About Lucy (+ Measurements)
Hi! I’m Lucy. I’m a long-haired, piano-playing, corset-loving, health-obsessed nerd. I love dogs and my mom’s Jamaican cooking. I hate shoveling snow.
I collect corsets (of course), swords, convertible dresses, and convertible high heel shoes. I’ve always had a fascination with wearable technology, wearable art, and clothing/prostheses that are designed for multiple uses, and are beautiful to boot.
I’ve been teaching piano for 20 years (more than half my life) and have a passion to learn and to teach. Despite being on the music therapy path, I decided to switch my major to biochemistry in my undergrad and worked in a microbiology lab for several years thereafter in an effort to land a “practical, secure” career, but I was disenchanted by the endless pipette-pushing and lack of human interaction, and the arts kept pulling me back again and again.
In 2016 I graduated again as a registered nutritionist, a field where I can directly apply my biochemistry knowledge to helping people improve their relationship with food and with their bodies. I am fascinated by the parallels–and stark differences–between the nutrition field and the body modification industry. There is the obvious harm of “diet culture” and shapewear on one’s self-esteem and body image, and yet when used in a different manner, there is incredible potential to use food and corsetry for body positivity and personal autonomy. Instead of forcing everyone into one cookie cutter aesthetic, I am dedicated to allowing clients the freedom to explore their relationship with their own body, correct deficiencies, address strong reactions (physical sensitivities and psychological connections) to certain food, and help them find a healthy balance.
My History with Corsets:
I started studying corsetry and making corsets over 15 years ago, and it’s been my primary fascination-turned-business for a decade. I have a free excerpt from my book Solaced (and a reading thereof, if you prefer to listen rather than read) where I explain more about how I got interested in corsets!
A car accident in 2014 left me with chronic injuries and I am no longer able to take commissions for bespoke corsets, but in 2015 I was given the opportunity to outsource my work, combining anatomically patterned designs with OTR manufacturing for a comfortable, unique and economically priced option.
It’s one of my greatest privileges to combine my education in health sciences with my passion for teaching, and apply it to the art of corsetry. Contrary to mainstream views, corsetieres need a solid foundation (no pun intended) in anatomy and physiology to understand how the body responds to the pressure of the garment, and to create comfortable and safe corsets.
My Mission:
My original mission was to educate and empower the average corset-curious layperson; to provide a comprehensive and free body of work so anyone can compare the differences between corset brands; their prices, silhouettes, etc. In other words, to create a savvy community of corseters who they are not at the mercy of greedy brands that exploit and swindle their customers. This is why I’ve filmed over 200 corset reviews, created the brand research guide, and built the Corset Database!
Besides this… it has now also become my mission to let the world know that modern corsets are not the same stigmatized “torture contraptions” featured in sensationalized media, and they’re not purely for vanity; on the contrary, contemporary corsetry can improve one’s relationship with their body, and can potentially offer therapeutic benefits. Eventually, I would like to go back to school – again – this time, to study orthopedic technology to further combine my passion for the aesthetics of corsetry with the therapeutic benefits, and become certified to design physician-approved and insurance-subsidized orthopedic bracing devices that are also comfortable and beautiful – the best of all worlds.
My Measurements/ Stats
Although I try to be as objective as possible in corset reviews, the shape/fit/comfort section at the beginning of each video IS still subjective, as everyone’s body is different. At the request of some viewers, I’ve provided my natural measurements as I realize that it’s sometimes difficult to gauge how a corset will fit on your body based on how the same corset fits on me. When you watch one of my corset reviews, please pay particular attention to my hip spring and torso length especially, and never presume that a corset will fit the same way on everyone!
This set of measurements may also be a useful resource for “body doubles” when I’m paring down my personal corset collection. If you are curious about other numbers, please send me an email. Please don’t be creepy about it.
Circumferential measurements:
Full Bust: 35″ (89cm) (Left side is half cup bigger than the right side at times.)
Underbust (ribcage): 29″/73.5cm (full exhale); 31″/79cm (full inhale). (I generally request ~ 30″/76cm)
Natural waist: 27″ – 28″ /68.5-71cm (depending on time of cycle, how much I ate, etc.)
Corset sizes:
- Underbust OTR corsets I can usually close size 24″, or wear size 22″ with a small gap.
- Overbust OTR corsets I normally wear size 24″.
- Custom fit corsets I usually request to close a size 22″ but have gone as small as 20″.
Iliac crest (high hipbones): 33.5″/85cm (I usually request 34″, as my left iliac protrudes more than my right)
Full hip around the bum (about 7 inches down from the waist): 36″/92cm
Approximate vertical measurements:
Please note that my torso tends to be on the long side, and my waist sits rather low. For this reason, many standard-size overbusts tend to look too short on me, but this may not be the case for you. Don’t be surprised if you find that your own waist-to-underbust vertical measurement is an inch or two shorter than my own!
Full height: 5’5″ (165cm)
Waist-to-armpit: 9.5 or 10″ (25cm)
Waist-to-fullest-bust: ~9″ (23cm) with the tape held taut, 10″ (25cm) with the tape contoured around the root of the breast.
Waist-to-underbust: about 5.5″ (14cm)
Waist-to-iliac: 3.5″ (9cm)
Waist-to-lap: 5″ (12.5cm)
For me to sit comfortably, most longline corsets are no longer than 10.5 – 11 inches from underbust to lap, although the center front can be as long as 13 inches if the corset is pointed in the front (rises up over the sternum and dips down at the pubic bone).
I just ordered my first corset today from Isabella Corsetry and I’m so excited! I really want to take care of it and make it will look new for as long as possible. How do you store your corsets? I’ve found silk lingerie bags would that work? How do you travel with them safely? Also, just curious, for lacing options would you pick ribbon or black/white flat? ( I don’t know what “flat” is so I picked ribbon when I got the corset)
Hi Kristin, the silk lingerie bags will be fine. :) When I travel, I pack them into bags and put them in my carry-on case. I don’t wear them through security because the steel bones WILL make the metal detector go off! Back when I ordered the Josephine corset, I didn’t have a choice in laces – it just came with the black ribbon.
Hi Lucy! I just found your site, and though I haven’t had much chance to look around this looks like an impressive collection of info! I am looking to start corset wearing but I have a few questions. I have chronic rib pain from underwire bras and so I am hoping the support of an overbust corset could help with that. Unfortunately, I have a 24 inch waist and a 30E bust. Do you know of any corset brands that could accommodate a small waist and larger bust? I would love to go custom but unfortunately I’m on a college student budget (studying biochemistry)
Hi Rhaya, have you seen my article on overbust corsets for fuller-busted women?
https://lucycorsetry.com/research-corset-brands/guided-galleries/overbust-corsets-for-large-busted-top-heavy-clients/
How do I get in contact with you. I would like a custom made waist training corset
Hi Jazmyn, I’m not currently accepting custom commissions, but if you check out my “research corset brands” page, you’ll be able to find many makers that can accommodate your request. Cheers!
I like you for your sweetness, honesty, and desire to help others. Also for your ability to pass Cell Biology and Organic Chemistry. XP
Thank you, Christine! :)
I’m going to go totally off subject here. I read you play the piano, what is your favorite type of music to play?
Hi Roy! I mostly play selections from the Romantic and Neoclassical eras – Chopin, Rachmaninov, Debussy, Liszt. :) But I do play a bit of jazz as well, although I’m terrible at improv.
I’d love to hear you play, how about a you tube video? I listen to classical when I can. I got hooked on Mozart when I was in high school and now it has expanded to Beethoven, Orff, Grieg, Copland, and a few others. I still have a lot to learn, but I enjoy it. Know jazz is one of my mainstays. Martin, Sinatra, Clooney, Sylvia Brooks, and a few local musicians.
I’m sorry if this sounds like an odd question, but how do you define “hourglass”? I always understood it to mean “approx. equal bust and hips, at least 10″ hip spring,” or possibly with the ideal 0.7 waist-hip ratio replacing hip spring, but … by that metric, you’re already there? (Or so close that it makes no difference.) I had a mistaken impression from watching your videos and was very surprised by your actual measurements.
Hi Denise, you make a good point! Naturally, by measurements I tend to be fairly balanced. However, the way I carry my weight, my natural figure doesn’t look like an hourglass. My waist from the front has very little definition, but if you see me in profile, my abdomen is very flat and I look quite slim. I also carry more mass on my bum instead of on the sides of my hips. So although my measurements may hint that I’m an hourglass, my mass distribution tells another story. Corsets allow me to redistribute it. :)
I’ve found that with long term tight lacing I’ve been able to progressively reduce my corseted waist size from 29″ to 26″ but my waist always expands back close to its natural size within a few hours of removing my corset.
Hey, Lucy~
I was wondering how small a trained waist would be without the corset, saaayy with the corset, it was cinched to 22 . I love the way Betty Brosmer/Weider looked and I’m guessing she HAD to have trained her waist. There are a couple pictures of her with her waist bared and it was still tiny.
Thanks to her, I really want to try waist training.
Hi there, if you were cinched to 22″, your natural waist *might* be close to 28″ but it’s different for everyone. I know one woman able to cinch down nearly 10 inches with no change to her natural waist so there’s no absolute guarantee it would work for you.
Lucy, I love your Videos, amazing history of Corset wearing you are creating!
I got involved with the art quite by accident, if anything is ever by accident! (I believe that it is often times life leading me down a path I need!) I am a seamstress and I am currently working with an amazing young lady who has an amazing figure. She models for retro clothing and was having a hard time getting retro clothes to fit correctly, with such a tiny waist. So I was taking in a lot of truly amazing dresses, mostly from the 50’s 60’s and 70’s.
When I first met her I told her she would have no secrets from me regarding her body measurements. So she told me about her waist training, I was intrigued, so I started my research with your You Tube videos. You are an amazing young lady, and so talented! wow I am impressed. I wanted to learn how to make a fully functioning corset and wow have you ever given me the tools to do this with. Thank you so much. I purchased my very first corset after reading as much as I could find on the subject, as well as watching endless hours of video’s, yours as well as some others.
I did purchase a CS426 as I am extremely long waisted, the length is wonderful, but I was not as happy with the fit. I bought the corset quite a bit smaller than my natural waist, I am about a 34 inch waist and I I bought a 28 inch, after 3 days of seasoning I had already pulled tight on the corset(with no discomfort at all). I was really surprised and when I measured, my was at 32 inches, not the 28 I thought I would be getting down to! UGH.
When I contacted Orchard Corsetry I was told that leather does give a lot more than some fabrics do, I was advised to return it for a smaller size. Which is kinda cool if you think about it! But not cool because I now have to wait for a return.
I purchased the corset for two reasons, one it is great for my posture and my lower back pain while I spend endless hours on the sewing machine, but also if I can actively give information to my clients, my job is easier. I want to try my hand at creating a corset for my customers who are looking for custom fit on waist training. What better way to understand than to be an active participant in Waist training.
So my question to you is; Is it common for material to stretch that much, especially leather (4 inches) I have to admit that I did not pre measure the corset when I first got it, but I did when I found it was laced tight at 32 inches. Each side measured 15+ inches, which is well over the 28 inches that I thought I was buying~ I will be sure and measure the new one when it gets here to know if it starts out at the correct size or not. A lesson learned. I really think I will like Orchard Corsetry for their product, and I seriously hope they don’t mind me breaking into the business by using their product for my first experience.
I want to make some corsets for some of the civil war costumes I have made, specifically the awesome dresses. Such as the one from gone with the wind. Being a wearer will help me to see if I am happy with what I create, as well as being able to understand the construction to do a better job of production.
So thank you so much for all the information you have provided, I see that the industry is growing in a variety of directions.
Hi MaryBeth, thanks for your very detailed comment. To answer your question, the amount that a corset stretches depends on a variety of factors. The strength fabric is of utmost importance – if the corset has a good strong base of coutil or another unstretchable, breathable fabric, then even if the top layer is spandex the corset will be unlikely to stretch much. That said, the quality of the fashion fabric can play a hand in how stiff a corset is, how much a corset will stretch, and how fast it will season over time. Since most OTR corsets have a strength fabric of twill (which is *okay* but not the best), then a stiff brocade (which is not very stretchy) will give a more sturdy hand compared to lamb leather (which, as a type of skin, is able to stretch over time).
4 inches is a lot to stretch though, and not standard of most corsets – preferably the corset should have been measured the day you received it. Also, were you measuring on the inside or the outside of the corset? Especially leather corsets have a lot of bulk (they’re thicker) and this bulk should be subtracted if you’re measuring on the outside. This video explains in more detail.
Hello Lucy!
Thanks for making so much videos about corsets! I am interested in starting corset training so I’ve been watching a lot of them.
What are some of the corsets that you recommend for waist training, which is suitable to wear everyday, either custom fit or OTR? Price is not really an issue but I want something that would last me pretty long and not break easily. I am 5’2 and quite short waisted
Thanks so much for your time!
Hi Athena, check out my Corset Brands by Price Range page – these are all the corsets that I have tried in the past, and they have reviews linked as well so you can compare them in quality. If you have fitting problems due to your height and you want your corset to last a long time (more than about 3000 hours), I highly recommend going with one of the higher options – Puimond, Starkers and Contour Corsets all make waist training corsets. :)