For those of you that want to make an 18th Century child’s corset I have redrawn and sized an extent corset from the Germanic National Museum in Nuremberg dated 1770, item T7350. If you already know how to make a corset this pattern will save you from having to draft one yourself.
This is the 1770s children’s corset. It has a really nice stripped fabric and the bone lines are under the pink tapes. I just slipped the bones in between the lining and the outer fabric.
I did not use as many lacing holes as on the pattern. I did 4 on one side and 5 on the other. (See back photo). If you just copy out the .jpg file it should fit on a single page at 100% but check the size. Cut 2 of each pattern piece of both the outer fabric and the lining. You can use caning or metal bones but keep whatever you use very thin. I used a 3/8″ petersham as the edging and ties but I know that is not easy to find so you might want to use 1/4″ double fold bias tape.
You have options for boning.
- You can use regular 1/4″ wide steal corset boning.
- You can use caning any width from 3 to 4 cm, adjust the lines on the pattern to the width of the cane. This is the best choice for a little girl.
- You can cut metal spring steal. I save the metal everything I replace my car’s windshield wipers blades. It’s easy to remove. The metal can be cut with a cold chisel just like corset bones. The cut ends do need to be smoothed with a grinder or sandpaper. Also you can make the channels much thinner.