Bombast-Curious Fashion History

Bombast:: noun 
high-sounding language with little meaning, used to impress people

This (in my opinion) very fun word to say has some of its origins in fashion. During the Northern Renaissance (c.1500-1600) cotton, wool, horsehair, or sawdust was used to stuff/pad trunk hose and doublets. Men's doublets were padded around their midsections to give a very specific shape to their bellies. This over stuffing of one's garments could be equated to a rat for women's hair to give it more volume or a shape. A more clothing related modern example would be chicken cutlets for bras or shoulder pads. 

This fencing doublet from the Met Museum archives has an example of bombast (although this would be for safety reasons as well as fashion). You can see a slight padding to the stomach area which is the classic peascod belly seen in portraits from the era. 

Playing up the bombast in your costume design/creating can help create an authentic look. While today we wouldn't be stuffing our costumes with hand fulls of horsehair, cotton batting layered and quilted together is a simple way to achieve the desired shape. 

Reference:

• Met Museum Online Collection
• Survey of Historic Costume 5th Edition