Because it's pretty

I just wanted to share this photograph that I took this morning of the lavender growing on my balcony. It's spring here in Sydney, and there is much to celebrate. I hope to have more recipes, ideas and decorations for the Steampunk-style party I'm planning soon.

Coupe Yvette au Sherry

After writing my previous post, I did a bit more research into the puzzling Coupe Yvette au Sherry on the menu.

First clue: From the New York Public Library, I found a menu from the Savoy Hotel, London, that lists Coupe Yvette aux Paillettes as the second of eight courses at a dinner to celebrate American Independence Day, 1925. This suggests that it was served between the canapés and the entrée at the Savoy in that era. Paillettes, I believe, are straw-like wafers, a bit like crispy strips of crêpes.

Second clue: The same NYPL menu archive also has mentions of Coupe Yvette in menus from the Hotel New Yorker, 1937 – where it's listed under Ice Cream – and the Fifth Avenue Restaurant, 1917 – where it's with the desserts. This suggests that perhaps it is a sorbet-type dish, that might have been served as a palate-cleanser between the courses.

That would go very well in my steampunk style menu, as it sits between the oysters and salmon and a chilled soup. The question is, can I make a sorbet using Creme Yvette and sherry?

I also found this recipe, from a book called The Hostess of To-Day by Linda Hull Larned, in the Sherbets chapter:

No. 391. Creme Yvette
35 cts.
A : 1 pt. Lemon Ice No. 639 (Water Ice) : B : 4 tbsps. Creme Yvette cordial : C : 18 fresh violets. Add B to A before freezing, (ill glasses, add 2 or '■'• of C to each glass.

Read more: http://chestofbooks.com/food/recipes/The-Hostess-Of-To-Day/Sherbets.html#ixzz26nff4S3V

First course

I've started researching the menu for my proposed Steampunk Party, based on the fare offered at the Savoy Hotel in London on the occasion of H.G. Wells's 70th birthday. The first items on the menu were, according to my source, Huitres Natives and Saumon Fume. It's pretty easy to translate those as oysters natural and smoked salmon, which sound like delightful openers to a sumptuous meal.
I'm a seafood lover, so I'm happy to serve both of those dishes just as they come. Click on the picture at right for an amusing account of eating oysters à la Belle Époque, courtesy of Oysters.US. Pacific oysters, shells opened, piled on a platter with perhaps some lemon wedges and delicate triangles of buttered white bread on the side. Champagne, of course, is the perfect accompaniment.
Smoked salmon is served thinly sliced, either on its own or mounted on thin slices of toasted French bread, with a swirl of horseradish cream and a sprig of dill. These make great canapés to be eaten with the fingers while your guests circulate before sitting down at the table.
The third item on the menu, Coup Yvette au Sherry, is more difficult to decipher. My first attempt at researching this made me think that it is a cocktail featuring a popular 1930s violet-flavoured liqueur, Creme Yvette. Made of berries, violet petals, honey and orange peel, this liqueur is often combined with gin in cocktails such as the Blue Moon, or with champagne in the Stratosphere. Using sherry instead of the gin or champagne seems reasonable, although I have not yet obtained a bottle of Creme Yvette so that I can try it for myself. I would suggest a dry sherry, a squeeze of lemon juice, stirred over ice and strained into a cocktail coupe (hence the "coup" in the title).
This sounds like the kind of drink that Wells would have enjoyed, but it bothers me as an explanation because it is the only cocktail or drink item mentioned on the menu, apart from coffee. In this context, Coup Yvette au Sherry seems more likely to be a hot seafood dish with an Yvette sauce. Yvette sauce begins with a roux, to which are added sherry, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper, Swiss cheese and cream. The sauce is poured over chopped prawns, lobster meat, spinach and mushrooms. That also sounds like something Wells would have enjoyed. Which would you include on your steampunk menu?
I still like the idea of trying the unusual Creme Yvette cocktail, but perhaps I'll serve Stratospheres as an aperitif with the oysters and smoked salmon canapés, before adjourning to the steampunk-decorated table to eat the hot seafood sauce dish.

Pandora's hatbox

Pandora's Hatbox is surprisingly easy to make. You can follow the steps in the blog posts I've been making or, if it's easier for you, buy a fully illustrated step-by-step guide to doing it for just USD$5.00 at my etsy store. Don't forget to come back to the blog next week to see what my next project will be.

Party time

When I was reading Michael Coren's biography of H.G. Wells, my imagination was caught by the description of the menu for Wells's 70th birthday party, at the Savoy Hotel in London. Opulent dishes that graced the several courses included huitres natives, souffle glace de Rothschild, and something called Coup Yvette de Sherry, which I can only assume is a cocktail based on Creme Yvette, a favourite 1920s violet liqueur.

Ever since I read about this extravaganza, I've wanted to hold a steampunk party featuring the dishes listed (or some version of them), with steampunk-style invitations, table decorations and even games. Over the next few weeks I'll be putting my party plan together and featuring some of the recipes and decorations on this blog.

Now, I just need to find someone to make one of these gorgeous steampunk cakes for me. (Tip of the tophat to Airship Ambassador for the link.)

Purple lining

Here's how I made the lining for Pandora's Hatbox.
I used spray-on fabric glue (spray it onto both the inside of the hatbox and the back of the fabric for best adhesion) for the sides of the box and lid, then secured the edges with quick-grip liquid craft adhesive. The first step is to apply the lining around the inside of the barrel of the hatbox; after I'd glued down the edge I used bulldog clips to hold it in place while it dried.

To make the lid and base lining, I first traced the base of the hatbox twice onto cardboard and cut out two discs (cut about 5mm or a quarter inch inside the traced line so that the discs will fit inside the box). Then I gathered one edge of a strip of fabric very tightly to form a circle. With the gathered edge in the centre of the cardboard disc, turn the whole thing over and gather the other edge of the fabric so that it draws up on the other side of the disc.

I glued these fabric-covered discs into the lid and the base of the hatbox. (Note that I said last week that I was going to use paper to line the lip of the lid, but I decided to use the fabric because it was quite thin.) Apply the glue in the centre and around the outer edge of the disc, then use a couple of heavy books to squash it into place while the glue dries.

The final step is to add a button to cover up the gathered edges in the centre. I made these buttons by gathering a small circle of the fabric over a small, round badge, then glued them in place (I used the heavy books again). I'll post pictures of the finished hatbox in a day or two, when I've got the full instructions ready in my etsy store.

Monday marvel

Did everyone see the fabulous steampunk closing ceremony of the 2012 Paralympic Games? In case you missed it, here it is in full:

Over the past two weeks I've really been inspired by all of the paralympians, by their determination and humility and generosity of spirit. I can only aspire to have the same greatness of heart and soul as some of these superhumans.

Friday fashion

Although it was written several years ago, I like this blog post by G.D. Falksen, outlining six simple rules of steampunk fashion. Yes, I know rules are made to be broken, but for newbies like me it can sometimes help to have a standard to measure yourself against while you find your feet.

And if you think you've got it together on the steampunk style front, you can always take the Steampunk Style Quiz.

Every hatbox has a lining

I've sent you to Marinni's LiveJournal page before, for gorgeous vintage hat and hatbox images. That's where I got this inspirational pic for a hatbox lining. Mine will perhaps not be quite so fancy because I have to allow for the fitting of the lid on my papier mâché box.

For my lining, I'm going to recycle some crinkly silk-look fabric from an old favourite skirt whose seams have passed their use-by date. This will be applied to a cardboard insert cut to fit inside the lid and base of the box, as well as inside the barrel of the box. I'll use paper inside the rim of the lid, to save thickness and make sure that the lid still fits on the box!

Travelling light

While shopping for trimmings for Pandora's Hatbox, I picked up these gorgeous vintage-look 3D stickers from The Paper Mill at my local art supply store. How cute are they? I can't wait to find a use for them, perhaps along with some pages from the giant atlas that I found at the op shop.

Pandora's hatbox

To finish Pandora's Hatbox, I used gold thread to gather the top edge of the braid so it will sit flat. I had already drilled the holes for the split pins, so it was simply a matter of securing them. Now I only need to add the lining: check back in a couple of days to see how. If you want all the instructions, I'll have the pattern in my etsy store soon.

Goings-on

Last week I attended a book-themed fundraiser to aid research into Multiple Sclerosis. The evening was a lot of fun, and included a book swap where we were encouraged to offload our old books and purchase (very cheaply) those that others had donated. It was interesting to see which books people wanted to part with!

I thought myself lucky to have stumbled across a copy of The Not-so-very-nice Goings-on at Victoria Lodge (Faber & Faber, 2004), a humorous tale told with the aid of original illustrations from the nineteenth century "Girls Own Paper". Philip Ardagh's interpretation of the pen-and-ink sketches that once illustrated harmless stories about the lives of young ladies made me laugh!

Friday fashion

Looking for more steampunk fashion inspiration? Check out Brian Kesinger (of Tea Girls fame)'s Tumblr blog.

Studs in Pandora's hatbox

Today I began applying the studs to Pandora's Hatbox. The studs I'm using are gold-coloured split pins that I bought from a scrapbooking supplies store. I bought them in two sizes, 8mm for the braids and 4mm for the monogram.

I'd originally planned to punch the holes for the pins with an awl, but I found that the shape of the round hatbox made this too difficult to manage and so I switched to a hand-held electric drill with a fine (2mm) bit instead.

First I drilled the holes through the braids on the sides of the hatbox, starting about 6mm (a quarter of an inch) above the base and spacing them evenly up the braid. As you can see from the image above, I stopped below the point where the lid will reach.

The next step was to refer to my my visual journal. I copied the monogram that I had sketched in the journal onto a sheet of scrap paper and taped it onto the centre of the hatbox lid. Then I drilled the holes for the studs right through the paper and the leather-covered lid.

The easiest part is placing the studs; simply push the split pins through the holes and flatten the tabs at the back to hold them in place. For extra security, I turned the lid over and laid it stud-side down on a folded towel, then pressed the tabs even flatter by  tapping them with a tack hammer.

Postcards from the edge

After its recent safe arrival on Mars, the Curiosity lander has been sending gorgeous postcards home to make us wish we were there. I love the colours in this landscape: from taupe to turquoise. I can feel some inspiration for interplanetary craft (projects). Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Pandora's braids

The next step in my faux Victorian leather hatbox is adding gold braid to replicate the brass strips that decorate the original object. I've chosen three different braids, including a woven braid with a line down the centre that will work to cover the edge of the lid.

I used a quick-grip clear adhesive to attach the strips, although they will eventually be secured with brass split pins as well. One long strip was glued around the top of the lid, with half of the braid left standing: once the glue has dried, I'll slightly gather the top edge of the braid so that it sits flat and evenly on top of the lid, before adding the brass split pins.

On the base, I cut strips of the different braids and applied them evenly around the barrel. Now I'm leaving it overnight for the glue to dry before moving on to the next step.

If you like the look of this project, please check out my etsy store to see the patterns I have available for steampunk style craft projects.

Add to your reading list...

I haven't read any of Adam Browne's work before, but I'm very tempted to pick up a copy of this just-published book, which includes gorgeous illustrations by the author. For more information, and to see some of the artwork, click on the image and you'll be taken to the publisher's blog.

Friday fashion: steampunk Gaultier

Tophats and tails! Have you seen Jean-Paul Gaultier's Autumn/Winter 2012/13 haute couture collection? Take particular note of the men's corset at around four minutes into the video. Or at 07.20: are those stretch velvet leggings? Bring back the codpiece, I say. Naturally, the collection finishes with an amazing wedding dress based on a white Victorian-style tailcoat worn backwards. Enjoy!

Pandora's hatbox in leather

The first stage in the decoration of Pandora's Hatbox is to cover it in the faux crocodile skin fabric I bought at the craft store. One tip to note when planning to use this type of vinyl fabric is that it can easily be marked by scratches in the store, and it will also develop creases if you fold it. I stored my fabric by hanging it from the clips of a skirt hanger until I was ready to use it, but you could also wrap it around a cardboard mailing tube.
After you've carefully measured the box you want to cover, you can mark the pieces on the back (fabric) side of the vinyl and cut them out. I used a spray-on craft glue to adhere the larger pieces to the hatbox (the top of the lid and around the barrel).
Before I added the strip around the edge of the lid, I used a craft knife to cut four slits evenly around the edge (you can see one in the picture); this was because the lid was a pretty tight fit even before I added the vinyl covering to the barrel and I needed to make room. The slits will be hidden by the vinyl strip. I also worked around the edge of the lid with a pair of fabric shears to trim off excess vinyl, although I didn't worry too much about getting an exact fit, as the edges will be covered by the trim eventually.
For the edge strip, I used a liquid craft glue which I spread over the back of the strip. I did this for two reasons: to ensure a stronger bond on a part of the box that will get a lot of wear and tear, and because it would have been a pain in the neck to protect the vinyl that was already applied to the lid while I was spraying adhesive.
At the same time, I covered the small cardboard suitcase with the same vinyl fabric. This was a little trickier than the hatbox because of the handle and catch, which couldn't be removed. The excess bits of vinyl in the picture are just there to protect the finish from being marked by the bulldog clips that are holding the vinyl in place while the glue dries. I won't go into details here, but if you want tips on how I cut the vinyl to fit around the fixtures, join my email list (use the box in the sidebar) and I'll let you know when the full pattern and instructions will be available.

More objects of desire

Looking for inspiration for the lining and cover of my Pandora's Hatbox, I came upon this blog. I can't read the Cyrillic captions, but the pictures are drool-worthy.

Pandora's hatbox

Remember the $5,000.00 Victorian leather hatbox I coveted a month or so ago? Of course I can't afford to buy it, so I've decided to make my own. At the craft store I bought a plain cardboard hatbox (and a cute little suitcase, too), then headed for the fabric counter for some faux crocodile skin vinyl and other trim and accoutrements. I may have gone a teeny bit berserk in the haberdashery section, with braid and tape and studs and so on....  I'll post step-by-step updates as I complete each stage of the construction.

Finally, a map of the future!

If you have been patiently waiting to see the finished Map of the Future visual journal cover, please accept my apologies. I've been unable to sit at my computer for several weeks now due to a compressed disc in my spine – ouch! The project is now finished, and I've been scribbling away in the journal with more ideas for designs and patterns while I've been ill, so please come back to this blog soon to see what's next. 

After completing the embroidery of the map I had fun finding and adding the brass embellishments shown here, including the compass of cogs and watch parts, the ornate brass hinges and the hasp-and-staple lock to keep it safe.

The pattern and full step-by-step instructions are available from my etsy store, if you would like to make your own visual journal cover. And please add your email address to my mailing list using the form in the sidebar if you'd like to know when new patterns and designs are available.

Friday fashion

Buy Brian Kesinger's steampunk mouse T-shirt design from welovefine.com. Congratulations to Brian on winning the first ever Star Wars T-shirt design competition!

Stephenson's locomotive

My calendar tells me that on this day in 1814, George Stephenson successfully demonstrated his steam locomotive. And the world changed...

Map of the Future embroidery

With the embroidery for the Map of the Future visual journal cover complete, today I have rinsed the whole piece of fabric in lukewarm water to remove the water-soluble fabric marker, and spread it out to dry. Because it's linen, I won't let it dry completely before I iron it, pressing from the back on a soft towel so as not to flatten the stitches. There's just a little more preparation (which I'll discuss in detail in the pattern that will soon be available from my etsy store*), and then it will be time to assemble the cover and put it on the visual journal.

* If you'd like to be informed when the pattern is available, simply sign up for the newsletter in the sidebar. I'll email you when a new pattern is available, and I promise I won't contact you for any other sales or marketing.

Friday fashion parade

Chanel can always be relied on to have a steampunk element in the collection (Karl Lagerfeld often dresses like a time traveller). The gauntlets and Peter Pan collar on this outfit, for example, give a simple black velvet dress a touch of steampunk. Click on the photo to see the whole Autumn 2012 collection for more inspiration.

Decorating the landscape

The embroidery for the Map of the Future visual journal cover is almost done. I've used fairly simple embroidery stitches, and kept details to a minimum: waterways, major roads, parks and bushland. I'm tempted to add signposts to my favourite cafés, bookshops and cinemas, but I might find that the map is complicated enough by the time I've finished all the little French knot trees.

There will be instructions in the pattern detailing which colours and stitches I used, including photographs showing how to do the embroidery stitches. Keep an eye out here on my blog, or sign up in the sidebar to receive an email when the pattern is available in my etsy store.

Morlocks... er, more locks

A trip to my local hardware store yielded this bonanza of fancy brass catches, hinges and hasp-and-staple locks, one of which will be perfect for the Map of the Future journal cover, while the others will come in handy as decorations for belts, bags and other steampunk accessories in the future.

Map of the future

I'm making a cover for my visual journal that will feature an embroidered map of my local area. The first step is to cut the fabric slightly larger than the finished size of the cover (so that it can be held in an embroidery hoop), then mark the outlines of the map design using a water-soluble fabric marker. Here's a tip: if you make a mistake with the marker, simply redraw the line then use a cotton bud (Q-tip) dipped in a drop of water to remove the unwanted line.
The water-soluble marker will fade with time, because of the moisture in the air and on your skin as you handle the fabric. So begin by stitching the major outlines and shapes on the fabric and leave the other details for later.
Please keep coming back to this blog to see more progress on my Map of the Future and, eventually, to find out when the pattern will be available from my etsy store. Or sign up for my newsletter in the sidebar to get a free pattern and an email whenever a new design is available.

Cucumbers

Today I want to talk about cucumbers. My family and friends know that, like Dr Samuel Johnson, I think, "A cucumber should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out, as good for nothing." I'm not a fan of the modern, supermarket cucumber with its tough, bitter skin and watery, tasteless flesh and would much prefer to throw it out than add it to a salad.

When I was a child in Papua New Guinea, the cucumbers we bought at the roadside markets or from meris who brought them around in bilums were golden and round, and so sweet that I would eat them like apples. Pliny the Elder apparently reported: "We find it stated, also, by the ancient Greek writers, that the cucumber ought to be propagated from seed that has been steeped a couple of days in milk and honey, this method having the effect of rendering them all the sweeter to the taste." Not sure how that would work, but I wish it did!

Dr Johnson's contemporary, Jonathan Swift, found a use for the maligned vegetable in the research of the Grand Academy visited by Lemuel Gulliver:

The first man I saw was of a meagre aspect, with sooty hands and face, his hair and beard long, ragged, and singed in several places. His clothes, shirt, and skin, were all of the same colour. He has been eight years upon a project for extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers, which were to be put in phials hermetically sealed, and let out to warm the air in raw inclement summers. He told me, he did not doubt, that, in eight years more, he should be able to supply the governor's gardens with sunshine, at a reasonable rate: but he complained that his stock was low, and entreated me "to give him something as an encouragement to ingenuity, especially since this had been a very dear season for cucumbers." I made him a small present, for my lord had furnished me with money on purpose, because he knew their practice of begging from all who go to see them.

 Sunbeams from cucumbers? Might as well find some use for them.

Tattoo you

I'm a bit ambivalent about tattoos. On one hand, I love them as a form of self-expression; on the other hand, I'm a bit scared by the fact that, once you've got one, you can't change it... ever. As a bit of a fashion butterfly, changing my tastes from one season to the next, I can't imagine ever being certain enough of a particular passion or image to have it permanently imprinted on my skin.

What I do like about tattoos is the thought behind them: people who have them almost always have stories to tell about why they chose them and which image they chose. I particularly like the kind of tattoos where it looks as though the skin has been peeled back to reveal the inner workings of the arm (or leg, or abdomen). My very favourite was one I briefly considered getting for myself, pictured here (I always knew I had a book in me!) -- click the image to see more of this artist's work.

There are a bunch of great steampunk-style tattoos out there, including ones where the skin is peeled back to reveal cogs, pistons and pulleys. But if, like me, you're too much of a wimp to get something permanently etched into your skin, take a look at Victoria Welch's Steampunk Henna Designs and go down the temporary tattoo path.

Visual journal cover

I've decided that the next project I want to make is a cover for my visual journal, which is an A5-size, spiral-bound visual art diary. I looked for some inspiring examples and stuck the images in the very visual journal, as you can see at left.

Inspired by the book of historic maps I read this week, I decided to make a linen cover with an embroidered map design. I like the idea of an inset compass or clock, as in the third image. I also really, really want to keep my ideas and thoughts private with a solid lock (which was what triggered yesterday's image search).

Please keep coming back to this blog over the next week or two to see the progress I'm making on my journal cover and, of course, I'll write a pattern and instructions so that you can make one for yourself. If you sign up for my newsletter in the sidebar, I'll make sure you don't miss out on a copy of the pattern when it's ready.

Lovely locks

Humans have been locking up their precious things since time immemorial; the first lock was probably a stone placed in front of a niche in a cave. These days, many things are secured by electronic locks with PINs or remote controls.

You can't go past a good, old-fashioned mechanical lock for strength and beauty, though. Here are a few examples I found online: just gorgeous!  (Click on the pictures to go to the source.)

Miss Molly's mainchauffers

I've finally chosen a more imaginative name for the frilly wrist warmers I've been knitting over the past couple of weeks: Miss Molly's Mainchauffers (that's an approximately French translation of "handwarmers"). With their delicate lacy frills, they deserve a romantic epithet.

The good news is that the pattern to knit these gloves yourself is now available at my etsy store for just $5.00. If you'd like to find out more about my patterns and designs, please sign up for my newsletter in the sidebar. The newsletter goes out whenever a new pattern is available.