My Uncle told me once there were 3 rules for a great opera:

I am trying to finish a set of 18th c. stays from the JP Ryan pattern - and I've come across an odd, though apparently not unique issue with the pattern. Based on my measurements and the advice of the merchant that helped me, I'm using a size 20 stays pattern. I made my mock-up, and things are not quite fabulous. The stays technically fit. I have about a 3-4 gap, which is a little on the large size, but comfortable and even all the way down. The problem is the shape they give me. I find that they are flattening my bust and then sloping outward from my body as the line moves down over my middle. It looks like someone turned the ice-cream cone upside down; completely the opposite of what one wants in a set of stays. A quick look at gbacg reveals a newish entry under the JPR stays section that describes the same phenomenon for another large gal, so I'm not alone.

Has anyone encountered this issue and successfully corrected it? I've got an email started to JPRyan, but figured it might take awhile to hear back. Any suggestions are gratefully accepted.