Happy Generic Holiday Season!

Whooo! It's that time of year again. Merry Fucking X-Mas.

National Inflatable Week Part Cinq...

National Inflatable Week continues...this week...because it's...National Inflatable Week.

The pic above is the one alluded to in my last post from Atomage Bondage Supplement No.1.

Pneumatic Enclosure

Sexologist Havelock Ellis wrote: "Any restraint upon muscular and emotional activity generally tends to heighten the state of sexual excitement". Many lovers of bondage like to be enclosed in a buoyant form using a rubber or latex suit which is pumped full of air (sometimes water) and the wearer carefully bound including, very often, a form of double enclosure such as the inventive form shown on the right. [see above] Is this, some psychologists claim, a desire to return to security of the womb and warmth and security of the maternal fluids? One of our photographic contributors who enjoys this form of restraint says he doesn't care -- "I just know that afterwards I am beautifully relaxed and at peace with myself and the world -- and it is cheaper than the bottle, psychiatrist's couch or a health farm".

More National Inflatable Week

Pump it up until you can feel it.
Pump it up when you don't really need it.
Out in the fashion show,
down in the bargain bin,
you put your passion out
under the pressure pin.
Fall into submission,
hit-and-run transmission.
No use wishing now for any other sin.

--Elvis Costello, "Pump It Up"

In continued celebration of National Inflatable Week, I bring you another classic inflatable gem from Atomage Bondage Supplement, this time from issue no. 5.

***

And since I was too busy to post for Wednesday's festivities, here's a pic from Atomage Bondage Supplement No.2 and below that a letter to the editor. No date, but based on the advertisements in the mag, I'm guessing its year of publication is 1977.

Blow Up

I was interested to see something in the first Bondage Supplement that I don't think I have ever previously spotted in any other magazine and I have never seen written up in even in the psychology books. Fascinated by the photograph I went right through in the hope of finding a detailed article but no luck. I hope you are going to give more space to the subject in future issues.

I am referring, of course, to that rarest form of out interest -- PNEUMOBONDAGE or 'pneumatic enclosure' as you called it on pages 12 and 13. This is the most satisfying form of total enclosure, giving an astonishing feeling of relaxation impossible with other forms. I was delighted to see you have ladies indulging in this most comfortable (and slimming!) form of bondage. But I want to discover if their motivation is the same as mine. Also, how do they ensure an airtight seal, what form of buoyancy is used -- foot pump or compressed air cylinder? Please let us hear about this special way of bondage.

J.J.

Yes, I amazingly have a [very mangled] copy of Atomage Bondage Supplement No.1 in my possession. Tune in tomorrow to see the pick "J.J." is referring to.

National Inflatable Week Continues...

National Inflatable Week continues. The suit above is a charming match to the very round and very large and very inflated hood from last post.

Below, we have an equally charming inflatable body bag. The delightful decor adds a nice touch. My generation calls it "retro" and "kitschy". Of course, our asses are so pumped up with detached ironic sentiment, we're not allowed to like anything for what it is.

All pictures are from the Atomage Bondage Supplement No. 7, page 17, circa 1970's-ish. Note the charmingly awesome pedantic description from the magazine:

These pictures came to us from Victoria, Australia from 'Skinseal'. It is marvelous to us to note the growing world wide interest in both dressing for pleasure and bondage. The quality and imaginative design of the products, particularly the fascinating total inclosure garments, surely merit the attention of all latex lovers who apply their talents for restrictive purposes to better purpose than Trade Unions!

National Inflatable Week

It's National Inflatable Week! Yay! Huzzah!

Er, not really. I just made that up. But it could be if enough of us spread the word around!

Picture above is from the Atomage Bondage Supplement No. 7, page 17, circa 1970's-ish.

Vintage Gasmask Asbestos Warning!

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has issued a warning against using vintage gas masks which might contain asbestos. The article below and picture above are from this page on the ACCC website.

Consumers have been warned that continuing to use vintage gas masks containing asbestos as breathing apparatus may be dangerous to their health, including a risk of later developing mesothelioma.

"The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has recently completed a product safety survey of vintage gas masks", ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, said today. "The survey found such masks were available despite a permanent ban.

"The permanent ban on the supply of vintage gas masks containing asbestos has been in place since April 1991, after the discovery of asbestos fibres in the composite filters of some World War II masks.

"The masks are generally retailed in army disposal shops and consist of a full-face shield, hose and a detachable metal canister containing the asbestos filter. Some are also traded on a consumer-to-consumer basis, particularly over the Internet.

"The ACCC believes consumers may be using them as a cheap alternative for a variety of purposes, including sandblasting and while using chemical garden sprays.

"Wholesalers and retailers of gas masks have been reminded of the ban but the ACCC wants to ensure collectors and tradespeople are aware of the potential danger of breathing through such masks.

"Anyone who has an old World War II type gas mask should not use it as a breathing apparatus unless they are confident that it is asbestos-free. [my emphasis]

"The masks can be appropriately disposed of by obtaining asbestos bags* and putting the mask at a local authority approved transfer station, usually located at a local tip. Consumers should check with their council. Consumers concerned about whether their vintage gas mask contains asbestos could arrange for it to be tested at an appropriate facility, although the cost is high at approximately $150. Consumers may prefer to correctly dispose of the masks and buy conventional equipment for their needs.

"Each mask must be individually tested to determine if asbestos is present as the masks do not contain any clear identifying marks indicating the country and year of manufacture. Consumers who bought vintage gas masks and have concerns about safety should consult the retailer".

S65C(c) of the Trade Practices Act 1974 prohibits a corporation from supplying goods in respect of which there is in force a notice imposing a permanent ban on goods.

"The enforcement of product safety standards and bans is a priority for the ACCC in the interest of consumer safety", Mr Samuel said.

*Available from asbestos disposal companies. The masks should be double-bagged before disposal at an approved transfer station or through the asbestos removal company.

Better safe than sorry...

Miss World Rubber 2006 Picture Gallery Up @ The Baroness Website!

The winners [congrats you lovely people!] of the MWR competition posing with The Baroness.

Ooooh, shiny!

Pretty pics of the NYRB Miss World Rubber 2006 are up at The Baroness' website for all you pervs to leer at! All photos there are (c) Mark McQueen.


Since I was invited to be a judge for the event, I decided to make an outfit for myself that wasn't um...normal latex fetish wear. I heart dead European men in wigs and capri pants!

If you'll be in the NYC area Dec. 3 be sure to break out that kinky latex santa outfit and attend The Baroness' Holiday Fetish Retinue Party.

GQ Spread Latex Pics

Doll's Realm blog has posted some pics from that infamous latex GQ Style spread.

Check it out, folks!

Some BLB Propaganda, or, Fun with Appliques

Just some BLB propaganda here!

Because latex appliques aren't exactly my specialty--and there's more to life than medical crosses, I decided to practice my mad skillz with something partly complicated. Usually I practice new stuff with scraps so I don't fuck up anything expensive. However, this time I decided to wing it and do the gal applique straight on an actual garment. I like it.

Boy Short (style #43001) in Chocolate Brown with Turquoise trim & bathroom gal applique.

Miss World Rubber 2006

Listen up Rubber Bitches & Bitchettes!

Rubber Ball NY Miss World Rubber is less than a week away.

What: Miss Rubber World contestants will be competing for prizes from some of the top latex/rubber designers and retailers around the world! Dance and Play all night until 4AM! Strict dress code. No cameras. Make sure your cell phone is off while inside.

Who: Hosted by The Baroness. Contest judges are yours truely Betty LaBamba, NYC perveratti couple Ted & Di, corsetiere Amy Crowder, make-up artist & all-around diva Lady J, exotic photog extroidinaire Adrian Buckmaster, fetish party promoter (Byte & SMack!) Xris SMack, and fetish supermodel Darenzia.

Where: Bacchus Studios 515-a W. 29th St, NYC

When: Saturday, November 11th, 2006 from 8PM-4AM

How much?: $50 for one, $60 for couples [bring a fucking friend!]. Advance tix are $5 cheaper. Go to the Miss World Rubber site for much info.

Be sure to say "hello" to me. (Trust me, you'll know me when you see me. I'll be the only asshole dressed as a virtuous dead revolutionary rock star in capri pants and powdered wig.) I don't bite, unless you start fucking with me. I'm also very shy around new people when not sober. I swear I'm not a bitch. An asshole, yes, but certainly not a bitch.

Cheers!

Stuff Every Latex Consumer Should Know About 4D Transparency Variations & Color Name Misnomers Vol. 3: Semi-Trans Colors

Hello & Welcome! to part 3 of this series. Part 2 is about the bright colors and can be found here.
Before we get this blog entry started, I'd like to make an early birthday shout out to Louise Brooks. Girl, Nov. 14 you will be 100 years old. You've been dead over 20 years, but you're still hot as hell, and we all love you and your iconic haircut.

4D Rubber [the only latex sheet manufacturer for fashion apparel that matters besides the much undeservedly maligned Hygenic] makes a designated "Semi-Transparent" set of colors, also know as "Semi-Trans" for short. The latex designers/companies call them Semi-Transparent, Semi-Trans, or just plain Transparent. The hyphen is optional. [Now, if you're wondering why I am capitalizing Semi-Trans--which you probably are not, but whatevs--it's because this is a very sacred subject to me. More sacred than the Supreme Being. Truly.]

The official Semi-Trans colors include: blue, green, grey, mauve [more commonly known as purple to us plebes], natural, pink, red, yellow. These are the official names made up by 4D. When it comes to what other people call them, things start getting a little fucked up, especially when it comes to that so-called "grey" color [separate post on that coming up].

Transparency
The actually transparency of the colors are not too consistent across the board. Some are more transparent than others. I guess there's a reason why they're called "Semi-Trans" and not "Totally-Trans". The lighter colors like Natural, Yellow, Pink, and also Green and Grey are the most transparent. Blue, Mauve [aka Purple], and Red are much less transparent. Tip: If you want to optimize the transparency of your Semi-Trans outfit, use lube inside and out.

Thickness
The thickness, or gauge, of Semi-Trans sheeting only comes in 0.33mm and 0.45mm. However, Natural is also classified as a Standard color and comes in every gauge 4D offers.


The following pics should give you a good idea of what the colors look like. The photographed swatches are of 0.33mm sheeting, unshined. I placed a BLB label halfway under each swatch to demonstrate the varying amount of transparency of each color. Note: I (and several other companies) refer to Semi-Trans Grey as "Semi-Trans Smoke". Clicky on the links to see:

Semi-Trans Natural & Semi-Trans Pink

Semi-Trans Smoke [aka "Grey"] & Semi-Trans Yellow

Semi-Trans Green

Semi-Trans Red & Semi-Trans Blue

Semi-Trans Purple

Rubber Rx Care Paranoia

I can't think (or pay attention enough) to write a coherant enough blog essay. So...

I compiled a list of links to various latex designers "latex care tips" pages. Many sites were omitted because they didn't bother to put up a latex care page, I couldn't find it within 30 seconds, or they're under construction/renovation, OR whoever wrote their care tips was on serious crack. In conclusion: it's ok to be paranoid about latex care (try not to be a matyr with your fingernails, tho'); we all say basically the same thing in different words more or less; I hate flash websites.

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for the content listed in these sites.

Cocoon (UK)
Rubber 55 (UK)
Libidex (UK)
Simon O (Austria)
Pressure Corsets
Bodycult (Germany)
Art With Latex (USA)
The Baroness (NYC)
Slyx (VA, USA)
Vex (USA)
Lust Designs (CA, USA) Care tips is towards bottom of page.
Nimues (CA, USA)
So Hip It Hurts (CA, USA) A really fun read.

Bouncing Balls!

Aha!

Everything you ever wanted to know about rubber...

Seriously.

Now go edumacate yourselfs. Excuse me while I find out WTF a "putomayo" is.

4D Latex Sheet Thicknesses

4D--the premier [aka the supreme dictator. Kidding! I kid! I heart 4D!] manufacturer of latex rubber sheeting for fashion purposes--makes sheeting in various gauges, or thicknesses. The different thicknesses allow us latex designers to make a bunch of different, you know, cool stuff. If they only made sheeting in one gauge, it would make our lives more difficult than it already is.
Latex clothing is tre expensive! I hope this post will help you become a more informed latex clothing consumer or d.i.y.-er (and fetishist!).

4D uses metric measurements. Gauges are specified in millimeters. So, when you see "mm", it means millimeters--not millipedes. FYI: 4D sells latex rolls in increments of 10 and 5 meters, not yards. Similarly, they denote fabric widths by centimeters, not inches. By the way, they only offer two fabric widths: 92cm & 200cm. For $64,000, guess which one costs more. If you see a slip up where I write "yards" or "inches" instead of "meters" or "centimeters", I apologize in advance for being a dumb bourgeois fat pig New Jersey-bred American. Honestly.

Besides depending on the type of colors, the wholesale price of latex sheeting is largely dictated by its thickness, or gauge. Not talking 'bout the actual length or width of the sheet here. The thinnest sheeting is the least expensive, while the thickest sheet is the most expensive. (And boy do they get expensive!). Ergo, expect to pay more for thicker stuff.

0.16mm The thinnest sheeting 4D manufactures for fashion sheeting. Very very thin--much like a condom or dental dam. I rarely see this gauge used in fashion apparel. The norm for ultra thin items is 0.20mm. 0.16mm is great for stuff like props, backgrounds, and anything calling for a super gossamer look.

0.20mm So stretchy and clingy, it actually feels like a second skin! It's also very comfortable to wear over long periods of time. This gauge is optimal for lingerie, stockings, and anything where a light look and feel is needed.

FYI: The thinner the sheeting, the more tricky it is to manipulate, i.e. glue successfully.

Also, this may be obvious but, the thinner the gauge the more "stretchy" the sheeting. Garment patterns should be dictated by which preferred gauge is used. For example, most patterns are now being increasingly drafted for 0.33mm. Although it's often done by latex designers and firms, those patterns can NOT be used to cut a garment from 0.45mm. That's why if you order a particular garment in 0.45mm or 0.55mm, it ends up fitting too tight or being the "wrong size". Well, can't they just use a pattern the size up? My answer: absolutely fucking not. You're dealing with the luck of the draw here. Good thing many latex apparel consumers remain ignorant about these things. Ack! Think about it. Will a clothing company who specializes in, say, spandex body suits suddenly start making them in denim?

0.33mm The standard gauge used in latex apparel, especially women's wear. Think light to medium weight cottons, satins, and menswear fabrics. Great for hoods, catsuits, tops, dress, leggings or gaucho style pants (not very suitable for jeans style). This gauge is great for "pull on" stuff, i.e. garments without zips or any other closure. However, this does NOT stretch as much as a spandex knit fabric would. It needs more seams than 0.20mm to shape a garment correctly without that "flattening" effect.

0.45mm Another golden standard for latex gear. One of the most popular used thicknesses. A very noticeable heavier feel and a lot less stretch than 0.33mm, but still supple and stretchy. This is my favorite gauge. This gauge is awesome when you want a more structured look to your garments without going for the heavier stuff. Great for structured tops & dresses, trousers, light jackets.

0.55mm & 0.65mm If the entire garment is made from this, I find it causes chaffing and that sweat rash when worn longer than a few hours. That's just me. I apologize for not being as hard mutha fuckin' core as you. [I like layering a bunch medium weight stuff.] So which one to use? It all depends on what type of garment and how you want it to look. D.I.Y.ers should experiment (or send me money if they want the answer, like OMSB, 'cuz nothin' ain't free, dawg) and customers should consult with their latex designer of choice.

0.80mm This gauge is great for corsets, accessories, and once again, anything where you want a stiff heavy look & feel. Some designers will "sandwich" the corset boning between two pieces of sheeting to make the corset thicker.

0.92mm & 1.02mm The thickest fashion latex sheet available. Great for accessories, corsets, naughty bondage accoutrements, you get the picture.

Not every set of colors are available in every gauge. For more info on the colors manufactured by 4D read this previous post. Here's a comprehensive list of which gauges are available by color sets:

Supatex: 0.16mm, 0.20mm, 0.33mm, 0.45mm, 0.55mm, 0.65mm, 0.80mm, 0.92mm, 1.02mm

Only black, white, red, and natural is available in thicknesses of 0.92mm & 1.02mm.

Semi-Transparent: 0.20mm, 0.33mm

Vibrant: 0.16mm, 0.20mm, 0.33mm, 0.45mm

Pearlsheen: 0.33mm, 0.45mm

Rubber in WEIRD NJ!

The most amazing 'zine about NJ ever is now in it's 27th issue.

Except from Weird N.J. #27 in a letter to the editor titled " The Truth About Georgian Court Univeresity":

...The story of someone dying under the huge oak trees that still exists on the campus is true. It was not a child and not a hanging. In November of 1921 Edith Gould, George's wife, was standing near this tree and had just driven a golf ball off the fifth tee of their private golf course. She suddenly collapsed and never regained consciousness. The doctors said that she died of a heart attack. Upon examining the body, they found that she was wearing a rubber suit (similar to a skin diving suit) that encased her from collarbone to ankles. This suit and many other dieting fads Edith had tried were said to have contributed to her death. ...

This reminds me of a song called "What a Way to Die" by The Pleasure Seekers [featuring a post pubescent Susie Quatro]. I offer no further commentary.

Required Rubber Reading

I'm a lover of books. On anything and everything. [Most of my disposable income is divided between books, records, and shoes too painful to wear--heavy emphasis on books and records.]If it's a worthy book on fetish (photography, psychology, history, etc.), fashion (history, theory, pretty pictures), pattern making & grading (not that home sewing shit) I automatically feel compelled to own said book. Before I die, I am determined to own every book published on fetish stuff, vintage rubber mags, pattern making, & pattern grading. Er...Almost. What can I say, it's a hoarding thang. Did I mention I'm neurotic? Anyway...

If you're interested in fetish clothing history and whatnot, you will find these books enjoyable. I've excluded photography and illustration books to concentrate on books with a higher word to picture ratio. 'Cuz we smart, yo. Warning: Some listed are out of print, insanely hard to find, and really expensive if you do come across them. Others can probably be found on ebay for $5.

The following is a short list of books that are relatively easy to purchase online and inexpensive. The continuation of this post will be about (non-fiction) paperbacks from the 60's and 70's.

Rubber: Fun, Fetish, Fashion by Janet Bloor & John D. Sinclair This is primarily a "fun" book. It won't make you smarter, but it's choc full of colored pics and whimsically covers EVERYTHING about rubber from tires to knicknacks to sex toys. The orange textured rubber cover makes this book the best thing you can put on your cofee table besides cheap booze and cheesecake.

The Complete Reprint of John Willie's Bizarre published by Taschen Bizarre was an "all purpose" type fetish magazine published in the 40's and 50's. It covered transvetism, high heels, corsets, s&m, some rubber stuff, and bondage. Big emphasis on bondage. No magazine will ever come close to replicating the total amazingness that is Bizarre. Ever. A must read. Out of print but can be found cheap used on Amazon or eBay.

Fetish: Fashion, Sex, & Power by Valerie Steele This is THE best book ever written about the who's, what's, where's, why's of fetish clothing. The section dedicated to latex rubber is rather small, but it's packed full of info. Latex/rubber is also refered to throughout the entire book, so fear not. Features a decent amount of color plates and many b&w photos. Out of print but very easily found cheap on ebay, Amazon, etc.

To be continued...

British GQ Style

"Live Life Lux". In some fucking latex. Damn right. Supposedly, this issue of GQ Style is already on the newsstands. In the UK!

It's too bad I can't find any place online to purchase this magazine. Barnes & Nobles is the best bet for us US folks. Stay tuned. If I can find a copy, every page of interest will be scanned and posted.

No BLB clothing in this issue, but I think I can forgive them just this once.

Stuff Every Latex Consumer Should Know About 4D Transparency Variations & Color Name Misnomers Vol. 2: Hot Pants, Hot Colors

This is a continuation of this post.

So I finally decided to post something edumacational. It's been well over a month or just about a month since. I welcome you to:

Stuff Every Latex Comsumer Should Know About 4D Transparency Variations & Color Name Misnomers Vol. 2: Hot Pants, Hot Colors


The latex sheeting dictators, 4D Rubber, have titled their super bright series of colors Vibrant. Yes, there are other colors besides black and red in latex fetish land! Latex clothing firms and DE's [design entrepenuers] may refer to this set of colors as Vibrant, Neon or Hot. They are very much brighter than the other 4D latex colors as a whole, except for turquoise. In my opinion, Vibrant Turquoise [similar to "smurf" blue or turquoise stones] while noticably brighter than the Supatex set, is still much darker than the rest of the Vibrants.

Colors

All of the Vibrant colors are: bright pink, magenta, green, lime green, turquoise, lemon yellow, yellow, orange, red. So what's the difference between lemon yellow and yellow? And how about lime green? They are pretty similiar, but they can be easily told apart. Unfortunately, I only have a small swatch of the lime green that's not big enough to be photographed properly. You're outta luck on that one, kids. When the time comes for me to buy rolls of those colors or if I can get my hands on some scraps from a fellow D.E., I'll photo them and post.

Bright Pink [aka "Hot Pink"] and Magenta are both very bright pinks, magenta cosiderably more so than bright pink. You can see the difference between them below:


This picture really doesn't capture the eye-blinding-acid pink qualities of Magenta as seen in person. I recently made a matching outfit in Magenta with Black trim. Now, if you've seen the Bright/Hot Pink in person, you full well know it's pretty damn bright. After working with Magenta, Hot Pink looked like a regular light pink in comparison!

Transparency Issues

Unlike the Supatex set which come in 9 gauges, the vibrants only come in three gauges [thicknesses]: .20mm, .33mm, and .45mm. The thicker the gauge, the less transparent the sheeting will be. The thinner the gauge, the less opaque. FYI: the most used gauge is .33mm followed by .45mm. I'll write a seperate post about thicknesses soon.

The Vibrant set of colors tend to run almost as, or just as transparent as the Semi-Transparent set. Talking 'bout .33mm here. .45mm is much more opaque. Magenta and Vibrant Red seem to be the most transparent out of the bunch. Just to confuse you more, I read in a forum somewhere [I don't remember where] someone refering to Magenta as "the Transparent Hot Pink". Be prepared to show some nipples and thong if you get an outfit in Vibrant Green, as well. Vibrant Turquoise is just as opaque as the regular colors.

Here's a crappy pic of the post-it note placed under the Magenta sheeting. If I knew how to focus a camera, you would be able to see the post-it note and the writing quite clearly.

Vibrant Red ahould also be renamed "Transparent". In this pic, a Vibrant Red w/ silver trim headband is placed over a black and white version. They are both placed on top of Magenta sheeting to show color contrast.

Take Five! Smoke Break

This one's for all you cigarette smoking Michelin Man lovin' rubberists out there:



I came across this gem in a book called Counter Culture: The Allure of Mini-Mannequins about tiny-sized mannequins and interesting counter top displays from the days of....way before I was born.

France's Michelin Man was one of the most ubiquitous af all branding figures, owing to its countless iterations. --pg. 181

Unfortunately, that's all the book says about this ashtray. I can't tell if the MM sitting on the ashtray is made from actual rubber, but I sure as hell doubt the base is! Hello tire fire! I can't account for anyone else's opinions, but burning rubber smells like skank.

On the Scene: Montreal Fetish Weekend

A recurring character on the show and now roving reporter, Andre aka Dictator for Life [yo!] aka Owner_Operator, generously let me gank his recap of the Montreal Fetish Weekend. Here it is edited for length:

So after a long and arduous week, the pet and I got away to the great white north for a much needed escape from reality. Montreal's Fetish Weekend could not have come at a better time and I was determined to rock out and enjoy myself to the fullest. In a rented Mercury Grand Marquis (a more appropriate model of vehicle I couldn't imagine) Jess, The Baroness and I tore ass out of NYC last Thursday afternoon and headed to Montreal... only to get stuck in traffic for almost two hours just outside of the George Washington Bridge as I missed the exit for The Palisades and had to loop back on the Garden State. So some 7+ hours, 300+ miles and the worst dinner this side of the Mississippi later we hit the Canadian border and customs. Now I had heard all sorts of strange stories from other pervs who had been traveling to fetish events back and forth across the border, many of which had me pretty worried that I'd lose some of my precious gear. Well thankfully the customs guys didn't do any more than ask us where we're going and for how long in his French accent. Maybe it was my lovely passengers or my ridiculously Jewish last name, I don't know but I did snicker a bit when he asked me, "do you have any weapons in the car?"

Well so it seemed we left the whip, the electro toys and the vibrators home for nothing.
So we pulled into Montreal around 10:30 PM and the first person we see as turned on Boul. de Maisonneuve and approached the hotel, Auberge Le Pomerol, was Mistress Xena crossing the street to go grab a bite. So cool to see a friendly face right off of the bat! So up to the room to freshen up and over to the The Baroness room, where Poindexter had prepared quite a lovely spread for her arrival: Champagne, cheese, fruit, chocolates, the works. Now that's service! With belly's full, and weary heads to drifted off to bed with visions of latex and late nights ahead.

Saturday morning I woke up early as usual. In the hotel restaurant downstairs, I ran into a bloke who calls himself Observer that I know from around the kinky interweb. I've chatted with him online for quite a while now and we share an interest all types of geeky things aside from rubber gear and bizarre sexual practices. Nice to put a face to the syntax. The three of us headed over to the big Polymorphe flagship shop at Sexe Cite to go check out some sex toys and latex and hopefully not spend too much money. A really nicely laid out shop, with a good amount of space and tons of latex upstairs, we immediately felt intoxicated by that sexy, rubbery scent. Didn't buy too much there, just a skirt, thong and gloves for the pet and a pair of gloves for myself. While I think Polymorphe's quality is probably unparalleled (which owes a lot to Mario making his own latex from scratch!), I think the designs are a little on the plain side for me and nothing all that spectacularly mindblowing like some of my favorite designers Marquis or HW Designs [and Betty LaBamba! -GM]. I find the mens line particularly lacking, but most latex designers really don't make much in the way of mens gear for that matter.

Off to Club Sin at Cleopatra for the opening night party/meet and greet. The pet looked absolutely stunning in her white Jane Doe bustier and skirt with waist cincher and matching hot.The coup de grace of the outfit however was the amazing latex "feather" boa that Heidi of the newly formed Strange Lifeforms made custom for Jess and shipped directly to our hotel. What a sensational piece and a real attention getter! The door girl was so enamored with it, I didn't think we'd get it back when we let her try it on. Here's the group of us as we headed out to the party. For a better photo of Jess' outfit, peep my photo page.
While the venue was a bit small for the number or people (as Xena said, it definately looked oversold), the music was good, the booze flowed freely and the company was fantastic. We ran into a whole bunch of people we knew from NY and we all sort of huddled together, catching up, making plans for the weekend and just shooting the shit. I did finally get to meet Steffy The Rubberdoll in the flesh (or should I say rubber), and she was quite a site to behold and a real pleasure to be around. Unfortunately the loud music and heavy mask she wears doesn't lend much to making conversation. The music was a nice mix of techno, industrial, new wave, old punk and other stuff and my favorite of the three nights. The party was hosted by Bianca Beauchamp, who looks great in latex, has a beautiful smile and doesn't speak much English. Thankfully Jess and I met a woman kind enough to translate her disseration to us. The speech interested me little, but the translator (her name was Mite, pronounced Mighty) had a fantastic outfit on that involved a white latex leotard, matching stockings and blue plastic, corrogated tubes that extended from different ports around her body like some 50's Sci-Fi alien. Pair it with blue hair and a blue latex backpack (!) and hers was one of the best outfits I saw all weekend. Too bad I didn't take any photos of her .

The close of the party saw the Pomerol crew role back to the hotel for a little drunken after party vacbed fun! YAAAAAAAA!!! Vacbeds fucking rule! How awesome it is to be frozen like Han Solo in carbonite or have your friends and lovers stuck like that while you play all sorts of fun games with them. So hot! Observer and Erik were vacbed virgins and it's always cool to see how people react to crazy shit like that the first time. Apparently the enjoyed themselves quite a bit. I love it too and with Jess messing with me all over, from my head to my toes, I was pretty turned on despite being about drunk and tired enough to pass out.

The weekend was already becoming a blur or good eats, tall drinks and lovely latex. I was really surprised at how French Montreal is. I figured that things would pretty much be in both French and English, but was shocked when all the road signs were in French alone. Many of the people my age and younger don't even speak English. Weird. Not to be some dort of an Anglophile, but you'd think they'd take up the language of The Empire. When not falling on their faces and begging for change in strange tongues, the people in Montreal are pretty friendly for the most part, at least the kinky ones are. I had some interesting conversations in broken English with a few people at the Club Sin party. A very tall girl with closely cropped hair (Jeannie, Janie?) absolutely loved my goggles and begged me (literally) to borrow them. It was pretty hot to have some strange, scantily clad Quebecua begging me to do anything! The conversation somehow veered towards video games as she told me that she was studying to be a 3D animator. Some dude who thankfully spoke English and I talked about metal for a while, commenting that Celtic Frost was coming around to play. He rattled off a litany of death metal, black metal and grindcore bands who's names I had never heard of before. Boy, I'm getting old...

After an afternoon spent wandering around downtown Montreal we were off to the NorthboundLeather shop for a cocktail party, hosted by an internet pal of mine named Isabeau. Her shop was really fantatic, with an nice stock of mostly leather gear, but a lot of latex too. She, Sebastian and the rest of the crew were fantastic hosts and she served up a great drink - the green tea martini, which I had never had before. Latextacy party. This party was my favorite of the three events, as it was located in a very large, old, art deco theatre. The space provided plenty of room to dance, schmooze, play or whatever else one might do at such an event. The music however, left a little to be desired, just the blaring thump of hardcore techno - over and over and over. Combined with the vodka and beer that I was downing and it started to make my belly ache! Jess looked fantastic in her military top from The Baroness and I looked smashing as usual in my custom doctor's outfit. This party featured some really fun shows, including a shibari (Japanese rope bondage) demonstration by Amrita and Master Luk that was executed beautifully. Amrita is wickedly lovely with a suitably evil grin for someone who tortures people for a living. What impressed me most about her was her speed at tying her subject up. Obviously she's a pro and loves what she does. I liked Master Luk's style too. He was rocking a heavy black rubber apron, heavy black gloves and two meathooks (!). A man after my own heart.

The Polymorphe fashion show was fantastic and went off without a hitch, impressive since Eric (the fest's coordinator) later told me that they only had 300 sq ft backstage for about 30 people to get dressed and ready! Highlights included Jean Bardot (aka Rubberella) pony play act, where she looked stunning in an English riding outfit and engaged in bizarities with a girl in a pony mask and another in a sort of Louise XIV dress.

The show was capped by a very cute skit involving rubber cats and mice, including one that was probably the biggest dude I've ever seen in latex! Fucking frightening!

There were a couple of other shows that it seemed I missed, including one involving a catsuited strip tease and Rubberella doing all sorts of nastyness in the VIP area. The VIP section (we had VIP passes) was pretty disappointing. Simply a very hot room that had it's own bar and offerred a few shows, none of which I caught since I couldn't bare the heat. The VIP area should have been up on the balcony, since that was the most comfortable area and it provided the best view of the shows on stage. I did get a chance to talk with Ted more than I ever had before and we joked about the pitfalls of threesomes, told travel stories and just generally bonded around guy stuff.

Eventually the night devolved into Xena beating Jess with my cane as I held her down and delivered a few spanks myself. Pretty hot stuff! Jess wasn't in much of a mood to be beaten, but took it like a champ and her screams echoed through the club and probably all the way back to NYC. Ted, Di, Jess and I shared a tiny (man those Montreal cabs are small!) cab back to our hotels and called it a night

Sunday afternoon found our posse walking around the touristy, yet beautiful old city, amidst the cobblestones and cathedrals. With The Baroness and I craving duck products, we lunched at an outdoor restaurant near the seaport. Just a lovely afternoon in spite of the deary weather. How could I ask for more when I have the girl that I love by my side, good friends, good wine and a plate of foi gras in front of my amongst other delicious treats.

There were a lot of really cool outfits at this party, including a guy wearing what could only be described as a suit of armor with a gasmask helmet. He had all types of tubes running all over him him, making him look like some wicked battledroid or some such sci-fi nightmare. I so wish I had photos of him, but I was too busy drinking and schmoozing with him and his mistress. Another one of my favorite outfits of the night was worn by the lovely Slinka, a black rubber shrug and seamlessly blended into a neck corset that came up over her mouth. Just beautiful, and another one that I wish I caught a photo of. Observer introduced me to Miss Bardot, who was disappointed when I told her that the performance upstairs was closed due to the filming. Friendly and congenile, I'm sure they could have made an exception for her had we inquired! The setting was a bit too small for the big crowd and really didn't provide much room to get down and dirty, so we headed upstairs to a private room and had our own party up there. Xena, Steffy and my pet put on quite a show in there, with the action being broadcast on a giant screen downstairs in the club. Unfortunately, much of the action was lost due to some retard cutting back and forth to images from Hellraiser and other horror stuff, instead of just staying with the action upstairs. I watched with Erik and Obs, beaming in delight as it was my girl up there on the screen, caught in that beautiful latex sheeth. After a little bit, our crew stormed the room to join the fray. Xena came out to greet us, but unwittingly locked us all out with Jess in the vacbed and Steffy mummified in plastic wrap! Fortunately Steffy saved the day, managing to hop (pun intended) over to the door and unlock it with her bound hands. We had a beautiful time in there, me playing with Jess as the party thumped around us. Tim from SkinTwo was in there and The Baroness introduced us as he shot photos of Jess in her blue latex trap. Nice guy and a real latex lover, it'd be really neat to find some photos of us in the next issue.

Dante and Erik joined in on the rubbery madness and we just laughed the night away up there. After the party, Jess, Xena, Erik and I went out for some late night eats dressed in our full rubber gear. Wisely, we picked a coffee shop in the Gay Village area, where we wouldn't get hassled for looking like aliens. It was really fun to eat poutin and recap the night dressed as we were with hoods and all. Even with the quite liberal crowd we garnered more than a few stares. I heard one person say to another, "Welcome to Montreal!" If Montreal is this accepting of bizarre behavior, I don't want to leave! Erik cracks me up with his thick Teutnonic intonation, singing Prince and making it sound like Laibach! A perfect cap to our weekend, we hit the hay with bellys full and spirits light with all the many wonderful memories of our adventure.
So the weekend was a scintillating success and we'll be sure to return to Montreal for the next years party. It was so great to hang hard with the people we knew from NY, as well as new friends from around the globe, many of which I have known from Rubberpal and other kinky websites. The parties were fun, but it's really the company we kept that make the memories special. It's hard to get back to "normal life" after such great times and we've sufferred a bit of a hangover moral wise, but alas life goes on. Things must get back to normal, work to be done, bills to be paid, etc. Luckily, I have the love of my life to share my passions for weirdness and kink with and that's the most wonderful thing of all.

As Porky Pig once said, "that's all folks!"

Don't Get Your Shoe Caught in an Escalator

In reference to my first post, specifically those Croc cloggy shoes.

So I'm laying in bed in the fucking afternoon 'cuz I'm too fucking sick to do anything, just watching the news on channel 4 [nbc]. Apparently, there's some type of safety hazard with those fugly Croc shoe clog type things involving escalators. They tend to get sucked in to the escalator jaws or something. Croc HQ corporate said they would put elevator warnings on the hangtags.
I tried to pay more attention, but I was laughing too hard. Newscasts are kind of ridiculous. I just kept staring at the footage of random people stomping their feet in crocs. What's up with all the random footage of random crap in newscasts? I wanna be a cameraman and shoot buildings and people's fat asses as they walk. AND people stomping their feet in ugly rubber shoes.

I tried looking for the news story on the website, but gave up. Because it sucks. To navigate. So read this forum of people arguing if it's the parent's fault the gawddamn kid gets their gawddamn shoes stuck in an escalator. Or here for a newspaper article.

Indeed, life is tough for us connoisseurs of rubber shoes, no?

Elevators can be dangerous places. For instance, I few years ago I was at the Macy's at Herald Square in NYC. For those of you who don't know, they still have the original wooden [yes! wooden] escalators. If you think the regular metal ones are scary [I certainly do], these wooden ones look and sound like they were made by satan himself. So, some old broad decided to lay her fur coat on the handrests things. Good job, einstein. I'm not against fur [send all hatemail to hatemail@kissmyass.com btw I'm fucking vegetarian and have never bought a fur coat in my life, so go continue to eat a burger while you wear leather dr. martins and harass everyone who doesn't share your sacred opinions], but I was against this fugly p.o.s. nightmare of a coat. It was one of them massive eyesores Staten Island housewives cum their plus size granny panties about. So...as expected the bitch gets the coat caught in the escalator. Gets "caught" is not the right word for it: gets eaten is more like it. I couldn't stop laughing. Even the security guard had a look on his face like he wanted to bust out laughing. The old broad was freakin' out like crazy.

Moral of the story is: Watch where you put your rubber-shod feet. Or you'll be ordering only one stocking instead of the full pair.

Atomage Cape Pic

Since I'm still sick and feeling mentally incoherent [see my last rambling post], here's a pic from Atomage Bondage Supplement No.5. There's no publishing date anywhere on the mag, but it's probably from the mid 70's.

Stuff To Do in NYC

So what's there to do in NYC, latex fetish-wise? Lotsa people complain there's no "scene". Well, if you sit on your ass at home all the time, sure there's no place to go. Lotsa people also complain about not getting laid. Well, that's not my fucking problem. Lose some weight and try not to be so creepy around the ladies. Once again, not my fucking problem. Wanna complain and get nothing done? Become a politician. Hate all the parties going on now? Start your own shit.

I've provided the necessary links. I really don't feel like copying and pasting addresses, etc. Please click on them for more info if a party strikes you fancy. Please leave a comment if there's any broken links or you have a link to a party listed that's not on myspace's servers. Or if you got legitament beef or massive kudos. No flaming will be tolerated, tho'.

If you run a party or know of a really cool fetish [not goth] party not listed herein, please let me know. No spamming.

Weekly & Monthly Parties:

Bitch @ Snitch Every wednesday starting Sept. 6th at Snitch. I just saw a flier for this party. Seems gothy, but the goths have all but taken over fetish parties. Cuz shiny black stuff is awesome. I haven't been to this party, so I don't know it's deal. If you do, please leave a comment.

Black Cat Tuesdays @ Otto's Shrunken Head Otto's is a great place if you're into rock n rool, rockabilly, psychobilly, punk, etc. Ergo, I love the place. I went to the tuesday party once. It's more S&M (stand and model) than S&M. Read: Not a play party by any stretch of the imagination. If you just want to go hang out in your latex or crappy pvc and listen to good music, this is the place to be. You won't get kicked out if you didn't make any effort to get dressed.

The Baroness' Fetish Retinue @ The Alphabet Lounge Ah, the infamous Baroness. People either lover her or hate her. I've never dealt with her, so I have no opinion on the matter. Don't ask me to talk shit. 'Cuz I got none. I've never actually gone to this party because it's always on a sunday. For the past--I dunno--five years or something, I've been telling myself I should go at least once. But I always have something I have to do the next day that involves staying awake. Oh yeah, you really should make an effort to adhere to the dress code.

Byte @ the Delancy Lounge Another party on a sunday night. I actually went to this one though. All the nyc fetish glitterati go there. The musak is too loud and electronic for my tastes, but it's an awesome party. There is a play area if that matters to you. Make an effort to fit in with the young and hip fetish-dressed crowd.

Other parties:

SMack! Held on average twice a year. It's a big one. Always a fun time. Lots of hot rubber action. I suggest you buy tix in advance rather than wait nine billion hours at the door. Plus, it's $10 cheaper in advance.

The Black & Blue Ball NYC's answer to the Rubber Ball in London. Held once a year.

The Fetish Marathon Consists of SMack!, B&BB, Baroness party, and whatever TES has to offer all within the span of less than a week. Usually held in May or June.

Rubber Ball NY/Miss World Rubber Nov. 11 2006. Ever wanted to participate or see a rubber beauty pageant? Yes? Get you ass over there, then. There's a large prize pool, too! I'm a judge there, and it's on my birthday. Fun times.

Mr. East Coast Rubber This one's for the menfolk. October 13-15. It's a few parties and a "fetish fair" where you can get some hardcore shopping done after some hardcore partying.

Motherfucker Huge now legendary alterna party held the night before every major holiday. Fetish and hipster friendly. Expect to wait in line 'cuz your ass is not on the guest list. There's a reduced admission after 1am if you're cheap or don't wanna see the chosen cult/really hip popular band play.

For more events catering towards bdsm, burlesque, and arty type stuff check out the Eros Zine website.

Rubber History Mag Madness Vol.1: House of Rubber 3

If you know me, you probably have realized I'm a history buff and a big collector of vintage and contemporary latex rubber fetish mags, 'zines, and books. I've gone as far as to make it a personal cause of mine to collect as much as possible in order to preserve the unique and intensely fascinating rubberist legacy. One of my goals is to publish a book on the history of rubber and latex clothing from Colombus to now.

If you have vintage fetish mags that you don't know what to do with or want to get rid of, please email me: bettylabamba[at]bettylabamba[dot]com. I will take care of them like their my kids. Even if you have stuff you don't want to part with, scans and photocopies would be divine. We can talk about remuneration if donating ain't your thang.

I picked up this vintage beauty of a top shelf digest at an ebay auction. Good 'ole ebay. I find these "old skool" mags [especially Atomage--I'm crazy over the Atomage!] so much more fascinating than the glossy trendy Skin2's of the fetish world.

The name of this forgotten rubberist 'zine is "House of Rubber 3". The inside says 1975 (c) Exim Trading, Copenhagen Denmark. There's a sticker with the name Christine LeDuc and an Amsterdam address and telephone number on the back cover. I'm guessing that's a store, mail order company, or some kind of distributor. The front cover is what caught my attention. The cut and paste style graphics would make any punk fanzine editor proud! It has it's moments of genious, but overall the actual content is kinda boring. You know, just the usuall low budget 70's stuff. Some light bondage and dildo action here and there. However, check out the amazing hood with the Cyrano snoz and zip open mouth. By the amount of "bubbly-ness" around the zip and the type of zip used, methinks it's home brewed.

I invite you to view the entire old school rubberist zine's 32 pages in a wonderful flickr slide show. ATTN: I changed the image hosting. You can find the whole mag reproduced in this post. It may seem like it, but none of the images are cropped. I like to think the low production adds to the charm. The only photoshopping I did was to resize the scans and sharpen 'em a little bit so it's easier to see the details.

If you know anything about this little piece of rubberist history or want to chat about the dark ages of latex/rubber clothing [read: anything earlier than 1989], please feel free to email me: bettylabamba[at]bettylabamba[dot]com. Also, if you want larger versions of the pics, let me know.

Cheers!

Crowd pics from June SMack!

My rubberpal Andre was kind enough to send me crowd pics from my Betty LaBamba fashion show at the last SMack! party. I took the liberty of resizing the pics and cropping out people's hats and faces as much as possible. The store website is under construction, but you can swag at my eBay store. [I'm not doing orders this week 'cuz my hands are experiencing a carpal t. flare up. My right hand hurts like fuck. It's a good thing I'm right-handed. Not.]

Models are Jynx [in black & white], Miss Katonic [in green & black], and Anduin [in green and gold].

It was my second Betty LaBamba fashion show and lots of the usual fashion mayhem--but with latex! Here's some shots of a couple of outfits from the crowd perspective. I was "backstage" popping my head out from behind the curtain to check out the action. The party was loads of fun--SMack! parties always are--but I didn't do too much socializing and whatnot. My hands were tied dressing the gals, doing the usual behind the scenes stuff, and clean-up. That and I'm pretty socially inept as it is.

I'm proud that I was invited to participate in a SMack! party, the 10th anniversary party at that, too! Of course, there were other designers and design companies represented, but this post is all about moi today.

If you were at the June 3rd SMack! party and have pics of the Betty L. show, please email me: bettylabamba[at]bettylabamba[dot]com. I'm not going to use them for commercial purposes. It's just for my own records and enjoyment.

Cheers!

Museum Alert! Love and War: The Weaponized Woman

I thought you guys might be interested in this. Not latex or rubber, but military fetishism often crosses over to our dear rubberist interests. You don't have to be a designer to get inspired! The Museum at FIT (my alma mater) is holding a [free!] exhibition called Love and War: The Weaponized Woman through September 9 - December 16, 2006.

Dr. Valerie Steele is the chief curator. She does a swell job of it, too. If the name sounds familar, it's because she authored Fetish: Fashion, Sex, and Power, The Corset: A Cultural History, Shoes: A Lexicon of Style, and China Chic: East Meets West and many other very good books on fashion theory and history. If you want to read up on fashion history, I highly recommend her books. Her writing style is not dry (like many other intellectuals), and her books are well planned and researched.

This Issey Miyake molded plastic red bustier from 1983 will be there. Mmm, shiny and plastic...*droool*...

FIT (the Fashion Institue of Technology) is located in NYC, NY on 27th street between 7th & 8th ave. The musuem is in the "E" building on 7th ave. Hours: Tues - Fri Noon - 8pm , Saturday 10am - 5pm. Closed Sundays, Mondays, and legal holidays. It's a few blocks walk going downtown from the 7th Ave. NY Penn Station entrance. By subway, FIT is right off the 1 train (red color line) 28th street stop. You can also take the R (yellow color lines) train to the 38th st. stop and walk 2 avenue blocks to 7th ave. If taking the E (blue color line) train, the closest stops are 32rd street or Penn Station/34th.

For a good cup of coffee, there's a Dunkin' Donuts across the street, and a cafe called "Brown Cup" on 8th and 27th. The "gay" Chelsea shops are right on 8th ave. going downtown if you're in the mood to shop. The famous and delicious Murray's Bagel is on 8th ave and 22nd or 21st I believe.

Also at the FIT Museum: check out the exhibit THE TAILOR'S ART while you're there.

Louis Vuitton Latex Tunic Top + Cool Fashion Trends

It's back to school time again, folks. Whoopeee. Actually, it's "let's buy a shitload of new clothes and worry about the credit card bills later time".

So...

I was going thru my fashion mags gathering tear sheets and overall inspiration--'cuz I'm a deh-zai-naaah. Yeah, if I keep telling myself that, it may come true. Shutup. Ok. Anyway, look at what I found:

For only $1704 you can buy this top w/ belt by Louis Vuitton. Found this pic in this months Harper's Bazaar in a spread called "Factory Girl" photographed by Peter Lindbergh.

Yes, it's unpolished latex, probably 0.45mm gauge, with some fugly belt and some type of lacing crap I could barely make out at the sides. I thought it was leather at first, but the glued seams gave it away. I have no idea who the peeps at Louis Vuitton contracted to make this. If you know %100 who made this, please leave a comment.

Let's go on to the trends. Trends are a good thing, especially if they are fetish/alterna orientated. Know what that means? You can get awesome stuff cheap at the trendy stores. Good places to check out are H&M, Zara, Wet Seal, Charlotte Russe, etc. Don't underestimate the power of mall shopping.

I tried reading the articles, but fashion journalism pisses me off to much. WWD.com is more my cup of tea. At $99 a year, I better fucking read it everyday...

Overall trends that may be of interest to you:

• Trenchcoats: They were big last year and they will continue to rule this year as well. I noticed lots of sweet satin and leather numbers. And you know what the best part will be: walking around mid-day in a rubba mac won't seem so strange.
• Fetish Shoes: Bold, dramatic curved lines is the rule of thumb. Classic Betty Page fetish all the way here. Be prepared to see round toe platform stiletto pumps with insanely shaped heels. I was going to scan some examples, but there were too many gorgeous shoes to choose from.
• Buckles and Metallic Crap: The metallic accessory craze is showing no sign of stopping, which is pretty awesome. Now's the time to find some belts, purses, and hats to jazz up the de facto latex basics like catsuits and tank dresses. Fendi is oversized buckle happy this season. I mean huge shiny buckles.

That's it for now. My hands hurt too much to write anymore, so until next time my dears...

Lover of Latex: L.A. Tex

"The original idea was to make the kind of fetish website that I was looking for when surfing the net, but that I could never find. A website that has tasteful erotic but not pornographic fetish images, a website that has original images and not just a bunch of pictures scanned out of magazines or taken from other websites or newsgroups. In a way what I was looking for was a website that you could show to friends that are not into fetishism and they would still think it's nice and maybe even understand why you (or I) liked latex-clothing."
--Alexander Horn

A pal from Rubberpal and Myspace [Shout out! You know who you are. If you want me to link to your myspace profile instead, lemme know.] recently re-brought to my attention the wonderful rubber lovin' photographer Alexander Horn aka L.A. Tex.

It's free. It's extensive. Be prepared to spend hours looking at his work! Note: if you missed a major fetish party or want to relive it, chances are Mr. Horn covered it.

There's also a latex news section. Between that and 3xl, you got your international latex goings on covered.

Show some love by writing a funny caption. And respecting his copyright. Don't cop shit that ain't yours. It ruins the party for us goodie-two-shoes!

Book Alert! 48: The Unrated Version

48: THE UNRATED VERSION

The first in a series of 3 books of photos by L.C. Misfit Studios, Brian Mackey, and Stewart Levine. 150 images of diverse fetish erotica and fetish glam. It gets pretty hardcore here, kids. Many pretty ladies were shot in--you guessed it--48 hours. Buy a copy to re-live the fetish mayhem. Here's a teaser, you pervs:

PHOTO: Stewert Levine 2006(c)

To buy, you can email L.C. himself: leonardw12[at]aol[dot]com. $30 +s&h.

Or if you're in NYC, get your ass to Purple Passion (212-807-0486).

Oh, Shiny...

It's best to lure the opponent in with some sort of shiny object.
--from a hilarious semi-famous anti-Spice Girl page.

[This post is NOT about lubing up the inside of your latex outfits to get into them. It's about shining the outside. Personally, I just use talc when needed. Go to the IAR forums for more info. If you don't already know, everything about everything latex/rubber/PVC/plastic is right there at your fingertips. It's free. However, if you find the site useful or have been a member for quite some time, please consider leaving a donation. Or one day it will not be there when you try to log on...]

Question: What should I use to make my latex shiny?

There are a few different ways to go about this, but before we go on, I'm afraid I'm going to have to upset you: You're never ever going to get your latex to stay perfectly, spotlessly, consistently shiny all the time. Pretty pictures are just that, pretty pictures. Shine is often sticky, moves around, rubs off on everything else. If you are a shine perfectionist, you have to keep doing touch-ups throughout the night. You shine my back, I shine your back, geddit?

I highly suggest not using products to condition/shine your beloved latex that are not manufactured and marketed towards our special purpose. Gee, you spent $400 on that catsuit, so you're gonna try to pinch a few pennies buy getting that Armor All crap? Whatever. Gonna drive your catsuit to work, too? Hmmm. That would be pretty awesome...

Before you begin to shine up your gear, make sure the outside is clear of all talc and dust. Clean surfaces are truely beautiful things. A quick once over with clean wet sponge does the trick. It's easier if you are already dressed and done with all the talc business.

There are several types of shine products on the market: aerosol spray, sex lube, "blue milk"/liquid, spray bottle (non-aerosol). They contain silicon or dimethicone (a type of silicon).

Aerosol Sprays:
Mainly used for photoshoots and the like. It really makes the latex look like polished glass. It's also very sticky and needs constant application. [Read: pain in the ass.] Clean up is more of a bitch, too. Some latex designers like Blackstyle and Demask have their own brand. (I spent $15 on the Blackstyle stuff. I also spent $20 in Customs fee, but that's another story.) Google "food grade silicon spray" and you can get the same crap for seven bucks, if not less. I only use this for photoshoots and fashion shows--basically scenarios where a fast and even application of extreme shininess is required. Do I have to remind you that aerosol sprays are a health and safety hazard? I didn't think so. Don't be a dumbass and store it next to that raging campfire.

Sex Lubes:
Lubrication such as Pjur Cult, Pjur Eros, ID Millenium are popular conditions (and dressing for *ahem* pleasure aids), Pjur Eros especially. The Pjur Cult has a, well, cult following and is supposedly hard to find in the US. I use the Eros stuff on occasion, but it's really really sticky and rubs off on EVERYTHING. Warning: this stuff is tres expensive! and very slippery! Be careful if you spill some on the floor or much busting of ass will occur.

"Blue Milk"/ Liquids:
The [in]famous blue milk. Guess what color it is? Yup. Demask calls it "Perv-o-shine" and Cocoon calls it Cocoon latex, PVC, and leather polish. I believe the manufacturer is Micro Chemical Products [sorry guys, no URL] from the UK. If it's your thing, you could probably buy tubs of the shit from them. The stuff smells really good, but you need quite a bit of coats to get a decent [read: totally bitchin' glassy] sheen. Warning: It may or may not yellow pearlsheen/metallic latex over extended use. I haven't done any long term official scientific tests with that or Armor All, but I really should...

Spray Bottle (pump, not aerosol):
Not an aerosol. It has the consistency of the "blue milk" stuff but usually white and often comes in a pump bottle. Demask's Rubber Rejuvenator, Deviant's Slick, and Black Beauty are just a few that come to mind. I never tried Black Beauty, so I have no kind of informed opinion on the matter. Personally, I use Rubber Rejuvenator and Deviant Slick the most. (I'm leaning towards the Deviant these days: you get twice as much as the R.R. for less than half the price. Plus, the feel is less "sticky" but just as shiny.) I'll spray it on the garment, then use a clean wet sponge for even application. For small items, I just spray it on the wet sponge instead and go. The Rubber Rejuvenator is especially great for old latex. It masks some light oxidization and gives an awesome shine. A little goes a long way with this stuff. Both brands last pretty fucking long compared to the other types of polishes. The night before a photoshoot or fashion show, I thoroughly powder the insides of the garments then use this type of shine to polish the outsides. It saves everyone a lot of time. For the inevitable "how'd those hand prints get on my ass?" touch-ups, I use the same stuff or the aerosol spray depending on time constraits.

303 Aerospace Protectant:
According to their website, 303 "is the most effective UV screening and anti-ozonant protection for latex rubber". I don't know if I would use it on an everyday basis but it works freekin' miracles on dying oxidizing latex. This place sells a 16 oz. spray bottle for $15. Make sure you read the MSDS [link is to an adobe acrobat file] before using it.

What to avoid like the plague:
Stuff with oils, baby oil, any type of petroleum products, petroleum jelly (brand name vaseline), fire, metals, sharp objects. Latex is "luxury item" expensive, so exercise care and common sense. Please.

Clean Up: The Aftermath
Please keep in mind that it's very difficult to completely remove the layer of shine with just one washing even with the recommended mild dish soap. As long as your gear is clean and well talced for storage, there shouldn't be a problem. If you just leave all that shine stuff on for a long time, there's a good chance the latex may horribly stick to itself. You may risk tearing it when the time comes to "unstick" it, especially if the items in question are rather old. Deviant claims its Slick product is safe for storage, but I dust the outside with talc anyway.

Happy Shining!

I am in no way affiliated with the companies, products, brand names, etc. listed herein. This blog post is, by no means the last word on latex conditioning. It's up to you to care for your own clothing. I am also not responsible if something goes horribly wrong.

NYC Fetish Model Darenzia Gets Marquis Cover!

Big congrats to NYC latex queen Darenzia for getting a Marquis cover! Get your credit cards ready to order come October.





It's about fucking time is what I say. She's no longer the Susan Lucci of fetish modeling. This gal has at least one full spread in a fetish mag every month and has done billions of catalog shoots, not to mention the international name recognition-- but no proper cover. Well, at least one where we can actually see her face.

Now, how 'bout a Vogue cover?

Miss World Rubber 2006

Guess who's a judge for Rubber Ball New York Miss Rubber World 2006?

Yup, it's me. I'm judging. It's going to be freekin' awesome.

So all you ladies in the nyc area, join the fuck up! The prize pool is amazing. I also donated a $150.00 gift certificate.

It's also on my freekin' birthday!

Latex Sailor Xtina in Rolling Stone

That's right, folks. Christina Aguilera is on the cover of Rolling Stone again for August '06. So what big deal who cares, you say? Well, she's wearing a sexy little 2-piece sailor number in latex. Beats that Kanye West cover anyday. "The Dirty Girl Fights Back"? Don't rip your latex, hun. I don't do repair work any more. But I'll certainly fight you for that hat...

Christina's outfit is by the ominpresent House of Harlot. Looks like they have the monopoly on latex in print and film. See my last post for an example.

Latex Pics Fix in Fashion Mags

Fetish magazines aren't the only place to get your fix for pretty girls in latex. Let's face it, they're often expensive, and the publication times are often too far apart (for my taste).

Major fashion mags are a great place to find latex-clad beauties--and about 1/5 of the price! Get to your nearest newstand and start browsing.

The September 2006 issue of W magazine has a really cute spread with pink and white latex stockings, and pink garter belt from House of Harlot throughout. I could always scan them and post, but I'm not in the mood to be potentially sued for copyright reasons. Dig? It seems every other month, there is some spread with a gal in a latex catsuit or panties. Extra bonus: read the articles on plastic surgery for a good laugh (or cry). Sometimes I think those uptown rich folks have a bigger medical fetish than all fetish folks combined.

Zink magazine is worth the $28.00 for a full years subscription. It's far more dark and edgy than your average Vogue or Elle. The editorials and spreads often rival (and exceed) the best so-called fetish photography. Latex isn't in every issue but the staff seems to love expensive heart rate inducing lingerie and way out fantasy makeup. There's also a great section called "Ignition" highlighting very hip technological doo-dahs and gizmos and sleek "fetish friendly" homegoods. (Pick up the new issue to find out where you can buy pirate band-aids.)

And if you don't already know....The free online magazine Senze is amazing, and did I mention, free! They're based in Sweden, so you know it has to be good. It's fetish. It's fashion. It's free.

Disclaimer: I am, in absolutely NO way, affiliated with any company, product, or publication listed in this post. I am, however, totally affiliated with my own opinions. I don't get free swag.

Stuff Every Latex Comsumer Should Know About 4D Transparency Variations & Color Name Misnomers Vol. 1: The Introduction

Stuff Every Latex Consumer Should Know About 4D Transparency Variations & Color Name Misnomers Vol. 1: The Introduction

a.k.a. my blog titles now follow the rules of emo song titles

4D Rubber has the monopoly on latex sheeting for fashion apparel-- with only 43 colors. Boo! Hiss! Come on guys, start manufacturing some more colors. How about a regular cool grey to start? And a Pearlsheen dark navy blue? Did I mention they have a monopoly on natural rubber latex sheeting? Everyone uses it, from Joe Billy Boo making garments on the kitchen table as a hobby to Marquis to Vex to...Everyone else.

To start all of us off on the same page, the following's a rough description of the fashion sheeting lines they produce. If you already know this stuff, good for you. You get a cookie. Keep in mind other people (new or old to the joys of latex) might not.

Supatex: opaque "standard" colors such as white, red, black, purple, etc. Some companies may refer to it as Supatex or "standard" if at all. Official Supa-duper-tex colors include and are limited to: baby pink, black, dark brown, forest green, jade green, light blue, light brown, natural (same as semi-trans natural), olive [green], orange, pink, plum [red], purple, red, royal blue, scarlet [red], violet [purple], white, yellow.

Vibrant: bright, day glo, neon type colors. Some companies like me, Blackstyle, Marquis, etc. call them "neon" or "hot". Official club-kid colors include and are limited to: bright pink, green, lemon yellow, lime green, magenta, orange, red, turquoise, yellow.

Semi-Transparent: not completely transparent but still very revealing. Interestingly, the Semi-Trans colors are the same wholesale price as the standard Supatex set. Oops, did I just say that? Official nip-slip colors include and are limited to: blue, green, grey (there will be a whole entire seperate post devoted to this color), mauve, natural, pink, red, yellow.

Pearlsheen: has a shimery "pearlized" effect, similar to pearlized car paint or eyeshadow. Much more money wholesale than the Supatex, but worth every penny. Also known as "metallic". Official glittery goodness colors include and are limited to: blue, bronze, emerald green, gold, pewter, purple, red, silver.

F.Y.I.: 4D also manufactures dental dam. I could say something really witty and really dirty, but I'm not that smart. Honestly.

This is just an introduction to lay the foundation for future posts on transparancy issues...and blah, blah, blah. Yes, there will be a test. And yes, you should buy something from me.

Up next: hot pink vs magenta

Trend Alert: Rubber Shoes!

I'm digging this rubber and plastic shoe trend in mainstream fashion. Rubber shoes, goddamnit, SHOES! Cheap too! RIP (rubber in public) all the way--if you can stand the funky feet. I doubt I'll be able to withstand the athlete's foot, but I will definately snap up a couple of pairs, just for hoarding purposes.


First on the wishlist:

Marc Jacobs knows what's up. Remember those latex halter tops he did for Perry Ellis back in the 90's during the grunge phase? (I think he got fired for that. Something about being "grunge". ) Drool over these rubber gladiator sandals and flats with cut outs by him.

Check these out, too:

Kate Spade has some really cute hot pink flats with green trim. So preppy, yet so pervy.


Aaah, childhood nostalgia moment (80's childhood mind you):

As a kid, you wear clear pink shoes with glitter flecks in the material in a daily basis without being labeled crazy. I've always loved wearing those rubbery plastic sandals called "jellies". They did get really funky really fast. I mean really funky. Dirt, dead skin, and glittery clear plastic don't mix too well.

The jelly sandals are "super-awesome" according to Urban Outfitters. They're selling some hip retro (well, to me) plastic sandals for $16 in very nice fetish-wardrobe-friendly colors. Too bad they don't have a 5" heel.


Let's end with some ugly shoes:

These Croc clog things are pretty popular. Royally fugly for my tastes, but they're comfy looking. This company has some real potential to be the "fuzzy slipper" of the rubber fetish world. I'm sure they'll make billions. Their flipflops are very sleek and sporty, though. I would bring these ballet flats to a party and slip my aching-platform-stiletto-butchered feet into on the sly.