Corset
A
corset is a
garment worn to mold and shape the
torso into a desired shape for
aesthetic or
medical purposes (either for the duration of wearing it, or with a more lasting effect).
Both
men and
women have worn – and still wear – corsets.
The most common use of corsets is to slim the body and make it conform to a fashionable silhouette. For women this most frequently emphasises a curvy figure, by reducing the
waist, and thereby exaggerating the
bust and
hips. However, in some periods, corsets have been worn to achieve a tubular straight-up-and-down shape, which involves minimising the bust and hips.
For men, corsets are more customarily used to slim the figure. However, there was a period from around
1820 to
1835 when an
hourglass figure (a small, nipped-in look to the
waist) was also desirable for men; this was sometimes achieved by wearing a corset.
 |
Woman having her corset laced tight, from an 1899 stereoscope card. Original caption: Reducing the Surplus. "Now, Pull Hard!" A small waist between a full bust and ample hips, such is the shibboleth of fashion, and the poor girl that relies on her figure to make a good impression, is sorely put to it, if nature has denied her the shape of a wasp or if she has not learned to rely on physical exercise to model her frame. A vigorous walk of ten miles a day, supplemented by ten minutes of lung gymnastics, would do wonders for her. |
An overbust corset encloses the torso, extending from just under the
arms to the hips. An underbust corset begins just under the breasts and extends down to the hips. Some corsets extend over the hips and, in very rare instances, reach the
knees. A shorter kind of corset, which covers the
waist area (from low on the ribs to just above the hips), is called a '
waist cincher'. A corset may also include
garters to hold up
stockings (alternatively a separate
garter belt may be worn for that).
Normally a corset supports the visible dress, and spreads the pressure from large dresses, such as the
crinoline and
bustle. Sometimes the corset has been supported by a corset cover.
Another angle is the wearing of a corset while having an
enema; the theory is that the corset prevents the belly distending, enhancing the effects of the enema. (Putting on the corset
after giving the enema will almost certainly cause the enema to be expelled.)
Medical
People with spinal problems or internal injuries may have to wear corsets in order to immobilize and protect the torso.
Andy Warhol was shot in 1968 and never fully recovered; he had to wear a corset for the rest of his life.
Corsets are typically constructed of a flexible material (like
cloth or
leather) stiffened with
boning (also called ribs or stays) inserted into channels in the cloth or leather. In the Victorian period,
steel and
whalebone were favored.
Plastic is now the most commonly used material for lightweight corsets, whereas spring or spiral steel is preferred for stronger corsets. Other materials used for boning include
ivory,
wood, and
cane. (By contrast, a
girdle is usually made of
elasticized fabric, without boning.)
The craft of corset construction is known as
corsetry, as is the general wearing of them. Someone who makes corsets is a
corsetier (for a man) or
corsetière (for a woman), or sometimes simply a
corsetmaker. (The word
corsetry is sometimes also used as a collective plural form of corset.)
Corsets are held together by lacing, usually at the back. Tightening or loosening the lacing produces corresponding changes in the firmness of the corset. It is difficult — although not impossible — for a back-laced corset-wearer to do his or her own lacing. In the Victorian heyday of corsets, a well-to-do woman would be laced by her maid, a gentleman by his valet. However, many corsets also had a buttoned or hooked front opening called a
busk. Once the lacing was adjusted comfortably, it was possible to leave the lacing as adjusted and take the corset on and off using the front opening (This removal method does not work if the corset is not sufficiently loose, and can potentially damage the busk). It is important to loosen the lacing evenly when taking off a corset, so as not to put stress on the busk. Self-lacing is also almost impossible with tightlacing, which strives for the utmost possible reduction of the waist. Current tightlacers, lacking servants, are usually laced by spouses and partners.
By wearing a tightly-laced corset for extended periods, known as
tightlacing, men and women can learn to tolerate extreme
waist constriction and reduce their natural waist size. Tightlacers usually aim for 40 to 43
centimeter (16 to 17
inch) waists. Until 1998, the
Guinness Book of World Records listed
Ethel Granger as having the smallest waist on record at 13". After 1998, the category changed to "smallest waist on a living person" and
Cathie Jung took the title with a 15" waist. Other women, such as
Polaire and
Spook, also have achieved such reductions.
These are extreme cases. Corsets were and are usually designed for support, with freedom of body movement an important consideration in their design. Present day corset-wearers usually tighten the corset just enough to reduce their waists by 5 to 10 centimeters (2 to 4 inches); it is very difficult for a slender woman to achieve as much as 15 centimeters (6 inches), although larger women can do so more easily.
 |
A woman putting a corset on. She is wearing a chemise underneath, and the corset has bosom pads. |
In the past, a woman's corset was usually worn over a garment called a
chemise or
shift, a sleeveless low-necked gown made of washable material (usually
cotton or
linen). It absorbed perspiration and kept the corset and the gown clean. In modern times, an undershirt or corset liner may be worn.
Moderate lacing is not incompatible with vigorous activity. Indeed, during the second half of the nineteenth century, when corset wearing was common, there were sport corsets specifically designed to wear while
bicycling, playing
tennis, or horseback riding, as well as for maternity wear.
Some people now believe that all corsets are uncomfortable and that wearing them restricted women's lives, citing
Victorian literature devoted to sensible or hygienic dress. However, these writings were most apt to protest against the misuse of corsets for
tightlacing; they were less vehement against corsets per se. Many reformers recommended "Emancipation bodices", which were essentially tightly-fitted vests, like full-torso corsets without boning. See
Victorian dress reform.
Some modern day corset-wearers will testify that corsets can be quite comfortable, once one is accustomed to wearing them. A properly fitted corset
should be comfortable. Women active in the
Society for Creative Anachronism and
historical reenactment groups commonly wear corsets as part of period costume, without complaint.
The corset fell from fashion in the
1920s in
Europe and
America, replaced by
girdles and elastic
brassieres, but survived as an article of
costume. Originally an item of
lingerie, the corset has become a popular item of outerwear in the
fetish,
BDSM and
gothic fashion. In the fetish and BDSM literature, there is often much emphasis on
tightlacing. In this case, the corset may still be underwear rather than outerwear.
There was a brief revival of the corset in the late
1940s and early
1950s, in the form of the
waist cincher. This was used to give the hourglass figure dictated by
Christian Dior's '
New Look'. However, use of the waist cincher was restricted to
haute couture, and most women continued to use
girdles. This revival was brief, as the New Look gave way to a less dramatically-shaped silhouette.
Since the late
1980s, the corset has experienced periodic revivals, which have usually originated in haute couture and which have occasionally trickled through to mainstream fashion. These revivals focus on the corset as an item of outerwear rather than underwear. The strongest of these revivals was seen in the Autumn 2001 fashion collections and coincided with the release of the film
Moulin Rouge!, the costumes for which featured many corsets.
The majority of garments sold as corsets during these recent revivals cannot really be counted as corsets at all. While they often feature lacing and
boning, and generally mimic a historical style of corset, they have very little effect on the shape of the wearer's body.
Men's corsets were worn during the interwar periods to suit the fashions of the time, which was a subdued hourglass silhouette for suits.
Advantages* Corsets can reduce pain and improve function for people with back problems or other muscular/skeletal disorders.
* Some large-breasted women find corsets more comfortable than
brassieres, because the weight of the breasts is carried by the whole corset rather than the brassiere's shoulder straps. (Straps can chafe or cut the skin.)
* Some corset-wearers enjoy the feeling of being "hugged" by the corset.
* Corsets can instantly transform the figure without
dieting, slimming drugs, or
cosmetic surgery.
* Due to their tightness and close proximity to the body, corsets can make the wearer feel very warm. They have been most often worn in cool climates.
Disadvantages* The best corsets are custom made and personally-fitted. The more closely clothing or lingerie clings to the body, the more carefully it must be fitted to look and feel right. In modern times, when labour costs much more than materials, custom clothing can be extremely expensive. Even finding a competent corsetiere can be difficult.
* A badly-fitting corset can chafe, impede digestion, damage ribs, and pinch nerves.
* Atrophy of abdominal muscles, therefore, high risk of lumbar problems.
The various types of corsets include:
*
Bondage corset or discipline corset
*
Hourglass corset (Victorian)*
Hourglass corset (Fakir Musafar)*
Redresseur corset*
Training corset*
Ribbon corset (Waist cincher)
Styles include:
*
Wasp waist* Valerie Steele,
The Corset: A Cultural History. Yale University Press, 2001, ISBN 0300099533
* Larry Utley, Autumn Carey-Adamme,
Fetish Fashion: Undressing the Corset Green Candy Press, 2002. ISBN 1931160066
* Norah Waugh,
Corsets and Crinolines. Routledge (December 1, 1990), ISBN 0878305262
*Two doctors' opinions and advice on corset wearing can be found at the website of the
Long Island Staylace Association. At the same site, Dr. Ann Beaumont has published the series
"Corseting the Human Body".
*
Corsetmaker*
Bodice*
Body modification*
Gibson Girl*
History of corsets*
Orthopedic surgery*
Sexual fetishism*
Spirella*
Tightlacing*
Girdle*
Corsage (bodice)*
Ribbon Corset*
Corset piercing*
Corset community*
Corset Information Website*
Dictionary of Corset-related Words and Terms*
The Secret History of the Corset and Crinoline, a seminar by the
Victoria and Albert Museum*
Overview site*
Modern day tight lacing*
Selection of 19th and early 20th century texts about corsets*
Corset Image Gallery*
Antique Corset Gallery
