The Corset and the Crinoline is a nineteenth-century history of two of the most debated garments in fashion, surveying the long career of tight-lacing and hooped skirts from antiquity to the Victorian present. The book gathers historical anecdote, correspondence, and illustration to chart the rise and recurring controversy of figure-shaping dress.
Equal parts history and apologia, the volume reflects the era’s heated arguments over the corset’s effects on health, morality, and beauty. It remains a key primary source for historians of the body, gender, and dress reform, preserving voices on every side of the lacing debate. A foundational text in costume studies, it is offered here as a free EPUB download.