A Rose by Any Other Name - How to Determine a Functional Corset from a Decorative Garment

Having heard tales from friends and family and having read similar stories online about corset follies, nightmares, and other amusing, yet unfortunate, tales, it seems to me that a lot of women cannot tell the difference between a bustier or decorative corset and an actual traditional corset.  As mentioned, I found the stories humorous and I cannot tell you how often my chuckling’s been met with disdain and irritation.  Honestly, I can’t blame the objects of my amusement, but I simply won’t stop laughing when it happens.  I can, however, provide some insight into how to avoid these situations for others – it’s just up to you to listen.


A lot of women think that because most bustiers tend to resemble a corset in their design they work in the same way.  This is one of the grossest lingerie misconceptions there is and can cause all kinds of undesired results.  Take, for example, the woman who figured the bustier she bought would pull her in 4 inches in the waist and function just like the similar looking, but much more expensive garment that was listed as a corset.  This garment, instead, popped and tore at a most inopportune moment and caused a whole bunch of embarrassment that could have been easily avoided – and in a public place full of lots of drunken revelers.  You can probably imagine the explosive teetering laughter.

Bustiers and decorative corsets are not designed to do anything more than give you the boosted and gorgeous display of cleavage while giving the illusion of pulling you in at the same time.  They are not constructed with the same heavy duty function as a full on traditional corset or cincher.  If you want that same look with a bustier or decorative corset you need to wear an additional undergarment beneath them such as a waist cincher or a body controlling sheath.

So, the remaining question is how to tell the difference.  Most lingerie store employees will show you which are made for what if you ask.  Some online stores (Buy Women's Lingerie, LL. is one of them that tries) will tell you in the descriptions if the garment is a shaping corset or if it’s merely a decorative garment.  If you don’t see this in the description absolutely stay your shopping until you get an answer back from the site’s feedback or email a question option.  If the site doesn’t have something like this, then avoid it all together and shop somewhere with better customer service – you are, after all, attempting to spend your hard earned money on something pretty AND functional.

If you insist on using a site that has terrible customer service and doesn’t list the answer in the description then you’ll have to rely on the cost factor.  If the item looks like a traditional corset or is listed as a bustier and costs less than $70 - $80, then it is likely that it is not something that you can use to shave inches off your torso for more than an hour or two, sometimes less, at a time without causing undue strain on the garment.

The more strain put on these garments, the more likely it will be to warp, tear, and simply come apart at the seams.  If you want that functionality, then you’d best be prepared to spend a little more than you think you can get away with – both in terms of financial cost and emotional cost.

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