1860s red wool corset

c.1860- 1864. A pair of stays or corset depending on the original owner's knowledge of fashionable parlance, made from itchy bright red wool and lined in white cotton coutil.

Petticoats, cage crinolines Red wool became fashionable for undergarments at the end of the 1850's was used for and corsets. Although fashionable in color, the stays would have been quite unfashionable in construction with the use of shoulder straps, large triangular bust and hip gussets as well as having a closed front instead of a split busk. This pair of stays would have used a long, rigid busk made from ivory, wood, metal or whalebone inserted into the front slot of the corset. The fashion historians, C. Willett and Phillis Cunnington, cite a source from the early 1860's complaining that "the old- fashioned stays are still too generally worn" and "often of red flannel, boned".

The corset is shorter in length than earlier stays had been and has an hourglass shape which would remain in fashion for the rest of the 19th century. Although the corset uses less boning than later Victorian corsets use, the whalebone used in this corset is incredibly rigid and thick that it would make for a rather unyielding set of stays. The corset is machine sewn and the edges of the corset are bound in red wool tape.

The grommets are made from brass and are placed in an off-set pattern which means that the spiral lacing pattern was used. This, along with the fact that there was no front opening busk, meant that the original wearer would have needed help to put the corset on by herself.
Measurements: Bust 36", Waist 28", Hips 36", Front busk length 13 1/2".

Transitional 1830s Cotton Drill Stays

C.1837 - 1845. A rare set of transitional stays dating from the late Regency- early Victorian period. This set of stays or corset, depending on the wearer's knowledge of fashionable parlance, marks the transitional period between long soft bodied stays and the hourglass corset of the second half of the 19th century.

 

The stays are made from white cotton drill and are lined in plain white cotton. The corset is entirely handmade with neat and even sewing using "back stitching" technique. Triangular gussets, which are typical in mid 19th century corsetry, are seen at the bust and the hips. The corset is not boned but has slots with "button holes" on the inside, in which to insert boning. There is a bone channel on the middle of each breast and in a "V" shape at the back. A wider channel is seen at the front of the corset to allow the wearer to insert a stiff wooden or bone busk. Having bone channels in which the boning could be inserted and removed at will, allowed the wearer to adjust the amount of stiffness in the corset according to the level of activity (i.e. more bones in the corset for formal occasions or have the bones completely removed for housework duties). It also allowed for easy laundering.
Although this corset has a more pronounced hourglass shape than early 19th century long line stays had, it retains elements from the Regency era yet foreshadows the coming curvier Victorian styles. The body of the corset has a semi-elongated shape with the front skirt of the corset coming down below the abdomen, common for early 1800's stays. The actual indentation of the waist ends higher than natural waist level. The waist level on this corset sits just under the "V" points of the bust gussets, a waist level placement typical of late Regency stays, however, the flared bustline and pinched in waist gives the figure a curvier shape than earlier stays had.
Measurements: Bust 33", Waist 23", Hips 28", Front busk length 13".