#bootblacking

[dykepuffs]

Bootblacking is top level kink because it's one of the few I can think of where the nominal sub is treated as a thoughtful, knowledgeable technician from the outset.

Like, a flogging bottom might be praised for their ability to take pain and know their limits, or a rope bunny might be recognised as keeping themselves in good physical shape so they can hold complicated stress positions for longer than a novice, but even the most beginner of beginner bootblacks has learnt a little bit of materials science (Will this type of brush scratch this patent finish?), a little bit of basic chemistry (If these were last polished with a silicone wax, how do I remove that to start to bull them?), a little bit of leatherworking history (Is that natural fibre stitching on those surplused Warsaw Pact boots, will my polish rot it?) and spent time practising techniques on their own boots.

And it's one of the few kinks I can think of where the top is so immediately physically and emotionally vulnerable to the bottom in that way: I put my foot in the hands of a stranger bootblacking at a party, and I trust that they won't damage the boots I was gifted by my long-dead Master when I was 17, that they won't soak the stitching and start the rot of the boots I was wearing when I first fucked the love of my life, I trust that they'll carefully work around and treat the cuts and scuffs in the leather that I picked up wearing these same boots marshalling at a dozen prides and going toe-to-toe with strikebreakers and scabs on twenty years' worth of picket lines. The experienced bootblack can look at my soles and where my boots crease, and see that I have a weak hip, that I'm slightly bowlegged, that I don't drive and that I walk even in the weather where I'd rather not. And I trust that they'll see that worn-out, poor, slightly sad old man and still call me "sir".

It just feels like a lot.

[pissedoffpossum]

sometimes there is nothing more intimate than shining the boots of someone u love

[freakqueer]

new zine up on etsy! link in pinned post ^^

[spitfaggot]

another fun thing about bootblacking — it's as much of a kink as it isn't.

and by this, i mean: it's labor!

we have to look beyond kink into the vanilla/non-kink world to see the only remaining examples of shoe care as a job. the only examples i can think of are shoe-cleaning mall kiosks and, maybe, a chair or two in an airport terminal or fancy hotel. but these places are dwindling, if they even still remain at all. consumerism and planned obsolescence has invaded fashion so much that most people aren't concerned with the upkeep of their actual leather shoes, let alone sneakers or pleather boots.

(edit: cobblers and shoe repair most certainly count, but in this instance i'm referring to chairs or kiosks that maintain the footwear without disassembling it, although there are many bootblacks that can provide services like these.)

this, compounded with the cost barrier to leather gear and a much smaller community post-AIDS of the 1980's i believe has made bootblacking much more scarce in kink circles. i mentored under a bootblack that primarily works bars and club events, and have gone on to do the same myself, and... not many people even know what a bootblack is anymore. i've met people in full cow at the local Eagle who have never even heard of our existence. i was in the right place at the right time and met the right people in order to be able to sub/apprentice under one, and that in itself is a privelege nowadays. instructional videos are lovely, but there's nothing like working with the real thing to practice.

getting booked at events is a headache in and of itself, which is where the talk of labor comes in. if you are bootblacking, you are doing physical labor. it doesn't matter if you're working a pup social at a leather bar, or a private residence party, it is labor. on average, i scrub and polish a shift at a bar event for 5 hours (8pm to 1am) with very few breaks. on a good night, i can polish usually 6 or 7 customers in that 5 hour shift, and that's if nobody comes to me with a Langlitz project or a full set of chaps. tipping your bootblack is crucial, because 90% of the time, that's how we make any money at all.

bootblacking is how i have kept my boyfriend, my cats and i fed many times. and it is very hard to find an event nowadays that will pay a bootblack up front to be there for the night — most just "allow you to keep tips" and maybe comp you a drink or two. at this point i just have a menu of my services that i provide, and i turn away folks who cannot pay or barter. (i, personally, will take coffee as payment for boots and harnesses.) this often means i make less than minimum wage for 5 hours of physical labor.

my point being: bootblacking is a kink, but it will likely be found today more often as a job leatherfolk will take up at an event, much like a vendor. the more public adult spaces where we can actually express it as a kink the better, and those are growing incredibly scarce. and the people willing to pay us even more so, despite how much upkeep leather gear like boots and jackets should be getting.

[sen-thebootmutt]

What do you love so much about bootblacking?

When I discovered bootblacking, one of the people I found online described bootblacks as “the storytellers and history keepers of leather.” As a historian and lover of community storytelling, that really resonated with me. To get someone in the bootblack stand, asking them where they got their boots, and hearing so many different interesting, sexy, hilarious, and heartbreaking stories really motivates and moves me 🖤

It’s also an act of service!! A lot of leatherfolx don’t actually know how to care for and maintain their leathers, so being able to provide that service and education tickles a part of my brain. And providing service is one of the ways I show submission, so it was a great confluence!! I get to be submissive and serve a Dominant (if they want our time in the stand to be erotic), and work on gear that people love and have had for 5, 10, 25 years?? Sign me up!!!

(Having a major boot fetish definitely helps, too, but it’s not a requirement lmao)

[x-raykinks]

You think servicing someone's boots is "inherently submissive"?

Let me tie you up with your laces while you wait. Maybe degrade you for how much work you're making me do. Maybe even take your boot off and kick you with it as punishment.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Get creative with it.

[leatherfag]

Bootblacking with Geoff Malard (and Pup Amp) - Mr S. Leather

[cryptide-travis]

Ignore the discoloration on these boots the last owner hand dyed them kinda poorly and did not care for them well but I've been working on rehydrating the leather and they feel much better ^^

[seastarselkie]

in the dim light of evening, my leather polish sits steady by my thigh, the grooves from my promised touch leave the metal of the pan to dance, a silver tin gem glimmering.

cloth held in tension by two fingers, wrapped around my wrist and thumb, my hold is taut and practiced; held sturdy in faith.

i sit pretty and sturdy with a boot in my lap, heel a reminder of place. my knees set in the hardwood in prayer.

my shoulders and chest serve, as a place to rest one weary boot while my hands cradle the other, she knows i'm built for the weight.

i grace the leather with spit as i do my lover, a practiced tongue in loving ritual. circles from an aching hold, palm gliding against my work.

i see the glitter of my eye in the mirrored leather, my devoted touch shines in the low light of morning. all may witness the glow in the light of a private prayer in the dark.

[canis-harte]

I was recently told by a bootblack that pleather boots Can be given the blacking experience by the way! He advised glycerine soap to clean, skip conditioning, and polish with a cream polish for these matte boots

[moon-mp4]

here, let me take care of those for you 🖤

[freakqueer]

soon to be in the etsy shop: a new zine about bootblacking!

[midnight-roses-candy]

I was today years old when I realized that bootblacking (as a kink) is actually about polishing boots and not about humping one’s pussy against a boot. I suppose the context in which it is generally brought up had perhaps affected my expectation of what it was. Still not my thing (not really into footwear/feet in general), but at least polishing one’s boots by hand or with tools seems much more sanitary than doing it with one’s genitals (and probably better for leather and most other boot materials anyway).

[x-raykinks]

Congrats on the bootblacking gig! Have fun!!!

Thanks! I had a lot of fun and got a lot of praise from people I admire, it was really a great couple nights.

This is a high shine I did. For my first time in the stand I thought it was amazing.

[daturaropebite]

I love the Leather Community because sometimes you mention wanting to get an expensive upgrade to your kit and a Bootblack comes out of the woodwork and offers to pay for said upgrade simply because they want to spread the joy that is the *fancy* boot polish.

My heart is bursting with the love of my community 🖤

[redvinylkitty]

Straight bar lacing. 🥾❤️

--Please leave my caption--