Maggie Willard McGregor

Creep.

WHO, YOU OR ME ?

Lol!

A very small waist (via a corset) makes the hips and bust look larger. Fashion statement.

You!

Had to be really unhealthy wearing those..you think?

Oh yes!! But there are people who still adhere to corset wearing and they say there are no health effects.

Wow!

AncientFaces I don't agree, and I bet the medical profession doesn't either....They're squishing their internal organs....

Heck, I didn't even like girdles! :)

Maybe that's one reason they didn't live as long as women do today? And also I've noticed in some photos how there hems on there long dresses would drag on the ground..alot of bacteria and God knows what else must of gotten on them.

The long dresses might have dredged up bacteria, but they were more likely to cause falls that could result in the same painful and sometimes fatal events that falls cause at any time. There was already plenty of bacteria in the environment...sanitation was not the main priority...so the amount in the dress hems wasn't all that much of a worry.

Esther Evans Actually, medical research hasn't found that corsets did the sort of harm that people believed back then...medical science in the past didn't understand bodily functions as well as now, and the research now has used equipment like MRIs to see what is going on inside.

Corsets can cause constipation, and the pressure on circulation has been found to elevate blood pressure by about 10%, but the other organs are not much affected. You can look that up yourself.

But big bustles and hoops caught on fire at times!

How horrible

AncientFaces , hip padding and petticoats and rounded bust make the waist appear smaller, as intended. This woman's waist is not out proportion with her size. With respect, there are a number of incorrect stereotypes being stated here.

AncientFaces , re fires, people's clothing catches fire today if they get too close to open flame.

A brief moment of levity here...my son got to close to the camp fire wearing one of those quilted jackets...it didn't burn it melted...haha...okay maybe that isn't actually funny...I guess we laughed from relief......anyway, yeah, I agree, it doesn't matter what you're wearing...possibly the difference is the fact that there were more open flames around in the old days...

Men died more too.
It's a myth, the corsets aren't guilty.

AncientFaces People die and are disfigured more from clothing catching fire today then in the Edwardian period and older - why? because of modern synthetic fabrics. You see wool does not catch fire - at all! (try it with 100% wool), cotton and silk burn but ash up and can be extinguished with a few pats. I am not saying no-one caught fire but it was not as bad as today. Our modern fabrics are PLASTIC and literally melt onto the skin as they ignite and engulf rapidly. Way worse than what once was!! I go camping often and cook on the fire. I wear wool without problem - never go near the flame in a synthetic fabric!!!

If they fit right and support rather than compress, they feel AWESOME. But they make lazy back and ab muscles!