ARGH! Stays!

[mala_14]

I tried on my Regency stays and they have all kinds of problems. Like the straps are too short. And maybe the gussets are too short too? And I think I need another bust gusset because I think I put the gussets too close to the front. I think I need to do what the_aristocat did on her Bernhardt stays and add a third bust gusset and a drawstring in the neckline. Luckily the top is unbound still, but I really don't feel like adding another gusset by hand (if I can even find the right fabric, wherever it is!) and then doing more eyelets by hand (for the straps, I swear the eyelet gods are laughing at me so hard). These are salvegeable, but not right now. With a big deadline looming, what's a girl to do?

I think I'm going to make a quick and dirty, machine sewn, metal grommeted pair of short stays. Like really short stays, so I don't have to deal with hip gussets. I'll still have to draft up a pattern, but I won't be starting from scratch because I can use my unfinished stays as a base. Any advice or thoughts?

Comments

[quincy134.livejournal.com]

:(

When I had a problem with too short straps I just cheated and used really long ties...did you try changing the angle of the straps? Sometimes that helps too.

[mala-14.livejournal.com]

They're not too short for tying, just too short to sew to the front pieces, which sort of makes sense because the pattern is from my 1790s stays which have tied straps. I can definitely fix them. But right now they are giving me all kinds of grief (I even managed to bleed on them) and I just want a stress-free, quick project so that I can get it done and move on.

[ashamanja-babu.livejournal.com]

I agree with tying them; if you're sick of eyelets just sew a length of twill tape to the too short straps and tie a bow.

Can you put them aside for a while, even just a few days, and work on something else?

[mala-14.livejournal.com]

I'm totally going to come back to these sometime in the future and get them finished off properly. But for now I'm going to make some quick and dirty stays. I really need the stays because I need to get started on the Lost Hope Fairy dress. I'm going to be away for the weekend and part of next week, so sewing time is quickly draining away!