Picryl description: Public domain image of a 19th-century corset, fashion, free to use, no copyright restrictions.

Hourglass corsets first became fashionable in the 1830s in Europe and the US. In contrast to Empire or late Georgian waistlines in which the "waist" lies just below the bust, Victorian fashion accentuated natural waistlines but further constricted them. The hourglass corset achieved immediate waist reduction, as it acted mainly on a short zone around the waist. Rather than attempting to slim the torso around the ribs, tissue could be compressed and redistributed above and below the waistline. The hourglass became the iconic corset shape. They are featured in the media; often the image of the corset shown is of a "woman clutching a bedpost while their maid pulls and pulls at the corset strings". The hourglass corset accentuated slim waists and broadened the bust, shoulders and hips. These elements worked in tandem with very wide skirts, large sleeves, and sloping shoulders to create the wide-slim-wide hourglass figure. Hourglass silhouettes remained popular throughout the 19th century, though outerwear styles evolved. In England, France, and America these corsets were mainly worn by aristocrats and in some cases royalty. As skirts and sleeves shrank, Edwardian era fashions began to favor a more slender, vertical look. Princess line dresses were popular in the 1880s. These were made without a horizontal waist seam and with long vertical seams running the length of the dress, with the dress closely fitted to the body. Hourglass corsets evolved to emphasize the vertical lines of the body, and attempted to slim the torso above the waist as well.