If you're too lazy to just Google "steampunk," allow us to start with a quick definition: it's an alternate history, usually taking place around or inspired by Victorian era aesthetics, in which steam is a source of power as opposed to oil and gas. Jules Verne is a pretty good starting point, but even literary heavyweights have delved into the curious world, including Thomas Pynchon in his novel, Against the Day, which features, among other things, airships and air-pirates. If you're still confused, don't worry, it'll start to come together as we steampunk the shit out of some common household items.
There are two essential things we need to now before we start steampunking: bronze is the greatest thing ever and all pictures need to look old-timey. With that in mind, let's get this moving.
Let's start with something simple: Let's steampunk your toilet paper dispenser.
As you can see, it doesn't take much. All you really need is some bronzer and some photoshop filters and you're all set. Of course, if you wanted to do this in real life you'd probably be best off just buying a bronze dispenser and attaching a few cogs to it.
Now, let's steampunk the Pringles logo, because that dude's already pretty damn steampunky.
As you can see, all we needed to do to get the Pringles-man steampunked was put a top-hat on him and give him a robotic body. Not a bad trade-off really, as we're pretty certain steampunk-flavored Pringles would sell like hotcakes. Another key feature is that all photos need to have an extreme vignette on them, otherwise it just doesn't work as steampunk.
Finally, the cat. Because why the fuck not?
As you've seen, there are a few things all steampunked objects need to do: they work best when they're sepia-tone or drained of most color -- oftentimes, you can just add some clocks, goggles or backpacks to things and you'll be set. Finally, never, ever forget the vignette, and if you can, get some scratches on the photo, they're really important. Apply these methods to your own steampunk costume and photos this weekend and you'll be the hit of the whole convention!