman.livejournal.com]

I think the LJ filter is the first step. I think mostly fannish types are on here in the first place. I think the more "mundane" people are on Blogger.

Honestly, Victorian era is not my favorite clothing style. I think that it's probably Musketeer-era (English Civil War/cavalier). But I'm not in a re-creation group anymore and none of those clothes fit me anymore, either.

I was planning on using the Folkwear Big Sky "walking skirt" pattern for the bottom (possibly modified), because I don't want a skirt, per se, and I'm not going to add a bustle or hoops to my already ample backside :p

For the top, I am going to create something from scratch, with a poufy blouse underneath. I may use another Folkwear pattern for that, or just wing it, I'm not sure. I used to sell Folkwear patterns in my SCA merchant store, so I have the entire line as of their first incarnation. I'm missing about 10 patterns I think at this point, but I have no real reason to get them.

I don't know that I'm "into" steampunk yet... it's just that it's a look that will work for me at my current stage of life, and I can be fashionably cool without having to show off a lot of skin like I used to when I had the body for it. The last thing I want to have happen is to have younger folks snarking at me for daring to wear spandex or something.

[voxwoman.livejournal.com]

here's a link to the pattern: http://www.folkwear.com/231.html

It's even more "steampunk" than I remember it. Especially done with brass buttons that match the top :)

[maedb.livejournal.com]

That's pretty much what drew me tothe steampunk aesthetic. I can get away with it LOL The Victorian - I'm well in agreement with you on that one. And you were SCA? Still a small world.

[bloodyviking.livejournal.com]

Have you come across the Flea King http://the-flea-king.livejournal.com/ and his Dr Roundbottom clockpunk/steampunk creation http://dr-roundbottom.livejournal.com/ and http://www.clockpunk.com/

He does some really cool photography too.