Corsets with built in cups look fabulous with their body hugging curves and close resemblance to luxurious lingerie, but they are one of the most difficult corset styles to make - as I have personally experienced and many fellow corsetmakers have as well.

Perfect fit and construction is essential to provide good bust support (even more for bigger bust sizes) but the construction of the built in cups is quite tricky, especially if you don't have professional training/experience in bra making.

For this reason, constructing overbust corsets with well-fitting cups has been one of my biggest challenges during the few last years and I have never stopped experimenting with patterns, techniques and toiles to improve my skills for these styles.

In this new article series, I am going to share with you some of my experiences in developing a successful cupped corset design by introducing a simplified method of constructing beautiful built in cups, using an already existing ready-to-wear bra as a base. While I am still experimenting and learning how to create good cups from scratch with a self-drafted pattern (more on that later), I am quite happy with this simplified method and I have used it for lots of cupped corset styles over the last few years with good results.

 

 

In this first part of the series, I will cover all the aspects of pattern construction for cupped corsets and will guide you through creating your own pattern for a basic corset with cups. Based on this, the next articles in this series will cover fitting and alterations for different cup styles with mock-ups, and later the process of putting an original cupped corset together with the pattern we have developed.

 

Planning the Design

There are many different design options for cupped corsets, just like for any other corset style, which should be considered before diving into pattern construction.

 

 

A classic hourglass shape is certainly the most common choice for the silhouette, as it accentuates the hip-spring, which compliments the built-in cups in a lovely way. That doesn't mean though, that other styles don't work with built in cups. Pushing the boundaries of the well known often leads to innovative new designs, so don't be afraid to experiment.

Apart from the general silhouette there are some more aspects, which influence the fit of the cups, the support of the bust, etc...

For example, shoulder straps make it a lot easier to gain good support and it might be very helpful to start with a design with straps (especially for bigger bust sizes), if you would like to practice construction at first, without worrying too much about potential problems with the fit of the bust.

 

Shoulder-Straps

They help to keep the cups in position and give better support for the bust, as the weight of the breasts will be held by the straps and the cups can't "fall down", as they sometimes tend to do. This can either be elastic bra straps, possibly even with the option of adjusting the length (just like a bras) or solid fabric straps in your desired width. Both options will add support to the cups of your corset.

 

High back and side panels

A high back also helps to improve the support, as it is a strong counterpart to the cupped front. The same applies to the sides, as high as possible. The cups of the corset should gently pull towards the chest, so the breasts stay where they belong and the front of the corset doesn't sag. Higher side panels also mean higher cups at the sides (and higher bra wires), which automatically provides more support than a very low sideline.

 

The corset front

Usually I am a big fan of the classic front busk with hooks and eyes, as it makes it so easy and comfortable to open and close a corset without undoing the laces every time. However, for corsets with cups I try to avoid front busks, as they are not as strong as a solid wide flat steel bone, which is very important for support.

Secondly a front busk is twice as wide as one solid steel bone and it would either have to end below the cups, if there is not enough space in between the cups (usually the case with bigger cup sizes). That often looks a bit awkward and the important support between the cups is missing. It would also cause additional bulk in between the cups with the two bones of the busk plus the bra wires, which is not easy to handle and doesn't look very good if not executed very accurately.

Because of these considerations I usually suggest a closed corset front for cupped corsets. A busk is still possible, of course, but I find it more difficult to get the look and construction neatly done.
If it is a style without dramatic waist reduction, a hidden zipper closure on the side seam might be an alternative for easy opening and closing without removing the lacing.

 

Push-up cups

Finally I'd like to mention the option of creating a push-up effect with padded cups, as some ladies with smaller bust sizes often ask me for this option. It is easy to achieve this with pre-molded cups and I will mention the necessary extra steps during pattern construction.

 

 

Choosing a corset pattern and a ready-to-wear bra 

As a base for pattern construction I recommend an already approved overbust corset pattern, made to your own or your clients measurements.

 

For the bra I personally like to use basic t-shirt bras with pre-molded cups and without any embellishment. They are easy to find in many colours and any size and if desired with different amounts of built in push-up padding. Also they provide good support and you can check the shape of the cups in advance, without being distracted by frills, lace or bows.

I also recommend going to the shop and trying on several different bra styles and sizes, to find a fit and shape which you like and find comfortable, and which also fits the corset design you have in mind. As with bra fitting in general, the cups should provide good support without squishing the breasts too much and they shouldn't be too small or too low. If you are working for a client, be precise when explaining what bra she should choose and what to watch out for, if you don't go bra shopping together. In my experience a lot of women tend to buy too small bras and the look and problems of too small cups would be even more evident with a corset worn as outerwear, compared to an underwear bra.

At this point it's also time to consider the option of building in a push-up effect. You can achieve this by choosing a base bra with built in or removable padding. Try on different styles and sizes to find out, which look you or your client like and feel comfortable with. If you are interested in learning more about this, I recommend reading my past article on the subject of making corsets with push-up effects.

 

 

Adapting the Pattern 

Once you have your basic pattern and bra, the first step will be determining the position of the cups on your corset pattern.

Therefore we need the waist to underbust measurement, well known from the construction of underbust corsets and many other styles. Put on the bra and measure from the waistline up to the bra wire. 

 

In my case that measurement is 11cm, but this varies greatly, depending on the length of the torso. I have had clients with only 5cm waist - underbust and clients with 17cm for the same measurement for example.

If you want to achieve a push-up effect, add 1 - 3.5 cm to this measurement. 1cm for smaller bust sizes and a moderate push-up effect; up to 3.5cm for bigger bust sizes and more push up effect. For this pattern I have raised the underbust line by 1.5cm to 12.5cm above the waist line.

Next we need to mark the desired height of the center front of your corset. The easiest option is to measure from your waistline up to where the wires of your bra end. You can also choose a higher measurement, though, if you prefer.

Then we also need to remove some width from the seamline directly beneath the cups. Overbust corsets usually don't lie flat on the body directly under the bust but have some space caused by the curve from underbust to bust. Cupped corsets however have to lie directly on the body under the bust and therefore it is important to remove some width in this area.

Once this is done, place the bra on your corset pattern; center front of the bra meeting exactly the center front of the pattern and the bra wire meeting exactly the underbust line of your pattern. Then trace the curve of the bra wire on the inside of the cup onto your pattern, stopping at the end of the first corset panel. 

  

Mark the end of the first pattern piece with a pin on the bra and then move the bra to the side, so the pin meets the seamline of the second pattern piece. Then go on tracing the curve of the bra wire onto your corset pattern.

 

The result should look similar to this.

 

At this point, it is important that there is a seamline/bone closely next to the cup and bra wire, because it will help supporting the cups and preventing them from pulling away from the body. However there should be enough space between cup and seamline for both bra wire and bone, so they don't overlap and can be sewn in place next to each other. On my pattern there is too little space left between bra wire and seamline, so I have to adjust the seamline a little more towards the sideseam to get enough space for bra wire and bone.

 

If you would like to check the shape of the curve you have drawn, you can also use one of the bra wires to find out if the curve on your pattern pieces matches the curve of your cups.
Therefore, gently unpick the seam on one of the wire casings of your base bra and remove the wire. Take care not to damage the wire casing, though, as you will need it for the construction of your mock-up and original corset later.

 

 

Creating the Cup Pattern

Now that the corset part of the pattern is finished, we can move on to the cups. I always like to cover the cups with the same fabric (and decoration) as the corset, so I also need a pattern for the corset cups. To get a perfect pattern for pre-moulded cups, I use the simple and effective masking tape method. As mentioned in the introduction, drafting a bra cup pattern from scratch is quite tricky and after I saw other professionals using this masking tape method, I discovered it is a quick and easy shortcut to get to a perfect fitting cup pattern.

You will need masking tape in a small width, to cover the cup of the ready-to-wear bra. I always start directly next to the bra wire for a clean edge and then go along, covering the rest of the cup with two layers of tape. 

Around the top edge I would suggest leaving some extra tape, in case you want to adjust the shape of the cup to be something else than the basic bra shape. For a first mock-up for this article series I have decided to go for cups with elastic shoulder straps and with almost the same shape as my base bra cups. I only added some height to the top edge for a little more coverage.

Here I have traced the line of the basic bra's original cup edge on the tape

 

In general there are no rules, how to place the seamlines on your cup, but the more seamlines/pattern pieces you make, the smoother the shape of your cup will be. Classic lingerie bras are always a good inspiration to find flattering and elegant lines for bra cups, but you can also go completely creative. However, I would suggest at least three pattern pieces though - especially for bigger cup sizes, otherwise it will be difficult to get the fabric to lie smoothly over the pre-moulded base cups.

Here, I have added 0.7cm to the top edge of the cup and I have drawn the desired seamlines onto the cup. This seamline design is one of my personal favourite options, which I often use for my designs, but I will also show you some other options later in the article.

 

Once you are happy with the seamlines on the taped bra cup, you can start carefully removing the tape mould and cutting away the excess tape around the edges.

 

The next step is to cut the pattern pieces along the drawn lines and place them on paper. The flat pattern pieces possibly will have some uneven curves or bumps, which should be corrected without changing the general size and shape of the pieces too much. Once that is done, we also have a pattern for our pre-moulded cups and our corset pattern is ready for a first mock-up.

 

 

Alternate Cup Designs

Here are some alternative options for seamline designs of cups, just for inspiration and to show how many different possibilities there are. The options are limitless and I personally really enjoy playing around with different shapes and lines.

This is a five piece pattern for very high round cups without horizontal lines, which I have used for my NeoFlowers corset dress. 

  

 

A similar pattern to the one above, a five piece cup pattern, but I have cut the top edge in points. You can see the result on my Queen of the Night corset top.

  

 

Now I hope this article gives you some insight into the mysteries of drafting patterns for cupped corsets. In Part 2 of this series I will guide you through creating a mock-up with your finished pattern and base bra, explain how to make necessary adjustments to your pattern, and discuss some common issues with constructing cupped corsets.

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this article!

Go on to Part 2

 

 

 

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