How refreshing it is to dive into a sea of fetish from time to time. Feel the latex hug and warmly smother every inch of your skin; feel the animal touch of soft leather on your own leather, cinching your waist, to remind you that there is not that much difference between you and the beast your corset is made of. And of course taste the whip, in love not given lightly (OK this is Lou Reed not me), eye the plethora of languorous dildos that crave for batteries and for a slippery slit where they can work their miracles.

This, and much more, is the Xpo (... ), that is to say the annual fetish fair that brings together many of the worlds top designers and suppliers in fetish and club wear. Sponsored by online dedicated magazine ..., it features a variety of attractions to excite your fantasy: the exhibitors are mainly clothing and accessories companies, but you can also find performers like Japanese bondage guru Esinem or Kamelyan, who walks around in a wonderful four-legged tall monster costume she created. Enough of cold impersonal information now, I’m going to tell you my own experience of it.

So the Xpo took place on the 5th and 6th October and I couldn’t wait to go there and lose myself in a bit of a shopping spree. Guess what? Those days I had the worst flu in years! Which means that I was equally tempted by the world of fetish and by my warm duvet. Needless to say, I finally crawled my way to the Barbican reciting swearwords in my mind, donning a totally un-sexy combo of sweater-baggy jeans-eyeglasses – oh no. And I hoped to show off my sexy kitten figure in a corset and stiletto boots! Anyway my effort was highly rewarded as I arrived just in time for the Fetishistas Fashion Show. A friendly and relaxed atmosphere made me feel at ease and I enjoyed the show even more than I expected.

Amongst the many clothing designers I loved Rubber55’s latex apparel including sexy hoods and catsuits coming in a wide range of colours, Lacing Lilith’s mix of Victorian fashion and S/M and Pretty Pervy’s animal latex costumes (the highlight being a Snow White-clad girl guiding a green and black spiked dinosaur by the leash!). And then the lovely corsets by Velda Lauder, a celebrity in her field who counts Dita Von Teese in her clientele; one of her models does a mini burlesque act as she strides down the catwalk while Edith Piaf’s “Milord” plays in the background.

On the accessories front I was pleasantly impressed by the Electrastim products: a range of dildos, butt plugs and cock rings connected to an electric stimulator, like a normal TENS, that gives you different kinds of stimulations; I tried one at their stand (tried it in my hand! I’m not that naughty!) and gave me a few nice ideas to be experimented with my buddies. Forbidden Delights makes very affordable dildos in soft spiky plastic that could be equally interesting.

And now that the Xpo is over? No worries, the London fetish scene always offers a great deal of occasions to unleash your kinkiest fantasies: pen it down in your agenda, the London Alternative Market is taking place every first Sunday of the month, while the London Fetish Fair is on every second Sunday. Have a look at ... and ... to find out more. Happy S/M to everyone!