FOUNDATIONS REVEALED COMPETITION ENTRY
Butterfly Bunnysuit
(click images to to enlarge)
Other Credits
Photographer: Logan Holmes
Outline the story …
I am a novice corsetmaker, but I’m also a burlesque dancer! I had always wanted to make myself a corset body, especially after seeing the beautiful black and purple corset body Rockstars and Royalty made for Jazida to use as a burlesque costume. When it came down to choosing the colors, embellishment, and general aesthetic, I was inspired by the Mexican Bluewing Butterfly. I found the blue and black, with light touches of lavender found in the butterfly’s natural coloring made for a high-contrast and flamboyant color scheme. The swoops of black sequins on the front of the corset mimic the butterfly’s natural stripes, and I included sequin wing embellishments on the back.
Structure-wise, the corset body has an elastic panel in the crotch to facilitate ease of movement. It laces more or less fully closed all the way down the back until it reaches a separate “butt panel” (in hopes that the corset remains slightly alterable in the event of future weight gain). The zipper in the front is as long as possible, to aid in quick and easy onstage removal.
Outline the construction…
This is by far the most advanced project I’ve undertaken. The most daunting challenge of this garment was the fit: I spent two months making 4.5 mockups.
I have scoliosis, and symmetrically-made OTR corsets both are uncomfortable to wear and sit diagonally on my body. As a result, panels 1—3 are symmetrical, and panels 4—7 differ between sides. This is also my first true overbust corset, and it was difficult figuring out how to support and lift the breasts without squishing them. Next corset, I’ll work on creating a smoother line over my compensatory muscles in the back, but I’m overall happy with the progress I’ve made on fitting over the course of this project.
I used Aranea Black’s “Amber” bunnysuit pattern, and for construction I used a method I learned from one of her Youtube videos, where you use something like French seams, sewing the outside layer to the front and the strength fabric and lining layers to the back and then turning them over and topstitching, sewing boning channels through all layers of the corset on either side of each topstitched seam. As I went through this process, I sandwiched waist tape between the layers, through each panel, to reinforce the seams at the waist. The end result is very pretty, but when using 3 layers it created major turn-of-cloth issues that made this somewhat simple method significantly more difficult. The appliques and bias tape binding were hand stitched, and the rhinestones were glued down.
I have never constructed a corset but I love what You’ve done!
This is so cute!! Way to step out of your sewing comfort zone!! I love it!!