More stays fitting stuff

[chargirlgenius]

So, after being somewhat unsatisfied with fitting over and existing pair of bodies, I decided to bite the bullet and do the cardboard stays fitting method. Amazing how sturdy they are. I think I might cover it all in duct tape and just wear it for fun.

As an aside, I was a very responsible girl and bought plain duct tape instead of the leopard

Comments

[chargirlgenius]

Thanks! I adore these.

[stringmonkey]

I think you should try the spread lobes. On you, the first two tabs in the front look fine, but I would worry about breaking the bones in the third. Other than that...frankly, I've seen people in finished corsets that were considerably less elegant.

[chargirlgenius]

The right answer is never "just leave it half-assed", but "do it right", eh?
;-)

I think you're right. Though, the cardboard doesn't bend gently at all, it really just breaks immediately. But I think I'll have a much more comfortable fit with the lobes.

[chargirlgenius]

Oh, and I'm totally going to cheat and use this for a 16th c. outfit with a jacket sometime.

[msmcknittington]

We were talking about JP Ryan patterns in the historical sewing group I'm in one Ravelry, and one of the posters (Sharon Ann Burston, so she does know what she's talking about) said that JP Ryan patterns fit best on someone who's long waisted, broad shouldered and flat in front. Char, that doesn't really describe your body shape. So, I'd feel free to tinker as needed to get something that fits and works on your body. You have a pretty good waist/hip ratio going on, so the extra width from three tabs on that piece would probably be right for you.

The pattern says to add the extra width evenly all around, but I need it more in the front.

What weird advice in a corset pattern! That's pretty much the opposite of what you're supposed to do. Nobody has boobs in the back . . .

[msmcknittington]

Also! Sharon Ann also said that the Mill Farm patterns work best on short-waisted, busty women, so you might want to take a look at those unless you're planning on draping and/or drafting yours. Or if you've already got other patterns purchased!

[chargirlgenius]

I did by the Ryan Gown Anglaise pattern, so I'm going to try to make that work. But that's good info to know... The Mill Farm ones are considerably cheaper!

I thought about draping everything, but you know, it would really be stupid to try and reinvent the wheel, when it's already been done fairly well, and would just take me a LOT more time in the end. It's not worth saving the 18 dollars on the pattern!

[chargirlgenius]

Well, I think the width advice was for people who were doing initial adjustments for measurement changes, not necessarily final tweaking. But it sure wasn't clear in the pattern! I do have to say, I was really uncertain about what size to get, even with the sizing charts, and it ended up being really close.

Yeah, I'm certainly not flat in front. I'll probably have to do some considerable tweaking on my Gown Anglaise pattern, too, then. Though oddly enough, I discovered during the whole pregnancy thing that I'm actually *long* waisted, at least in a medical sense. I'm curvy as all get out, but I have a lot of space between my hips and my ribs, and so I had a waist almost all the way through my pregnancies. Not at ALL what I expected.

[lorebubeck]

Why do you cardboard fashions look better than my fabric ones???? By the by I'd like to do a new fitting using the straight front seam method with you when you have time. I want to do mine with supervision before I help anyone else with theirs. =) We need a sewing day anyway! =)

[chargirlgenius]

I think I'm going to cover it completely in duct tape and just wear it around for fun. ;-)

I do need to have a sewing day - I'm supposed to make time to be social on the weekends more now! Ha! Do you have somebody you can pair up with to fit? I'd rather have two people come over and try to work through it with me guiding, then two people know what's going on instead of just one. :-)

[lorebubeck]

I actually have several people bugging me to do a fitting which is why I want to learn the "new" way. I'm sure I can drag one of them along. =) Oh, and I need the curious frau before investiture also! I want to finish my German gown so I can wear it and I'm terrified to do the next step without her!

[howlgirl]

My first 18th C stays were reed. They were fine for a year or so, and then they started breaking at the waist. I will never make a pair of reed stays again.

[chargirlgenius]

Oof, that's good to know. I was thinking of using some metal in places - I think that's what sarahbellem suggested in her boning class at CoCo. What do you use instead? Did you use single reeds or double?