How does one make a pair of Steampunk Goggles?

[Viddick Rhade]

I've got a pair of black goggles that I want to give a more Steampunk look anyone got ideas? I'm pretty new to the genre so I've got only a few ideas. Sadly I don't have a means of showing you the goggles but some general tips at least would be nice.

[H. MacHinery]

Brass-colored paint to highlight the raised areas, perhaps wood-finish veneer for the rest;  leather for the strap

[JingleJoe]

I'm guessing you have the simple black plastic welding goggles?
Plastic painted to look brass is ... not my cup of tea (to put it very lightly)

Why don't you try adding brass plates to the sides? Bolt them on and bobs your uncle, instantly steamier!

[Reni Valentine]

a while back, there was a Threadbanger video on how to make goggles, i think from found objects - bear with me, i'm literally watching it in my iTunes as we speak... i know you already have a pair, but at least this gives you a visual reference as well as ideas for repurposing things that you already have.

http://www.threadbanger.com/episode/iST_20080826

as mentioned before, the frames can be painted as well as distressed. they can be added to - i've seen goggles with gears and cogs and other metal and/or machine bits attached with varying degrees of success. i've also noticed that with many types of goggles, the lenses themselves can be changed out. i'm partial to black lenses for myself, but i'm growing fond of deep coppery brown ones as well.

I'm guessing you have the simple black plastic welding goggles?
Plastic painted to look brass is ... not my cup of tea (to put it very lightly)

Why don't you try adding brass plates to the sides? Bolt them on and bobs your uncle, instantly steamier!

for what it's worth, i think i'm in the minority in that i actually didn't do anything to my goggles. i've never felt the need/urge to do so...

[Viddick Rhade]

Its an Anime-ish pair of goggles. Black in color, Velcro strap, Soft foam comforter along the edge of the eye pieces, and exaggerated  eye pieces.

[Reni Valentine]

Its an Anime-ish pair of goggles. Black in color, Velcro strap, and large eye pieces.

i have a similar pair, only the strap is black elastic

[JingleJoe]

Anime-ish doesn't describe them at all because I've seen almost every popular style of goggles worn in anime.

http://www.threadbanger.com/episode/iST_20080826

Those are the worst goggles I have ever seen. The methods and ideas are good but the final product is embarasing.

I'm guessing you have the simple black plastic welding goggles?
Plastic painted to look brass is ... not my cup of tea (to put it very lightly)

Why don't you try adding brass plates to the sides? Bolt them on and bobs your uncle, instantly steamier!

for what it's worth, i think i'm in the minority in that i actually didn't do anything to my goggles. i've never felt the need/urge to do so...

Exactly, I only made the suggestion because this chap seem to want to do something with his goggles, you don't need to do anything to them really.

[Viddick Rhade]

Well Umm, let me think. The Goggle Eye pieces are large as stated before. There are five small protrusions(?) from the side of the eye piece. They are half circles/Ovals I guess. They are aligned in a delta formation. best I can do.

[JingleJoe]

These? They're often known as german goggles.

You could use google to find an example if they are not right

[Viddick Rhade]

Those are them, except of course black in color and slightly different design for the eye pieces. Instead of the screw design there isn't any design on mine. Comforter is slightly larger, and a small movable metal bar holds the eye pieces together. They are designed so you can unclamp the metal bar to pry the eye pieces open enough to swap out the lenses for different colors.

[JingleJoe]

Well, if they look even similar to those you don't need to do anything to them, infact I implore you not to, I am reminded of a phrase:
The goggles don't make a steampunk, the steampunk makes the goggles.
However these goggles were already made for you, that just saves you some work ultimately so all you need to do now is be steampunk!

[Reni Valentine]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

these are my goggles. at one point in life, there were photos of me in them but i seem to have removed them from my flickr page and cannot locate them...

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

these are just a pair of sunglasses that i wear on a fairly regular basis.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

these lovely lovely things were liberated from a former schoolmate. is you look, you can see that there's space between the lens and the rim which i find interesting.

none of them are particularly steamy, and after many sketches to the contrary i've decided that it's unlikely that i'll make changes to any of the three. that's not entirely true actually - i need to change out the strap on the goggles because the elastic tends to squish my brain, but i don't wear leather (separate issue altogether) and as i have extremely short hair, most things tend to rub me the wrong way - literally. i had wanted to make an aviator's cap to wear with the glasses in the third photo, but then i realised that my face is really round and it's terribly unbecoming so back to the proverbial drawing board (in this case, back to the sketchbook and the design room...)

[Viddick Rhade]

Mmm I can see your point of that they look good enough, but its also the idea that I want them to be my own. Since having bought them who knows how many more people have the same pair as I.

[Reni Valentine]

http://www.threadbanger.com/episode/iST_20080826

Those are the worst goggles I have ever seen. The methods and ideas are good but the final product is embarasing.

seconded - sorry, i should have warned you about that. i was more impressed with the ingenuity than with the end result.

Mmm I can see your point of that they look good enough, but its also the idea that I want them to be my own. Since having bought them who knows how many more people have the same pair as I.

i can see your point, and no one is really telling you not to mod them - it's merely a matter of opinion. as i suggested before, try changing out the strap and the lenses - you already mentioned that the lenses are interchangeable. i can't tell from the photo whether they are plastic or metal, but you could look into different add-ons or colouring the frames

[Viddick Rhade]

What kind of store might I find a leather strap that I Can use? As I said I've only recently gotten interested enough to actually try and I don't know where to find the materials.

[Reni Valentine]

What kind of store might I find a leather strap that I Can use? As I said I've only recently gotten interested enough to actually try and I don't know where to find the materials.

that's an excellent question. although i make clothing, i don't work with leather at all...i know that we have fabric stores where it can be purchased, as well as imitations. it would most probably be cheaper to scour thrift stores for cast-offs. from one leather jacket/coat, you can make a waistcoat and still have enough to make straps...

[JingleJoe]

What kind of store might I find a leather strap that I Can use? As I said I've only recently gotten interested enough to actually try and I don't know where to find the materials.

Send them to me I'll make you an adjustable leather strap with a nice copper buckle (hand made) for just a few units of currency

One could buy your own leather and your own buckle though Fabric shops sometimes have cheap leather offcuts (that's where all my leather comes from!)

[Reni Valentine]

What kind of store might I find a leather strap that I Can use? As I said I've only recently gotten interested enough to actually try and I don't know where to find the materials.

Send them to me I'll make you an adjustable leather strap with a nice copper buckle (hand made) for just a few units of currency

One could buy your own leather and your own buckle though Fabric shops sometimes have cheap leather offcuts (that's where all my leather comes from!)

will you make me a non-leather one?

[JingleJoe]

Certainly, although I have little experience in such a field, what would you like me to make it from?

Perhaps we should continue this discussion by PM?

[H. MacHinery]

What kind of store might I find a leather strap that I Can use? As I said I've only recently gotten interested enough to actually try and I don't know where to find the materials.

Some hobby shops have leather strap for craft projects.  You could also take a thin belt or bag strap (raid mother's purses!)

[Otto Von Pifka]

you can also find sewing bits and bobs at walmart, even fake leather vinyl at some.

as for modding those german goggles, you could just cover the rubber edges and sleeve the elastic strap.

if you push on the rubber rim, you will notice it will curl away and you can see the edge of the steel eyecups. the rubber is actually riveted to the eyecups from the inside. 

either using thin real leather or very supple fake leather, cut a strip at least an inch wide and long enough to go completely around the eyecup, plus a little extra. you can check the width by laying it along the rubber eyecup edge, it should be wide enough to wrap from the front edge to the inner edge.

starting behind the nose piece, pull the rubber open and try to tuck the edge of the strip under the steel edge a bit, with the good side facing the eyecup side. work your way around until you come back to the nose bridge. cut off the extra but leave a little overlap if needed.

you can now put a flexible adhesive on the rubber and the back of the strip, then roll it over the rubber like putting on a stocking. tuck it into the eyepiece, and then wedge a ball of paper into the eyecup to hold the strip inner edge down until the glue sets. there may be a few wrinkles but they will be on the inside and most likely invisible.

you can buy old leathe coats at a resale shop, to get material from. I found a thin fake leather at walmart, it was a distressed brown leather like on a bomber jacket. worked fine on one pair of goggles.

you can also get leather scrap bags at hobby lobby and other arts and crafts stores. they usually sell buckles and other pieces in the same isle too.

[sebastian Inkerman]

try charity shops or, as I believe that you call it over your side of the pond, "goodwill" for thin leather belts with an appropriate buckle. You can sew the belt into place (once it's the right length of course) or get some 2 piece tubular brass rivets from ebay and attach that way.

If you've never worked with leather before, you'll need a good strong pair of scissors and maybe either a hole punch (if you are using rivets) or an awl (if you are sewing them on)

Bob is, as they say, your mother's brother.

[CptFancyBreeches]

go to your local goodwill/salvation army/second hand store and buy an old purse. a purse will give you lots of useful parts such as straps, large sections of leather, buckles, rivets and a wide variety of nifty attachments

[WillRockwell]

Forgive me for weighing in late, but I just noticed this thread. In my opinion, it is easier to start from scratch than to make a pair of plastic and elastic goggles look Steamy. I knew nothing about leatherworking or the construction of goggles, but with a few parts and common sense, was able to make a series of convincing goggles that seem to have taken their place in the Virtual Museum of Steampunk Artifacts. I started with lamp parts, I don't know what they are called but they are available in large hardware or lighting stores. Obtain soft leather, it will be comfortable and easy to work. The leather is attached with brass snaps, available at a trimming store. The lamp parts are soldered together with the nose bridge, they are cushioned with leather wrapped around vinyl tubing. Make your goggles from scratch, you will be more satisfied with the result and you will have a truly unique creation.
 
 

[Fear-stiùradh]

Leather straps can be found fairly simply, really.  Think pet-collars or children's belts, for instance.  Many punk/goth shops sell thin leather bits with buckles and many intersting metal bits than could be recycled into/onto other items.