Video: How to Put on a Corset Correctly

by Estelle Puleston

A corset is one of the most luxurious lingerie items a woman can own, and probably also one of the most expensive! A high-quality corset can last you for years, even decades, but for that to happen you need to care for it well.

Caring for your corset starts right from the moment you put it on, since doing it wrong can damage everything from the busk to the lacing. I’ve created this short video to show you how to put a corset on the right way…

corset_videoDon’t want to watch the video? Here’s how to do it…

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Step 1 – Loosen the Lacing

Once laced up, your corset will be under a lot of pressure to squeeze your waistline down into that famous exaggerated hourglass! So it makes sense that if your corset laces were done up tightly when you went to put it on, you’d really have to pull hard to close the busk at the front and this can do some serious damage.

Instead, always start by loosening all of the laces at the back until you can comfortably hook the busk closed and still have some room for manoeuvre.

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Step 2 – Fasten the Busk

Now you can close the busk! It doesn’t really matter where you start but if you begin with a hook at the top or bottom you may find it difficult to get that last one done up when you get to it. If that’s the case, try hooking the central one first and using that as a lever to ‘swivel’ the top and bottom hooks into place.

Just be careful not to force anything or you may damage the busk. If you feel like you’re having to pull too much to close the busk, you need to loosen the lacing at the back some more.

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Step 3 – Tighten the Laces

It’s not important if you start at the top or the bottom when tightening the laces, however you should start at one of the two outer edges and work your way in. Trying to tighten the lacing at the top or bottom of the corset by pulling on the loops in the centre puts unnecessary strain on the lacing, and especially the eyelets the laces are threaded through.

Pull each row tight and then move onto the next one. Ideally, if your corset isn’t laced fully closed, the gap between the two sides should be even all the way down. If it’s pulled tighter in the centre, again you’re straining the eyelets and possibly bending the boning too.

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Step 4 – Tie to Secure

Finally, once you’ve got your laces all done up it’s time to tie them into a secure bow at the centre of the waist to keep them from loosening as you move around. A double bow works best!

Avoid wrapping the laces around your waist – this won’t take any extra inches off your waistline and can damage the bones and the fabric of your corset. If you don’t like the ‘bulge’ that the bow can create under tight-fitting clothing try tucking the loose ends into your knickers in an elegant V shape, or replace your corset laces with shorter ones.

I hope this video and guide helps you to put your corset on correctly. If you have any suggestions or tips to add please leave me a comment!

Estelle


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