Let the Crafting Frenzy Begin...

So we’re in the run-up to the Second Annual Steampunk Cruise, and while I have pretty much everything I had last year (the goggles keep self-destructing – I need to repair/replace the loupe yet again), I would like to make things pop a little more. One advantage of hanging around with a group of people that included two professional costumers and at least 4 members of established Steampunk interest groups is that you get inspired to step up your own game.

Last year’s top hat decorations were a hit – small glass vials (empty), with a spray of gears on wires, a cephalopod medallion in the front, and blinking LED lights. This year, I want to fill the vials (colored salt, most likely, and possibly some tonic water in case of black light) and move that array over to my new bowler, while upgrading the decorations on the topper. I have more blinky lights on order, two USB squirming tentacles, a battery pack with dual USB output, a bunch of Sugru putty, and some octopus-patterned ribbon from Fancy Tiger. Muahahahahaha…

I’ve also managed to incorporate my chainmail hobby into my Steampunk – I picked up a graduated Byzantine chain kit in copper that makes a lovely necklace for B., and a brass experimentation kit that has resulted in a nifty Double Albert watch chain that I’m using for a matchbox and pipe tool instead, as a sort of chatelaine for a pipe smoker.  

Next up, leatherworking…

Quick Crafting Update

The initial Sugru project was a success. I was able to cover the exposed circuit board and wires with one packet, and then used a second one to fill in the concave bits and smooth over a couple of sticking-out bits. It still looks a little rough, as it's all hand-shaped, but that part of the cord is usually hidden in a pocket anyway. I'm just glad the headset it once again functional.

As for other crafting, I got distracted by learning to knit, and haven't really done much that's directly Steampunk related. We will be attending MileHiCon and SteamCon this year, as well as the 2nd Annual Steampunk Cruise early next year, so once October is done, I'll be frantically putting together a couple of new bits for the Cruise. It looks like I won't be the only kilt-wearing Steampunk this time - at least 3 other guys have purchased kilts since last year. I'll have to wear pants to stand out...

Finally figured out a way to wear a pith helmet that doesn't simply unthinkingly embrace the image of colonialism that is so widely (and correctly) associated with such headgear. I need to look up a quick tutorial on vampire makeup, and my fangs are on order...

Getting It Together

An awful lot of costuming consists of sticking something to something else. I started off using rivets to attach one bit of leather to another, and then picked up some contact cement for other projects, and finally figured out how to use a lock stitch awl to sew up a sporran. I'm learning how to use a sewing machine to attach various bits of fabric to each other. And now I've got another tool or two in my arsenal...

First up is Epoxy Putty. You've probably seen the late-night TV ads for one particular brand flogged by the late Billy Mays, but there are actually several of these on the market - so check the label. Different formulas are intended for different applications. I picked up a couple of these from JBWeld - one specifically for use in attaching disparate materials (metal to plastic, wood to glass, etc.) and one reinforced with steel for high-strength repairs.

I've had some trouble keeping the jeweler's loupe attached to my goggles, so I had high hopes for the steel-reinforced putty. The laser pointer that I superglued to one of the vents likewise snapped off, so I had a couple of options to play with the putty.

The process is pretty simple, actually. The putty is a two-part formulation, with one part wrapped inside the other and the whole shebang packed in a plastic tube. Use a sharp blade to cut off a chunk, knead it together until the two colors blend into one, then form it up and let it set up for about 24 hours. Oh - and use gloves to be on the safe side. A couple of test beads mixed nicely in just a few minutes of fiddling, and started setting up within 15 minutes of setting them aside. I cut another slightly larger slice and kneaded it into submission, then encased part of the spring clip and pressed it onto the outer ring of the goggles, nicely covering the mess left when the cyanoacrylate glue failed. I'll probably touch up the putty with some dry-brushed metallic paint for daytime and close examination, but the putty itself has a nice silvery metallic sheen to it.

One more slice, and the vent cap was neatly reattached to its vent hole. No more ventilation on that side, but I tend not to wear these as actual goggles, so it's not really an issue.

My wife purchased a lovely umbrella from the Kraken Rum website, but sadly Colorado's heat and lack of humidity did a number on the hot glue they used to attach the tentacle handle on our first excursion. In examining the handle, I found that the hole in the handle was deeper than the shaft of the umbrella, so I employed the other mixed-media putty to effect a repair. After measuring the precise depth, I prepared a chunk of putty and filled in the extra space, then wrapped the umbrella shaft in a thin layer of putty and pressed it into place. I scraped off the excess - this will also probably require a little touch-up paint to finish the job, but so far the handle is holding. Will have to take it outside again to test the putty adhesion, but so far so good.

And for good measure, I picked up a sample pack of Sugru, the air-cure silicone rubber that Makers everywhere have been going nuts about. I plan to repair my headset with it - the volume control wheel's casing fell off during AnomalyCon earlier this year, and the bare wires aren't particularly attractive - but a nicely shaped bit of Sugru should enclose the circuit board and leave the wheel exposed, so that it's still functional.

Bits and Pieces

Little by little, I'm getting the details worked out on my steampunk outfits. I've got all the major clothing bits - hats, shirts, waistocoats/vests, socks, boots - and I've got pieces that tweak those bits into Steampunk ensembles - goggles, the gauntlets, the gaiters. Now it's time to step it up a notch.

I've repaired my goggles - the loupe exploded while at Steamcon, and one of the little nuts that holds the lenses onto the main arm went completely AWOL. I replaced it with a new one, and added a targeting reticle made out of an ornamental gear and some brass screen cut into an X. The strap has also been upgraded, and can now be properly fitted either as a hatband or as actual goggles.

I made a couple of kilt hose flashes out of thin leather, and then realized that I actually needed to make two complete sets if I wanted them to match - but unfortunately, I ran out of larger chunks of the thin leather, so the pairs have been split up so that I'm at least symmetrical. Now on days when the gaiters are just too bloody hot to wear, I have something else steamy to put on my legs. 

This weekend's project is to finish up a steampunk sporran that I got cut out last weekend. Need to punch some more holes, glue and stitch the pieces together, and then decorate. Then on to the headset...

Gaiters - Finished! (Part Two)

So in June, I posted about having done the initial riveting of the pieces together. Basically, my design involved  riveting a strip of leather to each side of the pattern pieces up the front of the shin and up the back of the calf. I did not include any seam allowances, since I was not sewing them. I measured out the rivet holes, marked them and punched them, then used Tandy Rapid Rivets in an antique bronze finish.

 I started out using Medium size, and realized they were much too large for the thickness of leather I was using - Smalls were just right.

 The pieces fit together pretty well - you can't quite see the curve of the calf seam in this picture, but it's there:

I did the same thing up the front seam, and then measured and punched the holes for the toe kick. Here's a closeup of the toe kick on the completed gaiter:

You can see the end of the front seam rivet strip - I tapered the end and used a single rivet to attach the top of the toe kick. At that point, I started attaching the straps that wrap around from the shin to the outside of each leg, and eventually buckle up the side. I used decorative steampunk rivet plates from Tandy that look like they're screwed on - they actually are, but from the back. At the toe, I was going through 3 thicknesses of leather, and had to sub out Chicago screws for the ones included with the rivet plates (fortunately, they're exactly the same diameter and thread pitch!)

Having placed the rivets 1" apart, it made positioning the 1" straps pretty easy. They're 8" long - I tapered them with a belt end punch and then marked and punched the belt holes. I punched holes for the two screws on the back of each plate, and used that to attach the straps. After attaching all of these, I placed the strap that goes under the sole of the boot (ideally, just in front of the heel) and riveted it in place:

At this point, I went to figure out where to attach the strap buckles, and realized that the additional material I'd added to the pattern was bunching, so I cut out a small dart and riveted the leather back together with a small overlap. These pictures didn't come out too well - I'll have to retake and update them.

You can sort of see the cut line here, running just above the trio of rivets (one for the dart, two for a buckle) and then out to the other two that mark the overlap. Here's a frontal view:

Blurry as all heck - it was late when I took these, so my eyes probably were focused... The two rivets at the bottom of the pick are the same as the ones on the right of the previous picture. The buckle strap covers up the third rivet, and you can sort of see how the slit puckers a little at the end. I punched a round hole there to mitigate any stress and keep the slit from expanding further.

Then, I cut out short 4" strips, used an oblong punch to cut a hole for the buckle's tongue, and punched rivet holes in each corner. Making an original and using it as a template was a big time-saver. I put the short strips on each buckle, then buckled them onto the long straps using the third hole on the long straps to get a relatively consistent placement - truly professional looking spats have the buttons or buckles in a straight line, but was going for a more tinkerer/homemade look on this pair, so they're not completely straight. I'll save that for Version 2.0.

Then I started the whole process over on the right gaiter... My spouse has a shot of me wearing the finished product. I'll have to grab it from her for the postscript.

Gaiters - Finished! (part one)

I did manage to finish the gaiters before SteamCon, and I even got pictures.

Looks like my original pic post got as far as making the duct tape template. Once that was done, I cut the template along lines that I wanted to be seams, specifically up the back of the calf and up the front of the shin, as well as up the outside of the leg (where I planned to put all the straps and buckles). Note the triangular toe kick, to cover the laces:

I then used the template pieces to cut out a pattern using some leftover canvas. I neglected to get a photo of the canvas pattern pieces as I cut them out, but here they are stapled together for the pattern fitting, at which point I found that the pattern was somewhat too small. I cut out a new piece with several inches of additional fabric added on (the stripes at the edge of the pattern). The original outer leg piece is next to the assembled expanded pattern parts, with the straps stapled in place:

At this point, I went ahead and cut out the pieces in black leather (since the boots I planned to wear these over were black; I've since acquired a brown pair, and will probably make Version 2.0 out of brown leather):

That's where I was at when I worked on them in June.

Gaiter Progress

The front seam worked out just about as well as the back seam, and the toe kick was less problematic than I'd feared (although some trimming turned out to be necessary). I've got pictures taken, but I need to upload them before I can do a full-on picture post.

The side that I expanded wound up needing a small dart put in so that it fits more smoothly, but the buckles are going on reasonably straight so far. These will definitely wind up looking like a Mark I project, so I'll need to get some additional leather and start designing the Mark II.

Little By Little

I need to remember to take a couple of pictures of my assembled test pattern and my leather cutout pile so I can do a proper WIP post at some point - but the important thing is, I got the pattern figured out and I've cut out the leather pieces, so if there's time this weekend, I'll start in on punching holes and pounding rivets.

And maybe spray-painting my goggles, too!

Pattern Fitting

Good thing I decided to do a test gaiter using my duct tape templates - turns out the elastic in the socks I wore pulled in more than I expected, so the test gaiter in canvas was not quite large enough to go around my calves. After undoing the test gaiter, cutting out one piece somewhat larger than the original, and stapling everything back together, I've now got plenty of extra material to deal with - so I'll need to trim the excess at the ankle and taper toward the calf more.

On the plus side, buckles and rivet plates have been acquired, so once I get the pattern dialed in I can start cutting leather.

More bits acquired

One of the benefits of having a local Steampunk con to go to is the availability of vendors. Since my lady and I are both, shall we say, generously proportioned (though working on it), purchasing certain items of clothing/costuming over the Internet can be an exercise in gambling. Fortunately, there was a perfectly lovely vendor of corsets at AnomalyCon, and my lady is now the proud owner of a stunning example of Butterfly Frillies' work. This has, in turn, spurred more interest in completing a costume (we're scheduled for a steam train ride outside of Reno this July, as part of the Mensa on Steam tour, just prior to this year's Annual Gathering.), so we're back on that particular horse.

Turns out my mother-in-law has a sewing machine that can do light to midweight leather, so I don't actually have to use rivets to hold the gaiters together, so once I've fitted my pattern and verified that it works with cloth, I can get the leather cut.

And I've purchased a set of longer-than-elbow-length welding gloves, which will work nicely as part of a tinkerer/airship stoker look. Just need the leather Glengarry (I'm leaning away from the pith helmet look) and I should be just about ready.

Leather Acquired!

Tip #1 - Shop the sale racks. Tandy had some black leather on sale, a little heavier than garment weight and a little lighter weight than standard tooling leather or chap-weight. I got a full side for about half the price of anything else I saw in-store.

Tip #2 - check for tools to make things, rather than buying pre-made. I was considering buying pre-cut 1" strips of leather, but those turned out to be both significantly heavier duty than the black leather I'm making the main bits out of, and fairly expensive. For less than half the cost of one 72" strap, I bought a strap cutter. Once I  cut a straight edge on the leather I bought, I can cut strips of whatever width I choose. I also found a nice rotary cutter that I can use with my wife's straightedge and cutting board...

Tip #3 - get the membership. I did the math, and I saved enough just on this purchase to cover the Gold level membership fee at Tandy.

Minor Gaiter Progress

So after rolling over and going back to sleep on Monday when I remembered that I didn't have to go to work, I wound up thinking about the gaiter project, which has been on the back burner for a while. When I eventually got up for real, I dug up the duct-tape tubes that I'd made, and found that they do indeed fold flat - so I cut one of them into parts as a template for a pattern, and then traced out a pattern on some leftover canvas. The plan is to rivet the leather together, so as to avoid stitching - and then buckles on the outside. 1" wide straps should work, with 1/2" spacing, Next, I'll have to cut out the pattern and then probably cut out a second copy, and staple/stitch the canvas to see if I've left proper allowances...

Then I can go buy some leather, buckles, and plating at Tandy next weekend.

Work In Progress - Gaiters

Little by little, my first Steampunk outfit is coming together. This weekend, I worked on making a set of gaiters, which are akin to spats (or spatterdashes, from which the shorter term derives), but which provide coverage not only for the shoes , but also for the lower leg - or limb, if you're being properly stuffy and Victorian...

I own a couple of sets of gaiters - one is a button-up set that unfortunately doesn't fit my calves well at all, and the other is a modern nylon set that I use for snowshoeing (and which subbed for the button-up set in a Halloween costume the year I went as Othar Tryggvasen from Girl Genius), so I've got some idea about how they should go together - but I wanted to try my hand at pattern making, as I'd like a set that are custom fit to my legs.

I found a tutorial on sewing fabric spats that was helpful, but my plan is to make mine out of leather. I could probably buy a set of knee-high boots (and really, I probably will at some point) but for now, I've got a perfeclty serviceable set of black ankle high boots that will lend themselves nicely to some gaiters. I'll be wearing them under a kilt for the most part, but I'd like to be able to wear them over trousers as well, should the need arise. So with all that in mind, I employed a technique I read about back in the days when I was considering making my own leather jerkin (for a very different sort of fandom/cosplay outfit) - I cut up a couple of pairs of oldish socks and pulled them on over my boots and trouser legs so that they were covering the area that the gaiters should cover, and then wrapped 2-3 layers of duct tape around that area.

I cut the duct tape and sock mold up the inside of my leg, since that's an area I want to be solid.

I then removed the sock fabric and covered the slightly less sticky than normal side of the duct tape mold with another layer of duct tape, then taped the molds back together temporarily.

Next up - I'll review the spats tutorial and compare both my nylon gaiters and my cloth ones to see how to cut the leather so that it fits correctly (ideally, 3 pieces sewn together), and then make a cloth sample pair before I buy and cut any leather.