r/corsetry

These are the stays I’m making as the foundation for my fantasy Rococo-inspired Bride of Dracula costume for Halloween, and I’ve officially reached the “why did I do this to myself?” stage. 😂

I made the stays from 320 GSM cotton coutil and used plastic boning. The plastic was an experiment for me, partly out of curiosity and partly because of the cost. It has worked, but so far I think I still prefer synthetic whalebone.

For thread, I’m using Gütermann Sew-All for construction and Gütermann metallic thread for the decorative stitching.

Now I’m applying liquid silk organza over the stays, somewhat like the fashion fabric over the structured foundation of a robe de cour bodice.

And this organza is testing us.

Our first mistake was forgetting just how aggressively it frays. We remembered pretty quickly once the freshly cut edges started unraveling. 😂 Thankfully, I had left a full 1-inch seam allowance at both the top and bottom, so we had room to work with.

Once the fraying started, we decided to sew a very narrow seam around the edges to keep it under control.

Then we discovered the next problem: the organza moves CONSTANTLY.

When we tried zigzag stitching it, the machine sucked the fabric in. We ended up cutting a very narrow strip of coutil and putting it underneath the organza so the machine actually had something substantial to grab onto.

The next challenge is going to be attaching all of this slippery fabric smoothly over an already constructed, boned, three-dimensional pair of stays without introducing wrinkles or uneven tension.

And after we accomplish that, the organza and stays still have to be enclosed together with bias binding.
I low-key hate myself for deciding this was a good idea. 😆

But if it works, I think it’s going to be worth it.
For anyone who has mounted particularly lightweight or slippery fashion fabrics over stays or corsetry before, I’d love to hear what worked for you.

Hi there! Unsure if this is the right place to post, but I’m kind of desperate!

I got an outfit that has a lace up back as the bodice, and it’s given me armpit fat! This is an issue that I’ve never had :(

Do you think that a corset could help rectify this? Thanks in advance!

I’m fairly new to corsetry (I just finished my first bunny suit with help and guidance from my seamstress friend) and while looking for supplies I found this hammer grommet kit at a craft reuse store. I’ve only ever used my friend’s grommet press so I’m not super familiar with the hammer ones but tested it out and it’s working well. The only thing is that the die cutter isn’t cutting fabric, is there a way to sharpen these?

I have made all the amendments and taken the waist in a bit more. I am using 6mm spiral steel, but it’s bending kind of weirdly at the back, should I use a different boning? Let me know if you have any other suggestions!

Подскажите, пожалуйста, кто-то носил такие корсет-платье для мероприятия как в таком образе или это только красиво постоять для фотосессии!? Интересно послушать мнения и опыт

Hiya! Please ignore my terrible stitching and the general abysmal quality of what you’re seeing - this is just the most basic of mock-ups I slapped together. I have never made a corset before, only a boned bodice that laced up at either side. I’m wanting to do a similar though not identical mock-up of this corset from the Vampire Diaries as I’ve been invited to a vampire ball. It’s not super formal so a corset top will be just fine.

My issue comes with a busk. I have severe scoliosis, which has given my torso significant deformity. I can hide it quite well and I still look great but it can definitely pose challenges here and there in learning to adapt clothes to my unusual form. I’m learning to change patterns around this, that’s not my current issue. The problem I have is a busk- it would be magnificent to have one, especially since i struggle to reach my back, and I really love the detail of the hooks/eyes. However, with my deformity, a portion of my sternum protrudes a little riiiight where my centre front sits, so right along the centre front seam where that busk would go. Not only does that mean a stiff strip will not sit flush against my torso, but any solid material pressed against that little bump is wickedly uncomfortable and I wouldn’t want to wear the thing longer than 2 minutes.

I poked around my sewing box and found these (not sure what they’re called, pants fasteners or large hook and eyes) and went about trying to use them to make a false busk. It should perform a similar function, although minus the structure the strip of a busk gives. I also can’t apply boning to the centre front the whole way, but I can place a half length bone from below my deformed spot and I tried this in the past and it was perfectly comfortable.

Anyway. Do you think this will look alright? Is it going to cause construction problems or mess with how it sits? Does anyone have other reccomendations? Thanks!

Please ignore the ugly fabric and ripped eyelet.
Straight on the waist my mock up of a corset has these creases? What can I change to make it fit better?

It‘s the Sylvia Corset by Aranea Black with obviously not so sturdy cotton fabric…

Hi! I'm very new making corsets and I started my first mockup (please ignore the poorly seams! I was in a hurry and I wanted to finish it as fast I could)

as you see, there's a gap in the bust and my instinct is to pinch there but my teacher said something about sewing a bias tape on the top which I'm not sure of and I wanted to ask reddit about their opinion!

if you can share your observations I would be glad, thank you

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Hi everyone! 👋

I'm looking to recreate the bodice of the dress in the attached photo. The outer layer has a beautiful wrap look with some gathered details, but the overall silhouette is incredibly sturdy and holds its shape without sagging.

My main questions about the internal construction are:

Is it common and correct practice to first build a standard, non-wrap foundation with boning, and then add the wrap pattern as a draped outer layer on top?

If this is the standard approach, how exactly do you sew the two parts together since the foundation and the outer wrap are different shapes?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and advice on how to tackle this. Thank you so much in advance for the help! ❤️

I using the red threaded regency short stays pattern for this, size M, but bust gussets use size S

How to fix this? This also happened the last time I made late Victorian over bust corset, the bust isn’t too big but the shape just doesn’t seems to cover it

I’m making my first corset, the Sakura corset by Nikki Blackwell. It’s an underbust corset. According to my measurements my underbust is 5 sizes smaller than my waist. I have graded the pattern accordingly, but this leaves me an issue where the front panels and busk placket have a large curve to them…. Where the busk is obviously not curved. Should I redistribute the additional material from there to other seams to straighten that out?

i’m in love this mirror palais ‘lilith’ bustier but not so in love with the thought of spending 1k on it. also would really like a custom fit, so i thought i‘d attempt a modified dupe... (is that ambitious?)

specifically, i really like the wide front piece, the mid-bust cut off with the peekaboo cups (and also the look of the one straight top panel that holds the cups), and the side hooks. i would love to modify it to sit further down, and i’m not sure if this is really a ’corset’ so i would love something with more waist reduction, if possible. are there any existing patterns that i could use for my desired look and fit?

very new to corsetry so please forgive my ignorance!