Notes based on Nora Waugh`s : Corsets and Crinonlines
· 1800 The natural (slim) figure was in favour. The illusion of breasts sitting high and round by them self. The predecessor of today`s tight elastic tube to create a slimmer figure was attempted with knitting. Or light corsets for those with less youth or fortune. A kind of bra engineered of two pieces of fabric crossing in front and supporting the breast was sometimes build in to the dresses.
· 1810 The corset returns. Curved lines and high waist. Lightly boned shoulder straps and four main pieces. Gussets are inserted for bust and hips.
· 1820 waist becomes longer and more defined and more pieces are added .
1828 metal eyelet invented.
· 1835 `a basque shaped piece fitting the hips` (Waugh.N. p.79) -assuming Waugh doesn’t mean a freedom fighter from the Northen Spain the Macmillans English Dictionary only explains a `Basque` to be a tight fitted piece of underwear. (I need to find this word somewhere else)
The corset gets shorter over the hips as the skirt also gets fuller.
· 1840 shoulder straps disappear. 1848 sewing machine invented.
· 1850 Most corsets are still home made. Instructions are found in ladies magazines. The corset is now short with a narrow waist. There are two main styles of cutting continued: many long pieced or gussets and basques
· 1860 The crinoline is at its widest and the main purpose of the corset is to create a narrow waist and can there for be very short over the hips. The method of steam moulding starched fabric started
· 1870 Crinoline is replaced by the bustle or tournure the corset is seen more under the dress and the homemade corset is no longer sufficient because the stomach and hips can be seen. The industry takes over. Advertisements for corsets in magazines instead of instructions on how to make them. (Cuirass? Must look up that word in another dictionary) 1873 the spoonbusk is introduced. The corset becomes heavier with more boning and cording.
· 1880 the corset is now a object of fashion and a lot of attention goes into the design and finishing. Suspenders appear, but is not mounted on the corset until 1900 instead they are tied round the waist with a separate band.
· 1890 The silhouette is less rounded and longer. The line of the bust is more rigid and the dip in to the waist disappears.
· 1900 spoonbusk goes out of fashion, but the S-curve gets at is most extreme.
· 1910 The silhouette is becoming long and slim and the corset holds the hips in tight
· 1910 The silhouette is becoming long and slim and the corset holds the hips in tight
Imitation is the finest flattery, these styles, which formerly only found a place among the very best corsets in France and England, are now being reproduced in all the cheapest makes. No fashionable woman need a tight lace; she is required to present an unbroken line form the décolletage to the knee; and this prevents any undue drawing in of the waist line, but the adoption is by no means universal. Many fashionable dressmakers still keep to the old style and the curve at the waist line. (p.110)
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