crissycatt

last corset for the year...

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:10:38 GMT

i've just finished the last corset for my graduation collection, which will be presented at mid-january. instead of the required 8 complete looks, i'll be presenting 5, hopefully, i'll still be able to graduate. it was either this or another full year working on this collection. things would look a lot better and i wouldn't have to make so many compromises but i can't stand this feeling of being stuck, not moving forward...
i had major set backs on my personal life, and as much as i hate to put off work, family is more important.
anyway, for this corset i went for a victorian bodice look, so most od the boning channels are hidden by the fashion layer. 54cm waist, spiral and spring steel boning, two-part grommets, 2 layers of coutil. got some wrinkling at the bust sides :( it was fine when i did the mock-up...sigh...

and a matching choker:

thanks for looking!

neck corsets

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:29:08 GMT

two more neck corsets are finished.

thanks for looking!

4 done 4 to go

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:28:52 GMT

finished this one yesterday...
the presentation was postponed to january because all schools were shut down for about a month due to the swine flu.

the details:
leather+satin+coutil
54cm waist (closed)
26cm busk
18 spring steel bones
two-part grommets
hand embroidered details
tooled leather

local mag feature

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 15:35:04 GMT

http://www.winkmag.com.br/
page 41 of the current issue...
trying to look serious yet friendly... ugh!

and let there be light...

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:36:15 GMT

one of the things i missed the most after switching from a home sewing machine to an industrial, is the lamp just above the needle, i sew a lot of black and dark material and the desk lamp i was using wasn't just the same.
but i found a magnetic sewing machine lamp and love it. it connects to the machine power switch so no batteries are needed. it's LED so it'll hopefully last for a while and won't burn my fingers.

a picture of the back of the machine with the lamp's cord attached:

and the light switch next to the machine switch:

i love shopping for machine accessories!

another neck corset

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 21:22:22 GMT

another neck piece finished. this time, i used victorian high neck collars as reference.
i should have used a heavier interlining and probably more bones to avoid the bulging i got... *sigh* if i only had the time to fix it... i have been saying this a lot these past few months...

i've made this logo for the box where all the paper bits (pattern, fashion drawing, tech sheets, monography etc) go.

and i need a new camera! getting a reasonable picture has become such a pain!

opinions please!

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 23:48:18 GMT

one of the requirements for my graduation collection is that i present illustrations for my designs.
so i've made this one:

i'm not happy with it.
i hate the way the background turned out.
and i think it looks a bit too comic like. the idea was to simulate a woodcut or engraving. fail...
the references i used for this are the medieval illuminations, the kelmscott chaucer (william morris) and victorian fashion plates.
should i suck it up and leave it like it is and make the other 19 drawings the same way (and pray my line work abilities increase), or should i start over with another style of illustration?
i'm leaning towards medieval illuminations, with paintings instead of the line work. and what would be best, more stylised portraits like the illuminations or more realistic like the medieval paintings (bosch).
help please! pretty please!
any comment is greatly appreciated!

masks!

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 02:14:28 GMT

masks are fun to make!
these are also part of my graduation collection:

another one bites the dust... 5 more to go

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:27:34 GMT

this corset was a true nightmare, i had problems every step of the way. i thought things couldn't go more wrong when i made the underbust...WRONG! ha!
there were so many layers that my machine started skipping stitches... so i had to turn to hand sewing... i lost count of how many needles i broke... finding the best way to do something takes a ridiculous amount of time, trials and errors...
had a few problems with the turn-of-cloth too.
if i only had the time...
i had to decide between doing things properly or graduate... and as much as it kills me to move away from something i know i can do better, i have to move forward, i have to graduate this year!
if i could i would burn everything down and start from scratch, but i can't afford that...oh well..

victorian midbust corset with a tooled leather hip panel. veg-tan leather, cowhide, satin, coutil strength layer and lining, waist tape, spiral and spring steel boning, spoon busk, two-part grommets, blood, sweat and tears..

and a neck corset to match the first corset i made(edwardian overbust)

continuing...

Wed, 06 May 2009 19:29:39 GMT

now it's time to have a look at busks!

left to right: brazilian stainless steel busk (sample); brazilian stainless steel busk; corsetmaking.com stainless steel busk; german plastic coated busk; german stainless steel busk.

brazilian busks come in two types, one similar to the german busk, and another one that i consider to be a mediocre attempt.
both busks are made of stainless steel plates and nickel plated brass claps and studs. busk #2(left to right) has a large hook (like the hook and eye tape kind of hook) and a large rivet (a hollow one!) as the stud which is an absolute nightmare to insert without damaging the fabric. the plate is harder than the german heavy duty one, but still flexible.
one thing i really like about german busks is the fact that they have the last two claps closer together, that is definitely a no go here, all busks have the same spacing regardless of their length.
the newest busk looks a lot better and is a lot more sturdy, the clasps are very similar but not quite there, since the edges aren't rounded, which i think could hurt the fabric in the long run. the plate is rock solid, similar in strength to the fusion coated bones. they seem a bit uncomfortable, but that's just a guess, i haven't purchased one to test, just have a small sample.

here's a closer look (the stains are from the scotch tape it came wrapped into):

the manufacturer does custom busks too, but you need to buy an entire lot.
there are two brazilian corsetmakers that have exclusive busks, madame sher and rose (black cat corsets), i could be wrong but i think both are assembled by the same company.
hopefully busks will continue to progress, i think they came a long way considering a few years back there were no such things here...

the difference that counts...

Tue, 05 May 2009 18:44:51 GMT

this journal has been dead for a few months, it's time to post something! sooo, after reading one post at corsetmakers , i figured it would be nice to show the little differences between what's sold here (brazil) and elsewhere.

lets start with the eyelets...

looking through some corset pictures from non-brazilian corsetmakers, i've notice there was something different about them little things, at first, i thought the washer side was set on the exterior, but having a closer look i could see that was not the case, the eyelet was indeed different from the ones sold in brazil. so i've ordered a pack of prym eyelets from vena cava to see exactly how different they were. surprise, surprise, they're a lot more suitable for corsets than the ones sold here, ye-pee! yet another thing i have to import!
why are they better? if you look at the picture, the prym eyelet (left) has a straight edge at the flange, that doesn't cinch into the fabric, meaning less damage, that small detail prevents the eyelet from eating through the fabric, at least that's what i figured. i haven't seen that type of flange in any garment eyelet sold in shops here, of course one could get it custom made, but the minimums are far too big.

now onto the boning:

from left to right: german 11mm spiral steel; brazilian 10mm spiral steel; german 5mm spiral steel; brazilian 5mm spiral steel; german 13mm spring steel, german 7mm spring steel, brazilian 10mm spring stainless steel.

there isn't much difference between the brazilian spiral steels and the german ones. but we only get two sizes and strenghts here, and they're only sold pre cut, even when buying straight from the manufacturer. the biggest size for the 5mm ones is 100cm and for the 10mm ones, only 40cm!
now the flats are a bit different since they're made from stainless steel, they're harder, too hard for my liking. and also only come in two widths i think. the biggest problem here in brazil is the lack of choices for widths and strenghts of boning and the elevated prices, since there's no competition, only one company produces them, they're quite expensive, sometimes it's cheaper for me to import than to buy it here, even with the currency and shipping.

and that leaves us with the busk, but i'll tackle that some other time... time to get back to work!

magazine cover

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 16:44:02 GMT

last month i was approached by a stylist that i met during a fashion contest a couple of years ago. she asked if she could use the garments from that contest for a local magazine editorial and since she asked if i had anything else she could use, i offered one of the corsets from my graduation collection. here's the result:

photographer: bernardo sardi
stylist: fernanda ericsson

thanks for viewing!

finally!

Wed, 03 Dec 2008 23:48:19 GMT

this corset was so hard to finish, every issue i had with it led to another! there are still some things i have to work on if i ever make this model again... oh well, live and learn...
it's made of tooled and filigreed veg-tan leather, dyed with vinegar rust. this baby has a coutil strength layer and lining, red satin under the filigreed parts, flossing, waist tape, fully boned with flat steels and also has lacing bones and a 10"busk. 21" waist.