100 Years of Corset History: How 8 Corsets affect the same body

hello everyone and welcome back today we're  going to be talking about that marvel of textile   architecture called corset now corsets were a  regular part of western women's fashion throughout   the 19th and early 20th centuries and they changed  dramatically through that more than 100 years of   their existence and not only is this done through  the actual shape of the corset but through all of   the more technical aspects as well looking at the  patterning the structure the fabrics that make it   up even some of the technological achievements  so corsets are not a single stagnant victorian   corset they are a dramatically changing garment  that is an integral part of women's fashion   in fact corsets serve far more purpose than just  an aesthetic one yes they can serve to modify the   shape of the body whether it is by pulling the  waste in or patting out the hips and the bust but   they also serve a great deal of more functional  purposes as well they were there for back support   especially for women who were doing labor or  working around the house dealing with children   picking up things all the time they also served  as bust support as what we commonly think of as   the bra was not really around yet yes there were  bust improvers and other sorts of bust support   throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries but  they really relied on the corset to do most of the   heavy lifting as it were they also served the  purpose of managing to support the weight of   the garments that the women were wearing if you  look at many of the different styles throughout   the 19th century they're full of yards and yards  of fabric and tying that tightly about your bare   waist is incredibly painful by the end of the day  so there needs to be something to support and help   spread out that weight along the body so corsets  were really the interaction between a woman's body   and her garments making sure that they functioned  well together and that the fashionable shape was   achieved but also that a woman could function  and do what she needed to do on a daily basis   while still being comfortable and i know that  this concept of function as well as fashion   can go against some of our old stereotypes  of historical corsets but honestly that is   another video for another day because there is so  much to unpack there in fact the concept of the   stereotypes around corsets and more specifically  around tight lacing is something that you can find   all over the 19th century and continues to this  day not just as an effect on what we think of as   the corset but what we think of as fashion and the  gendering of fashion or women's minds and how they   deal with the world around them in fact the entire  concept around fashion being a feminine thing   and including a great deal of vanity along with  it is a very 19th century concept and it ties in   greatly to the corset as its prime example and it  was used consistently as an example of why women   were just too simple to be able to actually  control themselves and well they needed men   to guide them through life so they didn't  literally hurt themselves out of vanity but as i said that is a whole big story for  another day so today we're really going to   be digging in to those different styles  those different technological achievements   and understanding how that structure and the  proportions of the corset actually change   throughout the 19th and 20th centuries because  it really is all about those proportions and that   ideal figure so while there are ideal body shapes  for every era and therefore for every corset   that doesn't necessarily mean that you can't do  any other time periods in fact my body shape is   really not ideal for any corsets i have what we  consider a more modern body shape simply meaning   that it's more athletic i am not squishy i have  a fair bit of muscle in my abdomen so it doesn't   squish down i also am very short-waisted i am all  leg so that means that my lowest rib ends here and   my hip bone is there so there is no space between  the two meaning that i have very little room to   actually pull in my waist so i'm not going to ever  get a lot of reduction no matter what style i'm in   so we're going to start by measuring my body  because we need to know what my base line is   in order to understand what these corsets are  actually doing to me starting with the hip at   its fullest point i am 39 and a half inches or 100  cm at the waist i am just under 30 inches or 76 cm   at the underbust because this is important for  the factor that this is where you breathe from   so this is why everyone thinks corsets make it  so you can't breathe they assume it constricts   here so we're going to take two measurements here  one is resting and that is 31 and a half or 80 cm   and then we're going to breathe out as far  out this way as i can i'm going to try to not   breathe up but years of vocal coaching have  taught me to breathe this way not this way and that gets us up to 33 inches or 84 cm  so that is as far as my lungs can expand   and then my bust at its fullest  point is 38 inches or 97 cm   so we'll keep those measurements in mind and i'll  post them again so that way we can reference them   as we see how my body shape and size changes  with corsets our first garment is actually   not technically a corset it is what we call a  transitional pair of stays meaning that it is   the in-between of the 18th century pair of stays  which has a conical rigid shape and the 19th   century corset which usually has more of a natural  hourglass shape so this is how they transition   between the two simply cutting cups for the  bust into that conical shape it has a very high   waistline because the waistline of gowns at this  time is rising to the underbust so your actual   waistline is not terribly relevant it has very  lightweight structure meaning that there is some   boning placed around the body in order to keep  the garment from actually collapsing as you move   but it is not heavily structured it is also very  lightweight fabric it has a layer of linen buckram   on the interior and then the exterior is made up  of a lightweight cotton twill all in all it is a   very lightweight and unstructured bodice the bust  itself is only supported by one layer of fabric   that has some drawstrings running through it in  order to provide the appropriate size and support   it laces up the back using a spiral lacing  design rather than a crisscross lacing design   in front we do have a decorative lace however it's  not an actually functional piece of the garment it   can be let in or out but it can't be completely  undone for measurements there's really not much   point in measuring my hip or my waist because it's  nowhere near either one of those things but we   will go ahead and take a look at the underbust  and the bust to see how that area is affected   the underbust comes out at 32 inches or 81  cm slightly larger than my natural which   makes sense since there is some added bulk  and the bust comes out at 39 inches or 99 cm   so we have neither reduced or added  to the bust measurement at this point our first true corset comes from around 1810. this  style is a very long line meaning that it goes up   to mid bust and goes down to almost the hip it has  a very smooth natural curve to its shape meaning   that there is no major reduction or any padding  out it also has almost no structure to it the   only major structure is from a removable wooden  busk in the front and a couple of bones down the   back that prevent the corset from collapsing when  it is laced the entire body of the corset is only   structured by way of cording and stitching the  layers together the layers are only a very thin   layer of linen and a cotton twill so there is very  little actual bulk or structure to this corset the   bust is given space by way of a few gussets but  doesn't have any major shaping it's mostly just   lift and support this corset will make sure  that you have good posture but the actual   shape of the body underneath is not terribly  relevant as gowns in this era have a waistline   just below the bust so the waist and the hips  won't be seen at all in these fashions therefore   it is not important to make any major adjustments  to the body in order to get the fashionable shape   the goal is just to get the bust in the correct  place and make sure that you are standing properly the hip measurement on this particular corset will  be just below the actual corset so we are still at   39 and a half or about 100 centimeters the waist  is 30 inches or 76 cm the underbust 32 inches or   81 cm so a little bit bigger than my actual size  which is expected because of the bulk and the bust   is 37 inches or 94 cm though i should specify  that this corset is a very old one for me and   no longer fits me properly so if i made it again  i would certainly allow for more space in the bust next we have the 1830s there's not a terrible lot  of difference visually from the 18 teens corset   to the 1830s however there are some changes in its  overall shape and style this corset does cover the   same vertical space that the previous one did the  major changes though come in the fact that it has   gussets not only for the bust but also for the hip  space clothing at this time has started to drop   its waist down to the natural waist meaning that  though the hips are still not seen the waist is so   there is an interest in having a slight bit more  of a curve to the figure now there's not a drastic   amount of change by any means at this time there's  a slight bit more structure in this corset as well   in addition to the busk at the front which is now  slightly curved to accommodate the belly of the   figure rather than being completely straight like  it was 20 years earlier the back still has boning   but there is also a little bit of boning at the  side back and the side front in order to help   keep the corset from wrinkling up as you move  this is more important now since the body does   show even when the gown is on versus earlier years  where if it wrinkled up a little bit you wouldn't   have seen it a lot of the structure is still due  to cording and stitching of the layers together   in this case the layers are simply a very thin  layer of linen and a cotton satin the back is   still laced using stitched eyelets so we're  still not at the point where we can actually   pull very easily on the laces in order to do  any reduction however this is the time period   where tuberculosis is a major issue so there  were a lot of concerns over constricting the   lungs at all meaning that the corsets were not  terribly maligned in this era tight lacing was the hips still just below the corset come in at  39.5 for 100 cm so at my natural my waist is 30   and a half or 77 cm so it's actually gotten  a little bit bigger which makes sense because   i have a very large wooden bust right there my  underbust comes in at 33 inches or 84 centimeters   so that has grown significantly and my bust in a  better fitting corset comes in at 38 and a half or   98 centimeters so it hasn't really changed  much it is definitely sitting in a different   place than it does naturally but there is no major  adjustment to any part of my body in this corset by the 1860s we start to see a more  dramatic change in our style of corsets   not only has the shape shifted slightly  to more accentuate a narrow waist   but there is a great deal more infrastructure  in these styles the hip has shortened and the   bust has lowered ever so slightly from our earlier  styles we are still using gussets in order to get   the proper shape for the bust and the shape over  the hips as well so we haven't fully moved on from   that particular method just yet however you will  see that there is a great deal more structure   in this style of corset there is a lot more  boning around the entire torso and there is a   separating metal busk in the front this is a  very important and dramatic change for corsets   going forward this means that the corset doesn't  have to be unlaced and re-laced every time it   makes it very simple for someone to get themselves  in and out of the corset which greatly affects the   ease in which corsets can be worn you'll also  notice that there are metal grommets in the back   at this point in time meaning that it is a little  bit easier to lace up specifically if you want to   pull the corset a little bit tighter now this  doesn't necessarily mean they are encouraging   tight lacing that is still a major concern of this  era however since fashions at this time do fit to   the body very snugly you can see the structure  of the body underneath and you want it to be   very smooth you still can't see the hips however  so the focus is still on the torso garments of   this era do not try to over emphasize a tiny waist  by bringing it in tightly with your corset instead   women are fashionably wearing cage crinolines  of over 100 inches in circumference and frankly   anyone would look tiny with a skirt that large the  actual structural layers of this garment are made   up of a cotton satin as well as a silk satin for  the exterior layer the boning channels since they   do run over the seams are done up in a separate  layer of cotton and the bones are held into   place by this flossing the extra decorative  stitching that you see around the corset once again my natural hip is well below the  actual corset length simply because you cannot   see that in those fashions but my full hip is at  39 and a half or 100 cm and my waist is now at 29   inches or 74 cm so it is slightly reduced likely a  little bit more than that 29 inches because there   is boning and extra structure added back in but  it is not anything drastic the underbust we have   at 33 and a half or 85 cm so that has increased  greatly which is not surprising considering that   i can fit my entire hand in that front and  the bust is actually at 40 inches or 102 cm moving into the late 1880s we can really see  the sort of very curvy hourglass corset that   we typically think of as the standard victorian  corset now this is the one that does have by far   the most extreme ratio in terms of shape fashions  of this era are somewhat fitted over the hips and   flat in the front so the entire torso down to  the hips is more visible underneath the actual   clothing at the time that being said these are  still fairly lightweight garments this particular   corset has a single layer of cotton for structure  an exterior layer of silk satin and then the   boning channels are actually done externally  with another layer of the cotton and silk satin   there is some flossing to keep the boning in place  there should be more but i haven't finished it yet   the bones do not necessarily follow the seams of  the corset hence why they do have separate boning   channels the corset curves are created by way  of curving vertical seams as well as continuing   to use some gussets there is a fair bit of boning  structure around the body but there are still many   areas that are left open and unstructured in fact  some of those areas in this particular style have   cording in them much like corsets of the very  early part of the 19th century the separating   metal busk is still there in the front however  this era tends to use what is called a spoon busk   meaning that it widens and curves down at the  very bottom it also bows out ever so slightly and   curves around the belly so there is an expectation  that women will not have a completely flat front   during this era and fashions of the  time will sometimes even accentuate   that belly the bust is also incredibly low on  this particular style you can see that though my   waist is here the bust extends very quickly from  the waist which means that my actual bust does   not fill that space at all so while the waist is  very snug there is ample room around the rib cage the same is true for the hips as well while the  corset does end well above the full part of the   hips which i am still measuring at 39 and a half  or 100 cm there is a lot of space for a belly here   i personally do not fill this out and actually  reduced it from the original pattern the waist   in this corset tends to be the smallest one that  i can achieve and we have about 28 inches or 71   cm so that's a reduction of only about two inches  though i will admit it looks dramatically smaller   for the underbust it's actually something  i tend to have trouble measuring in this   particular style since where the underbust of the  corset is and where mine is are very different   but it's coming at at about 36 inches or  91 centimeters so yeah that's a pretty um   dramatic difference the actual bust which  sits right at the very top of the corset   measures at 40 inches or about 102 cm so in this  particular style of corset it definitely starts   to be all about illusion and proportions if you  bring the bust and the hip together towards the   waist the difference will seem much more  severe than if it was done over a much   taller span so not surprisingly lots of illusion  here the 1900s corset is what we call an s-bend   corset a great deal of the emphasis is placed on  the lower half of the body so what you end up with   is what they consider an s-shape meaning that the  bust is full in the front and the lower portion   of the body is very full and back so it appears  that there is a sway to the back of the person   in reality is a lot of padding both under and  over the corset to achieve this silhouette   this is why this is the only corset that you  will see me wearing a hip pad underneath in   order to get the correct proportions there is  no way that i can get my waist down that small   so instead i pad out the hip this is why the  corsets are so incredibly long fashions of this   era cling to the hips and fall away from that  widest point so you can see all of those curves   therefore the corset needs to be long enough that  you don't end up with the historical equivalent   of panty lines the bust however is fairly low  in part because of where the fashionable bust   needs to sit but also you're going to be covering  up all of this with layers of ruffles and gathers   and things to fill it out so where the bust  sits certainly does not need to be held   far up in this particular era this is also a  time where you start to see very complex seaming   on corsets the bones will not follow these seams  for obvious reasons instead we placed around the   body in separate boning channels just like our  previous corsets we have a single layer of thin   cotton and then we have a layer of a silk satin  on top and the boning channels on the inside are   done in another layer of that cotton we still  have the long metal busk it has returned to a   straight busk so we no longer have that protruding  curve out of the front that the spoonbusk gave us so for hip measurements this will probably  be the first time that we see that actual   hip measurement drastically change because  we are only just at that bottom part of the   corset with all of the padding so pulled tightly  we're looking at 42 inches or close to 107 cm   which is a fairly dramatic change from my actual  hip measurement we've gone up almost three inches   my waist measurement now is at 28 and a half or  just above 72 cm so while i have reduced about   an inch and a half the difference of going up  two and a half inches in my hips and going down   an inch and a half in my waist adds up to a four  inch difference which is pretty dramatic in its   appearance for the underbust it's going to be a  little bit difficult to measure just because it is   the actual under bust point of the course it sits  much lower than my real underbust but comes out to   about 35 inches or 89 cm so much larger than my  actual bust no different than the previous 1880s   corset there is a lot of space here there is some  reduction right here but it ends very quickly for   the bust measurement we're looking at 39 inches  or 99 cm so it really hasn't made a massive   adjustment to my bust in fact my bust is sitting  very naturally where it would without a corset it   is barely covered by the top edge of this corset  at all the bust is still sitting incredibly low our final corset is also a bit of a transitional  piece corsets from the 19 teens are moving from   the ancestry of curvy corsets into the girdle  of the 20th century which is more a focus on   smoothing out the figure and controlling the lower  half of the body you can really see the difference   in the fact that this does not have an over  accentuated figure the hips are not larger than   my actual hips it is very lightweight and very  smoothing but it doesn't even support the bust   so it really is a transition piece between that  corset and that girdle which would then later   become control top pantyhose and spanx and diet  and exercise so we've always had something to   control and smooth this part of our body but this  particular style of corset does really nothing to   reduce the figure in fact the hip to waist ratio  of this garment is very minimal and the pattern   is actually taken directly off of an original  garment which was sold as a mass-produced corset   in a standard size so it was not adjusted to fit  my measurements as you can see the bus line has   dropped below the bust at this point offering no  support there hence why we start seeing more and   more chess support options whether it is braziers  bust improvers bandeaus or all sorts of different   options during this time period the bottom has  dropped well below my hips though there is no   actual structure below my hip line so i still  have a full range of movement and can sit down   the boning is very sparse only found in two parts  on the sides and in the very center back the front   does still have that easy opening metal busk and  that really helps to make sure that the body stays   nice and flat and straight in the center front  the back is cross laced with metal grommets   just like before so that way it is easy to make  adjustments or pull it tighter if you need to   but again this corset is so lightweight  it is a single layer of cotton   that it really clearly is not meant for any  sort of tight lacing it is as lightweight and as   unstructured as possible meaning that in reality  it doesn't change my figure at all it just means   that i have to stand upright otherwise it's  very uncomfortable for the measurements i don't   expect this to make a really big difference  since it is so lightweight and unstructured   for the hips we're looking at 40 inches or 101  cm so it is slightly larger than my actual hip   measurement which may just be due to the bulk  of the actual corset my waist is just over 30   inches or actually closer to 77 cm so again i  have added just slightly to my natural waist   i can feel that there is some pressure being  put on that area but it is very minimal and   then my underbust which comes out to 32 inches  or 81 cm so slightly larger than my regular size   now lest you be concerned that women in the  1900s had corsets that clearly did not allow   them to move and function and have physical  activity there were other styles available   throughout all of these decades there were  courses specific to athletic activities or   maternity or different ages so there are very  different shapes different constructions different   fabrics different cuts all together that meant  that they functioned for different activities   not everyone wore the exact same style of corset  no different than today we have sports bras or   underwire bras or strapless bras or bralettes  or front closure bras or wireless or over   wire or balconette or scoop or could just  keep going on and on and on on the list   depending on what activity you need and what  your body needs you're going to be wearing a   different corset and this is a great example of  this this is a ribbon corset and this style dates   to around the beginning of the 20th century  it is a very easy and comfortable corset to   wear it doesn't have very much structure it  has the musk in front to get in and out easily   it has some boning on the sides and a little  bit in back to keep the corset from collapsing   but that is it it's very short and it's under bust  so it really doesn't restrict your movement at   all it is simply a great way to support your  back and to support the weight of skirts now obviously because this is such a short  corset it won't really affect the hip   or the bust it honestly won't affect  the underbust as either because that   is actually above really where the corset  pulls in it should just affect the waist and   i have a measurement of just over 28 inches or  72 centimeters which the reason why i can lace   down to this as snugly as i can is because it  doesn't have any constriction over my ribs or   over my hips at all so it makes it very smooth  and simple to get a more narrow waist with this   even though it honestly doesn't feel nearly  as snug as the 28 inches in my 1880s corset   so i really did not have to but i really didn't  expect that measurement because it's so comfy i'm as bewildered as you are all right for experimental purposes

Channel: Nicole Rudolph

Views: 321,203

Keywords: corset haul, victorian sewing, corset try on, victorian era, 19th century, how to wear a corset, corset collection, corset lacing, victorian, historical sewing, effects of corsets, victorian corset, victorian style, 18th century, fashion history, belle epoque, vintage fashion, corsetry, 100 years of fashion, wearing a corset, victorian clothing, costume, costume history, silhouette, nicole rudolph, costube, edwardian fashion, wearing corset, corset wearing experiences

Id: ZzKUI0TwgFM

Length: 29min 14sec (1754 seconds)

Published: Sun Nov 29 2020