My First Dieselpunk Look

According to Wikipedia ‘Dieselpunk is a genre that combines the aesthetics of the diesel-based technology of the interwar period through to the 1950s with retro-futuristic technology.’ That sounds a bit complicated to me so I’m just going to describe it as a steampunk-like aesthetic except instead of Victorian era steam inspired components the time period is that of the 1950s and the main technology is diesel.

Anyways, I’ve been interested in Steampunk for years. I’ve gone to some panels, attended the annual Mechancial Masquerade dance party at DragonCon for several years but I’ve never dressed up to fit the theme. This year’s Mechanical Masquerade them is ‘Dystopia’ and it looks like they’re pushing a Mad Max vibe so that’s the kind of look I’ve attempted to put together. I spent most of my time and resources making Karl and my Sith costumes so I had to work with pieces I already had.

Components: Short Black Renaissance Dress, black leggings, brown boots, brown belt with brass clasp under bust, black leather Renaissance belt with bag, skirt pulls, and a glove holder used to fasten down a whip. A couple of necklaces and steampunk inspired earrings. Apple red Arada wig, and minimalist Furiosa (Mad Max: Fury Road) inspired makeup done with black Ben Nye makeup applied with a sponge and stippling brush. I’m hoping to turn the brown belt into a thigh strap that I will probably have to sew onto the leggings. I’m also thinking of adding a few rips to the leggings rebound with chain, saftey pins or something similar.

I just found a slightly tattered faux leather jacket at the thrift store that I’m going to dress up to wear with this. Hopefully it will look good because I have some fun ideas for it.

I’m not sure how accurate this is, but it seems fairly close. I’m still trying to grasp exactly what is steampunk and dieselpunk are. I’m not super familiar with the attire or technology of each period so it can be a bit confusing.

Other Resources:

Dieselpunk for beginners: Welcome to a world where the ’40s never ended