Steampunk Family

We Daren’t Go a-Hunting

By Madame vonHedwig on Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

Read more from Children's Lab and Steampunk Projects in The Lab

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For fear of little men!*

Before Yule, there was quite a bit of top secret crafting here on the airship.  We promised to tell you about it, so here’s mine.  Being a German family, the Nutcracker  figures prominently on the mantle.  (the objet d’art, not the ballet) We have acquired a small collection over the years, and in the last two holiday seasons I have added to it myself.

This year I made this one.  I am nearly as delighted with the little fellow as I am with he who inspired him.  It is, of course, a portrait of my beloved husband, the Fearless Fabricator.  I got the hair just right, didn’t I?  (Compare with the In the Lab photo)

And look at his wee belt.  He’s sporting a telescope, and a disruption device (it’s like a grenade, but instead of shrapnel it produces a gentler distraction, such as loud music, or a plague of locusts), and lovely gears and deadly sharp clock hands.

Although I will need to get myself a lathe or develop a better source for some of my future nutcracker ideas, I was able to make this fellow from a paint-your-own kit, slightly kit-bashed about the head.  For Herr vonHedwig it was relatively simple to even out the brim of the soldier nutcracker’s hat to make it a topper.

Last year’s kit-bash was considerably more difficult, as my dedicated lab assistant had to saw, file, and sand the crown off of the prince kit and round off his head into a semblance of normal head shape.  I am delighted with the result though, especially Etaine’s woad and eye painting.  If you don’t know who this is, you should acquaint yourself with him immediately!

* From “The Fairies” by William Allingham, Pre-Raphaelite poet, friend of D.G. Rosetti, and precursor to W.B. Yeats.**

** Yeats considered him so, as he was an Irish poet working in English.

Tags: Christmas, fabricator., fearless, holiday, steampunk nutcracker, toys