Make Steampunk Goggles
No steampunk costume would be complete without a pair of steampunk aviator goggles. You can usually buy a pair of steampunk goggles online, but if you are good with crafts, it might be cheaper to make your own. Making your own goggles also allows you the opportunity to customize them to your liking.
Steps
- Prepare the area. You will be working with glue and paint, so you should select a location that is well-ventilated. Lay a drop cloth over your working surface to prevent the paint and glue from getting on anything you do not want it on. You may also want to wear disposable plastic gloves and an apron or painter's smock to protect your clothes.
- Take apart a pair of welding goggles. Cheap welding goggles can be found online or at most home improvement stores. If possible, select a pair that at least has removable lenses, detachable straps, and a top that can be unscrewed. The goggles should be separated into as many pieces as possible.
- Cover the lenses with tape. If the lenses pop out completely, this step is not necessary. If the lenses are still held together by plastic, however, the plastic will need to be painted along with the outer rim or base. To protect the lenses from getting paint on them, cover the inside and outside with painter's tape or masking tape.
- Apply a base coat of metallic finish to the base. To create steampunk goggles with an antique or worn appearance, you will need to apply several coats of different metallic colors. Start by applying a silver or nickel metallic finish to the base section or body of the goggles. Use a dull finish, rather than a shiny one, to create an old-style look. Apply the finish with a cotton swab or cheap paintbrush. Let dry.
- Add a base coat of metallic finish to the other pieces. The lens piece or lens pieces should be a different color than the body. Consider using a dull copper finish, applying it to the pieces with a clean paintbrush or cotton swab. If there are other pieces, such as buttons that go on the side of the body, paint these a different color, as well. You can either use the same dull copper finish used for the lens piece or you can use a dull gold finish. Let dry.
- Use paint to create the look if patina. Paint over any piece that you painted copper or bronze with a copper patina paint. The paint should look brown or greenish-brown. If there are ridges or raised portions of the area being painted, apply the patina paint to the crevices in between the raised portions; otherwise, apply it around the entire area. Do not paint a solid layer of patina over the finish. Instead, dab it on using a painting sponge or apply some over the area before rubbing some off with a wrinkled paper towel.
- A patina is a type of film that that appears over the surface of bronze and copper over time due to oxidation of the metal.
- This gives you the aged effect to the goggles.
- Create the look of worn off gold leaf. If you painted any pieces with gold finish, make those pieces look aged by making the gold look worn. Even though gold does not corrode, many pieces are made with gold leaf to save on cost, and gold leaf eventually wears off over time. To create the appearance of scratched gold leaf, apply a pewter or dull silver paint along the edges or raised portions of the gold pieces.
- You could use old or damaged jewelries to add as ornaments if you can't find a gold leaf. just paint it and attached it later to the sides of the goggles.
- Reassemble the goggles. Once all the paint has dried, put the goggles back together. Remove the tape from the lenses or pop them back in place if they were completely removed. Leave the strap or band off the goggles.
- Prepare various embellishments. Random gears of various shapes and sizes are the standard embellishment of choice, but you can also use a variety of other objects, like custom pieces crafted with polymer clay, animals or objects from old Lego sets, or Victorian-style brooches and small cameos. The idea is to select pieces that either look Victorian in style or that look very industrial in nature. If these pieces already have an antique look to them, nothing more needs to be done. If not, you may want to paint them with dull metallic finishes so that they match the worn style of your goggles.
- Glue the pieces onto your goggles. Use super glue or a hot glue gun. It does not matter much where you glue them, but generally, the pieces should be kept off the lenses and on the body of the goggles or in between the lenses on a solid lens piece.
- Add broken watch gears to give detail and add an industrial look.
- Attach a clip-on lens for added flair. If desired, you can further embellish your steampunk goggles by attaching a clip on lens or detachable loupe set to the front of your goggles. The screw of the loupe set should be positioned in between the lenses, pointing outward, so that the lenses of the loupe set can be spun in front of the lenses of your goggles. Adhere the clip-on loupe set in place with hot glue or super glue.
- Using a broken element of a camera lens, glue them together with other embellishments.
- Let everything dry. Once all the paint and glue has finished drying, the goggles are ready to be worn and admired.
- Cut apart an old leather belt. You will need a leather band for your steampunk goggles, and the best way to do this is to use an old leather belt. The belt should be thin enough to slide into the strap holders. Ideally, if you want your goggles to have a worn appearance, the belt will also look worn or distressed. Cut the belt into three parts, removing a large portion of the middle section and making sure that the buckled section and holed section are large enough to wrap around your head.
- Feed the cut ends of the belt through the strap holders. If the belt is too thin and will not stay on its own, you may need to use a few dots of superglue to keep it in place.
- You're done and ready to wear.
- Admire your one of a kind steampunk goggles!
Tips
- To get a better idea of how steampunk goggles should look, find a few pictures of steampunk goggles you like and save them for reference photos. Look over these photos for inspiration or guidance as you work on your own pair.
- If you want steampunk goggles that look a little less “antique” and a little shinier or more polished, you can skip over the process of layering on metallic finishes and simply spray paint the goggle base with a metallic paint. Metallic gold or copper usually makes the best choice for the steampunk look.
- After you have made these goggles, you can then wear them on your eyes, on your hat, around your neck, or even put them on your pet if they feel comfortable in them!
Things You’ll Need
- Welding goggles
- Screwdriver
- Painter's tape or masking tape
- Metallic finishes
- Paintbrushes, cotton swabs, paint sponges
- Paper towels
- Disposable plastic gloves
- Apron or smock
- Drop cloth
- Old leather belt
- Various gears and other embellishments
- Clip-on loupe set or lens set
