Steampunk Lamp

Steampunk Lamp seen on Pinterest

Saw this on Pinterest. Unfortunately the artisan who designed and built it was not identified there. Thought it was cool, and rated a post here from Steampunk aficionados.

Steampunk Tendencies

Nutcracker Rat Bikes at Steampunk Tendencies

A lot of awesome steampunk craft work, art, vehicles, and costumes for your weekend viewing pleasure at Steampunk Tendencies blog.

Triumph Thruxton "Steampunk Racer" from Benjie's Cafe Racers

BCR Steampunk Racer Triumph

We found this new steampunk-styled cafe racer by builder Benjie Flibbrboi of Benjie's Cafe Racers (BCR) at Pipeburn blog. The base model is a 2008 Triumph Thruxton.

Pipeburn has a load of pics at the link above. The bike was also just featured at another favorite blog, Return of the Cafe Racers.

We've previously posted about BCR and Benjie here at Cool Stuff. It's great to see that BCR is still going strong, and very cool to see Benjie's work back in the news again. You can follow BCR news and activities here at their blog.

BCR Seat, Tank & Fairing Combo Set

And if you are in the market for beautiful, high quality cafe racer parts and accessories, check out the BCR online parts store. A beautiful example is the steampunk-styled body set pictured to the left here. 

Steampunk Corsets & Accessories from Corset Story

Isabella Steampunk Corset

Corset Story has quite a lineup of steampunk apparel and accessories. The corset pictured here is the "Isabella" steel-boned, white-striped steampunk corset. It comes with a detachable jacket and belt.

Corset Story apparel is available online at their Amazon store.

Steampunk Vespa Scooter by Cris Cofitis

Pulsar Project Vespa Steampunk Scooter

This steampunk'ed Vespa scooter is the creation of Greek designer, Cris Cofitis, of Pulsar Project. The Damn Geeky blog has an extensive photo gallery of the scooter.

Take a look here at Pulsar Project to see other scooters and motorcycles designed by Cofitis, including the insane custom he calls "Chimera," which was an entry into the AMD bike build at the Sturgis 2011 rally.

Tip of the hat to the Design You Trust blog... we first saw the Vespa at their Pinterest board.

Art Donovan's Extraordinary Steampunk Lamps & Illuminations

Art Donovan "Tesla" Wall Lamp

Art Donovan is an extraordinarily talented designer with a flair for steampunk aesthetics. He brings these talents and sensibilities to bear on the design and fabrication of incredibly detailed and beautifully constructed lamps, lights, clocks, and mechanisms. Donovan is also a leading chronicler of the steampunk subculture; in a post last year we featured the first edition his book, The Art of Steampunk, which featured not only his work, but that of other excellent artists and craftsmen in the steampunk scene (a revised second edition was published this past summer, see our Amazon link below).

Steampunk Tendencies Blog

Crossbow Archer from SteampunkTendencies.com

SteampunkTendencies, a great big photoblog for steampunk art, costumes, mechanisms, clockworks, lamps, and mods.

Fluevog "Libby Smith" Vintage Boots

John Fluevog "Libby Smith" Boots

John Fluevog created these boots to honor the memory of Montana's legendary pioneer girl, Libby Smith. I think they have a kind of cool steampunk vibe.

In 1889 at the age of sixteen, Libby was taken captive by a tribe of Native American Indians, along with a group of other settlers. In the ensuing months, captives were made to run a gauntlet of tomahawk-wielding warriors. Few made it through without suffering a fatal wound.

For five months Libby was spared the gauntlet by the tribe's chief. Then one night, as she stood again before the gauntlet, she sensed that her favor with the chief had run out. But while the chief hesitated, she saw that the warriors in the gauntlet were watching him to see if he would relent yet again. Libby took advantage of their distraction, bolting suddenly down the line of the gauntlet. She made it most of the way through before being struck in the head with a near-fatal blow. Over the next few weeks, she was nursed back to health by the chief's daughter. Not long after, she was rescued by the US Army in a prisoner exchange.

Libby later married a member of the Montana 3-7-77 vigilantes. She was the first white woman to settle in the Teton River Valley, where she befriended the Blackfeet Indian people. Today she is remembered as "The Cattle Queen of Montana."

  

Steampunk Boots for Men

Plated Men's Steampunk Boots

We've put up posts about cool steampunk boots for women, now here's one for the men.

       

Popular Vintage Gothic Steampunk Boots from Metropolis

Metropolis Knee High Lace-Up Steampunk Boots

These Metropolis goth/steampunk boots from Hades Footwear have been an amazingly popular item here at the Cool Stuff We Like blog... we've had a surprising number of pairs ordered through our Amazon store links.

If you've ordered a pair through us, or otherwise own a pair, please drop us a comment and tell us what you think of their quality and finish, and let us know what kind of comments about them --- compliments or otherwise ---you've gotten from friends and/or strangers.

And to those of you have purchased them through our links, you have our thanks.




      

Jake Von Slatt's Steampunk Workshop Blog

Jake Von Slatt Guitar Tube Amp

Check out master steampunk-craftsman Jake Von Slatt's Steampunk Workshop for all sorts of cool steampunk events, music, crafts, and more.

The steampunk-themed guitar amp you see here was designed and built by Jake Von Slatt for Nathaniel Johnstone when he was with the Seattle steampunk band, Abney Park.












       

Portland Mini Maker Faire, Pt. 3: Steampunk Creations of Chuck Dolence

Chuck Dolence at his Portland Mini Maker Faire Booth

Chuck Dolence displayed his a collection of his "Musanical" artworks at the Portland Mini Maker Faire. Chuck builds these intricately detailed metal sculptures from found mechanical objects and discarded musical instruments.

The "Cymbolic Explorer" 

Chuck is a devout Christian who sees his work as a "redemptive" activity that he likens to God's redemptive work on behalf of abused and discarded individuals. By analogy, Chuck takes these discarded things and makes something new and beautiful with them just as God can do with a broken human being.

See Chuck's website for his other works that he calls Cosmicanicals and Floranicals.

Portland Mini Maker Faire, Pt. 2: Josh Tannenbaum

Josh Tannenbaum, Steampunk Fabricator

I have been a bit busy this past week and haven't done as much blogging about the Portland Mini Maker Faire as I was planning to do. So, here's a quick post with a pic from Steampunk artisan Josh Tannenbaum's booth. Josh and Karen Tannenbaum's Etsy store is here at Tannenbaum Fabrications.

Also check out their Tannenbaum Fabrications website. I like their tagline: "Fantastic Artifacts from the Future Past."

I will be following up with some more pics from his displays in another post. He had some very nicely designed and crafted work on display. More to come...

Steampunk Corsets from Corset-Story

Brown Steampunk Corset w. Chain Details

Corset-Story is a UK-based company that designs and makes artsy, very high quality corsets. Their corsets are constructed in a modern, 15,000 square foot factory in India.

They've got several design lines... I am featuring their Steampunk line here.

If you are looking for something to wear to a Steampunk gathering, such as next year's Steampunk World's Fair, check out Corset-Story.

(Corset-Story also has an amazing line of "Vintage Goth" corsets.)



        

Devon Works Tread1 Steampunk Watch

Devon Works Steampunk Watch

The watch designers at Devon Works in Los Angeles have created this unique, limited-edition Steampunk timepiece, which is based on their innovative Tread1 model. The Tread1 and the Steampunk employ a patented system of four micromotors driving timing belts to control the hours-minutes-seconds display numbers.

The design team members at Devon Works say they were inspired by the conveyor belt driven machinery of the Industrial Revolution. Check its design out in more detail at the Devon Works picture gallery. I also recommend that you see this excellent Watchismo.com article describing the history and technical features of the Tread1 development.

Only 150 Steampunk watches will be issued, and at a price of $25,000 each... definitely an item for the serious collector, only! It will be available to buyers this fall.

About the emotive power of the steampunk aesthetic, Devon Works founder and Creative Director, Scott Devon quotes Robert Brown, leader of the steampunk band, Abney Park:

Steampunk is a sort of dream, the way we used to daydream. It's like part of your childhood is just bursting forward again.

Acceptance of the Steampunk among timepiece aficionados has been outstanding. In fact, Devon Works Managing Director, Ehren Bragg, said that conceptual artwork was shown to select timepiece collectors in the early design stages, and their response was so enthusiastic that the Steampunk was moved up ahead of several other scheduled projects at Devon Works. 

The success of the Steampunk is a testament to the cultural resonance of the steampunk sensibility. You can see another great gallery of pics here at the Watch Anish tumblr site.   


A sidenote here: Devon Works is also known for supercar design. Check out the Devon GTX supercar video below.

Copper Mike's Steampunk Shovelhead

Gravesend Cycles Steampunk Harley-Davidson

I just saw this steampunk-themed Harley-Davidson Shovelhead on the cover of the latest issue of American Iron magazine. I liked the article's tagline: "What the past would have looked like if the future had started sooner." That pretty much sums up the retro-futurist perspective of steampunk.

This machine is a product of the fertile imagination and talented hands of custom bike builder and master metalsmith Michael Cole, aka "Copper Mike" because he loves to work with that metal. The level of handcrafted detail in this bike's design is astonishing... with the small pics I provide here you can only get a hint of that, so go to the Gravesend Cycles Steampunk gallery to get a better look at and appreciation of Mike's work. Especially cool was the intricate engraving on the engine, which can actually best be seen in photos at the Kustom King blog.

Copper Mike is the proprietor of Gravesend Cycles in Lindenhurst, NY, where he builds the bikes and creates jewelry, copper art objects, and t-shirts.

A Closer Look at the Design Details

The Steampunk made its debut earlier this year at Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Show held at The International Motorcycle Show in the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Tip of the hat to the Kustom King Blog where I found more info about this retro-futuristic machine. Check it out.

Also check out the Copper Mike video feature below.

Cthulhu Boots & Pumps by Pleaser, Funtasma Lineup

Cthulu Knee-High Boots

Steampunk footwear with an H.P. Lovecraft flair from Pleaser USA's "Funtasma" lineup.

Over the top...







    

The Steampunk World's Fair, May 17-19, 2013

Steampunk World's Fair Logo

Now is a good time to start getting ready for the fourth annual Steampunk World's Fair, which is scheduled for May 17-19, 2013 in Piscataway, NJ. Events will be held at two hotels, the Radisson and Embassy Suites. Both are already sold out! Overflow accommodations are available at the Hotel Somerset-Bridgewater in Somerset. A free shuttle between the  Hotel Somerset-Bridgewater and the two venues will be available. Might be a good idea to book travel and accommodations now.

Update: There is a big portfolio of photos from the 2012 fair here that were shot on assignment by Jim Kiernan for the Gothamist.com article here.

Steampunk Accessories from Brute Force Studios

Brute Force Studios Leather Corset

While googling around for pictures of brass steampunk goggles this morning I discovered Brute Force Studios, a purveyor of high-quality steampunk accessories, jewelry, and costumes. The product lineup is made-up of really top-drawer, professionally designed and artfully made stuff.

Thomas Willeford, the proprietor of Brute Force Studios, has been a prominent figure in the steampunk subculture and movement for two decades. His work has been featured in numerous magazines, websites, books, and television shows. I first saw Willeford's work in Art Donovan's excellent book, The Art of Steampunk, which has an entire chapter dedicated to Willeford's creations.

      Willeford's Ornithopter Backpack

Last fall, Willeford became a published author himself with the McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics title, Steampunk Gear, Gadgets, and Gizmos: A Maker's Guide to Creating Modern Artifacts... see our link to his book at Amazon below. 

Willeford has also designed jewelry for Alchemy Gothic's "Empire Collection," a series of original steampunk-themed jewelry.

Willeford participates in steampunk events in the persona of "Lord Archibald Featherstone."

            

The "Brass Goggles" Steampunk Blog

Brass Goggles from Brute Force Leather

I just found the Brass Goggles steampunk blog and forum site that comes to us from the UK. Brass Goggles has been online since 2006, exhibiting some real staying power in this age of too much "blog today, gone tomorrow."

They've got some how-to pages for steampunk crafters, an active forum, and a substantial list of steampunk web links.

They also have a call out for blog submissions, so if you have anything steampunk-related that you want to call attention to, or want to submit a blog post for publication, contact Brass Goggles by email at submission@brassgoggles.co.uk. 

The brass goggles above are available from Brute Force Studios & Fallen Angel Fashions.

You can find brass, copper, leather working tools, and other materials for your own Steampunk projects at Amazon Supply. See our product links below.