Steampunk jewelry is all the rage on the internet. But what does the term “Steampunk” mean exactly?
K. W. Jeter, famed horror and science fiction author was the first to coin the term, “Steampunk” to describe two of the works he wrote.
But Jules Verne with his Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea has been called the author of Steampunk. The Time Machine by HG Wells also plays an important role. This article’s interest is more with Steampunk jewelry. The genre goes far more than just into jewelry accessories, though, apparel is huge in this arena.
As far as wearable art, Steampunk is a great deal of the old made new, but more specifically, headed toward the nostalgia of the Victorian era coupled with fantasy and a touch of machines and gadgets. It is a great case of repurposing things. The color pallette is of muted shades such as bronze and the materials consist of a great deal of various sheet metals and wires and brass knick knacks with variable finishes. And to finish things off, add a dab of lace.
Typical findings are primarily of watch gears, but also contain plastic, metal or crystal objet d’arte such as angel wings and any item imaginable found at a hardware store plus pieces of chiffon or tapestry, binding wire and old rusty buttons. Then there are typewriter keys, domino pieces and skeleton keys. You can find everything from octopi to skulls in jewelry pieces with watch parts as the backbone.
The photograph is courtesy of Victoria Taylor.