Considering Steampunk. . . . In Love!

The challenge this week at DragonsDream Tag It On is entitled 'Considering Steam punk'. The ingredients to be included are fantasy, inventions and Victoriana.

Quite a tough one this but good fun though! I decided to show the fantasy element as my steam punk man who travels on cogs wheels but has his own wings when he needs to fly - he is also one of the inventions shown as well as various stamped inventions! Victoriana comes from the beautiful lady he is in love with and of whom he thinks of constantly - hence the thought 'bubbles and heart' leading from his head to her, way up high in her heart shaped cloud. The steam punk is represented by industrial stamping, use of cogs, brads and other suitable items.

I kept to a very monochromatic palette with the exception of my lady who is painted like a portrait in Victorian art - I should also say that she's the nearest image I've got to any victorian lady! I have also included little touches of colour with some cogs cut from copper sheet which were heated to change colour - great fun and you never get the same result twice! I toned down the colours with some alcohol ink as they were too bright for this piece.

Here's my tag, hope it fits the bill:

The completed tag showing the lovesick steam punk man trying to float up to his lady - sadly he's tethered so won't get far!! The tag background was inked with distress, stamped with various images in both distress and archival ink.

The steam punk man is tethered by a chain made from jump rings and  brads. One set of cogs were cut from metal tape on card and the others from copper sheet. The metal tape cogs were embossed then coloured with alcohol ink. The copper cogs were prepared as stated in the main text.

Steam punk man has 'tortoiseshell' wings made by stamping stazon onto acetate then cutting out and assembling. The wings are angled to give a 3D effect.

The lady was stamped, painted and embossed twice with clear powder. The edge of her heart 'cloud' was finished with a gold pen. She has matching wings to the steam punk man. She also has a little crown peeking out which was made from a cog using the same method as the man's wheels. The key charm and ribbon finish the look.
Some feminine flourishes are stamped around the lady to give contrast to the 'manly' feel of the tag. The lady image looks blurred but really is how she stamps - she's like an Impressionist image: she looks better from a distance! 

Various inventions have been stamped in the background to comply with the  'ingredients' given in the recipe.  The date of 1898 has been stamped randomly on the background.

The steam punk man is thinking about the beautiful woman hence the little thought bubbles ascending to her cloud - one bubble is represented by heart shaped brad.

Hope you like this piece - I prefer it to the card made yesterday!