"I haven't mastered cording yet, does that mean something?"

In part 1, we looked at what it means to practice and prepare your corsetmaking skills for business. We thought about what it means to prepare well, to establish our skills and be confident in them. We also touched upon the idea of practice and preparation that is specific to your particular "brand offer".

To go back to the very beginning of part 1, let's reconsider these guidelines:

Only sell those particular details that you have already practiced. Only practice those skills you hope to sell.

We all have our anxieties about details of our work or ourselves and there's little point pretending otherwise. If we analyse these anxieties we can usually find them to be groundless personal quirks, or we find the root cause of them is a real, tangible issue that can be fixed.

The former requires a bit of introspection (eg: "is my character and tendency to [insert personality quirk] undermining my efforts as a businesswoman?"), the latter requires taking a wider view (eg: "what exactly is the underlying problem with this particular skill?"). Sometimes a wider view is required to see "the wood for the trees", and sourcing outside help (business mentorship, one-to-one corsetry classes, etc.) can make a huge difference.

In my experience, the best way to get past any anxieties is to face them head-on. Frightened of chiffon? Throw yourself in with a rolled hem or pleated/fluted surface treatment. Nervous of meeting new people and clients? Get out into the world and practice chatting to strangers about your work (this is one I still struggle with). Haunted by a cruel or thoughtless comment from friends or family about your chosen profession? Focus on your own motivation and learn that their comment does not concern you.

Trusting that you are self-reflexive enough to keep these things in mind, let's return to the more straightforward question of skill development.

What Not to Practice

I spent about two years in self-directed study before accepting my first paid commission. How long you spend preparing will really depend upon a variety of factors (eg: previous sewing experience, hours spent studying, natural aptitude, end goal, etc.), and there are a number of ways you can assess your skill level before making the leap. Some are useful and some are not so useful.

Here are a couple of arbitrary rules/goals that I have seen mentioned in connection to corsetmakers:

1) You will have made 50 corsets before taking your first commission.

2) You will have made 100 corsets before taking your first commission.

3) You will have made a corset for every size of potential client.

4) You will have studied with another professional.

5) You will have studied for X number of years.

6) You will have mastered sandwiched steels, for example, because everyone should know that technique!

 

Some of these are useful ideas, except that they can be abused just as easily as they can be used. Here are the potential problems that I see with each goal:

1) You can make 50 corsets and improve with each one, or you can make 50 corsets and remain at the same skill level.

2) Likewise with 100 corsets. It's perfectly possible to make 100 "bad" or mediocre corsets.

3) If your focus is bespoke, this is not really possible. You can, however, certainly aim to get a good range of sizes/shapes behind you. If your focus is standard sizing, this is arguably a good aim as it will let you see how standard sizings perform in real life. So the goal must be refined to suit your aims.

4) This is not always possible, as we all know. The internet has brought many corsetieres together in discussion and allowed others (such as myself) to begin learning. But finding a real-life corsetiere who you can study with is not always feasible and should not be the benchmark of whether one is a good corsetmaker or not.

5) Any number could be inserted into this goal and indeed the time you spend is important. But, as I hope to illustrate, what is more important is the way that time is spent. This is where looking at how we practice can be so useful.

6) If sandwiched steels (for example) have no place in your interests, aesthetics, construction preferences and price-point, then where is the point in perfecting them?

Of course, numbers are useful. Finite checklists and goals allow us to measure "success". But the numbers must be specific to your business and aims. Randomly selected or externally imposed numbers, as above, are little use. To the accomplished seamstress with 20 years experience, making 50 corsets over the space of 5 years in order to be deemed "able" seems excessive. To the complete beginner, attempting to master every aesthetic and technique before selling a single piece seems foolish.

I propose focussing on satisfactory completion of each targeted technique rather than worrying about arbitrary goals. If you get something right once and then repeat it correctly with full understanding of how you got it right, I believe you have learnt that particular detail/technique.

 

Useful Goals

So then, what types of goals are useful?

The simplest way to approach this question is to simplify it. Make it more specific. Don't ask, "what does a corsetmaker need to prove they can do?", instead ask "what does my corsetry need to show it can do?"

There is certainly merit to tackling each and every corsetmaking conundrum you can identify, and this is the approach that I had for a while. Abundant enthusiasm and a thirst for knowledge makes it difficult to refine your interests in the early stages (below).

 

It also has huge drawbacks, however, being time-consuming, expensive and endless. If at all possible, it would be nice to save yourself those negative consequences by figuring out what you are trying to achieve before rushing ahead in your studies.

Here is an example of how this exuberance has a wasteful side. I had a damaged flowing maxi dress with this beautiful "dark rainbow" effect through it, an inky effect that I have always loved and have once again started exploring in my corsetry. I decided to use the dress fabric for an Edwardian-inspired corset for myself, with "gilded violet" silk dupioni hip and bust gussets of sorts. But it was one of my first times using satin. With my usual over-excited enthusiasm, I rushed ahead without stopping to research the use of thin satins in corsetry properly...

The result makes me feel sad even now. I abandoned the corset at this stage and never went back to unpick and try again. It was only polyester satin from an inexpensive and damaged dress, but nonetheless I felt really irritated with myself for not slowing down and taking the time to get it right.

The beautiful dress that I had a personal attachment to, the pretty fabric that was wasted, all those wrinkles! All I needed to do was a few interfacing and stitching testers first, but I didn't. I hadn't yet learned the benefit of being analytical about my studies.

Moving Forward Appropriately

If we abandon those arbitrary goals in favour of more personalised practice strategies, how do we create a checklist or structure that tells us when we have "succeeded"?

If you have read and considered the ideas put forward in Branding: Part 1, you may already have a small amount of writing or brainstorming on what your brand is about... What makes you different from the other corsetmakers out there? Who is your ideal client? What are your aesthetic reference points and interests?

So, to begin with you will wish to re-consider the following:

• What are the "core principles" of my brand?
• How could these break down aesthetically? [I have already previously stated that I feel it is more interesting to be "the corsetiere with a certain philosophy of approach" than "the corsetiere that uses techniques X and Y", but there are still going to be particular styles that you are drawn to. Focus on them here.]
• Subsequently, which corsetmaking techniques are going to provide the backbone of my aesthetics?

A Personal Example

Using Sparklewren as an example, you may remember that my core principles were as follows:

• ARTIST CHARACTERISTICS: My approach to my work is corporeal, self-aware, blithe, fickle, intuitive and studious.
• CULTURAL GROUNDING: I strive to learn about and build upon British traditions of craftsmanship, fit and whimsy.
• THEORETICAL GROUNDING: I have an ongoing interest in the dialogue between sensuality and feminism.

These could be said to break down aesthetically (ie: outwardly) into work that has the following characteristics:

ART: Unfussy and refined to convey seriousness, but also personal and emotive to reveal the presence of the artist. Must communicate the artist's working character.

CULTURE: Must constantly improve and aim for the higher level of skill. Style can be quirky and disparate.

THEORY: Imagery must be body-conscious, intricate, and awash with historical and artistic references. It must be intimate and discreet in nature.

Subsequently, the primary styles and techniques that I am most drawn to, that make sense within my wider brand framework, are those that:

• Present a technical challenge (eg: fully-boned satin corsets);
• Encourage an emotional/sensual response (eg: textural, tactile, embellished designs);
• Build upon historical details (eg: Edwardian toplines, unusual cut or surface texture, figure 8);
• Combine historical detail with other artistic and personal references (eg: inspired by Klimt, Art Deco lines, favourite colours, etc.);
• Focus upon shape and silhouette in harmony with the decoration (eg: excellent waist shaping), attempting to really explore my interpretation of bespoke.

 

We have now identified a few key styles (and thus techniques) to work with. These two corsets both explore these ideas in different ways, showing the scope of aesthetics possible when working from a set of core principles.

 

Following this process, you can create a checklist of aims that are integral to the appropriate improvement of your work.

My checklist of aims might have included things like:

• Develop reliable method of creating complex patterns/cut.
• Master fully-boned corsetry.
• Develop surface embellishment inspired by the art I love.
• Focus on colour schemes that reflect my personal preferences.
• Pattern and fit toiles/corsets to a variety of figure types (eg: thin/pliable, thin/athletic, average/pliable, etc...) enhancing waist shaping abilities.

Which would allow me to settle upon more specific projects such as:

• Work with four models of varying figure types, producing two or more corsets each, in order to explore: fit, waist shaping, distance work, cut, construction preferences, design, etc.

In turn, this allows you to settle upon very small specific comparative tasks within the project, such as:

• Create two complex gusseted patterns for models at either end of the figure spectrum (eg: one with gentle curves and one with a dramatic hipspring) to learn about the relationship between cut and figure.

You can see how I actually explored this particular issue (right). By using two models with different natural hipspring (and also by building one corset with a view to being sleek comfortable clubwear and the other actually extending beyond the body), I was able to learn a bit more about gusseted patterning in relation to the body. 

Applying This to Your Own Studies

Really think about the things you find beautiful. Pay attention; observe the details that add to that beauty.

• Is it the curve of a hip or the compressed bust of stays?
• Is it the colours of a favourite piece of jewellery or the shape of a piece of pottery?
• What, in particular, makes those things magical?

To reiterate, if you follow your brand's core principles through to their logical conclusion you will soon create a checklist of tangible tasks and required skills.

The process can be summarised as follows:

1. Establish your core principles (a brand philosophy, if you like).

2. Imagine these principles expressed outwardly (in general visual terms: colour, style, etc.)

3. Visualise the corsets that you imagine would best express those aesthetics and ideals (be as outlandish as possible!)

4. Create a checklist of aims/goals/techniques which will ultimately allow you to create those imagined corsets (figure out how to make those outlandish dreams come true).

5. Structure a project through which you will achieve these aims (this allows you to focus your efforts, time and money).

6. Use that project to create comparative tasks (eg: flossing samples, different approaches to patterning, different approaches to cording, comparative corsets, etc).

If you try to achieve everything you can imagine, it will take huge amounts of time, money and dedication, and you may find yourself doing a lots of things okay and no one thing brilliantly. If you're a beginner, or new to developing a business, focus.

It's worth noting that even those not interested in going into business would benefit from this process. Forget the idea of a brand and instead imagine your perfect corset. What does it look like? What features does it have? It might make use of things that you consider to be impossible or too difficult, but analyse it, break it down, study the component parts... You'll save a lot of time, effort and money in the long-run.

Summary

Breaking down projects and aims in the way I have described allows you to learn with each stitch.

Your checklist may feature aims as big as the above examples, or as simple as enhancing your basic skills, or as adventurous as creating your own materials. For example, "I will develop my own innovative and effective take on perfect busk insertion" or "I will source/weave/create an exclusive fabric or trim."

Either way, your checklist will allow you to begin accepting commissions with confidence as you will be able to identify exactly what you are and aren't happy to do for a client. For those already accepting commissions, having an ongoing checklist maintains confidence and ensures your work is always developing.

 Next Time

In Part 3 we will look at another factor worth considering when deciding what to study/practice: the structure of your future business.

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