Description
Ah, this corset looks more impressive then it actually is!
This is a reconstructed corset. Once upon a time, it was a purple overbust corset a friend crafted for me for a costume. But alas, he totally got my measurements wrong, and so I only wore the entire costume once before stashing it all away.
Eventually I decided I wanted to try and re-cover it, and that’s exactly what I did! I cut off the bust section, and used some woven brocades to re-cover the whole thing for my first steampunk costume several years ago. Badass it was.
I decided to re-cover it once more, and did so for my outfit I wore to The Edwardian Ball last month in San Francisco. I took more time and put more effort into it, and I think it turned out amazing!
There are, of course, many flaws- I simply took pieces of fabric and sewed them on then flipped the ends over the top and bottom, so there are oodles of raw edges inside. Because I had to cover the back lacing, I had to create another way to do the lacing, so I chose D-Rings sewn on with tabs, which is a great and awesome idea, I just didn’t execute it very well, but was an easy fix.
The trimmings took FOR-EV-ER! The sparkly trim along the stays was fine, but at the edges I used a thick braided trim which had no interest in being sewn on by machine, so I had to do much of that by hand. I also got the notion that it needed a bit more pizazz, so I hand sewed a sparkly beaded trim over that.
But, the final product is pretty amazing, so all it’s flaws and all my blood and tears were worth it!
However, I am now totally inspired to actually learn how to properly make corsets… Hello, 2011 goal!
EDIT I added an additional picture of a friend and I wearing the various matching items I made~
Difficulty
Intermediate
Feb 25, 2011, 12.59 PMby koh
Wow, just wow. Do you have any photos of you wearing it as part of the costumes you mention?
Feb 25, 2011, 07.09 AMby zaarissima
wow! adorable!! (but how did I find into such a narrow waist?)
Feb 24, 2011, 09.20 PMby Testosterone
Skillful and totally re-inventive!
That garment has an amazing pedigree.
If they ever revive Cats on Broadway using corsets, yours would get the lead role!