Okay gang, I have one hour and thirty seven minutes before I have to be down in the little village of Popotla to wait for the fishermen to come in. Not, sadly, because I’m waiting for a sailor, but the fishing boats come in at noon and if I’m not there to fight tooth and nail with these surprisingly tough little Mexican grandmothers (I don’t know how you say “throw elbows” in Spanish, but I sure bet they do!) at the exact minute they splosh today’s catch on their ramshackle folding table, then the seagulls will get my dinner and frankly, I cannot live with that.
As promised, here is a belated corset post with recommendations.
Please note I don’t actually own any of these corsets, although I wish I did. I judged them based on apparent quality of construction, variety of product (as in: do they offer longline/underbust/cotton/bridal/whatever corsets) and how much the site annoyed me.
My favorite by far is Corsets-UK.com
Although they don’t offer as much as I’d like to see in the way of neutral colors, they’ve got an impressive selection of underbust, sweetheart and longline corsets suitable for almost all your waist-cinching occasions.
By the way, if you’ve got a natural waist larger that 43″, you’re still probably safe going with a corset built for a smaller waist since fat is more malleable than bone. Just don’t go passing yourself out or doing anything dumb.
OH! And they’re doing a buy-two-get-one-free promotion on almost all corsets, so if you and some friends (I’m thinking bridesmaids) want to go in on a group order together, this might be the time to do it.
This long line underbust corset is for waist training. Personally, I don’t think waist training is a good idea because that stuff can mess with your ribs and lungs and other important parts of your body that should probably not be jostled around for the sake of a smaller waist. Still, there’s no harm in popping one on for a few hours if you’ve got a special event coming up, or if you need the extra control 24 steel bones provide.
If you want to do an overbust corset and still be responsible WRT the chestular situation (no Platter O’ Boobs/Dish of Desperation) a deep sweetheart is the way to go. That way you can maneuver the gals to their upright and locked position without spilling over into “I couldn’t get a date in high school so please approve of me now” territory. No one looks good in that territory.
There are TONS more corsets from the ridiculous (camouflage corset anyone?) to the sublime, but I’ve got to go throwdown with the old ladies over the best salmon so I’ll leave you to sort it out yourself. Good luck!
I ordered one from this website a few days ago, and I’m crossing my fingers that it fits. It was so hard to decide on one, since they’re all so gorgeous, but I ended up getting this one: http://www.corset-story.com/long-bodied-classic-pink-corset-my-137-aca.html
I’m going to wear it as a top with a shrug. Oh, the hotness…
Comment by Bethany — February 6, 2012 @ 6:30 pm
Here’s a site to feast your eyes on: http://entrenous.ch/german/home.html. The corsets are hand-made to measure in Switzerland and therefore expensive. But aren’t they gorgeous?
Comment by dinazad — February 7, 2012 @ 4:30 am
I’ve got a corset from them, and I won’t be getting another. It “fits”, of sorts… except that the overbust pattern was scaled to add girth without adjusting for bust size. So it makes my breasts look flat and ugly.
Also, the waist compression isn’t that much. The corset developed wrinkles all over the moment it was put under a bit of a strain, as the top layer separated from the bottom strength layer. This *should not* happen, and shows low quality of workmanship.
And don’t go for “smaller sizes”, even if you THINK it will work: it won’t. The sizes are smaller than they say (I’ve measured) sometimes by at least a couple of inches. Take into account that corsets are supposed to be worn with a gap at the back, but they are using this gap as part of the measurement, despite not telling you this.
Also, to be perfectly honest, getting an off-the-rack corset if you’re a curvy girl is not a good idea. We all have different shapes, and what works for one will not work for another. The corsets from CorsetUK will not work well on pear figures, for instance, unless your hips are barely bigger than your shoulders. Or if you have a high waist, because your hip bones will be around the area the corset’s “waist” is. And this difference in the shape will cause them to be very uncomfortable and poke in the wrong places.
Corsets should be strong and comfortable, and made for your shape, with reduction on areas that you know can be reduced. Done like this, for *your* specific body, they should be fun, comfortable and without anything poking or hurting. I strongly suggest that if you want to really get a nice corset for whatever reason, you have one made to your own measurements and body shape, you’ll be glad you went the extra mile.
Comment by Arien — February 7, 2012 @ 9:40 am
@Arien,
I second all your comments. Corsets need to fit the individual’s body if they are going to 1. do the job 2. be comfortable, or at least bearable.
I’m an extreme hourglass and as I’ve probably mentioned before, a costume whore who has worn everything from Ren Faire, to Antebellum to Elizabethan corsets (aka the boob smasher).
If a corset fits correctly, it can be surprisingly comfortable, very flattering and sexy as hell.
If you don’t have a local lingerie shop that can fit you, check with your local SCA, Civil War reenactors or fetish shop for someone who can do a proper fitting. Cause there’s nothing sadder than paying big bucks for a corset that collapses in the first hour.
Comment by Thea — February 7, 2012 @ 1:21 pm
@Thea,
Agreed. There are communities of corset makers out there that can do the work. They won’t be cheap, but you’re paying for something that a- requires a lot of expensive material (busks alone can be up to $20 each, coutil is also pricey) b- is extremely tailored and made *exactly* for you. They are not beginner’s garments by any extent either, so it’s one item where paying for a corsettiere’s experience is worth it.
Having said that, they can give such wonderful results that I think is well worth having one. And if you are crafty, places like Vena Cava sell kits with a pattern, coutil and all the hardware and pieces you need to make one, and it might be an interesting project to tackle. I know I’m considering doing one this year, if my other costuming projects leave me a gap.
Comment by Arien — February 7, 2012 @ 5:55 pm
If you want a good corset that is going to make you look amazing, order one from Damsel in this Dress.
http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/gallery/damselinthisdress
Here is the artist’s blog–her goal is to make real women really beautiful.
http://damseldress.blogspot.com/
p.s. I think if you are going to recommend corsets, you should have at least tried one on.
Comment by GlowWorm — February 12, 2012 @ 1:51 am
I got my corset! It’s beautiful! I think I have it laced right, but I’m not sure. What does everyone else think?
http://i39.tinypic.com/350qm8w.jpg
Comment by Bethany — February 14, 2012 @ 1:35 pm