Sherlock Holmes Sequel Out Soon!

It isn't often that the Steampunk community has a new movie to look forward to. The new Sherlock Holmes movie like the previous one however offers much promise. The first Sherlock Holmes Movie offered us many of Holmes advanced Victorian era technology and the new movie promises to entertain us with new "advanced" Victorian technology as Holmes goes after his adversary Professor Moriarty. You will be able to catch the new movie tomorrow December 16th in theaters. Enjoy all.

Sunday Driver Releasing A New Album!

The Album will be titled "The Mutiny"
The bad news is, this Album won't be out until September 20th, 2012. The good news is, Sunday Driver has released a teaser clip for us to listen to and it is awesome. If you have yet to check out Sunday Driver's previous work I would highly suggest you go on youtube and check them out or go to their website www.sundaydriver.co.uk. If you interested in their new album teaser you can listen to it on their website.

Steampunk Stop-motion Musical

        An artist by the name of Kyle Stephens has created a stop-motion claymation musical short about an inventor who has created a device that can make him fly. The title of said video is, McDonough: A Steampunk Stop Motion Musical. To view it click here.

Writer Greg Rucka to release Steampunk Webcomic

        Writer Greg Rucka recently announced that he will be launching a new webcomic called Lady Sabre and the Pirates of the Ineffable Ether. The comic is set to be released in early July. The comic will be featuring many popular steampunk themes such as airships, floating islands, and even some gunslingers. The author says that the comic will be a mixture of steampunk, pirates, and western. You can find an audio interview with the author on the blogsite stumptowntradereview.blogspot.com. The author says that he hopes to make money from this web comic to fund one of his other projects known as American Soldier.

ARGO Online Now available

     
        The free to play MMORPG ARGO Online is now available for download and play. The game is a mixture of steampunk, sci-fi, and fantasy. If you would like to try the game you can get it here. Be warned though, despite some of the hype surrounding this games beta testers had numerous complaints about the game many of which were about bugs that hadn't been fixed even a few days before the release.

Steampunk "Wizard of Oz"

        The Lincoln Ampitheatre in Lincoln City, Indiana will soon be putting on a steampunk version of The Wizard of Oz. Currently they are holding auditions and will have over 50 actors in all. The director of the play is Christopher Tyner. Tyner says that he wants to take the original movie script and take it in a steampunk direction without making changes to the script. The show will be playing at the Lincoln Ampitheatre on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from July 21- August 7, 2011. For more information about the production visit http://www.lincolnamphitheatre.com/.

Preview: Gatling Gears

      
        A downloadable game known as Gatling Gears will soon be available on Xbox Live and Playstation Network. The game has been hyped as the newest steampunk game to hit the market but from what we've seen so far it seems a bit lacking. Although it does look like an enjoyable game for fans of top-down shooters the problem we have with it is it doesn't really draw you into any apparent steampunk universe other than the fact that some of the vehicles and building have a steampunk look to them. I guess technically this game does qualify as steampunk by most peoples standards but the fact that it's one of very few games that does so, and this is apparently the best there is to offer saddens me.

Steampunk Iron Man

        A steampunk version of Iron Man has been created by independent artist Jonathan Kriscak. Standing about 11 inches tall this has got to be one of the coolest interpretations of any superhero in recent years. The figure also comes with a victorian Tony Stark figure which is also pretty awesome in itself. The figure has been but up for auction on Ebay and is already getting bids of over $300. This artist has thought of everything when creating this figure including making the Iron Man suit "steam powered". You only have about a day left to claim this figure as your own so hopefully you have deep pockets. Happy Bidding everyone. Hey, even if you can't score this one of a kind masterpiece for yourself at least we no have yet more inspiration for future projects of our own.

Fun Victorian Card Game: Beggar My Neighbor

        Many of you may remember this game if you have read Dicken's "Great Expectation". Pip and Estella play this game early in the book when they are at Miss Havishams. The game plays as follows:

        Shuffle the deck and deal the cards as evenly as possible. Your draw deck is placed face down. The player to the left of the dealer starts the game by turning up his top card and playing it in the middle of the table. If the card is a 2 to 10, play passes to the left and the next player does the same. When a face card or an Ace (known as "court cards" in this game) is turned up, the next player must pay the following dependent on which court card is played:
 
A=4
K=3
Q=2
J=1
 

        If all of the cards in the middle are number cards, the player who played the court card collects all of the cards in the middle of the table. However, if one of the cards is a court card, the player paying stops immediately and the next player must pay based on the schedule above. If that is paid with only number cards, the cards in the middle of the table are collected by the last player who played a court card. This continues until one player wins the pile. That player then puts the pile at the bottom of his stack, face down. When a player runs out of cards, he's eliminated from the game and the other players continue to play.

Movie Review: Steamboy

        I'm sure many of you have already seen this animated masterpiece but I figured I should showcase it here just in case any of you have missed it. Steamboy is probably one of the most "steampunk" movie to ever be released. To this date steamboy remains as the most expensive japanese animated films ever created with a budget equivelent to $26,000,000. Released in 2004 this movie plays upon many major steampunk themes. The cast of this story is very interesting and there are many radical steampowered machines presented throughout the film. The main character, a 13 year old inventor following in his fathers footsteps, isn't really that original but his character is very fun and interesting. This movie has remained with me since the first time I saw it and remains my favorite steampunk themed movie to date.

New Fiction Available

I have just added part 2 of "The Journals of Javelin Blake" to the Fiction section of our site, located on the left hand side of the screen. Please enjoy and feel free to leave comments.

World Steam Expo: Events Announced

        The World Steam Expo has announced many of the main events on there website. Check it out now, especially if you can only go for one day of the convention to see what events will be taking place on which days. Can't wait to see everyone there.

Website Spotlight: deviantART

        For those of you who are unaware of deviantART (usually reffered to simply as "dA") and what it is, I would basically sum it up as a community of independent artists sharing their work of various forms with the dA community and with the world as a whole. Why is this website being showcased on a steampunk blog site you may ask? Well this site has what is probably the largest collection of steampunk art on the web. This website is a great place to draw inspiration from since it has just about anything you could imagine in some form submitted to the site and has tens of thousands of new entries daily. So whether you are new to the world of steampunk or a master steampunk artist of prop/costume designer dA is a must see website.

The Imperial Anti-Piracy Squadron

        The Imperial Anti-Piracy Squadron is a steampunk group of artists, crafters, and performers based out of Detroit, MI. This group appears at all sorts of gatherings including the upcoming World Steam Expo in Dearborn, MI. This group is devoted to keeping the skies clear of all pirates and other miscreants and is always ready to face new threats. Word has it the group is looking for a new cabin boy and are holding auditions at this years World Steam Expo. You may visit their website here.

The League of S.T.E.A.M.

    
        The League of S.T.E.A.M. short for "Supernatural and Troublesome Ectoplasmic Apparition Management" is a steampunk performing arts group based out of California. Many know them as the steampunk Ghostbusters and many have veiwed videos of them displaying their magnificent props. The League has made many appearances at various steampunk gathering and other events and have even performed with the musical group Abney Park. The group originaly came together as an idea for a halloween costume it became something much more developing their costumes and personas more and more as time goes by. They have many entertaining videos of their adventures which you can view on Youtube.

Well It Was Bound To Happen Sometime!

        Well this is what all of us nerdy steampunk fans living in our parents basement have been waiting for; Steampunk erotica. This book titled "Carnal Machines: Steampunk Erotica" will be the first collection of steampunk erotica ever published, at least the first available at most bookstores nationwide. The book is set to be released in April with a cover price of $14.95. There is no telling really what this book may contain as steampunk itself is already pretty erotic, especially modern steampunk works. This book sounds like it will be pretty descent seeing as how well romances in non-erotic steampunk novels and short stories have done. Here is to hoping that this book is as good as it sounds and with that I leave you two words; Leather & Corsets.

Miniature Steam Engine

        I'm pretty sure everyone in the steampunk comunity has at least once dreamed of owning their own working steam engine. Thankfully you can and it won't cost you thousands of dollars. Mini Steam is a shop were anyone can get their very own working miniature steam engine. Although it won't cost you thousands like a full size steam engine, these miniatures aren't super cheap either but with the simpler models ranging somewhere around $100 most people can afford at least a simple engine. The coolest thing about these engines is that you can buy accessories that can be powered by your engine such as mini carnival rides and an entire miniature workshop. Even if you can't afford one of these miniature wonders they are definetly worth checking out on Mini Steams website. Many of the engine on this site have videos posted of them running and it is real fun just to watch and listen to them pull the miniature whistle on the engines.

Preview: Bioshock Infinite

    
        It appears we may have the first true steampunk video game in a long time. There have been many games in recent years with slight steampunk overtones, this game seems to play on the steampunk to the max. Viewing the trailer above will make most fans of steampunk drool. Although it doesn't give us any view of actual gameplay, it does show enough to get the steampunk community excited. We may soon have the best steampunk game to fit the genre since Arcanum coming out soon.

Review: The Cog is Dead- "The Death of The Cog"

        The Death of The Cog is a steampunk masterpiece that sums up all that is wrong with technology today. This song is basically the steampunk equievelent of the song "Video Killed the Radio Star". One of the main things that is talked about in this song is how modern technology has lost the simple beauty of the technology of old. This idea that modern technology has none of the beauty that old clockwork technology once had is a fundamental thought in the steampunk comunity. If you are a fan of steampunk this is probably number one on my list of must hear steampunk music.

Steampunk Art Exhibit

        From 0ctober 2009 through February 2010 the world saw it's first true exhibition of steampunk art in Oxford. With artists hailing from all parts of the globe this exhibit had just about everything a fan of steampunk could ask for. They had many clocks with beautiful gears keeping time, as well as many one of a kind sculpture with fine details. Above you can view a video highlighting many pieces of this exhibit. Although this exhibition has ended for now, it shows that the popularity of steampunk continues to grow and gives hope for seeing more exhibits like it in the future. Hopefully we may eventually even have an exhibit similar to the one in Oxford Stateside.

SteamPunkMod

         This is a nerf double barrel shotgun painted. Added to it is Clockworks motor for a pulse rifle added to its side. In addition is a mechanical trigger for pulse rifle. The shot gun portion is functional as for a realistic feel as an old double barrel load. The rifle is attached to stock. This is a metal barrel a PVC tube of your size would work just as well. Thus the metal is a little heavier on plastic. Designs on the handle are of my own design and painted on.

Victorian Currency In Great Britian

    
       Many people in countries outside the United States comment on how odd our system of non-metric measurements makes no sense. But when you look at the currency system of Great Britain prior to 1971 you begin to wonder if they have grounds to make fun our our system of measurements when their own currency system was so strange. Here's how their currency system broke down. Of course they had the one pound note or coin, the was often called a "bob". When you break it down to what equals a pound though that's were it gets strange. This is how it broke down:
        1 pound = 20 shillings
        1 shilling = 12 pennies
        1 penny = 4 farthings
        Now I don't know about you but our system of currency in the United States seems to be rather simple compared to the mess that was British currency up until 1971. Despite these rantings I also do agree with other countries in saying that the United States does have a messed up system of measurements and we should probably switch to metric.
   

The World Steam Expo

        The World Steam Expo is coming up quickly. The expo will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn, MI May 27-30, 2011. The cost for the convention is $50 for a four day pass or $20-30 for a one day pass. The World Steam Expo is considered one of the best steampunk conventions by many fans and it is definitely something you won't want to miss. With great guests lined up this year including Abney Park and the author G.D. Faulksen you will definitely be entertained. If you've never been to a convention before you will be amazed by the many complex and beutiful costumes and props as well as amazing people who may become long time friends. If you plan on attending for multiple days make sure you get your room booked ASAP so you don't miss out. Even children are encouraged to get involved in the festivities. Children 12 and under get in free with a paying adult and then only $10 for each additional child. This is also a great opportunity to get a friend or your children involved in all that is steampunk, I gaurantee they will come out of the convention begging for for more.
        For more information about The World Steam Expo visit their website at http://www.worldsteamexpo.com/

Check Out Videos

We have some sweet videos you can view now available on the right side of the page. Enjoy!

Historical Board Game: Nine Mens Morris

        I remember first playing this classic game on my computer when I was about six years old. I fell in love with it from the first time I played. I think it can best be decribed as a complicated (and much more fun) form of tick-tack-toe. The game is said to have gotten it's name from a historical English dance known as the Morris in the 18th century.To play the game, each player starts with nine pieces. Each player takes turn placing one peice at a time trying to get three in a row along the lines. When a player gets three in a row not only are those peices temporarily safe from being captured, they get to take one of the opponents peices off the board. When capturing a peice the peice is not allowed to be taken from a row of three unless those are the only pieces available to capture. After all peices have been placed players take turns moving peices one space at a time along the lines continuing to try to get three in a row. When the player has only three peices left that player can move one of his places to any open spot along the board. There are two strategies to winning the game. The normal strategy that most people use is capture all the peices of your opponent until they are down to only two pieces. Or you can try to surround all of your opponents pieces leaving them with no moves, in which case you automaticly win the game. This game is very easy to learn and will provide hours of entertainment. Although finding actual boards for this game can be hard to do, you can easily make a board with just paper and a pencil.

Victorian Clothing: The Corset

        The Corset was a device that was used mainly to shape ones torso into a desired shape. Both men and women have historically used torsets for both medical and fashion reasons, women are more known to be the ones wearing these contraptions. Although true corsets are not used commonly in the modern era many fashion trends have been based off it's design. A true Corset could not simply be bought in the store for the most part as corsets were primarily custom fitted by a corsetmaker. Despite their lack of use in modern times, you will see them references all the time in anything from Elmer Fudd in looney toons cartoons to modern fetish videos.

Review: Abney Park

        It seems just about everyone in the steampunk community has heard of the group Abney Park but just in case you haven't we will tell you a bit about them. Abney Park is a band out of Seattle, WA which draws it's influences from steampunk, industrial music, and traditional folk music. This group was first organized in 1997 and came out with their first self titled album in 1998. The band is well known for their performances at various steampunk conventions. As you can see from their band photo they lean a bit towards the theatrical side with steampunk clothing and even instruments which the band has customized themselves to have a bit of a steampunk flare. Their music will draw any steampunk fan in with their mesmerizing sound and lyrics. If you have never heard Abney Park I recomend you look them up on youtube ASAP and watch some of their performances. I guarantee once you listen to their performance of "Sleep Isabella" you will be hooked for life.

 

Book Review: Mad in America

        Although this book may not be specifically steampunk or even Victorian, it does give one of the best looks I've found of mental health and treatment in the Victorian era. This book gives you a glimpse of different types of treatments used on the mentally ill throughout history starting in colonial America. It is a must read for anyone interested in victorian era medicine and science. It can be quite gruesome at times looking at some of the practices that were used in the Victorian era and even into more recent history but it is very important knowledge for understanding how our mental health system has gotten to were it is today. This deffinately isn't an uplifting book by any means and will leave you questioning even modern medical practices in the mental health system. A big part of steampunk to me has always been fighting oppression. The mentally ill are a group in modern society that are still oppressed in many ways and are often forced into dangerous treatment against their will, especially in the case of mentally ill children. Many people in the victorian era tried to hide any trace of mental illness in there family tree, many people still do this today. I recomend everyone reads this book so we can help end this modern day oppression and finally move out of the dark ages when it comes to mental health.

Mad Scientist Lamp

       This is a lamp we created to look like something you might see in a Victorian era laboratory. We basically built a wood box and mounted two ceiling light fixtures to the base of the box. The wiring on it is fairly simple but if you can't figure it out talk to someone at Home Depot or some other hardware store. Since it's a simple circuit they should be able to get you the information you need. I also drilled a small hole and attached a little red light to the front to show when the device is on (as if it wasn't obvious from the blaring lights.) The lights I used were the long display case lights which you can get at most hardware stores. for a final touch I glued on some metal knobs to the front of the lamp and metal sheeting with holes punched out on the top. Overall this is a fairly simple project which almost anyone can figure out. A warning to anyone working with major electronics, make sure the lamp is not plugged in while you're working on it.

Historical Device: Crookes Radiometer

       

        The Crookes radiometer is a fairly simple little device that is used to measure the power of electromagnetic waves. Basically what this device does is spins when electromagnetic waves hit the black and white diamond shaped spinners on top. The more electromagnetic waves that hit it the faster it spins. For most people this device has no real practical use but it does look pretty sweet on a window sill somewhere since it will spin very fast when the suns rays hit it. This is overall nowadays just a really cool looking science device for any up and coming mad scientists lab.

Fiction Now Available

      Our site now has a couple short fictions available for reading. They are located on the left side of the page. Enjoy!!!

Historical Device: Voltamp Battery

       Electrotherapy was very popular from the late 1800s until the 1930s as a means to prevent and treat a variety of ailment. This is used much differently than the devices used for electro-convulsive therapy in the these were designed to work primarily physical rather than mental ailments. It is unclear wether there were any actual medical results from using these devices, although looking at many modern technologies based on similar principles it is possible. The main reason they became as popular as the did at the time is that they were portable and small enough that anyone could store one in their own home. Almost anyone could get ahold of one of these devices (so long as they could afford it) through popular catalogues such as Sears Roebuck. It is said that the device was eventualy forced off the market by the American Medical Association during the 1930's because medical professionals found that pills were more profitable. If a doctor continued to use devices like this he risked being called a quack by the medical community and would face the possibility of losing their license. Despite the fact that they are no longer used in the United States many similar devices are still used worldwide.

Goggles: Cheap and Easy

       These are the goggles that victorian oddities made. They look and fit pretty nice and cost about $5 or less to make. All you need is a pair of cup style swimming goggles, a nylon strap, and paint. When creating your own pair first thing you need to do is remove the strap the goggles came with. Next, completely cover the both lenses with tap. Remove excess bits of tape with exacto knife or box cutter to be precise with the cuts. Next just spraypaint the crap out of the goggles (whatever color you want. We chose copper). When the paint is finished drying remove the tape and add the nylon strap (we used 3/8" strap). You now have a sweet new pair of goggles.

Victorian Taser

       This is the Victorian prop taser we built. The design was actually pretty simple. We took the shaft from a broken outdoor solar light. The main cup section is off the fron of a fishing reel. And inside we placed two metal rods of unknown origins we found lying around. After attaching these peices we painted the shaft a gunmetal color then painted the rubber tips of the rods and the cup section copper. After all the painting was finished and dry we placed a brass sheet cut to fit over the oped end of the reel cover/cup. For the final touches we added one gears to each rod. Later we found a dollar store light up buton and tore it to peices. We ran the LED light up between the two rods using fishing line and put the battery pack in the cup. Finaly we took the button which turns on the flashing LED lights and glues it to the outside of the device. When we were finished the result was great but the bottom was still kind of bare so we added osme old looking hooks to give the device a stand.

Welcome

       Welcome to Victorian Oddities. We are comprised of creators, writers, artists, and historians. We are making it our job to help others creating steampunk creations by giving them inspiration for projects and giving them some great literature and articles to read. Enjoy our site.