Front of stays, as modelled by Dolly
Back of stays
(Dolly is obviously less squishy than me, because I can usually lace the edges much closer)
This was one of the first pieces of historical clothing that I made and one that I am very pleased with. It was made last year using the Custom Corset pattern generator which can be found here, and produced a wonderful pattern.
The corset was made using white drill, plain white bias binding, and a plastic boning. The boning has worked very well. It is a plastic about three milimeters think and covered in a cloth casing. In future I would like to try more period boning materials, but for the present this works very well.
I am very pleased with the fit of the corset and it is very comfortable to wear. The only real problem I have is that I have shrunk a little (yippee!) since drafting the pattern so that it now laces down fully at the back instead of having the 2 inch gap between the edges as is suggested. The back is laced with spiral lacing and hand stitched eyelets. The corset is constructed with tabs, which prevent the boning digging into the waist.
(click here for a sneak peek at the second practical use my friend found for a corset. An Elizabethan practice? I think not)