Corsets

The term corset is derived from the old French word, Corps, which in short translates to small body. The craft of corset construction is known as corsetry, as is also the term for the general wearing of them. Interestingly, the actual term Corset didn’t came into use until during the 19th century.

History of The Corset

In history, corsets were a commonly worn garment for women of all ages, mostly from 16th to the 19th century, being designed to shape a woman’s torso to conform to the fashion silhouette of the time.  Starting from outrageously young ages, gradually these garments were lengthened and tightened, so by the time they were teenagers, the girls were unable to sit or stand for any length of time without the aid of a heavy canvas corset reinforced with whale bone or steel. This was done as women were thought to have weak bodies, so the corset was deemed morally and medically necessary. Luckily we have come a long way since then.

The exact origins of corsets are unknown, however the ancient Greeks undoubtly wore them. Undergarments which pulled in and accentuated the waist were worn by the wealthy in France starting from the 1300s. The corset wear became widespread in the 1500s, shown in Renaissance portraits.

The earliest corsets were called “payre of bodies” and were usually worn  with a farthingale that held out the skirts in a stiff cone.  Later called stays, these period corsets turned the upper torso into a cone or cylinder, whereby the stomach by flattened, waist tightened, and pushed out the breasts so the gentlemen could notice them.  The corsets of that period had shoulder straps and ended in flaps at the waist. They were made of stiffened multiple layers of linen with wooden busks or shafts that were inserted at the front in order to keep the corset straight, this corset wear survived until 1800.

All this to not only for medical reason, but also for woman of that period to protect herself from lustful men, as getting undressed from a corset was a long and difficult task.

Corsets of this time, deformed women’s  internal organs were to the point that the they couldn’t sit or stand properly without the aid of a corset. Due to this, it was impossible to draw a deep breath, and thus the reason why the women of that time were always fainting and getting the vapors.

Even more strange, the higher a woman’s role in society, the tighter her garments were, as they needed to look proper, and had servants to perform all their tasks, and household duties. Only the working women of 1700s didn’t wear them often because the corset constraints made it hard for them to do even the mildest labors.

Another strange misconception of the period was that tight lacing was considered honorable, as  a loose corset was the sign of a loose woman. Therefore, women would be uncomfortable to uphold their morality.

Moving to the Victorian period of corsets, these were when corsets turned sexy. Corsets had the shape of an hourglass, which was also the typical shape of Victorian clothing. It was a time of new attitudes towards womens fashion. The artificially inflated shoulders and skirts made the waist look narrow, which is still seen in fashion today, of course its not as exaggerated, simply a toned down version.

In the 19th century, concerns about how a tight corset can be dangerous to health come to light, mainly due to womens internal organs changing shape. It wasn’t necessarily due to the corset design, but because of their desire to be thinner than they really were.

Middle of 19th century, corsets were still called stays. Corsets of that period were usually white or beige, made from cotton or linen, most of them home made and embroidered in elaborate decorative patterns. All corsets were over bust and most opened in the center back only. The development of the sewing machine in 1850s led to the mass production of corsets and increased the variety of their design.

Today’s Corset

Rock stars have taken the Victorian look of a corset into new age, with more of a gothic style, and is popularized through music videos on MTV for example.

From this, recent trends have corsets like garments mixing with jeans and skirts as clubwear or even casual wear.

Women wear corsets as sheer fun or to make a bold statement. For this reason, the gothic style has been embraced even by those who have no interest in Goth and by women who want to let a little playful fun into their wardrobe.

The corset had recovered a new popularity in fashion being worn for special events, such as weddings, and for the sensual aspect in lingerie.