I am pleased
with my final outcome for this paper. I have designed and constructed two
steampunk costumes, that I think convey a strong understanding of steampunk
influences and styles. In my design development I designed two separate outfits,
however I think that the pieces from each outfit can be easily interchanged
with each other and still maintain that steampunk look.
I made all of
the garments for this project to be able to fit me, as I didn’t really feel
like spending large amounts of money on something that I would never be able to
wear! This also fit into the requirements of a garments to be submitted into
Hokonui as they needed to be a standard size 8, 10 or 12, and with me being a
standard (I hope) size 12 this fit perfectly. However in my designs, I did
consider that as these outfits will need to be modeled by someone else on the
runway at the Hokonui Fashion Competiton, I put thought into making them easily
fit a multitude of different shaped size 12 people. The only time that this
really became an issue was in the construction of my two crinolines, as I used
a strap of elastic for each waistband of the cage skirts so that it could
easily fit a variety of people, but when the elastic is stretched too far out
of where I originally measured it onto myself, the straps, which are secured on
an angle that sits nicely to my measurements sometimes need to be on a
different angle and make the downward straps pucker and sag.
As I barely
knew anything about steampunk fashion before I began this project, I did a
large amount of research in order to get a firm understanding of what the
culture, fashion, style, etc are actually all about. The main influences I
looked into were Victorian fashion, military uniforms and clockwork. I also
took some influence from old-fashioned airhostess uniforms. I believe that the
garments that I have created clearly demonstrate a myriad of these styles and
design elements in them.
Olive Green
Military Jacket
I used a thick stretch fabric for this
jacket so that it would stretch to fit any wearer within the size 12 category.
The thick fabric also has enough weight to it in order to create the required
structure of a tailored jacket. I lined the jacket in the same fabric as the
outer so that it would still be able to stretch properly. I applied patch
pockets with flaps to create the look of a military style jacket. I also added
padded shoulder and elbow detailing, influenced by fighter pilot styles. I used
epaulettes on the shoulders, as they are a motif of military uniforms. I
applied the Victorian stlye frill segment on the back as the garment had quite
a masculine vibe to it, and I believe that this adds a bit of femininity to the
look. When worn with a cage skirt underneath, the frill on the back of the jacket
creates a bum bustle effect, which is a typical silhouette of Victorian
fashion. I used the olive green (khaki green) colour as it fit in nicely with
my colour scheme, and is a colour typically related to military uniforms. The
little military patches add even more of a military vibe to the overall look.
Cog Embellished
Corset
I wanted to
make a corset, as they are probably the most commonly used garments in steampunk
‘cosplaying’. As I had never even seen a corset pattern, let alone made one
before, it proved to be quite a challenge for me to make from scratch. Luckily
however, lots of the avid steampunk fans happily share construction techniques
and tips on online blogs and forums etc. In the end I think that I achieved the
look I was going for with this corset as it effectively creates the Victorian
style cinched in waist look that I was hoping for with the use of the boning
and the thick duck canvas I sewed into the lining to give it strength. I used
cogs in a sequin fashion, as they are the most commonly recognised motif of
steampunkery. The way that I have hand sewn the individual cogs on at the top,
and not lower down isn’t because I was too lazy to sew them on, it was because
the cogs sit a lot flatter when they are glued, and the excess volume created
by them around the waist area detracted from the Victorian style hourglass
figure.
I arranged the
cogs in a gradient from gold to black (through brown) as I had come across the
ombre look in some of my research, and it is a trend in everyday fashion at the
moment that I thought may make my garment more appealing to the general public
too. This colour scheme is very typical of steampunk style and fashion. A
corset is an item of clothing that can fit a variety of people as the purpose
of it is to alter the body shape.
Vinyl Frill
Corset
This corset is
a variation on the pattern of my last corset. I raised the bottom at the hips
and applied a frill peplum to this area. I also lowered the front at the centre
to create a heart shaped neckline. Although this corset doesn’t create the
Victorian ‘cinched in waist’ effect I would have liked, as it is too high in
the waist, the way in which the frill pokes out the side exaggerates the hips
creates the hourglass figure in another way. The paneled leather look, with the
ombre dyed effect is very steampunky.
I had a few
problems with this corset. Firstly, I was unable to line the frill area of this
corset as I found it quite impossible to get the lining fabric to allow the
vinyl to retain its nice frill shape when they were attached to each other no
matter how many different pattern pieces I tried on it. I think that the fact
that the peplums were cut on the bias may have been responsible for this. It
was also quite important not to make any mistakes on the vinyl fabric as the
stitching created little holes in it that were impossible to remove.
The main
problem that I had however was the fact that I forgot to put a piece of boning along
the centre back seam of each side. This is important in order to stop the
eyelets from moving and tearing the fabric when they are stressed when the
corset is being pulled tight. I then had to unpick the vinyl in order to slip
some in, and then topstitch it in place along a curved edge (when the boning is
straight).
Sheer ‘Mullet’
Skirt
This skirt was
made to sit over the cage skirt that is short at the front and long at the
back, and allow you to see the thick black lines of the cage skirt underneath.
I applied Black cogs at the top that were dense, trickling into sparse in order
to tie in with the gradient effect of the Cog Embellished corset and create the
effect of a gown instead of separates.
Cage Skirts
I used elastic
to make the waistband of these cage skirts in order for it to be able to fit a
multitude of people. I made the hoops using (what I think is) the fiberglass
rods that you hang lace curtains on as they were the only thing that I could
find that held a good hoop shape without being too thick for creating the right
look for what I designed. They were however slightly thinner than what I had
hoped for so I found some clear tube to slot them in to that was the right
width. I spray painted the tubes in the right lengths black and gold depending
on which skirt they were for. I created a more interesting look with the spray
paint as I left some parts of the tubes less painted than others as it created
quite a cool texture.
I used these
cute little cable connectors that I found at Bunnings that have a real
steampunk look about them to secure the hoops together. I used black petersham
tape to secure the black cage skirt. I wanted to the black cage skirt to be
quite plain as it is to be covered with the sheer skirt. I gave it the ‘mullet’
shape however to give it a point of difference. This shape means that the skirt
makes lovely movements while being worn, which is very reminiscent of Victorian
style skirts.
I was actually
quite reluctant to hand in the brown and gold cage skirt, as I hate it because
it looks so homemade. After trying on the skirt with the other garments that I
have made however, I warmed to this skirt somewhat as I think that it actually
looks good with other garments and it’s just nothing special on it’s own. I
actually looked quite effective in my photo shoot.
Flight
Attendant Cap
I decided to
make a cap as I was taking influence from the style of airhostess uniforms.
However the hat that I made was a torrins cap that is a military style cap that
I think has quite a similar look to a flight attendant cap. I am really happy
with the outcome of this cap as I think that the olive green colour looks
really effective and with the addition of the chevron stripes on the side makes
a really effective complementary accessory to the military jacket that I made.
Velvet Bolero
I attempted to
make a velvet bolero jacket for this project. It has quite a Victorian style
shape, and I laser cut a cog pattern into the back to add a little steampunk
element to it. It also has a gold frogging opening that adds an element of
military uniform detailing to it. Unfortunately, velvet is not a nice fabric to
sew with, especially to sew to a silk lining fabric. After having to unpick it
what felt like thousand times because it slid around while I was sewing it, it
ended up resembling a dogs breakfast. Although I did my best to fix it and
present it to the best of my ability, I do not consider it up to a high enough
standard to submit for marking, and I may have to get a bit more practice with
using velvet before I attempt it again.
