um, Happy New Year?

Yeah, I'm still alive. Still operational. Somewhat.

I brought a few gifts for my binary entourage. As I was going through the random piles of six years of magazine clippings, I found quite a bit of decent imagery to scan and share. Not only that, I have a proverbial crapload of clippings and whatnots my international rubber friends were so kind to send me. I also bought a new and better scanner that is much faster than my old one!

Please click on the images to view the full-sized version. You will be re-directed to my flickr holding tank where you can also browse my photostream. Click on the button above the picture called "all sizes" then choose the size you want to view.

First up is an advert for Nars make up photographed by Guy Bourdin which features a touch of rubber mac and red lips drenched in rain. If you enjoy Helmut Newton, you will definately appreciate M. Bourdin.



Next is a random tearsheet from Zink magazine. By random I mean random: I have no idea what year or month it's from. By the way, what happend to Zink? I can't find a newsstand in the NYC area that carries it. Maybe I should "fuckingoogleit."



Last for today's episode, we have a dom flyer sent to me by a friend. Thanks, Gary!

These Boots Are Made For Sploshing

Hope everyone had a wonderful and stress-free holiday season!

Found! in the latest issue of New York magazine (January 5-12, 2009): a dynamic-liquid photo of the undersides of rubber wellies. Seems to me like editorial commercial vanilla photography is kicking editorial commercial fetish photography's ass.

Photo by Levi Brown. Wellies by Marc by Marc Jacobs. And before you shoot your rubbery mouths off on how expensive designer goods are, these foot condoms are only $28. Three cheers for Marc J.!

Click right heeeere to view a large size of the scan.

Shout out and thanks to Yellowbird for the book, which it probably durable enough for me to read in a rain storm.

Harajuku Lovers Perfume Ad

Gwen Stefani's ersatz-Japanese fashion label Harajuku Lovers came out with this ad for her new perfume whatever. Besides the sugary cuteness factor, I like it because it features latex accessories. For those of you lacking rubber-dar (or latex-dar, not to be confused with gay-dar), the flowers and mittens are made out of latex rubber.

The full-sized ad is in this months Paper magazine. I had to scrounge around the internet to find this image--didn't much feel like buying an ad.

Dead Photog - 1, Spin Kloo - 0

Joe

1978

by Robert Mapplethorpe

While browsing the photos at http://www.masters-of-photography.com/, I came across this image by Robert Mapplethorpe. Before, I mainly knew about him because of his connection with Patti Smith. That just shows how unbelievably unhip I am to the art world, past and present.

Mapplethorpe did other portraits of s&m folk. View another example here, and a quick google image search brings up more. This sure beats the dead gloss known as fetish photography nowadaze.

Shiny Does A Body Good: Drink Rubber

FOUND! in the August 2008 issue of W magazine: a powerful b+w photospread featuring Christy Turlington (fashion goddess 4-eva!) in latex, leather, pvc and the usual high fashion shtick. This is an excellent editorial--one of the best I've seen in a long time--and definately worth the cover price alone, regardless of the fetish-related content. Cheers to photographer Micheal Thompson and everyone involved. A word of warning though: since my scanner can handle only letter sized and smaller pages, the photos are unintentionally cropped. Also, I only scanned the photos having something of immediate interest to my readers, about half of the spread.

Atomage-y boots by Etro.

Black PVC bandeau top by OMO Norma Kamali.

Yawn. Black latex stockings. The good 'ole "edgy" fashion editorial standby is officially boring.

PVC shorts from Purple Passion.

Custom headbands throughout spread by Eugene Souleiman. Cuffs by YSL.

RIP YSL

Yves Saint Laurent, one of the world's greatest treasures and the only truly unique being in fashion, died June 1st at the age of 71. I thought he would have lived forever. We can go onward without him, but we will always still imitate him.

In his own word's:

Recent political events, the reaction of young people to fashion and the way of life today make the haute couture a relic of the past. I do not want to find myself in the past--or in a stronghold cut off from everything. --YSL in 1968

I did not think that in a profession as free as fashion that one could meet so many people so narrow-minded and reactionary, petty people paralyzed by taboos. But I am also very stimulated by this scandal because I know that which shocks is news. --1971 (In reaction to universally scathing reviews of his spring couture collection.)

I have said before that the most beautiful makeup of a women is passion. But cosmetics are easier to buy. --1978

I'm bored--and angry--with people who just design clothes for the runway. It's a massive deception, and one a lot of people have fallen for. --1979

Classics continue all the time because they have style not "fashion." --1981

People think decadence is debauched. Decadence is simply something very beautiful that is dying. It's a beautiful flower that is dying, and sometimes you have to wait a very long time for another flower to come along. --1986

In many ways, I feel that I have created the wardrobe of the contemporary woman and that I have participated in the transformation of my era. I have done so through clothes, which are certainly less important than music, architecture, painting or many other art forms, but it is nonetheless what I have done. --2002

The above quotes were taken from the Tuesday, June 3rd edition of WWD.

Get Into Focus On It

Look! An ad poster with latex for Focus on Imaging, an annual European trade show for cameras and shit. (The party starts in '09.) Credit for the picture goes to a pretty cool dude named Justin Focus. The title is "The Photo Evangelist." Go here to see a snappy making-of video.

Do not ask me the clothing brands. Two reasons: 1) I don't give a flying shit; and 2) they're not any of mine.

Let's Go For a Swim! (Rubber Duck Not Included)

Fashion sucks, but the juggernaut still rolls on, crushing the skulls of the fabulous, the innocent, the addicts, the perverted.

I don't know what's going on for FALL 2008. Frankly, right now I don't care and I don't have the time. I'm just getting caught up with SPRING 2008. The juggernaut ran over my foot and I had to spend some time in the hospital.

I was more unimpressed than usual with the fashion bullshit for SPRING '08. Most of the collections were hideous boring garbage, like if the Olsen twins were made out of fabric and not coke and bulimia. The only excitement came from the accessories, but I'll deal with that later.

Thank gawd for John Galliano. Yes, he does the same shit every year, but it's AWESOME. I worship at the alter of his derivativeness. His SPRING '08 had a few actual latex rubber pieces, namely flapper-style bathing caps. I love those!

The three pictures were ganked from style.com.

The sheeting color of the swim cap featured above and in the full body shot directly below is a bit hard to tell. I think the cap may be made from one of Radical Rubber's "Electric" colors. It looks too light to be Supatex Jade Green (4D).

The color of the swim cap above is Vibrant Turquoise manufactured by 4D.

Hey Blogger, fix the spell check!

Plastic Rainwear Pour Les Hommes

FOUND! in the February 2008 issue of Interview magazine: two natty-as-all-fuck metro-men in slick tailored plastic rainwear. The 60's never went out of style. It just comes out of hibernation once every so often.

Clothing credits: the man in black melting into a inky puddle is wearing a plastic trench and plastic tuxedo shirt by Burberry Prorsum. The man in grey is wearing an outfit by Z Zegna and shoes by Dior Homme.

The accompagning article is interesting enough and short enough for me to type out and reproduce directly below in italic text:

"Clear and Present" by Meredith L. Fisher

THINK "COO COO CA CHOO, MRS. ROBINSON"

Mr. McGuire was onto something when he advised Benjamin Braddock in "The Graduate" to listen up: "I want to say one word to you, just one word...plastics." Forty-one years and countless raincoats late, the material is making a comeback--this time on the catwalk. Thom Brown gave the trad mac a short-sleeve, plaid makeover, while Z Zegna took the synthetic material a step further and combined a blazer with a cape to create a whole new genre of outerwear. And, of course, Christopher Bailey had something up the sleeve of his plastic Burberry trench in the form of pop-colored button-downs and a high-glass take on the tuxedo shirt. No wonder McGuire was such a believer. How can anyone go wrong with plastic? It cleans quickly, is ideal for inclement weather, and serves a variety of household purposes when you've worn out its welcome.

Hmm, I don't get all this fuss about plastic. Substitute "rubber" or "latex" for plastic, then it will all make sense.

The men in the audience should listen up. Stop complaining about not getting laid at parties! Really, it's pathetic, and pathetic in a way that won't get you any pity. Here's my suggestion: buy yourself a natty rubber outfit like the ones above, and go to the next fetish party. It doesn't matter if you are a slob, are fat, or are a fat slob; the clothes make the man. Sit at the bar and siddle up to a nice, young model type broad. Be charming, ply her with drinks, and pretend you're worth a lot of money. Make sure you flatter her and talk about women empowerment and all that rot. Her legs will spread in no time. Ah! I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

Suck My Caucus, Iowa. I'd Rather Read Elle Magazine.

Found! in this month's issue of Elle magazine (USA), an artsy fartsy b&w spread. No latex, but plenty of "shiny" and plenty of glamour.

Glistening hair, glistening lips, glistening nail polish; doll-like bow and hat; the model could be male or female.




Same as above but with a biker's jacket and zip-up leather opera gloves. Notice the shimmering lining of the skirt.

Fur fetish: the most politically incorrect of them all. However, this coat's made out of marabou feathers.

Inflatable Art Madness: Big Fucking Rubber Duck

I love giant, random, ridiculous, inflatable objects. This monstrous rubber duck, titled Rubber Duck, is part of the "Loire Estuary 2007," an outdoor art fest in France. It's 26 by 20 by 32 meters and is made out of rubber coated PVC. For more info, go here.

Maybe this giant rubber whale can keep Mr. Big Duck company.

Special thanks goes out to Garlor for posting about Rubber Duck on the IAR. View the thread here.

Enamel Erotica

All these scans are from Vogue Nippon. See this post. There are lots--and I mean LOTS--more shiny shiny pictures to scan, so keep an eye out for them over the next month.

Here's a patent leather product collage called "Enamel Erotica". No latex, but it's interesting to observe how the Japanese fashionistas are interpreting this season's obsession with all things glittery, shiny, and fetishy.

ABOVE: knee-high boots by Giuseppe Zanotti Design; patent leather hood with snap closure (bottom left) by Yves Saint Laurent; cuff bracelet (center left) by Erickson Beamon; bondage cuffs (upper left) by I have no idea 'cuz I forgot all the Japanese I learned.

BELOW: bow headband by Rada; gloves by Prada; spats by Celine; studded stilettos (upper right) by Dolce & Gabbana; gold and black buckled heels (bottom left) by Jimmy Choo.

Below is another sleek product collage adorably named "Color My Fetish."

THE SHOES: Red double-buckled platform mary janes by Dolce & Gabbana; grey t-strap stilettos by Stella McCartney; blue strappy-buckled tango heels (bottom left) by Chanel.

If you would bigger versions of these scans, let me know. My email is listed in the navigation bar.

Vogue Nippon Post Bonus

Continuing from the Vogue Nippon scanfest...

Two cute but strictly serious pen-and-ink drawings from the horoscope section of said magazine. Illustrations by Miyuki Morimoto. Very 60's!

Click on the pictures to enlarge.

Real Doll Tough Love

I got a chance to go the the Japanese market in North Jersey, so I picked up a copy of the November 2007 issue of Vogue Nippon. [Nippon = Japan.] I'm glad I did; it's filled with all sorts of shininess, and the theme is "hard love." There's a few other photo spreads I still have to scan. This spread is called "Tough Love" and features gorgeous dolls dressed in designer clothing. Although no latex appears in the spread, I reproduced it here for those of you into the Rubber Doll lifestyle.

DOMINATRIX: Dolce & Gabbana [above]
MEDIEVAL HARDCORE: Burberry Prorsum [below]

If you appreciate the work I've done the past year on this blog by buying all these magazines (especially those hard-to-get vintage fetish ones) and scanning them, please consider getting me a book on my Amazon.com wishlist. Thanks!
SWEET PUNK: Yves Saint Laurent [above]
BIKER BABE: Junya Wantanabe Comme des Garçons [below]




If you would like bigger versions of these scans (only the first picture will enlarge when you click on it) just let me know, and I'll send them to you. My email is listed on the side navigation bar.

EDIT: The très awesome blog Doll's Realm has posted the full-size versions of these scans. Go here and here to view them.

Plastic Nurse Loo-ee Vee

Although there was no rubber in sight, Marc Jacob's fall '08 collection for Louis Vuitton was nevertheless very exciting. Models paraded down the runway in transparent white gauze-like plastic retro-style nurse dresses accessorized with black lace surgical masks and the usual fabulous bags only %0.01 of the world's population can afford. Each model had a different letter on the front of her nurse's cap, spelling out L-O-U-I-S-V-U-I-T-T-O-N one after the other. The sherbet-colored dresses under the plastic nurse dress was also a nice effect.

I've got a serious weakness for all things medical. The nurse theme gets a bad rap among the ersatz-intellectual fetish elite for being boring and overplayed, but I still like it as long as the iterations are aesthetically pleasing. See, look at the big words I'm using. That makes my opinion better than yours. I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

All in all, the nurse uniforms in this collection are a nice interpretation of a standard fetish archetype. Be sure to check out the rest of the collection, too. [link above]

Red Stockings on a Skinny Bitch

Found! in the May 2007 issue of Interview magazine [I know, I know, I'm a little behind on things], some skinny white chick in a pair of red latex rubber stockings throwing dead flower parts at us. The scan looks a little wonky because the magazine is printed on crappy newsprint.

The Mechanical Muse: Hussein Chalayan FALL '07

In his Fall '07 r-t-w fashion show, Hussein Chalayan used latex rubber stockings in silver, pewter, and black to compliment his collection. Compliment is the key word here. It's a perfect and natural balance between the two; the latex doesn't stick out like a sore thumb at all, nor does it seem like it was an after thought. The fashion/fetish idiom has been reinvented successfully.

Then again, Chalayan's a frickin' genius. His designs are very mechanical, not in a modern industrial sense, but rather in an ancient Greek and Italian Renaissance context. Go see the video from the fashion show here. It's a fantastic show in every way and you will not be disappointed.

All pictures in this post were ganked from style.com. Go here to view the rest of the collection and here to see previous fashion shows.

More Leggings and Other Things

Found! in the September '07 issue of US Vogue magazine: random rubber headgear and something like resembles rubber leggings. The photos reproduced below are part of the same spread as the first two in my last post.

In both photos, you can see some type of red latex rubber hat thingamajig placed under the real hats. Don't go crazy looking for these hats on Madison Avenue; my guess is that the stylist cut up a sheet of 0.45mm or 0.55mm red latex and artfully arranged the pieces under the model's hats. Stylists--good stylists at any rate--do that kind of thing when it's time to add extra oomph to the clothing.

The "lipstick-red" leggings are by OMO Norma Kamali, who's known for her fetish-friendly PVC and spandex leg wear. The blurb doesn't say what kind of material the leggings are made out of, but they sure do look like latex. It's hard to tell from just a picture because PVC and certain types of shiny spandex sometimes photograph like latex.

In the second picture, the red gloves certainly shine like latex, but judging from the thumb seam, I think they are patent leather. Neither the maker nor the material is indicated anywhere in the magazine.

Click on the pictures to make them bigger.

Rubber Box Fashion For Your Next Rubber Box Social

Found! in the '07 September issue of US Vogue magazine: a $858 boxy rubber shift dress I can't afford. The designer is Marni, who also did this jacket I wrote about in June. (I'm not linking to the Marni website because the site having major issues with my browser.)


The photo caption says the following:


BOLT FROM THE BLUE Beaver-fur mittens, a laminated rubber dress, and killer platform peep-toes create an electrifying ensemble; the cerulean stockings add even more voltage. Marni ebony dress [$858], mittens, and stilettos, Marni, NYC. Wolford tights.

And here's another rubber piece from Marni, this time an "onyx" rubber skirt at a mere $486. (Still complaining about the cost of rubber clothing, eh?) Vogue's fantastic caption writer tells us that "natural or synthetic--whatever the fabric, the more tactile, the better." I agree!

Let's come back to the first dress, since it's also featured in the Fashion Rocks supplement that came with the Vogue in a very oi! oi! old skool punk rock spread. This makes me wanna break out some Exploited and talk about the good old days.

Also note that the model in the striped mohair sweater/pull-over is wearing black latex leggings. So what's up with all the latex leggings in the fashion magazines? I could put it into some type of socio-economic-post-feminist-ersatz-intellectual context, but I don't wear a bow tie and sandals on a daily basis--and I like to think my readers can smell bullshit from a mile away. Here's my verdict: they're trendy and they look fucking cool with almost everything.