waist training corsets are darn scary!

[Rose English]

for a new girl, just getting started, the idea of getting into a steel-and-satin contraption designed to squeeze your body into whole new proportions is rather a daunting thing. I have trawled endless internet sites about the issue, and every single one seems to say something different - from "wearing [waist training] corsets is perfectly safe" to "if you wear a corset your internal organs will be squished and you will never be able to have children."
obviously i know, as with a lot of things, there is a risk involved in waist training, and i know to take it slowly (i am currently a uk size 10, us size 8) and only go down a few inches at a time, but the thought of never having children absolutely terrifies me.
are there any girls out there that have used these contraptions? if so, what were your experiences, and have any of you had babies?

Rose x x x

[Stephanie Jay]

I'm quite interested in waist training too...haven't heard anything about the not being able to have kids but I think as long as you don't go ridiculously small you should be okay!

[Victoria Dagger]

If you wear a well-made corset that fits you well you will be fine. I make corsets on my own and I work with Dark Garden*, and of course I wear them. How often are you planning on it? Are you talking 23/7 waist training or regular-but-occasional wear? The only thing I've heard is that your core muscles weaken if you don't exercise them to balance out the fact that your corset (and not your muscles) is now supporting your body and spine. I've never heard of corsetry causing infertility - otherwise how would we have made it past, like, the 1700s?

*not to brag, but they are a Big Name in the world of corsets - we make stuff for Dita Von Teese on a regular basis, for example.

[Rose English]

im talking 23/7... i want the dita von teese style figure (not to that extreme though).
i must admit, i havent come across dark garden, but i shall be googling away as soon as i finish typing this.
very good point about the infertility, i guess i didnt think of that.

Thanks a bunch
Rose x x x

Victoria Dagger said:

If you wear a well-made corset that fits you well you will be fine. I make corsets on my own and I work with Dark Garden*, and of course I wear them. How often are you planning on it? Are you talking 23/7 waist training or regular-but-occasional wear? The only thing I've heard is that your core muscles weaken if you don't exercise them to balance out the fact that your corset (and not your muscles) is now supporting your body and spine. I've never heard of corsetry causing infertility - otherwise how would we have made it past, like, the 1700s?

*not to brag, but they are a Big Name in the world of corsets - we make stuff for Dita Von Teese on a regular basis, for example.

[Victoria Dagger]

You reminded me of an article by UK corsetiere What Katie Did
http://www.whatkatiedid.com/forum/b2evolution/blogs/index.php/corse...

The short version is that Dita has a) a great natural hourglass, and b) lots of money to spend on the best corsets

[Bunny Levinson]

Dita probably a fairly small waist to be start with. She's a tiny little thing.

I've thought about doing this off and on myself. But I'm not sure if would do much for a bigger framed gal.

[Victoria Dagger]

Au contraire - plus sized women have more (objectively) to "squish", so they can receive proportionate reductions from the get-go (or even subjectively larger reductions - someone with a toned 24" waist just doesn't have that much mobile flesh at all). The main recommendation I have would be to get a long-line corset, which covers more of your hips and keeps the displaced flesh from spilling out into the dreaded "corset muffin."

At Dark Garden, the largest size we sell has a 38" waist - I would not be surprised to find that it fits women with up to 48" or 50+" waists. Compare this to the 20" that we would sell to someone with a 25" waist, who is only lacing down to 22" because of the lacing gap. (Standard for corset sizing: waist measurement minus 2-4" reduction minus 2" gap.)

2" is the "standard" gap size, but because of the aesthetics of the proportion, a more full figured woman may choose to leave a larger gap.

Electra Designs is another high-end corsetiere with a presence here on Pinup Lifestyle: http://www.pinuplifestyle.com/profile/ElectraDesignsCorsetry

Bunny Levinson said:

Dita probably a fairly small waist to be start with. She's a tiny little thing.

I've thought about doing this off and on myself. But I'm not sure if would do much for a bigger framed gal.

[Plum Pea Dahl {★}]

I'm not sure about infertility, but if you do go to an extreme, your organs will be squished. But if you keep it within a reasonable size, you should be OK. By the way, if you're a size 8, I'm sure you're fine the way you are and don't really need a smaller waist.

[Rose English]

no one NEEDS a smaller waist, its just something i want to have. to me its sexy, and in fact to the subconscious male population.
x

Cherri Bombe said:

I'm not sure about infertility, but if you do go to an extreme, your organs will be squished. But if you keep it within a reasonable size, you should be OK. By the way, if you're a size 8, I'm sure you're fine the way you are and don't really need a smaller waist.

[Ida Baker]

I'm in the same boat Rose, there's a local woman who makes authentic waist trainers and I'm going for it. If I stopped buying everything else my eye catches I might be able to buy one before the rockabilly weekender in September!

I doubt you have to worry about any of the horror stories (infertility, muscle atrophy) unless you go to the Cathie Jung extreme.

Keep us updated and take a picture of your treasure once you get 'r!

[Rose English]

hahaha, well, im saving up. currently got 10% of what i need.... might take a while
x x x

Stiletto Suicide said:

I'm in the same boat Rose, there's a local woman who makes authentic waist trainers and I'm going for it. If I stopped buying everything else my eye catches I might be able to buy one before the rockabilly weekender in September!

I doubt you have to worry about any of the horror stories (infertility, muscle atrophy) unless you go to the Cathie Jung extreme.

Keep us updated and take a picture of your treasure once you get 'r!

[Lady Asenath]

If corseting on a regular base led to infertility most of us would probably not be alive, given that our our ancestors in the 19th century wore corsets like we wear bras today.

Granted, even back then very few went extreme but also the queens and princesses famous for their tightly laced figures (Elisabeth of Austria, for example) had children like everyone else.

I guess the difference to the situation today is that back then people were slowly introduced to corseting, not like today when women discover corsets in their 20s or even later.

The key is to take it slowly, get well-made corsets tailored to your requirements and listen to your body.