As promised, here is the blog post on the making of my new 1780s linen stays. I began draping the pattern on April 3, and finished building ...

My friend Pia (@stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in the summer of 2019. The new Patterns of Fashion book (volume 5) had just come out earlier in the year so I was eager to try out the drafting method introduced in the book to see if it would yield better results than my own. And I was not disappointed! There's one thing I'd like to mention though. The instructions are easy to use for someone with a lot of experience in drafting patterns but I think beginners might find them lacking, as there are gaps that you should be able to fill in. I mention this because I don't want anyone to excitedly get the book and be sorely disappointed that they aren't able to understand the method and get the results they were hoping for because the instructions are very vague. Other than this, I think the book is extremely interesting and provides a lot of useful information that you can apply into making a pair of 18th century stays, whether you are a beginner or a more experienced historical costume-maker. Sadly, I didn't take many in progress photos of the stays in the making as I was trying to get them ready for wearing as quickly as possible. The first photo shows the finished stays (more of those can be found below the construction photos) so you can already see how they turned out. Disclaimer: This is going to be a long post. :) The idea was to make the stays as comfortable as possible, so we decided that we should use linen that we had already had available in the stash, too. The three linen layers are; a sturdy linen canvas for the middle layer, natural linen for the innermost layer and plain green linen for the outside. Here are the panels after cutting. The construction photos were quickly snapped on my not-so-new phone so the quality isn't ideal but I hope they're good enough. The next two photos show basting around the panels in progress. Later on I realized it would have been smart to baste the middle sections with large basting stitches as well because linen has a tendency to move around when you're stitching the channels but it wasn't a huge problem. By this time I had learned that by using a thicker thread than your regular sewing thread, the stitching looks more like that seen on originals and it also creates sturdier boning channels so I wanted to experiment with that for fun, regardless of that the stays weren't even supposed to be constructed in a period manner. This is how the panels looked after stitching most of the channels by machine. After adding the lacing grommets (this is custom work done as quickly as possible so handstitched eyelets weren't an option), assembling the stays and inserting the uncut zip ties into the boning channels it was time for the first fitting! I didn't bother to do a mockup because I was feeling pretty confident about the pattern and wanted to save time so I wasn't going to be as perfectionistic as I normally have a tendency to be. The main goal, afterall, was to make a pair of stays that create the correct shape/silhouette for the era under a gown - nitpicking about every little minor detail was absolutely unnecessary. As can be seen from the photos, the front panels were too large at the bust as I had overestimated how much room for the bust was going to be needed. Sorry about the mess in the background and the low quality of these photos. The lighting was less than ideal. The pin at the side marks the place above which the front panels had to mostly be taken in at the side, though the side seams was altered even below that point so that the seam line would be smooth and correspond with 1780s stay front panel shapes as closely as possible. See how much extra space there was... Unfortunately I don't remember how much I ended up taking the sides of the front panels in but it was somewhere around 3 cm per side if I'm not entirely mistaken. The back fitted like a glove though. As a side note, it still baffles me that I sometimes manage to lace stays incorrectly after more than a decade of making and wearing them... Anyway, it didn't really matter at this point. Also, notice that the stays were intentionally made to close entirely in the back, as per Patterns of Fashion 5. The following photos are taken from the second fitting. Check out how much better the fit at the bust is! The stays merely hold and support the bust but they aren't supposed to compress nor to shovel the bust upwards too much. She does have a busty figure so it may appear like there's a lot of lift from the photos, also thanks to the angle and lighting. At the top edge of the front panel of the stays near the armpit you can see how the front panels do not compress - there's still a slight bit of extra there. This point would get correctly, gently pressed against the side of the bust once the shoulder straps would be added, as can be observed from later photos of the finished stays. This time I remembered how to lace properly. 😅 At the back we can also observe how the stays merely hold and support the back without compression. There is no "muffin top spillage" of flesh that would be a result of a too tight fit around the bust/back - which can happen to a woman of any size - just to point out that I'm not only taking about plus sizes here. Most of us (unless you're very lean) have more or less flesh that can be moved around and I, too, have certainly experienced spillage after gaining weight, resulting in my old stays becoming too small. It's normal if your weight and/or bust size tends to fluctuate, however, it should be avoided when you're fitting a brand new pair of stays. After the fitting I closed the ends of the boning channels and zig-zagged around the edges of the stays to imitate the whipped edges of the originals and to prevent the layers of linen from fraying. After this the stays were wearable so they had to be put aside to wait for a better time for me to finish them. It took until summer 2020 for that time to arrive, which is when I bound the edges of the stays with tape, and finally right after Christmas I added the straps and hooks that the straps attach to. The stays are mainly boned with 7 mm wide zip ties for more support than the thinner (4,7 mm) ones. We were planning on putting metal bones in the channels next to the center front and center back but it didn't happen. We'll see if we find them necessary to add in the long run as the stays will be worn more regularly and for longer periods of time. Let's address the shape of the stays. Even though I was basing the stays off of 1780s stays we wanted them to work for a slightly longer stretch of time, at least as far back as the 1770s. Hence the top edge of the stays doesn't scoop down as much in the front as it might, nor is there as much shaping in the front overall. The front curve seen from the side isn't as radical as in some 1780s stays but there is still a little bit of that "pigeon breast/prow front" (or whatever you prefer to call it) look but it's not dramatic. If more curvature for the bust is desired for a more distinct 1780s look, the lacing can be left more open at the front. The stays below were one of the examples of stays that I looked at as a reference, although I wasn't going to copy them or any other specific pair of extant stays exactly, instead Pia's stays are a mixture of typical stays from the decade. Just look how much lower the top front edge of these c. 1785-1790 stays scoops down. Stays, 1785-1790 © McCord Museum (Photo shared under the CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 CA licence) Pia's measurements* with the stays are 107 cm (42 in) bust and 83,50 cm (33 in) waist, while her natural measurements are 108 cm (42 1/2 in) bust and 92 cm (36 in) waist, meaning the waist reduction is 8,5 cm (3 inches). The bust isn't meant to be reduced in stays so it's pretty much the same. The pattern itself measures 77 cm (30 1/2 in) at the waist and 104 cm (41 in) at the bust. This is something I've learned along the way; if you draft your pattern to match your desired measurements exactly, your stays will most likely end up being too big, especially if they are made fully in linen, as linen tends to stretch. But I've made stays from all sorts of materials and I've always had to make the measurements of the pattern smaller than your desired measurements. I'd love to provide you with some exact numbers of how much smaller your pattern should be, but that varies depending on the body of the person the stays are being made for as well as the fabrics you're working with and the amount stiffening you're going to put into the stays. But I thought I'd mention this, as a lot of people make the first mock-up of their first stays way too big (including myself) because of underestimating how much smaller the pattern should be in relation to your measurements. After all, that's what mock-ups are for... Anyhow, I hope this helps you to achieve a better first mock-up. Don't be afraid to make the pattern a bit smaller than you think! It rarely is the case that the first one turns out too small. :) (Inches are rounded up or down to the nearest half an inch.) *Please note that these measurement may or may not be labeled as plus size depending on country, clothing brand or other factors. However, we decided to use the term "curvy plus size" in the title and text because Pia herself thought it would describe her body the best due to her proportions, as she is short and busty. I also made this collage to show the difference that wearing a pair of stays makes. Notice her blouse is somewhat loose at the waist so the photos don't give an entirely realistic image of her body but you should be able to get an idea anyhow. Now, as for the arc method drafting instructions in Patterns of Fashion 5 book, the pattern is drawn on a curve. My main issue with it is, however, that the angles of the bust, waist and top hip curve angles are drawn more or less randomly by estimating. This is a problem especially for people like both my friend and myself who have a sway back, which means getting the waist curve exactly right is crucial for the comfort of the stays. A long time ago, when I made my first stays I was unaware of my sway back so the waistline of my first stays turned out to be too low in the back causing pain the lower back where the stays pressed uncomfortably into the back. I've since learned to raise the waist at the back of all of my patterns. For resolving this issue, I recommend you take a look at Mariah Pattie's simple pattern drafting video and/or Sidney Eileen's basic conical block drafting tutorial to compensate for where the PoF5 falls short. In the side view photo above the collage you can see how much higher the waist is at the back. Below is the final pattern. Notice the side of the front panel might be much more curved if a more pronounced 1780s shape was desired. Since these stays are drafted to extend below the natural waist, it's important that enough space is allowed for the high hip in the pattern (this, naturally applies to everyone, not just someone with a sway back). I've wanted to try out the shoulder straps that cross at the back at least ever since Sarah posted pictures of such here. Finally did! It only took me years... Anyway, I think I may have to move the loops they are attached through slightly more towards the back. As can be seen from the photos, the straps go around the shoulders very far out on the shoulder line and I fear they may slip down on the arms. Pia has sloping shoulders so that makes it even more likely. However, the last time the stays got worn to an event, no slipping happened so we might just leave them as they are so we can be sure they also don't show from the wider necklines of the gowns. Time will tell. Another photo of the McCord Museum stays for comparison. Stays, 1785-1790 © McCord Museum (Photo shared under the CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 CA licence) Had I been more perfectionistic about the stays or if I were to make another pair of stays from the same pattern for her, I would probably fix a few minor things about them, mainly, I think the top edge might ideally come up slightly higher in the back, for example. I was afraid of making them too high so they'd show from the back of gowns and that's probably why I ended up making it a bit too low. But none of that or other minor faults makes any major difference to the basic function of the stays and the shape they give. The stays can be laced at the back or the front depending whether there's help available for getting dressed or not. I didn't bother with any of the extra reinforcements for the stomach or other parts - the busk will do just enough for keeping the peak (the lower part of the front panels) of the stays down. Some close-ups of the details... The photo below shows one of the two hooks the straps attach to. Another thing one might nitpick about... the boning channels ought to be ever so slightly thinner. That would provide more sturdiness as well as prevent the channels/stitching lines from twisting as much as they do now. Cutting the bones for the channels longer so that the panels would stay taut might help with the wrinkling of the fabric, however, it is also something that tends to happen when stays are entirely made out of linen without so much stiffening. The straps are sewn to the underarms of the front panels, conveniently providing more protection for an area that is one of the first places where the stays will quickly start to show wear. I managed to stitch the binding at the top on entirely by the machine but the lower edge proved to be too difficult a challenge for me so I quickly basted the binding down by hand at first and then secured it into place with the machine. It worked out nicely; it was still faster than doing it entirely by hand, while ensuring a neatly bound edge at the same time. We also took this video of the stays so you can see them in 360°. And the stays make an appearance on a getting dressed video we did last summer, too. I hope you find the post helpful! If you made it this far, let me know! :)

As promised, here is the blog post on the making of my new 1780s linen stays. I began draping the pattern on April 3, and finished building ...

My friend Pia ( @stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in...

As promised, here is the blog post on the making of my new 1780s linen stays. I began draping the pattern on April 3, and finished building the final stays this past Tuesday, June 9th. A loose estimate suggests that I spent over 300 hours on these stays, including sourcing fabric, dyeing fabric, patterning, and stitching, but not including research. Next time it won't take quite so long, since I have the pattern and have now gone through the staymaking process twice. My mannequin at school (alas, now dismantled and in another province; RIP) was perfectly padded out to my figure, and was one of my favourite things ever. I had made so many things from it over the two years I had it that I knew exactly what to expect from it (eg, it has narrower shoulders than I do) and how patterns made from it will fit me, and this allowed me to alter the draped pattern into an historical silhouette (eg, raised bustline, molded waist) without messing with the mannequin itself. Thus, I was able to drape my stays pattern directly on "my body," rather than starting with someone else's draft. For those who have not draped foundation garments before, I will write a detailed description of how I went about it. I highly recommend it, if you think it's something you want to try! I started by pulling up photos of a number of extant museum garments on my phone and arraying my Norah Waugh and Jill Salen books around me on the table, and with these as references I simply drew my pattern lines on the mannequin. You will note a number of guidelines in these photos, and for those who have not draped in the past I will identify some of them: in blue I have my natural waist, a high v-back neckline (my 1770s caraco), a much lower v-back (left over as reference from the drape of my regency gown), and a raised bustline for historical garments. In green are the stays lines, a number of lines left over from my regency ball gown bodice (again, as reference, as I know where those lines sit on my body in the final garment), a raised bustline reference right at center front, and a lowered waistline. I used a heavy cotton twill to trace off the pattern, rather than regular factory cotton, because this allowed me to ensure the smooth lines and relatively flat pieces necessary for stays (factory cotton is somewhat prone to molding and stretching to curves on the mannequin, which boned linen buckram will not do!). I cut out 4 of every pattern piece and sandwiched two pieces of posterboard between two layers of twill to make my mockup. I stitched in one cable tie per panel, and used lacing strips to try it on and fit it. You can see this mockup beside the finished stays above. This method worked very well, and was a lot faster than stitching all the boning channels into a fabric mockup and trying to do it the traditional way! With the mockup finished, I made the relevant alterations to the pattern and traced it out into a final version. (Needless to say, I would request that no one use this pattern without my permission) You'll notice that I put tons of balance marks, or notches, into my patterns. I find that this is very simple to do as you drape a pattern, and makes a huge difference when you're trying to match floppy bias edges, so I try to put in as many as is reasonable. I cut the pieces out of a double layer of outer linen and a structural layer of linen buckram. I had dyed the outer linen a sort of tea brown using quebracho, a natural bark dye. It's hard to judge what colour quebracho is going to dye, and based on my last batch I had hoped for it to be a bit more pink, but the colour it turned is a good 18thC stays colour so I'll live with it. =) With the pieces cut and all layers sandwiched together, I drew out all the boning channels on the back of each buckram piece and pinned the lines through to the right side of the dyed linen. Then, piece by piece, I began backstitching the boning channels using white linen thread. It took me nine days to do the ten pattern pieces. I actually had the double of each of these done too, but they didn't fit in the instagram photo. =P Now, normally this would be the point at which the bones would be inserted, while each piece is still separate from the others. However, this would mean that the pieces would be rigid and uncooperative as I tried to butt-and-whip them together along the seams. Since I have tendonitis in one of my wrists (the left one - my fabric-wrangling hand, not my stitching hand, from exactly these sorts of things), I decided that it would be wiser to whip the seams together first and bone them afterwards. I then put in the eyelets (or rather, most of the eyelets, as I decided later on to add more in the front so that I could ladder-lace instead of spiral lace - more on that later) and began to insert bones. I was using 1/4" halved round reed from Burnley and Trowbridge. I had planned to soak or steam it to make it cooperate, but in the end all I had to do was slide two into each channel at one time and all but the most sharply curved evened each other out. I did find the reed somewhat brittle and I broke a few, but once they were all inserted they seemed sturdy enough. That said, I would recommend reed for projects where the bones are close enough together to support each other; bones which sit more than an inch apart from others are prone to snapping. After the bones were in, I covered the seams with 1/4" plain weave linen tape, also from B&T, which I had dyed dark blue in a vat of natural indigo. I ladder-stitched it down using silk thread dyed in the same vat. Now, I should add in a note here about the indigo seam coverings. By rights they should be white or tan, since these stays are intended to be worn in Virginia. In Europe, seam coverings were all sorts of fun colours - for instance, this pair from the V&A: You can kind of see the blue silk tapes here; if you go to the link above and zoom in it's easier to see. Or this pair, allegedly from France although I can't find the institution: But in America, seam coverings don't seem to have been quite as changeable. There's this pair from Vermont, which has indigo and white seam coverings, but since the outer fabric of the stays is indigo as well it's quite a different situation and therefore not evidence for my use of indigo. I really like how the indigo looks, so I'm going to keep it for now. But if it looks like it might be problematic in Williamsburg this summer, I may just cover the indigo tapes with white ones and then take them off again later. But back to the story. Staring at the boned and taped stays, I realized that while I had set up the center front eyelets for spiral lacing, most of the originals had ladder lacing - and I liked the look of the latter (haha pun) much better. To my own chagrin and despair, the part of my brain that is relentlessly perfectionist decided that I was going to add 14 more eyelets, and there was nothing I could do but comply. Thus, the front went from this... ...To this Much better. Although I didn't stick with the blue ribbon in the end. It just didn't quite match. Now it was time for binding. I had ivory pigskin left over from my first set of stays, and as it turned out I had *just* enough to do everything I wanted to on this pair. I used ~1" strips to bind the edges, sewing them first upside-down on the front of the stays and then pulling them to the back. The main thought in my head as I did this was "Whyyyyyyy did I put 8 tabs per side on these things?????" As seen on extant stays where the binding has come off, the edges of the stays are whip-stitched first for stability, and then the binding is stitched 1/8" from the edge. I stitched the binding on using backstitch, but on each corner of my tabs I put a single whipstitch to hold the bones there in place, as they liked to swing out sideways from the tapered tabs. At this point I also switched to the ivory ribbon, which is more correct for America (again, in Europe you find coloured silk ribbons in front, but America seems to have largely kept to white and ivory). I next added the eyelet guards to the back lacing, to avoid wear on the eyelets from tightening the stays, and armpit guards to avoid sweat damage (important when I'll be wearing them daily in July and August with no air conditioning!), both using the same pigskin as for the binding. The eyelet guards are simply a matter of winding a 1/4" strip of leather twice through each eyelet so that it protects about 2/3 of the whipstitches where the lace is prone to rubbing. The armpit guards get stretched over the binding from front point to back point, stitched close up to the binding, and then tacked down at the bottom edge between the bones. Please excuse the awful lighting on this one; it was very late at night. Finally it was time to line them. Each tab must be lined separately (straps get lined separately, too, if you have them), and then the main body of the stays gets lined in a single piece. This method is seen on almost every pair of extant stays, because it allows the main lining to be taken out to be washed without removing all the tab linings, which are fiddly and take forever to stitch in. Mine took about 4 days, because I was working extra shifts at my jobs and was having trouble finding time/motivating myself to stitch endless tabs when I got home. You'll notice in this photo of the inside that all the seam allowances have been tacked down using large whip stitches; this happens before you butt and whip the main pieces together if you've boned the pieces first, and after the stays are boned if you're doing it in the same slightly rearranged order as I did. Additionally, you can see here that my outer linen doesn't extend all the way under the eyelets as it should. I thought I'd left enough excess when I cut the pieces out, but I was wrong. =( Luckily, the buckram is strong enough to make up for this blunder. After the tabs were lined, I lined the main body of the stays, and put the ivory ribbon back in, and they were done! You'll notice that these stays have no straps. I was considering adding the tape straps that criss-cross in the back and get hooked at the front waist, but to be honest I don't think I need them. I find that my stays ride up and need help staying down, rather than getting pushed down and needing assistance to stay up (largely, I think, because I have a smaller bust and thus have nothing to put weight on the top of the stays). There are many extant examples which seem to have no straps and to never have had any straps, and thus I feel justified in leaving them off. They give me headaches and inevitably show at the neckline of my jackets, anyways, so why bother? For a photodump of photos of the finished stays, go to my last blog post, here. I'm hoping to do a photoshoot soon to get some better shots; my cellphone selfies don't really do it justice. But you get the idea. =) Thanks so much for reading! I hope that this was helpful in some way to somebody. If you have any questions about my construction methods, research, material sources, or anything else, please do not hesitate to ask and I'll do my best to answer!

My friend Pia ( @stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in...

My friend Pia ( @stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in...

So, I'm finished with the dark brown stays! I added the very last linen lining panel to them yesterday but we already took some pictures of the stays a couple of days ago. I've basically said everything I wanted to say about these stays in earlier posts so now it's just time for the photos. :) In case you're wondering, the materials used were: dark brown cotton twill for the outer layers, linen for the inner layers and for the lining, white cotton twill tape for binding and 5 mm cable ties for boning. Also, there are four 7mm metal bones altogether, two in the front and two in the back. By the way, these tabs were actually much more easier to bind than the more rounded ones, at least to me. I used twill tape for my stays for the first time and the binding part wasn't as hard as it has been before. The edges of the back panels won't close as closely as they used to. After adding the lining the stays wouldn't stretch as much as before. Or then I just gained a little weight during the summer, which is very probable as well. Anyhow, I'm just happy the gap is even. As you can see in the photo below, the stays won't lie completely flat on the floor. I'm so relieved to have finished these stays, even if stays in general are lot of fun for me. It's just that I haven't had much time to sew anything else than stays this year. So I'm very excited to finally get started with some dresses very soon!

Making a pair of 18th Century stays, from concept to finished product.

My friend Pia ( @stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in...

A quick guide to where to find materials for your Augusta Stays. There are a lot of specialty materials needed, so working with a supplier who is familiar with historical staymaking (for View A), or corsetry (for View B) will make the process a lot easier. In addition to the ones listed, many local fabric shops will carry suitable linens or wools, and with the theatrical stays your fabric imagination can go wild, as long as you achieve the right level of support and strength with your mix of materials. Have I missed a supplier? Let me know in the comments! I’m most familiar with US & UK suppliers, so a huge thank you to readers who advised me about suppliers in other places. This list was accurate as of October 2019. The available materials at each supplier change all the time, so we cannot guarantee that the list is still accurate. View A: Historical: Everything you need: Burnley & Trowbridge (US): This wonderful business is your one-stop Augusta Stays materials shop. They carry: …

Making a pair of 18th Century stays, from concept to finished product.

18th Century stays are a weird animal to wrangle. They’re rather rigid and a totally different shape than we’re used to seeing in a natural body. In my previous post, I elaborated on th…

A few months ago, I decided to tackle a new pair of 18th century stays. I used a PDF printable pattern from the Redthreaded Etsy shop. I absolutely love them and I wanted to share my construction journey.The Pattern:I was originally drawn to this pattern because of the front laces. My last pair of 18th century stays were back lacing. While my fiance was very helpful in getting me in and out of them, I do not think that is a trend he would like to continue. I wanted something I could easily get i

My friend Pia ( @stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in...

My favorite surviving 18th century stays can be found in the Victoria & Albert museums collections. As my previous stays were starting to show signs of wear, I thought it was a good time to make my version of them. The top layer is light brown cotton, the next two layers underneath are linen canvas and the lining is of fine white linen. They are completely hand stitched, mainly with pale blue linen thread, but I also used white linen occasionally and silk twist for the back lacing holes. The pattern is my own and, as I was drawing it, I tried to achieve a close resemblance to the original stays but also to achieve a better fit than in all my previous stays. I have an x body type, and my previous stays have been too tubular to fit me well. I used cane for boning. I was planning on experimenting with high land cattle horn for durability, but as I haven't had problem with snapping in my previous stays and these were to become almost fully boned, I chose 1/4 inch wide flat caning that I narrowed down to an almost tooth pick width of 2-3 mm. The front and back bones are narrowed down from a sturdier 1/2 inch wide flat cane. The seams are covered with narrow silk ribbon and the stays are bound with straight cut self fabric strips as it looks like it was done that way in the original stays too. Armholes are bound with ivory chamois leather. Close-ups The construction: First I outlined the pieces by stitching around the edges through all three layers. After they were outlined, I stitched the boning channels. Then I boned the channels. I turned under the center front and center back edges and made the lacing holes. Then I turned under the seam allowances and whip stitched them down. I joined the pieces by whip stitching, covered the seams and started binding the stays. I finished the binding an added shoulder traps. The last step was adding the lining.

I always get a bit gushy about how amazing the pattern testers for Scroop Patterns are (with good reason), but the testers for the Augusta Stays deserve an extra round of credit. The Augusta Stays are by far the most ambitious pattern I’ve ever attempted, and they took Virgil’s Fine Goods and I easily 4x as long as any other pattern. An ambitious pattern for the maker means an ambitious pattern for testers. Stays are no small undertaking at any time. We’re incredibly grateful for the wonderful sewers who were willing to check a new pattern, and to work with it when it still had rough bits to be smoothed off. Thanks to the testers, the Augusta Stays are a much better pattern. Their input helped us to refine the fit of the stays, and make the instructions clearer and easier to use. And the testers made some beautiful stays. I’m very envious of all of them! They are a little different than the final pattern that we released. Some of the testers tried slightly …

Making a pair of 18th Century stays, from concept to finished product.

While I sort out the elastic issues for the corselet I thought I'd use the time to take better pictures of the garments I've made. Here is a much (much!) better photograph of Norah Waugh's Corsets and Crinolines 1780 stays. Even I can find nothing to complain about.