Monday, October 7, 2013

1776 Half-Boned Stays!

Last week I finally finished stitching in the lining on my stays and now they are done!

And then - try on time. While I did make a few mock ups before cutting out the final stays, you never really know for sure how a corset will fit until it is all done and you can lace it up for real.

I was quite amazed at how much shaping these give, considering there only four pieces to the torso (two fronts and two backs). The direction of the boning certainly aids enormously in molding the torso to the proper shape. If I would make these again I'd go for a bit more waist reduction as these do not reduce all that much, but they are a vast improvement over my last stays.

Here is a view of the back. I did not have a cord that was long enough so the last few eyelets are unlaced.

The binding job did not come out very well. I think a thinner material and narrower binding would have helped give a neater appearance. But overall, I am really pleased with how these turned out. Now if only I had everything else I need to finish off a late 18th century impression. . .I think I should start with a proper shift! And petticoats. But I may wait til after the new baby is born before starting on that.

In the meantime I can work on a hobbit outfit for the next movie coming out in December. Though my son Judah did tell me that "you look like a Hobbit, Mommy" when I tried on the stays. The costumes from the The Hobbit do seem to reflect more of an 18th century look than the ones from Lord of the Rings.

Love,
Sarah



8 comments:

  1. Beautiful job! Aww what a sweetie! Your kids are so adorable! I hope mine are that cute when I 'grow up'! :P

    Love,
    Ruth

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  2. Love the shape, and the colour combination - blue and brown is a personal favourite.

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  3. Gosh that's gorgeous! Great work!

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  4. They're lovely! What did you use for your boning? Cable ties?

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  5. Dear Sarah Jane,

    These are just plain neat. The colors and the 3-D effects with the boning do make for a Hobbit-y effect. The shaping and movement of the bones are beautiful and they fit you very well.

    You're right about the bias binding...wonder if you could due chamois cloth blue and use it? That is, if you wanted to redo that part. Nah, not now. Just enjoy them.

    Very best, and counting the days until the next installment of The Hobbit,

    Natalie

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  6. These look great! I was just browsing when I came across this article http://yourwardrobeunlockd.com/articles/free/advanced/356-perfect-binding-part-1-by-cathy-hay?showall=&start=1
    I know it's a little late now but maybe this would help with the binding on your next pair?

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  7. Dear Sara Jane- I was looking through your history and I saw this skirt http://romantichistory.blogspot.com/2012/04/sacque-and-petticoat-of-purple-part-1.html.
    You said you made it the same as any other basic skirt. Did you use a specific pattern for this? I am hoping to make a skirt like this one - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Civil-War-Victorian-Satin-Ball-Gown-Prom-Dress-Reenactment-Clothing-116-S/231067247273?_trksid=p2047675.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222002%26algo%3DSIC.FIT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D17513%26meid%3D1840652121824076889%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D8141%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D5%26sd%3D330614194306%26
    - and yours seemed similar.
    Awdur

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  8. They look fabulous! I love the shape!

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Thank you for your lovely thoughts!