Beautiful Steampunk Wedding!

I may not be the kind of girl who sits around at age eighteen and dreams about weddings, but this post I found while derping around the internet for steampunk fashion just about blew me out the window. It's a gorgeous extravaganza of steampunk/shabby/rustic/vintage/I-don't-even-know-how-to-define-it style. And they managed to pull all that off without it getting cheesy or tasteless. Have a look for yourself! 

Congrats to the new couple!

Book Review: Uprising

The setting is New York, 1911. Three bold, rebellious heroines seek to bring an end to the gritty industrial system that oppresses them. But Margret Peterson Haddix's Uprising is not steampunk, really. There's no fantasy or science fiction here--just three hundred pages of cold, hard reality.

The Plot: Uprising chronicles the events leading up to the infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, via fictional characters Bella, Yetta, and Jane. Bella, a newly arrived Italian immigrant, Yetta, a rebellious-to-the-core factory worker, and Jane, the bored daughter of a successful businessman (a Victorian novel cliche, I know, but actually pulled off fairly well in this case), are drawn together by their involvement in a strike at Bella and Yetta's workplace, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. The three of them form an alliance, and eventually a close friendship, doomed to be put to an end by a tragic accident.

The Good Stuff: This is among the most moving books I've read, bound to get at least something of an emotional reaction from just about any reader. For all its emotional-ness, however, it's one of the few Victorian/Edwardian books I've read that takes a more or less objective look at the issues of the day. Haddix addresses the unfairness of the Gilded Age class system while portraying the factory bosses--technically the villains of the story--as humans with families and insecurities and occasional moments of kindness, and even makes strong points about the suffrage movement without falling into the Men Are Evil Trap, which is understandably easy for historical writers to fall into.

The Bad Stuff: This book is just sad. Yes, I know, I said the same thing in The Good Stuff. It's one of those books. With just about any novel about a historical disaster, it's more or less a foregone conclusion that most of the characters will die. Even so, that's almost a strength rather than a flaw; the continuous knowledge that these carefully-crafted characters are being raised for the slaughter gets quite heartbreaking at points.
At some points this seems a little forced, in a This-Author-is-Most-Definitely-Trying-to-Make-Me-Cry kind of way, but then again, it worked on me quite effectively.
The one thing that's apt to turn readers off is how overtly political it is. Mind you, said politics are of 100+ years ago, so what was extreme leftism then is pretty rational by today's standards. Even so, readers unfamiliar with turn-of-the-century politics might be unnerved by how cheerfully the word "socialism" is thrown around.

The Verdict: If you're looking for a lighthearted adventure, this isn't it. But if you're into the more anti-establishment, politically-based side of steampunk, I urge you to read it, just so long as you have a plethora of tissues on hand.

DIY Birdcage Veil Tutorial

If I may begin this post with a bit of boasting, I'M GOING TO ENGLAND! *fangirl squeal* That's right, the setting of pretty much every steampunk book ever, and I get to go there for a family trip this June! I shall make sure to seek out vast quantities of awesomeness to post about.

I think this would also look quite nice in black, if one is going for a more Gothic effect.

In more immediate news, prom season is coming up, and I've been gleefully searching for lovely neovictorian dresses and accessories and such, and happened across this lovely tutorial by Trash to Couture. I think it would look quite splendid with a flowing ballgown, don't you agree?

Epic Old Computers

For the most part, today's computers become obsolete within the span of just a few years. But at the least some of the obsolete ones look pretty cool! And thus, I've arranged this gallery of epic old-school computers.

The Jacquard Loom, invented c. 1801. Not technically a computer, but it used a lot of the same technology as the computers that came after it. 

And what steampunk computer gallery would be complete without a difference engine or two. This here is a modern production of the Analytical Engine, the second of two computing devices invented by Charles Babbage. In 1823, ten years before this one was designed, Babbage designed the Difference Engine, which inspired the popular steampunk novel of the same name.  

My personal favorite, the Mark 1. This showed up in the 1940's, so it's technically past the more typical steampunk era, but it's just way too awesome to leave out of this gallery. Deal with it. 

All right, this one is a TV prop, not a functioning computer, but it still looks pretty cool.  This one is from the set of LOST, based on the styles of computers in the late 20th century.
>: I miss that show.

Once they started being mass produced, computers, like so many other things we live with, have turned into dull gray boxes. The good news is that a dull gray box could also serve as a blank canvas--the internet is filled with epic steampunk computer mods. Modern functionality meets old-school aesthetic. I like the steampunk future. :)

Steampunk Hotel

I recently received an email from my sister entailing her adventures in the world of grad school tours, which included several pictures detailing the interior design of the Commons Hotel in Minneapolis. This was followed by a few admonishments to get off my arse and blog them already, and I've finally decided to stop procrastinating and do so now. These photos are a bit grainy, I'm afraid, having been shot with an iPod camera, but there are a few better ones on the hotel's website.
 

A small sort of library. Libraries... *drool*

Epic fireplace!

It's a balloon chiar! WANT!

A tin ceiling in the lobby. n_n  I love little architectural details like that.

Easy DIY Sandals

Ack! I haven't posted anything in the last two weeks! Really sorry; my schedule's been insane lately. I was, however, able to hack some things off of my endless list of places to be and stuff to do, leaving enough time for this simple sandal tutorial! The sandals appearing in the tutorial are a bit flowery for steampunk, but replacing the tropical patterns with a more neutral tone and maybe adding a little aged brass bling, and they'll be punked right up.

Video Game Review: Alice: Madness Returns

I don't even know where to start with this--I think this game might be my new obsession. Even so, I'll try my best at giving this an unbiased critique. So, let's head down the rabbit hole and into this twisted re-imagining of Alice in Wonderland. Let the madness begin!

The cover art.

The Story:
Roughly ten years after whole Wonderland incident, Alice is grown up--and so is Wonderland. Driven mad by the death of her family in a fire, she has just returned to society after ten years of staring at a wall in a mental hospital. (The first game in this series, American McGee's Alice, takes place during her time in the asylum.) Just when she seems to be getting the hang of real life, she finds her madness returning, and, she soon discovers, Wonderland is not the cheerful place it used to be--and it's up to her to restore it.

The Gameplay:
A fairly standard mix of platforming and action combat. The combat is fairly straightforward, with the added twist of some basic strategy needing to be employed. Different enemies have different methods of defense and attack, which the player must keep an eye on to defeat them.
Much of the gameplay focuses on collectibles, including bottles, memories, and pig snouts (yeah, you read that right) which are technically optional, but needed to unlock story details, extra content, and weapons upgrades. There are some puzzles, none of which are exceedingly challenging on normal difficulty.

A screenshot from the Hatter's Domain.

How steampunk is it?:
It's pretty damn steampunk. Essentially, the world of gameplay is the mental construction of a delusional Victorian maid--resulting in a surreal blending of Victorian and fantasy elements. Most of the first level takes place in a floating factory constructed almost entirely from gears and teapots, so I was just about puking rainbows most of the way through. Other than that, the aesthetic touches on a lot of steampunk's sub-types and cousins, such as industrial, Gothic, Victoriental, and a twisted, creepy-doll-based form of Lolita.

The Good Stuff:
This game is art. Like, it needs to be in a museum. The scenery ranges from jaw-droppingly beautiful to utterly disturbing. It would take me pages and pages to describe the look of it, so I'll just cram this review with pretty pictures.
My compulsive character-analyzing self simply can't help but be impressed. With the entire game being a symbolic journey into into Alice's subconscious, the whole thing is basically one big character study, and creator American McGee clearly put a good deal of thought into her personality. Mental illness in fiction is usually reserved for psychotic villains, but Alice seems to be the exception--as far as I can tell, much research has been put into her condition(s).  Even so, her personality still holds remarkably true to Lewis Carrol's original character--Alice may have matured a little and developed a rather cynical attitude over the years, but glimpses of the strong-willed and curious character on which she was based still shines through. In fact, I'd say this is a more accurate character interpretation than the more famous Disney version.

Just another butt-kicking day in Wonderland...

The biggest thing, though, is just how badass (do pardon my recent overuse of that word, but it's absolutely necessary here) this game is. I spent a good portion of the game just playing around with the weapons instead of actually progressing. I mean seriously, a flaming hobby horse/war hammer that shakes the very earth when thrown upon the ground? That's the kind of thing that makes my day! Playing this legitimately gave me a massive boost in self-confidence. After taking out a couple dozen mechanical monsters with a single shot from an exploding teapot cannon, one feels capable of doing just about anything.

The Bad Stuff:
Most major game reviewers kept Madness Returns firmly in the average range, and, as much as I loved this game, I can see why it might not appeal to the hardcore gaming crowd. Other than the scenery, remarkably little changes throughout the forty-odd hours of gameplay. Many players have lamented the rather long length, and, as much as I enjoyed it, it was quite an endeavor. It's clear, at least, that the creators were aware of this--a lot of big scenes and even entire subplots were awkwardly compressed or hacked out. While the amount of cut material didn't really detract from the game, I really wish they would release some sort of extended version which would include more story depth and actual boss fights. From what I've been able to track down on the internet, a lot of that cut material looked pretty awesome.
The only flaw that seriously bugged me was the ridiculous number of technical issues. The computer I played this on is only a year or two old, but I still had to turn the graphics to near-minimal settings just to get it to play smoothly. Glitches abound, most of which impede progression in the game, such as platforms not moving when they should or invincible enemies. In order to get past them, one must restart the entire level. I was lucky enough that both glitches I encountered were fairly early on in their respective levels, but less fortunate players could face a good two to three hours of replaying just to get past one spot.

The Verdict:

Victorian London. LOOK AT THAT ATMOSPHERE! O.O SO EPIC!

To begin with, a few things to clear up. Alice: Madness Returns is a horror game--sort of. If you were expecting an Amnesia-esque experience of sheer terror, you might be dissapointed/relieved. Even playing alone in the dark with headphones, I wasn't really scared. If you've never played scary games before, this could serve as your gateway into that realm, as it will likely do for me in the long run. Excluding a few gory moments, the horror of Alice: Madness Returns is mostly quite subtle, more creepy than terrifying. Being the kind of horror that one must think about for a bit to be afraid of, this might be one of the few scary games out there that's likely to be more effective adults than kids.
That being said, this is most certainly not a kid's game, although the big letter M on the box doesn't seem to deter all those twelve-year-olds who insist on announcing their age on the internet. The story, style, and gameplay cater mostly to the older teen emo/goth crowd. I don't want to sound like a prude who insists that kids can't play video games, but really, I think the themes would have fairly little meaning to younger players. The scares of the game are real-life things, like mental illness and the stigmas it carries, child abuse and how easily it goes unnoticed, and, at its core, the strange and often painful process of growing up.
That in itself is what makes Alice: Madness Returns as haunting as it is fun. I could really just write about this game for days on end--it's the kind of thing that sticks in one's head long after it's done. So be prepared for a lot more posts about this series; I don't think I could get it out of my head, even if I wanted to.