Corset making 101: Pattern and materials

I adore corsets, ever since working on 'The Rocky Horror Show' I got really into them. And from what I found out over the years, just about everyone loves them. Now corset making is a great skill to have, and they are not all that difficult to make. I personally love making them for my friends. (see last post about Julia's corset)
So when Marieken, a good friend of mine asked me to make her a corset for her upcoming trip to the US, I naturally obliged.
And of course a very good reason to teach you all about the production of corsets.
Lets begin!

The Pattern.


For this corset I used the Laughin Moon, Dore Corset pattern which you can order on-line.
I highly recomend this pattern, it has easy to use instructions and it's beautifull.
In this case I personally altered the pattern to inlude shoulder straps.
Before I started assembling the final corset I made a mockup (toile) of the corset out of muslin fabric. and tried this on my friend Marieken. This way you can see the alterations you need to make to the pattern before you start cutting your expensive fabric.

(note: cup sice is to small on pattern, causing deformation of the breast)

Materials.

(note: the black lace is an optional decoration on this corset)

You will need:

- A stiff cotton fabric.
Preferably coutil which is specially designed for corset making. but any stiff and thick cotton will do. (In the picture this is the black fabric)
-A top fabric.
This will be the fabric and color of the outer layer, this can be every sort of fabric you want it to be. In this case, it is old pink silk.
-Eyelets.
For making the lacing holes at the back of the corset.
-Bones.

(From left to right, flat boning, busk, spiral boning + end caps)

I always use flat steel bones and spiral steel bones.
Flat steel is used for straight bone line (usually centre front or centre back)
Spiral steel is bendable and used for all non-straight bone lines
All these bone types are available in different pre cut lengths, but I like to cut it to my own specific lengths and use boning on a roll, which is sold by the meter or the yard.
In this case I will also be inserting a busk, which is a piece of boning with hooks attached. This is a closure which makes it easier for the wearer to put the corset on his or herself.

Let's continue...