A "Transition Stay" Fashionable Circa 1796-1806

I made Past Patterns #030 transition stays because they were designed to go with a dress by the same company I really wanted to make. I bought the kit from Past Patterns with the linen thread. I had some issues fitting them and I still don't think they fit properly. I ended up taking over 4 inches out of the bust to get the compression the pattern said is appropriate. However I still had issues with the bust slipping. They are made of 2 layers of a heavy weight linen, boned with reed, and 100% hand sewn with 35/2 linen thread. It took about 2 weeks of dedicated work to finish them. The pattern came with 3 different boning patterns for the front. I took the recommendation to do the fully boned one due to bust size. The back and sides are only half boned however. The stays are front lacing. The main issue with this style of stays is there are no tabs at the waist edge, so it digs in somewhat. However, I wore these for 2 days straight and it really wasn't that uncomfortable. I don't think I would make them again, however, they did serve their intended purpose, and it was a good exercise in hand sewing.

Stays while flat. Ignore the missing eyelets!

From the front. Note the spiral lacing - correct for the time. The actual lace itself, not so accurate.

From the side

One back angle

Another back angle. I am not sure why the big wrinkles on this side