My very first corset

I've decide to break up these critiques into 3 posts each. The first will be a short introduction to the piece, the second will be the good things about it, and the final post will be the things I don't like about it. I am very nervous about posting the bad bit, especially with pictures. I know I have improved quite a bit since I did some of these things, but that just means that now I know enough to be more embarrassed by my mistakes.

This is the first corset I made and honestly, one of the first sewing projects of mine that I would call a success. I had just learned to use a sewing machine after a year or two of struggling along with my atrocious hand sewing skills.

This was my first foray into pattern making. I had read online that you could use the duct tape double method to make a corset pattern, so I asked for my then boyfriend’s help and jumped into the project with both feet. The idea is to put on a t-shirt and have a friend wrap you tightly in duct tape in the shape you want to corset to have, make some markings and cut the thing off. I had a cheap Frederick’s of Hollywood corset that I decided to put on under the t-shirt to make getting the correct shape easier, and my then boyfriend started wrapping. The one piece of advice I would give to someone trying this is to have a pair of paramedic shears handy, since this ended up being the first time in my life that I fainted. Turns out that boyfriend could wrap tighter than I would have thought…

Since I had already marked where needed, I still counted it as a successful attempt, although while I came out wound free, that Freddy’s corset was not so lucky.

It doesn't fit as well as it once did, so despite the boning and such, I now think of this as a 'fashion' corset. In this shot it was snug but no where near tight. I made this when I was 21, and my size has varied quite a lot over the years, but I found that this fit for quite a lot of that time. The lacing up front gives it a little more leeway in fit.