“BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND,” Cullen’s Tannery Pub will be the site of a three-day steampunk trunk show beginning Friday, Denise Cullen, owner, said.

The trunk show will feature upcycled and reworked fashions by designer and artist Judi Morales Gibson of Cinder Garden Designs.

The show will have styles for both men and women, including hats, boots and goggles.

Steampunk is a genre of writing, clothing and art that focuses on steam-powered machinery that might have been built in industrialized nations during the 19th century — the Victorian and American “Wild West” era — and is influenced by the works of Jules Verne, H.G. Wells and Mary Shelley.

From literature and visual arts, the genre spread to decor and fashion, featuring gears and goggles blended with period attire and equipment.

Much of the decor in Cullen’s, a pub in the Tannery Building, is based on steampunk style.

Gibson has another clothing line she calls Burning Man playa-wear that follows the event’s intent of “leave no trace,” avoiding “matter out of place,” or “MOOP.”

Event organizers’ objective is for nothing to be left behind that isn’t indigenous to the environment of the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.

Both of Gibson’s clothing lines are available at Lottie Ballou Costumes, Suite 16, 940 Tyler St., in the Benicia Arsenal, but the trunk show Friday at Cullen’s focuses on steampunk.

“I became inspired by the steampunk art and clothing at Burning Man in recent years,” Gibson described on her website. “I am particularly smitten with the Obtainium Works crew here in Vallejo, an amazing group of artists who use obtainium (used stuff) to make art cars, artwork and functional contraptions.”

Gibson, a Vallejo resident who spends much of her artistic time in Benicia, has called her collection “vintage with an industrial functional edge.”

On her website, judimoralesgibson.com, she explains, “I truly believe in recycling, so I use only upcycled and repurposed materials like tableclothes, curtains, used clothing, boots and shoes, old luggage, antiques and found objects. Using obtainium also allows me to make my clothing affordable. “

Her trunk show will be 5-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday at Cullen’s Tannery Pub, 131 First St.

Restoration under way at The Inn At Benicia Bay

The Inn at Benicia Bay, 145 East D St., is in the middle of a restoration that will give it “new hair, a facelift and a Hollywood makeover fit for Liz,” said Michael Wright, consultant.

Wright said many Benicians have been asking, “What is going on at The Inn?”

The inn’s owner, Stephen David, also a master craftsman, has done similar upgrades to his Shorelight Inn, 153 West E St., one of several properties David owns in Benicia.

The Shorelight Inn has become popular among international guests who like its spa suites and elegant decor, Wright said.

He said David assembled a team of artisans and laborers to undertake the facelift for the Inn.

“His vision includes a new roof, siding, signage, new landscaping and an interior upgrade,” Wright said.

The Inn originally was built in 1854 and has received thousands of guests attracted by its home-stye service, classic furnishings and nostalgic experiences.

David also anticipates the Inn to become a wedding venue and special-event site with overnight accommodations, a full bar and Italian restaurant.

“We want people to experience the ambiance and charm that a historic bed and breakfast should represent,” he said.
—Donna Beth Weilenman