People are busy preparing Ōamaru for a weekend bustling with bronze, gold, cogs and lace.

Steampunk Festival New Zealand opens later this week, with the theme Botanical Mechanical bringing plenty of things for all to enjoy, one of the organisers, Lea Campbell says.

The festival has three parts - the ticketed events the stalwarts expect, the bigger, free community events, and the wandering steampunkers who add to the atmosphere of the town, she says.

The main community events are the Gate Opening on Friday night, and Parade on Saturday.

The Parade begins at 11am on Saturday, from the Farmers Market carpark, following Tyne St, Itchen St and around Thames St before going through Harbour St and returning to the carpark.

Last year, it attracted more than 3000 spectators.

 “So it draws people to town”, Lea says.

The Gate Opening Ceremony, marks the beginning of the Steampunk Festival, and starts at 6pm.

Wellington band Crash Bandihoot, will play at the opening, and continue on Harbour St.

Two of Ōamaru’s more infamous steampunkers, Agent Darling (Iain Clark) and La Falconese (Helen Jansen), will open the gate, with master of ceremonies David Wilson representing the Oamaru Whitestone Civic Trust.

Lea says locals are under no obligation to dress up, “but even if someone just sticks on a top hat and feels part of it, that's great”.

A new addition to this year’s festival is a trinket swap.

It has been suggested people make about 50 trinkets between the size of a 10 cent coin and a playing card. 

Examples are tiny books and miniature bags.

The trinket swap is popular at hobbyist conventions, like sewing and quilting, and encourages people to interact, Lea says.

“And it's a way of getting, especially for an artist, like, a sample of their artwork.”

People may be unsure about it this year but she hopes it will gain popularity in the coming years.

This year’s festival hub is going to be inside Cycle Journeys Ōamaru on Harbour St.

“And it's more than just a place to get information. We've got tables where people can sit, they can bring a coffee in. They can meet in there, it'll be sheltered.”

There will also be a giant jigsaw, games and a backdrop for official photos, Lea says.

The “Steampunk Academy” will also be running this year, with workshops on a variety of different skills.

“There are so many people there that are so talented at sewing or engineering or stuff. It's worth sharing the skills.”