Opening up the box from Eden finds this corset in a plastic bag, not the nice pink tissue paper other orders have come with. The corset itself has tags attached that show the brand name "Tesa Classics" and instructions on how to put the corset on. It shows pictures on how to tighten the corset by yourself, which is helpful for those of us who have never worn a corset before. Personally, I found it easier to work with someone to get the most even and tight fit.

The corset itself is a luster polyester. It is quite shiny and in high-light situations the material can look costume-y. Normally, I wouldn't see this being worn out during the day to the office or anything, so it works well in the dimmer lit nighttime. The boning is lightweight plastic and can buckle if tightened too tight, as this corset is more for looks and not tight lacing. The construction of the whole thing is pretty awesome. There are no real loose strings and the edges meet up where they should. The surging on the inside looks like it will hold up nicely.

The corset is unlined and the inside is just the matte wrong-side of the polyester than makes up the body. The boning is lined with this fleece-y type fabric which is soft and comfortable against the skin. There is nothing scratchy about this fabric.

The back closure is made up of a luster polyester but the texture is more of a cross-hatch than the smooth texture of the main body of the corset. The difference in texture is not noticeable when it is being worn. The grommets have smooth backs and aren't poke-y or sharp. The laces included here are basically cheap shoelaces. They even have the aglets to help poke the strings through the holes. It wouldn't be hard to change these out for something nicer like ribbon or something. There are two laces which meet in the middle, and allow you to tighten the bottom and top half separately. There is also plenty of extra lace when it is tied tight enough for the sides to almost touch. This makes it able to fit a wider range of sizes, but it is also awkward to figure out what to do with the extra when you're wearing it.

The front closure, which I would not call a busk due to lack of boning and hook and eye closures, is where this basic corset shines. The sleek, chromed zipper is a visual accent rather than just a closure method. Unlike the hook and eye method, there are no gaps for skin to awkwardly peek through. It is easy-on and easy-off. And once you get the corset tightened to your liking, it is nice not to have to readjust every time you wear it. However, with this piece, the zipper is more for looks than quality closure. It can come unzipped a little at the top, which could lead to some wardrobe malfunctions. I have also had the issue of the zipped part to unzip right below the zipper, if that makes any sense. This made it extremely hard to unzip and I was convinced I broke it.

This is my second corset that I have purchased from Eden and both have had this ambiguous sizing. The size chart was not much help. 34 or 36 what? Hips, bust or what? Last time, with a different brand corset, I went with my band size, which ended up being a little bit smaller than I would have liked. This time, I went with a 36 vs a 34 and it was almost too big. It fit me well except in the bust, where I was a bit too small to fill it out. I had help tightening the top half up and the help of an awesome add-two-cup-sizes bra and I fit the top pretty well now. The only problem with the bra solution is that the band can be seen in the back. If I don't wear it, I get a mixture of not filling the top out and being flattened out.

This corset is amazing in the ability to be worn out with jeans, or with a pencil skirt, or just in the bedroom with panties and stockings. Its a multipurpose corset and won't be too sexy to just leave the bedroom at all. I really like it with a white blouse under and dark jeans.

The piece has held up well so far, with no rips or anything. The only problem was the zipper. The tag says to just machine wash cold with gentle soap. I would take it further and either hand wash this or wash it on the gentle cycle in a lingerie bag. Do not put it in the dryer because it can warp the plastic boning. I have found if the plastic boning gets perma-buckled from wear, steam from an iron can help mold it back to the proper shape.