“Female” armor?

History

“Does women’s armor differ from those which men are commonly use?” And “Does the terminology ‘female armor’ exist at all?” These questions are often posed by our customers.
Search Google for phrases like “women in armor” and you immediately get images with boob steel plates or fantasy cuirass “bikini armor” and other kinds of trash like that. Every once in a blue moon you’ll find a photo or image of a woman wearing historically accurate armor. The reason for this is mostly because of the mass culture of web gaming where armor represents modern stereotypes of attractiveness. However, it has nothing to deal with history.
As far as we can determine from historical sources (images, manuscripts, statues, miniatures, etc.) showing women in armor; there’s no difference. It’s always the same armor that men dressed in.

Today
Sport: Medieval Combat

As today’s medieval style combat grows and evolves, more and more newbies are getting into it. And today’s female fighters are no exception. Ladies have their opportunity to participate as a team in group buhurt battles first in 3vs3 and then 5vs5 under HMB regulations. Much effort has been put in to it happening and now plenty of new female teams train hard to get the chance to battle in the World Championship.

Armor for Women

To answer the question about women’s medieval armor we can say that there’s no difference; armor is armor. The same HMB or IMCF equipment can be used by men and women. The size of the armor may differ,  but its shape armor is universal for both sexes. There’s no “for him” and “for her”. In short, armor is unisex.
Just look at any torso protection: Corazzina, Steel breastplate, Cuirass all of them have a chest part constructed to fit different circumferences. It may look strange for us now but in medieval times men’s clothes highlighted the waist. Same thing for armor; looking at a full set of gothic or late Maximilian armor, one will notice a tiny waist on all of them. Nowadays the shape and lines of a XV century Milanese cuirass with tassets would more closely correspond to women’s fashion and the “typical” female form rather than the male.
In the same vein, helmets, arm and leg protection suit both guys and girls. As mentioned before, only size plays a key role in any armor set.
In Forge of Svan workshop we cater to fighters across the spectrum of gender and offer different colors of covering shell for all brigandine type armor. Whether you’re a rough and tumble lady in plain black, a burly guy in wine red or elegant green, or if you identify as neither of these, we’re proud to offer you quality armor that will keep you safe and fighting on.
Some of our models of steel arm and leg protection are more anatomically shaped then others. Take a look at
Italian Arm Armor . It has tulip-shaped brassards. Or for example: Anatomical Cuisses with Knees  which have a tidy design and highlight an athletic body build. Whatever your body shape, we can make armor to suit you.

So…

Choose whatever you like best! Just remember about rules regarding historical accuracy of armor if you are going to use it for full contact medieval combat as regulated by HMB or IMCF. At our webshop we offer standard sizing. Each item has a detailed size description so you can see which measures fits you best. Also we offer the option of custom sized steel and quilted armor. If you choose this option, please take measurements carefully using our measuring scheme . If you still have questions concerning armor or measuring – don’t hesitate to contact us. Our team is ready to help you to select the equipment that will serve you well for years to come.