{"id":85,"date":"2020-09-09T02:14:12","date_gmt":"2020-09-09T02:14:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stories.mysecretdrawer.co\/2020\/09\/09\/squeeze-the-corsets-journey-from-hell-to-high-fashion\/"},"modified":"2020-09-09T02:14:12","modified_gmt":"2020-09-09T02:14:12","slug":"squeeze-the-corsets-journey-from-hell-to-high-fashion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/squeeze-the-corsets-journey-from-hell-to-high-fashion\/","title":{"rendered":"Squeeze: The Corset\u2019s Journey from Hell to High Fashion"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

They have come to embody such conflicting impulses to exaggerate, deform, inflate, and exalt the female physique that you wonder whether all of it is a bit much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the years, the corset – a garment with a rigid, boned bodice laced tight to shape the torso – has earned a contradictory reputation. Most would say deservedly so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAfter all, what single garment encapsulates the history of women\u2019s dress – of restriction and emancipation – more succinctly than the corset?\u201d says fashion writer Alexander Fury in an article for the New York Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"No — No single garment encapsulates the history of women\u2019s dress – of restriction and emancipation – more succinctly than the corset.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Squeezing Sexy into the Body<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
We find its earliest iteration among the Minoan people in Grecian Crete. Even then, the garment\u2019s intended purpose seemed more erotic than practical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Much like its early successors, the Minoan corset squeezed the human body into a shape that accentuated the sensuality of its curves, often exposing bare female breasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unlike subsequent cultures, however, the Minoans did not limit this idealized figure to women. Images on ancient pottery show men sporting form-fitting belts and outer vests with metal rings and leather straps to constrict the midriff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Such was the Minoan fixation on slim waists that parents likewise tightened girdles around their children to stop growth in the abdomen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Much$
Much like its successors, the Minoan corset squeezed the human body into a shape that accentuated the sensuality of its curves.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Corsets in the Middle Ages<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Middle Ages forced vast cultural transformations throughout Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fall of the Western Roman Empire catapulted the Catholic clergy into power and with its ascent came new ideas, opinions, and politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The body lost its erotic virtues, becoming venal and sinful. Loose, flowing tunics and long clothing became the trend among the fashionably devout – and none of them accentuated curves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Historians are unsure whether the women of the time wore corsets under their housecoats. There was so much war, looting, and burning going on that few records remain from that pivotal moment in European history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the early Christian aversion for the sensual and earthly couldn\u2019t have helped perpetuate the garment\u2019s use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 12^{th<\/sup> century illustration of the devil wearing a corset suggests the garment had somehow devolved into a kind of cultural profanity. So, instead of a separate garment, dressmakers of the time sewed bones or wooden slats into gowns when outer garments required some shape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n}
$\"Instead$
Instead of a separate garment, dressmakers of the Middle Ages sewed bones or wooden slats into gowns when outer garments required shape.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Reinventing a Classic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The corset would only begin to shed some of its devilish reputation in the 16^{th<\/sup> century, when, what started as a close-fitting bodice, evolved into an undergarment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n}
What we now know as the corset had stays made of whalebone, and then steel. The stays encircled the ribs and compressed the natural waist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paintings from the 17^{th<\/sup> century depict an increasing focus on women\u2019s breasts as an expression of beauty. Many artists painted important people of the era – such as Queen Mary II, Henrietta Maria, and the wife of Charles I of England – with fully bare breasts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n}
Quite fittingly, so to speak, at a time when fecund female breasts were desired, corsets accentuated them, heaping ample emphasis on the d\u00e9colletage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"When$
When fecund female breasts were the desired effect, corsets accentuated them, heaping ample emphasis on the decolletage.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLord Preserve the Nation \u2026\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The late 1800s brought a cultural sea change of sorts to Europe, demanding the same oppressive devotion to impeccable appearance on both men and women. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Towards the late 1700s and early 1800s, the most popular look for men included form-fitting trousers and jackets. To achieve this look at the highest standard, some men turned to corsets, risking censure, tarnished reputations, and even jail in the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conservative 19th-century society viewed male corsets with profound distrust, associating its wearers with homosexuality \u2013 still a criminal offense in many countries back then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Lord preserve the nation from a generation of male corset wearers,\u201d said one anonymous English observer in 1889.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, women\u2019s corsets were considered a moral requirement, a compulsory layer of clothing in polite society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Conservative$
Conservative 19th-century society viewed male corsets with bigoted suspicion. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The shape of the corset continued to undergo changes throughout. There were longer styles that covered the hips and shorter versions that emphasized the waistline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the corset\u2019s function never wavered. In fact, between the 1800s and 1900s, people began lacing corsets so tightly they sometimes caused women to faint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The purpose of the tight lacing was not only to highlight the breasts, but also to force the body into desired silhouettes with steel stays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First there was the hourglass shape popular in the 1800s, and then there was the \u201cS\u201d figure of the following century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just how detrimental this heavy-handed shaping was to the human body became clear after doctors blamed it for internal damage, deformities to the rib, and miscarriages!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"The$
The purpose of the tight lacing was not only to highlight the breasts, but also to force the body into desired silhouettes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
A Looser, More Liberated Fit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The introduction of elastic in the 1920s mercifully gave rise to flexible sports corsets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, designers were quick to use the material to attract women who had taken to a new, more politically active lifestyle. Flappers’ smoked in public, were sexually liberated, and wore undergarments more convenient for shorter skirts and vigorous activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This new lifestyle called for designs for slimmer, more youthful figures<\/a> with narrower waists and lower bust lines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCorsets no longer constricted the waist, really, but instead they would give you a smooth line, like today’s Spanx for example, and the silhouette was quite slender, needing just one slim petticoat instead of several,\u201d says Alden O\u2019 Brien, curator for costume and textiles in the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDresses were looser-fitting, whereas they used to be very precisely fitted to the corseted figure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Designers$
Designers were quick to use newly-introduced elastic material to attract women who had taken to a new, more politically active lifestyle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The Height of Feminist Fashion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
With the shift towards sport and healthy lifestyles in the ’60s and ’70s, women abandoned the corset as an everyday undergarment altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But by then, the ideal body it sought to shape was already deeply ensconced in the cultural psyche. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fashion designer Vivienne Westwood began using corsets in the 70s as part of her distinctive aesthetic, giving rise to the idea corsets empowered women rather than bound them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Designers like Jean-Paul Gaultier and Thierry Mugler incorporated corsets into their designs in the 80s and 90s, as well. In time, this renewed interest in the garment began to symbolize rebellious feminine sexuality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In fact, of the countless designs for which Gaultier is remembered, few linger in the memory like his conical-breasted creation for Madonna\u2019s 1990 Blond Ambition Tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, women wear corsets as sexy lingerie<\/a> , a fashion statement, or burlesque costume. And while they may no longer be part of the average woman\u2019s everyday wardrobe, the garments have never truly disappeared from fashion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ironically, with all its historical baggage, the corset is making a strong comeback in the context of a burgeoning feminist movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"\"$ <\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Yves Saint Laurent, Stella McCartney, and Tom Ford have all used corsets in their designs in the manner of Westwood in the 70s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In dance clubs and public events, women will layer a corset over garments rather than under them, promoting a fashion statement that aggressively highlights female sexuality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe interesting thing about the current revival is that, despite all that history, a woman wearing a corset today is a symbol of empowerment, of sexual freedom, of control,\u201d says Fury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe\u2019s the one holding the laces, the one constructing her own femininity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What’s your story? To corset or not to corset? Why not share your thoughts with us by reviewing *this<\/em> story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n*
\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Here’s how an iconic piece of lingerie evolved from cultural profanity to an expression of feminine sexuality and emancipation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":86,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[27,42],"tags":[132,133,54,134],"class_list":["post-85","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fashion","category-female-empowerement","tag-fashion-history","tag-feminine-sexuality","tag-feminism","tag-sexy-lingerie"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

No single garment encapsulates the history of women\u2019s dress – of restriction and emancipation – more succinctly than the corset.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Squeezing Sexy into the Body<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
We find its earliest iteration among the Minoan people in Grecian Crete. Even then, the garment\u2019s intended purpose seemed more erotic than practical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Much like its early successors, the Minoan corset squeezed the human body into a shape that accentuated the sensuality of its curves, often exposing bare female breasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Unlike subsequent cultures, however, the Minoans did not limit this idealized figure to women. Images on ancient pottery show men sporting form-fitting belts and outer vests with metal rings and leather straps to constrict the midriff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Such was the Minoan fixation on slim waists that parents likewise tightened girdles around their children to stop growth in the abdomen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Much$
Much like its successors, the Minoan corset squeezed the human body into a shape that accentuated the sensuality of its curves.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Corsets in the Middle Ages<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Middle Ages forced vast cultural transformations throughout Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fall of the Western Roman Empire catapulted the Catholic clergy into power and with its ascent came new ideas, opinions, and politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The body lost its erotic virtues, becoming venal and sinful. Loose, flowing tunics and long clothing became the trend among the fashionably devout – and none of them accentuated curves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Historians are unsure whether the women of the time wore corsets under their housecoats. There was so much war, looting, and burning going on that few records remain from that pivotal moment in European history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the early Christian aversion for the sensual and earthly couldn\u2019t have helped perpetuate the garment\u2019s use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 12^{th<\/sup> century illustration of the devil wearing a corset suggests the garment had somehow devolved into a kind of cultural profanity. So, instead of a separate garment, dressmakers of the time sewed bones or wooden slats into gowns when outer garments required some shape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n}
$\"Instead$
Instead of a separate garment, dressmakers of the Middle Ages sewed bones or wooden slats into gowns when outer garments required shape.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Reinventing a Classic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The corset would only begin to shed some of its devilish reputation in the 16^{th<\/sup> century, when, what started as a close-fitting bodice, evolved into an undergarment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n}
What we now know as the corset had stays made of whalebone, and then steel. The stays encircled the ribs and compressed the natural waist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paintings from the 17^{th<\/sup> century depict an increasing focus on women\u2019s breasts as an expression of beauty. Many artists painted important people of the era – such as Queen Mary II, Henrietta Maria, and the wife of Charles I of England – with fully bare breasts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n}
Quite fittingly, so to speak, at a time when fecund female breasts were desired, corsets accentuated them, heaping ample emphasis on the d\u00e9colletage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"When$
When fecund female breasts were the desired effect, corsets accentuated them, heaping ample emphasis on the decolletage.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLord Preserve the Nation \u2026\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The late 1800s brought a cultural sea change of sorts to Europe, demanding the same oppressive devotion to impeccable appearance on both men and women. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Towards the late 1700s and early 1800s, the most popular look for men included form-fitting trousers and jackets. To achieve this look at the highest standard, some men turned to corsets, risking censure, tarnished reputations, and even jail in the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Conservative 19th-century society viewed male corsets with profound distrust, associating its wearers with homosexuality \u2013 still a criminal offense in many countries back then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Lord preserve the nation from a generation of male corset wearers,\u201d said one anonymous English observer in 1889.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, women\u2019s corsets were considered a moral requirement, a compulsory layer of clothing in polite society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Conservative$
Conservative 19th-century society viewed male corsets with bigoted suspicion. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The shape of the corset continued to undergo changes throughout. There were longer styles that covered the hips and shorter versions that emphasized the waistline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the corset\u2019s function never wavered. In fact, between the 1800s and 1900s, people began lacing corsets so tightly they sometimes caused women to faint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The purpose of the tight lacing was not only to highlight the breasts, but also to force the body into desired silhouettes with steel stays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First there was the hourglass shape popular in the 1800s, and then there was the \u201cS\u201d figure of the following century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just how detrimental this heavy-handed shaping was to the human body became clear after doctors blamed it for internal damage, deformities to the rib, and miscarriages!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"The$
The purpose of the tight lacing was not only to highlight the breasts, but also to force the body into desired silhouettes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
A Looser, More Liberated Fit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The introduction of elastic in the 1920s mercifully gave rise to flexible sports corsets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, designers were quick to use the material to attract women who had taken to a new, more politically active lifestyle. Flappers’ smoked in public, were sexually liberated, and wore undergarments more convenient for shorter skirts and vigorous activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This new lifestyle called for designs for slimmer, more youthful figures<\/a> with narrower waists and lower bust lines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCorsets no longer constricted the waist, really, but instead they would give you a smooth line, like today’s Spanx for example, and the silhouette was quite slender, needing just one slim petticoat instead of several,\u201d says Alden O\u2019 Brien, curator for costume and textiles in the Daughters of the American Revolution Museum in Washington, DC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDresses were looser-fitting, whereas they used to be very precisely fitted to the corseted figure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"Designers$
Designers were quick to use newly-introduced elastic material to attract women who had taken to a new, more politically active lifestyle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
The Height of Feminist Fashion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
With the shift towards sport and healthy lifestyles in the ’60s and ’70s, women abandoned the corset as an everyday undergarment altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But by then, the ideal body it sought to shape was already deeply ensconced in the cultural psyche. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fashion designer Vivienne Westwood began using corsets in the 70s as part of her distinctive aesthetic, giving rise to the idea corsets empowered women rather than bound them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Designers like Jean-Paul Gaultier and Thierry Mugler incorporated corsets into their designs in the 80s and 90s, as well. In time, this renewed interest in the garment began to symbolize rebellious feminine sexuality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In fact, of the countless designs for which Gaultier is remembered, few linger in the memory like his conical-breasted creation for Madonna\u2019s 1990 Blond Ambition Tour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, women wear corsets as sexy lingerie<\/a> , a fashion statement, or burlesque costume. And while they may no longer be part of the average woman\u2019s everyday wardrobe, the garments have never truly disappeared from fashion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ironically, with all its historical baggage, the corset is making a strong comeback in the context of a burgeoning feminist movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
$\"\"$ <\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Yves Saint Laurent, Stella McCartney, and Tom Ford have all used corsets in their designs in the manner of Westwood in the 70s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In dance clubs and public events, women will layer a corset over garments rather than under them, promoting a fashion statement that aggressively highlights female sexuality. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe interesting thing about the current revival is that, despite all that history, a woman wearing a corset today is a symbol of empowerment, of sexual freedom, of control,\u201d says Fury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cShe\u2019s the one holding the laces, the one constructing her own femininity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What’s your story? To corset or not to corset? Why not share your thoughts with us by reviewing *this<\/em> story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n*
\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Here’s how an iconic piece of lingerie evolved from cultural profanity to an expression of feminine sexuality and emancipation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":86,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[27,42],"tags":[132,133,54,134],"class_list":["post-85","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fashion","category-female-empowerement","tag-fashion-history","tag-feminine-sexuality","tag-feminism","tag-sexy-lingerie"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysecretdrawer.co\/stories\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}