My oldest turned 15 a week ago. My mind is still adjusting to that number. I'm not exaggerating when I say it just feels like I was just bawling my eyes out as I registered him for kindergarten.
Anyway, I thought he'd be getting past wanting a themed birthday this year - being such a big bad teenager and all. I was wrong.  And when he said the word "steampunk," my heart was all aflutter!

Not being typical party gear, this required going completely from scratch - a banner, steampunked  water guns for party favors, metallic paper plates/napkins, and cupcakes decorated with cream frosting sprayed lightly with silver edible spray (my new favorite thing!) and topped with mustaches (of course!).

Steampunk Water Guns

The true icing on the cake, metaphorically speaking, were the party favors.  I got the idea from - of course - Pinterest. Simple water guns transform into futuristic/retro Steampunk beauties! 

 I made a dozen, and though the gun base shape was the same, no two guns were identical once I finished. Can I tell you the ridiculous amount of joy I got out of this project?
Seriously, some times I wonder if I've grown up at all.

Materials Needed:

Standard Water Guns (dollar or thrift store)

Krylon 2340 Fusion Spray Paint, Espresso

Rust-Oleum 249131 11 oz Universal All Surface Spray Paint, Oil Rubbed Bronze Metallic

Acrylic Paints, Varied Metallic shades

Acrylic Paint, Black

Paint Brushes, per preference (a detail brush & a larger brush for dry brushing)

Krylon 2444 'Fusion for Plastic' Clear Plastic Paint - 12 oz. Aerosol

I started out with wildly bright dollar store squirt guns.  I was drawn to these particular guns by the shape, the easy fill water tank, and the steampunk feel to the rivets and pipe-like parts.

Hanging all 12 guns along a string so I could get every angle painted easily, I started with a base coat of Krylon Fusion spray paint made specifically to bond with plastic. (note: while this worked flawlessly on the body of the guns, the water tanks have shown wear and tear, peeling down to the green - in other words, not "bonding" like the paint claims. I think it's because the water tanks are soft, flexible plastic.  Next time I'll go for completely hard surfaces when I purchase guns. I don't think soft plastic can ever be completely "primed".  However, the guns still look cool because the bits of green showing through look toxic and quite awesome.)

After the brown base coat, each gun received a coating of metallic bronze spray paint.  If I could have found the Fusion paint in a metallic, I would have skipped this step.  However, I wanted to ensure the bonding of the paint with the plastic.  Thus the brown primer coat, THEN the bronze metallic topcoat.

Now for the detailing. Using acrylic paints in antique gold, bright silver, and true copper, paint the rivets, hoses, pipes, handles, fins, anything that could stand out.   I used a dry brush technique with the gold, silver and bright copper to achieve a non-streaked, true metallic appearance, particularly with the water tank which would have streaked and looked fake to try and paint solidly.

To dry brush, take a very little bit of paint onto the corner tip of a large brush or sponge. I found it helps to play around with it on a piece of wax paper first to distribute the paint a little. Then in quick, almost smashing motions, wipe and blot the paint onto the gun, concentrating on nooks and crannies.

After the color dries, repeat this dry brush technique with black over the whole gun.  I found it particularly helpful with the black to have a paper towel on hand to wipe areas I got over-aggressive with.  The combination of dry-brush and wiping with a paper towel created the exact aged look I wanted - even if it isn't an approved artistic technique ;)  It really made the details pop.

The guns went back on a line for a final clear coat (again, using the paint specific to plastic).  It probably wasn't totally necessary, but I wasn't taking any chances. I didn't want any of my hard work rubbing off, especially since mine weren't decorative, they were for real water play.   They looked SO cool hanging all in a line that I couldn't stop taking pictures.

I was so tickled with the way they turned out! More importantly, all the birthday guests were totally over the moon.  We had quite the steampunk water war in our backyard that night (and ever since!).  I included some close-ups at the end of this post to show how many possibilities can come from one gun.

Banner:
I used card stock I had on hand in browns, greens and copper tones.  The font is called exotica and can be downloaded for free from Steampunk Font. I also used KG Flavor and Frames, another free download on dafont . It has frames, mustaches, glasses, etc.

Since my banner spans a room rather than hanging against the wall, I like to have something fun on the back as well.  I printed off a few steampunky images to throw on the back. 

And the most essential element was gears.  I cut them out of dark brown & copper metallic card stock. The entire banner is simply sewn together using my sewing machine.  It's the crazy simplest way to make a banner, and it holds up really well. One lesson I learned is that the gears that were sewn through at exact center spun around all the time, which was super cool. 

Food

Cupcakes are not the most creative steampunk item I could have come up with, but they were super yummy and I love, LOVE how cool they look sprayed with Wilton Color Mist. The metallic colors are simply amazing!
 

Who can resist mustaches?

And while they've become very vogue lately, they are decidedly steampunk, and make suave cupcake toppers as well as hilarious favors and photo props! Mustache Party Food and Cupcake Picks - 25 ct

Pop the silver metallic cupcakes and some ice cream on gold metallic plates (from the dollar store) and bronze metallic napkins (Hobby Lobby), and you've got stylish steampunk! 

Bonus Photos:

Some more glamor shots of the guns - I couldn't pick a favorite.

For Easter this year, under pressure from how much I loved last year's dresses, I decided to turn to one of my most prized possessions: a collection of vintage sewing patterns that my Grandma gave me when her arthritis made it too difficult for her to sew any more.

 I love these old patterns for several reasons. First off, they don't skimp on anything. There is an assumption of quality over quickness that most patterns now choose to reverse. Quick, boxy, and as simple as possible is today's rule.  But these old patterns use lining when the shortcut would be a turned under hem, stuff like that.  Speaking of hems, the girls' dresses call for a 2 to 3 inch hem that gives a gorgeous weight to the bottom of the skirt!! The skirts are always gathered in SO tightly that I always wonder if I'm going to actually be able to get it all in around the waist. My girls notice & appreciate the difference immediately in the twirl-ability of the magnificently full skirts!

 Second, these patterns fit my girls' bodies. Most contemporary patterns I have to modify for my tall, thin girls. For my oldest girl, who is nine years old, for example, I usually cut a size 5 or 6, then use the size 8 or 10 length in order to get it to not drown her in fabric. These older patterns just seem to assume a slimmer build throughout - from shoulder breadth to arm diameter.

Pattern used for the Classic Sailor Dress - FANTASTIC pattern!

There are drawbacks, however, to using the older patterns. They are, typically, more difficult. Not just because of the level of quality, but also because the directions are obscure and vague. Instead of step-by-step, assuming any sewer may be a novice, these patterns will include steps such as "attach cuff to bottom of sleeve," without any picture, diagram or further instruction. How does the cuff attach? Is it right sides together? It folds back on itself, how is that achieved without showing the raw edges? I find myself pinning and visualizing a LOT as I try to negotiate steps that the instructions assume I already know how to do. But is it worth it? You tell me!

 For my youngest, I chose a classic Sailor dress with the main flair being the bright yellow.  Evey's favorite, favorite color is yellow and she begged and pleaded for a yellow easter dress.  When I found this gorgeous deep sunshine color, I was happy to oblige. I love the yellow with the traditional blue & white of nautical styling.

I'm often asked about fabric choices for dress sewing, so here is a quick thought.  I LOVE a poly-cotton blend for little girls' dresses.  It is harder and harder to find in this world of 100% cotton for quilters, but it washes like a dream, never ever has to be ironed, and doesn't seem to hold on to stains.  It is my go-to fabric for any dress that has gathers or pleats.  Now, it isn't fancy - so it won't do for flower girls' dresses or special occasion if fru-fru is desired - but for a good ol' bright, easy to sew, easy to wear, fabric, I love my simple poly-cotton, which is what this dress is made out of.  The yellow, navy and white are poly-cotton (also used the white for a sewn-in slip).  The striped inset is one of those crazy "unknown content" bolts.  So far it seems to be ok.  I also used grosgrain ribbon for all the trim.  I love grosgrain for the way it lays flat and cooperates.

 

My great joy on these dresses was the silly navy & white stripey buttons, which I found in my sewing drawer.  Just a lovely serendipity.  No idea where I originally purchased them. They appear on the front of Evey's dress, on Chloe's belt, and down the back of Chloe's dress.

For Chloe, I opted for a truly vintage look.  The cornflower-blue fabric (again, a simple poly-cotton) was perfect for the retro-feel, and enabled me to coordinate the girls' outfits without having them actually match.  I didn't want the square sailor collar, so I got creative.  Had to combine a couple of patterns to get the look I wanted, but that's less unusual for me than making a dress with just one pattern!  I did have to improvise the cuffs and tie myself, but that wasn't hard.  Chloe wanted me to keep the skirt longer than the pattern called for, so I didn't get the big, deep hem the pattern called for, but I agree with her that the longer skirt gives it a charming look.

Finally, for Lily, since she's the oldest, I wanted something a little more mature while still being little girl.  I browsed ideas online and found a lady's pattern that inspired me to create this more contemporary dress that, while not a sailor dress, still has nautical elements.  Again, I had to use a couple of different patterns to get what I wanted, but no vintage patterns for this one. Working with stripes makes me want to pull my hair out by the roots - especially when I didn't have much to work with and kept cutting the pieces the wrong direction, but it all worked out, so... *big sigh*.  I doubled the skirt with just an inch difference, and added white grosgrain ribbon trim along the edge, which is sweet and gives a lot of movement.  As tall and thin as Lily is, I think the dropwaist is perfect!!

Of course, the original intention of the dresses was for Easter (though they made for darling pictures at the lake, too!  Bonus for mommy!).  Here are some pics of how they performed on the big day.  Note how adorable Chloe was with Easter gloves - one relative commented that she looked like she belonged as a permanent resident of Main Street, USA at Disneyland :)

So cute with gloves! Very proper!

And of course, I do have the boys as well.  I don't sew much for them any more (though I did have to alter a ridiculously long tie recently - that was a feat!), so they don't really get featured here on the crafty blog, but they did coordinate and look fabulous and get their pictures taken a lot too.

And lest my pictures make anyone think that my kids are always prim and proper and well behaved and perfect... REALITY:

After my post about Vintage lace Easter Dresses, I received some questions about the lace rose hair accessories I made to go along with the dresses.
I knew what I wanted my flower barrettes and headbands to look like, but was surprised to find very little by way of tutorials for DIY lace roses online when I went looking.  Lots of paper flowers, felt flowers, super cute stuff - but nothing with the vintage look I wanted.
So, by trial and error, I just figured it out myself based mostly on instructions to make fabric flowers to add to sashes on dresses.
Here is my tutorial to make vintage inspired roses that can be used for hair, or attached to clothing, or whatever creative ideas you can come up with.  I find them enchantingly sweet!

PREP:
1- Run a gathering stitch along edge of lace (I used a 40 inch length for the flower in this tutorial - about a yard is average, longer for larger roses, shorter for tiny lace)
2- Use the thread from the gathering stitch to thread your needle
3- Gather lace piece.  Doesn't need to be exact, you'll adjust as you go - it just gets it started

CENTER OF ROSE:
4- Weave needle in and out along one cut edge of lace to create a gathering stitch
5- Pull thread tight to gather and loop thread around and pass needle back through
6- Pull loop tight into a knot, tying off the rough edge into a teardrop shape
7- To form the center of the rose, hold the knot and wrap gathered lace around once.
8-Turn over onto the back side and pass the needle through all layers several times.

ROSE BUD:
9 - To form the part of the rose that stands up around the center like the bud of the rose, wrap tightly gathered lace around the center about three times.
10- Pass the needle and thread through all layers several times until it feels pretty solid.

OUTSIDE BLOOM OF THE ROSE:
11- Arrange the gathers of the remaining lace to be more loose.  Wrap around the center "bud" in a flat fan-like circle.
12- Pass needle and thread through outside layer toward the very center.
13- Continue all around the circle, sewing outside layers toward the center and finally folding the end flap over and sewing down into the center.  Knot the thread and clip any dangling strings.

FINISHING:
14- Once the rose is finished, sew or glue (I was lazy and just used fabric glue) a fabric base to the back of the lace rose, and then sew or glue the barrette, clip, or headband.  They would look prettier if I had covered the alligator clips with ribbon, but they tend to stay in my girls' hair better without, so...

These smaller flowers are made with tiny lace then joined on one shared fabric base and an alligator clip.  The pearl centers are both glued and sewn in place.

A dollar-store headband, covered in fabric, then covered in a beautiful antique lace, has two roses sewn on.  The rose from the tutorial is the one on this headband.  I opted for no pearls or gems in the centers on these roses, as the lace formed such lovely bud shapes that they were gorgeous all on their own. 

This biggest of the roses used a 45 inch piece of lace and three pearls sewn (and glued - I'm uptight sometimes) into the center.  Notice how the three sections of the rose form its shape - the center "nest", the "bud" section with the lace standing up, then the outside surrounding "bloom" laying flat.