I am not a corset expert, so I have a question that I hope that you corset experts can answer. Along the top hem of the corset, about 8 inches on either side of the vertical row of metal closures (the busk) are two loops. What is the purpose of the two loops?
If I was wearing the corset upside down, I might think that the loops were intended for the attachment of garters. If that was their purpose, there should be matching loops on the back of the corset, too, but there are none.
I thought that they might have something to do with a bra, but I can’t fathom what that something might be.
I'm stumped. If you know the answer, please unstump me.
UPDATE: The consensus is that the loops are intended for attachment to a clothes hanger.
 |
| Wearing Guilty of Glam |
 |
| U.S. servicemen femulating in a German prisoner-of-war camp, circa 1943. |
I could be wrong, but thought they served two purposes. 1) so you know which is the top and 2) so you can hang it on a clothes hanger?
ReplyDeleteAt least that’s what I thought?
Sarah-Louise
for hanging on a hanger?
ReplyDeleteFor hanging in the closet? At least that’s what I use mine for.
ReplyDeleteDeni xx
One possibility: for hanging the corset from a clothes hanger? I know some dresses have loops in that area for that purpose.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm right, do I win a prize? :-)
Ms. A Hawkins
Lopos for hanging the corset up?
ReplyDeleteMaybe to hang it up?
ReplyDeleteStana
ReplyDeleteI am no expert but they loop onto a coat hanger that has appropriate hooks to hang the corset in your closet
Hugs
Brenda
Stana dear, Aunty Marlena here. Might the hooks be just for hanging the corset on a hanger like dresses and skirts, or is that too obvious?
ReplyDeleteMaybe to hang it up to dry?
ReplyDeleteAllison
My best guess is as above, for hanging the thing to dry. Have never seen them in use on any historical gowns, to attach bodice bits for stability.
ReplyDeleteLoops for hanging on a closet hanger. Many of my better suit skirts have loops like that as well. - Christina
ReplyDeleteStana, thanks for the photo of POW femulators. It illustrates my "essay" on drag in the armed services, including in POW camps. Roberta Cowell, one of the first British transgender women along with Jan Morris, got her "start" playing women in her German POW camp. It wasn't like having a button pushed, of course, as she certainly had thoughts about her gender prior to WWII, but it was a sort of "trigger" that opened her mind to the possibility of becoming the person she should always have been.
ReplyDeleteI looked up an entertainment company called the Kiwi Concert Party, a troupe of performers that included many female impersonators from New Zealand who entertained troops in the Pacific during WWII.
https://digitalnz.org/stories/5a03a63a1257575ebf00085e
How was the corset displayed in the shop or web site you got it from?
ReplyDeleteLucy
Purchased from Amazon, their photos do not show the loops.
DeleteStana
DeleteI see what you mean
I was hoping there might be a clue there
Lucy
one wonders how much leeway was given by the commanding officers with regard to squaddies dragging up to entertain the troops? going by the various pics posted here and elsewhere, it certainly seems that was encouraged to at least some extent - especially in prisoner-of-war camps, where i presume there wasn't a lot of else to do in terms of r 'n' r? i also get the impression that as much effort and ingenuity went into providing the necessary clothes, wigs, heels, make up etc as was done in the film "the great escape" (were camp guards bribed to provide for POW's in that regard?. plus presumably if it was too difficult to source a wig, those who played ladies' parts in the shows grew their hair long and kept it that way - even if doing stuff like square-bashing or KP duties (although they probably had to tie it up ha ha)?
ReplyDeletealso: were there really camp-acting homosexual squaddies for real in such circumstances, or was anyone likely to be pressganged into doing it? homosexuality was of course a criminal offence back then, but i suppose in wartime they relaxed the regulations somewhat in order to expand the cannon fodder?
any filmed accounts of the above (based on fact or fiction) seem thin on the ground, despite what seems a source of great promise. the only ones i am aware of are the 1970's british sitcom "it ain't half hot mum" and the early 80's film "privates on parade" (ho ho), that covered similar ground in that they were about an ents corp serving in asia in WWII where one or two of the camper members were somewhat inevitably cast as females in the stage productions. but i have never seen or even heard about any movies or tv shows featuring that kind of thing in a prisoner-of-war camp. the only time i saw something similar was in an early 70's tv crime drama series called "budgie" where the inmates of a prison were putting on a crossdressing show, and somewhat inevitably most of those involved were hulking geezers with faces like the back end of a bus for maximum comedic effect!
Two films come to mind. "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957), in which British POWs in a WWII Japanese prison camp crossdress to put on a show and "Grand Illusion" (1937), in which French POWs in a WWI German prison camp don female garb to entertain their fellow prisoners.
DeleteHere is a link to an interesting article about the POW crossdressing in "Grand Illusion." https://sites.psu.edu/fr138andrews/theme-and-form/
Deletethank you for that stana. i normally avoid films about WWII japanese POW camps as i find the mere thought of watching them harrowing. but as i know someone who has "the bridge on the river kwai" on dvd, i shall borrow that in order to fast-forward through to the drag scene!
Deletealso: thanks to mikki for the "misleading ladies" link - compared to america drag shows in blighty were seemingly few and far between at that time, and even then mostly confined to the underground gay scene. but it seems dressing manly squaddies who gave their all for king and country in womens clothes made that kind of thing an acceptable form of entertainment in straightsville?
The crossdressing scene in "The Bridge on the River Kwai" occurs near the end of the film – during the last 20 or 30 minutes of the film.
DeleteTONS OF INFO....
ReplyDeleteLUCY knows her stuff...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBkYkmucPIo
Velma
It's been a long time since I saw Grand Illusion -- now I'll have to watch it again. But while I was out there in webland I came across this hour-long piece. It's a radio program about drag that spends a fair amount of time early on about entertaining the troops. Don't worry, it's very well illustrated. The photo of British soldiers manning a large gun while in dresses! And there's one photo of a stage full of gorgeous ladies that was a collection of "Soldiers in Skirts" who entertained the troops that went on from the war's end into the 1950s as a revue called "This Was the Army". Gorgeous. And then the rest of the program moves up to the present day.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySIUv2qXAlo
Only $13 and it gives you that waist; WOW!
ReplyDeleteI've had several over the years, but have never been happy with them. I suppose that; of all garments, corsets need to be made for the body on which they will be worn. This will ensure the good line, and no bulges below or above. So, if I want a fully smooth line, and having a body too long for a one piece corselet, a high waisted girdle and a long-line bra gives the best shape. BUT, when a girl has to go, undressing is required. Not so good and though I've worn incontinence knickers they are last resort garments, though really "female" if totally unfeminine.
Stana ,
ReplyDeleteThe dress Wearing Guilty of Glam , the lavender color is Spellbinding !