Improvements in and relating to Dress Stays.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Mar., 1897-Accepted, 17th Apr., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
Improvements in and relating to Dress Stays.
I, GEORGE AUGUSTUS DODGE, a citizen of the United States of America,
residing at Wakefield, in the County of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts,
United States of America, Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
In fine dress making, in order to get the best results, the dressmaker soaks the
whalebone in water for a sufficient time to soften it and thus enable her to sew
through it and attach it directly to the dress and better enable her to shape it and
maintain the shape of the dress, as the whalebone itself being stitched directly to
the dress, remains where it is first placed; but even in the best work, the whale-
bone being put into the dress when wet and soft, will, in drying, shrink, and lose
part of that shape which it is the object of the dressmaker to produce; and further,
this manner of putting in whalebones is troublesome and takes time, as the
whalebone must be put in carefully by hand, so that many dressmakers use as a
substitute for the real whalebone an article which can be sewn through and
attached directly to the dress.
Where whalebone is enclosed in pockets previously stitched to the dress, it is
apt, in a short time, to slip and loosen, changing its position, so that the dress
loses its shape, because the bone is not stitched directly to the dress, and therefore
does not remain in the exact position it originally occupied. It is this liability to
slip and lose its original position that causes the dressmaker to soak the whalebone,
so that she may sew through it and thus attach it directly to the dress, for the finest
grades of dressmaking, where time and expense are not considered.
The object of this invention is to produce for the consumer or dressmaker a
finished dress stay made of the real whalebone, which can be directly stitched to
the dress without any preparation, thus saving the time and trouble it now takes
to put real whalebone into the dress, as above described, and also to avoid the loss
of shape which is liable to occur when the whalebone is put into the dress soft and
wet and then becomes dry and shrinks.
This finished garment stay is composed of two strips of real whalebone enclosed
in a tight cover to which they are firmly secured by stitching, so that they form
practically oue integral piece and cannot slip or move away from one another;
consequently, when such a stay is put into the dress it remains where it is placed
and also holds the dress in shape.
This stay when finished can be attached directly to the dress waist or other
part of the garment by hand or on the machine without the provision of a separate
pocket on each seam in the garment, as is now the practice, to receive the
uncovered whalebone of the usual width of a dress stay.
In the accompanying drawings-
Figure 1 represents a longitudinal view of a piece of dress or garment stay with
the cover broken away to show two strips of whalebone.
Figure 2 is a similar view to Figure 1, but showing the cover composed of only
two pieces, one above and one below.
Figure 3 is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view through Figure 1 on the
line X-X.

page_text: Figure 4 is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view through Figure 2 on the
line X-X'.
Figure 5 is an enlarged detail perspective view of one end of the construction
of Figure 1 partly broken away to clearly show the construction.
Like letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the views.
The dress stay as shown in Figure 1 is composed of two pieces of real whale
bone A A', over and under which is placed a layer of cloth B B', and the cloth
and bone are firmly secured together by the rows of stitching C C' which pass
through the bone and both layers of cloth. Over and under the cloth pieces B BL
are arranged cloth or silk pieces D D¹ of greater width than the bone and 1
linings B B. These two outer layers of cloth are firmly secured together on the
opposite edges by rows of stitching E E', and the row of stitching F passes
through the cloth pieces B B' D D¹ and between the two pieces of whalebone A A',
thus firmly securing the covers B B', D D' together, and holding the whalebone
strips A A¹ tightly in their places, but leaving a place between the same by which
the stay may be sewed directly to the dress by the dressmaker, either by hand or
on the machine. This middle row of stitching not only secured the covers together
and holds the strips of whalebone in their proper positions, but serves as a guide
to the dressmaker to indicate where the stitching is to be done in order to attach
the stay to the dress.
The construction shown in Figures 2 and 4 is practically the same as that shown
in Figure 1, excepting that there is only one lower layer of cloth D D', and the
stitching is the same as described in Figure 1, two rows of stitching C Ci passing
through the bone and cover, two rows of stitching E E on the opposite clges of
the bones, and cue row of stitching F between the bones. This stay, when
finished, shows five rows of stitching, and for that reason may be somewhat
objectionable on the market, therefore the construction in Figure 1, showing only
three rows of stitching is preferable, as it has a better appearance.
The construction of this stay as shown in Figure 1 is as follows:
Whalebone of the usual width of a dress stay is split lengthwise through the
center, soaked in water and steamed until it is of the right consistency, when it is
taken to a double needle machine, one needle for each strip of whalebone. This
machine is arranged with suitable guides and gages to carry each whalebone
strip A A¹ so that it will be sewed directly through the center, one gage carrying
the bottom lining B¹ and the other gage carrying the top lining B, so that in the
operation of the machine the stitching passes through both linings B B' and the
whalebone strips A A', leaving a space between the two bones.
After this step, in order to obtain the best results, the bone is allowed to
thoroughly dry and shrink to its normal shape on the reel on which it has been
wound, and then is taken to another two needle machine gaged to sew on the
outside of the two whalebone strips. There are provided on this machine guides
and gages to carry the prepared bone and the top and bottom layers of cloth DD',
and the needles are gaged so that the rows of stitching E E draw the top and
bottom layers tightly over the bone; after this step the stay so prepared is passed
through another machine, having a guide to carry the stay so that it will be
stitched directly down through the center between the two whalebone strips. This
last row of stitching serves to additionally tighten the stay and at the same time
maintain a positive space between the bones for the operator to sew through the
stay between the bones in putting the stay into the dress.
In the construction shown in Figure 2 the layers D D¹ go through the first step,
that is, being directly stitched to the whalebone strips, as well as the succeeding
steps, as above described.
Briefly, the bone is first softened, to enable it to be stitched directly to the
lining, then the layers of cloth, silk, or other material are stitched together on
the opposite edges, and, lastly, the layers of cloth are secured together between
the two bones by a row of stitching passing down between said bones. Each
succeeding step serves to make the whalebone strips and layers of cloth practically

page_text: one piece, because the bone is stitched directly to the layers of cloth and then the
layers of cloth are stitched tightly around the outside edges of the whalebone strips
and then stitched between the whalebone strips.
It is obvious that the stay thus prepared when sewed into the dress is held
always in the position in which it is originally placed in the dress, and consequently
the dress will retain its shape, because the stay being practically one piece and
being sewed directly to the dress, no slipping of the parts can occur.
The layers of cloth may be of coutinuous lengths and may be cut of any desired
length for use.
Of course it will be understood that more than two strips of whalebone can be
used if desired, but the construction and arrangement would be exactly the same
as that described for two strips.
I do not limit myself to the arrangement and construction shown, as the same
may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention.
•
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim, is :-
1. As an article of manufacture, a dress stay composed of a plurality of strips of
whalebone separated from each other, and a cover directly stitched to said strips
of whalebone throughout the length of the stay and adapted to be stitched to the
dress through the space between said strips.
2. As an article of manufacture, a dress stay composed of a plurality of strips
of whalebone separated from each other, and a cover stitched to said strips of
whalebone throughout the length of the stay and having its opposite layers
stitched together throughout the length of the stay in the space between the
strips, and adapted to be stitched to the dress through the said space between
said strips.
3. As an article of manufacture, a dress stay composed of a plurality of strips
of whalebone separated from each other, and a cover stitched to said strips of
whalebone throughout the length of the stay and having its opposite layers
throughout the length of the stay stitched together along the opposite edges of
the stay and adapted to be stitched to the dress through the space between
the strips.
4. As an article of manufacture, a dress stay composed of a plurality of strips
of whalebone separated from each other, and a cover stitched to said strips of
whalebone throughout the length of the stay and having its opposite layers
throughout the length of the stay stitched together along the opposite edges of the
stay and in the space between said strips, and adapted to be stitched to the dress
through the space between said strips.
5. The method of constructing a dress stay, which consists, first, in taking
whalebone of the usual width of a dress stay and splitting it lengthwise into two
strips, second, in softening the same by soaking in water, or otherwise, third, in
stitching said strips of whalebone while soft to a cover throughout the length of
the stay leaving a space between said strips, fourth, allowing the strips of whalebone
to dry and shrink, and, lastly, in stitching throughout the length of the stay the
opposite layers of the cover together along the opposite edges of the stay and in
the space between said strips of whalebone.
Dated HIS LICE
OI March 1897.
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.