Busk Corset

Process

To make this corset I followed the directions in Cosplay Foundations by Casey Welsch, minus the lining since this was primarily an experiment and not a piece for a specific costume.

First--once I had cut everything out--I constructed the left and right sides of the corset.  To make the boning channels, I sewed down the seam allowance on the inside.  Then, I hemmed the top and bottom, added grommets for the lacing, and used a ribbon to create a slot for the steel busk.

I didn't add any embelishments or anything because, again, this was just to see if the pattern would work for me!

Results

While this corset is mostly the right size, it gapes slightly over my hips and chest.  The busk also makes it impossible to bend over, and the lacing is super hard to do up without help.  The back and waist fit well though, and the canvas was perfectly sturdy and didn't stretch at all, which is what I wanted!

Reflection

For a first corset, I think this went very well!  As an experiment, I learned a lot from this!  My next corset lacked a busk and had the lacing in the front to let me do it myself.  I also ended up altering the pattern to fit me better on my third full corset.