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Where do you buy your bodices?

Started by HannahLeeDee, July 02, 2008, 10:18:53 AM

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HannahLeeDee

I have searched and searched online for bodices and found bodices from every end of the spectrum.

So I was wondering where everyone buys their bodices.

I am looking for a bodice that has boning and will obviously last a long time. I would prefer it not have leather and be around 80 dollars, a little more wouldn't be a big deal and less would be awesome. And I would want it to be a modest fabric with lacing in the front for a merchant class character. But I am always open for other options.

Do most women buy premade bodices or order a bodice to be made just for them?

HannahLeeDee

Also I would like to have the bodice be pretty adjustable because I working on losing some weight. And if it matters I am kind of a larger chested women and don't mind flaunting that asset.... :)

isabelladangelo

Just a couple of questions first:  Do you want H/A  or Fantasical or somewhere in between?  Are you "top heavy", pear, or hourglass in shape?  (This will affect which type of bodice is best for you)  Would you consider a small independent seamstress or do wnat a major renn fest clothing seller?

gem

Some well-regarded companies:

Ophelia's (my best bodices came from them)
Bodices by Bonnie (a forum member, who taught me everything I know about boning)
Odd Bodkin (FairMare's favorite!)

A really well-made bodice for under $80 is going to be a stretch.  You might look on ebay, which occasionally has such bargains.  It sounds like you know what goes into making a good bodice, so you should be able to judge what you're looking at!

Please remember that you're not only paying for the finished bodice itself, but for the fabric and materials; and the labor; as well as for the seamstress's time and expertise.  That's why bodices tend to be one of the more costly elements of Fairwear.

Good luck!!

daylight

I buy most of mine from damsel in the dress hers are so well made but they are not H/A realy but they are beautyful and very well made she has a web site called Damselinthdress.com you should check her out I have a few bodices and i just love everyone i have gotton form her. My husband thinks I really look good in them and I buy her wobbles  (cammies) as well and skirts  I just like the way they are made and the way they fit. and people really like her work hope this helps you as you go on your seach for a bodice or corrset.

HannahLeeDee

Well I guess I am more of an hourglass. And I kind of like the idea of a small independent seamstress because I like supporting small businesses. I am definitely willing to spend more then $80 as long as the bodice is something that will last for a long time, is really versatile and I just fall in love with it.

I have looked at Bodices by Bonnie and just love her bodices and thinking about buying form her. But she isn't starting any new orders until Aug so I am still going to look around until then.


Thanks for all of your help!

isabelladangelo

These might be out of the your price range but I've always admired (and know lots of people that have bought from) Potomac Leather.  The $130 ones aren't H/A but the really expensive one they have up is pretty darn close.  Either way, they look lovely on.

wildthingjew

http://www.damseldress.com/ is the correct link from above sorry, i just wanted to look at what they have to offer and found them on google
jamie, mother of miss katie scarlett

sealion

Odd Bodkin bodices are quite often listed on ebay.
Cindy/Ciana Leonardi di Firenze/Captain Cin

Joyce "Delfinia DuSwallow" Howard

I like MORESCA, it just feels great and fits great.Made very good too.
MDRF Dandy  "Delfinia DuSwallow"
Sun'n Penny - Clan O'Morda
LandShark #71
Maker of Buttery Nipples

Athena

I have a couple from Odd Bodkin. They're well made and the fabrics are gorgeous, plus the company has great customer service. My absolute favorite bodice is the lock lace from Sofi's Stitches. It's very flattering to my figure and gives me a great shape!
A book is like a garden carried in the pocket. ~ Chinese Proverb

gypsylakat

http://www.unicornclothing.com/bodice.htm

I have the plain bodice it laces at the sides and front and shoulders, and it's got steel boning at all of the lace points, which actually does provide me with a good bit of support perhaps not as much as moresca or oddbodkin, but it is a really good buy for it's price, I tried mine on at MDRF and was going to get a large and ended up with a medium, but if you talk to them by phone they can tell you what to get by measurments. their reversible. uhmmm yeah that's about all there is to it. Their good if you want a bodice for 80 ish and want something kinda simple.
"A kiss can be a comma, a question mark or an exclamation point.
That's basic spelling that every woman ought to know."

Kiss-me-Kate

I bought mine at Felix Needleworthy's at MNRF.  LOVE it.  Have to replace mine, I lost too much weight.
If I can find his card around here, I will post his website.

Also, MG has a gorgeous bodice from Moresca.  Not sure how it fits or what she paid for it, but you may want to ask her.
~ Notouchin' M'Crack
Pucker Up!

Abigail Fairbottom

I've had plenty of bodices over the years, but my favorites have always been Pendragon.  A neat thing about Pendragon is that you can buy stomacher and epaulet sets to switch out with your 'sides'.

http://www.pendragoncostumes.com

analise

I like the Unicorn Clothing bodices as well. Being reversible is nice, and so is the fact that they're so adjustable (even the shoulder straps can be tied a little looser or a little tighter).

My current favorite bodice I got from Fantasia, one of their Tudor bodices. It's also reversible, with a nice, discreet pattern of fabric on one side and a beautiful green velvet with some embroidery of flowers up near the top on the other. Definitely was more than $80 but ohsoworthit. I get compliments every time I wear it. :)

Taffy Saltwater

I'm a Moresca woman.  I'm a very large woman and not all of their styles come in my size.  My favorite is the Pirate bodice - it dips in the front & back and has a little peplum to help cover the waist of your skirt. It also does wonders for the girls & makes your waist look teensy (have one in black and one in wine). I also have one of the Max bodices to wear under a coat & a Phillipa, which they are not going to continue to make.  
Sveethot!

HannahLeeDee

Thank you all for your advice! I don't know why I didn't just ask here in the first place. This has been such a help... well except that all of the bodices are so beautiful I can't decide which one I want. Well I have about 43 days until Opening Canon... but who's counting. :)

Thanks again and talk to you later.... I need to get back to looking.

tigrlily64

I wanted to get a bodice from verymerryseamstress.com, but unfortunately she's booked until August.  I though her pricing was good(45-80? $), but since I never got the bodice, I can't really say much.  I believe she's a forum member.

Capt Gabriela Fullpepper

Yes VMS is a forum member that does awesome work in my oppinion... and many others. But there are others so ask around. To get a custome boice it will most likely take until August or latter as most are very busy this time of year.
"The Metal Maiden"
To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody e

HannahLeeDee

How much does boning on the back of the bodice add?

Is is recommended?

isabelladangelo

Quote from: Grizzabella on July 03, 2008, 06:01:33 PM
How much does boning on the back of the bodice add?

Is is recommended?

Speaking as a seamstress myself, and not from prices I've seen, I'd say that it shouldn't add much to the price ($5~$10).  As long as you aren't talking about boning the bodice all the way through (aka, boning it channels like a pair of bodies), it doesn't take much more effort than boning the front.

As for it being recommended, no.  A good bodice should have a heavy innerlining.  That tends to help keep everything where it should be, even the back rolls that a few ladies (and gentlemen!) have.  The problem with having boning in the back is that too many people have different backs and it's not hard for the boning to be slightly off place and cause it to hit your spinal cord.  That hurts like anything. 

A properly boned back only is boned lightly and typically only at the back sides.  So, basically, no; don't bone the back.