SSCL Teen Tones: cmog

Library Unmasked went Steampunk for it's third edition at the Southeast Steuben County Library. The #libraryafterhours party was yet another smashing success!

Geared Up for Unmasked

Doors opened at 6:30 for this event. Those who came to cosplay headed to the registration table to enter the contest. Some parents even attended in full garb ready for fun.

These Parents Rock!

If you look close at that mom's hand, you might recognize a geared up cuff/ glove from our First Friday Art Club Steampunked Costumes earlier in July. Our talented Hannah created those huge gears out of myriad cardboard boxes. Aside from geeked out parents, our teens and kids had fun cosplaying, too.

Willow the Watch Maker

"Willow the Watch Maker" created most of her costume in our Steampunked Costumes art class. That hat was white and hiding in the Creation Station, the library maker space, for over a year. Now it has new life and new places to roam.

The Reporter

Although parents discussed the meaning of Steampunk with their kiddos, some strong willed ladies chose their own path for cosplay. Here you see Rosie the Reporter. Too Cute!

To include some technology, Hannah set set up the green screen with cool steampunk backgrounds to share on social media. Search #LibraryUnmasked to follow the scene.

You can try this in the Creation Station!

While families got caught in Steampunk land, groups also tested out Breakout EDU with Kayla. This puzzle was like an escape room in a box. Stop over before summer is gone to test your escape skills.

Rainbow Pallette

Painted Love by Jennifer Sekella was on hand during the night to paint faces and make everyone look fabu for a few hours. I got a gear that kept me going well past midnight. The kids were excited to have some feisty color to complete their Friday festivities.

Butterfly and Tiger

Let the crafts begin!

Power Potion

Crafts included Potion Jar and Skeleton Key necklaces hosted by my trusty teen volunteers, Jenni and Sarah.

Premium Help in every Corner

Leather bracelets were made with Ann Recotta of Soulshine Studio. The leather strips were donated by Aurora Shoe Company. Many thanks to all those helping hands making a crafty and memorable occasion.

Kathryn W. stepped in to help, too!

There were several artists on hand selling their work and offering drawings to guests.

PolarNasu

PolarNasu (Derek Morrow) took the digital drawing approach.

Filomena Jack

Filomena Jack took the funky and fabulous path, per usual. She had paintings, drawings, jewelry and pizzazz to keep everyone engaged.

Joe Schichtel

Joey Schichtel kept the crowd entertained with his impressive illustrations and dark humor.

Emily Swan

Emily Swan graced the group with her prepared illustrations. Color, cut and stand the characters up for an action packed experience.

Patrick Thomas

Local author, Patrick Thomas was in the house promoting books he wrote. We got his steampunk book, As the Gears Turn, to add to the collection. Be sure to check it out.

Has anybody SEEN Troy?

Troy from the Corning Museum of Glass brought elements from their Curious and Curiouser exhibit on display at the Rakow Research Library until February 17, 2019. Glass eyeballs and locomotion video are all very Steampunk essential.

Dancers ready to Bust a Move

The roof was raised with performances from YunG-K, J-Cuzzo and Lukey Bear. These young men are high school students with too much talent to keep packed in Corning. Their performances were part of their "School's Out" summer tour and they made some new fans in the process.

Yung-K and J-Cuzzo

The finale to the festivities was the cosplay contest, judged by members of the 11th Hour Cosplay group. They are such a fun group, they event dressed to the Nines.

Steampunks Away!

The winners of the Steampunk Cosplay contest won weekend passes to Twin Tiers Comic Con in September. Page One Entertainment donated some of the passes for the winners.

Steampunk Crew

The winners from left to right are Frankie with Goth Before Goth was Real, Christina as Early Inventer (Glider), Remy and Ryker as The Gear Brothers, Robin as Formal Engineer, and Hannah as Willow the Watch Maker. Kudos for all the effort put in these designs!

Goodies Galore!

We were graced with several donations from area businesses, like ice cream from Dippity Do Dahs, certificates to CD Cafe on Market Steet, Table-Top games from Michael Steffins, Metacheckers from Ed Bond, a dinner certificate from Denny's Sub Shop in Big Flats, ice cream from the Sweet Spot, pizza from B's Pizza, ice cream from McDonald's in Corning/ Painted Post, comic con passes from Page One Entertainment, plus many artsy goods from the presenting artists. Penguin Random House also sent us a BIG BOX O' SWAG to raffle off for the evening. With over 45 prizes to raffle, lots of people went home with a treat.

That wraps up the biggest summer program I create. I hope you've been inspired to get in the cosplay game, work your art, create your craft, sing your song and rock out in the skin you're in. We look forward to another Library Unmasked in 2018. Thanks for visiting!

Get Unmasked again in 2018

Corning Museum of Glass has a phenomenal education department. We have teamed up many times to enrich the learning experiences of young adults in my programs. This time, we got to try sandblasting for the first time in the new Education Lab!

Immaculate Studio

My dear friend, Lu Kania, gave us the short introduction to sandblasting. It involves these machines:

The Sandblasting Beasts

AND LOTS AND LOTS OF STICKERS!!!! Now chill out a moment....these stickers may look cool, but Lu will tell you, the image will not remain on your glass once "The Beasts" get a taste of them! The stickers sole purpose is to resist the sand. That means, the cutesy little sparkles and fishy faces will not be seen by your grandma or Aunt Alice when you gift your amazing sandblasted glass for the holidays. It means, you create your own design using the stickers as a means to produce a pattern or random chaos. Here is a sample of our cool creations.