This section of the site is a virtual museum of corsetry and introduces a sample of the garments I have collected over the years. I now have over 150 items of corsetry ranging from panty girdles through to full body corsetry. Most of them have been obtained from charity shops in the UK , but car boot and jumble sales have also been useful sources.
The emphasis of the collection is on firm control garments rather than lighter foundations, and so cannot be considered representative of the full range of foundations that women wore. However many women did wear such restrictive garments, and older women in particular often felt they needed such high levels of control. I have tried to provide a sample of the more interesting items in my collection and have concentrated on the unusual items or my personal favourites, rather than trying to be representative of every type of foundation women wore.
The museum is split into four wings or galleries.
Please let me know of any inaccuracies in thus section of the site. Dating vintage corsetry is not particularly easy, as some models were sold without substantial changes for well over thirty years.