 Trade In this Item for up to £2.95
Trade in Corsets: A Modern Guide: A Modern Girl's Guide for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £2.95, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Plus, get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
'combines gorgeous images, fascinating historical background and unique inside knowledge in this entertaining, authoritative and inspiring look at the shapewear that has shaped the world.' --plumesnoires.co.uk, November, 2010
Product Description
While ideals of feminine beauty change over time, an hourglass silhouette with a tiny waist has frequently emerged as a potent image of women's sensuality This beautiful guide depicts the transformation of the corset from ancient to modern times, with particular reference to the recent revival of the corset as an outer garment. The overall style of the book combines extensive reference material alongside a more personal journey through the evolution of the garment, from one of the most celebrated corset designers of our times, Velda Lauder. Velda s enthusiasm and fascination for her subject makes this a unique document from the viewpoint of an industry insider who has devoted the last 15 years to celebrating the female form.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 23 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I spotted this book months before it was published. Then the description stated it included a chapter on corset making, but sadly this has been dropped from the final draft and the blurb has been amended accordingly.
First impressions were the book was smaller than expected, but nice and chunky. There are lots of colour photos of corsets, including many by modern designers - perhaps too many as few readers will be in a position to afford couture corsets, let alone those designed over a decade ago.
Sadly the written content is not as comprehensive. In the history section, for example, there is too much on underwear such as bustles and not enough on corsets. The second half of the Nineteenth Century - in my opinion the golden age of corsetry with much innovation in product and processes - is skipped over in a paragraph or two. (And confusingly there is an advert for Swanbill corsets from 1879 whilst the text on the facing page talks of "the straight-fronted or 'swan bill' corset fashionable from 1900 to 1910": they are not the same thing.)
Whilst the pictures from modern designers are attributed, the same cannot be said of the French drawings from 1892 (La Vie Parisienne?): nor are the French captions translated. The bibliography is similarly light, omitting for example, Norah's Waugh's classic 'Corsets & Crinlines'.
One myth I'd like to dispel is that 'underwear as outerwear' is a modern concept. "The present corset... should be over the dress, like the Roman belt of old; it is quite as handsome." - Ladies' Column in the Aberdeen Weekly Journal, 19th October 1892. The idea is over a hundred years old; moreover, several period cutting books base their corset drafts on dress bodice blocks.
As another reviewer has mentioned, the text and photos read a bit too much like an advertorial for the authoress, but her claims are undermined by the final two photos, showing buckled back boning and a wavy construction line with the binding twisted in. The beading on the cover photo is not symmetrical either. By the end I am none the wiser what her "unique Uber-Curve method of corset construction and tailoring" is and why it is beneficial. Although I can understand her not giving step-by-step instructions this book is touted as coming from an 'industry insider', and I'd like to know more about her mentor Michael Garrod if not her own work. I hope other modern makers will leave a better written record for future generations.
I'd buy it again though for the final picture of Bex Paul and the wearers' descriptions of how corsets make women feel. At the end of the day it is not a lot of money and I'd like to encourage more books on this subject.
First impressions were the book was smaller than expected, but nice and chunky. There are lots of colour photos of corsets, including many by modern designers - perhaps too many as few readers will be in a position to afford couture corsets, let alone those designed over a decade ago.
Sadly the written content is not as comprehensive. In the history section, for example, there is too much on underwear such as bustles and not enough on corsets. The second half of the Nineteenth Century - in my opinion the golden age of corsetry with much innovation in product and processes - is skipped over in a paragraph or two. (And confusingly there is an advert for Swanbill corsets from 1879 whilst the text on the facing page talks of "the straight-fronted or 'swan bill' corset fashionable from 1900 to 1910": they are not the same thing.)
Whilst the pictures from modern designers are attributed, the same cannot be said of the French drawings from 1892 (La Vie Parisienne?): nor are the French captions translated. The bibliography is similarly light, omitting for example, Norah's Waugh's classic 'Corsets & Crinlines'.
One myth I'd like to dispel is that 'underwear as outerwear' is a modern concept. "The present corset... should be over the dress, like the Roman belt of old; it is quite as handsome." - Ladies' Column in the Aberdeen Weekly Journal, 19th October 1892. The idea is over a hundred years old; moreover, several period cutting books base their corset drafts on dress bodice blocks.
As another reviewer has mentioned, the text and photos read a bit too much like an advertorial for the authoress, but her claims are undermined by the final two photos, showing buckled back boning and a wavy construction line with the binding twisted in. The beading on the cover photo is not symmetrical either. By the end I am none the wiser what her "unique Uber-Curve method of corset construction and tailoring" is and why it is beneficial. Although I can understand her not giving step-by-step instructions this book is touted as coming from an 'industry insider', and I'd like to know more about her mentor Michael Garrod if not her own work. I hope other modern makers will leave a better written record for future generations.
I'd buy it again though for the final picture of Bex Paul and the wearers' descriptions of how corsets make women feel. At the end of the day it is not a lot of money and I'd like to encourage more books on this subject.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I have to disagree with some of the negative comments in other reviews here. I was simply delighted with this book, it gave a comprehensive history of the corset and included a generous section covering the corset revival from Westwood onwards. The pictures are gorgeous, and it kept my attention from start to finish which is more than I can say for other books I have bought on the subject.
Velda Lauder is a designer not a journalist, it's somewhat missing the to point draw comparisons with works by Valerie Steele for example (a fashion historian, curator, and director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York no less). It's a real pleasure to read something from the individual perspective of a designer who's work you admire and I couldn't recommend this book more highly. Enjoy corset lovers !
Velda Lauder is a designer not a journalist, it's somewhat missing the to point draw comparisons with works by Valerie Steele for example (a fashion historian, curator, and director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York no less). It's a real pleasure to read something from the individual perspective of a designer who's work you admire and I couldn't recommend this book more highly. Enjoy corset lovers !
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
First off loads of pics, practically every other page is a fabulous photo many of them of Velda's creations. The history section is comprehensive from bible times through to the WWI and up to current pop stars and designers, discussing the female status and the silhouette of the female form. Modern corset culture covers the hollywood effect, empowerment of teenagers , development of lingerie and shape-wear. Goth, punk and burlesque fashions are introduced before discussion moves onto the role of the corset in fetish. Then my favourite topic - high fashion and the role of the corset as art. We finish with some tips on wearing corsets and views of corset wearing by some of the featured models. Overall a comprehensive book without ever getting too heavy but liberally interspersed with photographic art. Just wish it was in a larger format for the coffee table!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Thorough & Entertaining
I found this a fab history of the corset, with great images and photos covering everything I wanted to know in a smallish book. Read more
Published 20 months ago by TALLULAH
A MUST BUY ADDITION TO YOUR COFFEE TABLE
A great read, so beautifully illustrated with the most amazing corsets by Velda Lauder herself. Full of an in depth history and knowledge behind the curve enhancing corsets from... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Bex Paul
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
