Corsets-UK ‘Instant Shape’ Classic Underbust Review

Last updated on December 21st, 2017 at 02:18 pm

This entry is a summary of the review video for the “Instant Shape Classic Underbust” with subtle piping detail, by Corsets-UK. If you would like more complete information and side notes about the corset, you can watch the video on YouTube here:

Fit, length	Center front is 10 inches long, princess seam is 9 inches, and the center back is 10 inches long. (Fits a bit short on my long torso and low waist.) Rib spring is 2.5″, hip spring is 8″. Modern slim silhouette (see Final Thoughts below).
Material	The fashion fabric is navy blue satin which is a blend of polyester, cotton and elastane. I found the elastane part interesting – was it just a fabric on hand, or was it chosen to reduce wrinkling? The corset does not stretch on my body because it has a lining of 100% black cotton twill.
Construction	6-panel pattern (14 panels total). The layers were flatlined and panels were assembled with subtle matching piping at each seam. Boning channels cover the seam allowances on the lining side.
Waist tape	None. (Not recommended for high reductions or waist training – see Final Thoughts below.)
Binding	Binding at top and bottom are made from matching blue satin. Machine stitched on both sides on a single pass (likely using a specialized binding attachment on the sewing machine). 6 garter tabs (3 on each side).
Modesty panel	There is a modesty panel on the back, made of two layers (blue satin on the outside and black twill on the inside). 7″ wide and unstiffened. It’s sewn into the corset (covered by a boning channel) so it cannot be easily removed unless you take scissors and cut it. There’s also a narrow blue satin modesty placket extending from underneath knob side of the busk.
Busk	9.75” long, with 5 loops and pins, equidistantly spaced. Standard flexible busk (1/2″ wide on each side), normal stiffness.
Boning	14 bones total in this corset, 7 on each side. On each side, 5 of them are spirals about ¼ inch wide – single boned on the seams. There are also two flat steel bones, both ¼” wide sandwiching the grommets on each side.
Grommets	There are 20, two-part size #0 grommets (12 on each side). They have a medium flange and are spaced equidistantly about 1” apart. Most of the grommets are finished in silver, but (oddly) the grommets at the waistline are gunmetal grey (probably done deliberately). Some of the grommets have shifted laterally, but none pulling out of the fabric.
Laces	The laces are 3/8” wide flat nylon shoe-lace style, finished in black. I find them to be long enough, and they hold bows and knots well. A little springy but it “stretches out” and the springiness goes away over time.
Price	Corsets-UK decided not to size these corsets with traditional corset sizes (waist size in inches) but rather, recommends you choose your street clothes size (like US 6 or UK 10). This corset is available in UK sizes 6 up to 24. £49 GBP on Corsets UK, or $75 on Corset Story.

 

Final Thoughts:

It’s been several years since I reviewed any piece from Corsets-UK, because I had purchased about 10 of them in the past (between the years of 2010 and 2012) and I was not the most thrilled with their quality. The company approached me in the summer of 2016, letting me know that they have been working hard on creating new curvier designs, with better quality materials, and asked if I would be willing to try a couple of their pieces in exchange for personal feedback. I agreed, and I was surprised to see how much their products had changed over the years. While it was not in the original agreement to review this corset (and the other two coming up soon) publicly, I did ask them if it was alright to share the review with my viewers / readers, bearing in mind that it will be a balanced review where I mention the good points and the room for improvement. They agreed, so here we are.

Corsets-UK’s ‘Instant Shape’ corsets are designed to be a bit less curvaceous than their ‘Waist Taming’ line that I reviewed last week. Their website states that it is designed for more gentle waist reductions (perhaps 2 inches or so in the waist), and it’s not designed for waist training. Because it has gentle sloping hips and a modern slim silhouette, I would recommend that if you are naturally curvy, opt for a curvier style corset.

The grommets of this corset were not pulling out the same way that they were in the ‘Waist Taming’ Corsets-UK review, but this may have to do with the fact that this corset is less curvy and is not designed for high reductions. One subtle feature that I found interesting though, is that this corset (and also the ivory overbust I reviewed from the ‘Instant Shape’ line) is that most of the grommets are silver, while just the four at the waistline (where the bunny ears come through) were deliberately a darker silver, closer to pewter or gunmetal grey. I would have thought this was a mistake, if it hadn’t been consistent in both of my ‘Instant Shape’ corsets. Whether it was done by the factory so the person lacing the corset would lace it properly, or whether it was done for the consumer in case they wanted to change the laces, I’m not sure – but it was interesting to notice, and the difference in color isn’t too conspicuous from far away.