Author: JP Dean

Calamity Labs Presents: A Short History of Spirits and Cocktails (21+)

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 23, 2026

Presented Calamity Dawn

Join Calamity for a short but informative look at where the most popular base spirits came from. Learn about what different kinds of cocktails have stood the test of time. Calamity Dawn will share her favorite recipes so that you can take them home and try them for yourself. The session will end with a Q&A where you can ask Calamity your most burning questions about all things boozy!

Calamity Dawn is a semi-retired bartender and forever mixologist. She has well over a decade of experience creating and serving tasty libations both Boozy and non alcoholic. Calamity also has decades of experience enjoying said libations! She has been in the con scene for a very long time and has become a bit of a known figure in some circles. Bringing a bit of hospitality and her congenial nature wherever she goes, Calamity is always happy to stop and talk.

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Exposition Updates

Twelve Weeks until the Exposition!

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 21, 2026

Leanna Renee Hieber is an actress, playwright, ghost tour guide and the award-winning, bestselling author of over fourteen Gothic, Gaslamp Fantasy, Supernatural Suspense and Non-Fiction books for adults and teens with publishers such as Tor, Sourcebooks and Kensington Books. A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America’s Ghosts, co-authored with Andrea Janes, is a 2022 Bram Stoker Award finalist for “Superior Achievement in Non-Fiction”. The book explores the intersection of women’s history and ghost stories.

If you are one of Ms. Hieber’s most avid fans, you should consider purchasing the Leanna Renee Hieber VIP Ticket; there are only two left!

Two tickets also remain for the Unwoman VIP experience, but all VIP tickets for Gail Carriger have sold out. VIP tickets include an exclusive cocktail party on Friday, VIP banquet on Saturday, and High Tea on Sunday, plus a number of other great advantages such as access to the VIP lounge.

Program Updates

This week we added the following panels and presentations to the Schedule:

The Exposition is currently putting together the 2026 Program for your amusement and education. We list session descriptions as we countdown to June 12th, 2026, and should have the full and final schedule online by mid-April, 2026.

Exposition Exhibitors

This week we featured:

We have four main exhibitor spaces:

The Underground Market (Sienna) for Vendors.
The Midway Market (Slate) for Artists, Musicians, & Writers.
The Hall of Curiosities (Mahogany 4) for Displays.
Hallway Exhibitors (Atrium Lobby & Hallways) for Organizations and Fan Groups.

There are still Artist & Writer Tables available in The Midway Market; to apply, please fill out our Application for Exhibitors form

Social Media

- LIKE the Chicago Steampunk Expo page on Facebook for regular updates!
- RSVP to our Facebook event page!
- JOIN the Chicago Steampunk Exposition Adventurers’ Club group of Facebook to make plans with other steampunks!
- Yes, it’s all Facebook, but when we start posting on other platforms, we’ll be sure to add them to this list.

On the Horizon . . .

The 2026 schedule
Program updates
A new edition of Steam & Sorcery LARP game

Program

Alice’s Adventure Bag

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 19, 2026

Presented by Mary Prince
Workshop: 90 minutes
Attendee Limit: 10 (sign ups outside craft room)
Materials Cost: $10 (payable to presenters)

Create a bag to hold your notes, magic key and potions. One side has a sheer fabric window to show off a paperback book or journal. Pre-made window, lining, and choice of several fabrics will be provided in kit.

Mary Prince has been presenting workshops at Teslacon and Chicago Steampunk Exposition for multiple years, including hat decorating, mini books, and painting.

See the Current Program

Buy Your Discount Exposition Tickets

Program

Calamity Labs Presents: MALÖRT! Being a Brief History of Questionable Taste (21+)

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 18, 2026

Presented Calamity Dawn

Malört! It’s a Chicago tradition. What exactly is it? Where did it come from? How did it gain its cult like following? Why do people love it, hate it? Why does Calamity Dawn love it? The story behind this controversial spirit is fascinating. Crime, love, greed! Learn a little about one man’s quest to make Malört a spirit for the ages!

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Exhibitors

Geeky Goodies Gourmet Marshmallows

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 17, 2026

Geeky Goodies Gourmet Marshmallows make handcrafted gourmet marshmallows in hundreds of flavors, specializing in fandom inspired flavors and marshmallows made specifically for teas and coffees.

Geeky Goodies Gourmet Marshmallows is a mother/daughter team making handcrafted gourmet marshmallows, in a variety flavors. Now in their 5th year, together they create magical & fantastical fluffy, cloud-like concoctions, with hundreds of flavors that change with every season and holiday, often inspired by nerdy, pop culture, & fandom references; hence, their Geeky Goodies name.

At any given time of the year, they can have 20-40 different flavors available, and recently they have also added new products, such as Graham Crackers, marshmallow cones, candy stuffed marshmallows, mug toppers, S’mores kits, and FLÖÖF, our marshmallow fluff, all prepared by them in a fully licensed commercial kitchen.

Click on the banner to learn more . . .

The Exposition has four main exhibitor spaces:

The Underground Market (Sienna) for Vendors.
The Midway Market (Slate) for Artists, Musicians, & Writers.
The Hall of Curiosities (Mahogany 4) for Displays.
Hallway Exhibitors (Atrium Lobby & Hallways) for Organizations and Fan Groups

Buy Your Discount Exposition Tickets

Program

Interactive Movie Madness with Count Gregula’s Crypt

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 16, 2026

Join the Gregula gang for a spooktacular evening of fun as we bring the madness to Chicago Steampunk Expo! Count, Countess and their Fiends will be showing the 1915 silent film Alice in Wonderland and YOU the audience get to participate! Feel free to shout out jokes and make up your own dialogue as we watch this vintage gem together.

Count Gregula’s Crypt (#TeamGregula) is a major entertainment entity, press outlet, and horror brand. Founder Count Bela Gregula started the franchise in 1998, and it has been running strong for over 25 years and COUNTing. Insert evil laughter here. Bwahaha!!!

The brand became a TV horror host show also called “Count Gregula’s Crypt” that was seen on various cable channels and online outlets from 2005 to 2011. From 2014 to 2015, Count Sam Gregula was a recurring guest with Chicago radio personality Erich “Mancow” Muller. First appearing in 2014 during the “MANCOW!” show on My50 Chicago and then in 2015 during the “Mancow Morning Show” on The Loop 97.9 FM – Chicago’s Classic Rock Station. Most importantly, Count Gregula’s Crypt was well known during a 10 year span from 2012 to 2022 as an entertainment blog on ChicagoNow that was part of the Chicago Tribune Media Group.

Their current entertainment blog is linked to Count Gregula’s main site (www.Count-Gregula.com). Official Crypt Crew for 2025 includes Count Sam Gregula, Countess Lily Gregula, Deadly Dex, and Robert Dicke. New material added on a regular basis.

For more info about Count Gregula’s Crypt, visit their website at: https://count-gregula.com/count-gregulas-crypt/

See the Current Program

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Exposition Updates

Three Months until the Exposition!

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 14, 2026

Unwoman (AKA Erica Mulkey) performed at the first Chicago Steampunk Exposition back in 2019 and we are excited to see her return to the Exposition this June. She is a San Francisco-based cellist-singer-songwriter. Layered with skillful cello, rich vocals, and beats, her music is a darkly futuristic homage to her classical training. Her song “The Heroine” was the weather in Welcome to Night Vale’s “Triptych” episode. Vintage Tomorrows, a feature documentary about steampunk, includes that song and other footage of Unwoman. Unwoman has performed solo at major steampunk, goth, and sci-fi-related events all over the United States. Most live solo shows use electric cello played standing up, and live-looping accompaniment. She has also collaborated with Amanda Palmer, Abney Park, Stripmall Architecture, Voltaire, Rasputina, Jill Tracy, Vernian Process, Caustic, Anthony Jones, Nathaniel Johnstone Band, Black Tape for a Blue Girl, and Attrition.

If you are huge fan of Unwoman, you should consider purchasing the Unwoman VIP Ticket. A few VIP tickets remain available! Join Gail Carriger, Leanna Renee Hieber, or musical artist Unwoman for VIP cocktails on Friday, sit at their banquet table on Saturday, and share a spot of High Tea with them on Sunday, plus a number of other great advantages that come with the VIP packages.

Program Updates

This week we added the following panels and presentations to the Schedule:

Exposition Exhibitors

This week we featured:

We have four main exhibitor spaces:

The Underground Market (Sienna) for Vendors.
The Midway Market (Slate) for Artists, Musicians, & Writers.
The Hall of Curiosities (Mahogany 4) for Displays.
Hallway Exhibitors (Atrium Lobby & Hallways) for Organizations and Fan Groups.

There are still Artist & Writer Tables available in The Midway Market; to apply, please fill out our Application for Exhibitors form

Social Media

- LIKE the Chicago Steampunk Expo page on Facebook for regular updates!
- RSVP to our Facebook event page!
- JOIN the Chicago Steampunk Exposition Adventurers’ Club group of Facebook to make plans with other steampunks!
- Yes, it’s all Facebook, but when we start posting on other platforms, we’ll be sure to add them to this list.

On the Horizon . . .

Our NEW newsletter!
Exhibitor updates!
Programming updates!

Program

Dungeons & Dragons “Adventures in (wo)UNDERland” (18+)

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 11, 2026

Games Master: Hoss Brock
Gaming System: Dungeons & Dragons 5e
Players: 4 – 6
Gaming Time: 3 hours
Sign Up at the main Registration Desk in the Atrium Lobby

A heartless queen. A headless haberdasher. Baffling riddles and mysterious beverages.

Experience Lewis Carroll’s iconic encounters turned on their heads in this harrowing expedition through the Underdark.

Game Master Hoss Brock began GM-ing online during the pandemic, and when in-person gameplay resumed he brought his love of building and crafting to the table. He seeks to provide players an immersive experience through character voicing, visual supplements, and handcrafted props and terrain. While especially passionate about introducing new players to TTRPG’s, seasoned gamers also enjoy his detailed style.

See the Current Program

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Exhibitors

The Kalpar (Ironhammer Publishing)

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 10, 2026

Indie fantasy author offering books, calligraphy, and hand-painted minis.

Ironhammer Publishing features owner and sole employee Kalpar. Writer, historian, ferroequinologist, numismatist, polymath. These and other fancy words can all be applied to Kalpar with varying degrees of accuracy. Kalpar will be offering their fantasy novels Silas & Bundersnoot, Across Amastica, and Ephemera, as well as calligraphy prints and hand-painted miniatures perfect for your tabletop dungeon experience.

Click on the banner to learn more . . .

The Exposition has four main exhibitor spaces:

The Underground Market (Sienna) for Vendors.
The Midway Market (Slate) for Artists, Musicians, & Writers.
The Hall of Curiosities (Mahogany 4) for Displays.
Hallway Exhibitors (Atrium Lobby & Hallways) for Organizations and Fan Groups

Buy Your Discount Exposition Tickets

Program

Tea Dueling

Post author By JP Dean
Post date March 9, 2026

Presented by Chi-Town Tea Scout Troop #606 & Leader Mizz Christine

Gather with Steampunk Tea Scouts and duel your way to malarkey and shenanigans!

Enjoy the classic and breath-taking Tea Dueling.
Learn or Renew the Tea Scout Oath.
Compete in a thrilling bout of MAD Tea Party Bingo!

Tea dueling is a Steampunk hobby that is played whenever three or more steampunks gather in what is known as a “Tiffin Party”. It works best when the tea duelists are surrounded by a throng of excited onlookers eager to cheer on the victor and point out any instances of cheating to the wise and patient referee, known as the Tiffin Master.

Mizz Christine – An Odd One, a Bubbly TeaPot, or a Sweetie-Pie: Mizz Christine has been called by many titles. All that is truly known is that she originated in the City of Big Shoulders, has roamed the globe, and is still seeking a never-ending Cup of Assam. Milk or cream, please.

Tiffin Guides: Mistress and Master Hansen The Duo.