Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" Page 1 ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky
Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 1 Introduction. Hi everyone! I am glad to welcome you to this book which is a part of the “Opaque Corsets” series by the Corset Academy! This book has been written for you my dear friends, based on your multiple requests. The material it contains is made after my video tutorials and is in fact a work-book of what is discussed in the second version of the first DVD from the Corset Academy series. There are 363 pages in the book and about 800 large-scale pictures. It is going to be of great help for you during the working process. Sometimes one has no possibility of watching a DVD or using a computer for that purpose. At the same time you might simply need to quickly revise a certain bit of the material and in this case it is much more easily found in a book rather than on a DVD. It is very important to understand that despite its very useful and valuable material the book cannot fully replace the DVD with video tutorials and author’s commentaries! However it is a handy, worth-while and basically essential supplement to the DVD! If you achieve mastery of the DVD course and use this book in your future work as well, it is going to help you learn easier and implement your new skills practically. I highly recommend you to start learning how to tailor opaque corsets exactly in the sequence described in the book - in other words going from the basics to the complicated parts in a build-up manner. You should first of all try your hand at the tailoring of a corset in a simplified technique. Achieve a really beautiful garment! And only then - elated by success - go on to the making of a quilted-cup corset. If you manage to make this professional garment well - what I am sure you are going to manage - you can doubtless go on to the making of a dress with separately cut cups or a bodice. Just follow my directions carefully and you will succeed! I would also like to add that the corsets and dresses that I teach you to tailor in this book are only a base for your own masterpieces. Let your imagination flow freely! You can design an amazing dress using one of the corsets as its element! If you are not sure how to decorate the garment or how to design patterns of various models and sizes - my DVDs and books are there to help you! I advise you to watch the updates on the website. Best of luck with your learning and enjoy reading the book! Sincerely yours, Tatiana Kozorovitsky Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 2 Corset in a Simplified Technique. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 3 Tutorial 1. Measuring and Altering Patterns. I start working on the first corset which I am going to sew in what is known as the simplified technique. I have chosen a simple basic design for the tailoring of this corset. You can see a technical drawing of this design and its pattern schemes in this picture: There are four parts in the pattern of my corset: 2 front pieces and 2 back pieces. There is a crease line in the middle of the front and a cut in the middle of the back because the lacing will go across the middle of the back. Tools and Materials Required for Corset Tailoring: You are not going to need that many materials to sew this corset. I have made a collage of all things necessary for making this corset and took a picture of it. Please take a look at what you see on the picture. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 4 There are: Basic fabric that I’m going to use for the corset. Some iron-on fabric. I am using iron-on batiste. Thread and needles. Rigilene bones: both wide (0.5") and narrow (0.3”). Measuring tape. Scissors. Pruner. I use it for cutting the bones. Ribbons. Plastic bones. I use them for adding support to the curves of the corset. Small flock of padding polyester. I use it for covering corset cups. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 5 Altering a Standard Pattern. You need to make certain calculations and alter the standard pattern a little in order to be able to use it for any non-standard forms. The main rule: I need to preserve the beautiful corset shape and at the same time stretch (or the other way round - squeeze) the pattern so that the new size can fit the forms of the client. I make a table like this before I start working: Measurements Kate Bust middle 7.1 Bust front 18.1 Under-bust front 14.2 Bust circumference 33.9 Under-bust circumference 27.6 Waistline 26 Stomach 33.9 Clip 3.5 3.5 Side length 7.1 Pattern BM Front side Back side Adjusted back side Back curve There are 8 columns and 10 lines in the table. Column 1 – necessary measurements that you need to take off the client. I assume that before buying this book you had watched my free tutorials on taking clients’ measurements where I explain in detail how it is done and how each measurement is used. Column 2 – your client’s individual measurements (Kate). I have written them down into the table. Column 3 – measurements or sizes taken off the patterns. Let me explain what it means. I need to measure the pattern along the main circumference lines. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 6 This column should contain the values of the same measurements I took off Kate but taken off my pattern. Only then I can imagine what size the corset will be if I sew it according to the standard patterns and how much the size of the standard pattern should be altered (made smaller or bigger) so that the client could put her corset on. There are necessary notches on the pattern corresponding to the main lines: - bust; - under-bust line; - waistline; - stomach. The task is to lay out the patterns on the table in such a way that the main lines are parallel to each other and go through the notches of all pattern pieces. Please take a look at how I spread the patterns on the table: Then I measure each section length with a ruler or a measuring tape. For example I measure sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 along the bust-line. I add up these values. I take away the total value of seam allowances. As a result I’ve got some value. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 7 I multiply this value by two. The result is the "bust circumference”. In this very case the bust circumference of the standard pattern is 36.6 inches. I write this value down into the third column of the table against the “bust circumference” measurement (line 5). Measurements of other section lengths are taken exactly the same way and fill up the third column of my table completely. Measurements Kate Pattern 7.1 7.9 Bust front 18.1 19.7 Under-bust front 14.2 15.7 Bust circumference 33.9 36.6 Under-bust circumference 27.6 31.1 Waistline 26 30.7 Stomach 33.9 38.6 Clip 3.5 3.5 4.7 5.1 Side length 7.1 7.5 BM Front side Back side Adjusted back side Back curve Bust middle I find this method very easy. However there are many questions addressed to me concerning exactly this step. Therefore I would recommend you reading this part of the tutorial one more time and very carefully. There is another method of taking measurements off a corset sewn based on the standard pattern. You could sew a corset out of some mock-up fabric, put it on the dress-form and draw some cords along all circumference lines. Then you would outline them with a pencil, measure them and write down the values. As a result I have the following measurements at the moment: - «bust middle» - distance between the protruding points of the bust; Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 8 - «bust front» - central bust line at the front; - «under-bust front» - under-bust line at the front measured from side to side; - «bust circumference» - full circumference of the bust-line; - «under-bust circumference» - full circumference of the under-bust line; - «waistline» - full circumference of the waistline; - «stomach» - full circumference of the stomach line. It is necessary to mark the distance between the waistline and this measurement. The line of the stomach is normally the spot where the corset ends. In this very case this distance is 4.7 inches from the waistline. When taking this measurement off a client I always note the distance from the waistline and put it into the table. And afterwards when I start measuring the pattern I draw a stomach line at exactly the same distance from the waistline. - «clip». In this case I have taken a “clip” measurement in only two directions: from the bust middle to the underarm (line 1) and from the bust middle along the curve (line 2). The standard pattern should be measured at exactly the same spots. - «side length» - distance from the waistline to the upper point of the corset along its side seam. Now I start re-calculating my standard pattern based on Kate’s individual measurements. I recommend those not yet familiar with my re-calculation technique to watch my free tutorials on the topic in advance. It’s really going to be helpful. Most of my students have got acquainted with my philosophy and agreed that it is much easier and more reliable to use a worked-through standard pattern. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 9 And for those who still doubt themselves or who haven’t fully understood my methods yet I would recommend that you start sewing corsets using my unclosed side seam technique. It means that even when the corset is basically finished you will still be able to alter the circumferences by adjusting the side seams. In other words, you can fix the situation if your calculations happen to be slightly wrong. Only once you have sewn a couple corsets and understood my methods you can easily cut corsets with closed side seams and make fitting tests with a finished garment. We are returning to the calculations. The first measurement under comparison is the “bust middle” measurement. If the measurements of the pattern and the client coincide you won’t have to make any corrections and the whole column 4 of the table should be left out during re-calculation. But in my case Kate’s measurement is 7.1 inches against the pattern’s 7.9 inches which means I have to alter the pattern along the middle crease line. Let us calculate: 7.1”– 7.9“= -0.8” I have to divide this value into 2 sides - the right and the left. Therefore: -0.8” ÷ 2 = -0.4” I write this value of -0.4 inches into the table (column 4, line 2). The “bust middle” measurement of the standard pattern is larger than Kate’s. This means I need to take away 0.4 inches (the value was negative) from the standard pattern to adjust it to Kate’s measurements. Therefore the crease of the fabric is going to be 0.4 inch inwards to the central front part of the pattern. And when I make a pattern after Kate’s measurements my standard pattern should go 0.4 inches beyond the crease of the fabric. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 10 Since I have shifted the pattern by 0.4 inches, the 0.8 inch value (0.4 inch from each side of the pattern) is going to be removed from all circumferences of the corset: bust, under-bust, waistline and stomach. I am going to write the -0.4 inch value in all the lines of column 4 in order to keep this in mind. Let me remind you that the value is -0.4 inches for each side of the pattern. Measurements Kate Pattern BM Bust middle 7.1 7.9 -0.4 Bust front 18.1 19.7 -0.4 Under-bust front 14.2 15.7 -0.4 Bust circumference 33.9 36.6 -0.4 Under-bust circumference 27.6 31.1 -0.4 Waistline 26 30.7 -0.4 Stomach 33.9 38.6 -0.4 Clip 3.5 3.5 4.7 5.1 Side length 7.1 7.5 Front side Back side Adjusted back side Back curve Now I want to determine where the front side seam will be. There are two measurements determining the location of the side seam: “bust front” and “under-bust front”. Bust front: It is 19.7 inches on the pattern and 18.1 inches according to Kate’s measurements. It is clear that the side seam is going to be shifted. Let us calculate this shift. I have already adjusted down all circumferences by 0.8 inches when calculating the “bust middle” measurement and shifted the pattern by 0.4 inches against the fabric crease. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 11 And this means: 19.7” – 0.8” = 18.9” (18.1” – 18.9”) ÷ 2 = - 0.4” Therefore the side seam along the bust-line is going to be adjusted down by 0.4 inches. I write this value into the table (column 5, line 3). Under-bust front: Let me calculate the location of the side seam. It is 15.7 inches on the pattern and 14.2 inches on Kate. I am doing it the same way keeping in mind that the bust middle has been reduced by 0.8 inches. 15.7” – 0.8” = 15” (14.2” – 15”) ÷ 2 = -0.4” I add this value to the table (column 5, line 4). It is now perfectly clear that the side seam is shifted by 0.4 inches. However I am going to adjust down the whole pattern by 0.4 inches to keep the beautiful side shape of the corset - this lovely curve - thereby reducing all circumferences (bust, under-bust, waistline, stomach) by 0.8 inches. I add the -0.4 inch value into the lines 5, 6, 7 and 8 of the column 5. Clip measurement. For the scye: Since there are 4.7 inches on the pattern corresponding to the 3.5 inches of the client’s measurement, I do the following: 3.5” – 4.7” = -1.2” Along the curve line: It is 5.1 inches on the pattern and the client’s measurement shows 3.5” which means I need to do the following: 3.5” – 5.1” = -1.6” The values are added into the table (column 5, line 9). Side length. It is 7.5 inches on the pattern and 7.1 inches on Kate, therefore the side length should be adjusted down by: 7.1” – 7.5” = -0.4” This value is also recorded in the table (column 5, line 10). Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 12 Front side Measurements Kate Pattern BM Bust middle 7.1 7.9 -0.4 Bust front 18.1 19.7 -0.4 -0.4 Under-bust front 14.2 15.7 -0.4 -0.4 Bust circumference 33.9 36.6 -0.4 -0.4 Under-bust circumference 27.6 31.1 -0.4 -0.4 Waistline 26 30.7 -0.4 -0.4 Stomach 33.9 38.6 -0.4 -0.4 Clip 3.5 3.5 4.7 5.1 Side length 7.1 7.5 Back side Adjusted back side Back curve -1.2 1.6 -0.4 Now I would like to go into more detail concerning the side length. In my case I need to lower the side of the standard pattern by 0.4 inches. According to the rule of side adjustment you cannot cut off more than 0.6 inches atop. And this makes perfect sense. The thing is that when the difference between the side seam lengths exceeds 0.8 inches it means the client has different proportions: the distance between her waist and her bust differs from the standard. If you for instance reduce the sides by 2 inches for a petite client - the neckline cut of the corset is going to be right below her chin. That is why the pattern should be altered in a different manner if the difference between the side seam lengths exceeds 0.8 inches. You need to cut all patterns along the waistline and lay the top and bottom parts onto each other shifting them up by the value of this difference, i.e. reduce the pattern length. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 13 The exact same thing needs to be done if you want to increase the side length: you simply prolong the side seam if the difference is up to 0.6 inches; if the difference is greater - you need to expand the pattern halves cut along the waistline by the required value. Now I start calculating alterations for the back side seam. There are naturally no more “bust front” or “under-bust front” measurements now. Our next measurement is the “bust circumference”. It is 36.6 inches on the pattern and 33.9 inches according to Kate’s measurements. I have already taken into account the alteration along the middle of the bust-line (-0.4”) and the front side seam (-0.4”). This value makes up 1.6 inches for two pattern halves. Thus: 36.6” – 1.6” = 35” (33.9” – 35”) ÷ 2 = -0.6” The value is added to the table (column 6, line 5). Under-bust circumference. It is 31.1 inches on the pattern and 27.6 inches for Kate. It is calculated the same way: 31.1” – 1.6” = 29.5” (27.6” – 29.5”) ÷ 2 = -1” I write down this value in the table (column 6, line 6). I don’t think much about the values for now; I just calculate and record them. Waistline. It is 30.7 inches on the pattern and Kate’s measurement makes 26 inches. Let us calculate: 30.7” – 1.6” = 29.1” (26” – 29.1”) ÷ 2 = -1.6” I add the value to the table (column 6, line 7). Stomach measurement at a 4.7 inch distance above the waistline. It is 38.6 inches on the pattern and 33.9 inches on Kate. Let us calculate: 38.6” – 1.6” = 37” (33.9” – 37”) ÷ 2 = -1.6” Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 14 This value is added to the table (column 6, line 8). Front side Back side Measurements Kate Pattern BM Bust middle 7.1 7.9 -0.4 Bust front 18.1 19.7 -0.4 -0.4 Under-bust front 14.2 15.7 -0.4 -0.4 Bust circumference 33.9 36.6 -0.4 -0.4 -0.6 Under-bust circumference 27.6 31.1 -0.4 -0.4 -1 Waistline 26 30.7 -0.4 -0.4 -1.6 Stomach 33.9 38.6 -0.4 -0.4 -1.6 Clip 3.5 3.5 4.7 5.1 Side length 7.1 7.5 Adjusted back side Back curve -1.2 1.6 -0.4 Tutorial 2. Fusing of Fabric, Corset Cutting. In this tutorial I start directly with the cutting. I have prepared all my notes and calculations made during the previous tutorial. I have taken my standard pattern for this corset. Fabric Consumption. First of all I need to figure out how much fabric is going to be consumed. Fabric consumption is determined in a very simple way. I take the patterns and lay them out in the same sequence I am going to lay them out onto fabric. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 15 I take all calculated alterations into account when laying the pieces out: I will reduce and expand them where needed. You don’t have to lay patterns out very precisely. I use a measuring tape to see how much fabric approximately I am going to need. I got about 22.8 inches. I tear off 47.2 inches of iron-on batiste (deliberately oversized) and as much of the main material. Preparation of Fabric. My iron-on batiste is 35.4 inches wide. This width is exactly enough for the full cutting of both the face and the lining. Then I fold this piece of batiste in half, even out cut edges and then fold it in half once more. Please take a look at the picture to see how I place this batiste piece. Note the way its cut edges and creases are located: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 16 You can see how the patterns are spread on fabric from the middle of the front to the middle of the back: Now I take a piece of face fabric. I am going to use the same fabric both for face and lining: crepe-satin. I am fusing iron-on batiste onto the whole piece of crepe-satin: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 17 You shouldn’t hurry when fusing; you should distribute the fabric accurately to avoid bubbles and creases. The quality of the cut and the garment itself depends on the way I’m going to fuse the ironon fabric onto the main one now. Afterwards I fold fused fabric the way I have planned it; all creases get evened out and pinned together and the fabric is now fully prepared for cutting. Cutting. I start laying out pattern pieces. I lay down the pattern of the central piece of the front. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 18 Based on the calculation I shift the pattern by 0.4 inches beyond the fabric creases thereby reducing it: The pattern itself is outlined “as is” with no changes. I transfer every notch very carefully. The pattern you see in pictures has a certain neckline shape. But I want to make a design with a straight cut or a “strapless” type. That is why I am taking another standard pattern but with a different neckline cut - the one I need: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 19 I outline the neckline cut according to this pattern and shift the cut down by 1.6 inches based on the “clip” measurement: I am going to provide you with a ready-to-use strapless pattern but I think it is useful and interesting to see a possible implementation of patterns with varying top cuts. I start working with the pattern of the front side piece. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 20 I draw a waistline across the notches on the outlined pattern of the central front piece in order to arrange the grain of fabric correctly against the pattern. This line is perpendicular to the fabric crease. I am placing the pattern of the front side piece onto fabric so that the waistline of the pattern perfectly coincides with the waistline that has been drawn on fabric: I outline the pattern “as is”. Then I make all necessary changes based on the calculations. First of all I make a new side seam line. For that purpose I mark 0.4 inches (see the table) decreasingly along the waistline and draw a new side seam line of the front through this point, parallel to the line drawn after the standard pattern. I use the corresponding sides of the same pattern for drawing lines going through calculation points. Then I draw a new top line (0.4 inches below) also referring to the top line of the standard pattern. I pin the fabric together along the newly drawn lines in order to prevent it from shifting. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 21 To prevent fabric layers from shifting I am trying to add pins horizontally in a gliding motion, parallel to the table, rather than add them at the right angle to the fabric. Now I take the side piece of the back. I place waistline notches along the waistline drawn on the fabric and outline the pattern. Please note that I use plastic patterns or patterns made of thick cardboard. Such patterns don’t need to be pinned to the fabric. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 22 Now I correct the side length, the length of the side seam on the back and the curve. All calculations have been carried out and all values are in the table. I connect all calculation points referring to the standard pattern, i.e. I try to transfer all curve lines from the old pattern. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 23 A very important aspect! Having marked the calculation points (see the picture) I draw new lines with the help of the standard pattern starting from the waistline. I draw the bottom part of the line first, then turn the pattern around the point on the waistline and draw the top part of the line. The top and bottom lines of the calculated pattern are also drawn based on the standard pattern. This way all the parts of the new pattern are going to match each other perfectly. The lines will have a smooth flow. And here is finally the central part of the back. I put the pattern on the fabric matching notches on the waistline with the waistline line. I outline the standard pattern. I alter the back curve in the same manner. I adjust down the standard pattern by 0.2 inches at the under-bust level. It is adjusted down by 0.5 inches at the levels of waistline and stomach. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 24 Now I match the waistline notch of the standard pattern with the waistline notch on the drawing and place the bottom left corner of the standard pattern at the new calculation point along the stomach line. I draw the bottom half of a new curve line over the pattern. Then I draw the top half of the curve line turning the standard pattern around the intersection of the notches. This way I have drawn all corset patterns on the fabric after my client Kate’s measurements: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 25 I draw a “clip” pattern where fabric space allows it. I am going to sew it as well and put it underneath corset lacing so no skin can be seen through. It is a rectangle as long as the back piece and about as wide as 3.9-4.7 inches. I cut out my pattern pieces. Making notches is necessary. Then I unpin the pieces and sort them out into face parts and lining parts. Continue of tutorial 2 (marking location of the bones) is in the full book "Opaque corsets" Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 26 Tutorial 3. Joining Vertical Curves. Joining the Front Pieces of the Lining. I start sewing together the front pieces of the lining. I need to join the central part together with the side part. I hear many people asking how to put these pieces together correctly. The answer is very simple: the notches needn’t be matched! Please take a look at the picture: I have put the pieces together very accurately (face to face), evened out their cut edges, the notches however don’t match! So what do I do in this case? I look for the intersection of the bust-line and the seam allowance line on the side part of the front and pin it at the spot: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 27 And this pin should be exactly at the intersection of the bust-line and the seam allowance line on the central piece of the front: Afterwards the pieces get joined together. Please note that the notches don’t match: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 28 Thus the notches do not indicate where the pieces should be joined, but rather indicate the location of the bust-line, waistline and stomach line... I start sewing together the pieces. Please note the way I use my hands when sewing pieces together: I am holding the bottom layer in one hand and the upper layer - in the other: While sewing, I even out cut edges right under the machine always correcting the seam allowance according to the line of the throat plate. I am using neither pins nor tacks. I always hold the layers of fabric with both hands controlling thereby either the ease-in degree or the stretching. You should always feel the way the fabric lies under the machine. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 29 The first curve is finished: Then, in just the same manner, I join and sew together the central part of the front lining piece and the second side piece. A small trick: it is very difficult to start sewing pieces together when fabric layers slide along each other like in my case. It is hard to push evened-out cut edges underneath the sewing machine. That is why I pin the layers together, then push them underneath the machine and start working. The pins are afterwards removed and I continue sewing, holding each layer with my hands the upper layer with the left hand and the bottom layer - with the right one: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 30 I keep controlling how much the fabric is stretched under the machine. This procedure is rather simple. Having sewn a seam like this a couple times you will see this yourself and the situation will be fully under your control. So I have finished sewing together the front of the lining and now I put it aside. Joining the Back Pieces of the Lining. Now I start sewing together the pieces of the back of the lining. You can see the pieces I’m going to work with in the picture: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 31 I am sewing together the vertical curve: I hold the pieces separately with my hands, like before. I hold the bottom piece lightly but let go of the upper one. This way the fullness produced by the machine on the bottom layer is evened-out. I join even the most basic pieces this way. This should become your habit! I trim corners on the seam allowances of the curve: This procedure is going to be repeated multiple times during the process of sewing corsets. It is done in order to make the fabric less thick when you start joining the lining and the face along the curves. I sew together the second vertical curve of the back of the lining also trimming the corners. Pressing Open the Back Pieces of the Lining. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 32 And then I start pressing open the seam allowances on the back of the lining. I press the seam open step by step from both sides - first from one side and then from the other- to preserve the volume of the piece: Then I trim about a half of the seam allowance leaving around 0.2-0.3 inches. Afterwards you can press open one more time. I repeat the procedure with the other back curve but in a different way. First I press the sewn curve along the iron-on fabric without unfolding the piece: Then I trim seam allowances: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 33 I unfold the piece and press open the seam like I did in the first case: You can choose whichever way suits you most. It is slightly more difficult to press open in the second technique because the seam becomes small and hardly opens. However on the other hand the seam allowances are trimmed perfectly the same from both sides and the seam therefore looks neater. Pressing Open the Front Pieces of the Lining. I start pressing open the front of the lining. I use the second press-open technique because I find it more convenient: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 34 The seam allowances get trimmed: I press open the flat parts of the curves on an even, smooth surface: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 35 And then I take my tools for pressing cups - a cup pressing mould and a cushion: I place the cushion on the pressboard then put the cup pressing mould on top of it and the cup itself - onto the mould. I open the seam allowance: I press open the seam in a circular motion forming the required shape of the cup: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 36 And then I press the face side one more time very carefully: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 37 A corset should be pressed very thoroughly and you should by no means hurry! Note that the pressing process takes almost as long as the sewing one! You should let the seams cool down - then they will stay well pressed and won’t crease: As a result, in this tutorial I have shown you how to join together pieces without using pins and tacks. I have sewn together the vertical curves of the lining and pressed them open. Please take a look at the result of my work: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 38 I will continue working on the corset in the next tutorial. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 39 Quilted Cup Corset. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 40 Tutorial 14. Finishing the Corset. Decoration. I have almost finished sewing this corset. Now I only need to put some finishing touches and decorate it. Sewing a Lacing Flap. First of all I need to sew a flap that is sewn-on underneath the lacing. Its length should equal the length of the back of the corset. You can choose its width yourself depending on how wide the open gap on the back is going to be. I take 2 rectangular pieces of face fabric fused with iron-on batiste from the wrong side and sew them together along 3 sides: I bend the seam allowances towards the lining side and make a clean-finish-edge seam in order to turn the flap out easier and achieve a neat piped-like edge: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 41 I trim corners and seam allowances. I make a stitch along the fourth side leaving a small hole in the middle for turning the flap out. Then I turn the flap out and stitch the hole up by machine: Then I press this flap and hand-stitch it onto the lining of the corset at the lacing area. Punching Grommets. So I have sewn a flap and now I start marking holes for grommets: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 42 I measure the length of the back leaving 0.4-0.6 inches from top and bottom and then divide this value into sections to make the distance between the holes about 1.4-1.6 inches. In my case the distance between the grommets is 1.5 inches. I make markings. I take my punch machine and punch holes through using a special accessory: I bend the corset and make markings on its second side through the existing holes in order to make sure these lacing holes are in exactly the same spots as those on the first side, i.e. the grommets are symmetric: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 43 I punch all holes through, insert grommets and expand them with the help of the machine. Now the grommets are inserted: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 44 Decoration. I am going to decorate my corset in a very simple way. I take a 1 inch wide satin ribbon and make gathers on it using a household sewing machine with a special presser foot: You could gather the ribbon by hand as well then secure it with pins and make a running hand-stitch. I put the corset onto the mannequin and arrange this gathered ribbon into an improvised ornament securing it with pins: You can use any ornament depending on the shape of the neckline. You could also make an ornament along the bottom of the corset. Afterwards I stitch this decorative element onto the corset by hand. And thereupon my quilted cup corset is completed! Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 45 Dress with Separately Cut Cups. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 46 Tutorial 3. Cutting the Cups. Required Materials. Let me say a few words about the required materials before I start preparing fabric for cutting. These are basically all materials that I use for sewing a corset. For sewing my dress I need: - iron-on batiste for fusing the face and the lining; - hard iron-on fabric for fusing the cups; - Rigilene bones, both wide (0.5”) and narrow (0.3”). It’s enough to just use narrow bones for this very design; - main fabric. I have chosen rather dense stretch satin as the main fabric. This dress can be made either with or without an additional lining. Additional lining is desirable if you use a thin material as the main fabric. However if the main fabric is dense enough and there is also an overlay of decorative fabric atop (in my case it is a lace overlay embroidered with glass beads and sequins) - then you don’t really need a lining. - ribbons for the lacing; - narrow ribbon for hanging loops; - zipper; - thread, needles, pins; - scissors, pruner for cutting bones. You can see all tools required for sewing the dress in the picture below: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 47 Fabric consumption. Fabric consumption is very low if you cut your garment crosswise. In my case I need 1m of main fabric and 1m of lace. Cutting the Cups. I start cutting the dress from the cups. I have prepared 2 pieces of fabric for the face side and the lining: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 48 I use the same stretch satin fabric as for the lining. Both pieces have been fused with thin iron-on batiste. I start laying out pieces. I lay out the cup pieces crosswise, i.e. along the shoot, but I have decided to arrange the back pieces along the grain of fabric to save up some material. I remove 0.4 inches along the centre of the front because according to the calculations I need to go 0.8 inches inwards in order to reduce the standard pattern along the middle of the bust. I outline the pattern as is for now remembering to mark notches. I will alter the patterns later and for now I just outline all pieces as they are. I have cut the back piece crosswise against the front piece of the cups. I am fully aware that laying out fabric in different directions may result in having different kinds of shades or shimmer. But I also know that there will be an appliqué going along the top of the cups and that’s why I’ve taken this decision to spare some fabric. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 49 I start altering the standard pattern. I take the final table with all calculations (Table 10). I start from the “clip” measurement. I step 1.6 inches atop from the curve, 0.5 inches - from the neckline, and 0.7 inches - on the side piece of the front. I look for the location of the bust-line to find out how much the neckline should be lowered. I would like the depth of the triangle in its actual size to match the bust-line precisely. That’s why I step upwards from the bust-line by a distance of the seam allowance and mark the end point of the neckline cut. However upon looking at the shape of the neckline I can tell that removing 1.6 inches along the curve would be too much! The neckline cut won’t look good and the cup pieces won’t match properly. I have most probably recommended the client to have the neckline cut lowered significantly when taking off her measurements, or maybe she just wanted a very low neckline cut. But I can see that it won’t look good, the shape of the cup will be deformed. And that is why I have decided to remove 0.8 inches along the top instead of 1.6 inches. This way the beautiful proportional shape of the top will be preserved. I move on to the side piece of the cup. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 50 As I have decided, I need to remove 0.7 inches from the scye and 0.8 inches from the top. I remove 0.2 inches along the side seam and 0.4 inches under the bust. I draw a new top line using the pattern. You can see how pretty and well-proportioned the new top line is: You shouldn’t forget to remove 0.4 inches along the length atop the side. Altering the back. I remove 1 inch along the bust-line, 1.2 inches under the bust and 0.4 inches - along the side length. I pin the pattern pieces together. I place some folded hard iron-on fabric underneath the front cup pieces that have been pinned together. I match the creases of the iron-on fabric and the pattern fabric and pin them together again: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 51 The cup pieces are ready for cutting. I cut the cups very carefully along the marked lines. It is necessary to make notches. I don’t put any hard iron-on material underneath the back pieces. Once I’ve cut out all pieces, I check them comparing the cut out pieces with the pattern. Apart from that I always check how well these cut out pieces match: Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 52 Bodysuit with Corset Cups. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 53 Tutorial 1. Introductory Tutorial. I start working on the next garment - a bodysuit. Before I start talking directly about the pattern for this garment and the working process, I would like to talk about the pros and cons of a bodysuit. Here are the pros of a bodysuit: - it is a light and elastic garment that doesn’t hinder your movements; - it fits your body tightly and there are no folds on the stomach or at the back if the garment is sewn correctly; - it is a one-layered garment that can be made either of see-through lace or an opaque elastic material. Here are the cons of a bodysuit: - first of all, its fastener is not conveniently located. Lately I have completely given up using button, snap and hook fasteners here. All of these have been tried and showed no good results when worn. That is why I either make a one-piece bodysuit or a sewn-together bodysuit. I always warn my clients about this. Usually we decide to sew a one-piece garment similar to a jumpsuit or a swimsuit. - in most cases functional straps are needed regardless of the size due to unavoidable vertical tension. Straps prevent one from having this unpleasant feeling that the garment is going to slide down, and they are absolutely necessary for women with full breasts because without them a body won’t be able to hold a heavy bust even if the cups have been quilted and glued. - there are quite high requirements to one’s forms. This garment cannot change body forms dramatically and cannot disguise fat rolls. - it is rather difficult to decorate it on the stomach and at the back. It is hard to drape it and fix the drapery because a bodysuit is made of elastic materials. That’s why either your mannequin should have the precise size of your client or all alterations after the fit test, as well as all decorative elements, should be applied directly on the client. However: despite the cons, bodysuit remains popular and is often used in the tailoring of evening gowns and wedding dresses. If the skirt of a future garment is going to be rather heavy and voluminous, you can sew a bodysuit without the panties part. In this case you just sew it like a singlet and the skirt provides vertical tension with its weight. This eliminates all the main disadvantages of a bodysuit. But straps remain a necessity. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 54 In this picture you can see a technical drawing of the bodysuit I am going to sew and the scheme of its patterns: The bodysuit itself will be made of an elastic material and have one layer; a non-elastic dense material with lining will be used for the cups. The pattern I use myself and offer you consists of the following pieces: Cup: 1. Central piece of the front with a crease. 2. Two side pieces of the front. Body: 3. Front piece with a crease. 4. Two back pieces. 5. One-piece crotch. Required materials. Main fabric - elastic lace. Fabric for the lining and base of the face - satin. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 55 Iron-on batiste for fusing face and lining. Hard iron-on fabric for fusing cups. Elastic band for handling at the leg area. Rigilene bones. For this very model you can just use narrow bones (0.3 inches). Thread, needles, pins. Scissors, pruner for cutting the bones. Measuring tape. Narrow ribbon for the loops used for hanging the garment. In this picture you can see all tools and materials required for making a bodysuit: Since the main part of the bodysuit is sewn out of a highly elastic material, there is no need to go into detail about alteration of the pattern, in other words I won’t explain you in depth how this pattern should be changed. It is the same principle as when sewing a corset or a dress. The only thing that will always require your attention when cutting a bodysuit is the elasticity coefficient of the fabric. That’s why the main part of a bodysuit should even be made a little smaller than client’s measurements both in length and volume. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 56 However the rules of altering cups remain the same. Their size is adjusted by the side seam and the “clip” measurement. The location of the side seam is determined by the measurements “bust front” and “under-bust front”. Let me say a few words on altering cups with the help of the “clip” measurement. I often hear this question: “Tatyana, you keep drawing our attention to the fact that one should never, by no means, alter bust curves. But how comes? Larger cups should be much deeper and smaller cups should be shallower, so what should we do then?” I will use this illustration to answer this question: I always alter cups using the “clip” measurement. Please take a look at what happens: - if I make the “clip” measurement smaller, the cup becomes shallower automatically (line 1). - as soon as I start enlarging the cup based on the “clip” measurement, it automatically becomes deeper (line 2). The only thing you should always keep in mind: you should always control the depth of the dart if the bust is large and full. You cannot just enlarge the pattern thoughtlessly and continue the curve line right parallel to the line on the original pattern. A full bust requires some space. You should narrow the opening of the bust dart. There is one simple rule here. If you minify the location of the “clip”, you just go right along the bust curve, make markings after new measurements and lessen the cups length proportionally thereby reducing their depth. Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 57 To prevent cups from being loose on the bust, you should necessarily ease them in onto a bone or organza when sewing, depending on the shape of the neckline. Thereby you can regulate how well the cups fit to the bust. For larger cups you start going up along the bust curve and go beyond the border of the cup. This is exactly the case when you need to slightly draw away from the upper point (literally by 2-4mm depending on the size, fullness and shape of the bust). Thereby the cup is slightly enlarged and the dart opening - narrowed. The same is done on the central pattern piece. However as we start shaping a dome-shaped cup when sewing, we ease-in the upper cut edge thereby ensuring good fitting of the cup to the bust. But it is absolutely unacceptable to have large cups sticking tightly into the body. It is a very graceless effect! You might ask me: Tatyana, why should we determine everything by sight? Can’t we take a certain formula and calculate the dart opening for a certain figure? Unfortunately this is not possible! Otherwise, why do most women buy and wear lingerie, including bras and swimwear, produced by a particular brand? It is just because garments of this or that very brand fit them well! Why does it happen? It happens, because every Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 58 woman’s bust has individual properties and there are no single standards or single calculation methods. The same happens when you tailor a garment based on a certain request. Every woman should be approached individually and there is no universal method of constructing a bra that would suit everyone and always, with no exceptions. Your good tailor’s or cutter’s eye should suggest you the methods and alterations I have just told you about. Later, in the process of sewing, you can adjust the volume of the cups using other methods, for example the method of quilting rounded cups or the method of easing-in along the upper cut edge of the cup to make it look dome-shaped. Well, this is pretty much the answer to your question. I never looked for a universal calculation method because I always thought: if I have a beautiful cup pattern, then I will just try to alter this very pattern in such a way that any woman could feel comfortable with it. All the more, these alterations are quite simple and your comprehension of working with a ready pattern comes very soon. It’s enough to literally sew 2-3 garments for different body types. Click HERE to get the full version of the book "Opaque corsets" (363 pages, 800 illustrations) DOWNLOAD Preview of the book "Opaque corsets" ©Tatiana Kozorovitsky. www.CorsetAcademy.net Page 59
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