Breaking in your Corset

How to break in (or season) your corset properly to prevent damage.
I recommend wearing your corset at a reduction of no more than 2 inches, for 2 hours a day, for 2 weeks.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• corset
• waist
• training
• season
• break
• in
• ease
• prevent
• damage
• instructional

[BETAmosquito]

I'm thoroughly enjoying all of your video's but I have a question that hasn't already been covered. I just bought a tightlacing corset off the rack. It laces up with a nice 2inch gap at my waist but an almost 5inch gap at my hips. Is such a big discrepancy bad for the garment?

[bishonenrancher]

@BETAmosquito What can happen is the back spring steels could twist in their channels and possibly start to bend inward or outward, which will be uncomfortable if it starts to dig into your back. What you might be able to do is add hip gores to the corset to give your hips more room: slash the hips up to the waist in the middle of the panels and add some triangles of a very sturdy fabric. But if the back bones aren't twisting for you and you're fine with the discrepancy, this is optional. :)

[AnnoyingAsianWitch]

Question: If I accidentally fell asleep in my new corset (overnight! too comfy it seems) should I leave my corset alone for most of the next day to allow the fabric to rest?

[bishonenrancher]

@AnnoyingAsianWitch Yes, I would let it air out most of the next day. It needs time for the sweat to evaporate and the fibers to relax.

[AnnoyingAsianWitch]

I mentioned this tip on my article and I was criticized by someone who claimed that cinching it for hours tightly everyday does the job better :/

[bishonenrancher]

@AnnoyingAsianWitch That's a good way to make the fabric warp. Let them ruin their corset if they want to.

[bishonenrancher]

@SuzanziBalletHeels I know! I was amazed how many people here on YouTube pull their corsets so tightly the first time, and more amazed that I couldn't find any video that strictly talked about seasoning a corset properly. More people need to know! Once again, thanks so much for your feedback.

[bishonenrancher]

@nguyenmaria90 Unfortunately not. :( If you think about how you would put pressure on other natural fibers it's easy to see why. Think about stretching a muscle for 2 hours each day (yoga, pilates etc) for 2 weeks - it will be a more gentle action than doing 16 straight hours of tension, which would lead to injury! When you stretch a fiber like cotton a little at a time and then allow it to relax, it helps align the fibers and makes sure the tension is more equally distributed the next time!

[BETAmosquito]

@bishonenrancher Thank you so much!

I didn't even THINK of hip gores :D

[AnnoyingAsianWitch]

@bishonenrancher Thanks Lucy! You're a lifesaver. And corset saver!

[nguyenmaria90]

Lucy you are amazing! please keep us posted with more videos! xx