Monday, October 29, 2012

Steamcon IV: Victorian Monsters

(I've previously written about Steamcon II and Steamcon III, and now have pictures of Steamcon V if you're interested.)

NOTE: Before starting, block off some quality time and get a beverage of your choice, because LOADS OF PHOTOS are about to follow.

Not only was I looking forward to this year's Steamcon, with its ripe-with-possibility theme of "Victorian Monsters," so was Miss V.  This was her first year attending Steamcon, and in fact her first SF/F con of any kind.

If you know Miss V, or if you've read this blog at length, you're probably aware of her deep and abiding love for fashion and costume.  So you can probably imagine what happened next.

Squee is what happened.  Loads and loads of squee.

And to be fair to Miss V, there was quite a lot to squee about.


From mummified matrons...

...to disquieting dolls...

...from Mephistophelian magnificence...

...to inscrutable invisibility...

...there were plenty of weird, bizarre and monstrous sights at Steamcon this year.

Of course, it wasn't all dark and twisted...

...although, hey, we like our dark and twisted as much as the next guy.

There were also helpful physicians on call.

There were befezzed practitioners of the mystic arts.

There were expert plumbers.

There were bold monster hunters keeping on their toes (or off their feet, as the occasion warranted).

There were likely heroes.

There were familiar heroes.

There was even an unlikely hero.

Fortunately, he didn't have a run-in with his nemesis Baba Yaga while we were there.

There were fake foxes which appeared to be real...

...and there was a real baby which appeared to be fake.

There were stilts...

...stilts...

...and more stilts. (Or, as I suggested to Miss V, "same stilts, different costume.")

At some point I relinquished my camera to Miss V, who proceeded to take over 200 photos with it, often running after attendees like a paparazzo chasing a big story.  By end of day Saturday her eyes were tired from so much awesome and she was rethinking her choice to wear platform heels.

So most of these pictures are courtesy of Miss V.  Thanks, Miss V!

What caught Miss V's eye, you ask?  Plenty.

She seemed to have a real fondness for wings...

...as copious photographic evidence suggests.






Myself, I have a fondness for interesting prostheses...

...no matter how comically oversized...

...but V seems to prefer lots of unusual weaponry...




...no matter how comically oversized.

She also seems to like the look of exposed bones...



...or, um, bonelike structures.

Mostly, though, V photographed the things she loves most: beautiful costumes, gorgeous fabric and bold creativity.



































































Thanks, Steamcon participants!

Oh, and next year Miss V will come in costume. Oh my yes.

10 comments:

Dmitri said...

Brilliant Collection!! And thanks for including my in my Iron Man gear.

Soozcat said...

And fine gear it was, too!

Old Fashion Halloween said...

I was the mummy with cat. Is it OK to grab the photo?
Thanks!

Soozcat said...

Oh, certainly! V adored your costume, by the way -- she was still talking about it hours later.

Unknown said...

Hooray! Thanks for including TWO photos of me and my Hellboy garb :3 I might have to snag those to my FB, if you don't mind.

Soozcat said...

By all means!

In fact, a general offer: if your photo appears in this entry, please feel free to snag it (it's an image of you, after all). I'd be most pleased if you'd link back to the blog (!!!insert shameless self-promotion here!!!).

Paula Bowles said...

Amazing!! Love it! Quite inspiring, I'd love to come to that one day :)

Soozcat said...

Paula, I think you'd LOVE it.

Unknown said...

Hellboy here! I doubt I'll be as recognizable this year, but if you happen to find a guy with a beer barrel rocket pack, followed by a trail of bubbles, that's probably me again.

Soozcat said...

Well, we'll keep an eye out for you then!