The corset/corsolette for the wedding dress* is almost done. It just needs eyelets and a binding on the top and bottom, and I already made the bias tape out of a silk taffeta. Then I just hope that it fits right! It's hard when you can't try it on until it's done because it doesn't have holes to tie through yet.
*BTW - now I get why people give patterns girls' names - it'd be more fun to talk about the progress on Betty or Joan than to keep saying "the dress." But, how to pick the right name? For a dress this epic it needs a good name.
Originally, I was going to make the whole corset out of silk taffeta. Then I wore a long-line bra to a wedding, one that had a decent amount of stretch, and I still was out of breath by the end of the night. Not exactly what I want for my wedding, so I decided to just make the corset out of china silk so it'd have some more give to it. The problem was, the china silk was just too flimsy and it didn't feel like the corset had any structure to it:
So, in order to not waste the effort that went into that, I decided to line the corset with two layers of china silk. One to be a smooth inner layer, and one to hold the boning and bra cups. So I used the seam allowances to encase the boning and used something resembling a blanket stitch to attach the bra cups:
I put the boning on the inside of the bra cups, so there won't be a ridge that might show through from the boning. The china silk didn't make much of a boundary between this and me, though, so I added a layer of white fleece to pad it:
That was then encased between the two layers of china silk.
I pondered for a while what fabric to use for the corset proper. Originally I had planned taffeta, but it was too stiff, then china silk was too soft, so what would be a good compromise, while still being breathable for the summer? I know, there will be enough layers on this thing that it probably won't be breathable anyways, but I wanted to try. Joann had nothing interesting, but when I went to Thai Silks I found the perfect fabric - silk noil. Better yet, they had a remnant 2/3 yard piece in diamond white - just big enough for the corset except for the facing. They also had a 1/2 yard remnant in natural white that worked fine for the facing, especially because it's encased so you can't see it. Every time I walk in that store I spend 20 minutes pawing through the remnants bin to see what I can get for cheap, so it only seemed appropriate to get the fabric as remnants. Silk noil feels a lot like a nice cotton - a little stiff but not too much, exactly the drape I was looking for.
I attached the china silk lining to the silk noil at the top and bottom and turned it right-side out (it's a pain to slip something with that much boning in it!). Stitched up the side by hand and top stitched on each side of each bone:
It probably would be a bit nicer on the inside if I'd left the inner layer of china silk floating free and only attached the layer with the boning to the silk noil, but with the order I did things in that just wasn't going to happen.
The final piece was an inch wide elastic stitched to the bottom of the bra cups and extending through everything and out either side. I'll attach bra hooks to this in order to make sure the corset comes in tight there and provides enough support. This is probably something I should be able to do by fitting it a bit better, but the boning tends to hold it out from the body a bit, so I figured I'd be safe. Maybe once I tie it up I won't need the elastic, but it's better to have it there in case I do need it.
Left to do:
Cut holes and insert the eyelets: I found the small ones actually smash pretty flat, so they won't add too much bulk in this underlayer. They don't look as good as the bigger grommets, but they look good enough for a lining.
Edge the top and bottom with taffeta silk bias binding: I'm a little nervous about the ends of the bones breaking though the china silk that encases them, since it's such a flimsy fabric. I figure I can effectively make an end casing with the taffeta, and it'll look neat on the inside.
Figure out what to do for a modesty flap: I probably want to do this in diamond white silk charmeuse to match the dress, since it'll show under the dress lacings. I want it to cover the corset lacing and the eyelets and everything. I may just make this as a part of the dress bodice itself, since that'll show exactly where I need to conceal.
Whew, that's a lot I've done, for a part of the dress no one will even see! I'll know it's there though (and feel it!) so I'm happy with it.
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