I want to buy a roll of spiral steel boning so I have it on hand for bodices. Do you recommend the 1/4" or the 1/2"?
I also just noticed their reed boning (on corsetmaking.com). Has anyone used it, and what's it like?
If it's just for Elizabethan bodices, I wouldn't use either. Spiral steel is bendy sideways as well as back and forth, and was invented for the later curvy shapes. I'd go for nylon stuff that was invented to replace whalebone/baleen. It acts more like baleen than the spiral steel and has the adbvantage of being washable. There are several makes about. The one I have is Tripleflex:
(http://www.venacavadesign.co.uk/images/gallery/gallery61.jpg)
Okay, thanks :) Which width do you recommend?
What about cable ties!? ;)
Oh yeah, I forgot about those. What length do you buy?
I'm buying 18" right now but you can get way longer!
And the cost difference is significant from regular plastic boning.
I suppose you could make hoops from it by zipping two long pieces together! ;D
I have used straight steel bones from AltarYears in a Victorian corset, (They are 3/8ths wide, and very strong, and you bought them according to the length needed, but you can't wash the corset without worrying about rust. And my most recent corset was made with 1/4th " cable ties, the stiffest I could find (Ace Hardware, in a town with Lowe's, Home Depot, and Menard's). I bought 24" long and trimmed them w/ wire cutters, to exactly the right angles and lengths. The corset will have it's debut at Ohio Rennaissance Festival in Sept.... And plastic cable ties are washable!
I'm lucky - I can drive down to Haberman Fabrics in Royal Oak and buy my steel.
I always use 1/4" flat steel for my corsets and for reinforcing my lacing areas.
Quote from: Dinobabe on August 04, 2009, 01:50:41 PM
I'm buying 18" right now but you can get way longer!
And the cost difference is significant from regular plastic boning.
I suppose you could make hoops from it by zipping two long pieces together! ;D
Sorry! You meant width.
I think they are 1/2".
The cable ties should be 3/8" wide, and I buy them in 36" lengths... but the critical thing is actually the tensile strength. Some of the "heavy duty" cable ties aren't as stiff/supportive as others. See this thread (http://www.renaissancefestival.com/forums/index.php?topic=7475.0) for the low-down.
I perfer the heavy duty cable ties as well. The 1/2" wide plastic coated Metal boning I use for the Victorian Corsets.
When Underling Bodices and for Corsets, I make the Boning channels 1/2" wide. That makes the cable ties more snug in the channel and stronger overall.
Quote from: Manwariel on August 04, 2009, 11:07:04 AM
Okay, thanks :) Which width do you recommend?
It only comes in one width.
Quote from: Dinobabe on August 04, 2009, 01:26:14 PM
What about cable ties!? ;)
I don't use cable ties. I have some to experiment with, but...
They were not designed for the job and are made of softer plastic. They distort over time.
They are rather clumsy: you need to use MUCH bigger ties than boning to get the same level of support...
Boning is easy to get hold of and works out at about the same cost per corset once you take the wastage into account.
Quote from: Kate XXXXXX on August 05, 2009, 03:23:10 AM
Quote from: Dinobabe on August 04, 2009, 01:26:14 PM
What about cable ties!? ;)
I don't use cable ties. I have some to experiment with, but...
They were not designed for the job and are made of softer plastic. They distort over time.
I've always meant to ask about that, but I've forgotten... I've never used cable ties for boning, as I've been very happy with rigilene and a bit stiffer plastic boning, but I've read the rave reviews here and is of course curious.
But how does it hold up being worn, after a year or five? Does it handle the sweat and the movement? Or do they distort, as Kate writes?
I use a combination of bonings that depend on the project. For most bodices that require straight, flat fronts, I use 1/2" flat steel. I love the stuff. For garments that have curve to them I prefer to use synthetic bayleen/boning (for example, a front-lacing gown that needs to hug the bustline, I'll use the 1/4" synthetic bayleen to keep the lacings from bunching, and provide a smooth front that curves around the bust). I also use the synthetic bayleen or reed boning for heavily boned items - like kirtles or the effigy corset.
It all depends on what you're making, your preferred level of historical accuracy, what you find most comfortable and what works within your budget. ;)
Quote from: Kate XXXXXX on August 05, 2009, 03:23:10 AM
Boning is easy to get hold of and works out at about the same cost per corset once you take the wastage into account.
If you plan it out carefully and/or save the ends for future projects there is no wastage! ;)
How do you bone with the tie ends? They are always going to be wastage... None at all with boning on the roll: you cut each bone to length as you go. :)
For my most recent bodice I cut off the very end (where the tie zips thru) and used every bit! ;) I save the ends I don't use for next time.
If I want/don't mind the curvier shapes and, being flat-chested, just want something to keep the fabric straighter and stiffer and keep it from bunching where the eyelets are, is 1/4" spiral steel a good choice? What about 1/2"?
A lot of you use cable ties. What about using actual cable?
I personally dislike spiral steel. I've tried to use it in some Victorian stuff and it's still way too flexible for my tastes. I'm uh, voluptuous? though so I'm more concerned about keeping my figure and everything in place than anything else.
I have almost gone completely to cable ties. Now, I think the major problem is that there are two types of cable ties out there. There are the thin little things that won't do anyone a lick of good and then there are the duct ties that tend to be about a half inch in width and come in the 36 to 48" lengths. I use the duct ties. If you look at the Gallery of Finished projects thread, the picture I posted a couple of days ago with my stays? Those stays have an interlining of canvas and use cable ties at the front. That's it. I had been wearing the outfit for at least three or four hours by the point that picture was taken. As you can see, there isn't any bending, moving of the fabric, or anything else that would be problematic other than the stupid skirt being too big (I made it a few years ago and I've lost weight since then).
I've used steel in the past as well. The problem is...I've bent steel before. Once you bend a steel bone, there is no way to get the garment back into it's proper shape. It just...won't happen. Cable ties allow for movement but don't move as much as the spiral steel. The keep their shape no matter how much you move around.
I started making stays this summer, using some really heavy duty cable ties from Home Depot. I went to get the same kind from Lowes, now that I'm back in OK instead of CA, and they don't have the same kind! I'm going to try getting to Home Depot today, if I feel well enough, and I really hope they have the same kind that I started with. Because otherwise, the right side of my fully-boned stays isn't going to be as strong as the left.
Not saying the Lowes ones are bad, though - I've made two other boned bodices with the Lowes cable ties, and they're both very supportive.
I've definitely run afoul of the weaker cable/duct ties; in fact, I posted a whole thread on it this summer! It looks like the "right" ones will have about 175lb tensile strength--but I'm not sure that's printed on the package anywhere (I only found it on the website for the brand I buy--Malco).
Isabella--are you saying the stays are *only* boned at the lacing edges? Nowhere else?
Yep. Home Depot seems to carry the Malco brand, while Lowes does not. So I guess I will be making another trip another day to go return the ones from Lowes! At least now I know I have a source in OKC.
Quote from: gem on September 26, 2009, 03:31:59 PM
Isabella--are you saying the stays are *only* boned at the lacing edges? Nowhere else?
Yeap. The beauty of a correct cut and canvas. I honestly didn't think it would work but it was fine after a day of faire so....
How much does a pack usually run, I haven't made it over to the store to price compare, but I was looking online and found thse
http://www.buycableties.com/catalog/8/heavy_duty_cable_ties
$15 for 50 250lb tensile strength cables seems decent, but I'm not sure
That sounds really good. I got a pack of... I can't remember. 15, I think? 36" long each. And it was $7.87.
How much is the shipping on those?
Shipping is $11.13 for one pack and just playing with it to my address $12.06 for two, so there are probably better savings for ordering multiples on shipping, If I knew anyone else local that sewed bodices I'd just order like 20 packs and go in as a group lol..