Silk Brocade Corset... for $8! - CRAFTSTER CRAFT CHALLENGES

When this challenge was announced, I immediately started thinking about ideas. What awesome things can I make for under $10?

Then it hit me: A CORSET! I went to my dollar store with this end goal in mind, and after a week of blood, sweat, and tears (good thing I keep the band-aids in the craft room), I came up with this:

The materials:

3 Silk-brocade pillow cases, 2 for $1.95, 1 for $1.50 (you'll find out later why one was cheaper)
1 package of zip-ties, $1.65
1 pink kid's scarf, $1
TOTAL: $8.05

I'd picked up a package of snaps and a grommet setter, but I decided not to use the snaps. The grommet setter? Well, you get what you pay for... Totally didn't work.

First things first: the lacing.

Farewell, pink scarf, I barely knew ye!

Yarn tripled and chained with a G hook, then that chain was chained with a K hook.

I really wish I had pictures to show of my process making the corset, but my craft room lighting is the worst in the world, and I rarely get home before it's dark out. But! I'll tell you what I did! First, pictures:

Completely lined and reversible!

The pillowcases had fronts and backs. The fronts are the pretty swirly brocade design, and the backs were a plain green that matched. I used my seam ripper to take the pillowcases apart, then I interfaced both sides to high heaven (dollar store pillowcases, what can I say?). I made my own pattern by wrapping an old scrap sheet around my dress-form, and pinning it to fit snugly. I sewed the sheet, marked up my seams with a pen, then cut out the pieces and used these as my pattern.

I cut each piece of the corset with my outer and lining fabric together (right sides facing!) and realized after I'd cut out all my pieces that I'd accidentally cut out two right sides! I was dead set on NOT doing this, so I made sure I flipped my pattern pieces, not realizing that instead of the brocade fabric on top, I had the lining on top. So yeah. I'd only bought two pillowcases, but after this mistake I had to go back to the dollar store to get one more. Luckily, since I didn't use the snaps or the grommet setter, I could afford it! Even better, the person only rung it up for $1.50!

I sewed each brocade and lining pair together at the top, and then each panel together at the sides. When all the pieces were together, I sewed the edges of the end pieces and turned it right-side out. I pinned up the seams to make sure they were even, and stitched in gutters for my boning (the zip-ties). After I squeezed the boning in, I sewed up the bottom, then installed the grommets. After lacing it up, I was DONE!

There are definitely some things I'd do differently if I could: drafting a pattern on my dummy was all fun and games, but I really should have done some MATH, too. The pictures of me wearing it don't show that I had to stuff a scarf in there to make the sides not look incredibly bunchy. Here's it without the scarf:

It's too late for me to go in and stabilize the waist because the brocade is cheap and will completely fall apart if I undo the seams. My problem was I made the pieces too wide at the waist. Next time, I do math. But hey, it's not bad for my second corset, first one without a pattern?