A History Lesson in Rubber
Posted by Kinksteire on 24th Dec 2020
A History Lesson in Rubber
By Kinksteire
Rubber / Latex has been part of humankind for centuries. It was primarily used in domestic day to day amenities, but it was not long until it became a focal point of the fetish community. In the past, wearing rubber was often seen as a being freaky, weird or even a small bit scandalous. However, as the years rolled by and through understanding and acceptance, the rubber people have been released from the underbelly of society and have embraced their slickness.
While a lot of us love rubber, many of us may not know its origins and its journey. With that being said, please join me as I navigate through the complex and interesting history of rubber, starting off with the roots….as in the tree roots.
The Rubber Tree
Latex is sourced from over 200 trees/plants from the spurge family known as ‘Euphorbiacea’. The most common latex source comes from Hevea brasiliensis a.k.a. the Prava rubber tree, the sharinga tree, the seringueira or most commonly known as the rubber tree / plant.
In the wild, the rubber tree can reach heights of 43m (141ft). However, most the world’s rubber is harvested from rubber plantations in tropical and sub-tropical climates around the globe. The plant thrives in these types of climates, especially where there is a minimum of 1,200mm in rainfall per year and no frost. Author’s sidenote: I was listening to music while writing this and Rain on Me by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande came on and in my head I imagined hundreds of rubber trees swaying back and forth to the song in the rain……weird I know.
Unlike their wild counterparts, plantation rubber trees are generally smaller in size. This due to two reasons. The first is that the trees send to grow more slowly when they are harvested for latex and the other being that they are normally chopped down after 30 years or so (Latex production decreases with age).
The process of latex harvesting is know as ‘tapping’. The inner bark is where the latex is produced, so in order to get to the source, the outer bark is pealed back, therefore damaging the inner part and in turn being the secretion process. The latex (in a milky white colour) slowly drips down the trunk and is collected in buckets strapped to the tree.
Production
Once the latex is harvested, latex production companies start to filter the latex so it can be packaged in drums and transported to the next destination. The latex needs to be dried and once the water is removed, the latex turns into a sensitive crumb-like material.
Once the drying process has finished, the latex is diluted and added with acid to make ribbed smoke sheets. After this, the rubber must stand for several hours and then pressed to squeeze out any more water. These sheets are hung in smoke house for a week before they are shipped off.
Not all latex is natural in fact. Synthetic latex is made of petroleum-based chemicals. The chemicals are used to make synthetic rubber polymers. These polymers which are clumped and dried are sent to the manufacturing plant where they are mixed.
Origins
The first known use of rubber was by the indigenous cultures in Mesoamerica. Archaeologists have discovered that the earliest Mesoamerican people, the Olmec people to be more exact (2,500 - 400 BCE), used latex from the rubber tree for making balls for the Mesoamerican ballgame. So the next time you put on your rubber catsuit, thank the Olmec people.
With the Age of Exploration and the invasion of new lands abroad, latex made its way to Europe. French explorer, Charles Marie de la Condamine is said to have introduced rubber samples to the Academie Royale des Sciences of France in 1736.
In 1770, Joseph Priestly, an English chemist (and great-great-great grandfather of Devil Wears Prada character and editor-in-chief, Miranda Priestly) noticed that a piece of latex material was able to rub off pencil marks on paper. This is where the word ‘rubber’ comes from.
In 1876, English explorer smuggled 70,000 Amazonian rubber tree seeds from Brazil and sent them to Kew Gardens in England. Out of the 70,000 seeds germinated and they were send to numerous countries across the globe including India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Singapore just to name a few. This was the start of the period known as ‘the rubber boom’
Unfortunately, the rise in rubber production involved a great deal of evil and atrocities. In the early 1900s, the Congo Free State was a major producer of latex. The harvesting and production were mostly accumulated by forced labour enforced by Belgian King, Leopold II’s tyrannical government. The cruel and sadistic ways to enforce rubber quotas during this time involved the removal of hands of victims to prove that they had been slaughtered, and villages that resisted or disobeyed were destroyed to warn off anymore disobedience. Author sidenote: Leopold was a dick. I have a history degree and I think I’m qualified to say, Leopold was an absolute dick.
As the 20th century progressed, rubber was used to manufacture many common items that we see today, such as tyres, balloons, gloves and of course condoms.
The Rise of Rubber Fashion
In 1824, the Macintosh raincoat was invented. According to the BBC, this invention created a community of rubber aficionados whose letters of praise for the ‘thrill of macking’ (fetish slang for wearing the coat) were published in London Life in the early 1920s. This love in turn created The Mactintosh Society, which is known to be one of England’s first fetish societies. The perverse nature of this group grew and with the rise in prudish criticism, the rubber acceptance began to dwindle. However, this was to change in the post-war era.
In the 1950s, rubber fashion was brought to the forefront again due to the work of British designer John Sutcliffe, who is credited for creating the first rubber catsuit. The 1960s were in full swing and the show ‘The Avengers’ featured many of its actors in rubber clothing.
With the rise in obsession of rubber clothing, Sutlcliffe founded Atomage Magazine in 1972. The publication was devoted to pictures that depicted latex clothing, bondage etc.
With the advent of the punk era in the 1970s, rubber became synonymous with the scene. SEX, a boutique run by Malcolm McLauren and Vivienne Westwood in London, sold rubber garments along with leather and bondage gear in the mid-1970s.
Jumping forward to the 1990s, the rubber catsuit was popularised by Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman in Batman forever.
As we entered the 21st Century, rubber fashion started to become more mainstream in the fashion world. Celebrities like Gaga, Kylie, Beyonce and the Kardashians just to name a few were often seen wearing rubber.
With the introduction of social media sites likes Instagram and Twitter and fetish apps/ websites like Recon and Fetlife (and of course groups and events), rubber lovers were able to find like minded people and become more open with their fetish and fully embraced their kinky side.
While of course a small amount of people may still see wearing rubber/ latex as being weird and make look down upon the act, it does not really matter. If rubber makes you happy, then it makes you happy. You are unique and it is totally normal.
If you’re thinking about getting into rubber, do it. Your journey, just like the history of rubber may be complex, but I’m sure it will result in a happy ending.
If you would like to know more about rubber or would just like to chat and get advice, the links to my Instagram and Recon are below.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kinksteire/