Essay On Victorian Corsets

Design and Luxury

I have decided to focus on corsets as my object which I feel defines luxury, namely Victorian corsets.

First I asked myself what is a corset and where did they come from? A corset is an item of clothing worn traditionally as an undergarment. It is made of stiffened materials and is laced to a woman’s body very tightly to make her appear slimmer around the waist. We have been told that corsets date back as early as 3000 to 5000b.c. and Cretan women were the first to wear them. Corsets evolved over the years and by the time the Victorian era came around these corsets looked different.

In the early 1800s the corset was made from simple cotton and got its shape from seams. But by the middle of the 1800s this method changed and became more extreme. Whalebone was then often used. But as whalebone was very expensive and difficult to get, there were cheaper alternatives; Coraline and Featherboning. Corsets were heavily boned with over 30 bones in each one.

The early Victorian corsets had shoulder straps which supported the woman’s bust. But as the era went on these were replaced with more restricted styles. The hourglass figure was the one most desired and so this new shape was much shorter than the old styles. The bodice came up to the middle of the bust line which was then pushed and pulled upwards. The bottom area of the corset had a flared abdomen and hip area. The bodices were much fitted, almost suffocating the skin, but

The fashion which was in at that time for women were puffy and heavy skirts, which leaned out at the back. There were several layers of skirts which gave the fullness. Women needed to be supported and the corset did so by providing support for the back and straightening out the figure. It also neatened and balanced out the figure by cinching the upper half in. Clothing looked neater and fitted by this balance and so more