Mrs Maupin

So I finished the Perceneige dress. Or at least brought it to "wearable" : it needs one hook and eye at CB, and about a tousand meters bias binding to cover the net's raw edges inside. But it was done enough for pictures on the dress dummy, and since the HG was off climbing with the kids, it was just the perfect day for that.

Then I edited those - they're not perfect, my set-up really is a bit too narrow for good full-length pics.
And while I was at it I edited the corset pics as well.

I realized I could have taken them without the t-shirt underneath. I guess I am so used to historical mid-busts I didn't consider another option... I will probably wear it like this most of the time, anyway.

Blog posts coming for both items, just not tonight, tonight I showed Zootopia to thte HG and now I'm going to crash in bed and re-read Dragonriders of Pern for the umpteenth time.
BTW, all pictures are actually taken in the exact same spot, I was just a tad lazy for the corset and didn't put up all the background, so you see some of the dolls and fabrics instead.

I finished the corset (except maybe for a hook and eye at the top CF - and the modesty panel which I don't feel motivated to make right now :p )

This is the best I could do with self timer today - I couldn't be bothered to dig ou the tripod and make a better photoshoot. I will try to make something with the Home geek, maybe tonight.

Now of course I want to make another one. Or two or three. Test out the patterning method, see how it works with historical shapes... I am very tempted to enter FR's 2017 competition. I love the idea of a ballet-inspired outfit with a pretty corset. I could use Lady Darkstone as a guinea pig for corset making AND make a photoshoot with her, since she has some ballet experience. Now of course I am tempted to make something dark and gothy,with black and deep fuschia. But the practical pro in me says a lighter shade would work better in my portfolio - maybe a peach/nude ?
Of course, it might just be a crazy idea and not doable with my schedule. But still... I want to make mor epretty corsets !

When my teeth get clenched from concentrating a bit too much, and the tea gets cold, maybe it means I need a "let's update to LJ" break.

This is the corset I patterned and started at the corsetry course. It is not meant to be historical, although I did use some victorian and edwardian inspiration. The outer sheel is black coutil (plain weave, with floral brocade coutil at the hip gores). The lining is an off-white and black stripe.
Today I have assembled it, put grommets in it, filed and inserted the bones. Here are the first pictures, graciously (if not very vertically) taken by the Home Geek. With optional BB8 mug, because it's my new mug and I love it. Not everything shows, because, well, black fabric !

Front :
Nice nipped in waist, good support for the breasts (and they don't want to escape either).
The part over the busc gapes a little, I am thinking about adding a little hook and eye to keep it in place.
The white lining peeks out from under the hook side of the busc, because once again I forgot to cut the CF lining piece in the same fabric as the outer shell. Too late to fix it, and I was out of fabric anyway.
Not visible in the pictures, a slight wrinkle on the second piece, under the outside of the boob.

Side :
Wrinkle on the third piece, right at the waist. Ugh !

Back :
Again, big wrinkle at the waist.
The lacing gap is what I wanted, I plan to add a modesty panel.
Visible pants line in the hip gores, not cool !

On the whole I am very pleased with how it turned out. I is *extremely* comfy to wear, I feel pretty sexy in it (the HG seems to agree).
Some of the wrinkles will disappear once the bones are secure in their casings, but I really feel like the third and fourth piece, at least, need more bones. The brocade coutil in the hip gores isn't as strong as the plain weave one, the lining has no body at all, so I can't leave those big hip gores with just one bone.
We worked with small spiral steels all around, but I'm not convinced by how the center back looks. I am putting german boning there - and at all the bones I am adding, too.

It looks like I might be able to finish this today... minus the flossing, because I don't think I can make a corset for myself and not add flossing. Flossing is pretty ! And I feel all this black si a little... plain by itself.