corsetmakers: as you are all so helpful here i have ye

th1s1syesterday (th1s1syesterday) wrote in

corsetmakers,
@ 2005-05-18 13:04:00

Entry tags:

newbie advice, technique

as you are all so helpful here i have yet another question. As i am starting to think about selling some of the clothes i make i am upping my standards a lot. I have inserted all the eyelets into my corset, definatley my least favourite bit to do! as usual i have bodged a couple of them does anyone have any methods of removing the crappy ones without tearing big holes in the fabric, as this is what has happened when i have tried to do this in the past. I want this corset to be perfect and although the bodged ones seem secure enough and look okay from the outside they don't look too great inside :(

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anidan
2005-05-18 01:31 pm UTC (link)

Sorry, no guaranteed way to do it that I can think of. Maybe a lot of tedious time with jeweller's pliers - even then you will probably still damage the fabric. How badly are they bodged? If it's not too bad you can embroider over the grommets with a buttonhole stitch. I do this on some of my corsets as standard (mainly the Rococo styles, because visible metal grommets aren't period). Also good for when you can't match the fabric nicely (brass can look strange with some fabrics). It's also a quick fix if you've forgotten to put the washer on the back (yes I've done it) and cut through the fabric with the flange of the grommet.

Another reason for doing it is that it's what's known as a couture finish. Have a look for a book by Palmer & Pletsch - Couture, the art of fine sewing. It has a lot of "secrets" of the top fashion houses which can (and I think should) be applied to everyday sewing.

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	th1s1syesterday 2005-05-18 02:00 pm UTC (link)
	thanx i might just do that. I'm thinking it will take quite a long time to do 30 odd though! but i'd rather do that than risk ripping the fabric. (Reply to this)(Parent)

mrpet
2005-05-18 03:05 pm UTC (link)

I have had decent luck sniping the washer so that it breaks in two pieces and removing them. The fabric should be stretchy _enough_ to then allow the mangled end of the gromet to pull through. You need a pair of long thin and strong diagnol cutters for this or you will need to use thin needle nose pliers to lift/bend the washer up so you can snip it.

The other way would be to do something to break off the crimped part of the grommet. You can drill it out as long as you have a way to hold the corset steady. I would use a countersink bit (used to drill the conical shaped part of the hole for woodscrews. This is probably the best way to do it as you will be putting very little stress on the fabric. You only need to touch the bit to the crimped part for a brief second (on the washer side) until the washer breaks free.

I would grab a piece of test fabric and pound in a dozen gromets very sloppily and then practice _a lot_ :)

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	britgeekgrrl 2005-05-18 03:34 pm UTC (link)
	This is a bit of advice that could be a lifesaver to someone. adds to memories (Reply to this)(Parent)

	th1s1syesterday 2005-05-18 10:18 pm UTC (link)
	yay thankyou, i may well be able to rescue several items of 'bodged eyelet' clothing now :) (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	mrpet 2005-05-19 01:35 pm UTC (link)
	I have a toile that I put in some grommets. I'm thinking that I should do a photo essay on grommet removal pretty soon. (Reply to this)(Parent)

belleofthebay
2005-05-18 05:34 pm UTC (link)

I've had this happen! I had accidentally put the 00 grommets in with a size 0 cutter=( It took about 2 hrs but I used my cheap pair of jewelry wire cutters (can be found at craft and fabric stores). Start with the washer, snip and wiggle the tip of the clippers in just a bit more. At first you'll only be able to slide the tiniest bit under the washer, but after so many you really get into the swing of it and it's fast. I've also couched grommets too, and that takes forever. And if you've used a 00 grommet and couch that, the hole becomes way to small so it's best to start with a 0 grommet. Hope this helps=0)

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	th1s1syesterday 2005-05-18 10:19 pm UTC (link)
	thankyou, they are nasty things such a fiddle. (Reply to this)(Parent)

electradesigns
2005-05-19 12:45 am UTC (link)

I hate it when that happens, and I have spent many an hour pulling grommets. It's easier to do if they are set with washers, because you will have something to use as leverage when you pry them off. Here is how I do it. I use a butter knife and wedge it under the eyelet. I work around the grommet , gradually prying the circumference. Then I use pliers to crush the grommet together (not all the way together) in the center. After I get the washer off I insert my tapered awl from the back side and force the grommet out the front. It's terrifying. I had to do it on my last corset (to all of the grommets) because she ordered antique gold grommets and I was 2 short. I accedently ordered some from another vender too, so I had more, but they were a different color of antique gold. So I pulled all of the originals out. I suppose I could have used the other color on two of the remaining holes, but being a perfectionist, it would have plagued me, so I did them all twice. Thank God they turned out nice. I was so scared I would ruin the fabric. It helps to use an awl to spread the fibers rather than punching a hole when you attach the grommet. This way, if you have to remove a grommet you aren't heft with a huge hole that's too big for the new grommet. EEEW

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	justtobeme2 2005-05-19 02:53 am UTC (link)
	My dad drilled out some practice ones we did with absolutely no problems (on practice fabric) we wanted to see if the grommets would go through all the layers of my corset since it was very thick.it looked iffy..it was a snap for him..just drilled it till it broke through...he is skilled with the drill though.I am wondering if a dremel would work? (Reply to this)(Thread)

mrpet
2005-05-19 01:39 pm UTC (link)

I don't see why not. It might be best to get a conical grinding bit and use it in place of the countersink bit do to the speed of the dremel. Once you grind through the crimped part of the grommet the washer should break free. Be very careful with the dremel since it will throw sparks and also it is spinning a _lot_ faster than the drill and may bounce out and shred the fabric.

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	dolphin42 2006-07-13 11:04 am UTC (link)
	dremel tool is PERFECT for this sort of work. I use a tiny carbide bit and cut the inside of the grommet out (where the "donut hole" would rest in a donut) on a die, you can scribe the grommet almost all the way through then peel it away (this is much more tricky work as you mustn't nick the die, a small grinding stone may be useful here as well, but I use bits mostly) (Reply to this)

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