For quick review, here is the patent image, and the patent itself is available at Google Patents.

I will be referring to most of the pieces by the numbers indicated on the patent, so you may want to open that up in another window or print it out!

I had tried the first mock-up on myself, and although it was very obviously not meant for someone with my overall girth, I had actually been fairly happy with the fit of the center front panel and the fit of the bust.

It definitely needed some enlarging, but not a substantial amount, and I really didn't want to lose the line at the front with the bust gores, as I liked them pretty close to where they were, hitting the edge of the bust swell. I didn't want this piece to go into my armpit! (Figure 1)

From trying on the initial mockup, and from just looking at my measurements compared to the mock-up's measurements, I knew that the main concerns with altering this pattern were going to be:

1)adjusting the waist

2) adding several inches around the body while maintaining the lines of the patent.

You can see these two points outlined in Figure 2, where the waist barely pulls around my back, while the top reaches around the back – the waist will definitely need the most added to it, and a few centimetres will be added on each side, to leave approximately 7-8cm gap.

I had determined while making the initial mock-up that the seam allowances on the patent measured 1cm.

I retraced the pattern pieces from the initial mock-up, and measured 1cm in on all the edges that would be sewn (Figure 3), so that I would know what was seam allowance and what was corset as I was making alterations.

I added 1cm (3/8") to piece 1, which added to the general enlargement, and also let me add another length of boning beside the busk on the corset. I didn't want to add too much at the CF, as I liked the line, so I added 1cm (3/8") to the centre front (CF) piece 1 only at the waist point in the middle of the pattern piece, where it points out to the sides, and tapering this width to blend into the piece at the top and bottom (Figure 4).

I added 1.5cm (5/8") of width along the entire length of piece 4, cutting it in half the length of the piece (note, not on the grain line, which you can see marked in Figure 4). I wasn't worried about this affecting the grain, as it was the same width added across the entire piece. Although I could have gained a bit more of the overall girth enlargement on this panel, I really wanted the back edge of the 4th panel not to extend past the cup of the bosom, as mentioned above.Beyond aesthetic choices, piece 4 is also meant to support the bust, so having it extend into the armpit/side would defeat its purpose.

I didn't alter piece 3, and I made only a slight alteration to piece 2, adding 0.5cm (3/16") to the front edge (also shown in Figure 4). I was cautious of adding too much here, despite my ample chest, because I wanted to maintain the vertical boning channels shown in the patent.

From trying on the first mock-up, I knew that I was pretty happy with the height of the corset, so I didn't make any alterations to it. I wanted the bulk of the alterations to be spread through the 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 12 panels, the "side torso." Due to the pieces all fitting together diagonally, these pieces couldn't individually be cut and width added/subtracted like a traditional corset pattern with vertical pattern pieces.

I taped pieces 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 12 together, matching up the markings indicating seamlines (Figure 5). I left the seam allowance on, but you may want to cut them off and tape the edges directly. I didn't include 11 as it was meant to be elastic and I was planning to not alter that piece, as I wanted to keep the 10 & 11 triangle intact and widening it would change the shape. I included piece 10 in the taped draft so that I had a clear 3D picture of how the pieces would lay, as I wanted the slashes to be as close to the vertical on the body as possible.

I added 3cm (1 3/16") to the waist towards the front of this franken "torso panel," slashing through pieces 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, and tapering it to match the original pattern measurements at the chest and hip lines. I then slashed through 5, 6, 7,and 12, adding 1cm (3/8") at the chest level, 3cm (1 3/16") at the waist, and 2cm (¾") at the hips.

Finally, after slitting and measuring and double checking the final measurements of the slashed pattern pieces versus my measurements (measure twice, cut once!), I used my French curves to fix the flow of the pattern pieces on the slashed and generously-taped copy. I tried to keep these lines as similar as possible to the lines in the original patent, while realizing that they couldn't be exactly the same since my figure isn't as svelte! I copied out my new customized versions of 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 12, and double checked the length of each of the seamlines to ensure that they matched up their intended seam partner.

For piece 1 and 4, I didn't recopy the pattern pieces, as they were still fairly structurally sound, and only required small alterations, such as the bottom of piece 4 (Figure 6). 

I wanted to make this mock-up out of material that I wouldn't mind wearing, as I knew that after spending the hours sewing all of those boning channels, and cutting all of the boning, that I would want something to show for it, as long as it fit moderately well.

I pulled some pink and purple striped upholstery fabric from my "mock-up material" stash. If this had been a traditional corset pattern with vertical panels, this fabric would have been atrocious, but with the diagonals of this pattern, I was able to place the pattern pieces almost entirely on solid colours while maintaining the grain.

The CF and CB panels had to be cut across a line, so I did do basic pattern matching to continue the interesting interplay of the lines of the corset, with the lines of the fabric.

I really loved the look of sharp contrast of the lines in Katarina Vukšić' s Y&N diagonal seamed corset, and was thinking about Harlequin costumes with contrasted colours, so playing with bright colour contrasts was a goal with this corset!

I ended up cutting one side to be the opposite colours of the other side. Figure 10 shows this pattern matching on the front panel, and the bright visual effect of the colours of this corset. 

I didn't take many photos of this corset as I was constructing it, as I followed the same method as in the first mock-up.

I had issues with the fabric shifting while sewing the boning channels, despite using a rolling foot. The shifting was so extensive that for several pieces, I laid the original pattern piece over the sewn pieces, matching up the grainlines, and cut around the edges with a rotary cutter to ensure that the pieces were accurate. Luckily the mismatched edges were within the 1cm (3/8") seam allowance!

I wasn't worried about this on a mock-up, but the next incarnation will be made using a shiny new walking foot to ensure that all the pieces of fabric remain on grain.

I did finish the edges of the seams with pinking shears as I constructed the corset – although I wanted to make a wearable mock-up, I didn't want to spend the time finishing the seams, not knowing if the pattern fit or not! It's not pretty, as you can see in Figure 11, and it shed the first time I wore it, but it will keep the seam allowances from unravelling without adding any bulk.

I'm definitely going to place additional spring steel boning behind the front busk, the full length boning channel on Piece 1, and the back lacing panels.

You can see in Figure 20 that the bottom front juts out at the bottom of my stomach. I believe that part of the cause of this is that the front busk is not quite supported enough for my chest, so it curves quite a bit under it – this makes the bottom jut out, too.

I'm also going to slightly alter pieces 8 and 9, and add that amount subtracted to piece 1 – I don't want to create a sausage casing effect, but want to pull the bottom front in, so I'll shift the minus to the back.

Figure 21 shows that this corset really needs a modesty panel in the front behind the bust, as you can see my belly between the fabric! Adding a front modesty panel is a simple detail that I'll add on the final corset.

This image also shows that I need to make some small adjustments to the grainlines, as there are some wrinkles that should be eliminated by shifting the stress to be on the grain and not across.

This panel also shows one of the elements that I adore about this corset design – I love the intersection of pieces 4, 7, and 8! This is exactly the effect that I was going for with the sharp distinctions in colours, making each piece pop in a way that's still flattering.

I'm also going to add a bit more to the front bust, although my gentleman friend taking these photos thought it looked great.

Figure 22 shows that the flesh is pushed up more than "cupped" and this corset is definitely a "cupped" style. It is meant to take advantage of the gore's capability to hug the curves where they are, not shift them upwards.

Everything on the breast is covered up at this height, but I am also going to add about 1cm (3/8")to the top here.

One of the things I noticed about this pattern was that despite its initial complexity, it's actually not difficult to make – just time consuming, and fun!

I can see this pattern working in so many different styles – piece 3, piece 10, and the lace and elastic options for piece 11 give so much potential for embellishment.

The copious quantity of boning channels also offer plenty of opportunity for masochistic corsetieres interested in flossing!

Now that I've made this dramatic mock-up, I'm planning to make a much more stereotypical Victorian style corset, incorporating the lessons I learned from this mock-up. Figure 23 gives you a sneak peek of the elements that I'll be incorporating!