Have you seen this?
http://www.isobelcarr.com/corsets-facts–myths.html

I own a few corsets from What Katie Did. Two “Morticia” in size 28″, and on a good day/period I can close that size, but I feel that it kind of kicks out in the profile, so I still can’t hide the belly fat as much as I would have liked to. The “Antoinette” (same size as Morticia) somehow makes my waist look smaller from the front, though it isn’t supposed to be for curvy figures only, but a bit of the same problem is going on with the busk not holding me in. So I also bought a Mae Extreme in 26″, but haven’t been able to season it properly yet, it just feels very uncomfortable even with a big gap in the back, and the shape looks weird so far…:/

I also own a leather underbust from a different maufacturer, and that is just way too cylindrical and makes me look straighter than I really am. Maybe it would be a better solution to just try to lose some of the weight from my stomach, but I’ve always wondered if a different company might have something perfect for me the way I am now. Like you say, custom is always the best, so if I decide to invest in more corsets sometime, that is maybe the way to go? Anyway, thanks a lot for your reply! Good to know that I still have the opportunity to make things work with the right corset.

Others can have different feelings I’m sure, but unless it’s someone writing about their corseted experiences or instructional, I am really not quite interested at all unless it can show their feelings towards corsetery or we can gain a tip or two.

Thanks for the input Lucy, and I still love you.

Selina

I can get a 7-8 inch reduction from the one bespoke corset I own. According to Mr. tape measure most of what’s happening is my apparent waist is moving down 2-3 inches closer to my hips, so the transition from my waist to hips is more acute.

So far I’ve only had the pleasure of trying OTR corset brands that run $250 and less. Of those that I’ve tried, Isabella corsets (esp. Josephine underbust) come closest to fitting my shape and giving me excellent waist compression. It’s super comfy. Orchard Corset silhouette level 3 is pretty decent, although slightly less curvy.

Straighter corsets tend to just fill in my mid section and reduce, rather than amplify my curves, even when the gap isn’t parallel but )( shaped.

I have a medium curvy corset from Kinnaird of Ireland with flat steel bones that gives me a decent reduction because with a gradual break in period, the bones bent a lot to accommodate my shape. However, it is not nearly as comfortable for prolonged wear as corsets that better describe my curves.

I’ve learned through trial and error that if the corset looks like it has extreme hip spring on the model in the photo, it’s more likely to look good and feel good on me.