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Steampunk show in Mount Dora
The Steampunk & Industrial Show continues from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Renningers in Mount Dora. It is billed as the largest show in the Southeast for Steampunk, which author Caitlin Kittredge has said is “sort of Victorian-industrial, but with more whimsy and fewer orphans.” Info: Renningers.net.
Hundreds dressed in Victorian-style outfits embellished with small repurposed gears, miniature clocks and feathered hats for the Steampunk Industrial Show in Mount Dora on Saturday.
Artists and industrial makers travel to Renninger’s Antique Center for the festival twice a year to show off their inventions, such as a model time machine or an oversized kaleidoscope, and to buy antiques like typewriters and cameras.
The event started in 2012 and was such a hit that Renninger’s decided to host it twice a year, said Toni Moody, Renninger’s marketing and special events coordinator.
“It’s about electronics and about making yourself able to do things,” said Veronica Harrison, 46, from Mount Dora. “We’re a consumer society and this is all about what you got and what you can put together with what you got.”
Harrison described Steampunk as a mix of science fiction, 19th century fashion and industrial design.
And some attendees really go all out with their costumes.
“The average maker probably spends about $100 on their costume because they see a jacket and they envision something,” said antique store owner Denise McCarthy. “Then you have people that come in pre-made costumes and they spend hundreds of dollars.”
Bill Hatton spent $600 on his pirate-themed outfit.
“It’s about creativity,” said Hatton, 64, of Brandon.
But Peggy Gartee, 44, only spent $30 on her entire outfit. She used fabric from an old shower curtain for a skirt and repurposed small industrial gears to form necklace charms.
“The whole idea is repurposing,” said Gartee, of Ormond Beach.
A common accessory at the event was goggles. The reason: Steampunkers want to time trav- el.
“Steampunk is time travel whether it be by land, by air, by sea,” McCarthy said.
The goggles protect the traveler’s eyes, she said.
Thomas Galvin, 44, showed off his time machine he made using laundry baskets, a satellite dish and other mix-matched items. He said it cost him about $900 and 1,000 hours to create it.
“It took me about a year and a half to build and it wasn’t that solid construction, it was like ‘Oh! I have an extra $25. I can go buy a lamp to make a part.’ It was literally all repurposed items,” the Winter Haven man said.
Josh Kusc was inspired to make an oversized kaleidoscope after attending the event three years ago. After spending $2,000 and working on it for more than 200 hours, Kusc won’t sell it. Instead, he displays it for entertainment.
“I just would like to encourage people to come here and get inspired then go out and make something,” Kusc said. “Just contribute to the cause.”