I had heard for years from various sources (on the internets) that reed is an acceptable substitute for real whalebone, and last year I decided to put it to the test.
I ran through whatever “scientific” comparisons I could think of, and below are my results. I used whalebone boning carefully extracted from one of my least-favorite antique bodices, and the reed I used to bone my Effigy corset.
| Property | Whalebone | Split Cane | |
| Substance |
(Left: whalebone; Right: cane) | Animal – Baleen Whale protein keratin | Plant – Arundo Donax (Giant Cane) cellulose |
| Color |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Dark brown/black | Tan/brown |
| Width |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Can be cut/split to any width. Maximum width ?? (Purchased as 7 mm) | Can be cut/split to any width. Maximum width 7-9cm (Purchased as 8 mm) |
| Length |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Can be cut to any size. Maximum length 3.5 m | Can be cut to any size. Maximum length 6-10 m |
| Thickness |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Can be split to any size. Maximum thickness varies – baleen is thicker at the base. (Purchased as 1.5 mm) | Can be split to any size. Maximum thickness varies – reed is thicker at the root. (Purchased as 2 mm) |
| Weight |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | 7 mm length = 0.1 oz | 7 mm length = 0.1 oz |
| Flexibility |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Bent until ends are ¾ of straight length/ends touching. The baleen did not experience any cracking or breakage. | Bent until ends are ¾ of straight length/ends touching. The reed did not experience any cracking or breakage. |
| Resilience |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | After the flexibility experiment, the baleen returned to its original, straight shape. I noticed some keratinous fibers slightly separating from the surface after multiple bends. | After the flexibility experiment, the reed returned to its original, straight shape. |
| Density |
(Left: whalebone; Right: cane) | Solid | Porous |
| Texture |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Long keratinous fibers parallel to length | Long cellulose fibers parallel to length |
| Splitting |
(Left: whalebone; Right: cane) | The baleen splits along the fibers quite easily. I was able to split the baleen with my fingernails. | The reed splits along the fibers quite easily. I was able to split the reed with my fingernails. |
| Cutting |
(Top: Scissors; Middle: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | The baleen can be cut using regular craft scissors, although it is tougher to cut than the reed. | The reed can be easily cut using regular craft scissors. |
| Shaping |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Shaping can be achieved by soaking the baleen in warm water and allowing to dry in the desired shape. (Note – the curved shape relaxed over time, but did not return to the completely straight line it had before. I would expect it to eventually straighten if not repeatedly shaped) | Shaping can be achieved by soaking the reed in warm water and allowing to dry in the desired shape. (Note – the curve did relax somewhat over time, though not to the extent that the whalebone did. My stays boned with reed retain the curvature of my body though I only wear them a few times a year.) |
| Filing |
(Top: whalebone; Bottom: cane) | Sharp corners and edges can be rounded using a file. | Sharp corners and edges can be rounded using a file. |
That's really intriguing. The baleen is much thinner than I understood it to be. I have a set of mammoth ivory and baleen letter openers that I use for hairsticks and they are my only experience with the material so it probably clouds my internal visualization. They have split and shredded a bit on the tips and I can definitely imagine the keratinous separation you're talking about.
ReplyDeleteWow, this is really interesting, especially considering this post (http://stay-ingalive.blogspot.com/2011/04/ethics-culture-and-controversy-baleen.html) recently on "Staying Alive", she's bought baleen and is going to use it to bone her stays. I'm assuming from your conclusions that you think reed is an acceptable substitute? Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteWell, baleen can be made to come in nearly any size - that's just the size I happened to have on hand from an antique bodice from my collection. The reeds & whalebone I had on hand for the experiment above were close to the size used in the effigy bodies - which is the reason I put this little comparison together in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWhile far from perfect, I would consider reed an acceptable substitute - it has many of the properties that whalebone has, and is vastly less expensive and far, far easier to obtain.
ReplyDeleteAs I'm (for the most part) a costumer rather than a re-enactor or living history historian, I find that sometimes substitutes are going to work just as well for my purposes.
I salute "Staying Alive" for the attempt at a pair of stays boned with whalebone, and I understand her reasoning behind doing it. I'm just not that hard-core! ;)
I've never used it so I'm definitely going to have to give it a go! Have
ReplyDeleteyou ever used cable ties? What are your thoughts on them vs whalebone?
I've heard some people say it's the closest thing they've found...
And so I'm assuming you could use the reed just as you would whalebone, even
in a half boned pair of stays or for boning in a bodice? It won't get
brittle and break? Sorry for all the questions, I'm just a noob when it
comes to boning really. I used spiral and spring steel for the first time
this week! :P All my experience before has been cable ties, both small and
large (for a total of 3 corsets and 2 stays).
I use cable ties *a lot*, actually! I more or less use cable ties for all bodice boning, and I have one half-boned pair of bodies that is done in cable ties. My reed pair are more comfortable, but it's also fully boned, and cut (only slightly) differently - so it's not really a fair comparison.
ReplyDeleteI probably wouldn't suggest using reed in bodices - you're right, it probably would break. (And the ties work just fine!)
I think the physical properties of reed are closer to baleen than plastic zip ties; but that's neither here nor there.....zip ties are going to be stronger, and won't have the same disadvantages (shredding etc).
Hmmmm....maybe I need to do a 3-way compare and figure it all out.......!
Good to know! And I know I'd love it if you did a 3-way comparison! :)
ReplyDeleteHere I am again with the questions, but no one ever seems to say online. Do
you use the thick cable ties (the ones that come in super long lengths) or
the thin ones (kind of like office supplies)? I use the thin ones in
bodices and I've used them in one Victorian corset (two next to each other)
because I liked how flexible they were vs the larger ones, but for my half
boned stays (I've made two pair, haven't gotten up the will power to do a
fully boned pair) I used the larger ones, and I find that they dig into my
ribs and skin more....
I will totally do a 3 way comparison! (If I forget, remind me - I've the mind of a sieve....)
ReplyDeleteI've only used the bigger zip ties - I find that the smaller ones don't do what I need them to do....if I need smaller boning, I end up using either spiral steels or 1/4" steel boning. I haven't really had a problem with the zips digging in so much....but I have some *padding*, so maybe that's why! ;)