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Online Corset Class

Basic construction techniques required for building a boned bodice or

corset.

There is no definitive method for building a period corset. The method chosen is based on the

use for which the corset is being built and to some extent the materials being used. Corsets

were made by a multitude of people and most corset makers developed their own techniques.

Consider some important questions before you decide which method to use.

1. Will the corset or bodice, get worn only by one person or will it be used for otherproductions, on other people or for costume rental?

2. Is the corset for one person who hopes to get a few years of wear out of it?If you answer "Yes" to each of the above then you need to build a garment that can be altered

as easily as possible.

The first method I will describe is for an "alterable" corset or boned bodice using two layers

ofcoutil, the second method will be for an "alterable" corset or boned bodice using only one

layer ofcoutiland bone casing. The third method will explain my favorite

technique that creates a corset with a perfectly finished interior but is not alterable. I will

conclude by explaining briefly how to make any of the above in a fashion fabric.

Note: Your bone casing stitching will be seen on the outside of all three techniques. Only the

4th

Technique, which involves fashion fabric, does not have stitches evident on the finishedgarment.

TECHNIQUE #1

Building an "alterable" corset using two layers ofcoutil. This results in a much more

structured garment and one which will withstand a great deal of wear if built properly. Ittakes the same amount of time to build a garment of poor fabric as it does to build one from

good fabric.

1. Cut four of each pattern piece, 1-left outer layer, 1- right outer layer, 1- left inside layer and1 right inside layer ofcoutil.

Note: you may choose to use a basic herringbone coutilfor the inside layer and a

more attractive satin or brocade coutilfor the outer layer, if so just cut 2 of each

pattern piece in each fabric.

Inside layer is the "lining" and outside layer is the "shell".

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2. Layout the pieces in order, on a table.Lay them out so that you have each pattern piece sideby side as they would be sewn together. Each "pattern piece" should consist of two layers;

the inside layer and the outside layer and these should be wrong side to wrong side .See

diagram1 below.

3. Mark the top piece of each "set" in the seam allowance so that you know which piece iswhich.I tend to lay the shell side facing the table and the lining side facing up.I start with

the back piece on the left and call it number 1, then I number each piece consecutively after

that. Each number goes in the top seam allowance as shown in the diagram above.

Note: I always start with the piece on the far left and work to the right, just to stayorganized because it is so easy to get the pieces of a Victorian corset mixed up and

even upside down. Other time periods are not as confusing but I tend to like methods

which dont require me to think as much and lend them selves to the least opportunity

for error.

4. Pick up the piece "set" on the far left, it should be a back panel.The back pieces get treatedslightly differently as do the front pieces if you are using an opening busk.If you have

followed the above directions then the two pieces you have just picked up are the back

panel shell and lining and they are on top of one another with wrong sides together .Change

this so that the back pieces are right sides together and stitch along the centre back seam

line twice.Press the seam open. Now, close the two pieces together so that the wrong sides

are face to face and press the centre back seam flat. Stitch 1/8th

inch from the pressed edge.Stitch along the side seam line to hold the two layers in place, you can also stitch along the

bottom but leave the top edge open. Serge both the side seam and bottom.See diagram 2

below.

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5. The front panels are handled much the same way but the buskmust be inserted.Pick up onefront set, place the lining and shell right sides together, matching any notches .Lay your busk

with the "loops" in place along the centre front seam line.See diagram 3 below. Softly trace

the outline of the busk and mark where the "loops" need to protrude through the centre

seam line.(A) Stitch the centre front seam line, leaving open spots at each "loop" marking.

Back stitch before and after each opening.It is important that this seam is well stitched.(B)

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Press the seam open, fold the layers back so that the wrong sides are face to face and pressthe seam closed. Top stitch 1/8th inch from the edge, but avoid stitching through the gaps

where the loops will have to come through. (C) Slide the busk loops through the gaps andpush the busk firmly into place. Using a zipper foot stitch around the busk. (D) You may

wish to pin the fabrics together. Stitch and serge the side edge and bottom and leave the top

edge open. See diagram 3 above.

Return the back and front panels to their place on the table.

6. Now continue with the other piece "sets".Pick up the next set on the left.It should be ashell layer and a lining layer with wrong sides together. You may wish to pin the two layers

together. Be sure the pieces match and are wrong side to wrong side.Take them to your

sewing machine and stitch down both sides and across the bottom, just outside the seam

line (within the seam allowance).Leave the top edge open as you will need to access the

soon to be created bone casings. Repeat this step with each "set" of pieces, returning each

to its place on the table.

7. Serge the same edges of each piece, still leaving the top edge open.8. Mark the bone casings onto the lining pieces, "right side" as the wrong side is against the

shell fabric.Trace them from the pattern pieces using a tracing wheel and subtly contrasting

dress makers carbon. Or use tailors tacks.

9. Once you have marked all the bone casings take each piece to the sewing machine and makethe casings by stitching along each marked line. Note: If any of the marked lines is along the

seam line then you need not stitch it as it will get stitched when you sew the pieces

together.

10.All pieces are now "flatted" together and the bone casings are complete. Now pin each pieceto the next piece in the correct order! Be sure that notches match. Stitch each seam twice

using two different stitch lengths, example: 8 and 12 stitches to the inch.The different

lengths assure that the stitches will not be directly on top of each other, which increases

strength. Do not use stitches much smaller than 12 as it makes it very difficult to rip out

when alterations are required. Note: If you wish to test the fit of the garment then stitch the

seams only once and with a longer stitch length. Fit the garment, make the adjustments and

then double stitch all seams as described above.

11.Once all the pieces are sewn together, check that everything looks right and that you do nothave one piece upside down, press all seams open.If you wish you can cross tack the seam

allowance down.

Time for the bones. Regardless of the type ofboneingyou are using the next steps remain the

same

12.Measure the length of the bone channels/casing. Subtract at least an inch from thismeasurement and cut the bone to this length.It is imperative that the bone be at least an

inch shorter than the casing and even " shorter is good, in fact it may be better .If the bone

is not shorter, holes will result at either end of the casing where the bone ends rub.I tend to

measure one length and cut one length rather than measure all and cut all, it saves my

hands and it saves confusion as each piece gets slid into its casing as soon as it is cut.

The bones can be slid into their casings from the top edge.

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Depending on the type of bone you choose, you may have to tip the cut ends.Tipping

instructions can be found under "Tips & Techniques"

13.Finish the top and bottom edges. You can do this however you like.I like to bind the edgeswith bias and encase a draw cord of fine cable cord in the top edge.This allows the top edge

to be drawn in and inhibits "fallout" when the wearer leans forward .Lace trim can also beused to finish the edges.To encase a draw cord, strongly tack the cord ends near the centre

back within the top seam allowance, after stitching the bias strip to the top edge, right sides

together. Now, finish the bias binding as usual making sure you do not catch the cable cord

as you stitch. Ribbon can also be used which is more attractive but not as strong or long

wearing

14. Drafting and Making theShieldmaiden Corset

15.

To make the corset you need to take six measurements.

1) Underbust

2) Waist

3) Hip

4) Waist to Underbust

5) Waist to hip from center front-where you want the corset to hit, center front

6) Waist to hip along the side-where you want the corset to hit your hip.

16.

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To draft the corset:

1) Draw a dot on your paper2) From that dot, measure up to

underbust length. Draw a straight line.(Measurement 4)

3) From that dot, measure down to CF

hip length. (Measurement 5)4) From the top, draw a line equal to

1/4 your underbust measurement

(Measurement 1)

5) From the dot, draw a line equal to

1/4 your waist measurement

(Measurement 2)

6) From the bottom, draw a line equal

to 1/4 your hip measurement

(Measurement 3)

17.7) Draw a line connecting the end of the

bustline to the waist and then to the hip.8) From the end of the waistline (center line)

measure down the length of the hip to the side(Measurement 6) and make a dot.

18.9) Starting from about the center point of the pattern

piece, draw a sloping line up to the dot made in step8.

10) Redraw the side with a curve following the linesyou drew in step 7. About an inch and a half above

the dot, straighten the line a little. Otherwise the

corset will flare out too much over the hips.

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19.11) Add seam allowances. 1/2" to the side seams and

1/4" (or whatever the size fold on the bias tape you'reusing) to the top and bottom. You may add a seam

allowance to the center back as well. I chose not to,

since, in my experience, corsets stretch quite a bit andI wanted a little extra room to do that.

The diagonal line shows the position of the boning.

There is also boning on the center back, about 1" in

from the center back (to surround the grommets) and

on the side seams.

20.To Make the Corset:21.For my corset I used velvet, flat lined with cotton sateen as the top layer, and cotton

twill as the lining layer.22.Cut out the pieces:

23.Front (Cut one fabric, one interlining, one lining): Cut with straight edge on the foldBack (Cut two fabric, two interlining, two lining): Cut with straight edge on the

selvedge

24.The sewing:25.Lining:

1) Using a 1/2" seam allowance, sew the front to the backs.

2) Turn back edges under (to the wrong side) about 1/8" then about 3/8" to form

casings for bones. Stitch.

3) One inch away from stitching line, sew a boning casing. (All boning casings willgo on the wrong side)

4) Sew boning casings on side seams and on center front as marked by the pattern.

26.27.I used artificial whalebone for the center back and spiral steel for the side and front

boning.

28.5) Insert boning. It should be a little more than half an inch shorter than the casing.29.The Outer Layer:

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30.1) Stitch interlining to fabric, wrong sides together. Treat pieces as one.2) Sew fronts to backs.

31.For quilting. It's probably easiest if you quilt before sewing the pieces together. I ofcourse did the quilting last. I only quilted the front piece. I used my clear ruler to

draw lines with a fabric marker on the lining. Then I just stitched over those lines. It

took a while, but the results were worth it!

32.33.To put the corset together:

34.1) On the outer layer, sew bias tape to both the top and bottom of the corset.2) Trim the lining so that it matches the stitch line.

3) Pin the lining to the outer layer, wrong sides together (bones will be on the inside)

4) Fold bias tape down over lining and pin into place. (No bias tape will show onouter layer.)

5) Stitch bias tape by hand to the lining.6) Fold center back edges of corset under 1/8" then 3/8" and whipstitch to lining to

finish center back edges.

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35.

36.Trim as desired!

37.

38.Shieldmaiden Home

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39. Home, if you please

Creating a Corset

by Asenath

Some time back I *finally* decided to try and sew a corset. Just the right thing when you're basically

a beginner at sewing :oops: .

First problem: Where to find a good pattern? There are a couple of nice standard-sized

patterns available but most of them would have to be altered heavily to be "efficient" on mysize. As I also lack a reasonable amount of bosom, most overbust corset patterns available are

also a big no-no.

As I didn't REALLY want to start with something historically correct (help, WHERE does

that little piece go again?!), I decided to draft my own underbust corset pattern for a start and

use the project to gain the basic corset-making skills.

Looking through my fabrics (who else here buys fabric thinking "you never know what it can

be turned into"?) I found some REALLY sturdy twill, some golden brocade-ish fabric and

some undefinable black fabric, along with some boning I bought ages ago in order to repair a

plastic boned Fredericks of Holliwood bodice and a busk that was left from an old corset that

had fallen apart. Oh, and 10 m of black narrow zig-zag ribbon

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Oh well, looked like a good start to me. What I had in mind when I drafted the pattern was a

long-line underbust with a conical rib cage shape and wide hipline... later I had to find out

that I was a bit generous with the upper hip area :lol:

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Please ignore the pink front and binding, I originally wanted to use a different fabric for these

parts butI

was unable to find it.

Now here's the pattern:

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I decided to use the two-layered method a friend of mine uses for her corsets. That means that

I first put the "shell" together (the outer layer, consisting of one layer of twill and the fashion

fabric) and then the inner layer, which also includes a waistband.

Here are two photos of one half of the shell:

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Once the two "layers were got I sewed them together on the right sides at the front and back

and then turned the whole thig over... does anyone here understand whatI

mean? Sorry, myexplanations suck.

Anyway, once that was done I stitched the busk into place (which I had to redo later), added

the eyelets in order to study the overall shape and wondered what to do about the boning

channels. First I had wanted to sew some cotton ribbon to the inside but realising that I was

too stupid to do that I just sewed through all the layers, which worked fine (as long as you

don't look at the stitching too closely *whistles*).

Anyway, after a long fight with those stupid metal boning tips, which liked to get stuck in themiddle of a boning channel I managed to get at least most of the boning into the corset and

tried it on in order to check how well it fits... the ribcage area, waist and bottom was fine, but

it ended up about 1" too wide in the upper hip area. Narf... where did those bra pads go?!:roll: I also found that I could have made the corset about 1" longer at the top front and

maybe even longer at the back. The bottom lengths are okay though.

Anyway, here are the current pictures of the corset, modeled by my lovely pillow. Some

boning channels and bones are still missing, which I am going to fix tonight or tomorrow.

Obviosuly, the binding is also missing. I want to add a top and bottom ruffle but I am not sure

at the moment.

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Two small issues left:

I will have to...

A: Tuck a small spot of the golden fabrick back under the binding, it slipped out (see firstpicture)

B: Use proper spring steel for the back lacing, for quite obvious reasons (see second picture).

I have now made a second version of the pattern which will hopefully work better.

Actually I have made a second and a third version, the third version having hip gussets like

my Iris Norris corset... and yes, I will make a mockup first

Acum cateva zile, am intalnit o persoana deosebita, care creeaza aceste speciale corsete,

bustiere, top-corsete, carora le spune Corselete

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Mie mi se par pur si simplu minunate, pt ca pot fi purtate cu jeans, cu fuste, fie invelite intr-un sacou casual sau elegant, si se pot adauga oricarei tinute. Ah da! si sunt din materiale

usoare de vara precum bumbacul si inul.

Am fotografiat doua Corselete minunate deja finisate, unul din in cu bumbac, pe culoarea

crem - modelat finut cu dantela. Se inchide in fata cu nasturei, si in spate este usor incretit,

avand un model deosebit, facandu-l special.A doua Corseleta este tot dintr-un material amestecat de in si bumbac, pe culoarea lamaiei

verzi, cu un imprimeu ales, placut ochiului.

Cupele acestor Corselete se fac separat, se intaresc, si se adauga restul tiparului. In zilele ce

urmeaza, voi adauga viitoarele Corselete, care sunt inca in lucru.

Fiecare dintre cele doua Corselete, Top Corsete, au urmatoarele dimensiuni:

78 cm - sub bust35 cm - lungime de la breteluta la tiv

Cupa B - sutien

Pretul per bucata 70 Lei

Pt comenzi(si alte info. sau detalii): alexandrinas.memories@gmail.com

Bustiera - Corsaj - Corseleta

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