This principle is well demonstrated by the new releases launching the Libidex Female Fantasy range. And in fact this range further extends the ‘quasi-custom’ concept with the appliqué decorations many of its styles offer — a welcome consequence of Libidex’s recent acquisition of a laser cutter.

About two-thirds of the styles in the first batch of releases come with contrast trims as standard. But while these trims are generally in preset colours — for example the chequered racing trim is only available in black and white — they nevertheless have a ‘customising effect’ when teamed with the full range of colours available for the main garment panels.

So what was the thinking that led to Female Fantasy’s initial collection of role-play outfits channelling the likes of cowgirls, racer girls, cheerleaders and female cops?

“The first thing to say is that this is just the tip of the iceberg,” says Simon. “We tend to keep running and running with this stuff. Also, we wanted to make good creative use of our laser-cutter.

“It was nice to visit classics like the racer girl and make it reasonably ‘off the peg’. Because most of the time, if you want to be a racer girl, you’d have to go custom.”

So having custom stuff available almost off the peg (even though in practice it would be mostly made to order) is another part of the overall concept.

“A lot of this was classic stuff but we’ve re-imagined it,” Rose continues. “The cowgirl look is a good example — funky, with little bit of a fashion twist to it. And when I look at the whole range I’m always pleased to see what we’ve come up with.

To what extent was the Libidex Female Fantasy range a response to changing tastes on the scene? Did the label perceive a specific gap in the market for this kind of stuff or was a more internal creative process at work?

“I think it was more internal,” Simon replies. “We didn’t know whether people were ‘crying out’ for this sort of thing but there was a strong sense that people do like to dress up in ‘roles’. 

“So it came from that. A lot of our stuff isn’t at all specific. Of course we do a few things like a maid’s outfit, but if you put our maid’s outfit in a different colour, it looks like something altogether different. And conversely, if you do something in black and white, it looks like a maid’s outfit.

“It was nice to play with classic role-playing looks. I don’t know everything we’ve got in line, but a maid is probably one of them, also fire women… and so on. 

“It’s just nice, quite fun, and a bit of a challenge sometimes to make something new out of something classic. You don’t want to take it too far from what it is, but at the same time you want to take it some distance.”

Looking at the initial Female Fantasy releases, it seems clear to me that a lot of its styling and decorative touches would not have been found in anyone’s standard ranges before, and certainly not at Libidex’s prices.

Some of the outfits evoke the kind of custom designs you might well see major music stars wearing for stage performances or videos. (Taylor Swift immediately comes to mind — not a thing I ever imagined saying).

So perhaps this new collection has tapped into the zeitgeist more than its creators are conscious of. 

“I think the sense was to start with classics — more what people wanted,” says Simon, “then move into more of our own designs that aren’t being inspired by tradition. 

“It really is the tip of the iceberg, just to see what people like, a toe in the water, a chance for people to give feedback. People are never shy to do that, and then we get more of a sense of what people like to wear and we can endeavour to provide it for them.”

It’s always nice to get people into rubber clothing, thinks the Libidex chief. “And the more diverse we can be, the better.” In that very respect, he reveals, right now the team is looking at doing Hard & Heavy for Women. Now that’s going to be interesting…

“I always talk about the spectrum,” Rose adds, “where at one end you’ve got your ‘Diner Girl’, and at the other end, a woman trussed up with inflatable this and inflatable that.

“We’re always looking to fill the spectrum, to improve on the spectrum, to include everyone. 

“I don’t want to sound like Mother Teresa [not much chance of that — Ed] but it’s genuine, a genuine feeling that there are people out there who won’t know they like wearing rubber until they’ve seen as much of the spectrum as possible.”

In celebration of Torture Garden’s two Valentine’s Balls in London this coming weekend (February 15 and 16) Libidex is hosting the second half of its Valentine’s pop-up shopping event at its Islington HQ between this Thursday and Saturday.

This off-the-rails sale of stock boasts reductions of 50–80 percent on latex, including items from the new Libidex Female Fantasy and Male Fetish Fashion collections. There will also be some preview items from the yet-to-be-launched Male Catsuit Collection.

The shop door at 3 St Albans Place, London N1 0NX will be open on Thursday February 14 and Friday 15 from noon to 7pm, and on Saturday 16 from noon to 6pm.

Bringing cash is recommended as these events are always very busy and cash will save you time at the checkout.

If, however, you can’t make it in person, there are still great bargains to be had online, where the entire Libidex Female Fantasy range is currently on offer at 25 percent off the regular prices.

A representative selection from the new range can be viewed in our galleries below. Note that the prices quoted in our captions include the current 25 percent introductory discount.

libidex.com