Vintage clothing lovers, costumers and re-enactment fans can find a wealth of free sewing patterns on the internet. And many of the patterns are trendy and can be worn, like the corsets women wore in centuries past. That which Edwardian women couldn't wait to see abolished, has returned to fashion for it's style and as a way to get the 18" waist Scarlet O'Hara coveted in Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind.
Corset Making Classes
Before taking on a corset sewing project, seamstresses might want to take ta class. Emagister is showing over fifty corset making courses and classes in brick and mortar locations in London and elsewhere in England. It could be worth considering for the serious corset maker. Many of these courses last one to four days, so it's something that could easily be worked into a two or three week holiday. A search online for corset making classes will bring up several free instructional classes and websites geared to teaching this art.
Free Online Corset Patterns to Download, Enlarge or Draft
Many of the free corset patterns available are printable, but will need to be enlarged. Most come with instructions for enlarging or re-drafting the patterns.
The corset pattern from Gorgeous is lovely for the Gibson Girl figure, similar to the above photo. It includes a video tutorial on how to print off the pattern, once downloaded. Unfortunately it does not include instructions. The pattern pieces are self-explanatory, but this is a project for experienced seamstresses and corset makers. This one has lots of pattern pieces.
Elizabethan Costume has a pattern generator for corsets customized to the woman's measurements. It generates the custom pattern pieces, and shows the seamstress how to use them to complete the corset.
Kosha the Cat has a Regency period corset pattern that includes contemporary and period styling and sewing methods The instructions for the period sewing method adds embroidery to the corset that is stitched through two layers like a quilt. The site offers photographic illustrations and a step-by-step tutorial making it easy to follow.
Tudor Links offers a free Victorian corset pattern. This is for advanced seamstresses. It will need to printed off and drafted out on large tissue or news print.
An online search for "free corset patterns" will bring up several sites in the search results.
Wearing the Corset
There are many women known today as "tightlacers." They wear their corsets twenty -four hours per day. It's their way of getting that 18" waist. But a warning should come with this waist-cinching trend. When the waist and back muscles have learned to rely on the corset for strength, they become weak when the woman is not wearing her corset and her back is more prone to injury.
The majority of women who corset, either wear them as costumes, or as fashion statements and not every day. Corsets can be worn over blouses, rather than under them. They can be worn on their own with skirts or jeans. Many brides have two-piece gowns with a corset bodice. And they are also popular as lingerie.
Corsets still have great appeal, partly due to their ability to pull in the waistline with certain clothing, but they also as a way of honoring the women who wore them in history and keeping that history alive.
Lorraine Syratt - Lorraine Syratt is a freelance writer, gardener and part-time antique dealer. Please see her full profile for more information.
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