Stays pattern

This summer, I started on what will be my big project for the rest of the year. A pair of fully hand-sewn stays, based on this beautiful pair in Patterns of Fashion 5: When I first heard Luca Costi…

Hello Everyone! Very sorry for the serious lack of west-coast entries lately. My "real" job has been all-consuming for the last couple o...

In preparation for making your Simplicity 8162 18th c. stays, you may wish to re-draw the boning pattern. The pattern comes with an accurate layout for half-boned stays. If you would like to deviate from this, perhaps to add more support or change to a fully

My friend Pia (@stepsbackintothepast on Instagram) was in need of a well fitting pair of 18th century stays so I started making her one in the summer of 2019. The new Patterns of Fashion book (volume 5) had just come out earlier in the year so I was eager to try out the drafting method introduced in the book to see if it would yield better results than my own. And I was not disappointed! There's one thing I'd like to mention though. The instructions are easy to use for someone with a lot of…

So I guess this counts as another Stay Study post! But I’ve decided to drop that title since I failed miserably at keeping up with that series. It was supposed to be a study of stay patterns …

A quick guide to where to find materials for your Augusta Stays. There are a lot of specialty materials needed, so working with a supplier who is familiar with historical staymaking (for View A), or corsetry (for View B) will make the process a lot easier. In addition to the ones listed, many local fabric shops will carry suitable linens or wools, and with the theatrical stays your fabric imagination can go wild, as long as you achieve the right level of support and strength with your mix of…

18th century corset

1740's stays pieces.