To Moisturise Or Not To Moisturise
- At May 13, 2012
- By Kirsty
- In Corset Training
0
So why have I launched into a blog post about skin care? Well I’ll tell you, although if your already a long term tight-lacer you’ll not need telling.
One of the important and widely debated factors in corset training is how to look after your skin when it’s under constant pressure 23/7 and only gets fresh air when you take your corset off to bathe and exercise.
There are many ideas on how to treat your skin to keep it healthy, but the two main approaches I’ve found are what I call the hard and the soft methods. The soft method involves lathering on cream whenever you take your corset off, letting it dry, then putting a light layer of perfume free talc or baby powder on before donning your corset again. This keeps the skin soft and moisturised and the talc soaks up any sweat that would cause irritation to the skin.
The hard method involves putting no moisturiser on at all. Just some talc when needed. The skin is then toughened up under the pressure of the corset and the lack of moisturiser. The tougher skin is suposed to be more robust and less prone to itching and pressure sores.
You can still get pressure sores though. When you get these they need to be treated with antibacterial cream like Sudocrem and you should wear your corset looser than normal until they clear up.
Corseting, keep it clean!
- At May 7, 2012
- By Kirsty
- In Corset Training
- 0
How do you clean a corset? Well if your corset training and only have the one then the answer is with difficulty! It’s always best to have two corsets and swap back and forth each day. That said how do you actually clean the thing?
Well prevention is better than cure and keeping your corset away from your skin using a corset liner or chemise will keep it free from sweat and body oils. This will prolong it’s life as well as keep it clean.
If you get something on the outside a great little trick is to use make up remover pads to spot clean. These really work on little stains.
But if it needs cleaning take it to a dry cleaners. This is why having two is ideal – you don’t want to be without your corset for a whole day or two! A small corset belt will maintain your waist though if you have no other option.
The bodice pattern takes shape
The bodice pattern is taking shape finally. We’re nearly there as I’ve just got the edges to finish off. Like with all my new corset patterns, I couldn’t resist trying it on before it’s finished, just to check the sizing is right of course! 
So here are some photos so you can see how its looking, the fit is just right and I can’t wait to see how the tabs look once I’ve cut them (they’re all stuck together still to avoid premature fraying) I’ll be carefully cutting them appart and edging them in a few days time. First I need a rest and some retail therapy! I think the sewing machine will appreciate a bit of a rest and some quiet time too!
I’ve been filming each stage as I go, this printable pattern will have its own video guide and work book as its a specialist bodice pattern. So the filming has been making the whole process take a lot longer. I hate being on film too so my nerves are shot!
Click on the pics for bigger versions and a closer look. The red fabric is looking amazing, its my first use of heavy weight material as I always opt for the light cottons with the colourful designs. This bodice pattern may have converted me though! The feel is so much more luxurious and the sheen it has is fantastic.
Learning how to make a corset with fully boned panels has been time consuming but worth it, I love the bone channels and the effect they give.
How to make a bodice pattern video
Today I started the filming for the exciting new Elizabethan bodice pattern! Yes filming! The next pattern in the printable patterns range will come with an optional workbook and video guide.
I’ve again been looking for a way to make my patterns easier to follow. The idea is that, like with the corset making DVD, nothing is more straightforward than seeing how its done. Having an instructional PDF workbook and MP4 video to download alongside the printable pattern is intended to make it possible for even the novice to complete this fully boned bodice pattern.
Corset Training Corsets
Defining the Corset Training Corset:
The difference between a regular corset and a corset training corset or tightlacing corset is in the structure and strength. It is used for ‘body modification’ which means it has to have the strength to physically alter the shape of your body for extended periods of time until this becomes permanent to some degree (when taking off a corset you can’t expect your waist to not expand to some degree even after years of corset training).
To take this kind of long term strain a tightlacing corset has to be made of coutil ideally, I won’t go into the other materials that have been debated over the years, for me it has to be coutil. This is a strong stretchless cotton with a ‘herringbone weave’. Heres an example:-
The smaller the herringbone weave the less give the fabric should have and the better it is for corset making.
You can get satin coutils that aren’t herringbone weave, these materials aren’t as a rule as strong as the above type but make an excellent outer layer when coupled with a herringbone coutil lining. Which brings me onto my next point which is the layering. You can sometimes get by with a single layer of coutil, I’ve definitely seen a number of historic corsets made of a single layer. But remember the women that wore them had been corset training from a very young age and had tiny waists to support. If you are learning how to make a corset to reduce your waist substantially over time (or a customers waist), especially if it is a large or plus sized corset pattern – use two layers of coutil! You can often find three layer waist training corsets available commercially that have an outer layer of fashion fabric and two coutil layers for strength.
My last point to make on corset training corsets is the number of bones. Lets establish firstly tho that they should be made of steel not plastic. Often referred to as ‘steels’ corset bones can be made of two types of steel, sprung steel and spiraled steel wire, as below:-
Sprung steel boning comes with the ends rounded and tipped with a plastic. You can buy a continuous reel that can be cut with tin snips, rounded with a metal file and dipped in a liquid tipping fluid. Spiral steels need to be cut and capped with small metal U tips.
In a corset training corset you should expect to find the seams double boned, ie two bones at each seam with the seam running in-between. Some corsets will have more, the more bones the more strength and comfort the corset should provide. And that concludes the basics you should look for in a corset training corset.
Free Corset Pattern – you can actually print off now!
↓CLICK ON FACEBOOK BUTTON TO GET THIS PATTERN FREE ↓
We have now finished the launch of the new printable pattern range but fear not the free pattern page is still up! You can connect via facebook to get your very own copy of this beautiful and unique reversable corset belt pattern completely free! Then tell your friends about it to get hold of my pattern guide – which includes my secret list of the best places to buy corsetry supplies online! There are also several exciting new patterns available on the ‘Corset Patterns‘ page.
Get your pattern by clicking this facebook button ↓
I hope you all enjoy the corset belt, and as always good luck with all your corset making endeavors!
Elizabethan Corset Pattern Comes Together
The Elizabethan corset pattern comes together…slowly. The use of fully boned panels is new to me and I’m learning how, to make a corset with side by side boning throughout takes time! (And lots of spiral steel!) But I think you’ll agree it’s looking like it’ll be worth it! My boyfriend seems to think I’ll be bullet proof in this bodice pattern but I won’t be testing the theory! It certainly has a completely different quality and feel to a corset pattern with boning at the seams only.
…and my sewing has never been straighter!
Corset Training Belt – free corset pattern – sew along!
I’ll be sewing together a new reversible corset training belt in the coming weeks -and, wait for it, I’ll be doing it as a ‘Sew Along’ project! So you can learn how to make a corset belt with me by getting the free corset pattern here – Free-corset-pattern and literally sewing along day by day. So grab your corset pattern and print it off your home printer, then you can start looking at materials and collecting everything together.
I’ve got some beautiful shot silk dupioni fabric, not an ideal corset fabric but with such a small corset wrinkling should be minimal and I plan to ruffle the front panel. More on that when we get into the making. Heres the silk which I’ll be using for the outer fabric with the coutil lining.
So for now just raid your fabric cupboards!
Materials:
- You’ll need a tiny bit of fabric for this corset pattern as its super small. A quarter meter will be enough.
- A quarter meter of coutil for lining
- 6 spiral bones for a single boned corset or 12 for double boned seams + 4 sprung steel bones for the lacing (or 2 lacing bones if you can get them). Sizes will be between 10 and 19cm, print the pattern in your size and measure the seams minus a half inch or 1.2cm.
- 20 eyelets + setting tool
- 2-3 meter laces
Braking in your Waist Training Corset
- At April 14, 2012
- By Kirsty
- In Corset Training, Waist Corset
- 0
When you get a new corset training corset you’ll need to ‘brake it in’ before you start corset training.
To do this you’ll simply need to find 3 occasions to wear it around the house for an hour or two.
You want to put the corset on and very gradually tighten it, allowing the corset to mould to your body and get your body used to the shape of the new corset. This will also allow the tension in the fabric to ease at the stress points making popped eyelets and ripped seams less likely.
By “settling in” to your corset like this you can avoid the pains and aches that have been associated with corset training like back pain for example. These discomforts come from wearing a corset too tightly for your body, new corsets that haven’t been properly broken in will aggravate these problems.
Corset Training Before And After 2
- At April 13, 2012
- By Kirsty
- In Corset Training, Waist Corset, Weight Loss
- 0
So yesterday was a bit of a strict telling off for those trying to push their body too far too soon, apologies if I sounded like anyone’s mother
Now, how to corset train properly:
Its very simple and you can’t go far wrong if you follow the golden rule – ‘listen to your body’, if it hurts stop. If your just starting out you need to brake your corset in (more on that tomorrow) otherwise it won’t have time to mould to your body, wont feel as comfortable ad it could and won’t last as long as it should.
When you put your corset on after the braking in period you still need to do it gradually. Give yourself a minimum of 20minutes to gradually tighten it, allowing time in between tugs for your body to settle in and the corset to start feeling loose again. Stop when the corset stops feeling looser after 10minutes or so.
If your corset training correctly like this you can expect to reduce your waist by between 2-5 inches in the first 3 months, the longer you go on and smaller you get the harder it will be to reduce further. You should be wearing the corset all day for this except when bathing and exercising. Again start slow with 2-4 hrs and work up to full days.
Always listen to your body and make sure you are checked over by your doctor regularly when practising extreme corset training – in my opinion this is anything beyond a 5 inch reduction on someone with a stable weight.
