Hey all! Buckle up for newbie questions. I'll do my best to convey the process so far and plan ahead. Please excuse my hot mess of loose threads as I'm still basting and tweaking the pattern.

This is a self-drafted pattern. This is my 3rd completed mockup (1st fitting with boning, 3rd fitting with this mockup), and I'm almost happy with it. I'm not new to sewing, but I am new to something this complicated. I've been consuming all the content on youtube, but so many skip over adjusting fit on mockups with boning.

Right now I've got a separating zipper (fitting at home by oneself is a pain), but the final product will be a lace closure.

I'm not expecting absolute perfection and don't care about real waist reduction. The conundrum is I have big dreams of using some vintage, upcycled brocade as the final fashion fabric, so I'm being extra picky. (The vintage brocade for the final piece is one of a kind. It's upcycled from a dress my mother gave me that was too small. I only have so much of it, and I do not want to even touch it before I know my pattern is right.)

The mockup is made with what I believe is cotton canvas. There's really no stretch. Unfortunately, I'm using plastic boning.

I did my best to cut the mockup on the straight grain. I believe the brocade will be easier to tell because of the linear direction of the embroidery weave.

The brocade/fashion layer for the final piece will be interfaced, acting as a floating top layer. The lining will carry the boning. I'm not certain about the lining fabric yet (should I buy coutil?) I'd like to only use two layers on the final (if at all possible) since the brocade is quite heavy (definitely heavier than this mockup fabric) with no stretch at all.

I want to wear the final piece to a wedding in May, so I've got all the time to fuss and perfect this. Plus, the fabric is special and important to me, so again, I'm being picky.

Now for the questions: Do I need to make more adjustments to the mockup and pattern to get those wrinkles in the back out? Will the lace closure change everything and/or make the wrinkles worse? Am I missing something huge here? Am I ready to start with lining fabric and my current pattern?

Please help ease my anxiety and plan for the next steps, and thank you all for reading this far!

Edit: Grammar and phrasing.

Hello!

I'm currently working on making the Aranea Black Delores pattern. I've gotten to the point where I need to finish the back for the lacing and I'm feeling defeated and really frustrated.

I ordered 00 (3/16") grommets from wawak thinking that my kam snaps K1 basic pliers would work or that the eyelet setter and anvil would work since it's 3/16". The setter and anvil crushed the grommets. Then I ordered this set of pliers on Amazon after searching specifically for 00 and they also crushed the grommets (Including the ones that came with the pliers!!)

I'm so frustrated that I'm considering just hand stitching eyelets. I bought some size 8 embroidery floss and size 5 embroidery needles. I'm trying to find a good tutorial or video that I can follow along with. I have about 50 total to stitch.

Edit: I'm not planning on tight lacing. I read that hand stitched isn't recommended for tight lacing.

Any advice or help is appreciated!

hello!
im working on my first corset so im not sure how things should fit and whether there is a point to making a mockup until i have all correct materials.
i wanted to spend money on the materials after getting the mockup to be correct ( as a motivation ig) so im working with just some nonstretch sturdy fabric , plastic boning and eyelets i had
my measurements are : bust 83, underbust 76 , waist 58-53 ( 58 with 10cm,53 with 15) and hips 86 and i used D pattern
maybe i measured wrong but usually when i sew it fits so idk if im just not putting it together correctly or if the materials are just too flimsy to hold the body
because i can lace it up to close completely and shouldn’t there be a gap?( i laced it up this way because im alone and my lacing was too short, just wanted to see if it fits 🙃 just material issue every step)
please be kind , this is my first one and im trying to learn

Another post asking for fit advice! This is meant to be the base for Hannah Alexander's Cicada bug fae design (second final photo). This is technically my first (boned) corset.

Mock up is made with a light cotton and I have flat steel in the center front and around the grommets. Spiral steel everywhere else. I have lightweight sew through boning in one cup and a bra cup pinned in on the other as I'm trying to decide if I should go with one or the other or both.

The boning channel under the outer cup piece I feel looks wrong. Should I take it all the way to the top instead of ending under the cup (last photo)? Do you think the wrinkles will subside once this is sewn out of coutil? I've seen some mention heading to r/abrathatfits for cup fitting advice? I guess any major fit issues y'all notice?

So this is the third corset I've ever made and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out! I had a massive fiasco with my fabric on my first pass at it - the fabric i chose completely frayed apart at the seams after sewing and I essentially had to start from scratch. On my second attempt I paid a lot more attention to reinforcing my fabric and seams (I interfaced every piece and did both a straight and a zigzag stitch at every seam)

Ultimately I think it turned out nicely! Im open for feedback for future projects- i think i could have stood to lengthen it a bit more and also think i could have taken it in at the back a little so I could get a little more tight with the laces. It was very comfortable though and held up nicely!

1. Tried wrapping myself in plastic wrap to get the ducktape so I could make and cut patterns, but it kept falling at the top and creeping up at the bottom. Couldn't get the ducktape on fast enough before it became pointless. Any tips and tricks would be very helpful.

2. When that failed, I tried to make the pattern from a geometric approach, taking my actual measurements, a ruler, a piece of paper, and figuring out my ideal measurement, and measuring it out, and working out a scaled down draft on paper before then taking a yardstick, some cardboard and a sharpie for the actual pattern I could put on fabric. Then I cut it out, and started sewing the mockop. The version that I came up with had bent boning channels. I figured it wouldn't be a problem... until I watched a YouTube tutorial and the boning channels were completely straight. Did I fuck up? I've already sewn half of this mockup together.

3. Can a mockup become the inner lining of the corset? I see little reason, if the mockup shows the design will work, that it can be used as the inner layer of the finished corset.

4. I don't own an iron of any kind, shape, or size. Do I absolutely have to press my seams and if so, can you explain why like I'm a 5 year old? I see no reason why pressed seams would be easier to work with than Sean's which are left unpressed.

Hi everyone!

I’m determined to make my first corset, and I’d love some advice on fabric choices and construction before I get started! (I'm french, so apologies if anything sounds a bit awkward!)

I’m planning to use the Boudoir Français corset pattern⁠. I’m looking to make a modern, wearable corset that I could wear over a shirt or potentially directly against my skin.

My original idea was to make a reversible corset inspired by Beauty and the Beast, with one blue side and one golden-yellow side, using two beautiful vintage floral mattress ticking fabrics.

However, I’m worried that using two layers of coutil might make the corset too thick or bulky.

The pattern creator makes a reversible corset using two layers of lightweight cotton, with interfacing sandwiched between them. She also mentions that other heavier fabrics can be used. She recommends choosing a lining fabric that is as similar as possible to the outer fabric, whether the corset is reversible or not.

I also recently found a beautiful vintage Toile de Jouy cotton fabric (similar to this one). It’s very lightweight, with large motifs so I guess I need to be careful about pattern placement. I’m wondering whether this might actually be a good plan B. I'm dreaming about a Beauty and the Beast-inspired corset, but I can also imagine the Toile de Jouy working beautifully for a romantic, fairytale inspired design. I’m torn between the two ideas!

This leaves me with a few questions:

• Would two layers of vintage coutil be too thick for a reversible corset?
• If I abandon the reversible idea and use just one coutil fabric for the outer layer, what would be the best choice for the lining? Should it have a similar weight and structure, or could I use lightweight cotton?
• Would lightweight cotton be a better choice for a first corset, particularly if the fabric is very thin and needs additional support?

Here is an example of a corset I’d love to recreate.

I’m curious about how this type of corset is constructed. How do you choose the lining when using a relatively heavy outer fabric such as coutil? Do you need an additional strength layer, or can the outer fabric and lining be sufficient, depending on the pattern?

I’d really appreciate advice from anyone with experience making corsets!

Thank you so much for your help!

I'm currently stuck on a project and I thought I'd come here for some help! For a cosplay I made a (real) leather corset using Aranea Blacks Sylvia pattern. I managed to get the fit right (dark blue version is my mockup) but I'm struggling with how to get the leather to be smooth on top of my strength layer. Due to the leather having more stretch, it has too much excess and creates these weird folds. The way this is currently constructed is by making the strength layer (with boning) and outer layer separately and connecting them at the edges with the biastape.

I really want to remake this with a more smooth outcome so any tips/techniques I should try would be incredibly useful!<3 I've tried to gather some different pictures here

I'm new to corsetry and am trying to start off somewhat simple. I have the s9922 pattern and am planning to sew it without the second bust layer. Im going to use stiff fabric. How would I add more support to this pattern without having to learn cups?

The future goal is to have this built under a dress but I need to have one with decent support first

hi all,

Im in process of making wedding bodice inspired by baroque stays and you guys have been helping me so much:)

I came to ask another question. I already have strength layer with boning and fleece padding completed. I cut out fashion fabric which is polyester brocade of medium weight.

I wanted to interface it but now Im questioning it as I already have strong strengths layer and fleece.

Should I use fusible interface on this fashion fabric or skip it, alternatively use it for edges only since it’s frying a lot?

Hi folks! I'm looking for feedback on my (third) mock-up of the Aranea Black Dolores corset. This is my first time making a corset.

I'm going to use it as the foundation for a dress, so it doesn't need to be totally perfect. I'm happy enough with the shape and fit. Still, it's a learning experience and I'd like to get it as right as possible.

This one is cotton canvas flat lined with muslin; I'm planning to use coutil. I used spiral steel boning in the front, but I used zip ties for the back because I didn't have enough spiral steel. The center back bones are flat steel. I had to leave the channels open because the steel was the wrong length, but the rest are closed. (I'll fix the boning issues next time.)

I know the bust fit isn't great, but I more or less know understand how to fix it. I'm most concerned with the wrinkling in the second and third panels, especially the deep wrinkles around the hip. Is it the fit? The grain?

I'd be happy (well, not happy, but grateful) to get feedback on any other glaring issues, too. Thanks!

Last Saturday, I finished version 4 of my transparent corset. It already has around 80 hours of wear, and I only managed to shoot the video and take some photos now because I simply didn't have the time earlier.

The good news is that I managed to completely eliminate the wrinkling of the outer fashion layer. The bad news is that the lining wrinkled on the front megapanel. But I know why. 😉

First, the outer layer.

My theory that the wrinkles were caused by boning channels being too loose turned out to be correct. This time, I made the channels extremely narrow, especially on the front megapanel.

Getting four carbon fiber bones and two spiral steel bones into those channels took me 45 minutes, but it was absolutely worth it.

I also narrowed the other boning channels, although not quite as aggressively, and developed a new method for inserting spiral steel bones.

I've already shown my method using a crochet hook in a previous post, but this time I threaded a strong cord through the spiral steel bone before applying the heat-shrink tubing. And it works brilliantly!

When you push a spiral steel bone into a tight channel, the individual coils tend to spread apart slightly and catch against the channel walls. But when you pull the bone using the cord loop and crochet hook, this problem disappears. I suspect the pulling force may even compress the spiral slightly, making it narrower.

Another improvement is how the ends of the bones are secured.

I now leave longer empty sections of heat-shrink tubing extending beyond the ends of the bones. Once the bones are inserted, these flexible extensions are stitched into the binding seam.

This holds the bones in place with a little flexibility, but more importantly, it solves another problem I've been dealing with.

I usually wear my corset underneath my trousers, which means I effectively have two layers of clothing over it: my boxers and my trousers.

Over time, these layers tend to bend the bottom binding of the corset inward. With my previous construction, the rigid ends of the bones would then push against the outer layer, causing it to bulge and putting considerable stress on the material.

The new system has significantly reduced this problem.

I'm so happy with the result that I intend to use this construction on all my future corsets. Yes, it takes more work, and the heat-shrink tubing adds some cost, but the improvement is absolutely worth it.

Now, about the wrinkled lining.

The problem is most noticeable on the front megapanel because it's the widest panel.

After joining the lining and outer layer using hidden stitches placed within the existing panel seams, I stitched around the entire perimeter of the corset before attaching the binding. This step is necessary.

While sewing this perimeter seam, I stretch and flatten the panels as much as possible. Otherwise, the sewing process tends to lock wrinkles into the material, and without this step, those wrinkles would become permanent when attaching the binding.

Unfortunately, by stretching the panel edges, I also shifted and stretched the lining slightly downward relative to the outer layer. This created excess material in the lining, which is now wrinkling.

I think the only way to eliminate this problem is to change the assembly sequence.

My plan is to sew the front megapanel completely at the beginning, including the boning channels through both the outer layer and the lining. Only then would I attach the remaining outer and lining panels.

A few more technical details:

The corset contains a total of 40 bones:

• 4 carbon fiber bones (5 × 1 mm) at the front.
• 6 flat steel bones at the back. I removed their original plastic coating and replaced it with heat-shrink tubing.
• The remaining bones are 6 mm spiral steel.

And one more thing about the lining: I honestly didn't expect it to work this well!

Because the TPU surface is slightly slippery, it doesn't grab or fight against the clothing underneath. This makes the corset extremely comfortable to wear. Seriously, very, very comfortable.

Finally, the sewing materials:

• Needle: Jeans 110
• Thread: Amann Saba 80
• With transparent TPU, silicone lubrication of the thread isn't necessary.

Another experiment completed, a few problems solved, and naturally, a new one discovered. 😂

Hi! I'm new to this subreddit, but I was looking for assistance on potentially making or finding an appropriate pattern for this corset! I'm not entirely new to pattern making, but I am new to making a corset pattern.

Can anyone help me find a good premade pattern or help me on where to start when making it?

I know the measurements for sure!

(Ps, this is a gift for my best friend. I'm a woman, he's a man. Also, sorry for the langauge in the first picture.)

that is the question. more specifically, what would the consequences of not adjusting my pattern be?

as you can see in the attached photo, the difference between my bust and underbust is 2.5cm shorter than the pattern while my distance between my underbust and waistline is 2.5 cm longer. a relatively small adjustment to be sure, and while i’m comfortable with pattern adjustments and the accompanying Read Me file has a very handy guide on doing so, i’ve never made a corset before so i’m in uncharted territory. i’m using the Sylvia pattern from Aranea Black for reference

Title. I’m wondering if there’s any books/blogs/resources any of you may know that goes into depth about why some boning angled in the way that it is.

For instance, some makers insert their boning diagonally, some perpendicular to the floor. Others a mix.

I’d love to understand the why and the impact these different types of placements have.

Thanks in advance!

Im starting late, but, I would love this by Halloween party. Who could I send a Pic to and have them make it? Is that a thing?

I have an inseam invisible zip, and I want to be able to make the puller hidden. Other than sewing it away from the stitch line, then hand sewing by hand on the body - is there a way I can hide the puller? Perhaps a lightweight zip would help

I've noticed that few corsets I made for myself have this horizontal wrinkle, following the grainline, on the smallest part of the waist at the sides (where a dress side seam would be).

It doesn't happen with other people I've made corsets for, so I assume it might have something to do with my body, that is quite straight/muscular and short waisted..? The waist-to hip ratio isn't extreme at all.

Anyone had this same problem? I've tried to look for all the fitting advice, but I've never seen this exact problem addressed.