The Artisans and Craftsmen People Choice Award competition nominees introduction continues. Today we are talking about the Past Time Pedlar workshop from the UK. This workshop creates items that are familiar and necessary for our community, such as  tabards, particular clothes and occasional flags. Claire Challand told us all details of the workshop’s life.

The history of this workshop began 4 years ago with a simple desire to help friends:
“I’ve been making costumes for most of my life, but I started to make items for HMB when I started fighting with my local Armoured Combat Gloucester HMB club about four years ago. 

It started as a favour to get the club some tabards for its first tournament and it just grew from there”.

The workshop is relatively young, but already has a good reputation. Many HMB athletes offered to nominate the Past Time Pedlar in our competition.

During this time, many orders were completed, but the priorities of the masters did not change. Claire said that the most important thing for the workshop team is to make the customer’s wishes come true, and of course to check the measurements!

In addition, Claire knows all the requirements and regulations of the Authenticity Committee and the needs of fighters, because she herself is seriously engaged in HMB sports.

“First it starts with the design and selection of colours and materials. There are lots of different materials but it is important to select the right type for the purpose of the garment. Measurements come next and I help guide the customer through the process of measuring themselves, good clothing should fit snug and well.

Once all the measurements are checked I draw out the patterns and start cutting out the pieces. For some types of clothing it’s important to ensure the fabric will stretch correctly depending on the weave. These pieces are then pinned together and placed on a tailors dummy to ensure a good fit! Once I am happy they are sewn together to form the garment. Strong stitches should be used to ensure a long life!”

The finished garment is then photographed for approval by the customer; once they are happy it is shipped to its new home ready for use!

Here they are ready to help any client, and the clients at the workshop can be very unusual!

“The oddest request I have had was to make a tabard for a pet lizard! We ended up buying a stuffed toy which helped with the pattern making! It was for a friend who was experiencing some difficult times and was away from her home, friends and pet lizard! They always wanted a tabard for it so this was the next best thing”, Claire told us.

Considering that Claire is not only a master of making authentic clothes, but also a fighter, at tournaments she sometimes manages to combine both classes and even assist athletes in dressing!

“Pinning fabric patterns to people at tournaments for hose and braies usually puts you in a compromising position! Fortunately there are not usually many cameras around”. 

This is not easy! After all, you also need to prepare yourself for the fight. Our followers could see Claire in the women’s team of the HMB UK team at the HMB World Championship Battle of the Nations 2019 in Serbia.

HMBIA News thanks Claire Challand for the interview and wishes her new victories in and out of the lists.

We remind you that we are talking about all those elements of the image that complement the HMB set – shoes, textiles, jewelry, shields. The competition is held among the most demanded and popular masters in the HMB community, where, at the selection stage, everyone can nominate their favorite master or workshop.