ROMP San Diego Dates Finalized!

Gay Leather Events

SAN DIEGO - San Diego Leather Pride has finalized the dates for our new weekend run, ROMP! Mark your calendar, and get your registration in! The new dates for

ROMP San Diego: August 24-26, 2012!

The weather should be fantastic at the venue during this time. If you want to go simple and reserve one of the cabins with a Jacuzzi tub, or be a little more adventurous and get a group together to rent an RV (we'll help you with that), or really get into it and pitch a tent, this weekend is going to be fantastic!

ROMP SD is a weekend in East County San Diego designed to bring all our Community together: Leather, Bears, Kink, and anyone who wants to experience our community as it was years ago before all the high-priced hotels and ballrooms. We are proud to announce that this is the home of the newly combined Mr. & Ms. San Diego Leather Contest, which will be held on Saturday, August 25th during the run.

Check out the latest from The SoFo Tap

SoFo Tap

CHICAGO - Celebrate Uptown Pride on "The Love Crawl", a Love Boat themed pub crawl that will sample several Uptown watering holes. Stops include, Crew, Annoyance Theater, and of course The SoFo Tap. Crawlers enjoy $2.50 Stella Artois drafts all day.

The Love Crawl is Saturday, June 9th. Space is limited. Click on the picture for more information and to reserve your spot!

The SoFo Tap now opens at noon on Saturday and Sunday. Sit a spell on our Back Porch and enjoy the flowers.

$4.00 FRIDAY & UNDERWEAR PARTY @ CELL BLOC

CellBlock

CHICAGO - Everyone at CELL BLOCK hopes you had a great Memorial Day weekend - we had a GREAT time here! We've got a BOTTOMS AND TOPS weekend to kick off Pride Month...

FRIDAY, JUNE 1 ...  It's our monthly $4.00 FRIDAY ... You name it, and it's just $4.00 ... ALL BEER $4.00 including bottles, draft, domestic and imports ... ALL LIQUOR $4.00 including all call brands and even top shelf ... Everything is included ... FREE POOL & Wii from open until close ... The dart machines and jukebox are also available for you to play ... Back Bar opens at 10pm with Justin ... You can't afford to stay home, so come drink with Dustin, Mark, Justin and Trapper ...

ALSO ... It's our first BLACKLIGHT UNDERWEAR PARTY of the Summer ... All of the regular lights will be shut down in the back bar leaving only the fun of the blacklights ... There will be free clothing check along with contests for the BEST ASS and also for the COOLEST UNDIES ... Don't miss out and invite a friend ...

SATURDAY - get your eyes off all those hot bottoms - at least long enough for a BEST CHEST CONTEST! The summer season is starting and we know LOTS of you have been working the gym to get ready for it - so start showing it off tonight and win some great prizes

Black and Lou Ball in St. Louis

ST. LOUIS - JJ's Clubhouse in St. Louis will be the host of the Black and Lou Ball on Friday, June 15.

Leather, gear and fantasy wear are encouraged for the party, which has an admission fee of $5 benefiting Pride St. Louis. The attire must be street legal. There will also be the Mr. or Ms. Black and Lou contest, with the winner riding in the city's Pride Parade.

The party starts at 9 p.m. and goes till 2 a.m.

TNGC Event June 30th @ GD2

Pepperjack
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - TNGC is going to be hosting a party / event at Galleria Domain 2 on Saturday, June 30th. We think this is a great time for people to come out and explore the kink scene in Chicago with your peers.

It will also be a night that the club is available to all of the members of GD2 so it will be a great time for you to expand out and get to know more about what the scene could offer other than just our munch and educational events.

If you are not already a member we are also happy to announce that if you would like to attend that GD2 has offered us a special rate of $15 (normally $25) on trial memberships for those of you who want to come to our event. For legal reasons GD2 can only offer 2 trial memberships within a 12 month period of time, if you would like to attend but have already gotten 2 trial memberships please talk to me (pepperjack) about your options for being able to attend.

If you have any questions please contact us at leadership@tngc.org. Hope to see you there!

Date & Time:	Saturday, June 30, 2012 · 8:00 PM – 3:00 AM
Location:	Galleria Domain 2 Available when you sign up @ map
Cost:	GD2 Membership, Trial Membership or Guest of a Member
Dress code:	Street Clothes to the door, as you please once inside

Richard Yates Opens in the Guest Artist Gallery

Leather Archives & Museum

CHICAGO - On July 6, 2012 at 7:00 PM, the Leather Archives & Museum will welcome artist Richard Yates to the Guest Artist Gallery.

A photographer with over 25 years of combined experience, Richard is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His work includes portraits, weddings, commercial product, advertising and marketing, with a specialty in male erotic photography. His work can be found on the covers and inside many of Minneapolis' GLBT community magazines. Over the past two years he has focused on men within the Gay community, specifically men in Leather/Kink/Fetish wear.

He has successfully captured the images of numerous current and past various Leather titleholders, including the current International Mr. Leather, with plans to capture even more in the coming year. Richard was recently awarded "Best of Show" in the BDSM Art Show at CLAW 11, 2012. Richard's work can be seen on his website as well as his Facebook page. The Archives is pleased to welcome back Ashland Arms as a sponsor for this exhibit.

Please join us on July 6 at 7:00 PM for the exhibit's opening reception, and a chance to meet Richard Yates in person. The reception is free of charge for any that attend.

June's CCF Party

by Mistress-Simone

Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - Saturday, June 02, 2012 · 9:00 PM – 1:00 AM
The Studio Chicago

Chicago's ONLY female dominant/male submissive focused group.
Come play in an environment tailored our unique energy.
Our next gathering is Saturday, June 2nd, 2012
9:00 PM to 1:00 AM - Depending on attendees playing we may extend it.
where: The Studio Chicago
address: Given to confirmed participants map

Pitch is $10.00 per female, $20.00 per male. Couples : $20.00

As is the tradition at our parties, please bring a dish to share.Veggie tray, Dip, Cheese and meat trays are always welcome as are sweets! At this time, NO ALCOHOL is allowed any longer at the Studio. Please do not bring it in as you will be asked to remove it to your car.

You MUST confirm via email to Ms Simone at her email address -- chicagomistress@gmail.com Only those who have RSVP'd in this manner will be on the guest list. DO NOT call her business number seeking info or directions, nor email her website email. You will not receive a reply, only succeed in pissing her off.

Play with Your Panties and What's Inside Them @ GD2!

Jerith and Wilson
Galleria Domain 2
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - Do you want a place where you can indulge your darkest desires? We have world class equipment, 3 large play spaces, and over 200 members who are interested in Fetish, BDSM, Leather, and Kink. Come out to play on Friday at Chicago's hottest kink club!

Fancy Panty Party at 10 P.M.
Open to GD2 Members & Their Guests
Have you coveted fancy panties but just didn’t want to shell out the cash for them… especially when you may only wear them once? Come out to GD2 to decorate your own! Bring your own panties (or boxers or briefs!) to be-dazzle, be-sparkle, be-ribbon and more! Some supplies will be be available (like sequins, feathers and glue),but please bring anything you might like to use to make your panty fantasies come true!

LLC Board Election Results

Leather Leadership Conference

MINNEAPOLIS - The Leather Leadership Conference (LLC) has elected Gail "Moira" Henderson from Toronto, Canada and Kevin "Carlton" Comer from Spartanburg, South Carolina to the Board of Directors with terms ending in 2015.

Thomas Smith, Chair from Palm Springs, California; Michael "Odie" Heaston, Treasurer from Seattle, Washington; Sheri "CC" Verhalen, Secretary from Atlanta, Georgia; and Travis Wilson from Houston, Texas continue on Board of Directors.

The LLC wants to take this time to acknowledge the departure of Lynn "Sassy" Reese, Steve Ward, and Jerith Bailey during the past year and to thank them for their contributions to the Board of Directors.

This year the LLC is looking to establish a Volunteer Program to support organizational goals as well as community outreach. As the parameters for the various components are designed and ready for implementation, we will be reaching out to the individuals who have expressed an interest in participation.

June 2012 CRASS

Rigger_Ares
Nwind_alt_munch
Reprinted with permission

So, here's the deal. You are getting ready for a scene and you find that your four year old has just dumped milk all over your rope drenching all of them. You frantically panic and start going through your rope but alas all you find is one rope that didn't get drenched! ONE ROPE! What are you going to do with one rope? Plenty!

This month we will be exploring what can be done with one rope from the simple to the extreme. From sensual to severe. From floor work to partial suspensions. Minimum rope to bring would be 1 30' piece, 1 20' piece, 1 10' piece and 1 6' piece.

As always, we will be meeting back by the suspension frame at LRA at 9:15. Membership is not required, but to attend you must either be guested in or request a guest pass by writing to guest-registry@lra-chicago.org.

One Day Left for LRA May 2012 Membership Special

LRA-Chicago
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - There is ONE MORE DAY left for the May Membership Special. So make sure you get your application in so you don't miss out.

To make it easier, you can download a membership application here by going to http://www.lra-chicago.org/downloadfiles/lramembershipapplication.pdf and e-mail it back to us at member-services@lra-chicago.org. We accept all major credit/debit cards (Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover) and you can enter in the information on the application for quicker processing.

If you are not using credit/debit card, you will need to bring your payment to LRA no later than midnight on June 1, 2012, however, your application MUST be received by midnight on May 31, 2012.

LRA is offering the following membership specials:

For one-year LRA memberships, we are reducing the price for a one-year (in district) membership to $300.00 (for a single payment), or you can lock in a year's worth of fun at only $30.00 a month, for a total of $360.00. These prices reflect a 20% discount from our regular rates.

We are also offering a reduction on our student rate. For a single payment it will be $240.00 for the year (a $60 savings), or you can pay in monthly installments for $20 per month. The student rate is available to those who are currently enrolled in a college or university with a current student identification.

Remember, to be a member of LRA, you must be 19 years of age or older, have visited the club at least once, and submit a completed application and waiver, and tendered the appropriate membership dues no later than May 31, 2012.

Already a member and wishing you had this rate? Simply, send us your payment either in full or for the first month on your renewal. This will insure that your renewal rate will be at the price quoted in this letter. However, you will still be responsible for fulfilling the terms of your current years membership.

Michigan's Woody Woodruff wins IML 2012!

Photo by pup ruff

Woody Woodruff, IML 2012, (center) with second runner-up
Kevin Jordan (left) and first runner-up A.C. Demidont (right).

pup ruff
Chicago Den

CHICAGO - Woody Woodruff, Mr. Michigan Leather 2012, came out ahead of 49 men from five countries on three continents to bring home the title of International Mr. Leather 2012!

Woody was joined on the podium by first runner-up A.C. Demidont, Mr. Eagle New York 2012, and Kevin Jordan, Mr. DC Eagle 2012. Nick Elliot of Portland, Ore. took home the International Mr. Bootblack title. Woody is also the first contestant from the Great Lakes region since Mike Taylor of Ohio won in 2000.

Excitement was high for the contest with more than 2,000 people packing the Grand Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. Singer Sharon McNight supplied musical entertainment and the live portion of the intro to the contest. IML 2003 John Pendal and leather diva Karen Ultra served as co-emcees, riffing off each other and occasionally scoring good natured hits on the contestants.

The weekend itself had a few firsts in its 34th year with two legal gay weddings (civil unions became legal in Illinois in July 2011) on Friday and Saturday and two of the contestants being legally married to each other. Another contestant, Mr. CODE Florida Stephen Hendrick, was the first openly gay AND active member of the military to compete. In fact, he gave his speech in his Navy uniform. (Speech in video at right)

All of those firsts were the core of  IML founder Chuck Renslow's annual state of the community speech. With the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell and President Obama publicly endorsing equal marriage rights, the right wing will be working overtime to vote Obama out of office. Chuck called on all members of the community to get passionate and work to support the President's re-election.

Sharon was joined on stage during the tabulation by comedian and writer Bruce Vilanch in a surprise appearance. The two did a live "reading" of the new erotic bestseller 50 Shades of Gray to a very entertained audience.

Check below the fold for the full set of photos from the whole night!

Fetish Ball, HB Award Winners the King and Queen of the Ball

LRA-ChicagoReprinted with permission

CHICAGO - The LRA Board of Directors would like to thank everyone who came out to the 8th Annual Fetish Ball. Once again, we had a great crowd with great energy, and the ball just keeps getting better and better each year. We can only think of what next year will bring!

At the Ball, we made a couple of announcements. The first was the awarding of the 2012 Hans Blanken Founders Award recipients. This years honoree's were Joel L., who has helped us for many years with the maintaining of our website and facilitating our e-mail usage, and assisting us with maintaining our internet presence. We are grateful for all he has done for LRA.

The second honoree is Rubi/Phyllis. She served LRA in several capacities over the years, including Treasurer and Vice-President and assisted in putting together previous Fetish Balls. She has been a tireless supporter of LRA, dating back to the days on Fullerton and the club wouldn't be the same without her influence. We are grateful to all of the work and effort and energy that she contributed to LRA. The club wouldn't be the same without her.

The 2012 honorees have been inscribed on the plague which now resides at the club, so stop by and take a look.

We also want to acknowledge the first King and Queen of the Fetish Ball. And they are BenevlntDictator and ginny81265. Long live the King and Queen, unless there is an uprising!!
Thank you again to everyone who made the Fetish Ball a success, especially our volunteers. We couldn't have done it without you!

IML 2012 - Saturday!

pup ruff
Chicago Den

CHICAGO - IML is going strong on Saturday. The vendor market had it's first full day, the boys had their gathering, CHC had a cocktail party and Pecs & Personality took the stage. Check out the pics and follow us on Twitter for the winner of the contest tomorrow night!

You Can NOT Be Bored This Weekend in Chicago

pup ruff
Chicago Den

CHICAGO - We've finally arrived at Memorial Day weekend in Chicago. Which means, for the uninitiated, the city is a perv mecca for at least four days. It's one way to decompress after NATO.

Let's start with the basics. International Mr. Leather, the granddaddy of major leather events, will have it's 34th gathering this year at the Hyatt Regency Chicago at Wacker Drive and Columbus. The hotel is likely sold out at this point, but there may be other hotel rooms available in the city. The annual event brings in 12,000 people through the vendor market and $18 million into the local economy.

If you don't have a package for the weekend, you can still tour the market with a day pass for $5. Any available tickets for Pec & Personality and the contest itself will be available at the box office of the Hyatt Regency Chicago. And there's still ALL the parties such as the long-running San Francisco Party and the ever popular ONYX Party and newer events such as WoofCamp, Gear Blast and the Chicago Rubbermen meet and greet. You can see the schedule here.

But that is just the beginning. Chicago is also home to Bear Pride. One of the older and bigger bear events in the country, the run is being held at the Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro Hotel on the other side of the downtown Loop from IML. Registration for this starts today if you haven't already sign up. The usual parties like Nuts to Butts and Wet n Wild at Steamworks are on deck along with parties at the host hotel. And, with the purchase of an additional ticket, there is a bus to the IML host hotel for the contest on Sunday.

Usual bear bars Jackhammer and Touche are joined this year by Sofo Tap, an Andersonville bar that has made a splash to attract the ursine in town. Check out the full schedule here.

Then we have the Grabby's. Consider it the Golden Globes of the gay porn industry. No, we don't mean those globes. These are actual awards. The awards ceremony is on Saturday at the Park West in Lincoln Park. Regular hosts Honey West and Chi Chi Larue are joined as hosts by performers Adam Killian, Tom Wolfe and Austin Andrews. And while there are categories such as best supporting actor (far to easy to make a joke with that one), best screenplay and best movie, guys are hoping to win best porn site, best fetish movie, best cock and best cum scene. Pretty sure Meryl Streep won't be in the running.

LRA's 8th Annual Fetish Ball, May 26, 2012 @ 9pm

LRA-Chicago
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - LRA, Chicago's oldest pansexual BDSM/Leather club, is pleased to announce it's Eighth Annual Fetish Ball, celebrating 8 years at our Clark Street location!

So come out in your finest gear for one of the HOTTEST parties of the year!

This year, we have a special treat. We will be naming a "King and Queen of the Fetish Ball." All who attend will be eligible to vote on their favorite person for King or Queen! We will announce the winners around midnight, and will crown both as King and Queen of the LRA Fetish Ball! Make sure you come out and support your person of choice, or run yourself.

Also, we will be naming 2 new recipients of the Hans Blanken Founders Award, which will be presented earlier in the evening.

This is an open night, so all are welcome, including anyone attending IML or Shibaricon. No need to send in a request for a guest pass, and as always, there is never a fee to attend one of our events.

Celebrate Bear Pride at The SoFo Tap

SoFo Tap

CHICAGO - The kick off to summer is this weekend. We welcome all the out of town visitors in for IML and Bear Pride. We have some special events just for you.

The "Back Porch", our renovated beer garden, is a hit! Don't miss out on the fun as it will be the place to be this weekend.

The SoFo Tap will be open at noon on Saturday, Sunday and Memorial Day, Monday.

IML & BEAR PRIDE @ CELL BLOCK

CellBlock

CHICAGO - It's finally here... The weekend you've all been waiting for ... CELL BLOCK welcomes you all to IML and BEAR PRIDE 2012 ...

CENTAUR MUSIC will be in Chicago during IML and will be launching several releases plus other endeavors. They produce the indie record label Centaur Entertainment and have some awesome Club / House / Pop releases. They've chosen the Cell Block for a massive give-away of a lot of those new releases - we'll be promoting them Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. Stop in and you've got a GREAT chance of taking home some great music! Check them out at  www.centaurmusic.com and look for www.myvOUTcher.com to launch later this summer.

THURSDAY, MAY 24 ... The weekend starts early with THIRSTY THURSDAY ... That means ALL DRINKS EITHER $2.50 or $3.50 ... Well Drinks and Domestic Draft are $2.50 ... ALL OTHER DRINKS $3.50 with all beer and liquor included ... Come hang and be the first to meet all the hot out-of-town men in for the weekend...

FRIDAY, MAY 25 ... Join us for our UNIFORM NIGHT starting at 10pm ... Leather, Military, Sports uniforms and more are encouraged ... $3.50 BUD LIGHTS as well as $3.50 JIM BEAM drinks or shots ... GIVEAWAYS and amazing music all night long ... Back Bar opens at 10pm ...

SATURDAY, MAY 26 ...  Bar opens at 12pm ... Stop by for our ALL DAY BEAR EVENT ... Starting at noon, buses from the host hotel will be dropping off bears, cubs and otters on Halsted right in front of Cell Block... Buses will run nearly every half hour until 8pm ... That means a bar full of hot hairy men all day long ... Don't miss out ...then the party rocks into high gear when the Back Bar opens at 10pm ,,,

SUNDAY, MAY 27 ... Bar opens at 2pm ... Watch the CUBS VS PIRATES in the afternoon ... $3.50 MILLER LITES bottle or 16oz draft ... Join us at 9pm for our AFTER CONTEST PARTY ... Lots of hot men, great music and maybe the new Mr. IML will drop by ... Sunday night at the Cell Block is often the biggest party of the weekend....Back Bar opens at 9pm ...

MONDAY, MAY 28 ... Bar opens at 2pm with Dustin ... $1.00 PBR CANS from open until close ... If you're not a beer drinker, choose ANY VODKA $4.25 ... Choose from over 30 brands and flavors ... FREE POOL & Wii

TNGC Presents: Cunnilingus - 6/2/2012

balthasaar
Chicago TNG
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - Our June educational will be a sexual skills class on Cunnilingus, brought back by request.

With so many kinds of exciting, shiny, and dangerous types of play in the scene, it's easy to overlook the value of cunnilingus in your kink-arsenal.

But this humble sexual staple can be a powder keg for those willing to look beyond their preconceptions. (i.e. not just for FemDom couples)

Come join us as we discuss the physicality, the psychology, the technique to giving & receiving quality lip service. Demo given, w/practice/feedback workshop if willing couples & time allow.

Balthasaar has been a TNGC leader for 10 years. He also participates in sex-positive and swing circles, and dedicates much of his free time to the betterment of vulvas.

RSVP here: https://fetlife.com/events/107227/v2

CLC Makes IML Plans!

Chicago Leather Club
Reprinted with permission

CHICAGO - Want to meet up with CLC as we celebrate IML this weekend? We've got a really full schedule but here's where we'll be:

Thurs evening - we'll be attending Windy City Trident's IML Meet 'n Greet at 10pm at Jackhammers.

Friday evening - come say "Hi" to Michael and angie over at the Silent Auction and bid on some great stuff at the Hyatt!

Saturday morning/afternoon - We start off the morning at th...e traditional IML Breakfast at the Lincoln Restaurant (Irving Pk Rd and Lincoln) from 9.30 to 11.30, then head on over to the IML Vendor Area.

Saturday evening - A quick stop by the IMsL Happy Hour and Dinner over at Daddy O's pub in the Hyatt at 5.30, then off to the LRA Chicago for the Fetish Ball at 9.00pm

Sunday, we'll see you all at the contest and find plenty of trouble to get into after!

Welcome to Chicago and have fun at IML!