15 Pieces of Steampunk Jewelry to Steam Up Your Saturday

Will I ever get tired of steampunk jewelry? 

SIGNS POINT TO NO.

So come, glory in my addiction with me!

These steampunk "mad scientist" necklaces from Michelle of Steel Hip Design are blowing my mind:

 Mad Scientist Alchemy Pendant, $385

Glow in the dark Laboratory Pendant, $165

I lost hours drooling over everything in Michelle's shop, so brace yourself, and then go see. Her winged hearts are the most popular, and it's easy to see why.

This one makes me want to swish around in giant satin skirts:

Queen of Roses necklace, $250 

Swish swish swish.

Already sold, but I love this design by luminoddities:

I especially like the idea of incorporating old family photos into your jewelry!


One of the best (if not THE best) zeppelin necklaces I've found:

Zeppelin Flying Machine Necklace, $29 by UraniaArt

I only wish it came in more colors!

AlteredHistoryDesign has a few military-style pins perfect for steampunk, and this one in particular caught my eye:

Submariner Pin in Bronze, $12.95

This one's an upcycled drawer pull, so it's pretty big, but what a cool idea!

Antique Hardware Pendant, $55 from PieceLust

Speaking of big, this central gear seems like it might be a little scratchy, but WOW :

Victoriana Necklace, $68.73

Gorgeous!

I've shared GreenTreeJewelry's gorgeous kinetic wing gear pendant before, but I don't remember seeing this sweet propeller design before now:

Radial Propeller Engine Pendant, $35

This next cuff is made from old harness leather, and has the most brilliant key-clasp I've ever seen:

 Harness Leather Cuff, $65 by MakeShiftAccessories

The key is attached with a riveted penny on one side, and then hooks on the other to close the cuff. BRILLIANT.


And for a bit of sparkle:

Fairy Punk Flower Ring, $40

I suppose I should be grateful this next one is sold, too, or else I'd be out some serious cash right now:

Musical Pendant Sculptural Necklace, by faefactory, already sold

It's a tiny working music box! Or not the box, but the little cranky thing that goes inside. Um. I am not feeling so good with the words today. o.0

There are still a few similar designs available, though, like this one for $149:

And finally, my favorite designer Friston has a few more beauties available:

Steampunk Elegant Necklace N413, $62


Generally eye jewelry kinda freaks me out, I'm kind of falling for this pin:

Regal Brooch P412, $75

I have a couple of Friston's cuffs and big statement necklaces (including this one framed on my nightstand), and just adore them. Can't say enough good things about his work.

K, that's it for me! Happy weekend, everyone!

My New Death Star Lights!

You know how it is; you go to Ikea for a $10 frame, you come out with a couple hundred dollars' worth of home decor impulse buys.

No remorse this time, though, 'cuz lookie what I got!

 

 That's no moon...

My office has had two plain paper globe lights for years, so as soon as I saw the new Death Star light (aka the Ikea PS 2014) in person I knew it was time for an upgrade.

Here they are during the day:

And now at night!

The lights have colorful brackets inside, and come in either orange or a minty teal. Naturally, I got one of each. :) At night the colors REALLY show, casting warm orange and cool blue shadows, respectively:

Ah, but we haven't gotten to the best part of these lights: THEY'RE ALSO TRANSFORMERS!

Now witness the power of this fully armed and functioning pendant light!

This way I can crank open the globes to let out more light:

That's less than half-way open, taken at night.

And how's this for cute: the pulls are mini replicas of the globes!

You can also tuck the draw strings up into the light; there are two little cradles at the base to hold the pulls. It's a real pain to reach, but a nice option for that extra streamlined look.

I don't like the look so much when the lights are open all the way, but here's how that looks, during the day:

(Are you getting dizzy with all this switching from day to night shots? Ha!)

These still shed less light than my old paper globes, since the thick plastic shields block the light instead of diffusing it, but I think it's a fair trade to get something that looks this nifty.

And one final day shot:

(Everyone has an old shipping box on their desk for the cat, right? Maybe I should build a frame around it, so Lily fits in with the rest of the art. ;))

Now I'm off to finish some new projects in the garage. Toodles!

Quick Craft: Haunted Mansion Bottle Display

Like most DizGeeks I adore the Haunted Mansion, so of course I HAD to get one of these fantastic bottle stoppers modeled after the ride's iconic queue stanchions:

They cost about $20 in the parks, or the Disney Store has them for just under $15 online. They're incredibly heavy and beautifully detailed, so there's really just one problem: I'm not a wine drinker.

No problem, though; I came up with a display option that was super fun to make, and only costs about $3!

Ta-daaa!

This little purple bottle is the perfect size for the stopper, and Hobby Lobby has a whole range of colors to choose from. (They're normally $5, but you can pull up a coupon on your phone.)

The real fun, though, was making that label! If you look closely you'll see it reads "Madame Leota's Elixir," and the symbol in the middle is the classic Haunted Mansion wallpaper face:

Then at the bottom, in tiny print, it reads "Gracey Potions." Hehehehe.

I started with this free Halloween label, carefully erasing all the text and images and replacing them with my own. Then I aged it up with some warm yellowish browns, and, voila!

Click the pic to embiggen & download, so you can print your own. Depending on your printer you may have to adjust the color a bit; mine prints a lot more reddish, so I really had to bump up the yellows. If you use the same size bottle I did, print your label at 1.8 inches high.

Once I cut out the label & glued it in place with a glue stick, I used some watered down brown paint to add a few more spatter marks, smears, and drips. That extra wear & tear really helps sell the look!

And then, of course, I had to redo our back accent table in a Haunted Mansion theme, just so I'd have the perfect display spot:

 I like it. 

:)

Fun fact: the green gargoyle, Agnes, is the first gift John ever gave me. She looks right at home with my various antique finds and Haunted Mansion Mickey ears, don't you think?

*****

Come see ALL of my craft projects on one page, right here!

Festival of Fantasy, Part 3

Ok, time for the best part of the new Festival parade at WDW: the giant fire-breathing steampunk dragon!!

But first, a few fairies:

Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather come gliding out on special Segways hidden under their skirts. I love their new costumes; the cascading ombré effect is just lovely. Plus, check out those hats!

Prince Philip comes striding out directly behind them:

 ::Dramatic cape flip::

Philip starts out by battling these thorny stilt-walkers:

These costumes are a really cool way to bring Philip's battle through the thorns to life.

And once he's "vanquished" all the Thornies, iiiiit's SHOWTIME!

I'm not very happy with these shots, so here's a more dramatic one from Main Street:

 

And I promised you a little fire action, didn't I?

 

BOO-YAH:

This also gives you a nice idea of the dragon's massive scale. 

("Scale." Heh. Aheh. Heh.)

The dragon's legs move with the wheels, giving the impression that it's walking, and the massive neck and head have an impressive range of motion.

It's impossible to not feel a sense of awe as the dragon rolls past you, spouting flames:

Inside the dragon's belly is a thorn-encrusted spinning wheel; another fantastic nod to Sleeping Beauty's storyline:

Also inside the belly are a set of riveted metal doors, complete with gauges and piping reminiscent of an old industrial furnace:

I want to go to there.

The closer you get to the dragon, the more impressive she is. Every rivet, gear, and chunk of plated "skin" is exquisitely detailed:

I've read that all the parade floats (and many of the street characters!) have at least one hidden Mickey on them, btw, and that Maleficent's is on one of her back legs. Considering how big the floats are and how quickly they fly past you, though, finding them all is going to be a challenge!

Bringing up the rear of the Maleficent segment are more of my favorite costumes: these abstract ravens:

 The filigree masks are gorgeous, but the real showstoppers - if you can believe it - are their boots:

See the talons? The boots are stylized bird feet!

Ok, pick that jaw up off the desk, folks, 'cuz we're not done yet!

Here comes the whole gang! 

I know I keep going on about the costumes, but that Dopey-riding-Happy's-shoulders costume is GENIUS. The performer really works it, too, frequently looking down so the two dwarves appear to be making eye contact:

After the street load of characters from Snow White, Alice, and Pinocchio, come these fabulous Balloon costumes:

Apparently they sometimes arrange the balloons in their back bows into a hidden Mickey, but I didn't see one this time.

Love this pose:

These ladies have perfected the art of the sassy flounce, and I love it.

Next, the second massive float brought over from Tokyo DL: a three-parter celebrating Pinocchio, Dumbo, and Fantasia.

The little Ferris Wheel and swing set spin, along with the wind-up key in the side of the whale.

If you look closely (or click to embiggen) you can also see all the bubbles Dumbo is blowing. :)

You have to turn around to see Dumbo properly, since he's riding on the tail end (literally! Ha!) of the first whale section:

 Donald and Daisy are in the middle float:

 Followed by a massive spinning swing, complete with twirling hippos and crocodiles from Fantasia:

 The characters in the swings are pretty hard to see as the float gets closer, since they're directly overhead. I didn't get any shots of them at all last time, so these pics are from Main Street again.
 

 Next, more (yes, MORE) of my favorite costumes:

Everything about these circus tent dresses is pure fabulousness, right down to the swirly ribbon wigs:

 

Which brings us to the big finale float!

 

 Hot air balloon!! Woot!

Like everything here, it's beautifully detailed. Look at the roof section over Mickey & Minnie:

One last view as the parade leaves us behind:

And two more from Main Street:

Hope you guys enjoyed all the eye candy! I'd be embarrassed to tell you how long I've spent editing all these photos, but the truth is, I had a blast doing it. :)

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Congrats to Rose Dolphin, this month's art give-away winner! Please e-mail me your mailing address, Rose, along with your choice of prize from my Pinterest give-away board!