Wasp waist: Difference between revisions
img |
|||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
[[File:Polaire5.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Polaire]], a French actress famous for her wasp waist.]] |
|||
[[Image:DiePariserin bei ihrerToilette8.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Corsetted woman with wasp waist (Paris, 1898)]] |
|||
[[File:Wasp waist.png|thumb|upright|Photograph (1890)]] |
|||
[[Image:Hip form girdle, 1901 uspatent687839.gif|thumb|200px|right|Wasp waist by hip form girdle (1901)]] |
|||
'''Wasp waist''' refers to a woman's fashion silhouette, produced by a style of [[corset]] and [[girdle]], that has experienced various periods of popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its primary feature is the abrupt transition from a natural-width [[human rib cage|rib cage]] to an exceedingly small waist, with the hips curving out below. It takes its name from its similarity to a [[wasp]]'s segmented body. The sharply cinched waistline also exaggerates the hips and [[Breast|bust]]. |
'''Wasp waist''' refers to a woman's fashion silhouette, produced by a style of [[corset]] and [[girdle]], that has experienced various periods of popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its primary feature is the abrupt transition from a natural-width [[human rib cage|rib cage]] to an exceedingly small waist, with the hips curving out below. It takes its name from its similarity to a [[wasp]]'s segmented body. The sharply cinched waistline also exaggerates the hips and [[Breast|bust]]. |
||
Revision as of 20:00, 18 February 2014
Wasp waist refers to a woman's fashion silhouette, produced by a style of corset and girdle, that has experienced various periods of popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries. Its primary feature is the abrupt transition from a natural-width rib cage to an exceedingly small waist, with the hips curving out below. It takes its name from its similarity to a wasp's segmented body. The sharply cinched waistline also exaggerates the hips and bust.
In the 19th century, while average corseted waist measurements varied between 20 and 23 inches, wasp waist measurements of 16 to 18 inches were common and were often striven for as the reigning standard of feminine beauty in the period.[1][2]
Among the multitude of medical problems women suffered to achieve these drastic measurements were deformed ribs, weakened abdominal muscles, deformed and dislocated internal organs, and respiratory ailments. Displacement and disfigurement of the reproductive organs greatly increased the risk of miscarriage and maternal death.[3]
See also
- Breast augmentation
- Corset controversy
- Foot binding
- Labiaplasty
- Neck ring
- Polaire
- Tightlacing
- Female genital mutilation
Notes
- ^ Kunzle, D."Fashion and Fetishism", Accessed June 20, 2007
- ^ Klingerman, K.M. "Binding Femininity: The Effects of Tightlacing on the Female Pelvis", Accessed June 20, 2007
- ^ O'Connor, E. "Medicine and Women's Clothing and Leisure Activities in Victorian Canada", Accessed June 20, 2007
Corsets and corsetmaking | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | Types of corset |  | |
| Corsetmaking | |||
| History | |||
| Corset fetishism | |||
| Corset manufacturers | |||
| Categories | |||
 | This fashion-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |