29” Sample Cinchers - playing with steel
As I mentioned yesterday, for Foundations Revealed I was asked to embellish upon my previous studies on the uses of steel boning in a longer article. The result was four new samples made specifically to compare and contrast types of readily available steel boning. The article is for a 2010 issue, so I can’t go into any real detail here, but the samples themselves have been photographed and are ready for sale!
As many of you will know already, I use samples as a way of experimenting with certain techniques, materials and designs, and as a way of building my portfolio. I can then sell them off at a slight reduction on my standard pricing.
So, here they are (I’ve posted them to the corsetry comm also). They’re all 29” high-hipped cinchers (closing at 27” if appropriate) with a dupioni fashion layer almost entirely obscured by black satin coutil exterior casings. The dupioni then just flashes through every so often, so a couple of these are rather subtle and others are brighter, punkier colours. It’s amazing how much impact the silks have to the overall “look” considering you can only see little slivers of them between the casings.
Now, these pieces are almost identical (but not completely, I don’t like to make the same corset twice). They have certain structural differences, but are otherwise of a definite style. Despite the overwhelming black casings, however, the shades of silk used does have quite a striking impact giving each corset its own look. So, for ease, they are named by colour…
Bronzed Aqua, Silver, Caribbean Gold and Peridot.
| Bronzed Aqua If you remember the bespoke overbust I made a while ago, then you’ll remember this colour. Teamed with black, the effect is harder and sharper. Suitable for hourglasses/pears. 51 steel bones and an ecru loose cotton lining. | ||
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| Silver The silver is, predictably, cooler. It’s a more calm, understated colour that wouldn’t compete for attention with the rest of your outfit. Suitable for hourglasses/pears. 44 steel bones and an ecru loose cotton lining. | ||
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| Caribbean Gold This is the brightest, most zesty colour! Despite the name, it is really more green than gold, almost lime in fact. My model below absolutely loved both the shape and the colour, and had a great time wearing it. Which is always gratifying for the photographer/corsetiere! Suitable for firm/broad builds. 51 steel bones and a deep “drab” loose cotton lining. | ||
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| Peridot Again, this understated colour is rather calm. It is actually a lovely rich jewel green, but seeing it next to the Caribbean Gold makes it hard to notice! Suitable for firm/broad builds. 44 steel bones and a deep “drab” loose cotton lining. | ||
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Each of these pieces can close fully to 27” if appropriate to the wearer, but they can also be laced with a larger-than-intended gap and still look great. Each has been made with the utmost care and attention in order to fairly represent the work I do with my business. The high number of steels, quality fabrics, and sleek design are all characteristics that I pursue in my bespoke work also, and I hope that these four corsets may find happy owners 
The two above are my personal favourites.
These girls make photoshoots a pleasure, and we got into a good routine quite quickly. Also, hoorah for natural backlighting and diffuse silk drapes! When stuck on sorting out a backdrop, E suggested this method and it has worked very nicely. It shows the silhouettes beautifully, and gives a soft dreamy feel to the images that I really like.
They’re all listed on my etsy shop (as my samples always are) and are at a good discount to reflect their use in the photoshoot and status as sample pieces. Despite the structural differences mentioned above (which affects my working time) I have priced these corsets identically for simplicity’s sake! They are available at £160 each (260 USD, 178 EUR approx.) plus shipping.
If you’re interested in reading more about my thoughts on working with different types of steel boning for different corsets/clients, do consider joining up for FR. If you don’t like it you can always cancel, and they have started out with some great articles in the first couple of months. Otherwise, feel free to keep track of my blog for my insights into corsetmaking and I’ll let you know once my article has been published on Foundations Revealed
P.S.: I love my models. Thank you to them, once again, for being my glamourous puppets! Bring on the next photoshoot!
1 comments to “29” Sample Cinchers - playing with steel”
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I live in Victoria, Australia and I was wanting to get back into corset-making, but the place I used to go to for boning has shut down.
kitchen faucets
February 02, 2010 7:29:am