Hobbies And Interests
Things You'll Need
Instructions
Getting Started
Wear a close fitting vest. Ask a friend to wrap duct tape over the vest going around your hips up to the bottom of your breasts. This will give you an accurate mold that you can use as a base for your pattern.
Align the fabric shears with the center of your abdomen and cut the mold in half straight up the middle. Cut down the middle of the back of the mold. Take the pieces you have cut and cut them in half. You should now have eight sections.
Lay the cut sections onto the pattern tracing paper. Trace and label the sections in pencil. Reduce the width of the back center sections by taking the inner sides 1 inch in.
Transfer the pattern onto scrap fabric using pencil or tailor's chalk. Draw an outline of the pattern lines 1 inch out. Cut along the outline for all eight sections.
Machine stitch the sections together where they join, leaving the center seams on the front and back open.
Sew the bottom hemline across the sections, leaving the front and back center seams open. You now have "boning pockets" at the side seams.
Push the spiral steel boning down into the side seam "boning pockets." Stitch across the top of the boning pockets to secure the boning.
Measure the amount of space you want between the laces on your back when the cincher is finished. Measure the length of the inner edge on your back center section. Cut a piece of scrap fabric that matches this length and width. Stitch the piece of fabric in between the the center back sections.
Wrap the mock corset waist-cincher around your abdomen and pin the front sections together. Pin areas that need to be taken in and rip out stitching that needs to be let out.
Remove the pins that are holding the front center sections together. Alter your paper pattern according to the changes you have just made.
Lay the pattern sections on the "wrong side" of your outer fabric and pin them in place. Measure 1/2 inch from the pattern and trace an outline in pencil or tailor's chalk. Label the pattern sections. Remove the pins and repeat.
Cut all sixteen sections out from your outer fabric. Position the sections in their labeled order.
Repeat Steps 11 and 12 on your coutil lining fabric. Place the coutil sections on the "wrong side" of the matching outer fabric sections.
Position the looped side of the busk against the knobbed side of the busk and set the busk between the front center sections with the looped side at the edge of the front left section and the knobbed side at the edge of the front right section.
Stitch 1/2 inch in from the edge of the front right section to mark the placement of the busk piece.Twist the pieces right side out and iron the seam line flat.
Reinforce the seam by stitching 1/16-inch in from the outside edge of the fabric.Set the knobbed busk piece against this line. Draw along the knobs of the busk piece with chalk to mark their position on the fabric under the busk.
Lift the fabric to see the two seam allowances. Push the busk piece down between the seam allowances and fold the fabric over to conceal the seam allowances.
Push the awl through the marked knob holes gently to prevent fraying. Insert the knobs in the knob holes. Stitch straight down the other side of the busk piece.
Move to the left side of the corset waist-cincher with the looped side of the busk. Organize the pattern sections with the outer sides together as you did earlier on the right side of the cincher.
Place the looped side of the busk along the 1/2-inch seam allowance you will stitch later to see if the knobs and loops are properly aligned with each other. Mark the areas along the seam line where the loops cross over and trace around the loops at these points.
Raise your needle up while sewing the seam line over the areas where the loops cross over the seam. Fold the seam over so the right side of the fabric is back on top and iron it down to keep it secure.
Push a pin through every loophole to show their position on the fabric. Reinforce the seam by stitching a line 1/8-inch in from the edge on the outer fabric, lifting the needle over the pins that are marking the loopholes as you sew.
Lay the busk piece in the seam allowances for the coutil lining. The loops should protrude from their intended holes. Fold the fabric to bring the coutil and outer fabric together. Stitch down the busk to keep it secure.
Completing the Corset Waist Cincher
Stitch the sections of the outer fabric together. Stitch the coutil lining sections together. Sew these lines again with another stitch length setting.
Set the wrong side of the outer fabric against the wrong side of the coutil lining fabric. Stitch the sides of the bone casing to the wrong side of the coutil fabric between the seam lines and the seam allowance at every point where the sections come together.
Pull the right side of the outer fabric down over of the right side of the coutil lining and stitch the last sections together.
Iron the seam and sew a line 1/8 inch in from the edge of the right side on the outer fabric. Position a lacing bone between the outer fabric and coutil along this seam. Trace the lacing bone holes in pencil. Use the grommeter to make the holes.
Slide the lacing bone out and use it to mark the holes on the other side of the cincher. Use the grommeter to punch out the holes. Put the lacing bones back into position between the outer fabric and lining along their designated seam lines and secure the grommets and eyelets in the holes with the grommeter.
Stitch around the lacing bones and fold the bottom seam allowance over twice. Stitch the hemline across the bottom of the corset waist cincher. Slide the boning into the bone casings.
Fold the seam allowances over twice on the top of the waist cincher and stitch a line across the top. Lace the corset in a bi-directional fashion through the holes at the back so the laces have a crisscrossed appearance.