I ordered my first ever pair of long latex gloves from London-based designer Lady Lucie. I remember when they arrived: wrapped in delicate tissue paper, matt and powdered with talc, slightly cool to the touch. Even unworn, they had an energy distinctly different to any other wearable item I ever owned. As I shined them carefully and put them on, they molded themselves to my skin, slowly absorbing my body heat. I could no longer think of anything else but their persistent, pleasurable touch. They were a touch baggy on the wrist, which I loved, like I’m about to get down and dirty and still keep my hands clean. I caught a glimpse of someone I am still yet to become.

Everyone remembers their first fetish item – a piece of clothing which was not just about the look, but a possibility of a different world, a yet to be known dimension of one’s personality. It is the first step to embody a queerer, kinkier, more powerful, more authentic self. As much as I remember my first purchase, I also remember the deliberation. What will I wear it with? Does it make sense to invest in something that is so outrageously not practical, not for every day? In regular wardrobe logic, gloves seemed like a sensible choice as they could at least be combined with party outfits. But the second I put them on, I knew that I would never wear them with regular clothes. They created a different state of mind and opened a possibility to have a different life beyond the day-to-day. They offered transformation through erotic sensation – something many fetishists learn to appreciate. 

Fashion and fetish are intertwined in history, sharing many iconic moments. Vivienne Westwood famously made rubber clothes to sell in her SEX boutique at the time when latex pioneer John Sutcliff was at the height of his fame. The Versace AW92 bondage-inspired collection, the Alexander McQueen ‘golden shower’ catwalk for SS98, Madonna’s 1992 SEX book in collaboration with Steven Meisel, Christopher Kein’s ‘Rubberist’ dresses – fetish undercurrents have persisted across the decades, spotlighting the side of our relationship with clothes which is usually hidden in the shadows. Today Luis De Javier, Edward Crutchley, Monique Fei and HARRI tackle the design potential of rubber in fashion, not to mention the countless labels creating state-of-the-art work in leather.  

Latex and leather are the materials most commonly associated with the kink, fetish and leather communities – not only sensory but offering connection to history of shared pleasures. But truly, anything could be a fetish item, as long as it channels desire and unapologetic expression of the erotic self. Fashion and fetish are intertwined through the promise of the possibility to reinvent yourself, to step into a new, more subversive life. Here we talk to seven people about the first ever items that awoke their interest in fetish, kink, and the sexual underground – and how their relationship with style, fashion, and fetish developed since.

LANEE BIRD, PHOTOGRAPHER AND ARTIST

“I bought a zip up leather bra from Leather Etc in San Francisco. This was years ago as I was first entering into the kink scene and before I had taken up fetish photography in my career. An interest in fetish as fashion was my first entry point into the BDSM relationships that I’d later seek out. It fit like a glove so I had to own it. I have a sentimental attachment to it and it’s still one of my favuorite things to wear to this day, both in kink spaces and also layered under more pedestrian outfits.

When I wore it, it was one of the first times that I started to feel really embodied as a leatherdyke. I’ve always loved the constraints of high femme fetishwear and the way it sculpts the body. Something like a leather bra paired with pencil skirts and heeled boots would later become some of the tools that I’d use to enter into a submissive headspace during a scene. 

My style has gotten more minimalist over the years. Busted Brand, Gryphyn, and Anoeses are my favorite designers. Shops like Mr. S and Leather Etc in San Francisco and Butcherei Lindinger in Berlin are great places for leather garments or gear. It’s incredibly important to support queer independent leather makers like Leather Coven, Agate Leather and Kolby Brianne Leather.”

DOMHNALL NOLAN, INTERIOR AND FURNITURE DESIGNER

“My first purchase was a pair of secondhand tiny leather shorts. I’m always looking in secondhand stores to find everything. I wasn’t specifically looking for an item like this but gravitated to them instantly. They felt almost stereotypically ‘queer’ which made me a bit uneasy at the time. But now I know I was just excited about them as they spoke to a certain side of myself that was kind of waking up. I actually tried them on in the changing rooms but they felt a little tight but in a very good way. And in all the right places. It was definitely a dirty kind of feeling but in a very wipe-clean kind of way. So it was a clear yes from me! I’ve bought much racier stuff since but I actually think the slight coverage of these makes things a bit mysterious and even sexier.

I think it’s funny that fetish-orientated clothing can be quite timeless in many ways – because everyone will want to feel sexy in some way at some point, and clothes can help drive this. But it depends on your mindset and how you’re feeling [when it comes to] how you express yourself sexually. For me, I think I’ve managed a way to keep sex as part of the conversation through my general style. 

[Beyond clothes] I’m very inspired by the furniture work of Sonja Wasseur – it has a sexual quality to it whilst being quite utilitarian. Soft yet hard. Her work was a big influence on my recent sex furniture collection PLAY PIECES for London club night ‘Joyride’. In terms of fashion, I could easily turn to some of my classic inspirations such as Margiela and Mugler, but looking to a more modern brand, I think Ludovic de Saint Sernin is one of the most exciting brands of today and I love how it combines sexuality with fashion.”

EVA OH, PROFESSIONAL DOMINATRIX, SPEAKER, AND PODCASTER

“My first kink or fetish-focused purchase was a great suggestion by a headmistress of the dungeon that I was about to join. I had gone for a job interview and I had no idea what I was doing -- I didn’t understand what kink or BDSM were. I asked for a list of books and things I might need for my first day. The headmistress Amanda was kind enough to send me a list of books, as well as a list of shops where I could go to pick out certain pieces: a little bit of leather, a corset, some heels, and a bit of latex.

The first shop I went to was MaXXX Black in Sydney, Australia. I bought an Honour London latex pencil skirt with transparent smoky black panels down the sides and a bikini top. I think I still have them. In terms of sensation, I remember that it gripped my skin from the inside. Was I taken by the way it looked? To be honest, it only really spoke to me when I saw photos of it and I realised how it could have been perceived on me. I think the magic of latex didn’t really settle with me until I wore my first catsuit. I gravitate towards pieces which look like they’ve been made with a lot of care and construction. I am interested in the engineering of it and how it’s going to be an extension of my being. Now that I know how latex feels, when I see a piece it inspires a wide-eyed exhilaration.

Among the designers and makers, I love the very playful Soft Skin, especially their Tom of Finland collaboration, and Jivomir Domoustchiev. I love the good old pleaser, which will never fail us, but I also recently bought a pair of boots by Paris Texas, and the heel gotta be the sharpest and the skinniest I’ve ever seen – and it just belongs in the mouth. But there are also old heart heavy rubber brands, like Black Style – a heavy latex apron and super thick latex ankle sock is something that will always get my heart racing.”

STEVEN HARWICK, PHOTOGRAPHER AND FOUNDER OF BOUND LEATHER ZINE

“I stole my first proper leather jacket from the lost and found bin at my high school. I remember waiting in the office to go home early after feigning sick – a stunt I would perform regularly – and catching a glimpse of black leather peeking out of a cardboard box. A scrap of paper was taped to the box's front; the word ‘LOST’ was scrawled across in big, black, Sharpied letters. I took care to wait for the secretary to become distracted with something before I made my move, stuffing the jacket into my backpack as quickly as possible, seizing the crime of opportunity. 

Only upon returning home, in the privacy of my own room, did I dare to take it out and examine it. I was immediately seduced by the smell and by the soft, supple, lived-in creases and folds. Moreover, I became obsessed with imagining its life before I liberated it from its cardboard limbo. I’ve been captivated by leather for as long as I can remember, but it wasn’t until this moment with my salvaged motorcycle jacket that I came to understand what it meant to have a fetish. Within this new feeling, objects suddenly came alive and had histories – I was related to them not just as physical articles but as embodiments of the past and vessels of intrinsic, abstract power.

My style has not evolved much since, to be honest. I still reference the same mid-century American leather imagery and icons like Marlon Brando and Elvis.  And I still find fetish gear with a history, imagined or known, much more precious than something straight from a store. I just tend to purchase things now, rather than steal them from the bins. I recently inherited some leather pieces from a gentleman who passed away, who in his life had posed for Robert Mapplethorpe. This kind of past is so connective and makes me feel in touch with the community in a perverse, spiritual way.

In this regard, I haven’t felt particularly moved to purchase a designer piece to incorporate into actual fetish play. However, I have come across pieces where designers play with these concepts in ways that I find interesting and can bring into my everyday wardrobe as a wink and a nudge to kink life – namely Prada’s leather bolo tie or Margiela’s Tabi cowboy boots. But I may have to resort back to larceny to get some of these items in my closet.”

ROSE EASTON, FOUNDER OF ROSE EASTON GALLERY

“I found a picture of Phoebe English’s MA collection in Dazed when I was 20. She had just graduated with the most insanely outrageous black hair and rubber collection. I was hooked. I tracked her down and essentially forced her to make me one to wear to my 21st birthday party which was in a forest on the Isle of Wight. I had maybe the best night of my life, in huge part because of the dress, which made me feel powerful and witchy and sexy and wild. The evening culminated in me emerging from the sea, wild eyed in a tangled state. Phoebe and I formed the label a few months later; her clothes are magic, like her. That was the start of my desire to be surrounded by artists and artistic production, working out how I could support and platform their ideas and work.”

WOLF, CREATIVE DIRECTOR AND ARTIST

“My first kink-focused fashion purchase was my trusty leather trousers. They cost me about £100 as they are real cowhide leather.I’ve always enjoyed the feeling of leather, the smell, the hardiness of the fabric, the rigidness, the smooth feeling when you rub your palms against it.  I like putting on a piece of clothing that alters the way you move within it, it becomes more than just a piece of clothing, but a form of expression. The first time I ever wore my leather trousers, I immediately felt comfortable and sexy within the rigidness of the brand-new leather, it was as if I was putting on impenetrable skin. There is a freedom in being limited and feeling restricted within one's clothes, one that can be hard to explain but is widely understood within the kink and fetish community.

My style has developed a lot since. To my first-ever kink party, I wore my leather trousers, with my leather harness (which was my second-ever purchase). This is a very standard and safe look to most parties, which I now detest. The idea of playing it safe when dressing up to go out anywhere is criminal to me. We should all be brave, experiment, try new things and step outside of our comfort zone at times, especially when going out to a space that allows you to do so. Although I do understand not everyone has this capacity. This is what I try to do with my style.

Since going to fetish parties, I’ve embraced more my femininity within my fashion, understanding clothes aren’t gendered has allowed me to expand my wardrobe, I’ve worn corsets, skirts, fishnets, belts, thongs and latex, and I’m still learning and exploring more within my style. My favourite designers currently are Aimless Gallery, I love how they’re unapologetically political, Alexjustspat, because I’m currently obsessed with belts, chokers, spikes and studs. Lady Lucie Latex also makes divine latex, and I currently own a latex top from Libidex that I’m obsessed with. Needless to say, my love and appreciation of latex has also grown.”

SAM JAMIESON, FASHION DESIGNER

“The first thing I purchased that was driven by an interest in fetish was a leather jacket I bought as a teenager. I was still in the closet at the time and it was a really important moment for me to understand and contextualise my identity through the lense of fashion and desire. I don't have it anymore as I think I cut it up to make something else. While looking back it wasn't the most amazing jacket, but the feel of the leather as well as it's smell exhilarated me and made me feel connected to a part of my identity that I hadn't previously accessed. It made me understand fashion as not only a visual medium but one that was incredibly coded and multi-sensory. I felt that by wearing it I was subverting the straight world that I felt trapped in and buying it really enforced a feeling inside of me that there was a community somewhere out there that I needed to connect with.

 As a designer I still search for the very visceral response that you can get from an object when creating and wearing it. I am fascinated by the codings that exist within fetish clothing and the interplay they have with your own construction of desire and the way others see you. A lot of the thought behind my style and my work now is inspired by this awareness of the erotic. I love designers who aren't afraid to bring fresh ideas about sex, desire and perversion into their work. Ella Boucht and Sinead O'Dwyer are two people that I think give different but exciting perspectives of this. I also love Sebastian Meunier's work when he had his own brand in the early 00s.”

Anastasiia Fedorova is currently working on a book about fetish and contemporary culture. For updates, subscribe to her Substack, The Fetishist’s Heart.