corset cleaning weather

72º and sunny. A perfect day for cleaning the summer corset. I started by sudsing some liquid Tide up in a bowl with lukewarm water, then putting the foam on the dirty spots. Here's a shot after the bubbles broke down.

I tapped what I could out with a soft toothbrush, added more foam, then gently scrubbed what remained with the toothbrush. Then I rinsed and rinsed and rinsed.

I patted the corset halves with towels to soak up as much water as possible, sprayed starch on the inside, then put the soggy corset on. Once it was laced I sprayed starch on the outside too. I figured I'd give the softened cane boning some time to take shape so I walked around in the sunshine for 45 minutes. The adia cloth dried completely and the bone casings were just damp.  Here it is after I took it off.

Look at it holding that shape! Home made steam molding! I never would have thought of adding starch, so thank you Jenny for the tip. Here it is laid out in the sun to finish drying.

Clean and crisp. It actually looks better than when it was just made. The corset looked unfinished in the original shot compared to now. Should I thank my cat for mussing it up?