Dashing, Talented & Such

Tonight I must write a post of love and appreciation for Stache and Skyeboy, who have been working tirelessly to complete the Hennepin Crawler in time to take it to the Playa. You can follow the progress of their kinetic sculpture at the Krank-Boom-Clank blog. It's been nights upon nights of welding and bike grease ~ and all the while my boys remain ever cheery and dapper.


Last night they succeeded in getting it out for a test pedal, and though some modifications are still needed, they're in the home stretch.


I can't wait to see it in its full glory, blazing across the desert.

On a related note, we were delighted to see there is to be a Steampunk theme camp at the Burn this year ~ the Bomb Bay Tea Company. Tea and bikkies to be served every afternoon by the crew of the stranded airship Victoriana's Revenge... A visit from the intrepid Hennepin Crawler crew has already been promised.

Should be a bang-up year with plenty of dusty and be-goggled adventures before we return home to roost for the Handcar Regatta.

Glorious Garlingtons

Forgive your poor Choklit for being so absent... I've been even more busy than usual, what with the Burning Man preparations, sewing my little fingers tender on piles of adornments for the Handcar Regatta and the Steampowered Convention (both of which I have somewhat foolhardily agreed to vend at in person), and oh yes, that pesky day job.

As a peace offering, I give you the spectacular results of our photo shoot with magician Michael Garlington. Hanging by the Airstream...


And perhaps my new most favorite picture of myself EVER, wherein I am sporting leather skirt~lifters and goggles by BoilerGoth, my oxidized brass Dragonfly necklace by Honeyspy, and a fabulous medal by Molly Porkshanks. I could be the steampunk Etsy poster girl.


A few more can be seen on my Flickr photostream, including an intriguing portrait of the ever-dashing Lord Hopton, and the set-up which inspired the whole shoot - of Baby Seal Club as Victorian Explorers in a natural history museum-esque diorama.

I'm ever so pleased. Viva Garlington!

Things That Please Me: Sub-Culture Blogs

'Cause who doesn't love blogs that offer up tasty bits of sub-culture?

COILHOUSE calls itself "a love letter to alternative culture, written in an era when alt culture no longer exists."

Photo from their lovely survey of Ruffs in fashion.

Stunning imagery, snarky commentary, and entries on favorite topics like steampunk, Victoriana, and of course Cthulu make this a treasury of entertainment for Choklit.

Ah, Cthulu ~ a nice segue to the venerable Ectoplasmosis: "a wonder closet of fringe art, culture, and ephemera."

Ectomo features must-reads like Moustache Monday, where my very own Stache was once featured, and juicy categories like the multi-purpose prefixpunk and perennial favorite tentacles are what keep me going back to Ecotomo for more.

Image from a post on Brass Goggles. Which is another visual treat for those with a love of all things steampunk. But that's rather deserving of a post of its very own, don't you think?

Go forth and be amused!

Centennial Speakeasy Soirée

Last night some neighbors of ours celebrated the 100th birthday of their house by having a speakeasy themed party. People turned out in beautiful flapper and gangster costumes, and there were lots of exciting stockings, like these stunning back-seamed cuban heels.


I was lamenting the complete lack of 20's costumes in my collection, but several kind friends insisted I was the only one who actually fit the period of the house in my Edwardian get-up. I love the styles of the 20's, but I am most certainly not built like a flapper.


Drinks were sipped from mason jars, there was much revelry, and the night ended with a spontaneous striptease by one of our lovely hosts, who went from a baggy men's suit and fedora down to boa and red corset to the sultry strains of Minnie the Moocher, much to our delight.

I had better pull together something flapper-ish before we venture down to Bourbon and Branch, a speakeasy in San Francisco where they mix up vintage cocktails and you actually need a password to get in...

The Medium is the Moment

In addition to a big gig last Sunday night that got everybody up and Otter Dancing, Baby Seal Club played a few songs last week at 515 Orchard, a new performance space housed in a turn-of-the-century church. It was truly lovely.

We were invited to play there by Mark Growden, an enchanting song~twister who has been the artist in residence at 515 Orchard for the last month. Check out Mark's music, or see him live, if you can. He's an absolutely mesmerizing performer.


Lovely photo by Dana Throckmorton.

Performing completely acoustically is a phenomenal experience - there is no reverb, no distortion, no wall of noise to hide behind... just raw music. A hush, candles, a crowd in awe... it's terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

Mark said something to me last week that just burst open a door in my consciousness about being a performer. When asked why he didn't get tired of playing the same songs over and over on a tour where he had shows every night, he looked surprised and simply said "But I'm not playing the same songs at all. It's not the song that is the medium - the medium is the moment."

And a little light came through the cracks of my mind - it made perfect sense. That very moment, in that place, with those people in attendance - each one of those instances is a fresh work of art you're creating that will never happen again. Forget trying to replicate a great show, or avoid revisiting a bad one - each performance is its own new experience being born.

This theorem was beautifully illustrated this weekend, when our liquored-up alter-ego band, the Drunken Family Singers, made a guest appearance around 3:30 a.m. at a pool party - and the equally drunken audience adored us. A hip-hop version of Stairway to Heaven was performed, impromptu, with stand-up bass accompanied by a charming party guest.

The medium is the moment ~ beautiful. Thank you, Mark.

Things that Please Me: Balkan Bangers

I've been on a kick lately that I just have to share - a music genre called Balkan Bangers discovered by the ever-illustrious Stache.

I've long been a fan of gypsy-inspired music, starting way back with the phenomenal Latcho Drom soundtrack, and in the last few years, that's been stoked by fusion bands like Gogol Bordello, DeVotchKa, and Beirut. So I was beside myself with excitement when Stache discovered several playlists dedicated to Balkan Bangers - a happy marriage of gypsy and klezmer music with hip-hop and dance.


This is serious hip-shaking stuff here. Much of it is gathered up by Typsy Gypsy, a DJ from Belgium who frequently mashes up Balkan music with western hip hop.

And digging around the interwebs for such treasure led me to exciting things like this delightfully chaotic gem of a music video by Emir Kusturica and the No Smoking Orchestra. Emir is an amazing Serbian filmmaker and musician, and his tracks are among my favorites on the mix.

Go listen now. Opa!

Dances of Vice

I'm thinking about taking out an ad for Atelier Choklit in the program for the next Dances of Vice festival. Being of the West Coast ilk, I haven't had the pleasure of attending one of their Manhattan events yet, but it sounds like it's right up my alley... a community of "elegant flappers, dandies, time travelers, artists & ne'er-do-wells."

If I wasn't going to be packing for Burning Man, I'd be seriously tempted to go - the theme is the Munchausen Time Traveller's Ball. Not only do I adore that movie, the venue looks amazing, and the dress code is nothing less than "18th Century, Victorian, New Romantic, Elizabethan, Carnevale, Edwardian, 1920-30s, Steampunk, Decadent..." Hello, Choklit heaven?

Is it just me, or are we experiencing a renaissance of events for the costume set? I'm thrilled. One can never have enough opportunities to look fabulous in dramatic uncomfortable clothes, I say.

100 Hearts and Garters

Last night I reached 100 hearts for my Etsy shop, Atelier Choklit. I must say it was largely due to my fortuitous first front page appearance in a treasury by CalloohCallay, which doubled my hearts in an hour...

I've also been quietly working on some adornments for the gentlemen, not least of which is a stack of silk sleeve garters, which, according to Wikipedia, were originally used to adjust sleeves on shirts that only came ready-made with extra long sleeves. Pictures soon - for now, you'll have to be satisfied with this one of Skyeboy getting ready for the Edwardian Ball, sporting the pair I made for him in a lovely silver silk.


I'd love to do hat-bands, as well, but I'm still figuring out how to make them adjustable enough to fit all sizes of hats while keeping the fabric-covered button closure.

I'll admit I'm also thrilled with the idea of a photo shoot featuring some of the dashing men in my life. Dandies on film, sigh.