Corsets: A Modern Guide

With the new Millenium, corsetry can no longer be relegated to the "historical garments" disciplines and academia. This book is one of the few I know of to discuss "modern" corsetry, which I would define as the purveying, wearing and making of corsets after they were no longer part of mainstream fashion. This point is most often by World War I depending on your geographic location.Who continued to wear corsets and continued to make them after they fell out of popular fashion- the Victorian era which we most often think of when we think of corsets? Someone must have because the ways, means and materials continued to be manufactured after World War I, and credit can not be given to only Hollywood film costuming,Theatre and opera costuming and recreationists (such as Ren Faire and Civil War recreators.)This book has less information about how the manufacturing and supplies were maintained, but is a good primer on the people, subcultures and icons who kept corsets alive after World War I. Proper credit is paid to Betty Page, Fakir Musafar, Mr. Pearl, Vivienne Westwood and Dita Von Teese. All of this points towards a more pop culture, edgy and well-known use of corsets in the last decades of the 1900's, epitomized by Madonna and the work done by Gaultier for her, and a little less about the secretive fetishizing of corsets by people after WW I... but not much less. The book is chockful of wonderful little bits of history. A brief paragraph about "The Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine" of the late 1800's may spur you to further study about the women and men with a tighlacing obsession. Lauder also rightly credits the "Modern Primitives" movement which includes tattoos, piercings, corsets as body modification, and identifying with the counter cultures which are more mainstream than ever."Corsets: A Modern Guide" is most certainly a vanity project and advertisement for Velda Lauder Corsets, but that should not diminish the information and beauty of the book. Kudos to her and her company! She is one of the best know corsetiers in the U.K, working more as a fashion designer, with proper fashion lines and fashion shows, when compared to the stalwarts, Axfords and Vollers, who create a satisfactory manufactured off-the-peg corset. American corsetiers, custom and manufactured, include Versatile, Dark Garden, Delicious Corsets, Exquisite Restraint Corsets and Puimond, with Absolute Corsets firmly placed as the premiere mail-order custom and off-the-peg retailer when you search "corsets" in Google. Modern Corsetry runs the gamut from costumes, highly decorated fashion wear, and severe tightlacing corsets. The late Amy Crowder of "Wasp Waisted" is one of the best know creators of severe tightlacing corsets, patterned and shaped expressly for the serious waist trainer. All of the custom corsetmakers I've cited can also create a custom tightlacing corset which is radically different from their off-the-peg fashion corsets.Velda Lauder's book is small, very portable and full of not only educational but entertaining information. It puts to rest the issues of corsets as subjugating women, corsets as painful, and corsets as only foundation garments to be worn under clothing. The book contains interviews with subculture models (rather than mainstream high fashion models) who know Velda Lauder and wear her corsets, and why not? This removes corsetry from the mysterious and the celebrity... wearing a corset and tightlacing is not reserved just for the celebrity and the rich. The number of people interested in wearing corsets for fashion and/or tightlacing has increased steadily in the past several decades.If your appetite is whetted, I also recommend David Kunzle's "Fashion & Fetishism: Corsets,Tight-lacing & Other Forms of Body Sculpture," books by Valerie Steele and "Romantasy's" Ann Grogan who makes available her "Corset Magic" with a waist training program. The Long Island Staylace Association, an online resource, is also a lovely repository of corset images and some history.

About the authorIntroductionHistory of the corsetModern corset cultureThe corset as fetish objectThe corset as high fashionVariations on the classic corsetThe modern girls guide to corset wearingIndexBibliographyPicture credits. This book is 223 pages long but it also a very short book in terms of width and length. I actually liked this little book, because of its size it was a quick read, but I don't think this will have a good shelf life as it doesn't add much to the history or present of corset and corset making. Every paragraph in my opinion was succinct and interesting. ***Off Topic***Calling the Dinka beaded waist and neck wear corsets is kind of pushing it to me(***On Topic****). This is a much more simplified book, than the other corset historical text like corsets and crinolines,a cultural history etc as well this is not a book full of sewing patterns or drafting information. I gave this book three stars because, it's really a one or two time read, If you are designing corsets, researching the history or buying, this isn't the text you would come too. If you want a interesting simplified read of the history of corsetry then this book is for you.If not you may want to pass. Overall a decent book and not too expensive.Is it worth it? I'm on the fence -- not a must have, but I did enjoy it.

This book is way smaller than I expected. Something between 6" by 6". And thin too.There are some nice pictures, but the text is disconected and many times repetitive.The author don't show enough knowledge about this subject and keep repeating herself over and over. I know she was a corsetiere, but making corsets doen't mean she knew their history accuratelly.Anyway, I bought this book knowing this was not a handbook, but some historical review, but it's not. It's a bunch of texts disconected and repetitive and a bunch of nice pictures.

The title is misleading - it's not a modern girls guide to corsets but another history on the corset with some modern corset photos thrown in. Was looking forward to reading about wearing corsets in modern days. The writer is a bit self amused. In general a pretty picture book and a light read.

Nice picture book only.

While the photos are very nice, the book concentrates mainly on modern fashion corsets with a brief history of corsetry. No construction techniques or patterns are included.

This is a great book with beautiful pictures and the author's view on the history of corsets. There's so much interesting information packed into this little book!

A beautiful little book. A must have for all corset lovers.

All the more poignant since the sad passing of Velda, This book is beautiful, It is a lovely little size, more of a keepsake, The print quality is exceptionally high, with a plethora of photographs throughout. It provides a concise history of the corset and makes more of a dainty coffee table book rather than a reference book. It is delightful

Something for every tight lacer.

Excellent

great book, RIP Velda xxx

really nice history