A distant relative and explorer of the southern South Island provided the inspiration for Tony and Blair Somerville to design the supreme winner of the Steampunk Fashion Show in Oamaru yesterday.
Tony (from Kaka Point) and Blair (Papatowai) based their character around their great-great-great-grandfather Bush Reverend Bannerman, who in the mid-1880s explored the southern South Island from Waihola to Invercargill.
It took about five months working after work to make the costume, a robotic mechanised metal moa used as speedy transport through the bush.
Tony wore the costume at the show yesterday, and said he was hoping to win his adventurer-explorer category, but never expected to win the supreme prize.
He entered the Steampunk show for the first time last year, coming second in the same section.
One of the show's judges, Iain Clark, said the standard this year was very high with some wonderful creations.
''Just when you thought the best had come along, along came another,'' he said.
He, along with Warren Beaton and Clare McCutcheon, judged the fashion show, which had 20 entries from as far away as Whangarei and Dunedin.
Ms McCutcheon, a costume designer, said judging the show was ''a nightmare'' because of the high standard.
A Whangarei husband and wife each won their sections, Janet Mason as a night shift dock worker in the working wear section, and Michael Johnson as Phineas Fog in the scientist-inventor section.
Oamaru's Sarah Baker, with a costume designed and made with Annie Baxter (Oamaru), won the evening wear category as Paparazzo.
The festival started with about 40 people attending literary readings in the Early Settlers' Hall on Saturday afternoon, linked by Skype to Steampunk enthusiasts in the United States, followed by the ''airship mess crew dinner'' in the evening, with about 50 attending.
The dinner was followed by dirigible racing, flying radio-controlled balloons, with some going down like the Hindenburg and collapsing.
About 200 people watched pilots fly the ''nano blimps'' around the pillars in the historic Loan and Merc building in Harbour St, Mike Lester, of Christchurch, successfully defending his title.
Last night, about 120 attending the Gala Ball at St Kevin's College. The festival finishes today with a swap meet between 10am and 1pm in the Smith's Grain Store in the historic precinct.
