Corset Chronicle

There has been an attraction to corsets by both sexes for the last several centuries. The construction techniques and the shapes they form have been upgraded with newer technology and so have the types of materials used. For you to reproduce the shape you desire, you need to have an understanding of the materials available to you on today’s market.

Using Corsets to Shape the Body

The oldest created corsets are typically those with a minimal amount of curves. Your breast shape looks to be extremely compressed and create the appearance of a minimized profile. To attain this shape you have to constrain and work against the typical shape and inherent curves of woman's body.

Busks and Boning

A corset of high quality depends on two main factors: a) the characteristics of the boning material used, and b) the level of lacing tightening. In order for the corset to fit you comfortably you can only lace up and tighten so much, the remainder of the support is done by the boning.

Spring steel boning is nylon-coated steel that is white in color and comes in different widths, thickness and length. When choosing a spring steel for a corset that will look like it was designed for you the width is of minor concern while your primary focus should be on the thickness. The steel boning characteristic makes a perfect corset because it is quite flexible and it is extremely hard to bend.

There are also busks which open and are used in the front of corsets to allow you to slide into and out of your corset without another person's help. The first time busks were used was near 1860 and started with a straight simple busk, today's spoon busk was created more than a decade later. All of these corsets can be found in either our corset superstore or our corset auctions.