Saturday, July 17, 2010

Corset Update # 1




Hey all, I thought I’d give you an update on how the new product is working out. I’ve been wearing it in increasing time increments each day, laced (using these instructions) to 29” measured on the outside of the corset. Not as tight as I could make it, just comfortably snug. There is a gap in back, I’ll continue to lace it this way for quite a while, as I get used to wearing it. You will notice in the picture that the symmetry is imperfect.  I fixed it after the photo was taken, but by that point my ‘photographer had grown weary of taking pictures & went on strike. So you get a picture of how NOT to tie your corset. Sorry!
I have had no pain at all, to be honest I have had less pain than I normally do. I have severe rheumatoid arthritis in most of my body, including areas of my back. So either the corset is helping by keeping me from slouching, or I’ve just been having a good week pain wise.
Note: The following is just my personal experience. I am not dictating a certain amount of time that you should wear your corset per day. In any case, just like with a new pair of high heels, you should listen to your body. If you have any discomfort or pain, shortness of breath or headache, take your corset off. If I had experienced any of these things, I would have removed mine immediately.


Endurance Test

Yesterday I laced up at 3:30 pm, and dragged my accommodating boyfriend to the cinema to see Eclipse. (his review: ‘it didn’t suck.‘)This is relevant because I was absolutely comfortable walking, sitting on the subway, in the theater for over 2 hours, on the subway again, and then even longer as we went out to dinner & drinks with friends afterwards. By the time we got home sometime after midnight, I had been wearing my corset for over 8 hours with no discomfort. A very good sign. If you have pain while wearing a proper, steel boned corset, it can either be because you have laced it too tightly too soon, or because the corset does not fit you properly. I’m glad to say that neither is the case here.

Eating Out While Corseted

Any connotation you may have derived from that subtitle is unintentional ;) Anyway, before going to the theater, we stopped at Duane Reade for snacks, as neither myself nor my boyfriend is the type to spend $7 on stale popcorn. I bought chips, rice cakes & a liter of water. I didn’t finish anything during the movie except the water. The corset may have made me feel full sooner than I would have without it.

Later on we went to a Hibachi restaurant, and I was served a multi course meal. I was hungry when we got there, but after eating about ¼ of my food, I gave my boyfriend's friend some of it and brought home a fair portion. It was delicious, but I was less inclined to stuff myself. Probably a good thing.  I may be able to prove that corsets help with appetite and portion control. If anyone is interested in that aspect, let me know and I’ll start adding my weight to the stats in the updates.

Things to Watch Out For

I have been keeping an eye on the busk, because the front fastener’s edge is very apparent through the satin, at least to my own eyes. The edge of it is about ¼” away from the seam. I doubt anyone looking at me is noticing it, but if it ever begins to show signs of wearing through, I will have to repair it with a stronger material, and add it as a con in the initial review.

Waist Training Progress

I started out with a 30” natural waist. My goal is to achieve an hourglass figure. For me, that would be a waist of 24”-26”. Waist training is not a race. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, just that you enjoy the feel of the corset and don’t have any negative feelings toward the confinement. To me, it feels good. That’s what enables me to wear one for so long. I forget that I’m wearing it. I will continue to wear them even after I have reached my goal. I will not purchase a smaller corset after that point, because that’s how you decrease your waist size, by buying a corset with a waist that’s 4” smaller than your current measurements. Just to maintain the small waist, continued use of corsets is necessary. If you go without, slowly but surely your waist will return to its’ previous shape. Tight lacing is a lifestyle choice in that way, because if you are serious about it, you will nearly always be corseted, and subject to judgment from other people. I feel that it’s my body, and I want to be happy with it, so I don’t care what other people think.

Of course, my natural waist is still 30”. It’s only been a few days! So this progress report is more of a starting point. I don’t think it’s a good idea to set dates for goals in terms of inches lost in waist training, it’ll happen when it happens, I’m just going to have fun with trying out new corsets, and I hope I can help other people with their corsets & waist training along the way.

I’m expecting a new corset to be delivered soon, looking forward to that :) 

19 comments:

  1. Definitely interested in the portion control / weight loss benefits of corsetry. I notice I never get hungry really badly until I take mine off for bed! (I tried wearing it one night but all mine are overbust at the moment and not very comfy on the tatas. ;P)

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  2. Hi, thanks for your comments! I accidentally deleted one >__< but I tried to salvage it *sigh* referring to your other comment, may I ask the names of the sellers you purchased your corsets from? Also, how much progress did you make last year when you waist trained? Why did you quit? congrats on the wedding vow renewal! any tips on how to snag a man & keep him around?? :D
    It's funny, I eat and all in my corset, I eat every few hours, a fiber bar here, a fruit smoothie there, a bowl of cereal, oatmeal or salad. I'm drinking a slim fast every morning because I have 6 cases of the stuff to get through ^__^;; but when I go to bed I'm not hungry at all. Nor am I hungry during that hour I have my corset off for bathing and exercise. I drink a lot of water too, that makes me feel full as well as keeping me from getting headaches. Make sure you stay hydrated and eat lots of small meals and snacks so you don't feel hungry. I hope the corsets you bought are underbust, it will be easier to sleep in those.

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  3. The two corsets I bought and am waiting for to come in are from the seller europastyle.ent, which I am rather sure is in reality the same guy- the writing in the description is too similar. It seems like a lot of overseas manufacturers select a big US city and actually ship from someplace else, this one says "Washington DC"- but we'll see.

    I'm definitely staying hydrated, but the small meals and snacks is something I have to work on. Good reminder!

    I've half a dozen overbust corsets from when I was modeling for a company called Vamps and Tramps a couple years ago, each of them are very high quality imo, steel all around, taped, have garter loops, shaped well after a few wears... they each cost me $75 a pop, which was there "model discount price". I've a couple photos on my modelmayhem, http://www.modelmayhem.com/1074464 . 27 inches natural, 24 tightlaced was my shining achievement for my waist, I'm up to around 29 now. Workin' back down... why I quit, your guess is as good as mine. I bore easily, I guess, maybe that has something to do with it. Hopefully I have more sticktoitiveness this time around! I think your blog will help, knowing I'm not the only novice out there. ^_^

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  4. They're absolutely the same manufacturer, but they have different styles at this 'storefront' and a bit cheaper. I'll be getting my next size down from this one :) Thanks!
    And as long as they keep shipping as fast as they did before, I have no problem with overseas sellers.
    Vamps and Tramps have some cool stuff, but in my opinion it's not the materials that call for the big bucks, it's the fit. I won't pay over $100 for a corset unless it's made to fit me perfectly. Considering how much they charge for their off the rack corsets, the 'model discount price' isn't bad at all!
    Tightlacing for me is probably right up there with my love of comic books, fantasy and sci-fi. I'm a lifer. I'll probably be in a corset for the rest of my days. I know exactly which corsetier is going to make my wedding dress...eventually :)
    I think you may have quit because you didn't have a good underbust corset to help you make it a 23/7 thing and not just something you take off when you go to bed, like earrings. You didn't say, but since you have 6 overbust corsets already, I assume the 2 you bought from europastyle.ent are underbust. I haven't been doing it long but it already feels like part of me, I only take it off to bathe & work out or try on another one for a review. It's probably beginning to drive my boyfriend nuts, but he'll get used to it :)
    I absolutely want to help, I'm glad to see someone else out there trying it too. Most of the experienced ones I know are also running a custom corset business and don't have the time to talk about the everyday little things, you know?

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  5. I love sci fi, comic books and fantasy too, heh.

    Yes, they're underbust. My opinion these days is that Overbust is Overrated, haha, but I didn't know that back when I bought all these *&^% corsets. Most of them fit me better two years ago, and I'm hoping to make it back into them, as only 2 out of 6 fit with ease at the moment, and only one is easy to get on and off.

    I agree, it's the fit and not the brand or style; hence my current bargain shopping! ;)

    My husband loves it, the emerging hourglass figure he finds very lovely. :) Hopefully your boyfriend will be impressed as your results continue to progress!

    I think Europa has at least three store fronts. The one you listed, the one I listed, and one that I can't for the life of me find at the moment... or maybe the Ivory_ny thing just has me confused. Either way, I don't understand the reasoning, but so long as I get my merchandise it's all good.

    The Pakistan thing bothers me a little because I prefer to buy USA stuff, but I can get over it. ;P

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  6. Cool! I will totally geek out in your presence, unhindered XD I'm working on a costume for the New York Comic Con in October, do you live close enough to any conventions?
    Yeah, overbust is only for special occasions in my opinion, and even then underbusts will do just fine :)
    The corset thing is growing on him, but you know how a guy will bring up something out of nowhere in an argument about something else? The corsets are that thing at the moment *sigh* passive aggressive bs!!
    He is very sweet to say that he likes me just the way I am...but it's not for him, waist training is for me :)
    When you start sleeping in the corset, what do you think your husband will say?
    I think they get the corsets from a Pakistani manufacturer, and then not only sell them from various storefronts, but also sell them to entirely different retailers. I would love a list of all the authorized retailers for these corsets, then I could see which ones are selling them for the most reasonable prices :)
    I'm not bothered, because there are hardly any large manufacturers making clothing of any kind in this country, let alone corsets. What else are we going to do? I've paid for a custom corset made in the USA, it won't be ready for another month. If you want a corset quickly, you've gotta buy overseas.

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  7. I live in Southeastern Washington, the state, not the DC. Not really close to any cons but those in Seattle, I suppose. I haven't been into the scene as much since I got married.

    I've slept in the corset one night so far and he was supportive. I took it off halfway through the night and haven't slept in it since because the overbust was restrictive- not to mention the one that still fits has buckles and whatnot. He's supportive of the waist training lifestyle in general as it boosts my self esteem and I enjoy it, he also likes how I look in corsets so it's a bonus for him too. ;)

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  8. Aww, is it that you've been busy, or that your husband's not into comics?

    You're so lucky to have him, he sounds like a cool guy. :)

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  9. He's great. We were friends for a while before we started dating, and then it was over a distance as he was overseas on a deployment to Iraq.

    And in answer to the con question, I've been neither- just lazy! ;P

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  10. too lazy for comics? that's an insult to comic fans, we're some of the laziest people on the planet! no excuses, do you know how many calories it burns to read a comic? neither do we, we're too lazy to find out xD

    I'm going to post a huuuge waist training update tonight, lots of pics and minutia about the diet and exercise parts of it, as well as just the extra things I do to stay healthy. Right after I finish making dinner :)

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  11. Too lazy to look up local comic shops and cons, at least. More lazy than your average Josie. ;P

    Update... hooray, sounds great! Looking forward to it.

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  12. omg I forgot to ask you, how did you find my blog? xD

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  13. Hi,

    I just found you through a corset forum I was lurking on! I've been telling my husband for years that I want to start corseting and I've finally decided to stop talking and do it. I don't have a huge budget, though, so this is a super useful blog!

    Oh, and I'm also a comic book and video game nut. Do you ladies think there is a connection? Maybe I've looked at Black Canary and Wonder Woman for so long that I long for that drastic superheroine silhouette. :)

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  14. Hi! Which forum was it? I won't tell ;) I'm so glad the blog is useful.

    Dude! I love your Oracle icon, I <3 Babs. I have no idea, I do know a ton of tight lacers who are not into comics though. The 3 of us, (me, you & Tess) are just that cool 8)
    I will say that what spurred me into buying that first corset was the fact that when measuring myself for the Storm costume I'm making, my waist was not quite what it used to be. It's entirely possible that if I wasn't nerdy enough to cosplay, I wouldn't have gotten into tightlacing. My boyfriend is muttering 'one hand washes the other...'

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  15. LOL, that's so funny. I was kind of spurred by my desire to wear a dark Mary Marvel costume. When I went to SDCC last year, there were these girls in lycra suits who MUST have been tightlacers. I mean, their waists were so tiny compared to the rest of them.

    Oh, and I found you on the Corset Heaven forum. It's about 110 degrees in Texas right now, so I might wait another month before I start. I just can't imagine wearing one in this heat until I'm accustomed.

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  16. I'm bordering on the tiny waist myself, I can't believe how quickly I progressed. I wore the black corset totally closed (26") to a birthday party, and my friends couldn't stop staring at my waist. I asked one if she thought I had passed beauty & gone over to grotesque, (waist too small for hips) & she said no, it looks good. I told her that I'll be moving down to a 24" corset soon & she shuddered visibly. Oh well...
    As to the heat, I'm only dealing with 90 degrees in NY, but I like to think I'd wear mine in 110. Is 90 too hot for you? :)

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  17. I think it depends on the humidity! It's super stuffy here, too. I'm in NE Texas, near the Lousiana swamps. Think True Blood -- I'm about two hours from that fictional town.

    26 inches is amazing! You'll look great with 24 inches. Any lower than that might look pretty extreme, but it's all in the eye of the beholder.

    Okay, screw the heat. I'm inspired to do it since it's moving so quickly for you.

    So, out of the eBay corsets you've reviewed, which one do you think I could conceal the easiest under a fitted shirt or jacket?

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  18. Definitely the black one I got from Earstore. I can easily wear it under clothing, because it's shorter than the double boned one. And the fact that it's single boned has no effect on it's strength. It has molded to my body extremely well. I will post pics of me wearing corsets under other shirts soon just to prove this. I do have to say that it may not be so fast for everyone, no need to rush into it. It's all about your own comfort. Also, if you are squishy around the middle it will be easier, but if you have abs it will take longer. Let me know how you do!

    p.s. the corsets sold by earstore & europastyle are so similar I would say they are manufactured in the same place. Either seller is fine. So look for a short underbust that is not double boned and you should have a similar effect. Make sure that the corset you choose is well clear of the area where an underwire would be on the model in the pic. If you are shorter than 5'2", measure your torso & then feel free to ask the seller how long the corset in question is in the front. Make sure it's right for you before you bid.

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  19. Cool, I am bidding on one from Earstore right now. And you're right, I shouldn't be in a rush. I'm 5'6", so I think the underbust one I'm bidding on should be good.

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