Corset Story

Corsets have been worn by both men and women for the last several hundred years. The shaping forms and construction techniques have been changing and so have the basic types of items used. If you are trying to reproduce the shape you covet, you should have an education of the types of items available in today's marketplace.

Body Shaping and Corsets - The Perfect Match

The corsets from earlier times have usually produces figures with a minimal amount of curves or shapes. The breasts appear to be pressed down and their shape diminished. To attain this straight silhouette you are having to "fight" the general shape and curves of a female's body.

Corsets: Lacing, Boning and Busks

Any top quality corset design relys on two fundatmental factors: a) the properties and type of boning material used. and b) the tightening level allowed by the lacing. To ensure you are comfortable while wearing your corset you can only tighten and lace up to a point, you can rely on the boning material to deliver the remainder of the support.

A useful boning material is nylon cased spring steel that delivers a pale color base and is constructed in a wide variety of thicknesses, lengths, and widths. When you select a spring steel for the corset you choose the width is secondary to the thickness. You can tell when you have selected the proper spring steel boning because it is really flexible but it is almost impossible to bend.

You can also use busk fasteners that open and are typically used with the front of corsets to enable you to slip into and out of your corset unassisted. These did not appear until around 1860 and began with the straight busk, the spoon busk appeared shortly afterward in about 1870. All of these corsets can be found in either our corset superstore or our corset auctions.