Advertising to women, by appealing to women. This principle has long been a cornerstone of marketing, especially when it comes to fashion and beauty. Shapewear and corset advertisements evoke a fascinating historical narrative. These ads not only reflect the ideals of beauty but also illustrate the changes in societal attitudes, gender roles, and marketing trends over the years. From the Victorian hourglass figure to the girdled silhouette of the 1950s, corsets and shapewear ads highlight evolving perceptions of body image—and the products created to help women achieve those shifting standards.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the history of advertising corsets, shapewear, and lingerie, illustrated by some iconic examples and famous personalities from the late 19th to the mid-20th century.
Victorian Corsets: The Era of Severe Structure (1880s)
In the late 1800s, corsets were an essential element of women’s wardrobes. The hourglass figure epitomized femininity, and corsets became not only a shaping tool but a symbol of discipline and refinement. Advertisements from this era relied heavily on portraying the corset as a means of achieving elegance, confidence, and perfection.
One notable example is the Warner Brothers’ Coraline Corset. Pushback against traditional whale-bone corsets in the late 19th century encouraged advancements in corset technology, such as more “flexible” materials like Coraline—a plant-based substitute for whalebone. These ads emphasized not only the product’s shaping capabilities but also its comfort—an appealing prospect at a time when corsets were usually unpleasant to wear for extended hours.
The advertisements themselves often featured highly stylized illustrations of women in poise-perfect postures. Aesthetic ideals revolved around a tightly cinched waist, which directly correlated to societal expectations of virtue and self-control. The Coraline Corset ads famously declared the corset “as pliable as silk and strong as steel,” giving women the fantasy of shaping their bodies while maintaining comfort—a marketing tactic that continues to resonate in modern shapewear ads.
The Transition from Curves to Straight Lines (Early 1900s)
As women’s roles began to transform in the early 20th century, so too did fashion. The tightly curved, restrictive corsets of the Victorian era gave way to straighter, more elongated shapes around the 1900s. This transition is beautifully illustrated in advertisements for Armorside Corsets, which toned down the dramatic curves in favor of a more upright posture and flat-silhouetted figure. These ads offered subtle hints of shifting societal roles for women—still polished and restrained, but with greater mobility and practicality in mind.
The imagery in these ads revealed a new kind of chic, where health and hygiene started to play significant roles in marketing. At this time, Edwardian corset marketing often emphasized the health benefits of the straight-fronted style—sometimes referred to as the “S-curve corset”—which was claimed to support the spine more effectively than the older designs. These advertisements were often loaded with medical endorsements, selling a “modern” corset as a gateway to both beauty and well-being.
The Flapper Revolution and Shapewear Liberation (1920s)
The 1920s marked a dramatic departure from traditional corsetry. The flapper era brought a drastic change in beauty standards. With bobbed hair, shorter skirts, and boyish, androgynous silhouettes, corsetry slimmed down to girdles and binding garments that provided minimal shaping. This was the age when feminine curves faded into the background in favor of a tubular, flat-chested look.
One famous example of advertising amid this sartorial rebellion was Gilda Grey endorsing a “fat-reducing cream.” Scantily clad in shimmering flapper-style outfits, Grey, a famous actress and dancer, showcased the allure of slimming one’s figure through cosmetic means. Such advertisements highlighted a growing obsession with being thin—making products not just about creating illusionary curves but actively reducing the physical presence of “unappealing” parts of the female body.
Hollywood Glamour and Star Endorsements (1930s–1940s)
The rise of cinema in the early to mid-20th century has had an undeniable impact on advertising. By the 1930s and 1940s, stars of the silver screen became the darlings of marketing campaigns. This era saw glamorous endorsements of the newest shapewear innovations. For example, Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous burlesque entertainer, promoted an electric shaver—a novel product that played on not only beauty but also practicality.
During this period, girdles began to dominate the market, replacing the lace-up corsets of prior decades. Ads featured celebrities and models showcasing girdles with dazzling Hollywood glamour. While comfort was hinted at, the primary focus remained on contouring the body for a smoother, more controlled look under form-fitting dresses that had become more popular during and after the war years. These advertisements often stressed that shapewear was a woman’s duty—to herself, to her family, and even to society.
The “Modern” Girdle of the 1950s
The 1950s ushered in a new era of shapewear design as well as a renewed focus on the hourglass figure. Post-WWII consumerism placed emphasis on homemaking and domestic perfection, with girdles evolving into essential tools for achieving the universally admired “wasp waist.” Advertisements from this period often showcased full-figure girdles designed to mold both the front and back of the body while extending down to hold stockings in place—combining utility with a polished, controlled aesthetic.
Famous examples from this era include ads with carefully crafted photographic illustrations of women wearing girdles beneath their dresses. These advertisements often incorporated taglines suggesting that the right shapewear could give every woman flawless beauty, no matter her natural shape. The ads conveyed an almost clinical perfection, with girdles described as tools for achieving a “modern woman’s” streamlined appearance reflective of prosperity and progress.
More Than Just Fashion: Cultural Shifts Reflected in Ads
While the shapewear advertising industry evolved to match changing beauty ideals, many of the underlying messages remained consistent: women were encouraged—and at times expected—to alter their figures to align with societal norms. The appeal of glamor, practicality, health, and modernity found its way into each era’s shapewear marketing strategies, underscoring the complex relationship between women and the clothing, advertisements, and cultural expectations placed upon them.
Indeed, shapewear ads throughout history serve as a time capsule, offering valuable insights into not only fashion but also gender dynamics and consumer psychology. Whether it’s the poise of Coraline Corsets in the 1880s, the angular lines of 1920s flappers, or the “suctioned-in” silhouettes of the 1950s girdled body, it’s fascinating to see how shapewear companies adapted to women’s shifting roles, aspirations, and identities—all while maintaining the thread that beauty is something to be shaped and achieved.
From Gilda Grey’s fat-reducing creams to Gypsy Rose Lee’s electric shavers to 1950s girdles with stockings, advertising to women has consistently straddled a curious mix of empowerment and pressure. These century-old marketing artifacts remind us how women have been portrayed—and how they’ve shaped their own cultural story—over time.
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