Cadolle Creation Paris this strapless boned corset is in a wine red satin, the style is called Galia.  Their sale rooms are an essential and international gathering place in Paris for over two centuries and they are still welcoming the most refined and famous women of the world.   This corset is strong, made with so much thought for the wearer, it feels soft and flexible like a glove and the red tulle collar is detachable, and fastens with black poppers, it may be worn all the way around, or there are gaps to wear it off the shoulders.   

This has a front with a central seam down the front bone, the panels next to it have extra panels with the hidden bones only reaching up to where the bust starts, then the satin widens to allow for the breasts, there is a hidden bone up the outer side of the breast to help keep the breasts facing forwards.   The hidden bones at the front and sides are covered with black cushioned fabric inside to make them more comfortable.  There are extra panels let into the satin and its black lining to allow for the hips.  Then on the back of the hip panels the covered bones show on the outside and are picked out with wine red stitching and lined inside with black velvet.   The top of the corset rises from the centre, over the breasts and then down towards the sides and the single row of sixteen steel hooks and eye fastenings, down the left hand side.  These extra panels together with the lace up back should accommodate a bust size from A to D.  

The centre back has a full length lace up opening with black laces through deep red eyelets in the SMALL corset and with red laces through deep red eyelets in the LARGE corset. Each corset has twelve pairs of the deep red eyelets. Inside there is a wide red satin panel inside, lined with black fabric, to accommodate someone with a very curvy figure so the laces are not tightened across any flesh.  At the side opening with the hooks and eyes there is a black satin tongue so the hooks and eyes do not tighten across flesh, this opening is for ease of getting out of the corset at the end of the evening.   I realise that in my photos on the mannequin this does not show any nip in at the waist but this is not possible on a plastic mannequin but the ones I sold in my shop certainly gave the wearer's a really curvy figure.

The outer top and bottom edges of this corset have the red satin turned in and secured to the black lining inside with a double row of wine red stitches, the inside edges are sewn with black fabric tape.   The red organza tulle top has a crushed look to it on purpose, this helps it to stand up with air inside and not droop.  The bottom edges are gathered with three black inner rows of black elastic secured with zig-zag stitches.  There is a narrow black elastic outer row at the top of the gathered section.   The black panels of double poppers are arranged in different directions so that it is easier to decide where to place them, and the option is there if you want to wear the organza all the way around under the arm, or over the arms.

The fabric of this satin GALIA corset is in 100% Acetate, the black lining inside is in cotton linen.  Cadolle states that this should not be washed but be dry cleaned, not bleached, not ironed, not tumble dried.  The RRP was £282.00.   Made in France.

For a small basque this would normally fit a 32B but as a corset, with its extra opening at the front and back, there is more of a range of fitting so this would fit a 32A to 32D, depending on the wearer's shape and I found when fitting people in our changing rooms I would lace them up to get the shape right for them and just use the hook and eye opening to get them out of the corset once the lacing had been adjusted to their satisfaction.  There is also the height of the person from their hip to bust, I feel this would fit an average sized woman but perhaps not one two is 5' 10" unless they are very long in the leg rather than the body.  The large corset would fit someone 36A -36D.

I have no idea why the small has black lacing and the large has red lacing but that is how they came and both look beautiful.