How to Make a Corset - Books for download

New books on corset making techniques are now available!

The author of "The Basics of Corset Building" has been writing more over the last several years and the chapters of what was to be her second book on corset making "The Art of Corset Building" are now available as downloadable PDF books at http://www.farthingalescorsetmakingsupplies.com

There are over twenty chapters that are being edited and formatted  and each month will see a new chapter posted as an independent downloadable corset book. Creating each chapter as a stand alone "book" means that you need only buy the chapters or "books" on corset making that you want or need, keeping them affordable to purchase.

Currently there are 7 "books" available on the website with about 15 more still to come, some of the "books" are free downloads. Please be respectful of the time and money this project has cost and don't share the "books" you purchase, just share the link.

Check out the books available now by clicking the link below.

http://www.farthingalescorsetmakingsupplies.com/Corset-books-s/1977.htm

I'm Chicago bound this week for three days of corset classes at Vogue Fabrics Store in Evanston Illinois, my favorite place next to the L.A. textile district. Vogue has it all...fashion fabrics, home dec, interfacing, thread, zippers, trims, buttons, tools and corset making supplies! It takes the space of what was originally 4 stores so it's big - and they have a huge on-line presence to. The corset supplies they stock are from Farthingales (in fact they are the US distributor of Farthingales product) so you know that the quality is what it should be.

The following week I'll be back in the shop and preparing for another kids sewing summer camp. This one is for kids who have taken our beginner classes and are ready to make a complete outfit! The kids are between 9 and 12 years old and they'll be making leggings, a sleeveless tunic and and infinity scarf. The camp is almost fully booked and I'm really looking forward to it.

In between times I'm working on the schedule for fall classes; including full day programs for PA Days.

And there is "The Book"...I'm still working on editing and formatting the over 20 chapters of my second corset making book. As I complete each chapter I'll be posting it to the website in the section Books>PDF Corset Books for Download some chapters are free but there is a charge for most of them as it's cost me a great deal of time and money to create the samples and write about the processes.

Farthingales will not be vendoring at any shows this fall...not even the Creativ Festival in Toronto despite having participated for the better part of 18 years! It's time to attend the show and take some classes but I'm sure we will be back in 2016 as we hope to do as many shows as possible then.

Corset Books

As some of you are aware, I wrote a second book after "The Basics of Corset Building". I called it "The Art of Corset Building" and  finished it about two years ago. It went off to the publisher in NY and they asked that I trim it down by over 100 pages due the expense to publish and to ship such a large book. They offered a nice advance but I could not see where to trim those pages. As a result the book is still unpublished as they agreed to let me withdraw the book.

Last summer was the planned time to create each chapter into a downloadable PDF so that each Chapter could be bought on it's own - you only buy the chapters you want or need and there is no shipping required - make the whole thing more affordable. Unfortunately last summer saw all my focus go to rebuilding my website myself (no, I'd never built a website before so it was a wee bit of a learning curve for this "getting old" brain) and it was an all consuming task that lasted until well into the fall, so this summer is now going to be dedicated to getting the chapters onto the website - yet another learning curve!

I'm teaching several classes and kids sewing camps this summer, so my time is limited, but I hope to get the first chapter up in the next week. If I succeed I'll send out an e-mail blast to announce it. I'm not starting with Chapter 1, in fact, I'm starting with Chapter 15! I chose to start with this chapter because it's not as big as some (some are around 60 pages), it's 24 pages and it's an interesting chapter that's not as much "how to make a corset" as it is a record of my journey through reproducing a vintage corset; hence the title "Reproducing a Vintage Corset". 

                                                      The image below is the end result

There are 20 chapters in all and it will take a few, if not several months, to prepare and post them all. I've not yet decided if I will post the other chapters in their original order but that is a likelihood. Other chapters include "Five Ways to Put in a Busk", "All About Bone Casings", "Striped Corset", "Making a Corset Pattern using a Sloper", all the chapters on corsets give all aspects of the build and I suspect will be $10 or less.

If you're interested in hearing when the chapters come available follow us on facebook

http://www.facebook.com/farthingalescorsets.

In's and Out's of the New Website

Last year at this time I had begun to build a new website by myself, with no previous experience. It was out of necessity rather than the desire to develop a new skill. It finally went live last September and life has continued to be crazy busy since.

If you're not familiar with our website www.farthingales.on.ca then you might want to visit it to see the selection of corset making supplies and other things we have.  In the top right corner of the home page you'll see a link to our SALE items, these are mostly items that are being discontinued by our supplies and since we can't get more, we're "sale-ing" them. You'll also find end of bolt pieces of coutil there, so it's worth checking out.

Along the top of the webpage are links to products - click on the "Books" one and see the drop down menu that includes second hand books that have come in from local costumers who set the price on the books they no longer need or don't have room for.

Down the left side of the page are links to interesting bits like this blog and our on-line Tips & Tricks section that has several free articles, that I've written over the years. There is also a link to our In-Store Classes which are classes you can take here at our Stratford, Ontario location.  Many are for kids and the adult ones include pattern drafting and costume making. The classroom has tons of natural light and has been awesome to work in.

If you're purchased from the new website you'll have had the opportunity to sign up for our e-newsletter of which we have sent very few but one will be going out in early July with a special Discount Code that can be used on July purchases for product from the site.

Sooo, if you've not yet explored all the "newish" site has to offer check it out now....

www.farthingales.on.ca