Hiya, i've been lurking on this community for around a month or so pretty much admiring all the eyecandy and picking up tips as i wanted to make my first corset for my ball. of course being me and silly i decided to make my friends dress as well and hers i did first straight after my exams ended with 2 weeks to go. I finished her dress in about a week and a bit and realised i had all of 4 days to finish my corset and skirt. i also managed to break my Brother machine on her dress so i switched to my mothers machine a Fritser + Rossman that is at least 10 years older than me (it used to be my mum's and still sews like a beauty, only reason i changed was for more stitches, overedge and buttonholer especially). So in a mad panic i started to draft from a bodice sloper then realised all the altering was going to consume most of my time so i wrapped myself in duct tape. i thought using this method was incredibly easy and i will definitely use it again to make my second corset. With this corset i did not do anymore reduction and on finding that i did not have enough cotton duck to make a mock up i just skipped it, praying that i'd got the fit perfect the first time. considering i rushed the whole thing and i had no idea how to do it before hand i think it turned out really well. theres is one hell of alot of info behind the cut because i included alot of information about my process in the hopes that some of you more experienced corsetiers could give me some advice on the better way to make a corset.

( more information and pictures! )

Thanks!

Hello again everyone. I don't know if anyone recalls, but recently I posted about having a 'wonky front' to my underbust that I had drafted myself. With the help of some lovely people I came to the conclusion that it must have been a grainline issue. I marked out a grainline on each pattern piece at right angles to my waistline and tried again with a single layer white cotton coutil.

This is the first time I've used spirals instead of flats, too. And I followed some advice I read on here and doubled them over the seams. All the boning channels are external too - again, another first for me. It's super comfortable as a result, but goshdarnit! I've still got that annoying 'wonk' on the busk :( It's not quite as bad as it was on the first one I had issues with, but it's still pretty bad. Please please please someone tell me what I'm doing wrong... It hasn't happened with any of my other (shop-bought pattern) corsets so I don't think I'm a wonky shape particularly.

It doesn't look it, but I'm standing pretty straight-on to the camera.

Thanks in advance for any help xxx

Yay for samples! They teach you things :-)



[x-posted to corsetry minus fitting & construction stuff]

( What I have learnt from these samples... )

So, it's been established that the issue with my self-drafted (v rushed) corset was the grain. Can anyone advise on how to work out where the grainline should be? Is it always at a right-angle to the waist?

I recently finished a dusky rose (it's super pale, almost grey-rose actually) and black satin coutil overbust for a very close petite friend, and decided to make a comprehensive dress-diary this time since I so often forget to take photographs as I go. That said, I still failed to get some key images this time, and it has become more of a "musing aloud" than a "dress diary", apologies.

This corset was made at a distance using measurements provided by the model (and she did a very good job of taking her own stats considering it isn't easy!) and without a mock-up or fitting. She has a slight sway back and very small frame so it was a new challenge for me, but we did okay :-)

[x-posted to corsetry, sans construction info]

( It's very picture and text heavy people... )

Probably the billionth kind of this post, but we all make them, don't we?

I am a brand new corset maker. I've been sewing on a machine for a good two and half years though, and after a chance meeting with a girl who had made a corset (and it was only the second thing she'd ever sewn), I'm determined to make my own. Even though the ones from stores are lovely, the price is a little much I feel.

So, I was curious if any of your more experienced corset makers had some good patterns for beginners. I'd prefer them to be overbust, only because underbust just looks very, VERY odd for my body type. If measurements are needed, I am more than welcome to list them.

Edit: creativcorsetry pointed out the fact that I neglected to say whether or not I was male or female. Female looking for female corset patterns.

Edit 2: Suggestions for fabric types for a beginner?

Hi, here is how do I use french curves when drafting. It's on a basic block/sloper...just to give a major idea how to use them. It's only on side and back seams, I don't use a french curve on the front seam.

( Here to the pictures... )

I recently finished my first corset and wanted to try my hand at drafting a corset pattern myself for the next one. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a book on pattern drafting? I would really like to go about this right, no short cuts and guesswork.

Sorry, the husband and I rewatched SW this weekend!

So, I'm flying to Vegas Saturday morning. My sewing partner extraordinaire and I are going with another gf, and we'll be going out to some shows and dressing up pretty fancy for some of them. You would think I'd have at least one corset to wear, right? No. As it turns out, I've lost quite a bit of weight in the last few months, and time leading up to this just sort of slipped away. My sewing partner is definitely bringing a corset to wear with a nice skirt, and today she said to me "come on, Rhien, just whip out an underbust corset - you could wear it with skirt xyz and shirt abc, and it would look great!"

I have tonight, the next two nights, and most of the day Friday to accomplish this. No problem! Except I've never made an underbust before, and I'm a little unhappy with the shapes I see on most of them, such as the LM pattern (which I have.) I want a fairly straight line across the back, and flattering line curving beneath the bust. I obviously don't have time to order a pattern, and drafting my own is slightly out of my experience range. Altering I can do, drafting from scratch? I'd rather not attempt it under this sort of deadline.

Suggestions? Alter the LM underbust to have lines I like better? Alter the Dore overbust, which I have made and altered already many, many times? What do you all think?

Hello @ all!

I've been a silent watcher of this community for a while, but now I need (and I hope some of you can give me) some advice for a corset I'm gonna make.
I'll make it for a friend, who wears a plus size (with that I have no experience so far).
So my problem is how to fit her bust (a German 100 G-cup, should be a 44 G for US, I think) into the overbust corset.

We recently tried on an off-the-rack-corset (from a very good corset maker company- so no cheap work) in a shop and although it was made for a bigger cup size, we had the problem that her bust was pushed up, but then was pressed flat (or better "fell to the sides").

My conclusion to this was, that there is more space and width needed to the front of the cup, but I'm not sure how to draw this in the pattern without making the corset looking weird and getting wrinkles. Should I try to insert bust gores?

We already had decided before that we wanna style the upper edge like 18th century stays, so it'll go up on the sides to support the bust there, but I'm not sure if that will be enough to prevent it of "falling to the sides".

I also think that I should let the cups start a little lower than I usually would, to give the bust enough space, but my friend is rather small. So I'm not sure if it's possible to draw the curves "smooth" enough.

And I'm also unsure about the boning over the bust: Should it go over the whole bust or should it rather end right under it? The bones in the corset we tried on went a few cm over the underbustline, but I think it was not so good for the shape.

Okay, so that are my main problems here and I really hope someone can help me with some advice or pictures of corsets / patterns for inspiration. Also general advice for plus-size corset making are very welcome ;).

Thank you very much in advance.

Lovely greets, Cao

As a mother's day gift, a close friend asked me to produce a little green cincher for her mum. We discussed various options, though the lady in question hasn't spoken to me directly. I think we wanted there to still be an element of surprise (even though she clearly knew what she was getting when her daughter was taking her measurements!). The specifications were loosely as follows:

Colour: "intense" green.
Reduction: mild.
Shape and style lines: preferably narrower on the side-seams (like my trial corset-belt), so that this item can be more 'casual' than a longer underbust corset. Ie: something she might wear over a nice blouse and skirt as an accessory. A corset is not something she would usually consider wearing/purchasing.
Decoration: something 'earthy', no 'bling'!

So, I ordered two tones of green dupioni and got to work on two different pieces, without much of a clue what I was meant to be doing! I've finished them both just tonight and would appreciate some critique or opinions on producing work for clients/friends/whoever that don't have a strong idea of what they want. Do you guys find it easier or harder to work that way? Have you ever made something that was terribly received or had a client/friend change their minds half-way through? Or have you received a gift that wasn't what you'd expected?

[x-posted to corsetry]

( Two cinchers this way. )

My first 'standard sized' corset sample :-)

[x-posted with less detail to corsetry]

( Information after the cut. )

Over on my LJ there is a step-by-step diary (almost, I didn't have a camera for most of it) of this corset, which I feel quite harsh towards now... I only finished it a couple of weeks ago, and already I feel like I can (and do) make better work. But this is the point... each piece can be better than the last if one pays attention and adopts a problem-solving attitude.

But for now, here's a pretty picture or two :-)

( Some pictures and thoughts. )

I found this scan of an old pattern and thought others might like it.
"Make a French corset for $2.35"
from "the Sunday Call" unknown date

  so, it is obviously unfinished but here is my second corset (second ever sewing project).  i have been tight lacing in my first corset for about 10 weeks and it is ok,  i am looking to be able to make a more comfortable corset, as i have drafted (with no previous experience) my own pattern.  this one is WAY better.  however, i, once again, have wrinkles.  i think it has something to do with how i am sewing around the more extreme curves at the waist or how i am drafting the shape of my pieces.  please note that i came up with the pattern by eyeballing a whole lot of different corsets and finally settling on one that had pics from a bunch of different angles.   so, my question to y'all is this...

i know you are not here to coach beginners in basic sewing,  but perhaps you could guide me to some sites and/or books where  i could find detailed instructions on  things like draping, theory, sewing tight curves, etc.  Please!  i obviously need to get the low down and some good practice on the basics before i can make a truly respectable corset...which i aim to do! 

please check out my pics of my corsets and patterns and give me any comments you may have on how to improve...well, anything!  and i will continue to try to improve my basic technique.  my lack in that area is why i am not showing pics of the insides of the corsets.  not a pretty sight...but getting slightly better.

picasaweb.google.com/chicks66/CorsetsComparisons#

picasaweb.google.com/chicks66/Corset2Blk#

picasaweb.google.com/chicks66/CopperCorset#

thank you so much for all your help, without which i never would have gotten this far!!!

I received my TV-110 pattern yesterday and I'd like some clarification on how to lengthen it since I've never had to lengthen a pattern at the waist before. It says to lengthen it approximately 1" above the waistline the amount longer than the 9" allotted on the pattern (in my case, 1.5"). I'm a little confused as to exactly what that means, so I made some diagrams to the two ways I could possibly do it.

( Diagrams )

Just a quick update for those of you who are interested.

I've been looking back at the first corset drafting tutorial I did for
Your Wardrobe Unlock'd^TM and thinking about how to improve on it this time.

The first tutorial was for the simplest corset shape I could come up with, and I broke it down and made it as simple as possible with just a few simple sums you could do on your calculator to get the measurements of each piece of the pattern.

However, this time it's different. With gussets comes more complexity in the pattern (how wide are the gussets? How long? Where do they fit into the front pieces? At what angle?) There'll be more Maths involved, which I know will make some of you feel queasy at best. So the question is, how can I make the pattern more complex but keep the tutorial easy?

Luckily, I think I can do it even better than I did last time. Last time I was working against the clock to produce something for an issue of YWU, but this time I don't have that restriction so I can take my time and make it a top class piece of work that has all the complexity you need with as little brain-crunching as possible.

Specifically, I'm looking at incorporating the whole tutorial into a spreadsheet. This means that you won't need a calculator at all - you'll just be able to enter your measurements and the calculations will be done for you as you go along. This is going to require some technical wizardry, so I hope you'll stand by while I get it right.

Then I'll be able to find a failsafe method that I can use to produce a whole series of these tutorials - a ribbon corset, an S-bend and so on. What do you think? Less Math is good, I take it?

Simplicity just released this month a few new costume patterns.
I believe we have the Tudors show to thank for 2621 Women's 16th century undergarments, and 2589 Women's Tudor dress.
Now let's for a moment looks over the fact that It is debatable if "Pair of Bodies" or Farthingales were worn under dresses during Henry the 8th's time for a moment and take a look at the undergarments pattern.
The corset has tabs and straps, laces up the back and has a wooden busk.
The tabs are very much like the Pfalzgrafin Dorthea Sabina von Neuburg, being separate and unboned. The simplicity pattern has you cut 4 tabs of the same size, while Dorthea's has three tabs that are differntly sized.
The straps are patterned on to the back, which means they are off the straight of grain. This also means that the lay out requires more fabric. If you were to cut the straps off of the back and put them on grain you may be able to get the corset out of less fabric.
The body pieces are interesting. There is a back, a Front and a side pannel. Neither Dorthea's bodies or the Effigy Bodies are patterned this way. This efecticly put the center front, center back and side on the straight of grain.
The pattern calls for metal gromets and standard criss cross lacing. If historical accuracy is desired you will wish to change that the handbound dyelets and spiral lacing.
The pattern calls for "fetherweight" boning 15 yards pf it in fact! so it is well boned. though I would recomend cable ties if you feel you need to use plastic boning at all.
It also calls for a Hardwood Busk. If give you a pattern for the 1/4" thick busk, though doesn't go into types of wood.

Now as we have seen from the past, Simplicity has often added "wearing ease" to their corsets. so I sat down and measured the wasit of the pattern, minus the 1/2" seam allowances The sizes 8, 12, and 16 when measured in the full come to have about 1/4" more than the body measurements. which when you take into count that the busk is supposed to be 1/4" thick, means that the corset should end up to be as listed ont he body measurements! Or at least in the waist, I didn't meaure the bust.

So that is good news!

Now the Smock
The cutting diagram actually wastes quite a bit of fabric. there is a shoulder seam, but otheriwse it looks a lot like the Smock pattern generator.
Not to mention deailing with large rectanular pattern pieces. If it was me, I would measure the pattern pieces and cut the pieces out of the fabric without using the tissue paper patterns.

The Farthingale also wastes quite a bit of fabric. You should be able to get it out of slightly less if you use a more practical cutting diagram. Channels are made with twill tape and you will use 13 to 15 yards of steel hoop boning depending on your size.
Drawstring waist.

At least the bum roll is on top of the farthingal this time.

So between this pattern, books like Tudor Tailor and those by Janet Arnold like Pof 3 and Pof 4, and the Elizabethan Costume website, you should be able to make a set of undergarments easily.

now JoAnns had their patterns for $1.00 this past saturday, so they should be on sale in another 3 or 4 weeks.

Cross posted to sca_garb 

I seem to recall seeing a post sometime in the last 3 or for 4 years (haha..i know!) about folks who use drafting software to draft their patterns.  But I haven't been able to locate it.  If someone can point to it or chime in here and tell me what software you use and your experiences with it and/or if you have recommendations for or against something that would be helpful as well.

Thanks!...not sure what tag to put here......Mods please help if this isn't correct.

When I buy a commercial corset pattern (I've only made about 5 or 6 proper ones), I size it buy cutting out the pattern to my corseted measurments. Like, my bust might be a size 14, my hips might be a size 12, and then my corseted waist measurment would be a 8 or 10. I always end up with either a gap way too big at the back and/or horrible wrinkles everywhere. I was just looking at the Laughing Moon FAQ and it said "Cut the size closest to your waist, hips and bust or under bust and then take it in at the waist."

What's the correct way to make a well fitting corset? Should I continue to use my own method, or should I somehow figure out how to take in the waist of a corset? How do you guys do it?