Hoops
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The bustle, by extending the body, became a point of demarcation for the back of the waist. By enlarging the derriere visually, the bustle became a foil for the constricted waist in profile. Bustles were silk-floss, cotton, or feather down-filled. Small ones could be found sewn into Empire gowns; more prominent ones were used in the 1870s and 1880s and had an ingenious range of configurations and materials, including wire coil, rattan, and horsehair.
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