Previously, I showed you the basic Adobe Illustrator tools for creating simple technical drawings, known as flats.  While the first lesson was somewhat broad as we familiarized ourselves with the basics, here I'll go over some rendering very specific to corsetry, which I developed as I created the flats for my line, Pop Antique.  In this article, you'll learn how to take your illustrations to the next level, with my three keys to beautiful flats; indications for binding, bone channels, and piping; rendering the busk and grommets; and filling in colors or textures to indicate various fabric types.

Top Three Tools for Beautiful Flats

In my opinion, there are three keys to successful flats. None of them are very complicated, but used together they create a result that is elegant and informative. In a nutshell, they are as follows:

First Step, as discussed in part 1, is to start with a strong base: your croquis.  If your template is off, your flats will be, too. If, on the other hand, you start with a shapely, proportionate croquis, then your flats will likewise be shapely and proportionate.

Second Step is to vary your line weights. If you have much experience or training as an illustrator, you will not be surprised by this rule. But where and by how much do you vary them?

• Silhouette outline – 1 point line
• Interior lines (seams) - .5 pt
• Topstitching - .25 pt, 1-1 dash-gap

More on that later, when I show you how and where you'll be creating these lines.

Third Step is to illustrate topstitching everywhere.  In corsets, there's a lot of topstitching from the bone channels, but the visual impact they give even a simple pair of trousers is remarkable.  (Then again, I'm that stitcher who topstitches, edge stitches, and understitches everything anyway, so it's not surprising that I automatically apply the same level of detailing to my flats.)

Corset Anatomy

In part 1 of this tutorial, we created a simple silhouette with seam lines, the information that could be inferred from your pattern. But the number of panels isn't what defines a corset. The following information describes the actual construction and finishing of your corset. (No, not your top secret stitching methods, but things like your front and back closures, the type of bone channels you use, etc.)

You'll be working on the half until you've added all your details, assuming your design is symmetrical. Then you'll mirror as you did before. The busk is the only detail you can't mirror, but all your bone channels, binding, and grommets should be fine. Get used to using the “paste in front” tool a lot. (Just a reminder, that's a command+C followed by a command+F.) Your line width at this point should probably be .5 for all lines.

Corset Anatomy: Binding

Hit A, the “Direct Selection Tool,” and select your top or bottom edge, which likely has multiple line segments (as defined by anchor points). Copy and paste in front, then hit “shift” and the up arrow key at the same time to get it into a clear working space. I'll use this a lot, sometimes shunting larger shapes far to the side and then moving them back. Using shift + arrow keys makes it easy to a) move larger distances, and b) move back to the original position when you're done editing.

Now copy and paste in front your new line segment, then hit the down arrow twice. I find this is a good proportion for the width of my binding, but if your croquis is at a different scale you may need to adjust from there. Keeping it to a specific number of arrow taps enables you to be consistent across your flats, even just between your top and bottom binding. 

Select the anchor points at one end of both lines (at the center line or side seam) and join, using command J. Repeat on the other side.

 Shift arrow down to move back in place. Change your fill color to white instead of “no fill,” and command+shift+] to move to the front.

Now, since your side seam is at an angle but the end points you joined were perfectly aligned vertically, the binding juts out at the side seam. Select the anchor point, hold shift to move it on a parallel track (so that you don't mess with your consistent width unintentionally), and snap it to the side seam line. You may also have to adjust your anchor point handles to make sure the widths stay parallel along the curves.

 

Incidentally, binding is one of the few exceptions to my “draw topstitching everywhere” rule – your topstitching should be pretty close to the edge of the binding, and the lines would just be too close to read well. It's not necessary. (The same goes for external bone channels.)

 

Corset Anatomy: Bone Casings

After doing binding, adding your bone casings will be a cinch. Although in my case, the addition of a gusset in my design has complicated the task. This demo is for 1/4” or 3/8” wide bones.

Simple single-boned internal channels: Using your regular selection tool, select all your seam lines (assuming that's where your bones are placed), copy and paste in front, and shift two arrow taps to the left or right (which is to say, towards the CF or side seam) depending on where you place your bones. Change your stroke weight to .25 and create a 1-1 dashed line. (1 pt dash, 1 pt gap.) 

I've made this demo a bit difficult for myself because of my hip gusset, of course. Depending on the shape of your top and bottom edges, you may find that some of your topstitching lines are too long or too short. The binding may help camouflage the latter, but for the former you'll have to add intersecting anchor points and delete the end segment of the line (see part 1 for another example of this).

 

Simple single-boned external channels: Same as above, except you'll leave the stroke as a .5 solid line. Copy, paste in front, shift over, adjust line length if necessary.
Double-boned internal channels: Same as above, except that you'll be pasting in front and shifting to both the right and left of the original seamline.  Copy, paste in front, shift over, change stroke weight and style to .25 dashed, copy, paste in front, shift over onto the other side, use the eyedropper tool to copy the stroke style.  Adjust line lengths.
Double-boned external channels: The outside edges of the external casing are your .5 solid line and the line between is .25 dashed.

Bonus technique – Piping: Copy, paste in front, shift just one arrow tap over and convert one or both lines to .25 solid. The line that's the edge of the piping would be the thinner line, and if you're double boning that channel be sure to nudge the edges of your channels away from the piping edges, not the original seamline.

  

Corset Anatomy: The Busk

Select the Ellipse Tool (L). In your toolbar, it is an alternate tool under Rectangle Tool. Click once in your workspace and create a circle that is .05 x .05 inches.

 Using your Direct Selection Tool, select half the circle (one anchor point, two line segments) and delete it.

Drag your half circle to your center front line.  Copy and paste in front, then hit shift+down arrow to separate the objects (but keep them in line). Repeat a few times – think logically. If you were constructing this corset, how many studs would the busk probably have? For an overbust, probably five or six.

You can eyeball the placement for the top and bottom loops, or you can snap them to the top and bottom edges of the corset and then move them a fixed distance inward. Remember to hold shift to keep it in line with the CF easily. Use the Selection Tool to select all your busk loops. Under the “Align” menu, click on “Vertical Distribute Center” and the loops are all now equidistant.

 

Duplicate your CF line and shift it three arrow taps towards the side seam to indicate the topstitching around the ½” bone of the busk and use the eyedropper or stroke tool to change it to a .25 dashed line. If you place a second bone next to the busk, be sure to indicate that as well. Shorten or lengthen the line(s) as needed.

  

When you mirror your corset front, select all, then use the shift key to deselect the busk loops. Make sure they are facing the appropriate direction – in Western fashion, women's garments always fasten right over left, and thus the loop side of your busk should be attached to the right-hand side of the corset.

Since I draw flats stacked on top of each other, each with their own layer, I find it helpful to have an extra-long busk on one of the bottom layers, ready to be copied, pasted, and digitally cut down to the appropriate length.  You may have to shift the placement of the loops a bit up or down depending on where your top and bottom edges fall, but you'll already have enough loops for any length and they'll be the appropriate distance apart.

 

Creating a Color or Pattern Fill

First of all, use this technique lightly. It's really important for flats to be easy to read, and the more you clutter them with textures, colors, and prints, the more distracting they become and the harder it is to see the important construction details. Fabrications and colors are interchangeable so only indicate them when they're central to the design: sheer corsets, lace overlays, color blocking, and unusual grain lines (for example, linear patterns such as stripes cut on the cross-grain or bias).

 Select all the framing objects or lines for each panel of your corset. Copy and paste in front, and shunt it over or up, directly in line with its original placement.

 Add anchor points (+) where your seamlines intersect the edges of your silhouette. Delete the extra segments and anchors using the Direct Selection Tool. Join your new corners.

Shift back into position, apply your pattern or color swatch, move to back (command+shift+[ ), and repeat with the next panel of your corset.

 

 

Corset Anatomy: The Back View

Create a new layer. Copy your front design (one half only), hide the front layer, and paste in front on the new layer. Delete the busk loops. 

How does the design on the back of your corset differ from the front?  Chances are, the bottom edge is similar (unless you are doing a classic longline silhouette), but the top edge is different, often lower.  How do you adjust the seamlines?  Work through the design.

My process is usually to adjust the top (and sometimes bottom) edges first.  Simply use the pen tool to draw your new back neckline, matching it to the top of the side seam and snapping it along the center line. Create the top binding, just as you did in the front.

Now you've got all these seamlines going through your binding that may not be entirely applicable to your back style lines. Add anchor points to the intersection of each line at the top edge of the back binding. You may need to select the line to make sure the anchor point gets added to the correct segment. 

To adjust the style lines (rather than starting from scratch), select only the portion of the line segments that are above the top edge of the back binding. Command+x and paste in front to separate them from the rest of the segment. Move to back with command+shift+[.

Delete the topstitching from your busk because the CB of your corset has an entirely different boning pattern. Duplicate the CB line, move it over two taps, and shorten it. You can just grab and move the endpoints (holding shift); there's no need to add anchor points and remove line segments since the line is entirely straight. Turn it into a topstitching line (.25 pt dashed). Duplicate the new line, move over four taps, then once more, two taps. This creates the bone channels that frame your grommets.

Delete the topstitching or whatever indication you have for your casings (if you have external casings on the front, don't forget to invert the stroke style on the exposed interior).

Now it's time to adjust your style lines. Adjust the seam lines, being mindful of a possible conflict with the grommet region. Add topstitching or whatever indication you have for your casings on the new style lines.

 

There are a lot of lines going on now, so to keep the interior of the front from getting distracting we're going to shade it in. This gives some perspective and lets the viewer know which forms are on top. Select the top edge of both the front and back binding (or select the whole binding and delete the unnecessary segments. Copy, paste in front, move up or aside. 

Join the segments into a closed shape, move back into position, and move to back so that it doesn't cover your stitch lines. Select a light grey fill color, such as K=20. Change the top binding to match.

 

Corset Anatomy: Grommets

Illustrating the grommets will be similar to creating the busk. First, make a circle (using the Ellipse tool) .02” x .02”. Next, make a line that runs down the center of your grommet area. The easiest way to do this is to copy the first topstitching line and move it over two taps. Take the circle you made and snap it onto the top of the line.  

Copy and paste a column of grommets, guessing at how many you'll need. The last one should be placed at the end of the guideline. Move the first and last grommet away from your binding until their placement seems proportionate to how high you would actually set those grommets. You can delete the guideline now.

 

Select all your grommets and do another “Vertical Distribute Center.” Add or delete grommets until the number and distribution looks proportionate to the center back length of your corset.

Much like the busk, you may wish to create an extra long grommet strip and save it to an under-layer for future use. Just duplicate your row of grommets and after it's pasted, don't de-select it. Instead, shift them down so that the top grommet from the new set snaps on top of the bottom grommet from the original set.  Delete one of the stacked grommets.

 

Finishing the Flat

Part of this will be a repeat from the first article on flats, but the last step is new and ties back into the varied line weights I mentioned at the beginning. 

Select all, go to the Object menu, Transform ? Reflect ? Copy. Slide the copy sideways until the center lines snap together. Select the silhouette shapes from both halves. Copy, paste in front, and shift to the side. Pathfinder ? Shape Mode ? Unite.  Change the stroke weight to 1. Move to front and shift back onto the top of the flat.

The unite tool can be very useful, but you can only use it on two objects at once. Start with two and add more if needed. Sometimes it glitches and creates an unnecessary line segment (but still merges the objects). If this happens, just delete the unnecessary segment. You may find yourself creating an opaque white silhouette and moving it to the back of the flat so that you can overlap your flats.

 

more on creating the technical fashion

drawings known as "flats". You'll learn how to take your

corset illustrations to the next level, with Marianne's

three keys to beautiful flats.

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