Corsets and Crinolines by Nora Wraugh [I'm looking at the 2004 reprint of 1970 2nd edition; originally published 1954. Apparently, there's a newer (2017) edition out, too.]
This edition of Corsets and Crinolines comes in at ~170 pages. This includes 20 pages dealing with the sixteenth century through 1670; 38 pages for 1670-1800; and 74 pages on 1800-1925. Each of these three chapters is subdivided to first look at foundation garments for the torso (stays, corsets, bodies), then at the skirt supports (farthingales, rumps, panniers, crinolines, bustles), and finally at contemporary descriptions and depictions of these garments. The other features include a bibliography, background on whalebone, advice on constructing hoops, and a glossary of historic terms and materials related to foundation garments.
Approximately 26 garments are featured with line-drawings and pattern sketches; these are mostly original garments, with one pattern excerpted from Diderot's Encyclopedia. The pattern pieces are presented with a scale ruler, but without a grid or measurements written in: you can draft a pattern from these, but it'll take some work and math. For appreciating how corset shapes changed over time, however, the illustrations are useful--there are 115 images all told, including the pattern diagrams, photographs of historical garments and contemporary (historic) images. Still, for covering 3 1/2 centuries, I wouldn't mind a few more examples.
Other than that, the main thing I would change about this book is the formatting: the divide by time and then type organization makes it sometimes difficult to find what one is looking for, or to compare across time periods. I have a number of bookmarks in my copy in order to locate the images I used most often. For how I use the book, I think that grouping all the corsets chronologically in one chapter, then all the hoops, and then the depictions, would be more useful.
This is really a classic book in costuming circles. If I recall correctly, it was first recommended to me on a LiveJournal corsetry group almost 15 years ago. That is to say, this book has good information, and solid research, but the costuming community has had over 60 years to expand upon it. I'd recommend that most costumers check it out at some point, but depending on your specific needs, there might be titles with more examples from your preferred era, with grided patterns that are easier to adapt, or with more/colored photographs of the original garments being discussed. That being said, I think this is still a useful book, particularly for context, ie, the textual sources and contemporary images which accompany the patterns. Also, do check out the preface: I really like Ms. Waugh's hypothesis about silhouettes reaching maximum exaggeration and then radically changing direction.
Stars: 4
Level: Advanced to copy the garments; all levels to learn.
Accuracy: High.
Strongest Impression: A classic, and worth reading at least once. There's likely a newer title that will meet your specific needs, but this is still a solid book with interesting information.
This edition of Corsets and Crinolines comes in at ~170 pages. This includes 20 pages dealing with the sixteenth century through 1670; 38 pages for 1670-1800; and 74 pages on 1800-1925. Each of these three chapters is subdivided to first look at foundation garments for the torso (stays, corsets, bodies), then at the skirt supports (farthingales, rumps, panniers, crinolines, bustles), and finally at contemporary descriptions and depictions of these garments. The other features include a bibliography, background on whalebone, advice on constructing hoops, and a glossary of historic terms and materials related to foundation garments.
Approximately 26 garments are featured with line-drawings and pattern sketches; these are mostly original garments, with one pattern excerpted from Diderot's Encyclopedia. The pattern pieces are presented with a scale ruler, but without a grid or measurements written in: you can draft a pattern from these, but it'll take some work and math. For appreciating how corset shapes changed over time, however, the illustrations are useful--there are 115 images all told, including the pattern diagrams, photographs of historical garments and contemporary (historic) images. Still, for covering 3 1/2 centuries, I wouldn't mind a few more examples.
Other than that, the main thing I would change about this book is the formatting: the divide by time and then type organization makes it sometimes difficult to find what one is looking for, or to compare across time periods. I have a number of bookmarks in my copy in order to locate the images I used most often. For how I use the book, I think that grouping all the corsets chronologically in one chapter, then all the hoops, and then the depictions, would be more useful.
This is really a classic book in costuming circles. If I recall correctly, it was first recommended to me on a LiveJournal corsetry group almost 15 years ago. That is to say, this book has good information, and solid research, but the costuming community has had over 60 years to expand upon it. I'd recommend that most costumers check it out at some point, but depending on your specific needs, there might be titles with more examples from your preferred era, with grided patterns that are easier to adapt, or with more/colored photographs of the original garments being discussed. That being said, I think this is still a useful book, particularly for context, ie, the textual sources and contemporary images which accompany the patterns. Also, do check out the preface: I really like Ms. Waugh's hypothesis about silhouettes reaching maximum exaggeration and then radically changing direction.
Stars: 4
Level: Advanced to copy the garments; all levels to learn.
Accuracy: High.
Strongest Impression: A classic, and worth reading at least once. There's likely a newer title that will meet your specific needs, but this is still a solid book with interesting information.
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