Corset Lengths Quiz

Overbust corsets are called such because they extend up to cover the bustline.

Underbust corsets stop under the bustline and do not cover the bust.

This historical reproduction is of a straight-front, Edwardian demibust corset (demi meaning "half" in Latin). Demibust and half-bust are interchangeable terms.

Cinchers (and similarly, waspies) typically are some of the shortest corsets available. They often don't extend all the way up to the underbust line, nor do they cover the hips much. This one specifically is a ribbon cincher.

Longline corsets extend low on the hip, covering and supporting the lower tummy. They can, however, be tricky to sit down in if you're short-waisted.

A short hip typically stops at or above the hip bone.

You can have overbust corsets, underbust corsets, and cinchers all with a short hip.

A long hip covers the hip bone completely, and usually stops at the "thighbrow" or the crease where your lap meets your torso.

You can have overbust corsets and underbust corsets with a long/ low hip.

A mid hip covers the hip bone completely, but doesn't extend too far down on the body.

Sometimes a mid-hip corset can look like a "short hip" on a long-waisted person, or look like a "low hip" on a short-waisted person. This is an ideal hip length for someone who wants some lower tummy support without impacting their range of motion.

Although we see different lengths and styles of corsets here - all different shapes, contours, and hip lengths - the one thing all corsets have in common is that they are all underbust (none of them cover the bustline). Yep, that means that a cincher or waspie is by definition a "type" of underbust, although you will rarely see it explicitly described that way.

Longline corsets cannot have a short hip because they have opposite definitions. However, there do exist some "longline" look corsets that are designed to fit slightly shorter-waisted people. Read more about it in this Guided Gallery.

Waist cinchers are defined as cinching exclusively the waistline, and not supporting the lower tummy, upper back, or bustline. What you see here is what's called "short stays". Historical stays support the bustline, but they can come in many lengths - and in the Regency era (1800-1830 or so) some stays became incredibly short, almost resembling a bra. Learn more about transitional and Regency stays in this Guided Gallery.