Early on in 2014 I was approached by some very good friends who asked me to create some unique and special table centre-pieces for their wedding celebrations.
They were to be married at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, with a general “Steampunk” theme.
As they are both enthusiastic cyclists I suggested that making the table centre-pieces from bicycle parts might fit in with the scheme, reflect their personalities and be interesting and unusual.
The creative process
My first challenge was sourcing bicycles to dismantle. I used freecycle by putting out a request for old bicycles. The responses I received back all offered me children’s bikes. I realised that this was beneficial as children’s bikes would have smaller parts and as such I would be able to use more of them in the centre-pieces. My bicycle haul included a lovely old Raleigh bike complete with dynamo lights.
The next job was to dismantle the bikes into useable parts which I would then be able to re-arrange into sculptures. I did not worry about disassembling the bikes correctly and often used a hack-saw or wire cutters. 
I was then left with a box full of bike parts.
After a lot of thinking and planning I came up with the first sculpture. I used three saddles and one set of gear cogs to create “Take a seat” It was at this point that adding battery operated fairy lights became an idea (The venue for the reception was lit with a combination of coloured and mood style lighting which would highlight the illuminated centre-pieces.
It was also decided that spray painting the completed sculptures would help the pieces be clean and sanitary for use on the table as well as cover up any inconsistencies in the colouring. Silver was settled on to complement the colours on the tables.
Here are pictures showing “Take a seat” both illuminated and not
The three saddles were firmly glued together with a set of back wheel gears mounted in the centre. A length of chain was glued around the circumference. The lights were added following the edges of each saddle and then the sculpture was sprayed silver. The gears were still able to be rotated.
The other sculptures then began to evolve. Some I decided to use specific parts of the bikes in groups.
“A Handy Forest”
Made from the handle-bars of all three bikes. They were sawn in half and attached to a block of wood, wrapped with lights and spray-painted.
“Pedal Tree”
This was made using fence wire to build the basic tree shape and then three pedals were wired onto the ends of the branches. It was then mounted onto a wooden stand and the limbs of the tree were first wrapped with lights and then re-enforced with mod-roc to give them added strength and texture. Finally the sculpture was spray-painted sliver. Some of the pedals were still able to move.
“Newton’s Brake-Pads”
Some of the brake-pads still retained part of the mechanism that was used to move them. This made them hang and swing. As such they lent themselves to being suspended. A frame was built to hang them from and the remaining pads were attached to the ends of the frame. Lights were attached to edge the frame so as not to impede the movement. The sculpture was sprayed silver. Thesuspended brake-pads were still able to swing showing motion similar to that of a Newton’s Cradle.
“Top Chains”
A nod towards the conventional icons associated with Steampunk. This sculpture came about after idea discussion with the bride. A outsize and stylized top-hat was made from translucent plastic. The lights were attached to the inside of the hat and two bike chains glued onto the outside. The chains were carefully painted silver.
“Pedal to the lever”
The brake levers were securely attached to a wooden post with a solitary pedal glued into the top. A length of chain was used to decorate the base. After addition of the lights and painting the levers were still able to be moved as well as the pedal to be turned.
“Light up the Room”
On the various bicycles collected were a variety of reflectors and lights, including dynamo lights. These were mounted onto a wooden stand and the reflective surfaces were not sprayed so that they could reflect the fairy lights.
“Get in Gear”
This was made using various gear levers, rear wheel gears and derailleurs. The finished sculpture had various moving parts including turning gears and moving levers.
“The Salford Eye”
Using a wheel from one of the bicycles, fairy lights and a couple of bells this piece was a statement piece for the top table.
“Suspend Belief”
The bikes had various pieces that were unusual and unique. These were combined into a final sculpture. These pieces included suspension from underneath the saddle.
Transportation
The centrepieces were carefully packaged into boxes (with plenty of bubblewrap!!) and packaged carefully into my car for their journey down the M6 to Manchester.
Once we arrived at the museum they were unpacked and underwent any emergency repairs (They had mostly survived the journey intact)
The addition of the “Four-penny bikes” completed each sculpture and they were stored in an upper room in the museum ready to be installed on the day.
Four-penny bicycles
Installation
On the wedding day the reception room could only be set up once the museum had closed.
The centrepieces were positioned and the lights switched on at the last minute. Each centrepiece had a label attached saying “Play with me” as they were all interactive (Even the lights had two settings, still or flashing!)
The wedding guests were intrigued and impressed and by the end of the evening all the lights were flashing!!
In Situ
Pixie Creations 