18th Century Stays and Corsets - Q&A with American Duchess

[@lizabeth7and8]

Hi I've heard you mention briefly in other videos that for breastfeeding stays would often have side lacing. I love cosplay and the 18th century is one of my favorite periods and I know it was extremely common for normal women to breastfeed their children, but I haven't seen much on the topic, could you do a video about it?

[@cydneyking7453]

Late to the party but can I just say that the sky blue stays at 3:28 are one of the most beautiful garments I’ve ever seen

[@AmericanDuchess1]

indeed!

[@user-rq9yz9hz6e]

I LOVE your work (regular listener of your podcast!) I made my first pair of stays based off of your advice, the zip ties worked wonderfully. I didn't use your pattern, but I'm excited to make my next stays using it! Thank you for posting this video!

[@mandylou4]

I never finished binding my first pair of stays oops but I'm really excited to make a new pair with the Simplicity pattern!

[@AmericanDuchess1]

+mandylou4 The binding is certainly time consuming! There are some methods that take less time than others, though, and I'll be showing one of them.

[@rianaangwin3179]

PLEASE CAN YOU SHOW US HOW TO SIZE UP THE PATTERN

[@penelope-oe2vr]

This is late, but widen the pieces. Then after you've made them as wide as needed, draw new boning channel patterns on it. Easy.

[@Kuromiicrafts]

I attempted to make this with broadcloth and bemsilk lining. Broadcloth was very easy to sew and cut. The lining however, it is difficult to cut even along the bias and I ended up with multiple pieces that didn't match. I decided to use a different fabric and am now sat here unpicking all my pieces. I should have taken your advice and used upholstery fabric.

[@penelope-oe2vr]

I'm using upcycled denim for the inside 2 layers and fresh 15oz denim for the outside layer. Denim is very similar to coutil but much cheaper (or free in my case!). I want mine very stiff because I am using it to support my back and abdomen. I'm going to try using zip ties. If I don't like it I will get some of the synthetic balene. I am only 130 pounds and 5"8' and the sizee 22 the largest size , was too small for me. This wasn't right by using measurements, so I had to redraw and add more to mine to get it to work. My second mock up is close now, so I will make it work but it made this project very hard for me, a beginner. It will be worth it though!

[@thebluevelvetriver]

How did it turn out?

[@maicey_t.]

This is a GODSEND thank you so much!!

[@emilynightingale7758]

this was very helpful, thank you.

[@lisa8a8e]

good info, cable ties are so easy to work with!

[@StampinDivaUK]

Here in the UK we have a plastic boning, called Rigilene, that most sewing and habberdashery shops stock. Are you able to get this in the US? It's not expensive over here and would, in my mind, work better than cable ties.

[@pamela_chau]

Rigilene is sold in sewing shops in the U.S. I've also ordered steel boning from Richard the Thread website.

[@annicat648]

I have heard that reeds were generally associated with homemade stays for poorer women. It was not considered a material used by professional tailors, as they did have a tendency to crease or break with wear.

[@erinjoy3942]

Should women who are very petite (I'm 4'11") alter the length of their stays? According to the pattern, the shortest back length is 15 1/2". My back is only 12 1/2".

[@AmericanDuchess1]

yes, adjust accordingly

[@Melonhead-gp9du]

Are the stays in the 8162 pattern accurate for the 1780's Italian gown from your book?

[@jenny9139]

I also am curious about this

[@AmyTheJawsTerminator]

I would say yes, half-boned stays became quite popular before thr transitional era of the 1790s.

[@Melonhead-gp9du]

@@AmyTheJawsTerminator Thanks :)

[@chloexianah3070]

I never wear a bra at home I do when i go out.. hate the things, thankfully i am modestly busted. I would love a good corset, i have very bad back pain.

[@dalenaena887]

Fairly simple :D

[@nizarahdragon3973]

Is there a pattern for stays in your book

[@ProcessionOly]

argh! I did not prewash my fabric. I am using a light upholstry/heavy cotton fabric. Am I doing a bad thing? The person helping me said that we could steam the fabric to shrink a bit, and I do not plan to wash the stay ever. I am only going to wear this a few times. Advice?

[@breeinatree4811]

Always wash fabric before cutting it, to remove the coating and machine oils that gets on it during manufacturing. It also makes it easyer to correct the fabric if it isn't straight on the grain. I always iron the fabric after washing and drying it. It's all a pain in the arse, but the finished garment is well worth the extra time you take. Think of it as prepairing the canvas before you paint.

[@penelope-oe2vr]

If you're not going to wash the garmet, prewashing your fabric doesn't matter. There will be no opportunity for it to shrink.

[@LadyAdelinda]

I looking for information on a stay for large breasted women. I have read that in that time large breasts were not a good thing, that small breasts were all the rage, preferred by men, and when wearing stays. I'm having an issue looking for what large breasted women would do. Did they cinch them down with an ace bandage type thing? what did they do? can you help me. I'm wanting to look pretty and not ridiculous. I'm planning on making my own.

[@petra5979]

I do not know what the fashion at the time was, but I have heard just about everywhere on the internet that binding with ace bandages is not safe, so I would advise against that

[@e.s.r5809]

The "ideal" bust of the time was more about the shape than the size. The shape would be a smooth tubular sweep from your waist to your bust, with a high round cleavage over the top. Imagine two apples in your bodice! Both a large bust and a small bust would tend to slip down inside stays, so women would use crescent-shaped padding sewn into the inside of the stays to hold up the bosom. As the stays flattened out the front of the body, large breasts wouldn't be too much of an issue as most of the bust would be smoothed down and pushed up. You'll likely want to tailor the seams to accommodate your bust and taper in towards the waist as well as sewing in some bust support. If you have a large difference between your overbust and underbust, getting more flexible boning for the front of your stays might help smooth your silhouette without having a large gap between the stays and your ribs. Other things that would help you would be either altering this pattern for a higher front instead of an underbust, or finding an overbust pattern; and if you're looking for maximum support, you might consider fully boned stays instead of the half-boned 8162 pattern.

[@penelope-oe2vr]

You can add cup supports inside your stays. You can sew crescent shaped supports to the inside of your stays, there's some KZbin videos about this. I know this answer is 3 years late.

[@ruban8038]

can we get the sources for the images, please please, prettyplease ?

[@maysahagel2624]

Do you know the name of the painting you use at the 2:00 minutes mark

[@Microsity]

If some of the boning channels are larger than others, is it appropriate to vary the thickness of the zipties accordingly? Can I put a thinner zip tie than the other ties I am using in if the channel is not wide enough?

[@AmericanDuchess1]

yes, absolutely. in original stays, the baleen was varied in width however was needed to fit the channels. I often use a combination of sizes in my stays, with the front and back edges using the wide ties and the rest using the narrow.

[@juunaardan8905]

I'm curious about corded stays, was it still a common practice in 18th century ?

[@AmericanDuchess1]

hi! Cording doesn't seem to have been a common boning material until the 1790s, when stays became much softer and more naturally shaped.

[@alicyiashiner4107]

I know it wouldnt be historically accurate to do so, but do you think that pipe cleaners would work as boning for stays? I'm thinking they might bend a little too much, but I wanted to hear other opinions. Alternatively, could pine needles work?

[@AmericanDuchess1]

I don't recommend pipe cleaners for boning because they don't spring back into their original position once bent. You need something with "memory". Pine needs are also to fragile and will break, but reed or heavy straw (like broom straw) was used. It also has a tendency to break, so it's not the most ideal material.

[@alicyiashiner4107]

@@AmericanDuchess1 thank you!

[@colleenenglish9463]

Do you have or know of any sources for stays for children/ young girls?

[@AmericanDuchess1]

not off the top of my head...hmmmm...I know people who have made them, but I think they might have done the pattern themselves...

[@ProcessionOly]

can I use flexible steel boning with this pattern?

[@sadmac356]

You probably could, but it seems like it would be overkill

[@HunterDriguez]

All this talk about support for the bust, but what about people with little to no bust? Would that mean you were free to not wear stays? I imagine not, and it was more of a “you look slovenly if you don’t wear your stays” situation, practicality aside.

[@AmericanDuchess1]

Stays did more than support the bust - they also supported the garments being worn. It's quite uncomfortable to wear a tight-fitting gown without some sort of structure under or in it.

[@labananiere]

Pour jouer du corset, les cheveux longs sont fortement recommandés. Coiffeur teintures ,décolorations, horribles. Coiffeur et ciseaux, un des pire prédateur de la beauté féminine.