Modern history of Corset
The corset fell
from fashion in the 1920s in Europe and America, replaced by
girdles and elastic brassieres, but survived as an article of
costume. Originally an item of lingerie, the corset has become a
popular item of outerwear in the fetish, BDSM and goth
subcultures.
In the fetish and BDSM literature, there is often much emphasis
on tightlacing. In this case, the corset may still be underwear
rather than outerwear. Another angle is the wearing of a corset
while having an enema; the theory is that the corset prevents
the belly distending, enhancing the effects of the enema.
There was a brief revival of the corset in the late 1940s and
early 1950s, in the form of the waist cincher. This was used to
give the hourglass figure dictated by Christian Dior's 'New
Look'. However, use of the waist cincher was restricted to haute
couture, and most women continued to use girdles. This revival
was brief, as the New Look gave way to a less
dramatically-shaped silhouette.
Since the late 1980s, the corset has experienced periodic
revivals, which have usually originated in haute couture and
which have occasionally trickled through to mainstream fashion.
These revivals focus on the corset as an item of outerwear
rather than underwear. The strongest of these revivals was seen
in the Autumn 2001 fashion collections and coincided with the
release of the film Moulin Rouge!, the costumes for which
featured many corsets.
The majority of garments sold as corsets during these recent
revivals cannot really be counted as corsets at all. While they
often feature lacing and boning, and generally mimic a
historical style of corset, they have very little effect on the
shape of the wearer's body.
Source:
Wikipedia.org
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AllAboutDress.com
