Summer events return

Even post-vaccination the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic continues, but slowly in person events are returning to Philadelphia and around the world.

PASSION 101 HYBRID CLASSES ON SOUTH STREET
Since the shutdown of 2020 our educational offerings have moved online and have grown by leaps and bounds! Starting in August, we are offering two live classes with limited seating each month (masks required except presenter) in addition to continuing the virtual sex education. See http://Passion101Classes.com for a full list of our educational offerings

VICE PHILLY RETURNS TO BIKE STOP
Maso & friends have brought their 2nd Thursday Gear night back starting in August. Gear up in your favorite kinky couture and sexcessories and enjoy a night of admiring each other’s erotic ensembles lubricated with potions from Philly’s favorite local leather mixologists

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LIVE ARTS RETURN TO PHILLY
Perhaps one major sign of hope to downtown cities is the (limited) resumption of live concerts and shows. In Philly TLA plans a rigorous and diverse roster of shows this season with maks, vax and rapid testing precautions in place in addition to a serious injection of queer talent from Burd Events at Tabu Lounge

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NATIONAL CONVENTIONS RESUME
From Gencon and Dragoncon to Domcon and more, Indoor vax only events and gatherings hope to bring back live community without risking COVID variant exposure or undue risk.

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OUTDOOR FETISH GATHERINGS
In the fetish world, even outdoor gatherings are VAX only in an attempt to keep everyone safe. Next week’s Camp Crucible will be a lite version of an annual event that is typically  days long to reunite pods, ponies and pals who have not seen each other in person for more than 2 year, while Dark Oddyssey Summer Camp will focus on education and entertainment.

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Black Sexworker conference this june

The First Annual Black Sex Workers’ Conference happens June 17-19, 2021!

A historic worldwide event celebrating Black Sex Workers and The Black Sex Worker Collective’s third birthday commemorating Juneteenth, the end of enslavement in the United States on June 19, 1865.

The first annual Black Sex Workers’ Conference takes place June 17-19, 2021. To protect participants and to support accessibility, this event will be happening online.

This historic event will present on the theme Reliberate (Reparations is the foundation. Liberation is the plan.) Celebrating the art, intellect, lives and politics of Black Sex Workers and what it means to be liberated and compensated in the ongoing climate of Sex Worker rights in the current political framework. With presentations, films, roundtables, performances, competitions and awards honoring Sex Workers, here they represent themselves and the intersectional interests of their communities, after having being spoken about, for, and coopted for centuries.

The conference is delighted to have keynote speakers Monica Jones of The Outlaw Project (Phoenix, AZ), Christian Alexander Lovehall of Philly Trans March and Trans Masculine Advocacy Network (Philadelphia, PA), entertainer and outspoken activist BammRose (NJ/Philly), and scholar, author and Queen of radical rudeness, Dr. Stella Nyanzi (Uganda).

The conference will feature three days of presentations both live and pre-recorded, from Sex Workers and intersecting groups whose politics align greatly with Sex Worker rights. Some of the featured presenters are Black Femme Brunch, Mermaids Bring Water, Dr. Mireille Miller-Young and the Berlin Strippers Collective.

This year’s conference will feature the competition Miss Heaux World (June 18), where a winner will be crowned the top heaux after accumulating enough points through different rounds that showcases their talent, skills and how they best represent h’or energy!
Miss Heaux World is the only part of the conference where tickets can be purchased separately. To close out the conference (June 19), entertainer extraordinaire Jeez Loueez will host Release, a performance showcase featuring the amazing talent of such artists as Ms. Briq House, Onyx Sachi and Lady Londyn.

Tickets are $25-$250, with scholarships and opportunities to sponsor workers who may not otherwise have the means to attend. https://tinyurl.com/bswcevent

Virtual Halloweening in the age of covid-19

ONLINE: HALLOWEEN COSTUME CONTESTS & DRAG & METAL O MY

OCTOBER 29 CLICK HERE: FREE WIERD TALES BURLESQUE FINALE

Check out the energetic and horror-full cast of Wierd Tales October 29

BANGARANG QUARAN-SCREAM MISCHIEF NIGHT DANCE PARTY
Tune in Friday night for all the beats and all the screams

Slay Her Online Heavy Metal Drag Show
Featuring some of Philly’s most gragarious drag performers in all manner of special effects makeup with a whole lotta camp up their sleeveless tops, this show is a dragtastic good time!

PHILLY’S ROCKY HORROR TRADITION
Transylvanian Nipple Productions Philly’s own TNP is at it again, this time via Zoom

POLITICAL HALLOWEEN PARTY FUNDRAISER
American politics has never been zanier, but here is an entertaining twist: Wisonsin Democrats have assembled an all star RHPS reunion featuring guest appearances from the original stars! You need to click on it to believe it!

CLICK ON THIS to indulge in an entertaining twist on USA national politics. Any donation to the democratic party of Wisconsin gets you access to this all star reunion

Halloween Live– From a Distance

GET DRESSED, GET MASKED, GET TESTED, GO HAUNTING

Hey hey have you heard? Halloween is not cancelled, but it is quite different in 2020 than ever before in our lifetimes. With the spiking numbers of COVID-19 virus, caution has been the key to enjoying the high holidays whether your intentions are metaphysical, metaphorical or completely campy there are Halloween events online and in person (masked and socially distanced or outdoors) where you can get you kink on, make magic, indulge your fright appetites or simply dance the night away virually with friends, or live and outdoors.

For a first course, let’s look at the live events options:

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RIGHT NOW: SOCIALLY DISTANCED HAUNTED HAPPENINGS
Pennsylvania has put the stamp of cautious approval on socially distanced haunted attractions who are checking temperatures, enforcing mandatory PPE masks on actors and guests but who are still bringing on the amazing props and effects for your entertainment, so bring your whole family or COVID pod to check out some of these offerings while they are still open!
CHECK OUT OPERATIONAL HAUNTED ATTRACTIONS IN PA & NJ

HALLOWEEN WEEEKEND: MISCHEIF NIGHT DANCING UNDER THE STARS
Dance parties, fire performances & other spectacles await the masked marauders of the secret underground Rogue Mischief Night celebration: Scan below for tickets, we understand that this event sells out at 50 persons:

DOMINATRIX CALENDAR RELEASE
Another live party featuring some of Philadelphia’s firiest Dominatrix celebrities as they celebrate the release of their brand spanking new Dominatrix Calendar. More news TBA

HENRI DAVID TAKES IT TO THE STREETS
With the Halloween Ball not happening this year, local Philebrity Henri Davide will be trotting around downtown in a pumpkin shaped carriage throwing out candy to costumed creatures from 7-9pm.

Phase Yellow: Private Shopping Available 6/22-7/2/2020

As we “test drive” safety procedures to protect our customers and staff, we are implementing practices that prioritize safety and intentional practice of preventative measures to minimize contact and potential exposure to COVID-19 and other airborne illnesses. During the shutdown, we began working on a brand new website and continued to serve online customers from our homes. Since phase yellow began, we implemented curbside pickup and began preparing our building for visitors. Now, in preparation for reopening, we are starting by-appointment shopping beginning Monday, June 22.

Private Shopping allows you to book an individual appointment with our sales associates. You will be able to peruse our store much the way you would have pre-covid, but without the concern of needing to social distance from other shoppers. Appointments are 1 hour long. To book an appointment you must provide a nonrefundable deposit of $100, which will be applied to your instore purchase.

For the respect and safety of our staff and store, customers must abide by the following guidelines and restrictions while shopping.

• Staff and Customers will wear masks at all times while in the building. Masks must be worn properly, covering the nose and mouth. Customers who do not have a mask may purchase one for $1.
• 6 foot distance will be maintained between customers and staff throughout the appointment, except as is needed for brief assistance (no more than 10 minutes).
• Customers must sanitize or wash their hands before touching any merchandise.
• No more than 5 people may be included in your private shopping party.
• Clothing items may NOT be tried on in store. However customers may exchange unworn items for size or return items for store credit (non-intimate apparel only- masks, gags and intimate items are not returnable) within 14 days.
• Passional Boutique and Sexploratorium is a “Safer Space”. We honor and respect all customers and staff regardless of race, size, ability, religion, orientation or identity. We will NOT tolerate violence, harassment, or hate-speech. We will NOT tolerate racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, or body shaming.
• Passional Boutique and Sexploratorium has a zero tolerance policy for guests who perform or display any level of physical assault, consent violations, immediate threats, lewd or aggressive verbal assaults.

Failure to follow any of these guidelines and restrictions will result in immediate termination of your appointment and forfeiture of your deposit. Any feedback regarding your shopping experience may be submitted via email to passionalstaff@gmail.com.

Our website survey raffle winner is…

Kinkerbelle spins the raffle wheel an LN wins the prize!

Co-conspirators and collaborators wanted!

For the past 24 years, this business has focused on freedom of expression, pleasure and health without delving to deeply into the world of so-called “politics” Although Fetishes Boutique from the onset was LGBT-owned and operated, that was not a large part of our marketing or promotional efforts nor were the activist causes that we have passively supported since that time.

Through projects like Diabolique Ball we   causes that were close to our hearts without publicly taking a stand on many social or political issues. Projects like PASSIONAL Magazine that were city wide welcomed volunteer contributors of all types to write, model and create artistic content and we proudly distributed the magazines citywide and at select locations around the USA>

However now we are at a crossroads in history. Great strides have been made toward the acceptance of LGBT people but the progress on issues of race has surprisingly stalled to the point of danger for our colleagues and family many of whom are concerned for their safety while traveling, working and engaging in recreational activities.

As a business owned by a person of European descent, it is high time for this business to take an official stand against systems of injustice and oppression that punish “black”  and brown people out of fear, ignorance and privilege, even though these punitive actions are often committed  unintentionally.

It is time for all non-black people to take a much closer look at where and how our wealth, career advancements, advertising, business relationships  and collaborations have come from, how they have happened and who has been excluded in our competitive quests for “success” in our modern world.

This is a difficult examination for many “white” people to conduct, especially if they have not closely lived with and around non-white people because they very often are “colorblind” to the actual lived experiences and repeat offenses committed against people of color, specifically people of African descent.

Just as only the perpetrators  stop rape and sexual assaults from happening, it really falls on white people to consistently and tirelessly challenge the may vestiges of racial bias, Additionally, we need to provide safer spaces online and in our Philadelphia building for all people to access resources for self-expression, healing and pleasure.

Because the issues are complex and the remedies labor intensive, we have been taking the remaining days of COVID-19 precautions to both encourage physical safety from a novel virus and to to examine the ways we can support and foster social safety and psychological well being for those impacted by as well as those fighting against racism.

We are examining and reviewing every aspect of how our business operates to work and improve our commitment to inclusion, representation and quality.  To this end we are looking to use our “shutdown” year to reinvent and and redefine our online and instore environment to celebrate the diversity of the human species and to uplift the bodies, minds and lives of black and brown people of all persuasions.

If you are a model, photographer, writer, educator who is aligned with these goals and  would like to work with us, please contact us!

Corsets, catsuits & cosplay, O My!

We are online only and are continuing FREE shipping and FREE local delivery (order by 2pm for same day delivery within 15 miles).

We’re online only, but we are still here with all the looks you need to express your selves! Remember that customer service hours are 12-6 daily- so call us anythime at 215-829-4986 or visit PASSIONAL Online

This week’s featured items are the Vinyl Fantasia of Tatjana, lifetime warrantied corsets from Black Iris Corsetry, Rubberlutionary Latex fashions and accessories and a killer CATSUIT SALE that will remove 30%OFF of the prices when you check out those items on our website!

Ready to get catty? Check out our springtime Catsuit Sale!

Cabin fever is real. Many of us have been sitting pretty, honing our COSPLAY MAKEUP  and other skills, planning our character cosplay strategies and perfecting  performance skills allthewhile looking forward to going out on the prowl again.
Sex kittens, cat ladies, super-sheros, supervillainessess and any genderbending feline warriors have reason to rejoice this May as we celebrate the ability to slip into a whole new second skin and shift shapes or even species instantly! This is great news for femme-tastic fashionistas, dancers, performers and pervs who want to zip into a new persona  presto-change-o!

Shop  our  30% OFF catsuits for the remainder of the month while we continue to operate online only during this time when much of the world is under shutdown. Note: Your discount will be applied once you check out. Prices listed on our website are the retail price before your discount.

Our #PASSIONALpersona contest winner

We had six amazing finalists and a flurry of last minute votes once we published the final entries on May 1. But now all the votes are tallied, we are proud to announce our winner the_gothbae whose photo in our vinyl bodysuit with mask and sword and graveyard could make even a bygone spirit stir…

Local bae with severe goth tendencies submitted this socially distant but sexy photo in a PASSIONAL vinyl bodysuit

Our other finalists placed in the running and each will receive their own gift for sharing their talents and their bods with us during these homebound and spectacle starved times…

Veronica sports old-school Steampunk style with a Victorian inspired bustier and lots of lavish lace

Philly photography pro Cass P submitted a cover shot previously featured on Numinous Magazine

Professor M is rocking our waterproof neoprene suspenders in a nontraditional spin on collegiate contagion on Instagram with 51 likes

Local leatherman and bisexual actived Jim S submitted a photo of his fashionable march during the Philadelphia Pride Parade

Alexi submitted this portait of pensive isolation with a nod to the dark arts in this dominatrix witch dress from the archives.

• Our first runner up with a last minute rally of votes was steampunk goddess and community activist BloomsintheNight
• Our second runner up was local photographer SyntheticShadows
• Our third runner up was the indominable bearded Professor M
• Our fourth runner up was Jim S.
• And finally, our fifth runner up was LexieCoreYoga

We’d like to thank everyone who participated in this #onlinechallenge and to warn you that we may do it again. Maybe in June for Pride Month, so get your fabulous on and tell your friends!