Bone Prep

Preparing the bones for the corset

Sparks!

Bones in corsets

The fabric is what actually shapes the body; the bones are to keep the fabric in shape.  You need only as many bones as will keep the fabric from wrinkling - though more might be added for appearance.

There are two types of corset bones, flat steel and spiral steel.

Steel bones are rigid and used for supporting the front and back of the corset. They only bend in two directions (front and back) and are coated in white nylon to prevent rusting.  You can either buy them pre-cut or in a spiral and you can cut it to length.  I went with cutting it to length as it was going to be cheaper that way.

Spiral bones are actually spirals of anodized steel that have been squashed flat. They bend in 4 directions (front and back, side to side) and are used on the sides of corsets or in any boning channels that are curved. It's also sold in pre-cut lengths or as a large spiral.

You can also buy plastic boning but it's not suitable for a corset that needs to be cinched more than 2" off a natural waistline.  Cable ties are also a good and cheap alternative, and great for mockups or costumes.

Cutting the bones

MrIcy's well stocked shed provided everything I needed to cut the flat steel. Big old tin-snips first to cut them to length (about 1/2" less than the boning channel).  His newer tin-snips just couldn't cut it*.  Then MrIcy kindly helped by filing the ends with the Dremmel.  I think finished them off with the hand file.  The ends are wrapped with a little teflon (plumber's) tape to keep moisture out and ensure they don't rust.

The spiral steels are just snipped with pliers and then little metal caps pushed over the ends.  The spirals are already rust-proof (no idea why they don't just do that with with flat steels as well).

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* See what I did there...

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