I made a new daily-wear corset for myself recently, and it (unintentionally) ended up strongly resembling the Redthreaded 1860s style. I thought it might be an interesting comparison to show the new one next to the two corsets I’ve made from that RT pattern.
1) black - my first daily wear corset, straight from the RT pattern. (Sorry that it’s probably impossible to see the style lines of it, but apparently I never ended up taking a photo of it in good lighting on me!
I made this in 2018 and used it for everyday (out of the house) wear through 2023. It suited my shape really well and I generally wore it closed at the back - it was a little big around the waist, but I mostly just needed the bust support. It got super worn out and beat up over time, and even with constant repairs I felt bad continuing to wear it. Also, by 2023 I had gained quite a bit of weight, so it no longer fit as well.
2) silver - made this as a replacement in 2023 (alongside another I was wearing which was an 1890s style made by Clockwork Faerie). This is not straight from the RT pattern - I sized it up a bit and also expanded both sets of bust gussets, as my bust had gotten disproportionately larger.
The one thing that had always annoyed me about the RT pattern on me is that it had the tendency to create a bump at the rib cage near the waist toward the back, so I tried to take that part in on this version. (It didn’t really work, so I’m still not sure what the issue was.) Overall, this fit well and did the trick.
3) white - not the RT pattern! I got a breast reduction at the end of last year and I have no regrets. However, much of my wardrobe no longer fits because I have a lot of very fitted clothing that I wore over the above corsets.
While I can still wear the silver corset, the bust just collapses on me, and with tighter clothing it creates an unflattering harsh line. I wanted to try something new, so I tested out a different style for a bit and then ended up altering it heavily to suit my shape and needs. (ie: it had shoulder straps, which I despise.)
After the alterations, it ended up looking similar to the Redthreaded corsets, but with split front panels, single bust gores, and wider hip gores. When I tell you this corset is comfortable…. Oh man. I hadn’t even realized that I’ve been tolerating some very minor fit problems in the other corsets all this time, and this has solved everything. I’m pretty short-waisted, especially at the back, and I’ve never remembered to account for that. With this one it isn’t even a problem! And the hip flare is great; I can actually tighten it all the way at the back. (I am disproportionately hourglassy and so my hips were always a bit too big for the RT proportions.)
Anyway, I’m delighted with my tiny little bust gore, huge hip corset, and I’ve already worn it a bunch. ❤️ I don’t NEED to wear corsets out any longer - I can actually wear bras without pain now!! - but I’ve grown used to the compression and smoothing effect and prefer the security and the way my skirts lie over them. (Wrinkly waistbands make me sad.) Truly the best of both worlds!
