If you'd like to make this corset for yourself... store.dftba.com/collections/abby-cox/products/1880-1890s-antique-victorian-corset-pattern-pdf (if you do make it, please tag me on IG or Tiktok or wherever you post about it!
I watched all the way to the end (I'M A RIDE OR DIE VIEWER!) and I was so happy to see that your opinion of your corset had modified. You worked so hard on that, and I thought you did a wonderful job! Keep up the great work, my friend!
So men slammed on women making corsets early on, because it was a man's job, then they slammed on women making corsets, because women shouldn't wear corsets? Insecure males can be indecipherable sometimes.
They said the same things about men being shop assistants and window dressers. I think men were secretly terrified that women could actually be good at something in a "man's world" and used every excuse to gate keep.
Well done! Yes I’d like to see the second corset. My aunt worked in the mills in Nashua NH in the 1940’s. She left school after 8th grade to support her family. She always loved and supported her family, but wanted the rest of us to get an education so we “would not have to sacrifice ourselves like that.”
One of the saddest things about the Triangle Shirt Waist fire is that so died because because they were locked in by the management to prevent unscheduled breaks or garment theft - their lives literally less important to the owners than the risk of a minuscule hit in profits.
I started researching it a while ago, cause I was thinking about a video, and I was just so upset reading the news articles from the period that I had to put it aside. Just horrible
There is quite a bit of info on the triangle fire. Adding a couple 3 well researched links to your description should be enough. Unless you have something to add to the research, and you can do it without traumatizing yourself too much. It is an important part of our history, in so many ways, but you aren't the only historian who can do this. It's not being forgotten right now.
Watching the New York City (Ric Burns) documentary section on the fire is really brutal. It's infuriating that the owners basically got away with what they did.
As you know, things haven't gotten much better. My mother was blind and a seamstress for the state of Kansas from the 1970s through the 1990s. She was paid piece work. I can't ever remember her getting over $500 a month for her work. Not only was her work undervalued for being a seamstress, she was also paid much less than an able bodied worker would have been paid, because they were giving this poor woman who had no other options work, something that goes on to this day. But! She was an excellent seamstress, and I still haven't had clothes that fit better or looked better than what she made me. She also had a very rich life outside of work. She had many friends and she was an advocate for the handicapped and was instrumental in getting the ADA passed. She taught me how to fight and advocate. And she taught me that people don't have to be exactly alike to be friends.
@@m.maclellan7147I second that. She sounds like the type of woman whose life history deserves a book - or a movie. We need more stories of wonderful ordinarily extraordinary women and of wonderful people who lived full, rich lives while having a disability and having to face all the additional challenges that came with it - as if sexism wasn't difficult enough.
As a grown woman with a body like an unenthusiastic cylinder, seeing this corset was a joy. Seeing the two antique garments side by side at the end said far more, far better about body diversity than anything ever could.
You've demonstrated that the "I hate jeans shopping" problem has existed since the start of "off the rack" fashion. This gives me a fellow feeling with not only the women who made the corsets but also those who went shopping for them, spent a chunk of their cash on this expensive-compared-to-wages garment, and then disappointedly had to find some way to deal with it until the next time they could afford a new one. Just like when we buy the jeans we can find and afford that come the closest to fitting.
At least back then people could 'accentuate' and it was just part of it. Now my clothing has formed me to have rolls and it would not be acceptable for me to corset and pad out for the right shape. I sometimes hate wearing clothing at all but if I have to, why can't I feel good in them?
I think that the failure highlights something we all know from fast fashion - off the rack garments - I can buy it to fit my waist or I can buy it to fit my hips I can't buy it to fit both. And that's before we try to add boobs to the equation.
This. If I buy stuff to fit my boobs, then I will look like I'm wearing a sack. If I buy it to fit the rest, then my boobs are popping out like superman.
@@MicheleKire Because of an accident my right leg is an inch & a half shorter than my left. Which makes getting pants that fit a ain't in the ass! Everything I buy has to be shortened to fit me properly.
@@bellablue5285 Because of an accident my right leg is an inch & a half shorter than my left. Which makes getting pants that fit a ain't in the ass! Everything I buy has to be shortened to fit me properly.
But, the experiment DIDN'T fail, if anything, it was an overall success. You made as close as an exact replica as possible, which is AMAZING & you proved that fast fashion has NEVER been inclusive of varied bodies, hehehe, historical times weren't as romantic as we want to believe. Well done & thanx for taking us along
Wasn't the whole point about it not fitting that this corset was likely made to accommodate a different body type though? And that this wasn't the only type they made and sold. Even though they were mass manufactured, these corsets still had a pretty large variety of different sizes and proportions. This experiment proved some stuff, but definitely not that fast fashion has never been inclusive of different bodies.
you know this exact corset wasn't for every body but there were various types of corsets for various body types. it made me rethink my "I hate shopping" feeling. there *is* stuff out there that fits me and is made for me I just have to find it in a sea of stuff that *isn't* made for me. And that's the part that's hard and frustrating.
This video really feels like it's in conversation with yours about the Regency overgrown and having the artisans stitch their names into it! We value people's labor!
When you were saying that you don't want to risk destroying the corset for the sake of curiosity I was full braced for you to say some variant of "I'm not a Kardashian":P
I don't understand why no one stopped her and why she didn't just hire someone to make a copy that fits her and call it an homage, everyone would aplaude that
@2nouli the worst part is that she DID have an exact replica that she wore to the actual party. She decided to destroy the original for the red carpet
@@datBean это ужасно! Насколько эгоистичной и глупой надо быть, чтобы уничтожить музейный экспонат только ради собственного, излишне раздутого эго. Я не представляю как она оправдывалась перед хранителями музея. И я уверена что все хранители музея буквально рыдали над испорченным платьем. Я бы рыдала.
I wish current designers recognized that different torso lengths exists, and women are different heights. The fact that most women’s size charts don’t even include length information is just ridiculous.
My younger sister and I were very close in height. I have a LONG torso and short legs, she had long legs and a very short torso ! Back in the day, her "3/4 length" jeans were full length on me. We also carry our weight differently. I am more pear shape, she more apple. We stopped sharing clothes when she hit puberty as the differences were extreme.
Length would be an awesome addition... I have to size up multiple sizes usually just to be able to raise my arms without flashing anyone when I wear women's tops, and while I can get away with ringer tees outside work (such as while shopping), those don't fly at work. I finally found a source for 36 in inseam trousers, but the long torso on top not yet, unless I shop the men's dept.
When I was a teenager in the 90s it was almost impossible to find a one piece swimsuit that was long enough on my body. And this was before tankinis were a thing really, so it was have a one piece that digs into shoulders or rides up..... there, or a bikini. My mom actually made a couple of my swimsuits for that exact reason. I was in ballet and leotard makers got it, why couldn't swimsuit makers get it?
If this video was featured on Disney+, Abby would have a corset that affects her breathing and then with one song, she tears it apart ‘coz patriarchy is when you burn bras and corsets which ‘constrict’ women.
This experience you had trying on this corset is so similar to almost every bra-trying-on (or pants) experience I’ve ever had. You pick something out thinking it might fit given the labelled size, and you realize it was made for a body type that is totally not yours, which is so demoralizing. This says a lot about mass-manufactured garments-it’s such an insight to see how little has really changed after 120 years. Women have been likely dealing with that feeling of their bodies not being “right” for a long time.
Your reaction to trying on the replica reminded me of every time I have gone to a store and tried on clothes that clearly were not made with my body proportions in mind.
Sigh. I was so excited about the Soprano brand because most of their pieces fit me like a glove (small bust, smallish waist, wide hips)! Now they're out of business and a lot of my clothes have holes.
@@PLKinka I did do that! It was a bit of a bumpy ride because it took 6, 6 months to get them, but well worth it I think. The dress I had remade was one of those lucky fast fashion finds, a simple long sleeve A-line that lasted close to 10 years even with a ton of wear (I kept it out of the dryer for the most part). Now I'm thinking I should just learn to sew because shopping makes me so hekkin mad. My mom was a seamstress, but I can only to the very basics and never figured out sewing machines.
Why television channels are not grabbing up youtube creators to make quality programs is beyond me. Videos like these are as good as BBC history programs- just with a lower budget.
Informative video. Beautiful corset. As a professional nerd, I checked out the Connecticut study discussed around timestamp 16:00. The report does not report wages that meet or exceed a "Living Wage," but $7.00 a day was considered "barely a living wage." Of all women, 48% made less than $7.00. 50% of corset workers made less than $7.00 (pages 16-17). As your video indicates, corset workers were also charged for the material. If 1/3 was docked from their wages, they would need at least $10-11/day to barely make a living wage. 2% to 4% of women in the corset industry made $10 to $11/day.
So glad you added the ending. I don’t want to say the video was a Debbie downer, but I could tell that you weren’t happy with the work. You seem so much happier and more - shall I say your old self? I hope you continue toget JOY from this process. You have a gift and I think that it is important to do things for the love of that gift. Spoken like a true grandmother of 63! 😄
The way you turned this video into a tribute to the nameless corset makers was so profoundly beautiful. Great job both on the experiment and narration ❤
Your experiment didn't fail. Your results weren't what you were expecting. You followed the pattern perfectly, and re-created a historical garment. I struggle to find clothes that fit correctly, and I'm an "average size".
I guess it depends whether the goal of the experiment was to get a functional corset they fits her body or to gather some historical information. I imagine it was a little of both
padding, it's easier to fit you than my daughter who's super curvy.... 14" difference between bust and underbust (30.5" underbust, 27" waist then flaring to wide hips that are 17" wider than her waist...
@@adelinawarriner6259 Fellow phone pole her, and all the padding in the world won't keep my pants from sliding off my lack of hips. I want to make a corset and see if it will even stay up without shoulder straps, I'm guessing not... Bodies are a challenge whether they're extreme or not. "averages" fit almost nobody.
@MossyMozart, When my SIL was shopping with me for her wedding dress, she wanted to get a dress from a local Vancouver, BC, designer. She tried on a number of beautiful cocktail dresses that were obviously designed for people like you, but fit horribly on her. Fortunately she was able to find a beautiful, simple, embroidered cocktail dress that fit her curves beautifully. I was very happy for her.
I wonder how long it will take for there to be different undergarment trends, and for people to discover old sewing patterns and say "oh course, everyone made their own bras back then!
One could even say that if some experiments don't fail, you might not be experimenting hard enough. I always tell my kid when he's trying and failing something: finding what doesn't work is usually the first step to finding what does work. (Yeah, it's a paraphrased Thomas Edison quote. I never claimed to be original, lol)
You know, what is so funny is that I have an extreme hourglass shape. One of the things that ground my self esteem down so much was fast fashion. It actually encouraged me to learn to sew my own garments. The fact that nothing fit my body shape was always soul crushing. Seeing that second corset at the end kind of brought it full circle. There are so many body shapes and types. I understand that feeling of disappointment putting on something and it just doesn’t fit right. But I appreciate how you wanted to reconstruct the corset as it was in addition to thinking about the women who made it.
I'm the curvy corset type my meausrements are 48 36 46... I look forward to your making a copy of that curvy corset, and perhaps a downloadable pattern for it.
Great video. Not all the women who worked in the garment trade are anonymous. My great-grandmother did piece work from her tenement on the Lower East Side of New York City. She did not work in a factory but witnessed the women jumping from windows to escape the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company. She lived a long and happy life, and had many successful decendants who built on her legacy of hard work. I think about her often and that clothes are still made in sub-standard conditions but we have just off-shored it, so it more hidden from our daily lives.
Hey that's a beautiful corset, and as far as I'm concerned, it's not a failed experiment, it, as you rightly point out at the end, shows how much diversity there was even in mass-manufacturing! And it also illustrates how annoying it would've been to buy second hand or being given someone's old corset and have to wear something ill-fitting because that's all you could afford. I look forward to the second pattern, as I have a similar body type to yours! Bonne chance 😘
There are multiple moments where my heart is breaking: for the women in the factories (then and now!), for you after trying it on. But this video is so real and shows a lot of emotion and empathy. Thank you for the hard work!
I love the fact you are so sensitive in presenting this. You are so brave to post this and your heartfelt consciousness of the conditions the girls worked in. Sweat shops are not a new thing. A great reminder Bravo. Thank you
As someone who is still trying to get bras that fit properly because apparently I've spent my entire life without them, I feel for you with this one. It's not a failure. You craftswork was beautiful and perfect. You did exactly what you set out to do and it's neither your fault nor the corset's fault that you weren't made for each other. I am looking forward to the video for the second girl, though, because that's *my* preferred style too. And I've wanted an actual made-for-me corset for years now. Maybe it'd be more comfortable than these bras that are never quite right.
I was just wondering yesterday: while watch Morgan Donners' video: "when will Abby put out a new video?" Thank you. Your passion for fashion is so informative and thought provoking,
Duuuuuuude! I love the surprise marvel movie ending. I remember hearing about the triangle factory fire in high school and even watching a movie they made about it. It was the first instance of learning about the really crappy working conditions during the industrial age of America, and it is a constant reminder with fast fashion, that these conditions are still super prevalent today. You did such a service to the women and girls that have lived this reality and I get emotional thinking about it. We should really start calling you "Abby (Every video is a banger) Cox". Just saying.
Yes, I was looking at that "fail" corset and thinking, "It would fit my bestie, or her daughter; they are very slim with very small hip-to-waist ratios." We are all different, and beautiful in our differences.
The corset was a great success, and was shaped just like the original. It may have been made for a young woman, but I wonder if it could also have been made for an older woman. In perimenopause I find that I don't have the waist to hip difference that I had before, and the waist is thicker. I think this is a pretty common phenomenon.
When your face dropped upon realising it doesn't fit right, girl I felt that in my soul! I look forward to the pattern of that second corset, for I too need way more hip room.
That corset is beautiful! I look forward to a whole series of Abby reconstructing historical corsets and making patterns for those of us who want to make our own. 😍
First, this was a success because you wanted to see how a fast fashion corset would fit and just like today, you have to make due with clothes that don't fit well. Second, the cinematography on this video is amazing, Abby!
I believe the first US mail order catalog was the 1887 Montgomery Ward catalog, which would surely have included mass-produced women's corsets. (I haven't yet looked at that catalog, but I have looked through a reprint of the 1908 Sears catalog, and that certainly included women's corsets.) The early mail-order catalogs would ship to any place with a railhead, and shoppers were encouraged to club together with their neighbors to create group orders, which were cheaper to ship on a freight train than umpteen small individual orders.
Abbyyyy! Okay, I am late to the party (and very much behind with following Patreon updates), but I just have to tell you: Firstly, the first part of the video felt so light and calm and happy, the way you took time with the pattern and fabric and didn't seem rushed or stressed about it, it was really relaxing and it made me smile. Then it got way more serious with the history and I am really glad you said all that (and I bet you have way more to say as you're working on the book!) and brought attention to the way the industry changed over centuries but the sexism basically did not. And then I was almost crying with you when you tried the corset on. For sure it was made for a different body type or more like for an approximation of some body types... but then the p.s. at the end! The other corset looks great with the curve for the hips (that's a shape I'd personally need, just a bit bigger, heh). It got me really curious about the different shapes of ready made corsets in the same decade/time period. Can this be picked up in the advertisements of the time? Is there period terminology for the different shapes of the corsets of the same era? I'd be very interested in that. So far I mostly thought the shape changed through the decades, but that in one era it was mostly all the same shape...
The production of this video was just excellent, got proper BBC documentary vibes, with the music, the cuts, the voice over being finished by what you say on camera. Chefs kisses! Great video and very informative and thoughtful!
In the 1980s,, in this country, I worked for most of a year at a factory that made clothes of a certain sort. Women did the sewing and quality checks, and kept the sewists supplied which actually meant a lot of heavy lifting for those workers. Men did the cutting machines, also a heavy lifting job. The owners and office staff were highly manipulative, setting new rules as a regular thing that were probably illegal, like telling people that they could ONLY take breaks in the break room, but smokers were allowed to smoke there, and that meant people with asthma would have issues. They would change the required standards, and throw people huge piles of supposedly inferior work to redo. This didn't get paid, as we were paid by piecework. Usually this was during the part of the year when this particular type of clothing wasn't as popular. Lots of stories of mistreatment, manipulation. I had gone to college before this, and soon got out of there, because it was obvious to me how manipulative and illegal things were, but we all felt powerless, and didn't have the money to fight.. Found out the place was closed the next year. Just to point out, that unscrupulous owners and office staff are still around, and still mistreating people and doing illegal things to manipulate the workers.
You looked like you were going to cry there when you tried her on. Thank you for being so vulnerable about your experience with this. It shows that all of us go through these disappointments with garments we are so excited about making them and it turns out they just don't work. And that's OK. The corset in the end is absolutely gorgeous. You did an excellent job, and thank you for sharing the pattern.
As someone who, while trying to make a corset from an 1890s pattern, had to remove almost ALL the curvature in order to make it fit, I am very excited to try making this! Thank you, Abby!
Have you ever photocopied a garment to replicate? I got to do one years (decades) ago because I had access to a massive machine being used in an architect's office. Copied each segment then cut out the parts to use as a pattern. It worked.
That sounds really cool! I'm not sure if it would work for this corset, because so few sections are flat without any kind of curve or additions, and it's not possible to take it apart into flat panels.
The light from the photocopier might damage the materials of historical garments as well. A lot of museums keep the lights low where they display textiles for just this reason. But it's still a cool idea, especially to replicate something bought/made more recently.
This may be one of my favourite videos you've ever made Abby. Not necessarily because of the content, although it's fantastic subject matter as usual, but because the editing and production go crazy hard on this one. I'm so excited to see what comes of that 2nd corset project
The corset you were reproducing may have been marketed as a "young misses'" corset, intended for teenage girls not yet as curvy as their mothers (what would be called "junior" sizes nowadays).
The end of your videos are the best, whether it is bloopers (best of the best) or like, in this video, you have proven your point that all bodies are beautiful.
This was such a lovely video. I often make a thing for myself and hate the way it fits. I thought I was just bad at sewing. It never once occurred to me that it's a pattern sizing and lack of body diversity issue ( I'm on the line between petite and misses, I'm also curvy and short waisted). Thank you for your vulnerability in showing this truth ON YOUR OWN BODY! Thank you for showing that even people with vastly more skill than I possess still have this experience when they sew. Thank you for sharing you emotional processing safe space with us. You're a rock star.
Oh, this one was made for me! Not my size but this is my SHAPE. I've been wanting to delve into the world of historical clothing (or, historically inspired at least) and understand that holding up all those skirts and petticoats absolutely required a corset, but just couldn't see how my straight up and down figure was ever going to fit the clothing style without copious padding at the top and bottom. This is a total revelation and I'm so glad you made this video. Also, I have a Singer treadle machine that needs repairs and watching you work at yours has given me the nudge I needed to get it done.
Now us telephone poles (or as someone earlier in the comments said, "unenthusiastic cylinders") need some advice on how to get stuff to stay up! And also how to pad things for the right silhouette and still have a garment that stays on... I am familiar with trying to keep heavy stuff you're wearing from migrating where it doesn't belong and my solution so far to the lack of hips to keep a belt up has been to sew belt loops onto my gambeson (padded) vest for my leg armour (I do medieval amoured combat in plate steel armour) after too many situations where I had to belt up so tight I was uncomforable and unable to belly breathe properly and still wound up with bruised hips from my belt trying to slide off my hips, and I genuinely wonder how a corset will stay up without shoulder straps, and how uncomfortable those shoulder straps are going to get if I am hanging all the petticoats etc off it. With my armour, most of the weight hangs off my gorget (think a custom-made metal collar that fits over your shoulders and down your chest a bit, kind of like the yoke on a garment?) but that's a whole lot more suface area to spread out over than a couple skinny straps, plus the padded vest underneath... It boggles the mind, but there were obviously less curvy people then as well as really curvy ones and somehow they still made it work...
I feel that, (as someone who feels comfortable behind a sewing machine and drafting patterns to their own body type to another), you were incredibly courageous to rerpoduce this *mass produced garment* and hope for any fit at all, even for the sake of a video. You spend a week on that garment, for anything more half an hour work behind the sewing machine I would want to double and triple check my current sizes, and measure my pattern to see whether it really will fit before I even touch my fabric shears. I wouldn't expect a proper fit from anything store bought. Being dropped in the 1800s would do nothing to dissuade me from my skepticism. We as a society lost so much when clothes started to be mass produced.
"That is embarrassing for them" hahaha. I love your videos! The documentary style really suit you and your videographer skills have improved. Thank you, I learn so much every time I click a video (and I am a more curvy body type and will wait for corset #2...).
Wonderful video as usual! Thanks for sharing your “failure”, aka the perfect replication of an existing garment without tweaks 😉 And thanks for being vulnerable in sharing your disappointment with the outcome. Something all makers experience now and then, right? I liked the bonus content at the end too. Can’t wait to see the video with the newly arrived corset, whenever that might be. So grateful that you keep producing such thoughtful content ❤
Fellow anxiety haver here. I'm so happy you saw this project through! The coda really drives how little fast fashion has changed since the 19-teens. I'm still trying on a bunch of sizes, and my choices are dependant on varying styles and cuts-be it bras or jeans. This video gave me kinship with the people of the past, your struggles, and the struggles of my fellow youtube comments. And I think that's a beautiful gift.
"Something rude about the corset that you made" There, someone said it and now you can ignore all that come after me :P. But now having watched the entire thing I like that you had the bonus content with the other corset for a different body distribution because when I saw your initial reaction to the red one that you made my first thought was "Y'know there was probably at least one person in the time period who had the exact same reaction because they didn't order the right thing for them from the catalogue". And now I'm wondering how common 'catalogue remorse' actually was because for a long time they're ordering based on, not even a photograph but an illustration. And in the modern era I'm so paranoid about how I spend my money that I barely trust photographs, the idea of trusting an illustration of the product I'm buying sounds completely insane to me. All that being said I wonder if there are any savage 'catalogue buyer's remorse' reviews from the time period, and how I would find them.
I wanted to say that this channel has been an invaluable resource to me as I wrote my Regency-Era Paranormal-Historical-Romance/Gothic Horror novels. The heroines of my first two novels (the first being a member of the landed gentry/upper class, the second being a highly educated woman of the middle class who marries up into the aristocracy) are dressed in the most sumptuous of clothing and finery. Your channel has afforded me a great deal of insight into the day-to-day reality of procuring, dressing, and wearing such clothing, and I really do appreciate it. Thank you so much. Keep the videos coming, as my third book brings the action into the Mid-Victorian-Era of the 1860's (as well as flash-forwards to 1975...Like I said...Paranormal) Learning a lot about crinolines! P.S. I think you did a fine job on your corset, but you make it however you want it to be, my friend!
It's wild to know that pretty much as long as off-the-rack fashion has been a thing, women have been dealing with fit issues with the garments that they buy and those garments have been made by other women who are in turn exploited. It's truly been a vicious cycle. As a Massachusetts resident, it's haunting seeing how much Worcester came up in the pictures.
The face you made at the end was.... yes. As a large woman who has always been tall, I've made it more times than I can count when I go clothes shopping. Honestly, I got into sewing because of that.
Your disappointment so beautifully captures the frustration we often feel when shopping for fast fashion clothing items, given the variation in our real bodies. This is one of the reasons I hate the emotional impact of clothes shopping: I always end up feeling bad about myself when much of the ready made clothing out there are made for a body type not my own. And truly, I’m generally very body neutral. I cannot wait until you complete the NEW pattern for the second corset. I very much have a figure that would not work well with the first corset, but very possibly could for the second. Thank you for doing all this work and sharing it with us. It’s not easy to be so vulnerable with veritable strangers. Also, I’m so excited you have a DFTBA store! I very much want to buy that corset pattern to support your work, but I’d never use it, due to my aforementioned body type 😅. That said, I’m gonna see what else you’ve got available there - this Nerdfighter is a fan of this crossover 😊
Thank you for posting this. Your "beautiful corset made for a different body" is a good description. I recently made my first corset with the pattern by Clockwork Fairy. Her first draft fit me nearly perfectly. Her second draft that I boldly did in my nice fabric didn't fit me at all and the disappointment was a lot. This has made me feel a lot better. Thanks as always for your wonderful videos
You made, as usual a very interestung and informative video. Thankyou! Interesting you mentioned that girls often left school early and be pressured to work. Sadly, there are still families and areas of the western world where this still stands. Im an Australlian child of the 70's, and when i was 15, my father, a blue collar worker restoring cars much of his life, pressured me heavily to leave school and get work. I was the only girl in a larger family in all branches, of males, and all petrol heads at that. His exact words were, when I was choosing subjects for year 11, "well, you should just leave now and go work, the engine factory at Lonsdale as jobs going...as do several other outfits down 'ere...". I was so heavily pressured and so unsupported in my desire for higher education, I had to actually leave home and be homeless for a period of time, as a teenager, as my family saw my desire for education as a snub to them. We think of a decent education today as a basic right, but some are still struggling to remain supported in higher education - believe it or not! Thanks for an amazing video!
I agree about therapy being good and needs to be accessible. I love your videos and your dogs. I wish I was a millionaire though so you wouldn't have to accept sponsorship from that site.
The storytelling in this vid is superb, Abby! So lucky we get to see such beautiful examples of two artforms - historical reproduction and videography - while also learning about the history of our clothes and society. Thank you for all this work!
Loved this! Yeah, I think you demonstrated very well how and why mass protruded stuff will always be limited for fitting. The final make looks gorgeous, so I hope you can tweak it to fit you better so you can get more use out of it.
I really like the style and feel of this video. It's different from your usual style and feel and I really enjoyed it. It made me feel like I was in a calm safe place, almost like watching a Ghibli movie.
I wish i had a sewing room like this instead of my tiny bedroom. Also this gives me motivation to finish my regency petticoat and dress and work on my robe a la francaise!
This is a beautifully shot, scripted, edited and produced video. You’re constantly raising the bar and it’s so inspiring. Thanks for being here and sharing your talents and knowledge with us. 🌸☀️🥰
Dang Abby! A greatly researched AND edited video like holy crap the production quality was through the roof! That photo time lapse while you drafted and cut the pattern was amazing.
I'm proud of you for not titling this with a catchy title like "Corsets are mysogynist!(but not in the way you think!) You're giving this a great deal of respect and infection, which I greatly appreciate
Yup, I thoroughly enjoyed this format and I also think that the corset that you made is gorgeous. It may not suit your body type, but it is a gorgeous corset nonetheless. I cannot wait for you to make a pattern from your latest treasure though! 😍
I absolutely love this video and how much history it unearthed. I am a firm believer that there are some things you simply can not learn without physically experiencing them. This project was an all-over amazing success!! Thank you for filming, producing, and posting it. Much love to you from here in the ville!
Abby, this has to be the most beautifully produced video I've seen in a really long time. I genuinely appreciate the angle you took and the honesty you showed us. The homage to the corset makers is beautiful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart ❤️
I've watched your videos from the start and today your charm really shined through. Your high quality sewing skills paid off in a beautiful corset, and we all learned from you - fast fashion is still the same as it always was. I loved seeing the historical part, putting it all in context. It's great to see you so comfortable in your self, high five!
The production value, research, incredible B-roll, all of it.... you are not just an amazing sewist, you're a filmmaker! You should be on TV (but you're too good for TV). I'm just barely getting good at handsewing -- I sold my machine when I moved. But I'm not letting that stop me from enjoying my projects! It's for fun anyway- and sewing by hand makes me appreciate each garment so much.
The corset you made is so pretty and the contrasting details 👨🍳💋..so sad it didn't fit correctly. I am glad to see you have another lady in your collection now that you can recreate and have it fit better.
This was very interesting! I wear a corset daily as a brace for my Spinal Stenosis, and different corset types are a THING! I buy mine from Orchard Corset, and the difference in the waist to hip and waist to rib ratios really make a HUGE difference. I find the one that fits me best and gives me the best support is ALSO the one that gives that va-va-VOOM figure, which sounds awesome, but in reality I hide it under baggie clothes. I can’t wait for the next corset video!
Beautiful job! While the corset didn't fit you properly, your research was on the spot. It turned out lovely. You should be proud of all your hard work. I think you should definitely make the second "new" one. I want to thank you for your video on the history of sewing machines. It helped me identify an antique one that came through the thrift store I work at. It was a Wilcox and Gibbs sewing machine. It really caused a stir at work. It was soo cute.
The film work in this video was genuinely wonderful! I’m in love with the work you do! Also, I loved the corset even though it wasn’t what you wanted in the end, objectively it is beautiful.❤️
I do love how I am not the only person out there with a long torso. One of the main reasons why I chose to start sewing is because I usually cannot find my size in the shops. Sadly this coreset will not be the pattern for me either but I absolutely loved watching this video, just I have enjoyed watching your other videos. Thank you Abby!
First of all I think you did a fantastic job on the corset that you made. 😊 I know from experience making corsets from originals is difficult. I have wearing living history clothes for my job for years. I have never been able to find a corset that fits me right. I think to get one I would need a lot of help or go to someone who knew what they were doing. I have tried to make my own and failed miserably. I have sent my measurements in and tried to get one made for me and they don't fit well either. I see it almost as an art form and one that takes practice. I do think you did a lovely job! Also I believe you are 100% right, one pattern does not fit all especially when it comes to corsetry.
This video was beautifully done, Abby, and so was the corset! When it didn't end up fitting you, I wasn’t* surprised since this is essentially the "beginnings" of fast fashion. I can't wait to see how the new corset turns out. I have to say, though, between the thorough dive through history and perspective and your overall experience reconstructing the corset, my absolute favourite has to be the way you shot this entire video. ESPECIALLY the tracking shot at 6:54. That was so cool to see and must have taken a lot of work to set up. Edit: meant “wasn’t”, not “was”
I have a mighty need for your mighty need to be satiated with the newest corset. Already stoked for that content to drop when you're able to get to it.
If you'd like to make this corset for yourself... store.dftba.com/collections/abby-cox/products/1880-1890s-antique-victorian-corset-pattern-pdf (if you do make it, please tag me on IG or Tiktok or wherever you post about it!
7:18 ummm, PERFECT time lapse moment!! 🔥🔥🔥 Well done, Abby!
I watched all the way to the end (I'M A RIDE OR DIE VIEWER!) and I was so happy to see that your opinion of your corset had modified. You worked so hard on that, and I thought you did a wonderful job! Keep up the great work, my friend!
maybe it shows up later in the video than I am, but what did you use to stiffen the fabric?
It may have been cornstarch, there's a previous video where Abby stiffens the collar of a shirt with it
@@danielacrucesperez6901 thanks!
Perhaps the woman who bought the original also didn't like how it fit, and hence didn't wear it that much - thus its survival.
Aka the bra you hate
Good point!
Very logical point
pure speculation! I noticed that Abby didn't pull the laces very tightly toward the top...which might have made some difference...
@@tandyjen Lol, yeah, sentences that begin with the word "perhaps" do tend to be speculative...
So men slammed on women making corsets early on, because it was a man's job, then they slammed on women making corsets, because women shouldn't wear corsets? Insecure males can be indecipherable sometimes.
I’m currently writing this chapter for my book and I’m flipping tables over here I’m so mad lol
They said the same things about men being shop assistants and window dressers. I think men were secretly terrified that women could actually be good at something in a "man's world" and used every excuse to gate keep.
“And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you”. It’s just the curse of sin that causes these issues.
Well done! Yes I’d like to see the second corset. My aunt worked in the mills in Nashua NH in the 1940’s. She left school after 8th grade to support her family. She always loved and supported her family, but wanted the rest of us to get an education so we “would not have to sacrifice ourselves like that.”
@@christinareynolds8179religious cringe.
One of the saddest things about the Triangle Shirt Waist fire is that so died because because they were locked in by the management to prevent unscheduled breaks or garment theft - their lives literally less important to the owners than the risk of a minuscule hit in profits.
I started researching it a while ago, cause I was thinking about a video, and I was just so upset reading the news articles from the period that I had to put it aside. Just horrible
So basically, they worked for Shein.
It's such a tragedy
There is quite a bit of info on the triangle fire. Adding a couple 3 well researched links to your description should be enough. Unless you have something to add to the research, and you can do it without traumatizing yourself too much. It is an important part of our history, in so many ways, but you aren't the only historian who can do this. It's not being forgotten right now.
Watching the New York City (Ric Burns) documentary section on the fire is really brutal. It's infuriating that the owners basically got away with what they did.
As you know, things haven't gotten much better. My mother was blind and a seamstress for the state of Kansas from the 1970s through the 1990s. She was paid piece work. I can't ever remember her getting over $500 a month for her work. Not only was her work undervalued for being a seamstress, she was also paid much less than an able bodied worker would have been paid, because they were giving this poor woman who had no other options work, something that goes on to this day. But! She was an excellent seamstress, and I still haven't had clothes that fit better or looked better than what she made me. She also had a very rich life outside of work. She had many friends and she was an advocate for the handicapped and was instrumental in getting the ADA passed. She taught me how to fight and advocate. And she taught me that people don't have to be exactly alike to be friends.
Sounds like you should write a book about her. She sounds amazing!
@@m.maclellan7147I second that. She sounds like the type of woman whose life history deserves a book - or a movie. We need more stories of wonderful ordinarily extraordinary women and of wonderful people who lived full, rich lives while having a disability and having to face all the additional challenges that came with it - as if sexism wasn't difficult enough.
It’s terrible how little that skilled “women’s work” is valued to this day. Your mother sounds like she was an amazing woman.
Dang what a badass.
Thank you to your mother for getting us some rights! ❤❤
As a grown woman with a body like an unenthusiastic cylinder, seeing this corset was a joy. Seeing the two antique garments side by side at the end said far more, far better about body diversity than anything ever could.
"Unenethusiastic cylinder" finally, a perfect description of my figure. Thanks!
@@annematusiewicz3712 Me too. This was a real breath of fresh air - a corset made for the "unenthusiastic cylinders" of the world.
Nee "athletically built." My gram's and mom's description. 🙄
"unenthusiastic cylinder", ooh that may well replace my "dad-bod with boobs" self-description
The singer Pink is this shape, and it's not held her back one jot :) here's to all the cylinder ladies. You're the perfect shape for a kimono!
You've demonstrated that the "I hate jeans shopping" problem has existed since the start of "off the rack" fashion. This gives me a fellow feeling with not only the women who made the corsets but also those who went shopping for them, spent a chunk of their cash on this expensive-compared-to-wages garment, and then disappointedly had to find some way to deal with it until the next time they could afford a new one. Just like when we buy the jeans we can find and afford that come the closest to fitting.
At least back then people could 'accentuate' and it was just part of it. Now my clothing has formed me to have rolls and it would not be acceptable for me to corset and pad out for the right shape. I sometimes hate wearing clothing at all but if I have to, why can't I feel good in them?
I think that the failure highlights something we all know from fast fashion - off the rack garments - I can buy it to fit my waist or I can buy it to fit my hips I can't buy it to fit both. And that's before we try to add boobs to the equation.
Or height... I know I need to start making my own clothes (or heavily altering purchased stuff) but that's a bit outside my capacity rn
Oh yes, this. I'm three "sizes" in one body.
This. If I buy stuff to fit my boobs, then I will look like I'm wearing a sack. If I buy it to fit the rest, then my boobs are popping out like superman.
@@MicheleKire Because of an accident my right leg is an inch & a half shorter than my left. Which makes getting pants that fit a ain't in the ass! Everything I buy has to be shortened to fit me properly.
@@bellablue5285 Because of an accident my right leg is an inch & a half shorter than my left. Which makes getting pants that fit a ain't in the ass! Everything I buy has to be shortened to fit me properly.
But, the experiment DIDN'T fail, if anything, it was an overall success. You made as close as an exact replica as possible, which is AMAZING & you proved that fast fashion has NEVER been inclusive of varied bodies, hehehe, historical times weren't as romantic as we want to believe. Well done & thanx for taking us along
This! ❤
Facts!
absolutely right. didn't fail at all. yielded some nice data and insights. complete success.
Wasn't the whole point about it not fitting that this corset was likely made to accommodate a different body type though? And that this wasn't the only type they made and sold. Even though they were mass manufactured, these corsets still had a pretty large variety of different sizes and proportions. This experiment proved some stuff, but definitely not that fast fashion has never been inclusive of different bodies.
you know this exact corset wasn't for every body but there were various types of corsets for various body types. it made me rethink my "I hate shopping" feeling. there *is* stuff out there that fits me and is made for me I just have to find it in a sea of stuff that *isn't* made for me. And that's the part that's hard and frustrating.
THIS IS CINEMA
This video really feels like it's in conversation with yours about the Regency overgrown and having the artisans stitch their names into it! We value people's labor!
When you were saying that you don't want to risk destroying the corset for the sake of curiosity I was full braced for you to say some variant of "I'm not a Kardashian":P
Same! That Marilin Monroe dress fail was an embarassment and a big damn failure
I don't understand why no one stopped her and why she didn't just hire someone to make a copy that fits her and call it an homage, everyone would aplaude that
@2nouli the worst part is that she DID have an exact replica that she wore to the actual party. She decided to destroy the original for the red carpet
@@datBean это ужасно! Насколько эгоистичной и глупой надо быть, чтобы уничтожить музейный экспонат только ради собственного, излишне раздутого эго. Я не представляю как она оправдывалась перед хранителями музея. И я уверена что все хранители музея буквально рыдали над испорченным платьем. Я бы рыдала.
@@2nouliBc wearing the original is the status symbol. Any decent seamtress with a lil cash for materials could make a copy that perfectly fits.
I wish current designers recognized that different torso lengths exists, and women are different heights. The fact that most women’s size charts don’t even include length information is just ridiculous.
My younger sister and I were very close in height.
I have a LONG torso and short legs, she had long legs and a very short torso ! Back in the day, her "3/4 length" jeans were full length on me.
We also carry our weight differently. I am more pear shape, she more apple.
We stopped sharing clothes when she hit puberty as the differences were extreme.
Length would be an awesome addition... I have to size up multiple sizes usually just to be able to raise my arms without flashing anyone when I wear women's tops, and while I can get away with ringer tees outside work (such as while shopping), those don't fly at work.
I finally found a source for 36 in inseam trousers, but the long torso on top not yet, unless I shop the men's dept.
Burda sizing has petite ( 160 cm height), average (168 cm ) and tall ( 174 cm) sizing
@@galiyaismakova4249That’s a nice start, but 174cm isn’t tall. And a 14cm difference between petite and tall is laughable.
When I was a teenager in the 90s it was almost impossible to find a one piece swimsuit that was long enough on my body. And this was before tankinis were a thing really, so it was have a one piece that digs into shoulders or rides up..... there, or a bikini. My mom actually made a couple of my swimsuits for that exact reason.
I was in ballet and leotard makers got it, why couldn't swimsuit makers get it?
If this video was featured on Disney+, Abby would have a corset that affects her breathing and then with one song, she tears it apart ‘coz patriarchy is when you burn bras and corsets which ‘constrict’ women.
💀😂
the bras in question didn't even burn well. too much plastic.
At the famous rally, ONE bra was burned along with a lot of other articles representing oppression to those in attendance.
Bra’s were INVENTED by women.
This experience you had trying on this corset is so similar to almost every bra-trying-on (or pants) experience I’ve ever had. You pick something out thinking it might fit given the labelled size, and you realize it was made for a body type that is totally not yours, which is so demoralizing. This says a lot about mass-manufactured garments-it’s such an insight to see how little has really changed after 120 years. Women have been likely dealing with that feeling of their bodies not being “right” for a long time.
Which is sad, because it's the clothes that aren't right.
Your reaction to trying on the replica reminded me of every time I have gone to a store and tried on clothes that clearly were not made with my body proportions in mind.
I had the exact same feeling seeing her react like that.
Sigh. I was so excited about the Soprano brand because most of their pieces fit me like a glove (small bust, smallish waist, wide hips)! Now they're out of business and a lot of my clothes have holes.
@@emilysha418maybe you could try to have your favourite pieces reproduced? I sometimes do it with easier patterns if my favourite one falls apart.
@PLKinka, mind you, finding a seamstress or tailor who can do a project from scratch like this is not easy. But that is a good idea!
@@PLKinka I did do that! It was a bit of a bumpy ride because it took 6, 6 months to get them, but well worth it I think. The dress I had remade was one of those lucky fast fashion finds, a simple long sleeve A-line that lasted close to 10 years even with a ton of wear (I kept it out of the dryer for the most part). Now I'm thinking I should just learn to sew because shopping makes me so hekkin mad. My mom was a seamstress, but I can only to the very basics and never figured out sewing machines.
As a teen, that corset you made fits EXACTLY with my measurements, that is crazy! And really cool to see my body represented in past clothing!
Holy production value Batman! Am I watching PBS or something? In fact this is nicer than most of what’s on the Create channel
Thank you! I really pushed myself for this video and I had a lot of fun making it ❤️
I thought it felt like PBS too! Which, as someone raised on PBS, gives me a cozy feeling.
Why television channels are not grabbing up youtube creators to make quality programs is beyond me. Videos like these are as good as BBC history programs- just with a lower budget.
@annematusiewicz3712 I mean, PBS does sponsor some UA-cam channels.
@@annematusiewicz3712 I'm glad they don't do it as often anymore. Kills the YT-channel and the TV productions are usually subpar.
Informative video. Beautiful corset. As a professional nerd, I checked out the Connecticut study discussed around timestamp 16:00. The report does not report wages that meet or exceed a "Living Wage," but $7.00 a day was considered "barely a living wage." Of all women, 48% made less than $7.00. 50% of corset workers made less than $7.00 (pages 16-17). As your video indicates, corset workers were also charged for the material. If 1/3 was docked from their wages, they would need at least $10-11/day to barely make a living wage. 2% to 4% of women in the corset industry made $10 to $11/day.
Reminds me of how you only have to pay servers around $2.50/hr. Bosses have always gotten away with highway robbery if they could. Join/form a union!
Thanks for sharing your research results!
“That’s embarrassing for them” is the healthiest response to dealing with jerks. ❤
So glad you added the ending. I don’t want to say the video was a Debbie downer, but I could tell that you weren’t happy with the work. You seem so much happier and more - shall I say your old self? I hope you continue toget JOY from this process. You have a gift and I think that it is important to do things for the love of that gift. Spoken like a true grandmother of 63! 😄
The way you turned this video into a tribute to the nameless corset makers was so profoundly beautiful. Great job both on the experiment and narration ❤
Your experiment didn't fail. Your results weren't what you were expecting. You followed the pattern perfectly, and re-created a historical garment.
I struggle to find clothes that fit correctly, and I'm an "average size".
I guess it depends whether the goal of the experiment was to get a functional corset they fits her body or to gather some historical information. I imagine it was a little of both
"I didn't do anything wrong; I just have anxiety" - mood
Meanwhile, that off-the-rack corset was made for people like me, with all the curvy charm of a telephone pole.
💀
padding, it's easier to fit you than my daughter who's super curvy.... 14" difference between bust and underbust (30.5" underbust, 27" waist then flaring to wide hips that are 17" wider than her waist...
@@adelinawarriner6259 Fellow phone pole her, and all the padding in the world won't keep my pants from sliding off my lack of hips. I want to make a corset and see if it will even stay up without shoulder straps, I'm guessing not... Bodies are a challenge whether they're extreme or not. "averages" fit almost nobody.
@MossyMozart, When my SIL was shopping with me for her wedding dress, she wanted to get a dress from a local Vancouver, BC, designer.
She tried on a number of beautiful cocktail dresses that were obviously designed for people like you, but fit horribly on her.
Fortunately she was able to find a beautiful, simple, embroidered cocktail dress that fit her curves beautifully.
I was very happy for her.
It's great seeing others with bodies like mine in the comments! I affectionately describe my body shape as a soft brick 💖🧱💖
So many people go with the 'of course, all corsets were custom made'. Errr no.
I wonder how long it will take for there to be different undergarment trends, and for people to discover old sewing patterns and say "oh course, everyone made their own bras back then!
I saw no failure anywhere in this video. Replicating historical clothing is so amazing and you did it well.
Your quote, Experiments Fail, is generally what I say for projects I make for others, not every project is a win.
If they're always succeeding you're not experimenting enough!
One could even say that if some experiments don't fail, you might not be experimenting hard enough. I always tell my kid when he's trying and failing something: finding what doesn't work is usually the first step to finding what does work. (Yeah, it's a paraphrased Thomas Edison quote. I never claimed to be original, lol)
You know, what is so funny is that I have an extreme hourglass shape. One of the things that ground my self esteem down so much was fast fashion. It actually encouraged me to learn to sew my own garments. The fact that nothing fit my body shape was always soul crushing. Seeing that second corset at the end kind of brought it full circle. There are so many body shapes and types. I understand that feeling of disappointment putting on something and it just doesn’t fit right. But I appreciate how you wanted to reconstruct the corset as it was in addition to thinking about the women who made it.
I'm the curvy corset type my meausrements are 48 36 46... I look forward to your making a copy of that curvy corset, and perhaps a downloadable pattern for it.
Great video. Not all the women who worked in the garment trade are anonymous. My great-grandmother did piece work from her tenement on the Lower East Side of New York City. She did not work in a factory but witnessed the women jumping from windows to escape the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company. She lived a long and happy life, and had many successful decendants who built on her legacy of hard work. I think about her often and that clothes are still made in sub-standard conditions but we have just off-shored it, so it more hidden from our daily lives.
Hey that's a beautiful corset, and as far as I'm concerned, it's not a failed experiment, it, as you rightly point out at the end, shows how much diversity there was even in mass-manufacturing! And it also illustrates how annoying it would've been to buy second hand or being given someone's old corset and have to wear something ill-fitting because that's all you could afford. I look forward to the second pattern, as I have a similar body type to yours! Bonne chance 😘
I’m glad the second corset was able to save you from your spiral, anxiety is a real jerk
There are multiple moments where my heart is breaking: for the women in the factories (then and now!), for you after trying it on.
But this video is so real and shows a lot of emotion and empathy. Thank you for the hard work!
I love the fact you are so sensitive in presenting this. You are so brave to post this and your heartfelt consciousness of the conditions the girls worked in. Sweat shops are not a new thing. A great reminder Bravo. Thank you
As someone who is still trying to get bras that fit properly because apparently I've spent my entire life without them, I feel for you with this one. It's not a failure. You craftswork was beautiful and perfect. You did exactly what you set out to do and it's neither your fault nor the corset's fault that you weren't made for each other. I am looking forward to the video for the second girl, though, because that's *my* preferred style too. And I've wanted an actual made-for-me corset for years now. Maybe it'd be more comfortable than these bras that are never quite right.
I was just wondering yesterday: while watch Morgan Donners' video: "when will Abby put out a new video?" Thank you. Your passion for fashion is so informative and thought provoking,
I love how she dives so deeply into the sociology of fashion, too.
I was getting Abby Cox withdrawal, myself. Thank goodness we got our 'fix'
Duuuuuuude! I love the surprise marvel movie ending. I remember hearing about the triangle factory fire in high school and even watching a movie they made about it. It was the first instance of learning about the really crappy working conditions during the industrial age of America, and it is a constant reminder with fast fashion, that these conditions are still super prevalent today.
You did such a service to the women and girls that have lived this reality and I get emotional thinking about it. We should really start calling you "Abby (Every video is a banger) Cox".
Just saying.
I’m sorry it didn’t fit you. The project and video made up a loving tribute to the lady corset makers that came before.
That "fail" looks like it would fit me PERFECTLY. I have a 29 inch waist and a body that looks just like that pattern.
Yes, I was looking at that "fail" corset and thinking, "It would fit my bestie, or her daughter; they are very slim with very small hip-to-waist ratios." We are all different, and beautiful in our differences.
The corset was a great success, and was shaped just like the original. It may have been made for a young woman, but I wonder if it could also have been made for an older woman. In perimenopause I find that I don't have the waist to hip difference that I had before, and the waist is thicker. I think this is a pretty common phenomenon.
When your face dropped upon realising it doesn't fit right, girl I felt that in my soul!
I look forward to the pattern of that second corset, for I too need way more hip room.
I'm loving the format. Super impressed at how far you've come in your journey as a Creator.
That corset is beautiful! I look forward to a whole series of Abby reconstructing historical corsets and making patterns for those of us who want to make our own. 😍
First, this was a success because you wanted to see how a fast fashion corset would fit and just like today, you have to make due with clothes that don't fit well. Second, the cinematography on this video is amazing, Abby!
Seeing the two different corsets at the end was such a great reminder that not all pieces are for all body shapes!
I believe the first US mail order catalog was the 1887 Montgomery Ward catalog, which would surely have included mass-produced women's corsets. (I haven't yet looked at that catalog, but I have looked through a reprint of the 1908 Sears catalog, and that certainly included women's corsets.) The early mail-order catalogs would ship to any place with a railhead, and shoppers were encouraged to club together with their neighbors to create group orders, which were cheaper to ship on a freight train than umpteen small individual orders.
Abbyyyy!
Okay, I am late to the party (and very much behind with following Patreon updates), but I just have to tell you:
Firstly, the first part of the video felt so light and calm and happy, the way you took time with the pattern and fabric and didn't seem rushed or stressed about it, it was really relaxing and it made me smile.
Then it got way more serious with the history and I am really glad you said all that (and I bet you have way more to say as you're working on the book!) and brought attention to the way the industry changed over centuries but the sexism basically did not.
And then I was almost crying with you when you tried the corset on. For sure it was made for a different body type or more like for an approximation of some body types... but then the p.s. at the end! The other corset looks great with the curve for the hips (that's a shape I'd personally need, just a bit bigger, heh). It got me really curious about the different shapes of ready made corsets in the same decade/time period. Can this be picked up in the advertisements of the time? Is there period terminology for the different shapes of the corsets of the same era? I'd be very interested in that. So far I mostly thought the shape changed through the decades, but that in one era it was mostly all the same shape...
The production of this video was just excellent, got proper BBC documentary vibes, with the music, the cuts, the voice over being finished by what you say on camera. Chefs kisses! Great video and very informative and thoughtful!
In the 1980s,, in this country, I worked for most of a year at a factory that made clothes of a certain sort. Women did the sewing and quality checks, and kept the sewists supplied which actually meant a lot of heavy lifting for those workers. Men did the cutting machines, also a heavy lifting job.
The owners and office staff were highly manipulative, setting new rules as a regular thing that were probably illegal, like telling people that they could ONLY take breaks in the break room, but smokers were allowed to smoke there, and that meant people with asthma would have issues. They would change the required standards, and throw people huge piles of supposedly inferior work to redo. This didn't get paid, as we were paid by piecework. Usually this was during the part of the year when this particular type of clothing wasn't as popular. Lots of stories of mistreatment, manipulation. I had gone to college before this, and soon got out of there, because it was obvious to me how manipulative and illegal things were, but we all felt powerless, and didn't have the money to fight.. Found out the place was closed the next year.
Just to point out, that unscrupulous owners and office staff are still around, and still mistreating people and doing illegal things to manipulate the workers.
You looked like you were going to cry there when you tried her on. Thank you for being so vulnerable about your experience with this. It shows that all of us go through these disappointments with garments we are so excited about making them and it turns out they just don't work. And that's OK.
The corset in the end is absolutely gorgeous. You did an excellent job, and thank you for sharing the pattern.
As someone who, while trying to make a corset from an 1890s pattern, had to remove almost ALL the curvature in order to make it fit, I am very excited to try making this! Thank you, Abby!
Have you ever photocopied a garment to replicate? I got to do one years (decades) ago because I had access to a massive machine being used in an architect's office. Copied each segment then cut out the parts to use as a pattern. It worked.
That sounds really cool! I'm not sure if it would work for this corset, because so few sections are flat without any kind of curve or additions, and it's not possible to take it apart into flat panels.
The light from the photocopier might damage the materials of historical garments as well. A lot of museums keep the lights low where they display textiles for just this reason. But it's still a cool idea, especially to replicate something bought/made more recently.
love your unplanned, very authentic, quirky bonus content at the end!
It's like a marvel movie 😊
Bonus content
This may be one of my favourite videos you've ever made Abby. Not necessarily because of the content, although it's fantastic subject matter as usual, but because the editing and production go crazy hard on this one. I'm so excited to see what comes of that 2nd corset project
The corset you were reproducing may have been marketed as a "young misses'" corset, intended for teenage girls not yet as curvy as their mothers (what would be called "junior" sizes nowadays).
A good theory. That would explain why it wasn't worn much. Only for a few years until the preteen needed a bigger size.
The end of your videos are the best, whether it is bloopers (best of the best) or like, in this video, you have proven your point that all bodies are beautiful.
👏 I completely agree 💯
This was such a lovely video. I often make a thing for myself and hate the way it fits. I thought I was just bad at sewing. It never once occurred to me that it's a pattern sizing and lack of body diversity issue ( I'm on the line between petite and misses, I'm also curvy and short waisted). Thank you for your vulnerability in showing this truth ON YOUR OWN BODY! Thank you for showing that even people with vastly more skill than I possess still have this experience when they sew. Thank you for sharing you emotional processing safe space with us. You're a rock star.
Oh, this one was made for me! Not my size but this is my SHAPE. I've been wanting to delve into the world of historical clothing (or, historically inspired at least) and understand that holding up all those skirts and petticoats absolutely required a corset, but just couldn't see how my straight up and down figure was ever going to fit the clothing style without copious padding at the top and bottom. This is a total revelation and I'm so glad you made this video. Also, I have a Singer treadle machine that needs repairs and watching you work at yours has given me the nudge I needed to get it done.
Now us telephone poles (or as someone earlier in the comments said, "unenthusiastic cylinders") need some advice on how to get stuff to stay up! And also how to pad things for the right silhouette and still have a garment that stays on...
I am familiar with trying to keep heavy stuff you're wearing from migrating where it doesn't belong and my solution so far to the lack of hips to keep a belt up has been to sew belt loops onto my gambeson (padded) vest for my leg armour (I do medieval amoured combat in plate steel armour) after too many situations where I had to belt up so tight I was uncomforable and unable to belly breathe properly and still wound up with bruised hips from my belt trying to slide off my hips, and I genuinely wonder how a corset will stay up without shoulder straps, and how uncomfortable those shoulder straps are going to get if I am hanging all the petticoats etc off it. With my armour, most of the weight hangs off my gorget (think a custom-made metal collar that fits over your shoulders and down your chest a bit, kind of like the yoke on a garment?) but that's a whole lot more suface area to spread out over than a couple skinny straps, plus the padded vest underneath... It boggles the mind, but there were obviously less curvy people then as well as really curvy ones and somehow they still made it work...
I feel that, (as someone who feels comfortable behind a sewing machine and drafting patterns to their own body type to another), you were incredibly courageous to rerpoduce this *mass produced garment* and hope for any fit at all, even for the sake of a video.
You spend a week on that garment, for anything more half an hour work behind the sewing machine I would want to double and triple check my current sizes, and measure my pattern to see whether it really will fit before I even touch my fabric shears.
I wouldn't expect a proper fit from anything store bought. Being dropped in the 1800s would do nothing to dissuade me from my skepticism.
We as a society lost so much when clothes started to be mass produced.
"That is embarrassing for them" hahaha. I love your videos! The documentary style really suit you and your videographer skills have improved. Thank you, I learn so much every time I click a video (and I am a more curvy body type and will wait for corset #2...).
Wonderful video as usual! Thanks for sharing your “failure”, aka the perfect replication of an existing garment without tweaks 😉 And thanks for being vulnerable in sharing your disappointment with the outcome. Something all makers experience now and then, right? I liked the bonus content at the end too. Can’t wait to see the video with the newly arrived corset, whenever that might be. So grateful that you keep producing such thoughtful content ❤
Those old machines make such beautiful straight stitches, what a great tool to do all that contrasting top stitching!
Fellow anxiety haver here. I'm so happy you saw this project through!
The coda really drives how little fast fashion has changed since the 19-teens. I'm still trying on a bunch of sizes, and my choices are dependant on varying styles and cuts-be it bras or jeans.
This video gave me kinship with the people of the past, your struggles, and the struggles of my fellow youtube comments. And I think that's a beautiful gift.
"Something rude about the corset that you made" There, someone said it and now you can ignore all that come after me :P. But now having watched the entire thing I like that you had the bonus content with the other corset for a different body distribution because when I saw your initial reaction to the red one that you made my first thought was "Y'know there was probably at least one person in the time period who had the exact same reaction because they didn't order the right thing for them from the catalogue". And now I'm wondering how common 'catalogue remorse' actually was because for a long time they're ordering based on, not even a photograph but an illustration. And in the modern era I'm so paranoid about how I spend my money that I barely trust photographs, the idea of trusting an illustration of the product I'm buying sounds completely insane to me. All that being said I wonder if there are any savage 'catalogue buyer's remorse' reviews from the time period, and how I would find them.
I wanted to say that this channel has been an invaluable resource to me as I wrote my Regency-Era Paranormal-Historical-Romance/Gothic Horror novels. The heroines of my first two novels (the first being a member of the landed gentry/upper class, the second being a highly educated woman of the middle class who marries up into the aristocracy) are dressed in the most sumptuous of clothing and finery. Your channel has afforded me a great deal of insight into the day-to-day reality of procuring, dressing, and wearing such clothing, and I really do appreciate it. Thank you so much. Keep the videos coming, as my third book brings the action into the Mid-Victorian-Era of the 1860's (as well as flash-forwards to 1975...Like I said...Paranormal)
Learning a lot about crinolines!
P.S. I think you did a fine job on your corset, but you make it however you want it to be, my friend!
It's wild to know that pretty much as long as off-the-rack fashion has been a thing, women have been dealing with fit issues with the garments that they buy and those garments have been made by other women who are in turn exploited. It's truly been a vicious cycle. As a Massachusetts resident, it's haunting seeing how much Worcester came up in the pictures.
The face you made at the end was.... yes. As a large woman who has always been tall, I've made it more times than I can count when I go clothes shopping. Honestly, I got into sewing because of that.
It may not have the shape you wanted, but you made a truly beautiful piece.
Your disappointment so beautifully captures the frustration we often feel when shopping for fast fashion clothing items, given the variation in our real bodies. This is one of the reasons I hate the emotional impact of clothes shopping: I always end up feeling bad about myself when much of the ready made clothing out there are made for a body type not my own. And truly, I’m generally very body neutral.
I cannot wait until you complete the NEW pattern for the second corset. I very much have a figure that would not work well with the first corset, but very possibly could for the second. Thank you for doing all this work and sharing it with us. It’s not easy to be so vulnerable with veritable strangers.
Also, I’m so excited you have a DFTBA store! I very much want to buy that corset pattern to support your work, but I’d never use it, due to my aforementioned body type 😅. That said, I’m gonna see what else you’ve got available there - this Nerdfighter is a fan of this crossover 😊
Thank you for posting this. Your "beautiful corset made for a different body" is a good description. I recently made my first corset with the pattern by Clockwork Fairy. Her first draft fit me nearly perfectly. Her second draft that I boldly did in my nice fabric didn't fit me at all and the disappointment was a lot. This has made me feel a lot better. Thanks as always for your wonderful videos
You made, as usual a very interestung and informative video. Thankyou! Interesting you mentioned that girls often left school early and be pressured to work. Sadly, there are still families and areas of the western world where this still stands. Im an Australlian child of the 70's, and when i was 15, my father, a blue collar worker restoring cars much of his life, pressured me heavily to leave school and get work. I was the only girl in a larger family in all branches, of males, and all petrol heads at that. His exact words were, when I was choosing subjects for year 11, "well, you should just leave now and go work, the engine factory at Lonsdale as jobs going...as do several other outfits down 'ere...". I was so heavily pressured and so unsupported in my desire for higher education, I had to actually leave home and be homeless for a period of time, as a teenager, as my family saw my desire for education as a snub to them. We think of a decent education today as a basic right, but some are still struggling to remain supported in higher education - believe it or not! Thanks for an amazing video!
I agree about therapy being good and needs to be accessible. I love your videos and your dogs. I wish I was a millionaire though so you wouldn't have to accept sponsorship from that site.
The storytelling in this vid is superb, Abby! So lucky we get to see such beautiful examples of two artforms - historical reproduction and videography - while also learning about the history of our clothes and society. Thank you for all this work!
This production was so breathtaking, holy moly. You're really reaching new heights and you produce it for us to view for free. Thank you
Loved this!
Yeah, I think you demonstrated very well how and why mass protruded stuff will always be limited for fitting.
The final make looks gorgeous, so I hope you can tweak it to fit you better so you can get more use out of it.
I really like the style and feel of this video. It's different from your usual style and feel and I really enjoyed it. It made me feel like I was in a calm safe place, almost like watching a Ghibli movie.
Even though it wasn’t meant for your specific body shape your red corset you made is absolutely beautiful ❤❤❤
I wish i had a sewing room like this instead of my tiny bedroom. Also this gives me motivation to finish my regency petticoat and dress and work on my robe a la francaise!
This is a beautifully shot, scripted, edited and produced video. You’re constantly raising the bar and it’s so inspiring. Thanks for being here and sharing your talents and knowledge with us. 🌸☀️🥰
Dang Abby! A greatly researched AND edited video like holy crap the production quality was through the roof! That photo time lapse while you drafted and cut the pattern was amazing.
I'm proud of you for not titling this with a catchy title like "Corsets are mysogynist!(but not in the way you think!)
You're giving this a great deal of respect and infection, which I greatly appreciate
Yup, I thoroughly enjoyed this format and I also think that the corset that you made is gorgeous. It may not suit your body type, but it is a gorgeous corset nonetheless. I cannot wait for you to make a pattern from your latest treasure though! 😍
I absolutely love this video and how much history it unearthed. I am a firm believer that there are some things you simply can not learn without physically experiencing them. This project was an all-over amazing success!! Thank you for filming, producing, and posting it. Much love to you from here in the ville!
Did not realize how much I needed this after spending my week at work looking at vintage (20th cen.) patterns with very little size diversity. Thanks❤
It’s great that people like you are around because they have to be made
The way that this video is written, shot and edited together is absolutely delightful!
Abby, this has to be the most beautifully produced video I've seen in a really long time. I genuinely appreciate the angle you took and the honesty you showed us. The homage to the corset makers is beautiful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart ❤️
I've watched your videos from the start and today your charm really shined through. Your high quality sewing skills paid off in a beautiful corset, and we all learned from you - fast fashion is still the same as it always was. I loved seeing the historical part, putting it all in context. It's great to see you so comfortable in your self, high five!
The production value, research, incredible B-roll, all of it.... you are not just an amazing sewist, you're a filmmaker! You should be on TV (but you're too good for TV).
I'm just barely getting good at handsewing -- I sold my machine when I moved. But I'm not letting that stop me from enjoying my projects! It's for fun anyway- and sewing by hand makes me appreciate each garment so much.
The corset you made is so pretty and the contrasting details 👨🍳💋..so sad it didn't fit correctly. I am glad to see you have another lady in your collection now that you can recreate and have it fit better.
This was very interesting! I wear a corset daily as a brace for my Spinal Stenosis, and different corset types are a THING! I buy mine from Orchard Corset, and the difference in the waist to hip and waist to rib ratios really make a HUGE difference. I find the one that fits me best and gives me the best support is ALSO the one that gives that va-va-VOOM figure, which sounds awesome, but in reality I hide it under baggie clothes. I can’t wait for the next corset video!
Beautiful job! While the corset didn't fit you properly, your research was on the spot. It turned out lovely. You should be proud of all your hard work. I think you should definitely make the second "new" one. I want to thank you for your video on the history of sewing machines. It helped me identify an antique one that came through the thrift store I work at. It was a Wilcox and Gibbs sewing machine. It really caused a stir at work. It was soo cute.
The corset you made was beautiful, it just wasn't customized to your proportions which the original was not either. You did not fail. ❤
The film work in this video was genuinely wonderful! I’m in love with the work you do!
Also, I loved the corset even though it wasn’t what you wanted in the end, objectively it is beautiful.❤️
I do love how I am not the only person out there with a long torso. One of the main reasons why I chose to start sewing is because I usually cannot find my size in the shops. Sadly this coreset will not be the pattern for me either but I absolutely loved watching this video, just I have enjoyed watching your other videos. Thank you Abby!
Better Health? You need better sponsors :/
Yeah, didn’t they do terrible things with their patients data? As well as other bad things (like pressure tactics)
Was gonna say, they are sketchy af
I'm surprised your comment made it through.
Had to stop watching at that point :( Just saw a new video a couple days ago about more of their BS.
Yeah, How could she not have seen all the controversies surrounding them.
First of all I think you did a fantastic job on the corset that you made. 😊 I know from experience making corsets from originals is difficult. I have wearing living history clothes for my job for years. I have never been able to find a corset that fits me right. I think to get one I would need a lot of help or go to someone who knew what they were doing. I have tried to make my own and failed miserably. I have sent my measurements in and tried to get one made for me and they don't fit well either. I see it almost as an art form and one that takes practice. I do think you did a lovely job! Also I believe you are 100% right, one pattern does not fit all especially when it comes to corsetry.
I’m sorry this wasn’t a dream fit for you but as a 35 bust, 29 waist, 35 hip I am very excited for this pattern 😉 thank for all your hard work!
This video was beautifully done, Abby, and so was the corset! When it didn't end up fitting you, I wasn’t* surprised since this is essentially the "beginnings" of fast fashion. I can't wait to see how the new corset turns out.
I have to say, though, between the thorough dive through history and perspective and your overall experience reconstructing the corset, my absolute favourite has to be the way you shot this entire video. ESPECIALLY the tracking shot at 6:54. That was so cool to see and must have taken a lot of work to set up.
Edit: meant “wasn’t”, not “was”
I have a mighty need for your mighty need to be satiated with the newest corset. Already stoked for that content to drop when you're able to get to it.