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May 18th, 2008

To Refurbish or To Redo...That is the Question.

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I made a corset about a year ago. I thought it was the berries back then. However, now I find my taste has changed and I have learned a great deal. The corset is a bit "tubular", a bit long, and I might like to make the top curvier.

My dilemma is: should I take the corset I have already sewn and take it apart, cut down the waist, cut off the bottom and sew it back up, or, should I just start over again and use the hardware from the original one.

I don't know why I am obsessing about this. I think it has more to do with getting rid of something I made than it does actually seeing the practical advantage in one or the other course of action. What do you think?

Before and after picture here, I hope. )

Purple corset & black lace

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After my first corset, I experienced different techniques on a pinstripe underbust, and then went on for the Truly Victorian overbust pattern.

Actually, a couple of years ago, I saw a beautiful corset on the internet, but I never found the homepage again.

Fortunately, I had saved the picture, and decided to make my own one…

The original corset:

 

Thank you for looking....

 

May 17th, 2008

Eye candy

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My latest corset commission is finished! It's red dupioni and white coutil with white silk flossing, with black dupioni covered external boning casings (spiral steels), a black waist tape, binding and ribbon trim (darted to shape it to the bust), a ribbon bow at the front, silver 12" busk, black matte 00 grommets, extra long laces, and modesty plackets behind the busk and grommets.

This was the first time I did decorative flossing and I just love the effect. I think I'll have to do this on all of my corsets from now on... Comments anyone?

Have a look-see!


View more pictures here:
http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y20/lizcostumes/?action=view¤t=gail2.jpg
http://angelafriedman.com/portfolio-corsetry.shtml

As a side note, I will be taking on commissions between June 27 and September 18. If you're interested, please comment or email me privately at info@angelafriedman.com.

Men's measurements?

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According to the internet... men don't have hips.

The idea that you can order a pair of pants with only a waist measurement is ridiculous. What if you have a man-booty? How am I to determine an average waist/hip ration without any good measurements?

Any of you guys out there willing to comment on your waist and hip measurements so I can construct a chart? Any girls willing to ask your men for some numbers?

*comments screened for modesty*

Baby Lock BL3-407

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I just got my mom's old overlock machine, a Baby Lock BL3-407. It doesn't seem to have a manual, and even if it did, it might be in Japanese like the box and threading diagram on the machine are (are all of them like this?). Does anyone else have this machine? I would like to do a lettuce edge, but I'm not even sure if it has differential feed.

Thanks!

Pattern Sale

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I just got my Hancock's advertisement and Butterick and McCalls patterns are going to be 88 cents on Memorial day weekend.

box pleats

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So, I'm doing a trained, bustled skirt which has double (inverted) box pleats at the back and sides. I tried to press the back one and, well...it looks like ass. What is the best way to press a box pleat? How far down the pleat should one continue pressing? I'm using (a rather stiff, synthetic) taffeta.

thanks in advance for your collective knowledge...

izzi :)

ps - for those that are cursion, you can see from (not great) pictures/the construction diary for the piece here -

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2219710&l=43391&id=36909144

Mantua Maker pattern - Late Victorian - What do YOU think?

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Greetings, fellow corsetmakers!!

How are you all doing?? Busy making beautiful garments, I hope!!

The other day the beautiful [info]delirium71 posted a corset which she produced using the Mantua Maker pattern. The late Victorian one. I bought this pattern eons ago, and I was never sure whether I liked it, or if I hated it. She did an awesome job on that corset - so much so that I dug my pattern out and had a closer look at it.

It's a great shape for those who are not into a big waist reduction.
It's a historically accurate shape for that era (long torso).
It's great for people who are built like me - like a stringbean.
It does have a great shape around the bust. I had a mastectomy several years ago, yet I found this shape to be quite comfortable while wearing a fake boobie :P

I would love to hear feedback from all of you who have used this pattern. What did you like about it? What did you not like??

*mwhah*
Tanya

How many bones? And how long?

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Hi to all the great corsetmakers outthere, I am going to make a corset for myself it will be a  а streight fromted 1901 from corset and crinolenes, I live quite far and before I tried to make a corset with plastik bones and zipper  but this time I want to make it right with busk and steel bones the lenth of a corset is going to be 14" so I guess I shoud order 13" busk? but how to know that length of the bones I need? I want to order a precut ones so I will not have to cut and tip them myself but in this corset there are bones that run diagonally ( on the back ) and they are short ( not the length of a corset)  , so your suggestion regarding bone lenght will be greatly appreciated... 

and one more question  what kind of bones  - busk is appropriate for this corset? I was thinking between spoon busk or wide busk ( to keep it perfectly streight ) but I never saw any of these two wouldn't it be very ( too ) rigid?
as for the bones spring? or white steel? 1/4 or 1/2 ? I have read here that 1/4 can be very flimsy an dI don't want to wait so long just to find out they are softer than my black plastic boning....
also I have read here that quality of all steel parts depends on the supplier...
so many questions!

You Can Take The Middle-Aged Geek Out Of The Medievalists...

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But you can't entirely remove the medievalist from the middle-aged geek.

A couple of months back, the Tuesday Night Game had to find new quarters on campus at Rice.  The new room is much nicer in terms of general amenities (other than lacking a whiteboard), but less convenient.  It also seems to be in a building that houses the art history department, judging from the scenery.

The other night, when we were walking to our room, something caught my eye in one of the offices.  A Madonna and Child scuplture.  Which my brain immediately filed under "German.  Late 14th or early 15th century. Doesn't appear to be a reproduction, but it's hard to tell at this distance."

Which led to all manner of vaguely conflicted thoughts.  First, the reminder that I've seen enough medieval artwork that I could make a snap classification like that.  Second, that I've seen enough medieval artwork that suddenly and randomly encountering a piece if art that's likely over 500 years old doesn't really faze me.  Third, wondering what useful life skills I might otherwise have had I not spent so much time studying medieval minutia.  Finally, a bit of frustration, since said sculpture was in a locked office and I couldn't get close enough to verify whether or not it was a reproduction.

My brain.  Where trivia goes to die.

The Farthingale's Instruction DVD

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I heard from a very reliable source that Farthingale's was going to do a DVD about putting a corset together. I have not seen it talked about or offered for sale. Anyone know about this, if it's going to happen, when?

May 16th, 2008

Love Letter to Anderson Cooper

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Oh, Andy...

I found your video, you naughty man, right where you left it on YouTube. I love it when you get that masterful gleam in your eye, the way your glove caresses the whip, giving it a firm smack that sings to my soul... as only your hand can

The last time I saw you was at the Kathy Griffin show at Madison Square Garden. I paused near you in the exit hallway. Andy, you looked so pale. Are you working too hard, traveling the world, delivering your dire bulletins like the never-ending beat of doom?

You had a very cute young man with you who urged you to go backstage to see Kathy. I called out – "Oh, yes, you have to go. Kathy will be disappointed if you don't." You must remember me – I waved when you looked over.

BTW, I like your friend. I'd be happy to work him into our scene. (Call me.)

Susan

The Vaguely More Interesting Thing That Happened

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I'd nearly forgotten about this, as it all happened in sort of a migraine haze.

On Wednesday, around 3:30, I decided my head wasn't getting any better, so I cut out early and headed for home.  Since I wasn't up to cooking, I decided to hit Kroger for something for Jane to cook.  As I walk in to pick up a basket, this woman comes running up to the check stand, clearly distraught saying, "Stop that man! He tried to steal my purse."  She points to a guy leaving the store in a rather brisk and direct manner, but not running.

I noticed the staff weren't very quick on the uptake, so I decided the least I could do was trail the guy out until reinforcements arrived and try and figure out what was going on.  Once we were out of the store, he picked up the pace a bit and looked back at me.  Big guy.  Bigger than me, so that's somewhere over 6'1" and probably around 230-250 lbs.  At this point, any delusions I might have harbored about tackling an assailant fell by the wayside.  However, by that point I'd also ascertained from hearing the woman carrying on that he hadn't actually taken the purse, he'd merely attempted to do so.  So there was even less incentive to confront him directly, which was fine by me.

As it was I (and a couple of other folks) trailed him to his car, which he jumped into very quickly and pulled out, nearly hitting two cars in the process.  We got his description and license number which, under the circumstances, was probably the best case.  No one needs to get in a physical tussle with someone that large over a failed attempted robbery.

I still had to shop, and when I was going through aisles, I overheard another woman talking, who filled in the rest of the story.  Apparently, she'd been the one to catch the guy in the act.  He'd been walking the aisles with a shopping cart, and when he came upon a woman distracted by a small child, he grabbed her purse, dropped it in his cart and started off.  This woman saw him and loudly asked, "Is that your purse?"  When he said no, she took it from his cart and asked the other woman if it was hers.  During the ensuing confusion, the guy bolted.

Anyway, after I checked out, the woman who owned the purse pointed me out to the store manager, who asked if I could corroborate the other folks' story.  I did so, and gave him my name and number in case the cops need to get in touch with me.  In the grand scheme of things, not that impressive, but it did get the blood pumping just a bit.

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Well, yesterday was a complete waste of time.  That headache I was fending off on Wednesday morning went full-blown by 3 in the afternoon or so and lasted for approximately 36 hours.  This morning, I did the math in my head and realized I should be able to refill the prescription today and promptly did so.

During the past two weeks, I did find a couple of things that helped some of the time, but no sure-fire fixes when the weather and my other triggers converge.

And I suppose it wasn't a total waste.  I managed a few hours where I wasn't feeling too badly and finished up the latest Percy Jackson novel on the *ahem* pretext of vetting it for anything I might need to filter over before I read it to C-Monster.  Yeah, that's the ticket.  And to be honest, there's one little bit I may decide to dance around slightly.  Riordan clearly expects his audience to age with the characters, so he's writing to early teens now and a matter of deific reproduction comes up that might raise more questions at Casa de Bretz than we really need at the moment.

By the way, this fourth volume is the best yet.  Really cool stuff with some imagery and ideas that need to be swiped for a modern mythological game like Scion.

Tonight should be a quiet one, with just Jane and I at home.  Tomorrow, we're supposed to move furniture for her sister, who's slated to drop baby #2 at any moment now.  I'm also going to try to take C-Monster to see the new Narnia movie and give Jane some downtime in the process.  Though I may wait until Sunday for that.

toile waist cincher

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This past weekend I attended a wasit cincher workshop at Farthingales and here is the result.

Now I know how flatlining works! This is cotton toile flatlined with one layer of coutil. Spiral bones on the seams with interior bone casings (I feel like I graduated using spiral bones instead of plastic.) and I gave myself the challenge of matching the pattern on the front. This pic is not the best, just a quick snap from a cell phone, but it's does the job. I learned so much! I have to say I love this method of construction. I've seen the future and it is single layer flatlined.

May 15th, 2008

Osborne press

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I got mine today! I am soooo happy!!! The 0 size die has a problem, but I am sure it will be replaced immediately!

So, how do you get your grommets all in a line? Anyone want to share tips and tricks?

Do you punch holes first then set grommet? or do it all in one? how do you lay the washer in, smooth side up or down?

I really need to learn how o use this thing. I also need it mounted.
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Underbust Sizing quesiton

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I have a simple sizing question. I have checked the memories.

I am making the LM Ladies Underbust corset. I am hoping for a fairly curvey finished shape and am going for a two inch waist reduction. I would like the finished corset to have a two inch gap in back.


I have not made the mock up yet, I am struggeling with where to start. My question is, if I size it for a two inch waist reduction, how should I size the hips and underbust? Should I use my natural measurments or size up for things getting squished out?

My measurements are 32" underbust, 30" waist, 39" hip.

Thank you so much for any direction.

Bone casing

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Ok, here's a noob question if ever I heard one, but I have been reading the memories for the past hour and have still not worked it out! So I do apologise in advance if it's in a really obvious place and I just missed it ;)

When using bone casing - either external or internal - do you sew it on after sewing your corset pieces together? Or do you sew the casing onto the pieces and then sew them together? In the first case the stitching would go through all your layers. This is good, right?

Again, sorry if this seems really obvious - it's so late and my brain is frazzled!

May 14th, 2008

I apologize for making another sewing machine thread...

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A friend of mine just offered me a Singer Scholastic 6704 left over at an elementary school he purchased. Does anyone know anything about it? Metal chassis/gears? Has anyone worked with it?

Photos:

http://www.ranum.com/tmp/sewingmachine-1.jpg

http://www.ranum.com/tmp/sewingmachine-2.jpg

It appears to be missing the, err, floor cover?

Thank you so much!

Corset Movies

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I figure you guys are like me and like to watch movies/films with corsets in them. I have been in the mood lately for some corset flicks but unfortunately don’t know any more than the ones I already have. I thought it would be fun if we could do a “corset movie” list, or if one already exists, then please, someone direct me to it.

On my list I have:

Phantom of the Opera (The newer movie)
Underworld (Vampire/Werewolves with Kate Beckinsale)
Corpse Bride (Tim Burton cartoon movie)
The Piano (Can’t seem to find my copy so I can’t tell you the actress.)
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