corselet boning test

It would be horrible to finish this corselet then wish I'd used a different type of boning. Horrible. So I did a test. The top casing would hold plastic, the middle spiral steel, and the bottom flat steel. 

The original pattern showed the bones to be only 4 inches across. I had a piece of 5 inch flat steel that was already cut and finished at both ends so I made all test pieces 5 inches. After they were slipped in place I tried the corselet on.

Spirals right? I hate the way the ends of the flat steel poke outward. That's not pretty. I'm thinking of adding one more row of boning at the bottom. I may wait until the garters are attached to see how the fit is when anchored down though. 

Look at that straight 1920's silhouette!

corselet casings

The boning across the belly will be contained in pre-made bone casing tape. The tape is available by the yard in different widths and in black or white. I'm using 1/2 inch wide black tape.

I basted each casing in place, folding the open end under at one end, but leaving the other open so I can slide the boning in. Then I laid artist's tape across the front as a guide for stitching. Even though I used low tack tape I did not want the adhesive pulling the brocade so I stuck it to my jeans a few times before putting on the corselet. 

Since the basting was at the top of the casing I sewed the across the bottom of the casing first. I don't know if It would have made a difference either had I sewed across the top first. Probably not. After the first line of stitching was done I sewed the second right on the basting stitches.

The first casing from the front.

And from the back.

Now the question, flat or spiral boning?

me too che

A week away from the machine. Yikes. 

How did that happen?  

foundations revealed

The February issue of Foundations Revealed has published an interview with me! Neat. If you are a subscriber you can learn a bit more about the Bridges on the Body project and see some new images of the corsets I've made. If you are not a subscriber the site is still worth visiting for the free articles, including a couple on how to draft a corset to custom measurements. If you enjoy studying historical undergarments it's worth checking out. 

valentine's sachet

Something to do with fabric scraps and lavender.

Happy Valentine's Day!

hook & eye tape - eye side

Just like I did for the hooks, I lined the eyes along the basted line.

And pinned the tape in place, this time eyes to the face of the fabric.

I sewed just 1/8 inch from the edge because I hadn't planned ahead enough while patterning to allow extra fabric to cover the hooks. Novice pattern maker. 

That's so close, ironing the teeny tiny allowance brought home why seams are sewn with allowance, then trimmed. After pressing and folding everything in place, I basted so I wouldn't have to deal with any more pins while sewing. I sewed once, a bit over 1/4 inch from the edge to secure the eyes.

And once more to secure the edge of the tape.

From the reverse.

And hooked together.

I can not explain how happy I was when the hooks were covered. Now on to the boning and then the shoulder straps. I've hit the light at the end of the tunnel phase!

hook & eye tape - hook side

I am so glad I basted to mark hook & eye placement. I know I would have screwed this up if I hadn't. 

I started by laying the tape on the face side of the corselet, lined up the inside of the hook with the basted line, and noted the distance between the edges since they didn't meet up. Then I pinned the tape to the back side of panel, hooks to the fabric, keeping that same distance between edges. Here it is pinned in place.

And here is a view from the front after sewing the pieces together.

If I did everything correctly, when I folded the tape around the inside of the hooks should line up with the basted line.

Yes. Then the I sewed right next to the hooks.

After tucking the loose edge of the tape under, pressing, and pinning, I stitched one more time, right next to the other side of the hooks.

Yea. On to the eyes.

and the shuriken goes to...

Abby! Congratulations! Abby, if you email me your mailing address, the link is on the left, I'll ship the tailor's shuriken off to you. Happy measuring!

Thanks to everyone who entered! When I thought of the giveaway, lurking in the back of my mind was, "What if only three people enter?" So thank you so much for taking the time to stop by. Your comments are so appreciated!

And here is shuriken information for everyone else who would like one. It turns out, sadly, there is a real name, it's called a UMD Measuring Disc. Boring. If the bin I pulled it from had been so labeled I never would have come up with a much more fun name, so I'm glad it wasn't. 

Alright then, back to work. I have hooks & eyes to show you. They'll be up next. Soon to be followed by boning across the stomach.

closer to reality

A week and a half ago I wrote about what I aspire to. This is my reality, after tidying and make up.

Hunkered down over the machine, glasses on, hair pulled back, and yes, that is a bicycle in the background. My workspace doubles as a garage. A washer and dryer are close to my left, and the camera is propped on the ironing board which sits directly in front of the Singer. All in all, not a bad set up, it could be much worse. The first corset I ever sewed was done with a portable machine sitting on the floor. This workspace is a dream compared to that. There is a window above the washer and dryer so I do get daylight, and wait, I hear birds chirping in the distance. Not a bad set up at all.

The tailor's shuriken drawing entry cut off is midnight tonight. There is still time to participate. Just leave a comment on the original post and your name will be in the mix.

marking hook & eye placement

The hook & eyes have to meet right where the seam line would be if the front and side were sewn together. So I can line up the tapes perfectly I thought I'd mark the placement by basting a line of thread on the meeting point of both pieces. 

Taking no chances, I measured the seam line/meeting point with the shuriken so the basting would be accurate. I basted one line three times because I forgot to knot the end of the thread and pulled it out. Twice.

 

And yea! 100 followers! There is still time to add your name to the list for the tailor's shurkien drawing. Just leave a comment on the original post by midnight, pacific standard time, Thursday February 4th, and you're in.

shuriken celebration

I had been thinking of way to celebrate the day Bridges on the Body has 100 followers, and just yesterday while purchasing hook & eye tape I made a stop at Ace Sewing to pick up a tailor's shuriken as a future thanks-for-reading giveaway. Thank goodness because it looks like that day is here. Or will be super soon. Hooray! And a big thanks to Brookelynn at craftzine.com for featuring this blog. I love craftzine!

So, if you'd like your name to go in the hat for a drawing for a tailor's shuriken just post a comment below by midnight pacific standard time on Thursday, February 4th. I'll have my boy pull the winner on Friday, February 5th. Here's a image of the exact shuriken being raffled.

This tool is quite handy. I use mine all time. In fact, you'll see it action again in tomorrow's post. 

Thank you for all the kind comments. It's so fun knowing there are so many of you out there along for the ride. Thanks for reading!