Nightmare Before Christmas Chair, Hogwarts Book, & Bob The Steampunk Robot

I'm in a little crafting slump that always comes after finishing a big project, but you guys give me the best get-off-your-butt-and-do-something inspiration over on Facebook.

First, Elizabeth C. shared the most beautiful thrift store chair makeover any Tim Burton fan could ask for:

She hand-painted the whole thing(!!), and the bat tie is made from stiff felt. LOVE. 

My favorite part is the soft aging on the seat pattern. That gives it so much dimension, I had to ask Elizabeth if it was actually paint, not fabric! 

Elizabeth started with an unfinished chair from Goodwill, and has guaranteed I will never walk past  one-off thrift chairs again without seeing potential nerdy accent pieces.

Next is something I fangirled over on the Epbot Facebook page a while back:

... which its creator Chelsea just mailed to me! 

This is another thrift store makeover: Chelsea found an old book (which is actually a story written by a teacher about her 3rd grade class, so how perfect is that?) and added the raised gold title and castle silhouette - and I believe that's all hand-painted, too, which boggles the mind. SO PERFECT. (Chelsea, how??)

Chelsea also did the spine, and hid a fun surprise on the first page:

:D

 Plus she made me a bookmark!

(D'awww. And it's not just in your head, Chelsea; we are TOTES BFFs now.)

And finally, just yesterday Epbot reader Dorean sent me a video snippet of her steampunk robot creation, Bob - but it turns out there's so much more to this dapper fellow than his gears and wee bottle of "Magical Elixir":

Dorean also sent me an e-mail, explaining how she was directed to Epbot by her daughter to learn what steampunk was, and how she quickly fell in love with all things gears-and-cogs. But more than that, along the way Dorean found commonality and inspiration and even a bit of courage. I don't want to post anything too personal, but suffice to say Dorean went to her very first Comic-Con last weekend... and she brought Bob! So this little guy is a symbol of great things, of happy things. And that makes ME so, so happy. 

(You can keep up with Bob's adventures at that link, or check out Dorean's blog here.)

Please keep sharing your projects on the Epbot FB page, guys! Even though I can't share everything, I DO see them all, and appreciate your links and photos and snippets more than you know.

Oh, hey, and while I've got you here, quick poll: what kinds of things do YOU want to make that you'd like more tutorials/help on? A few options I'm kicking around, though of course you're not limited to these:

- Cosplay accessories (props, hip bags, tiaras, etc.)

- Geeky fun furniture  (themed tables, shelving, storage)

- Jewelry from unusual finds (ie hardware store bits or sentimental things you have no other use for)

- Display shelves or frames for your toy collections (like POP figures)

- Display props (too many to list, but what movie/game/TV thing do you most want on your bookshelf?)

- Thrifted furniture makeovers (probably with a steampunk flair, because this is me, after all)

- Faux leather from EVA foam (great for steampunk bags & accents)

Feel free to be as specific as you want, because I DO take requests! Just no sewing, please. We all know how bad I am with sewing.  >.< 

(Then again, I can just make John do it, so... BRING ON THE SEWING.)