Small waists and corsets

Recently I was online reading one of my many historical blogging sites and I happened across a comment on the very picture I used for my header.

The lovely Princess Mathilde of Bavaria

They said: 'Her waist! Unreal what women used to do to themselves. No wonder she looks ill.' Wow. Really? It made me stop and think about how the general public thinks of corsets. 

First off, a few definitions. Tight lacing is when you wear your corset tighter and tighter very gradually (months or years, not days) until you get a smaller waist.

Corset training is when you wear a corset to get a smaller waist. It is not as extreme as tight-lacing.

Coutil (or coutille) is the fabric commonly used for corsets. It's woven in a herringbone weave, which makes it very strong and unlikely to stretch.

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I'm sure the one of the first things people think of when they think of corsets is the scene from Gone With the Wind where Scarlett is holding on to the bedpost while Mammy pulls her corset tight.

"Just hold on and suck in!"

Most people who wore corsets corset-trained from a young age. I am not one hundred percent sure at what age they would start. I have seen corsets for children as young as 8-10. I think it would depend on the family as well. A farm girl would not be as concerned with wearing a corset at a young age and tightening it down as a southern belle (read Scarlett O'Hara) would be.

Scarlett, being a pampered young girl would have started wearing stays when she was young, training her waist for years until she could squeeze into a 20 inch-waisted dress. Laura Ingalls, on the other hand, a farm girl through and through, refused to wear her corset when she was growing up, preferring to run around unrestrained, much to the dismay of Ma, who had an 18 inch waist herself before she was married.

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One of the common arguments against corsets is that they distort your internal organs. Yes, they do move them around, but you can take your corset off any time you like. Child birth also distorts your internal organs and that lasts for nine months!

Corsets are also recommended today by doctors to help correct scoliosis. 

Not to mention recommended by me to correct bad posture. ;) Young ladies and also young men would wear corsets to give them good posture and poise. Yes, you read that right.

Also, corsets give a strong base on which to wear your petticoats. A drawstring cutting into your waist gets old after a while, trust me.

"But wait a minute, Veronica," you say "Aren't corsets uncomfortable to wear?"

No, not really. Corsets are skin-tight, so naturally if you are not a perfect size 10 or 14 or whatever,  and you buy one off the shelf, it won't fit right and it won't be comfortable. You have to make one or have one custom-made to your dimensions for them to work. Just like a pair of shoes - if they don't fit right, you'll be miserable in them.

There were people like Camille Clifford who laced themselves down to an 18 inch wasp waist, but the majority of people didn't. Women used a variety of ways to make their waists appear smaller. 

One of the ways women enhanced their figure and made their waist look even smaller was with bust and hip pads. I will not go into that and will instead point you to a blog post by American Duchess.  

Illusion was another way women appeared to have small waists. Common sense says that if you put something excessively big next to something of normal size, the normal-sized object will appear smaller. Big sleeves and full skirts were two ways to make your waist look smaller.

1830's dress

1860's

1890's

So next time you see someone wearing a corset or read an article about them, keep an open mind. Don't dis corsets before you've had a chance to try them. Also, take a second look at that waist. It might not be as small as you think.

Big hats!

Recently, I have been looking for a hat to trim with silk flowers and ribbon to wear with my 1910's blouse and skirt. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find one I like. However, I have found lots of lovely hat pictures! :) I wish people wore more hats these days. It really completes your outfit. The following are some of my favorite pictures. (In the captions are comments or all the information I know about the picture.)

This is my ideal hat. (And that dress isn't bad either!)

1909

I like the hat on the left especially.

Isn't it grand? *happy sigh*

 I have never worn a hat this big, but I wouldn't think they are that heavy. Most hats of the early 1900's were trimmed with feathers. They may look tall and/or wide, but it's all float-y feathers and ribbon and gauze. You would pin your hat onto your hair, so it couldn't be heavy or it would smash your Gibson Girl hairdo. :)

Ostrich feathers!

Genevieve Lantelme, 1905

This is one of my very favorites - Lillian Russell. (probably 1890's, based on her sleeves)

Bird Milman

Princess Kaiulani of Hawaii, 1890's.

Mary Weston

Nina Napier

Gaby Deslys

Princess Sophie Charlotte of Oldenburg, 1910

Even young girls wore hats! Paris, June 4th, 1906.

Another one of my favorite pictures.

1903

If you've ever wondered how a spoon-busked corset makes someone's posture, here you have it.

Miss Lily Elsie

Madeleine Celiat

So there you have it. Lots of feathers and flowers. I've bought some silk flowers for mine, partly because I like them and partly because ostrich feathers are way too pricey to cover a whole hat in. ;) I will keep looking, but there is no where online that I've found that sells untrimmed 1900's hats, except for boaters, but those aren't as big as what I'd like. I might resort to buying straw braid and sewing my own hat if I can't find anything.

Hope you are having a lovely week!

American Duchess Tavistocks

Recently, the amazing American Duchess historical shoe company had an "imperfects" sale, meaning every pair of shoes they inspected and found lacking their great standards was sold for a bit cheaper. They had several pairs of their new White Tavistock boots for sale, so I snatched up a pair. They arrived yesterday!

I took one picture of the box, but then I got too excited to take any more pictures and just opened them. :) Thanks to my little sister for taking the pictures of them on me!

I was debating between getting a size 8.5 or a 9, because the width of my foot when measured was a 9, but the length was an 8. I decided on an 8.5 and I think I picked perfectly. The boots feel like they were made specifically for my foot, which is amazing, because usually my feet are very picky about which shoes they are comfortable in.

I almost didn't get the button hook, but I'm very glad I did. It makes them so much easier to get on and off.

The 2" French heel is a bit higher than I'm used to, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. I adore French heels. :)

 I wore them last night for quite a few hours and am happy to report that they are some of the most comfy boots I have ever worn. Most fashion shoes tend to be uncomfortable if worn for more than a few hours.

I love my new boots and highly recommend American Duchess's shoes.

Modesty

Last week was the dance at the high school. As usual, people were posting about it all over Facebook the day before. When I saw that there was going to be a ball, quite honestly, the first thought that came into my head was "Oh great. Here come the skimpy dress pictures!"

It's sad how immodest most girls dress now days. In one picture I saw last summer on Facebook there was a group of ten girls in their prom dresses. Guess how many of their dresses were floor length? None. How many were knee length or below? None again. How many were even at the knee? Still none! Every single dress was above their knees. Four of the dresses were strapless, and every one of them were sleeveless. 

I don't see how you can feel comfortable in a dress like that. You would have to be so careful when you sit so you don't expose something. A lot of the time when I see girls wearing dresses like that, when they stand up (or sit down) they pull on their dresses to re-adjust them. If your dress is so short you have to pull it down when you stand up, it's too short. Same goes for how low they are in front. You wouldn't be able to lean over without once again showing something that the world shouldn't see. Not to mention you would be cold any time the slightest breeze came along.

Doesn't this look more elegant...

...than this?

If you expose that much of your body, men will want you for your body. If you cover that up, they will be able to look past your flesh and like you for who you are inside. Eventually, everyone's looks change. Also, if your dress comes to your knees or below, your legs are nicely accented, as well as whichever cute shoes you chose to wear. If your dress is above your knee, the only thing people will ever focus on are your ugly knees. (Because, seriously, does anyone have nice-looking knees?)

It is possible to find modest dresses. You just have to look harder. One of my favorite places to go dress shopping is Goodwill. All the ones near us have a nice selection of dresses. Yes, there are some dresses that are still too high for me to be comfortable wearing, but there are quite a few other ones as well. Plus, the prices can't be beat! :) There are quite a few online dress stores that have nice selections as well, such as Mikarose.com, ShabbyApple.com, and DownEastBasics.com. (Not to mention sewing your own dresses, but that's a whole other post.)

The first thing I noticed about this picture was her dress, then her necklace, then her hair, not her exposed skin!

A well fitted dress will do wonders for you, making you look and feel like a princess. Not to mention it is just plain fun to wear a swirling skirt that billows when you twirl. Ever notice that Cinderella didn't wear a skin-tight, sleeveless, knee-length dress? Take a look at a picture of the Disney princesses. They all look so elegant and lady-like in their floor and ankle length dresses. I don't mean to say you have to wrap yourself up in cloth until you look like a mummy, just wear enough to cover yourself. You can be modest and still look pretty. Modestly is very becoming, no matter what your age.

So, girls. I have a challenge for you. Next time you are going to dress up, whether it be for a prom, a wedding, or just going to church on Sunday, actually try to find a modest dress to wear. Go out of your way a little bit. I think you'll find that you just like wearing them.