Joanne Arnett is no ordinary weekend seamstress: she is currently sewing her way through every corset pattern in Norah Waugh's book, Corsets and Crinolines.

She is documenting the whole project in her blog, her many avid readers following along with every stitch. She believes that the stuff you don't see is often more interesting than the stuff you do see. Making corsets, she says, is like building bridges on the body.

What inspired you to start this project?

I wanted to learn more about corsetry. It is such a fascinating subject. There’s the whole sociological angle, ideologies, class, income, and all that. Then there is also the engineering involved, foundation garments are perfect examples of form following function. I love that. Change something, fabric, cut, or construction methods, and the garment performs differently.

I wanted to be able to directly compare the way making those changes changed the foundation and ultimately the fashionable silhouette by making foundations from several time periods for the same body.

Antique corsets are artifacts. They can no longer be worn if we want to keep them, but one can learn an enormous amount about a corset and the time and place it came from by making a new version of an existing pattern. Also, I wanted to become a better craftsman. By constructing every corset in Corset and Crinolines I knew I’d beef up my drafting and sewing skills, but I’d also deal with the same situations that the makers of the original garments faced. I’d share something with those people even though we are centuries apart.

A big part of the project is the public aspect of it. I was already taking notes on things I was making so I thought I’d expose the whole process. Put the missteps out there along with the successes because there is no reason anyone needs to make the same mistakes I’ve made, or have to go through the frustration of figuring something out that I already have. I believe in sharing information. We all work better when we’re not in a vacuum.

How long have you been sewing?

Not that long. I started around 5 years ago. I had always been crafty, and had a machine for years that served sparse duty for making pillows, and once a slipcover, but garments were too intimidating. I am a master at some detail oriented things, Etch-a-Sketch and Spirograph for example, but a novice seamstress. Maybe beyond novice, more like an intermediate seamstress. I’m still learning.

Did you make a corset before starting this project?

Yes, a few. The first corset I attempted was actually from Corsets and Crinolines, but I had no idea what I was doing. It was horrible!

Every beginner mistake that could be made was made. I used spiral steel along the grommets so it warped all way down the back. I had no idea the steel bones needed capping, they cut through the channels during the first wearing. The fabric was a fairly loose weave and my stitches were too long. The channels were just the seam allowances stitched open, I doubt the seams would have lasted had the corset been worn a second time.

Then two years ago I took Linda Sparks' corset making class and at the end of one weekend I had not only made my second corset, I was hooked. I had the idea of sewing all the patterns in Corsets and Crinolines about six months before I actually got around to doing it.

How many corsets have you made so far in this project?

Four have been finished: 1780's Stays, 1880's Summer corset, the 1904 light corset for sport or negligee wear that I made twice, once with bands of coutil sewn together and once as a ribbon corset. I’ve made two others from the book, the 1844 corset and the 1776 stays, but they were done before I started the project so they don’t count.

What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned so far in this project?

It’s cliché, but patience. I can’t rush, or skip any steps if I want the finished piece to look correct and function properly. There is no cheating in corsetry. There are ways to do things more efficiently, but there are no shortcuts.

I’ve also learned that putting something together is one thing, figuring out how to put that something together and documenting it so it can be done again is another. I spend more time taking pictures and writing about what I do than actually doing it. But documenting the process really reinforces what I’m learning. That I hadn’t expected.

Which one was the hardest corset to make?

The one I’m working on now, the 1925 corselet. But I think that same thought with every one because I’m always pushing myself to try something new. On this one, getting the fit was surprisingly difficult, the fabric is slick, and I’m doing flat felled seams, with gores, all new stuff for me. But when I kept snapping basket reeds while working on the 1780 stays that was probably the overall low point. It was days of being stuck in reed breaking quagmire. My stomach gets in a knot just thinking about it.

Which corset is your favorite?

The last one I finished, the 1904 ribbon corset. But just like the one I’m working on is always the most difficult, the one most recently finished is always my favorite.

When I complete the one I’m currently working on I have no doubt it will become my new favorite. But I do think the rooster stays are the prettiest. I love the shape, love the fabric, and am pretty satisfied with the craftsmanship.

Was there a corset that surprised you when it was finished?

Yes. I was surprised how the 1904 pattern made with ribbons. It’s completely slack when not worn, I really hadn’t expected it to do much at all so it was a surprise when I put it one and gave some shape.

Which one are you working on now?

I’m currently working on the 1925 corselet. And I’m at that exact moment in a project where I feel I’ll never finish and I know I have to just slog it out for a bit longer and then I’ll done, and thrilled, and able to move on to the next.

What’s next on your list?

Ooh, next will be the one on page 36, the boned bodice lining from 1650. When I started on this project I worked out a sewing order so I wouldn’t be stuck making stays for a year, so I bounce around between eras. I always look forward to the next one. The perfect corset is always just around the corner.