Corset Background

Corsets have been worn by both women and men for a long time - 100's of years. The types of shapes and construction techniques have changed over time. and so have the types of materials used. If you are trying to create the figure you covet, you should have an education of the items and materials you can select from.

Using Corsets to Shape the Body

The earlier corsets tend to be those with the least amount of shape or curves. The breast flesh looks to be extremely compressed and create the appearance of a minimized profile. To develop this silhouette you must work against the natural shape and curves of a 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 you to have a comfortable feeling while wearing your corset you are capable of lacing up only so much, you should rely on the boning material to provide the rest of the structural support.

A useful boning material is nylon cased spring steel that is white in color and comes in different widths, thickness and length. When choosing a spring steel for your corset the thickness is of primary importance. When the right spring steel is used it is pliable but it is really hard to bend.

You can also use busk fasteners that open and are mainly used on the front of corsets to enable you to put on and take off your corset without calling someone in for help. The busks made their debut around 1860 and initiated with a very simple busk, the complications of the spoon busk was developed around 1870. These items can be found in either our online superstore or our online auctions.