Saturday, April 13, 2013

Saturday Steam 4/13/13

I'll be the first to admit I don't fully understand how Polyvore works, but I am loving these Disney Steampunk themed outfits:





Now THIS is some fashion eye candy I can get behind! Go see the rest here. (And it's probably best if you don't explain to me how Polyvore works; I have a feeling I'd get seriously addicted.)


Caged pendant lights are nothing new, but I really love this assortment of styles from blogger Mockabee 7's kitchen makeover:

She doesn't mention where she got them, though, and I've never seen a round one like that before, or the tear drop shaped one. Any of you know?

[Update: A-ha! I knew I could trust you guys to find them! The lights are from Shades of Light, and cost $450 for the set of 5. They also come in polished brass and silver, but those options are $200 more.]

I'm thinking I'd like to hang caged pendants like those kind of like this for our dining room:

By Instructables user jmitch77 (hit the link for instructions) 
With at least eight or ten lights, though, and sort of doubled up so they look like a big mass of lights hanging down. John says this is ridiculously easy to do, so it's all about finding those cages - and hoping they don't cost a fortune when I do. (There's GOT to be way to DIY those things, right? Right?)



More proof the internet makes the world a smaller place: I heard from New Zealand "junk artist" Sean Boyd this week, who said one of you readers pointed him toward Epbot. So I went to look at his work, and lo and behold, I've had this ray gun of his on my "Steampunk Inspirations" Pinterest board for ages now!

Isn't it gorgeous? 

A few more of my favorites:



Sean does a variety of both steampunk and sci-fi inspired work. I'm particularly smitten with these sleek retro styles:

Sean tells me he just quit his day job this year to pursue his art full time, so go see more of his work at his Flickr gallery, or visit his website for available pieces or to ask him about commissions! (P.S. My birthday is next month. JUST SAYING.) 


Next up, Marni J. spotted this stunning USB Heart Necklace by Etsy seller Rob Smith, aka Artype:
(The top section conceals the USB stick.) 
This one has already sold, but Smith has a similar style here for $169. I can't get over how gorgeous that detail is!


And finally, in the spirit of that My Little Pony generator we all lost WAY too much time playing with way back when, I give you ... the Mega Steampunk Dress Up Game!


Cut to 30 minutes later, and here's mine:

She started out as a steampunk Tinkerbell, then turned into a potion master. Heh.

Cut to another 15 minutes later, and here's my second go:
What you can't see are that the final graphics are animated, so the eyes blink, gears spin, tools spark, etc. Super fun! And we all have Tessa C. to thank for the massive amounts productivity we're about to lose - or in my case, already have. ;)

I hope you guys are having a fun and steamy weekend! Today is our last day with my parents before they head home from their anniversary trip, so John and I will be out at the Magic Kingdom. Yeppers. CITRUS SWIRL HERE I COME.

30 comments:

  1. I just saw this tutorial: http://www.taradennis.com/create/bed-and-lounge/industrial-lampshade.html So if you have lampshades the right shape, you can turn them into cages!

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  2. DollDivine has tons of dress-up games like that. I found it through the sari game when designing dresses that my heroine would wear in my fantasy world, but I love those games. It has that exact steampunk one and a few more. It's actually one of my anxiety coping mechanisms, for when I feel panicky. It's super calming for me.

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  3. Seriously this is the best post ever! The jewelry is rad and there are cuff link for my boy! Plus the nifty dress up game. I bow to you!

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  4. Those light cages remind me of the cages around shop lights. I'm not sure what to call it, other than a shop light, but my husband has a few in the garage. They mostly have yellow bodies, but they all have similar metal cages on them. One broke once and I replaced it with a bent metal clothes hanger, which might work if you want a special fancy shape.

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    1. I had the same thought about the shop lights! You can always manipulate them to change their shape. Or if you want, you can try some soldering to mesh a few together to get a new shape as well.

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  5. Omg those triple lace boots i neeeds those for like everyday life

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  6. Oh no, dress up games are my weakness. Goodbye Saturday morning free time, lol. Thanks for this!

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  7. It looks like this is where the cage pendant lights come from. $449!!! Knowing you, I'm sure you can find a better way to DIY.

    http://www.shadesoflight.com/industrial-cage-work-light-chandelier.html

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  8. So cool that you posted about Steampunk Disney outfits b/c I'm going to my first con next weekend (yay!) and am dressing as Steampunk Cruella de Vil. Honestly it's more "Steampunk light" as I haven't had the time or $ to make it as awesome as I know it could be but I'm still excited about it.

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  9. Hey! I can contribute! Those particular cages look like the ridiculously expensive ones at http://www.shadesoflight.com/industrial-cage-work-light-chandelier.html.
    You're looking for industrial cage lights, or lamp guards. http://grassrootsmodern.com/blog/2011/01/06/vintage-cage-lights has some starting points.
    Good Luck!

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    1. Oh, wow, that second link is pure gold! Thank you!!

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  10. Looks like there's already some DIY advice for the cages! It seems like if nothing else, you could weld them yourselves, or just find some other kind of metal-frameworked something that you could appropriate as light cages.

    I too have avoided touching polyvore. Though it's interestingly one of the things I've seen recommended to me by tons of different circles... geeky friends love it, goth friends love it, super-into-fashion friends love it, the few "normal" people I know love it... It's probably only a matter of time before it sucks my soul in.

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  11. That was what I was thinking. That they are lampshades with the fabric stripped away. Or wire forms you can cover with fabric to make your own lampshades.

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  12. I think you're looking for something called a "trouble light safety cage." They come in a variety of styles, and the opening on the bottom of some folds open like a flower so you can get the bulb out. I found these for 25 bucks each: http://unionwoodco.bigcartel.com/product/light-bulb-cages

    (Also, I really want the bird from the steampunk Snow White. But the link is in Russian...apparently it's time for me to learn Russian.)

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    1. Oh, I can help you with the bird! It's by Jim Mullan, a Florida artist, and you can see more examples of his work (plus the one John and I bought from him!) here, or visit his website here.

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    2. And there's a shop half an hour from us that carries his work...oh, lovely!

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  13. Looks like the lights came from http://www.shadesoflight.com/industrial-cage-work-light-chandelier.html . Definitely much cooler in the aged iron look than the others....why is the cool stuff so expensive.

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  14. I can't figure out Polyvore either, but I look at it to help my daughter pick out outfits. :)

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  15. Offhand, I would suggest learning to weld for the DIY light cages. Yeah, yeah, but I'm a moderately crafty woman who is paranoid about lighting things like gas stoves and I took a welding class at the local community college. It was an art welding class and not a trade class full of serious guys, and I learned oxy acetylene (sp?) and MIG welding in just a few months. It's seriously cool, not nearly as hard as you think, and opens a HUGE variety of things I can do now. You and John should take an evening class together!

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  16. I had seen the light fixture you want within the last month and went a little crazy trying to find it again last night. Finally tracked it down--you can buy the fixture at Lazy Susan USA: wire five pendant lamp

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  17. Is it just me? Or does Sean's retro blaster on the blue background make anyone else think of Marvin the Martian?

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    1. That ray gun 'Atomyzer FX' was indeed inspired by Marvin The Martian, I'm so glad you could see it Christine :)

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  18. i'm so glad you liked the flash drive necklace - i drooled over his etsy store for quite a while. i am also super glad that there doesn't seem to be an easy way to purchase any of the boots from the polyvore pages, or i would be in serious trouble.

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  19. You could skip the cages and use Plumen light bulbs instead. They are the coolest bulbs I've ever seen. There are a few on ebay, but check the pictures at plumen.com first.

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  20. Just a thought on the light cages- what about garden fencing, like what tomatoes are grown on? Might work, and would definitely be cheaper

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  21. Did a quick search for metal light cages and found this link: http://grassrootsmodern.com/blog/2011/01/06/vintage-cage-lights

    None of the pictures would load for me, but there are links for pretty much everything you would need to make those hanging lamps, including various sockets, wire cages, vintage looking light bulbs, cloth covered cord, etc. Pricing is a little off since it's an older post, but all the links are still good.

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  22. Aw dang it. I just saw that someone else already posted the link I shared.

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  23. This link is for a website that sells all sorts of home decor. They only sell one item each day, and when the day is over, the item is gone. Click the link. A set of four cages is only $20!!

    http://www.decorsteals.com/?utm_source=Decor+Steals&utm_campaign=61c27863ef-bulb+cage&utm_medium=email

    Dayshel

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  24. Woot! Fellow Kiwi Steampunk person!' Time for the official national "NZ mentioned on something" party!


    There, that's my highly constructive comment. I'm obviously contributing outstandingly to the conversation. :P

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  25. months and months and months later, i've been reading through your archive, and my thought on tinkerbell is this ::

    i think she'd be a good potions master/mage.
    afterall, she can make you fly, or put you to sleep, or make you lose your voice.
    so maybe she splashes you with a potion to do it, or throws the potion like a smoke bomb at your feet and the smoke from the exploding potion causes the status effect.

    now i wish i felt confident enough to be a steampunk tink for halloween. don't think i have the legs for it, though, and she wears SHORT skirts. ;D

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