Souvenir poster for Coldwater

This is the finished souvenir poster for the Coldwater Steampunk Festival.   This was a lot of work because the octopus and diver's helmet were so detailed.  Also the border and lettering were also done in the computer in illustrator 8.  I think my computer nearly had an implosion but it succeeded in producing what I needed to get done.  The poster will be available in limited edition at the Steampunk Festival in Coldwater this summer.

Steampunk Octopus

Finished the illustration, here is the picture without the words.  Lots of work went into this one.  The helmet and the octopus took many hours.

Updated Poster, still in progress

Here is the next stage of the souvenir poster for Coldwater.  It has the cleaned up octopus and the background is done, only thing left is to pick the colours for the octopus.  I will post it when it is finished.  Decided against a green octopus because that would be too much like someone else's project so I think I will go with reddish tones.  Let the organizers at Coldwater know if you like it. 

Souvenir pins for the Coldwater Steampunk Festival

I thought I would use my humour to describe the Steampunk festival in Coldwater.  I designed something that could be used for every year, and this year is the fifth year of the festival therefore the big 5.  I felt they needed their own logo to be made into buttons for fundraising purposes.

The second pin is with western lettering to fit with the theme they have for this year. I carefully spaced the type, moving letters individually into the best position.

So if you are heading to Coldwater, or just want to support the festival, purchase a button wherever you can. I will try to post when they are available.

Poster in Progress

I attended the Coldwater festival last year and had a lot of people ask me for souvenir

posters. So I decided to do one.  This is just a rough. It will have a lot of elements from other things.  A limited number will be available at the Coldwater festival.  I will post more pics of the work as it progresses.

Steampunk Tea Pins

Here is a new addition to my collection of handmade pins.  A limited edition because it takes so bloody long to cut out the little tiny tea cups and tea pots. :)  I also have a few more Royal Air Corps Pins to add as well.  Again they are made of lightweight material so as not to damage costumes.  Some pins will be marked down in price the next time you see me, so ask about the ones you like, they might be on sale.

Con Bravo and New Ships.

The Clockwork Hammer will be having a table at Con Bravo.  I will be having a few select pieces at the table to help raise funds for the Clockwork Hammer. I will also have a new piece that I will be introducing at the event, an air battleship that is named THE HAMMER, in honour of the group.  I used an earlier illustration to build THE HAMMER and while working on it, found it in need of a refit. So those of you who bought the earliest version you will be only 1 of 10 in the world with that copy.  I will only be producing the second version from now on. Here are the new ships.

Hat Medallions

I have a new set of Hat Medallions specifically for the ladies of steampunk culture. Based on the original series, these have the feminine touch of flowers and feathers.  Why wear boring old goggles that everyone else has, when you can make a personal statement.  These are made in a limited number, hand assembled and painted by the artist. They are art pieces, so they will be damaged with rough treatment.  They are protected with clear coat to give them water resistance, should the rain hit while you are unprotected, but they are not totally waterproof. They will debut at Coldwater Steampunk Festival in August.

The dragon pin will also be available at Coldwater. Again I make everything by hand from lightweight materials. I only have a few of the dragon pins in this series. I will be making more but as everything is hand cut and crafted, often each pin will have subtle differences. Come and see the real thing at my booth in Coldwater.

Hat Medallions and Collar Medallions

I am producing a number of Steampunk Hat Medallions to decorate your hats, turning just a regular chapeau into a Steampunk work.  The gear themed medallions are lightweight as to not damage your head wear.  Each piece is hand cut and assembled, hand painted as a work of art and sealed with with a water resistant coating. As art pieces they are not indestructible but I have taken care to make them as hardy as possible. So don't fold bend or mutilate and you should be fine.

 The Collar Medallions are to be used in place of a regular tie, to add just a splash more steampunk to your outfit. The elastic band slips on over your head and rests under your collar worn much like a tie but just making more of a statement. They should be short enough to stay out of your tea cup but long enough to meet the top of your vest.
 

Steampunk Surfer -- final

"I say Cowabunga dude"  a whimsical steampunk piece.  This one took a lot of fine tuning to get the final result, but I hope you agree with me that it was worth it.  I hope to have it available at Steam on Queen on June 22 and other following events, if the printer gods are with me. 

Cowabunga

line drawing finally done in computer, now the colouring begins.  You can see the earlier sketch back further in the blog and see the changes I made. From the rough to line drawing.  I will post the coloured image when complete.

Fish out of water final

This is the final image that will be available for sale.

Below is a detail of the inset image.

 This is painted watercolour with gouache image from the line drawing. Without the digital overlay.

Upcoming Paintings

fish  out of water

Clockwork Bot

Designed by Allen Swerling.

Final sketches of paintings that I hope to have done for Steam on Queen.  Wanted to get them done sooner but life happens.

More Pins

Steampunk Pins and Things

FROM OUT OF ALLEN’S MIND

A line of wearable art to enhance your steampunk experience.

The pins are made of ultra-light material to wear on what you choose -- a plain shirt, or a uniform; it’s all up to you.   They are handcrafted and hand-painted to look like metal.   Signed by the artist on the back of each pin. The wings have 2 stickpins to keep it properly balanced, the medals have a bar style pin, and the others are all have a single tie tack pin. 

Hat medallions are made of ultra-light material to add decoration without weight to hats to emphasize your individual style.  Wear them on a hatband or on the front of a cap.

More fun things to come

To enhance your experience in the steampunk worlds, so enjoy.

Someone asked me to design some Nautical pins. So here they are.  I have also designed some more Air Corps. pins.  These will be available at the next few events I will be showing at.  Art O Con and Steam on Queen.

These are the pins I wear on my vest. 

And introducing Mustaches on a Schtick, for those who don't want permanent facial hair but still want to be steampunk fashionable.

Gentleman Snail

Here is just a cute little idea.  Hope to do a series of snails with different Victorian hats on. Watercolour and mixed media.  Basically a pencil drawing that has been painted. The paper didn't behave the way I hoped. But still turned out OK. Gave it an aged look. Hope you like it.

Mr. and Mrs. Gear. Painted with Colour

A larger version of the pins.  These pair are 8.5 by 11 inches.   They will be hand painted in various colours. I will have a limited series that  will be available.  This is the first set, they will be framed together not individually. Please meet:  Sir Reginald and Lady Penelope Gear.

New Air Corps Pins

These pins are made of ultra-light material to go anywhere.  They are hand-painted to look like metal.  This series has silver and copper rivets and the next series will have silver zeppelins.  Signed by the artist on the back of each pin. Each pin will be packaged individually this is just to give you a good look at the items for size comparison and colour. Let me know what you think.   The wings have 2 stick pins to keep it properly balanced and the others are all have a single tie tack pin.

Air Corps Pin Design

Here is a work in progress of an air corps. pin design.  Made up of 12 separate parts. The toonie is for size comparison.  I can make them as requested though they do take some time.  This is after assembly but before painting.  I will post pictures of the finished project soon.

New Steampunk Gentleman and Security

This will be one of the last in the series of steampunk gentlemen. There may be another steampunk lady in the works. I wanted to have these done a while ago but life got in the way.  I have a number of sketches that I have already posted that are going to be started soon.   I also have a group of new  drawings from my idea book that I am working on as well.

The image is of my Steampunk Security Guard.  I hope you like him.  He is meant to be tough and protective.

Mr. and Mrs. Gear

Introducing Sir Reginald Gear and Lady Penelope Gear. They will be turned into black and white buttons as you see, and also hand painted buttons.  They will also be made into full size paintings. I am looking into turning them into t-shirts as well.  They will be available along with my regular supply of artworks at the HAMILTON ART MARKET every Saturday this summer from June 30. Come and see me there.