Let’s learn how to make our very own reversible corset belt!
This reversible corset belt is super simple and quick to make, the pattern is incredibly easy to adjust to any size and it takes only a few hours to make. The corset belt is a great weekend project when you want to be able to start and finish something all in one day. And the two-in-one aspect of it is a total bonus! Not to mention, you could totally make this project out of scrap fabric.
Recently I teamed up with my incredible friend Jo, of Benji and Frankie’s Shop to bring you some new creative challenges! We spent months designing and creating little presents for each other so that we could fill a mystery box with goodies. One of my makes for her, was this reversible corset belt. This was such a fun and easy project to make. I cannot wait to sew one for myself!
You can find her on Instagram @BenjiAndFrankiesShop or check out her shop here and explore some of her other incredible makes!
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Approximate time to completion: 2 days, 3.50 – 4 hours total
- What you’ll need:
- .50 yard/.45 meters (or less) of fabric (scrap fabric totally works, that’s what I used!), two colors optional
- Matching thread
- Sewing machine
- Ribbon
- Grommets – I used something like this 10mm silver grommet from Amazon
- A grommet press, handheld or machine – I use something like this
- Sewing pins
- Fabric chalk
- Fabric tape measure
- A ruler
- Paper and pen for creating the pattern
- Boning or zip ties
- Scissors
- Bias tape in a complimentary color
- An iron and ironing board
Disclaimer: I am trying to teach myself the Metric System, I will always try to include both measurements in my tutorials, i.e. centimeters and inches, meters, and yards. Though I have been using them interchangeably in my everyday sewing life lately, I apologize if I miss including both or switch between the two too often.
Patterning The Corset Belt
For the pattern, grab your piece of paper and your fabric tape measure. We’ll start by taking the measurement from between your breasts to where you want the belt to end. For me, this was 8″ (20cm) long.
Let’s start by taking the full measurement of your rib cage, and dividing that number by four. For me, this was also 8″ (20cm).
Taking your two measurements, create a square (or rectangle, depending on the numbers you got) on your piece of paper. The center front of your corset belt will be the right side of your drawing. We’ll be creating half of our pattern.
At the top and the bottom of the center front line, make a mark in toward the left by 1″ (2.50cm).
Along the horizontal top line next to the center front, measure down by .75″ (2 cm).
I used one of my bras and traced under the wire to get the curve for the bust. You will want to line this up with the dot you just made at the top of your pattern. Then create a straight line coming off of the bust curve to finish the pattern to the edge of the paper.
Measure from the line you just created on the left side of the paper, down to whatever height you want the corset belt on the side of your ribcage to be. You can make this whatever height is comfortable to you, I wanted the side on my ribcage to be about 4.50″ (11cm) tall.
Now make a mark at the very center of your square/rectangle, and finish your line (of the height of your ribcage piece) to this dot.
At this center mark, draw a straight line through the bust and the bottom of the paper. Then draw a diagonal line, starting at the center dot, down to the mark we created at the bottom of the page.
Curve the line to make it aesthetically pleasing to the eye. You can create any shape you want here, this was just what I designed.
Cut out your pattern piece. I recommend keeping this as one whole piece for now while you try it on, and cutting it apart into two pieces after you’re sure you like it.
For now, “try it on” by holding the piece up to your ribcage. If everything looks good and lays where you want it to hit (in between and below the breasts and down toward the belly button), then we can proceed to cut the fabric.
I personally found that I needed a lower cut of the center piece. From the center at the top, I simply cut it off where that original dot at the top was, at the.75″ (2 cm) mark. Now is your chance to change the bottom curve if you want a different cut or shape as well.
Hold this up to your body one more time and test if you like the way it looks.
I found it fit comfortably for me at this point. Now you can cut apart that line in the middle below the breast of the corset belt to create two pattern pieces.
For the back pattern piece, take 1/4 of your rib cage measurement and draw a rectangle that length. Match the height of the left front piece you created previously.
Sewing The Corset Belt
You’re going to want to cut two pieces of each pattern piece in each fabric you’re using, for a total of four pieces of each piece. Make sure you include .50″ (1cm) seam allowance when you cut. Remember to note this on your pattern pieces for future reference.
Before you start, now would be a good time to finish the raw edges with a zig-zag stitch or Overlocker. I forgot…and once you start it’s too late to go back.
I recommend putting a thread that matches one of your fabrics in your bobbin and a different color on the top so you can sew everything at the same time. Just make sure that you pay attention to which side (and piece) of your fabric is on top if you want to do this.
To start, pin good sides facing of the left and right sides of the belt on both fabrics. Sew these and iron the seams open so they lay flat.
Pin the matching pieces together along the top, good sides facing, and sew.
Remember to iron the seams open as you go for the best results.
Open the pieces up and pin them together at the center, good sides facing, and sew along the center seam, connecting the two belts together.
Snip the curves along the seam that connects the two fabrics together.
Fold the top edges down and pin it in place, sandwiching all raw seams inside. Make sure the seams on the inside line up perfectly.
Then sew a decorative stitch along the top edge. Be conscious of what thread you’re using on the top and in the bobbin!
Adding Boning To The Corset Belt
I recommend sewing some test channels on some scrap fabric before you start. I imagine (I have no clue actually) boning comes in different sizes, so you should measure the width first, then sew a few test channels. Figure out what works best for you. I had to seam-rip the first channel I made because it was too tight.
Originally I thought I would just place my sewing foot along the seam and sew my channels that way, but they were too wide. Perhaps using a zipper foot, because it’s smaller, would work well. (This thought has not been tested.)
Before sewing on the actual garment, line up your seams (along the body of it all the way to the bottom raw edge) and pin them in place to keep everything from moving. This shouldn’t be too difficult to do if you ironed as you went.
With everything pinned and lined up along the bottom, raw edge, you can now sew your channels. I found the best width for me was having about half my sewing foot hanging over the seam line. I hope you will find a better way to make these channels the perfect width for you.
After you sew the first row, the second is much easier. Line up your sewing foot along your stitch line and sew your second stitch. Repeat this with the other four seams so you have a total of five channels.
Trim your boning to fit the length of each channel. I made sure each piece of boning was just a little shorter (about 1cm) than the length of the channel so that when I put the bias tape on I don’t have to worry about accidentally sewing over the hard plastic and breaking a needle.
I have heard that you should burn the rough edges of your boning a little so that they don’t tear the fabric and poke through. …I didn’t do this…but maybe you should. Maybe choose to be responsible with your sewing, if you want.
Put all the boning in your channels.
Trim Your Top
We want the finished corset belt to have a little bit of a gap in the back, so that the ribbons look pretty when we tie a bow. This is a good time to hold the belt up to yourself and try it on. Make sure that the total length of the finished garment is 2″ (5 cm) less than your under-bust measurement. Trim an even amount off of each end if it’s too long. Mine was too long…by a lot. I forgot I wasn’t making this belt to fit me, but someone smaller.
Bias Tape Installation
At the time of making this project, this was my first time using bias tape, and I have since learned a few tricks. You can follow the tutorial below for pinning the bias tape, or simply line up the bias tape along the raw edge as you sew and essentially feed it in. I found that to be a little easier on a different project.
On this project, I sandwiched the raw edge in between the bias tape and pinned it in place. Making sure that the boning stopped just above the bias tape so that I didn’t have to worry about sewing over it and breaking a needle.
Here’s a look at the bias tape pinned on the other side.
Make sure you also cut two small pieces to do the side edges.
Pin it in place along the edge, making sure to fold the top and bottom edges in for a clean finish.
Sew everything in place so it’s all secure. Make sure you use a thread that matches the bias tape.
Bias Tape Problems
Doing this pinning method I noticed I ran into a problem, the bias tape was not even on both sides, even though I tried very hard to make them even when I was pinning. One side is really pretty along the bottom, and the other is just so-so.
I could have sewn an extra stitch on the other side to fix my bias tape that was flapping around a little bit but to do that I would risk putting white stitches in my green fabric. I chose to keep it as is, imperfections and all, and I still love it!
This is what made me realize that not pinning everything down and instead just feeding the bias tape onto the raw edge of the corset belt may have been a better option.
I have also heard good things about sewing one edge at a time and stitching in the ditch for a clean finish. But I have not tested this yet, so I cannot say one way or another whether it is a good method.
Do you have very much practice with bias tape? Leave me some tips in the comments so I can improve my technique.
Grommet Installation
This may be different for you depending on what machine you have, but here are instructions on how I installed the grommets for this corset belt using a machine like this.
Start by marking the spacing on both ends of the corset belt. You need to determine how many grommet holes you want, determine the proper spacing, and mark that with a pen so you know where to cut.
Divide the space by the number of grommets you want to create a look that works for you. Make a dot in the center where you want the hole to be, then hold the grommet directly over that spot, centering on the dot. Draw a circle so you know how much cutting space you have.
Cut a small hole in the fabric for each grommet and push the male grommet through the fabric. Make sure your hole is small and you test it, if the grommet doesn’t fit through cut it a little wider.
You do not want to cut this too big or your grommet will fall through the fabric. Just enough so the fabric sits snuggly around the grommet once pushed through.
If you’re using a machine grommet press, place the male grommet with the fabric on your machine and stack the female grommet on top.
Now press the lever down to squish the two together and create the grommet.
When you lift the lever up you should have a perfect grommet on both sides.
Now repeat with the other grommet holes.
The Ribbon
Lace-up your ribbon to finish the corset belt. The ribbon can be switched to the other side when you want to wear the reversed color, or, simply tie the bow on the other side. You can also wear the ribbon in the front!
Finished Results
Congratulations you did it!! Que the confetti!
You can wear the ribbon in the front or back on either side. The corset belt is totally reversible! And the colors look great on both sides!
Remember to check back in this whole month for more projects that Benji and Frankie and I made! We’ll be featuring all the fun projects and sharing some ideas for styling things.
Have any special requests for future projects or ideas to share about this collaboration? Let us know in the comments!
If you decide to give this project a go, tag me on Instagram @doorsandfloorsblog and use the hashtags #SewingCat and #DoorsAndFloorsBlog so I can see what you make!
Let me know in the comments if you think you’ll sew this corset belt! And what color fabric are you thinking of using?
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P.S. Looking for a fun activity you can do with a friend while working on tedious crafty tasks, download our free trivia here.
Playing trivia is a great way to keep your mind active and have fun with your crafty friends and family while busting out those seam ripping, crocheting, and other time-consuming, but necessary, crafty tasks.
