I love steampunk and all things steampunk. I love corsets and lace, although admittedly, I have not gotten brave enough to make my own....yet.

I had purchased some lace at one point and didn't know what I wanted to do with it, so like a steampunk loving maker superhero, I go to my stash o stuff and see what I can put together. As I made this project for the first time, I thought about my dream corset and what colors I would use. You see the theme here is consistent, black and red.

This is the result. Easy and quick to do and totally just for fun and fancy.

For this project you will need:

The letter you want to use

Acrylic Paint (crafter's version is fine)

A paint brush

Lace

Scissors

E-6000 glue

Ribbon

Embellishments

Step 1: Paint Your Letter

I had purchases some of these letters at a big box store. I knew I would use them for something just wasn't sure what when I purchased them.

I chose to paint my base red. I added two layers of color, just in case the wood absorbed some of the paint. This doesn't have to be painted perfectly. Just cover it evenly.

You know, if you care a woodcrafter, you could make your own letter. Just sayin'.

Step 2: Cut Your Lace

The lace that I had on hand was 1" wide. I tried to wrap the letter with the lace as it was. The wider the lace, the harder it is to use for this project. So I cut it in half. It was much easier to handle after that.

Step 3: Gluing Down the Lace

You want the beginning and ending of the lace wrapping to seem flawless. You shouldn't see where it begins or end. Once again E-6000 glue worked wonderfully. I glued the beginning of the lace and allowed it to dry. Once it had dried, I began to wrap the lace, slightly and I mean very slightly overlapping the previous wrap until the entire letter is covered in lace. Then I glue down the end piece and once again wait for it to dry.

Here is a helpful hint. Too much glue and it shows through??? Just wipe a little bit off with a paper towel or your finger, but do it quickly. The E-6000 dries clear so unless you have a glob of glue, you should be good.

Step 4: Adding the Ribbon

Now to add that extra something something that make it more corset like. You have the color peeking through the lace, you have the lace, now time to add the ribbon. I decided where I wanted the ribbon, considered the size of the letter and started gluing.

I started at the "bottom" of where I thought it would be on the real macoy so I could criss cross the ribbon so it would look like a laced corset.

As you can see, I chose to match the ribbon to the base color, you can do it however you would like.

Step 5: Adding the Ribbon Decoration

You have your ribbon on, looks good but is still a little ummmm.... plain.

Back to the pile of stuff and look for something to bling up that ribbon. Since this is steampunk themed, I chose a brassy looking design. I had some beads in one of those little bags purchased at the big box store for a dollar. I added four of those and tied a bow in the ribbon. Suddenly, it has that corset look.

Step 6: Finishing Touches

Finally time to add those finishing touches that everyone associates with steampunk...gears, wings, clocks, washers. Once again, glue them on. All these things again can be changed to suit your taste. You can use another theme if you would like.

After you have finished, add a means of hanging your letter, I am lucky in that an "S" is easy to hang.

Just have fun with it. Be creative. Let your mind go to that place where you see what you want and bring it to life and are able to hold it in your hand. Give it life.

Hope you enjoy. If you make one, let me know how it turned out for ya.