Comparative Corsetry

Intro: I was given the Laughing Moon Mercantile #100 pattern to work with in a costuming class this semester. Below are my thoughts on the pattern

January 30, 2004

Thoughts on Laughing Moon #100 so far: Great pattern. Honest to goodness, one of THE BEST patterns I've ever had the privilege to work with. That being said, I don't know if I would be having such an easy time with it had I not seen the video that accompanies the pattern. I'm a visual learner, so seeing JoAnn go through the nitty gritty details about fitting the pattern saved me a whole lot of aggravation, I'm sure of it. Totally worth the $29.95, in my humble opinion (of course, I didn't have to buy it. We all watched it in class...).

Things I feel the need to point out about the pattern: I decided to make the Silverado corset, which was not shown on the video. I first drafted it up according to the size 12, using the C cup bust gore. I thought that this would work fine, even though the size 12 wasn't an exact match for my measurements. It was more or less right on in the waist and hips, but I'm a bit bigger in the bust. Well, the pattern was too small. On the video, JoAnn has models of various sizes being fitted with mock-ups done in the "D" cup size on the Dore. I see why now. The main thing is that the corset does tend to run small in the bust, so even though I wear a C cup in my normal bra size, the C cup gore was too small when it came down to it. As was most of the bust region on the pattern. So, thanks to the tutelage of the video, I knew now that I needed to size up the top part of the pattern (increasing it to a 16) and then blend it into the waist, keeping the waist and hips a size 12, since they fit well in the original mock-up in that size. I cut a triple D bust gore, although with it sewn in, I'd guess it's probably closer to a double D. Remember, this has little bearing on modern cup sizes, so while it sounds huge, it's actually pretty small.

JoAnn also explained in the video that women with larger bust to waist ratios needed the larger sized bust gore on the Silverado. This isn't intuitive, and I'm so glad I had the video to point this out. She gave two examples of who needs the D+ bust gore and who doesn't. Dolly Parton = D+ bust gore. Rosie O'Donnell = smaller bust gore. Just call me "Miss Dolly"!
Anyway, the actually sewing of the pattern pieces was straight forward. I didn't need to make any special markings to keep me straight about what was up and what was down on the pattern... I just matched up notches and went for it. Totally easy. The new mock-up is a bit big in the bust, which can be solved by taking in the seams a bit on the back pieces mainly. I probably should have only cut the top larger in the front pieces and kept the back pieces the size 12... But fixing that is no big deal.

March 11, 2004

I don't know... Maybe it's me, but the Silverado corset pattern just is not flattering on my body. I put in the boning today and laced myself up and came to two conclusions:

1) The busk I bought at Lacis is distressingly flimsy.

2) The corset itself takes my natural hourglass figure and flattens all of the curves out.

I don't like it. The pattern, I would still recommend, but the shape of the final product does not scream "Bustle Era" but rather something somewhere between a pair of Regency stays and, um, something vaguely Victorian. If it were just something I was sewing for my own amusement, I'd probably stop right here and ditch the whole project. Since it's for a class, and I need that grade, I haven't got much of a choice but to finish it. And maybe even wear it again. Ugh.

Anyway, I will definitely be adding more boning to it, not because I think it will help the shape any, but because it needs stress support in certain areas. Even if it's sewn like crap, and looks like crap, I don't want anyone to say "Didja see those wrinkles?!"

What I am thinking about doing, though, is making a second corset using the Simplicity Victorian Stays pattern and comparing it with the Laughing Moon pattern. Maybe it will impress the teacher so much that she'll ignore the fact that the Silverado sucks ass.

I repeat, "ugh".

March 12, 2004

Okay, I’m prepared to take back the previous entry regarding the Silverado Corset, at least so far as it applies to my sewing ability. I’m still firm on my opinion regarding the pattern, however.
I worked on the corset most of yesterday afternoon and added more boning to it, which did indeed help with the wrinkling problems tremendously. I didn’t have enough spring steel boning on hand, so I used my beloved cable ties instead. Can I just say how much I love cable ties??? No, really. I ***lurve*** them. If corsetry were coffee, they’d be the cream and sugar, baby.

Someone remarked last night in class that they worried about the thickness of the ties adding unnecessary bulk to the corset. At first I thought “Yeah, there’s probably some bulkiness there that wouldn’t be there if I’d used flat steel boning”, but after I thought about it a bit, I realized that the bulkiness of the cable ties would be only a tiny bit more than steel boning. We’re talking 1/8th of an inch or less over all. It’s infinitesimal really.

Anyway, I did get the corset bound on one side, and Katie generously started the binding on the other half. That makes this corset almost completed! W00t! I have now completed the barest minimum for passing this class. Joy of joys.

What’s better is that the corset doesn’t look all that bad. In fact, it looks better than I anticipated, in terms of how slap-happy I went through sewing it together. Yay!
Now, I gotta remember to wash the coutil for the next corset I make, and buy some twill tape and more cable ties.

March 19, 2004

Final thoughts: Easy to follow pattern and instructions, definitely good for a beginner who has never sewn a corset before, but the end result leaves a lot to be desired. It was pointed out to me that adding in the optional hip gores makes a world of difference in terms of the shape. I'm willing to believe it. Also, another interesting thing I just noticed as I was taking the corset off... If I had enlarged the top part more, it might have made more of a difference in terms of waist reduction, at least as an optical illusion. I decided to take comparison photos of myself in the corset I bought from Brute Force Leather four years ago, so the difference in shape would be more obvious. The Brute Force corset is modeled after an 1870's style corset and structurally is no different than an "authentic" corset. It uses 1/4" steel bones on all seams, and is a double layer of coutil and brocade, with the base layer being entirely coutil. One thing to note is that the busk is far sturdier than the busk I bought for the Silverado!

The Silverado corset that I made is sewn from eggshell colored silk shantung, flatlined to a white denim base and lined with black china twill. It is boned on all seams with 1/4" steel bones and plastic cable ties between seams.

We laced me tighter in the Silverado corset than we did in my Brute Force corset, which should say something. The Brute Force corset gives the correct shape without having to tight lace to the point of passing out, whereas the Silverado really has no shape, regardless of how tight I was laced. This can be attributed to two basic things:

1) The Brute Force corset was clearly made by someone with far more expertise in corsetry than I

2) The Laughing Moon pattern just isn't designed for that late-victorian wasp-waisted look.

Farthingales gives a great breakdown of the Laughing Moon pattern here and comparisons of the pattern alonside the Simplicty Civil War undies patterns. It's pretty evident that the shape of the Silverado done by Farthingales is consistant with what I ended up with.

The Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild also gives reviews of this pattern which seem to be on the whole very positive. At least one other person reviewing the pattern mentions that the waist reduction on this corset is not all that noticeable. So, if anyone reading this is considering making this corset for the first time, I'd suggest making two corsets. Let the first one be fully functional, but let it be the guide in terms of how you want it to fit, versus how the pattern is designed. You can work this out for the second version, and you'll probably be a whole lot happier in the end.

One Final Note: I cannot say enough good things about Brute Force Leather. I whole heartedly recommend considering them if you're looking to purchase a corset. Of course I am not being paid to rave about them... I'm just a very happy customer. ;)