Ivy Leaf's Diary
2025
Wishing all our Readers a Happy New Year
January
Quiz Answers
One of the very few films to feature a corsetière is 'Carry on Loving' (1970), one of those lively, low budget, quintessentially British comedies.
The picture above features Joan Sims (1930 - 2001) lacing a long-suffering Amelia Bayntun (1919 - 1988) into her corsets. They never made a 'Carry on Corsetière'; what a shame!
The eagle-eyed will notice that the picture above is heavily modified; we have a few questions for you:
Who feature in the picture on the wall? Bob and Cathie Jung
Who is the Christmas fairy on top of the tree? Bunty
What is wrong about the corsetiere's actions? There are no lace ends to pull on a CAMP corset
The corset in the film has been replaced by a satin CAMP. Which one of our models wore this in six of our calendars from 2010 to 2020? Madeleine
More questions below about this still from the film 'Hell Drivers' (1957)
Who is the actress? Marjorie Rhodes
What is wrong with the corset? It looks like fan-lacing that she holds but the corset is not a fan-lacer. Also the shoulder straps running right across her breasts are quite wrong.
From which country does the corset originate? The external bones are typical of German corsets.
Is it likely that a 60-year-old Yorkshire woman would possess such a corset? No
Her real name is the same as a Midlands corset shop. What is it? Millicent Wise (also the name of another actress and a corset shop in Stoke-on-Trent).
Enjoy and have
a Happy New Year
Portrait of an elegant lady
February
Under 'Strange Names' we have mentioned the Daintifyt Brassiere Company about which some kind readers have supplied more information.
For fans of Lyn Locke, there are some new pictures (if you can find them).
In 2009, our model Eileen descended the stairs of the mansion where the calendar photoshoot took place. This was the first corset she had ever worn and it was VERY tight. Her friend stands ready to catch her if she should have stumbled.
The corset was a Spirella model 325 in white 'orchid' material (a nylon satin).
March
Yesterday, we hosted a dinner party for 10 in our house. It reminded us of some kitchen scenes that we have recorded over the years. As Cathie Jung demonstrated in 2014, there's no problem cooking a chicken dinner in your corsets!
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My Girdle's Killing Me!
"My girdle is killing
me!" was not so much of an anti-girdle comment. It was a very feminine
expression handed down from mother to daughter at the end of a long day when the
desire to look one’s best was being over-ridden by the constriction of the
garment. This was not an everyday girdle; this would be the girdle for that
‘special occasion’, and because it was rarely worn, it would indeed be
uncomfortable after a day’s wearing. A properly fitted girdle is
very comfortable, however, even the best will make their presence felt at the
end of a long, hard day. It is very similar to a good pair of shoes. An interesting letter appeared in the Spirella magazine of August 1966. A client who visited me yesterday told me that she had attended a performance at the Wigmore Hall. A lady sitting next to her kept fidgeting and seemed uncomfortable, so she offered to change seats with her, thinking that perhaps she had the more comfortable chair. However, the lady declined the offer, saying that it was just that her foundation garments were killing her. After the meeting my client was told that her neighbour was Princess Marina. I think that the magazine is dissembling slightly here. I suspect that even Royalty would have said "My girdle's killing me!" Even Royalty, it seems, can get poorly fitting girdles, or perhaps as is often the case, it was simply too tight! I wonder if her foundations came from Rigby & Peller (Royal Warrant - lost in 2018) or perhaps Spirella, or, simply Marks & Spencer? Princess Marina, having lost her husband in WWII, was one of those workaholic Royals. Sadly, this amazing lady would die from a brain haemorrhage just two years later at the early age of 61. Other celebrities specifically mentioned in the Spirella magazine include Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, Sarah Churchill, Mrs. Thatcher, Violet Carson (Ena Sharples of Coronation Street), Yootha Joyce (George and the Dragon), Joan Sims, Reg Varney (On the Buses), Ann Sydney (Miss World in 1964) and Mary Rand (Gold Medal for Long Jump at the 1964 Olympics).
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1964
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April
It was delightful to have lunch yesterday with these two charming ladies who posed for our calendar in November 2011. It's hard to believe that this picture was taken over 13 years ago. They are now over 70 and over 80 and still look stunning, albeit fully clothed.
This calendar, in our opinion and that of the late Lyn Locke, was one of the best we ever made.
May
Questions: Can you name any of the ladies featured in this montage? There are 14 ladies present.
Diana King, Auntie Myra, Lucille Ball,
Jenny, Marjorie, Hayley Mills,
Madeleine, Lois Maxwell, Doreen,
Victoria,
Unknown,
Auntie Myra, Unknown, Lyn Locke, Aunt Kim.
What do Ivy's post-nominal letters mean?
Master of Arts, Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society
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Memories of making the calendars On the left we have Eileen, Madeleine and Marjorie modelling the premium Spirella Black Orchid (nylon satin) bras and corsets. As Marjorie proved (below) when trying to eliminate her tummy bulge, there were some defective swathes of black orchid that tended to split under tension. In normal wear, that tension is at its maximum when sitting down. Ripping corsets is embarrassing and was one of many episodes in the 1980s that heralded the death of the made-to-measure corset houses. Eileen and Madeleine model the premium satin Jenyns and Camp fan-lacing corsets (right).
Of course, the term 'Black Orchid' simply must refer to a film and it does, starring Sophia Loren in 1959. One of Miss Loren's most famous images comes from the 'Millionairess' (1960) where she wears a black corset. |
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RIP
Loretta Jane Szwed; November 4, 1937 – May 30, 2025
June
From a film about the 1960s:
"But Mother, I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable."
"Wearing a rubber girdle is uncomfortable, what you've done is another matter!"
We never post photographs of our models' faces on-line with the exception of Victoria, however, I suggested to my husband that perhaps he could photoshop a fan in front of the model's face. I had something like this in mind
Never ask an engineer ...
Mind you, the combination of a Triumph Doreen brassiere and a Promise Poirette girdle looks particularly lovely on Amy.
Here's a little quiz. Which foundations garments was Amy wearing underneath the pink satin dress / coat combination? The M&S satin-elastic girdle with Triumph Doreen bra on the left or did she spend a lot more on the Spirella girdle and laced bra on the right?
Answers to
Thank you all for having a guess. You were right, Amy is quite a classy lady and in the 1960s (that these photographs are supposed to represent) she would have spent her husband's money on the Spirella (see below).
Frankly, I think Markie's satin girdle, as worn by Moira and modelled by Amy above, is the better looking and just as effective a garment at less than half the price. Amy wanted to buy it!
It's a strange thing. Despite all the expensive foundation garments pictured above, the classic wedding outfit of silk/satin coat over a matching dress (and white gloves - well done Miss Day) completely conceals the figure beneath.
Talking of weddings, regard the pictures below.
On the left, Eileen has been tightly laced into a vintage Spirella 325 corset; it was the only way that she could fit into the blue silk dress. This was a 1960s re-enactment shot in 2011. The picture on the right is a modern bride with a corset-back dress.
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These pictures reminded me of a quote from Ian McRoberts.
"The groom secretly wondered (as all grooms do) if this was what the future held for his new bride." "Her assets spectacularly moulded by layers of elastic. Indeed, the woman in elastic is a formidable sight and not for the faint of heart."
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July
We had a query from a British university on how to date vintage foundation garments and we provided this useful link.
Belatedly wishing all our American readers a joyous Independence Day.
Even more belatedly, here is the 2025 calendar
For those astrogeeks out there, the Moon and the Andromeda galaxy are shown in the correct scale as seen from Earth.
I wonder what Victoria is wearing beneath her rather formal sixth form uniform?
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To be honest, even back in the 50s and 60s, unless Victoria had some back problem, a corset would be an unlikely garment for an 18-year-old girl.
Nevertheless, Victoria chose to wear the same Spirella 325 that Eileen wears in June (above and below) and in the thumbnail at the bottom of the page. For 70-year-old Eileen, wearing such a corset would not have been unusual in those days.
During the photo shoots, Victoria (2014), Moira (2022), Marjorie (2013 & 2016) and Eileen (2011) have all worn the same corset.
Marjorie, Moira and Eileen
The Spirella 325 has lacing at the front and the back (the 305 was a front-lacer and the 315 model was back-laced). The double lacers allowed the corset to fit such a wide variety of wearers.
For Victoria it was a pleasant novelty and she thought that she might wear a corset for her forthcoming wedding.
Moira, a long-time re-enactor, has a troublesome back and she liked its support very much. Both Eileen and Marjorie enjoyed 'dressing up' but the idea of wearing the corset for real was "something granny did in the 50s. No thanks!"
Nevertheless, Marjorie donned the 325 in 2016 to act as corsetière to Cathie Jung, the first time that Cathie had worn a girdle since she got married. Many clothes pegs were employed behind Cathie's back to pull the girdle into some semblance of Cathie's remarkable waist.
An extremely rare picture of Cathie wearing a girdle, possibly one of the best girdles ever. That girdle has also been passed around our models and Amy, another lady with back problems, really wanted to buy it from us!
Did Spirella really have a factory in France? No. This caught us by surprise rather like the French labelling on Marks & Spencer garments. It was not France, but French-speaking Canada for which these brochures and garments were aimed.
From Michael Green's hilarious book 'The Art of Coarse Sailing' (1962) comes this passage:
"You will find that where a man will go sailing cheerfully for a week with just a spare pair of socks, women insist on taking such unnecessary luxuries as an extra corset and, of course, a dress ('in case we should go to a dance')."
How very early 60s in so many ways. The word corset here is a euphemism for a girdle or a 'roll-on' that all women would wear (even on a yacht) for how else would you hold up your stockings. The characters are going sailing on the Norfolk Broads not jetting off to Ibiza. Dancing was very popular and many establishments would host dance evenings. It was a far more innocent time wedged between the end of a shocking war and the revolution of youth that would occur just a few years later.
Why fan lacing was invented - really!
Meanwhile, serious (and slightly scary) corsetry is alive and well in Latin America.
Now is a good time to invest in the hook-and-eye trade.
August
What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9
What we love about research are the unexpected twists and turns of exploration. The picture above of the bra and cincher (Faja Brasileñas or Faja Colombianas) has lead us into the realm of steatopygia (an accumulation of large amounts of fat on the buttocks and upper thighs). This is a condition endemic in certain ethnic groups common in Southern Africa and America. However, this condition can be seen as a figure of beauty and was copied by Europeans in the later 19th century in the form of the bustle. The effect is accentuated by a small, tightly-corseted waist.
Fashion does tend to be cyclical and the steatopygia inspired bustle is now manifest in the 'slim- thick' look. This look, often associated with Kim Kardashian, refers to a body type that is both slender and curvy, with a small waist and a large bottom and thighs. This body shape is characterized by an hourglass figure and has become a popular beauty ideal, particularly in the past few years. The look can be achieved by exercise, however, being of the appropriate ethnicity will give you a head start - or more correctly, a bottom start. Of course, a tight corset or faja will emphasise the effect and this explains the burgeoning number of corset shops offering these Faja Colombianas.
A feature of such garments that enclose the hips are panels designed to emphasise the bottom.
Was Jayne Mansfield's posterior in the 1956 film 'The Girl Can't Help It' a sign of 50s steatopygia? Not really; it was simply tight underwear and an enviable hip-spring.
“To the uninitiated, the word Spirella all too often conjures up a vision of unyielding strong satin, rows of hooks and eyes, yards of lacing, and bones, bones, and more bones!” Spirella Magazine January 1958.
“To the uninitiated, the words Faja Colombiana all too often conjure up a vision of unyielding lycra, rows of hooks and eyes, and bones, bones, and more bones!” Ivy Leaf 2025 (67 years after the quote above).
They would be right of course!
As August comes to an end after one of the warmest English summers on record, the rain has made an appearance that will be most welcome to gardeners and farmers alike.
Reflecting on August's diary, the two main topics have been
The latter topic sits well within the realm of the 'Other Side of Corsetry', however, it may well be of interest to some of our readers.
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September
Our recent foray into the world of the formidable faja has produced some unexpected correspondence. One of our readers elected to purchase a 'waist trainer'; this is a boned latex cincher (left - not the actual lady in question). The first problem was that rubber is a cold material and quite unpleasant on the skin before the body warms it up and the other problem was, as our reader said "I no longer need to go to the gym for my upper body strength, just getting the hooks and eyes to fasten is building up my biceps!" (Those nails can't help but you can feel a big 'however' coming here) "However, once donned, the reduction in the waist and the warmth of the garment are really most soothing and comfortable." A niggling back pain that had been bothering her for a month or so completely vanished. One must suffer for one's beauty as Victoria (right) discovered.
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My husband does sometimes come up with the most amazing quotes. He was pontificating on 'longevity depending on getting the design right first time' and as examples said "Look at crocodiles, sharks, cockroaches and the Triumph Doreen bra!" I'm fairly sure that the Triumph Doreen bra has rarely shared a sentence with such denizens. But, as usual, he is correct.
Some other products that 'got it right' are described on our best foundations page. One such is the Carol Brent pantie-girdle (left). This elicited a letter from one of our readers lamenting the demise of such brands.
"When I was in Germany some 30 years ago, proper foundations were still selling well both in stores and by mail order among the hausfrauen, but this is sadly no longer the case. While browsing, I noticed mention of the ‘Carol Brent’ brand in the 'Best Foundations' section, and wanted to share some information on its history. Carol Brent was a brand of the Montgomery Ward department store chain for its foundation wear range - they had a separate brand called ‘Joan Browne’ (right) which was foundation wear aimed at the more mature woman*. Sadly, as a first portent of our changing shopping habits, Montgomery Ward shuttered its doors in, if I remember correctly, 2001. The once mighty Sears is now reduced to a rump of eight stores - the JC Penney chain continues to soldier on as does Macys. Those of us who still desire more traditional foundation garments are confined to online shopping."
*How typical, despite 'Joan Browne' being aimed at the more mature woman, the girdle is modelled by, what appears to be, the same young, slim model. This is advertising implying that instant youth is yours as soon as you don the remarkable 'double zip' girdle.
As always, these diary articles will be re-located in the fullness of time to a more appropriate location. Certainly 'Dubl Zip' belongs on the 'Strange Names' page.
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This sad piece of news has only just reached us.
RIP
Catherine Climenko Jung (March 15, 1937 – August 19, 2025)
Known to all as Cathie Jung, possessor of the world's smallest waist.
We met Cathie and her husband Bob in 2014 in North Carolina where the photos below were taken and again in 2016 when they stayed with us in Somerset, England.
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During our visit in 2014, we took many photographs, however, we like the one above best, where Cathie reclines on a 'fainting couch'. The Guinness certificate is self-explanatory, however, it fails to emphasise that in relation to her height, Cathie's 15 inch waist is as extreme as Ethel Granger's 13 inches, and probably even that of Catherine de Medici (16th Century) |
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In the 2016 visit, Cathie was keen to join Victoria and Marjorie for the photoshoot of our 2017 calendar. Although tight-lacing is not our primary focus, it is part and parcel of the history of corsetry and Cathie was charming and obliging throughout.
We got Cathie to wear a girdle (left), the first she has worn since she started wearing corsets over 40 years ago. Of course, it didn't even vaguely fit but with the help of some bulldog clips we managed to take some realistic shots.
Cathie's husband Bob pre-deceased her on 6th June this year. We wondered how long she would live without her partner of six decades.
Rest in Peace
October
RIP
Another passing that was missed by us was that of Claude Joséphine Rose "Claudia" Cardinale (15th April 1938 – 23rd September 2025)
There are so any pictures of this talented Italian actress wearing corsets and basques that it is hard to select the best, but we like this one since she really is being laced in tightly. So often the corset is cut to fit the shapely actress but in this case, like many Italian women in the 1960s, the bulge of her abdomen shows how tight that corset really is.
1956
