Power Move
About the Raezor Latex Collection
Click here to see the Power Move fashion film and collection.
Prologue
There are very few times in any person’s life where they are encouraged to be aggressive, particularly if you’re a woman. While I have been told I have dominant energy by many, I am always de-escalating altercations that could result in violence rather than encouraging them. As a lover of action movies (always rooted in fantasy or sci/fi, of course) I was always interested in martial arts, but there was always someone discouraging me from learning. Last year I said “fuck it,” joined an MMA gym, and fell in love with kickboxing. One point of clarification before moving forward: I am a beginner. I am not competing nor do I plan to, and I’ve been having so much fun. Being encouraged to advance on people and actually attempt to hit or kick someone is incredibly freeing, even if it means I’m going to have to take a punch here or there. And let’s be honest, everyone is being nice to me and not trying to actually take me out. I made friends, and then lockdown hit, and these new friends became the people I saw the most because we all wanted to stay active and watch the fights while giving each other foot rubs.
Power Move, the collection, began with an idea for one piece: a catsuit that would match my boxing gloves so I could take super cute latex photos while punching things. Danielle, a friend I made through the gym, gave me the idea to expand the design from one piece to an entire collection (shoutout to Danielle, special guest on Season 2 of my podcast). Aline let me know if I ever needed a model, she’d be happy to help. I approached my kickboxing instructor, Moe, who is also an incredibly talented photographer, and asked if he would be interested in collaborating with me on a photoshoot and potentially a short fashion film. After three late nights, some mild arguing, calls to our other friends, and a hell of a lot of sketches later, we had a collection and apparently a fashion film with fight choreography to practice.
Inspiration
This collection is about knowing what your body is capable of and feeling empowered by your own strength. Power Move is an ode to the commitment we make to competing with ourselves to be better and do better, both in the gym and outside of it. The design elements in this collection came from that initial catsuit and are inspired by the experiences my gym friends and I shared training together, as well as from watching their movements during classes and sparring. The shapes around the hips and under bust are inspired by the twists of the hips for almost every move. The thick swooshes that end in sharp points are an imitation of the full body movement that goes into the final, powerful targeted strike. The colours were chosen to mimic the bold colours people choose for their UFC shorts, when they aren’t wearing black, but the designs and colours were also influenced by my childhood love of Power Rangers, Sailor Moon, and my current love of Marvel movies. The collection is also in the only colours I wear to the gym (black, red, yellow, white). The collection pieces are cut specifically to accommodate the bodies of the athletes doing martial arts; there are crotch gores (a shaped panel that inserts into stress points of a garment to allow more range of motion) for easier kicks and open underarms to accommodate overhand punches.
Fight Training Montage Goes Here
Choosing my friends to model was an obvious choice. We were already somewhat bubbled, and they would be capable of the physicality of the fight sequences. Every week for three months I made or altered a new collection outfit, and we met in pairs to learn and refine the fight choreography. I want someone to be able to watch this film and know that you don’t need to have a specific body type or shape to be able to learn a new movement or skill, or to look great in latex. My friends showed up as they are. I made the latex to fit them and not the other way around. I want people to feel the confidence we feel, a confidence born of knowing what we are capable of.
Just as you need to be unflinching when your opponent throws a punch, this film is unflinching in the face of the stigma that surrounds latex as a material. While leather has made it into the mainstream as a fashion material, latex is consistently associated with fetish. Power Move fights stigma with its sheer existence, and it aims to bring latex out of the dungeon and into the ring.
Fashion films usually depict an idea or a concept rather than a linear story. The aim of this film and this collection is to evoke the feeling that you are powerful, you are capable, and you have everything you need.