Fashion Historian Busts Corset Myths ft. Reconstructing History/Kass McGann

[@ReconstructingHist]

The photo of the iron corset made me remember something: those iron corsets were medical corsets. They were meant to be worn by people who had spine injuries and needed help standing straight. And some of the iron corsets in museums were never worn at all but were basically shop signs for corsetmakers. If they have holes along the top edge where it looks like the could be suspended from a crossbar, they are actually shop signs and not wearable corsets at all.

[@VBirchwood]

That's great to know Kass! Just goes to show then that the ones that were floating around on the internet before are even more taken out of context.

[@katherinemorelle7115]

As someone who has worn back braces (and who now wears historical stays and corsets), I look at those metal corsets and think “back brace”! They are very rigid, but so are hard plastic back braces. At least the metal ones have “cooling vents”. Wearing a hard plastic brace in the middle of an Aussie summer is not pleasant, let me tell you! I’m really lucky that I’ve been able to shift to more historical solutions (with the approval of my neurosurgeon and physiotherapist, of course). They’re much more comfortable! I personally don’t have to worry about any atrophying of my muscles, because I already have atrophied muscles. I need something that provides support, because my body doesn’t do that for me anymore. I love the shape I get from them, but I love the decrease in my pain much more.

[@VBirchwood]

@@katherinemorelle7115 This is all so interesting to hear, Neartmhor. And yes, I can imagine with the plastic being so heat-trapping, that must have been really uncomfortable. Wonderful that there's a historical solution for you now that is more comfortable. I get a lot of back pain as well as it's gone after wearing corsets for a couple of years (and even my chiropractor has noticed an improvement). Maybe people in history were really on to something 😊

[@ReconstructingHist]

@@katherinemorelle7115 That was such an informative comment. Thank you for sharing it with us!

[@pheart2381]

They would have been covered with padding,like the body brace in Farinelli Il Castrato.

[@katherinemorelle7115]

Amazing video! Definitely going in my “busting corset myths” file for when I come across people spiting these myths - which is far too often!

[@VBirchwood]

Thanks so much, Neartmhor! It's a privilege to have this video go in that list of yours 😊

[@justyna1263]

I need to say this, I’m so impressed with your channel. I’ve been here since the first video and I’m absolutely in love with the quality, it’s clear you’ve put a lot of thought into this. I’m in the process of creating a channel myself and girl, you’re #goals for me. I’d love to see your wardrobe btw. You give sneak peeks here and there, but I’d love to see more of your outfits!

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you so much Justyna for supporting me since the very beginning! That's very kind of you. I wanted to make a KZbin channel for quite a long while, but it just wasn't quite the right time so I mostly just planned how I was going to execute it. It's nice to be able to actually put my ideas into videos now though, instead of them just being stuck in a document somewhere. I'll be sure to subscribe so I can support your channel once you do start releasing videos. I will absolutely be doing a wardrobe and a sewing stash tour at some point. I'm also going to release an "everything I've sewn this year" video in August, as that will mark my one year sewing. 😊

[@VBirchwood]

Did you learn anything new about corsets in this video? I want to know your thoughts!

[@Becky_Theroux_Gockel]

I made and wore corsets for many years. They helped so much with my back and shoulder problems. Unfortunately, I got sick and prednisone made me gain loads of weight. I am now off the prednisone and hopefully will lose the weight and will be more mobile. I hope to be sewing again real soon. I really enjoyed your video very much.

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you, Becky! I’m sorry to hear you got sick. It’s wonderful though that you have plans to start sewing again soon. I’m excited to hear of what you end up creating 😊

[@lillianhansen5464]

Fabulous video once again. Kass was lovely to listen to. I will definitely be checking out her patterns😊

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you Lillian! Her patterns are some of the best I've found for historical fashion 😊

[@pippaseaspirit4415]

I don’t know if anyone else has made this point, but it’s actually the evaporation of sweat which cools us - that’s why the breeze feels the way it does. The latent heat of evaporation (see your physics lessons) is withdrawn from the surface on which the fluid rests. The main problem with lots of skin exposure is that there is nothing to block the radiant heat of the sun - and it’s that which we feel most. Also, of course, sunburn! One of the best things that linen does when it absorbs sweat and wicks it away from the body is that increases the surface area from which sweat can evaporate, hence why it feels so cool.

[@MichiaMakes]

It’s interesting to see photo shopped photos from historic ads. Unrealistic body types are not a new creation of social media.

[@VBirchwood]

It’s definitely fascinating! I think the issue with photoshop is its perhaps made options for attain those unrealistic body types more permanent/risky, versus just adding a bit of padding or some structural support under garment.

[@MichiaMakes]

@@VBirchwood Photographers, since the earliest days of photography painted backgrounds black and snipped the waist down to nothing.

[@VBirchwood]

Oh yes of course! I just mean that due to the prevalence of very permanent options now like plastic surgery and extreme dieting for instance, people see the photoshoped images (which can be done with no trace, unlike film images where you usually see the haze or a mark where it was altered) and many believe that is the real body. Unlike before where it would have been very expensive to have a portrait taken, and therefore not very common, so people mainly would have been accustomed to seeing people in person and those silhouettes were mainly all achieved through padding and corsetry.

[@jaehaywardkent]

great video as always!! love this format of a video interview✨🙌🏻

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you Jae!! So glad you enjoyed the video! 😊 I tried to loosely pattern the format after Anthony Padilla funnily enough haha.

[@jaehaywardkent]

@@VBirchwood ahhh very good choice! haha

[@damatically]

I hated wearing scoliosis brace bc i got bullied bc of it but i would like to switch to corset. I did stopped wearing corset for years bc i hated the bruising from the brace.

[@grahamturner1290]

Another fascinating video, thank you!

[@VBirchwood]

Thanks for watching!

[@sarahprince235]

This was a great video. I would like to make a jump such as in your video at 4:31. Do you know of a pattern? Thanks so much!

[@VBirchwood]

Thank you very much! I didn't make those jumps myself, so I'm not positive which pattern was used, but Mill Farm does offer a good pattern for 18th-century jumps. I would recommend them and then opt for a quilted construction with light boning (if you intend to mimic what is in this video).

[@sarahprince235]

Great. Thanks for the information!

[@VBirchwood]

@@sarahprince235 My pleasure!

[@atimaatrams1932]

I find that walking is a lot easier in stays. They keep the core more stable. It feels like instead of putting the energy into keeping me upright, my body can just concentrate on walking itself. Anyone else notice that? My dog sure appreciates it, in any case.

[@VBirchwood]

I definitely have this experience as well (as a daily corset wearer)! I also find it just makes historical clothing sit better, the two are really designed for eachother.

[@atimaatrams1932]

@@VBirchwood Historical clothing looks wrong without the proper undergarments. For now it's not an option for me to dress historically, due to my work in fish industry, though I am slowly starting to exchange my store bought wardrobe to handmade, handstitched, historically inspired clothes, that I cut to fit on my stays, which I have made to help with my back pain and general tendency to slouch. It's absolutely inspiring to watch people like you, who dive into the amazing world of historical sewing with none or minimal prior sewing experience and tackle the inevitable challenges and come out on top. I feel like with the public's love for costume dramas, the new trend of historybounding and with the help of amazing folks like you, it is becoming more and more acceptable to wear the clothes we love in confidence.

[@VBirchwood]

@@atimaatrams1932 I think certain modifications can be made to historical clothing to make it look flattering without the use of undergarments, but yes, definitely historical garments than lean more “accurate” (or adequate really) need to be paired up with historical undergarments 😊 have you considered making some workwear like shorter skirts and shirtwaists? There’s a really good book on the topic called Making Working Women’s Costume, which I highly recommend. And thank you very much! I definitely think it’s more acceptable than ever for us all to wear what we want, especially in the West.

[@pheart2381]

I think that is partly the reason women who try corsets give up quickly,thinking it goes on bare skin like a bra. Also,off the peg corsets can have such long laces its almost impossible to even do them up!!! Corset Story,I am looking at you.

[@UNknown-sd3ki]

Awesome guest

[@VBirchwood]

Agreed! Kass is the best, such a lovely human.

[@mkrafts8519]

Just like we weave spandex into out polyester garments to get them sleek forms which press against the body, it seems as though the corset was largely used to create a sleek form for fabrics which had no spandex weave option. Otherwise clothes are typically baggy or mis-shapen on the body.

[@evelinajonson5340]

What about squeezing intestines?

[@ambersteele9855]

What about when they have proven that corsets even tied regularly that breathing gets harder and fainting was normal with corsets plus the way they were put on even with baleen still pushed down tour stomach intestines uterus etc and caused issues with digestion and reproductive issues? Scientific proof done on women that wore corsets.

[@janicegutshall653]

Being pregnant miss shapes your body and moves your organs way more than a course it ever could. We survived that just fine.

[@loretta2539]

I think its cool that back then, they knew how to manipulate a photograph without an editing app or CGI. They used colors, angles, and positions to make their pictures look a certain way and its not different than how we do it today with phone apps (maybe more different because we have apps instead of figuring ways out to change our background to make us look a certain way)

[@VBirchwood]

Absolutely! It must have been quite a skill. I'm not extensively familiar on the editing practices of the Victorians, but on top of heavily posing the images like you say, they are could darken or lighten parts of the negative by scraping it and painting directly on it, hence why you get such drastic waistlines specifically. It's funny how photo alteration has been a thing even since way back then 😂

[@rosethorn0232]

​@@VBirchwoodI once heard someone say that photo editing has existed since the camera was invented. Also it's funny how even that far back, entertainers/media dictated what people thought of as beautiful, even though much of it isn't even real. People really don't change. 😅

[@ericalarochelle3779]

I have been enjoying this corner of the internet for some time now and while I did not learn anything new from the video, your presentation was lovely. I chose my words carefully, while the video treaded established grounds, the resources you linked below will definitely teach me more. Thank you for sharing Kass McGann and other links!

[@VBirchwood]

Thanks so much, Erica for watching! Enjoy Reconstructing History and the wealth of information Kass has to offer 😊

[@theplussizecostumer]

FYI, metal grommets were invented in 1828. bur Kass is probably correct in when they became popular to use in corsets.

[@VBirchwood]

Yeah based off extants I’ve seen you really don’t see them on corsets until a little later.

[@flowerjpotter1629]

Queen Mary, the grandmother of Queen Elizabeth (our Queen who recently passed), was an early enthusiast for Photoshop ping to make her waist look very small. Going back further I read an account translated from a French Ambassador who came to see Queen Elizabeth I, he said it was a hot day and she she was sitting there unlaced with her bosoms hanging out. He was not impressed !

[@deanalovessewn6117]

Amazing video!! Kass was awesome to listen to & very informative.. Thanks for correcting all the myths.. Deeply appreciated…. 💜💜💜🧵🧵🧵

[@VBirchwood]

Glad you enjoyed the video!