And speaking of steampunk, I found these whilst trawling Amazon the other day:
WHAT.
what what what what what
Whyyyyy did I spend my gift certificate!?
...oh, right. DARI CDs.
Showing posts with label Steampunk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Steampunk. Show all posts
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Like I needed an excuse to knit another dice bag.
And speaking of steampunk, I found these whilst trawling Amazon the other day:
WHAT.
what what what what what
Whyyyyy did I spend my gift certificate!?
...oh, right. DARI CDs.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Playing dress-up.
These are two I'm particularly fond of. Steampunk Natasha from last week and Mori-girl Natasha from today (all our mannequins are called Natasha, lol). I'm not sure of all the brands of the items, but I'll share which ones I do know.
Hat: vintage
Top: Weston Wear
Skirt: Hard Tail
Belt: vintage
Boots: vintage
Skirt: Flax
Bag: Chinese Laundry
I really like all the Flax stuff that's in stock, but the looks on their website are kind of frump. Such adorable little smock dresses!
Anyway, I love my job. xD
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Haven't done one of these in a while.
Inspired by the crisp, glorious weather that fall has brought me, at least for a couple of days. I would wear this in a second.
Also, AllSaints has started selling in the US! Right now, their only brick-and-mortar place is in the New York City Bloomingdale's, but at least I could get free shipping if I shop online. Yay for me, woe for wallet! D:
Saturday, September 12, 2009
A rake's progress...
Alright, I'll stop waffling on about social graces and get back to posting pictures of glamorous Neo-Victorians. Today is all about the well-dressed steampunk man.
Somehow, I can picture him in those alcohol commercials -- you know, the ones about "the most interesting man in the world"? Any of these guys would show up to their gentlemen's club with stories about how they can speak French in Russian and had an awkward moment just to know what it felt like.
I don't know what magazine these came from, or the photographer, but I found them over at LiveJournal on "steamfashion", which is generally populated with equally snappy dressers.
Somehow, I can picture him in those alcohol commercials -- you know, the ones about "the most interesting man in the world"? Any of these guys would show up to their gentlemen's club with stories about how they can speak French in Russian and had an awkward moment just to know what it felt like.
I don't know what magazine these came from, or the photographer, but I found them over at LiveJournal on "steamfashion", which is generally populated with equally snappy dressers.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Steampunk etiquette: you are what you wear?
As many of you may know, DragonCon just took place in Atlanta and all manner of reviews, photographs, and storytelling is popping up in nerdlike communities and forums all over the interwebs.
I came across a particular anecdote in one of the steampunk forums that for once made me do more than look wistfully at the photos, sigh, and wish I could have been there. The lady who posted this particular story had gone into a convention room and, finding that there were no more chairs available, became offended that none of the men in the room offered her his chair to sit in and bemoaned the lack of decent Victorian manners in the steampunk community.
Honestly, I was a bit surprised. The poster seemed to think that because we dress in Victorian style, we should behave with the accompanying Victorian mannerisms. This, I think, is pure nonsense, for the following reasons.
First of all, steampunk is obviously not Victorian reenacting. Hell, one of the common questions raised by steampunk newbies is "do I have to wear historically accurate clothing?", and the answer is invariably "what? of course not!" This is why we can have things like sexy airship pirates and mad scientists with time machines. These are some of the most iconic images of the style! Who will demand adherence to Victorian behaviour when the style itself doesn't demand adherence to historically accurate clothing? Or would one only expect such manners of people dressed as normal, proper Victorians, as opposed to crazy characters? Does that mean one needs to expect the sexy airship pirates to rob you blind, and then get offended when they don't behave according to their appearance?
Second, one cannot expect everyone to hold the same ideals, opinions, or standards, even within the same subculture. Where one person likes to dress up in a bustle and top hat on Halloween and for theme parties, another may wear an underclothes corset and have high tea on a daily basis, and yet another might just dress in long skirts and puffy blouses while living an otherwise completely 21st-century lifestyle. Just because one feels a particular way doesn't mean everyone else will -- or that they even have to, which I think is something everyone should take into consideration more often. The notion that men need to open doors for, walk on the road side of, and generally treat women like they're about to break has been discarded today by men and women alike -- it happens. Times change. And just because some of us like to dress up from another era doesn't mean we're not still living in the present day.
Thirdly, I think there is something of a shade of hypocrisy over someone who dresses anachronistically yet expects period manners of others. Steampunks mix Victorian styles with influences from many other eras, hence there exists steampulp, gaslight, clockpunk, etc. If one wants to hold steampunks to offering chairs to women, why not other mannerisms? Shall we insist that women must wear their corsets under their blouses (no self-respecting woman would have her undergarments displayed so inappropriately!) and grubby mechanics are not allowed to dine with characters of nobility? Of course not! But is it unreasonable of one to demand observance of particular customs while ignoring others, especially if one is insisting on holding to strict Victorian etiquette.
Also, the attitude that the poster took towards this subject quite put me off on its own. She said that because she was wearing a corset, long skirt, and heels, she should have been given special treatment because she was dressed in cumbersome clothing. In my opinion, if one's outfit for a convention (an event where one expects to stand in long lines, cram into panel rooms, sit on the floor, and be on one's feet for extended periods of time) is uncomfortable enough to the point where one feels like one should be entitled to displacing another person of their seat, one is wearing a poorly designed or planned outfit. Furthermore, despite the apparent seriousness of her plight, the poster declined to ask someone to volunteer their seat. Did she expect someone to read her mind? It was important enough to complain about on a forum, but not enough to quietly ask to borrow someone's chair?
To quote the poster, "if you want me to wear a corset, heels and a skirt again in the future, this sort of thing has got to change." The thing she ignored, however, is that no one has demanded that she dress in such a manner. She chose her own outfit, wore it of her own free will, and then became upset when no one catered to her when she decided she was uncomfortable. I also found it terribly amusing that the poster declared unless things change, she will start bringing her own chair to events where she would be similarly dressed. I don't know if this was jokingly suggested to close her post or not, but if the latter, I wonder if she would insist upon a male companion carrying said chair around for her because it isn't seemly for Victorian women to tote around anything heavier than a coin purse?
Finally, when it comes down to the line, honestly people, it's just clothing. Whether steampunk, Hollister-style prep, Lolita, scene, or any other style or subculture, the clothes one wears are no indication of the behaviour within, just like having a particular disposition does not automatically come with a dress code.
And to close, I feel like I should say that I am all for being considerate of others and not intentionally causing unnecessary trouble for people. But in this day and age when not everyone has the same set of appropriate social behaviours, and society itself does not hold everyone to the same obligations that it has in the past (and these obligations are even different across the nation), the best defense against feeling socially snubbed is to take care of yourself and not expect people to treat you as though they need to be looking out for you. They're not. They're taking care of themselves. And if that means you feel like you have to carry around your own chair for when your feet start to ache, so be it -- just don't come complaining to the internet when your chair-carrying arm gets tired. Or you could, y'know, not wear the uncomfortable shoes on convention day.
I came across a particular anecdote in one of the steampunk forums that for once made me do more than look wistfully at the photos, sigh, and wish I could have been there. The lady who posted this particular story had gone into a convention room and, finding that there were no more chairs available, became offended that none of the men in the room offered her his chair to sit in and bemoaned the lack of decent Victorian manners in the steampunk community.
Honestly, I was a bit surprised. The poster seemed to think that because we dress in Victorian style, we should behave with the accompanying Victorian mannerisms. This, I think, is pure nonsense, for the following reasons.
First of all, steampunk is obviously not Victorian reenacting. Hell, one of the common questions raised by steampunk newbies is "do I have to wear historically accurate clothing?", and the answer is invariably "what? of course not!" This is why we can have things like sexy airship pirates and mad scientists with time machines. These are some of the most iconic images of the style! Who will demand adherence to Victorian behaviour when the style itself doesn't demand adherence to historically accurate clothing? Or would one only expect such manners of people dressed as normal, proper Victorians, as opposed to crazy characters? Does that mean one needs to expect the sexy airship pirates to rob you blind, and then get offended when they don't behave according to their appearance?
Second, one cannot expect everyone to hold the same ideals, opinions, or standards, even within the same subculture. Where one person likes to dress up in a bustle and top hat on Halloween and for theme parties, another may wear an underclothes corset and have high tea on a daily basis, and yet another might just dress in long skirts and puffy blouses while living an otherwise completely 21st-century lifestyle. Just because one feels a particular way doesn't mean everyone else will -- or that they even have to, which I think is something everyone should take into consideration more often. The notion that men need to open doors for, walk on the road side of, and generally treat women like they're about to break has been discarded today by men and women alike -- it happens. Times change. And just because some of us like to dress up from another era doesn't mean we're not still living in the present day.
Thirdly, I think there is something of a shade of hypocrisy over someone who dresses anachronistically yet expects period manners of others. Steampunks mix Victorian styles with influences from many other eras, hence there exists steampulp, gaslight, clockpunk, etc. If one wants to hold steampunks to offering chairs to women, why not other mannerisms? Shall we insist that women must wear their corsets under their blouses (no self-respecting woman would have her undergarments displayed so inappropriately!) and grubby mechanics are not allowed to dine with characters of nobility? Of course not! But is it unreasonable of one to demand observance of particular customs while ignoring others, especially if one is insisting on holding to strict Victorian etiquette.
Also, the attitude that the poster took towards this subject quite put me off on its own. She said that because she was wearing a corset, long skirt, and heels, she should have been given special treatment because she was dressed in cumbersome clothing. In my opinion, if one's outfit for a convention (an event where one expects to stand in long lines, cram into panel rooms, sit on the floor, and be on one's feet for extended periods of time) is uncomfortable enough to the point where one feels like one should be entitled to displacing another person of their seat, one is wearing a poorly designed or planned outfit. Furthermore, despite the apparent seriousness of her plight, the poster declined to ask someone to volunteer their seat. Did she expect someone to read her mind? It was important enough to complain about on a forum, but not enough to quietly ask to borrow someone's chair?
To quote the poster, "if you want me to wear a corset, heels and a skirt again in the future, this sort of thing has got to change." The thing she ignored, however, is that no one has demanded that she dress in such a manner. She chose her own outfit, wore it of her own free will, and then became upset when no one catered to her when she decided she was uncomfortable. I also found it terribly amusing that the poster declared unless things change, she will start bringing her own chair to events where she would be similarly dressed. I don't know if this was jokingly suggested to close her post or not, but if the latter, I wonder if she would insist upon a male companion carrying said chair around for her because it isn't seemly for Victorian women to tote around anything heavier than a coin purse?
Finally, when it comes down to the line, honestly people, it's just clothing. Whether steampunk, Hollister-style prep, Lolita, scene, or any other style or subculture, the clothes one wears are no indication of the behaviour within, just like having a particular disposition does not automatically come with a dress code.
And to close, I feel like I should say that I am all for being considerate of others and not intentionally causing unnecessary trouble for people. But in this day and age when not everyone has the same set of appropriate social behaviours, and society itself does not hold everyone to the same obligations that it has in the past (and these obligations are even different across the nation), the best defense against feeling socially snubbed is to take care of yourself and not expect people to treat you as though they need to be looking out for you. They're not. They're taking care of themselves. And if that means you feel like you have to carry around your own chair for when your feet start to ache, so be it -- just don't come complaining to the internet when your chair-carrying arm gets tired. Or you could, y'know, not wear the uncomfortable shoes on convention day.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
I could pack my whole desk and take it with me, but only if I was a giant.
The Mayfair Steamer Secretary Trunk... !
Just close it up like a box when you're not using it!
Love the library catalogue drawers. And look, it even has a handle!
I had a doll when I was younger, and she had a little trunk like this to store her clothes and hats and things. Maybe I couldn't pack all my clothes into this, but the contents of my desk are pretty much my whole life anyway.
This awesome desk was just featured on The Steampunk Home. I wish I could put it in my steampunk home, but at $4000, I might have to just keep on wishing.
Just close it up like a box when you're not using it!
Love the library catalogue drawers. And look, it even has a handle!
I had a doll when I was younger, and she had a little trunk like this to store her clothes and hats and things. Maybe I couldn't pack all my clothes into this, but the contents of my desk are pretty much my whole life anyway.This awesome desk was just featured on The Steampunk Home. I wish I could put it in my steampunk home, but at $4000, I might have to just keep on wishing.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
"The Now Smash of Style."
I'm kind of split in my thoughts about this particular editorial. On the one hand, it's full of that elegant-but-choppy anarcho-Victorian style that I love so much, but on the other, it has enough tacky juvenile goth in it to make me pout. I think it's the spider-web tights and the fugly high platform boots. (And those terrible creepers! Ugh!)
I love the dirty texture of the necklaces and the skirt in this one.
The tights and the clunky goth boots are just ruining this. The contrived Alice bows aren't helping, either.
Ughhh, those dreadful shoes. Though I do love the shirt sleeves.
All the bad fishnet is just killing these outfits. Really? Ripped-up fingerless gloves? Those don't even say 80s material girl to me anymore. Just cartoon-y preteen punk.
Vogue Italia.
Photographer: Craig McDean.
I love the dirty texture of the necklaces and the skirt in this one.
The tights and the clunky goth boots are just ruining this. The contrived Alice bows aren't helping, either.
Ughhh, those dreadful shoes. Though I do love the shirt sleeves.
All the bad fishnet is just killing these outfits. Really? Ripped-up fingerless gloves? Those don't even say 80s material girl to me anymore. Just cartoon-y preteen punk.
Vogue Italia.Photographer: Craig McDean.
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