A table covered with BLUF merchandise
A group of leather men manning a stall
Last day of the market today! Final chance to get tie clips and badges at special Darklands prices
A photo of four men in leather behind a desk at Darklands, with the caption "We're open" and the text of the post below the image
We're open! It's day two at Darklands. Come and find the team in the community area, and get your tie clips and badges at special Darklands prices.
“Boot blacking has to be the most unique and utilitarian of popular leather fetishes. A symbolic exchange of power and an actual exchange of money that can be legally performed in public. It combines service, history and tradition with the dignity of labor and the sensual feel of grease on leather. Theirs is a restorative art which makes us all look better.”
Interesting thoughts on Boot blacking from Robert Davolt's "Painfully Obvious"
Two men in leather stand behind a table in a booth with the BLUF banner
Still time to grab some BLUF merch today at Darklands. And we'll be there tomorrow and Sunday too
The market opens at 1300 tomorrow. Don't forget to grab your BLUF merch at our stand in the community area
This is insane. And horrific.State harassment of someone, just because they changed their name. Nothing else.
Ah; clearly a case of The Lost Language of Cranes.
Great ideas don't have to be BIG ideas Sometimes, all it takes is one ot two people to make something amazing That's how everything starts
Great ideas don't have to be BIG ideas
A poster for Fetish Socials United with the BLUF logo
BLUF is part of the Fetish Socials United gathering at Beyond Darklands. Saturday 7th March, 13:00-15:00 at the Mr S Leather stage
You may have noticed a brief service interruption on BLUF just now; apologies.
Just be grateful you didn't get the 1000 error emails in your inbox too.
How is the Royal Mail app so awful? I can't get the 'Proof of posting' bit to work at all on Android. On iPhone I've been trying to sign in for over half an hour.
If I was actually trying to get proof of postage at the postbox, like they suggest, I'd probably be arrested for loitering.
A man stands behind a table with the BLUF flag on the front, and an array of flyers and leaflets
Here's me at our Darklands stand in 2018. This year, you can meet our new team, and buy tie clips and badges and special discounts.
Come find us in the community area next weekend.
Welcome to March! This month there are 45 events in the #BLUFclub calendar. #gayleather Find them all here: http://bluf.com/events/thismonth
New customs rules come into force in France on Monday 2nd March. This may affect items we post from London, like tie clips and badges. If you can, buy in person at Darklands next week, or wait until we are clearer on whether or not you will have to pay extra fees on delivery.
De nouvelles règles douanières entrent en vigueur en France le lundi 2 mars. Cela pourrait avoir une incidence sur les articles que nous expédions depuis Londres, tels que les pinces à cravate et les badges. Si possible, achetez en personne chez Darklands la semaine prochaine, ou attendez que nous sachions plus précisément si vous devrez payer des frais supplémentaires à la livraison.
Store update / Mise à jour du magasin
Yes; and my browser can translate it for me.
But, a) I'd rather not rely on machine translation for something with legal consequences and b) even in translation, there doesn't appear to be anything that matches what I actually need to do
And I know it's a little arrogant to demand information in English, but this new system starts Monday, and will require many foreign enterprises to register. But I can't see anything, with my level of French, that makes it clear exactly what to do.
If I had hair, I'd be tearing it out over the new customs rules for France; the Royal Mail description sends me to a French website to register. Which is entirely in French; it looks like I have to register a company in France. Maybe I can register my Estonian one there, but my French isn't up to it
An image of the March page from the BLUF 2026 calendar, showing a man in full leather leaning against a wall
There's still time to get a BLUF calendar
bluf.com/calendar
Now that it's on the website, I guess I can tell everyone that one of the things in "What Nigel did next" is joining the selection committee for the Leather Hall of Fame
leatherhalloffame.com/selection-co...
I don't think I shall be trying on any footwear other than comfy slippers
Random question for sporty/medical people:
I just stumbled carrying a pile of books, and now I have a pain down the back of my ankle, which is worse when I flex it.
Best treatment: Heat? Cold? Ice pack? Pain killers? Lie down? Lift it up?
A pricelist for BLUF sales in Antwerp. Tie clips: €25 Key rings:€15 Embroidered bages: €7 or €7.50 Logo badges: €15 Roundel badge: €12.50
Heading to Beyond Darklands? Don't forget to stop by the BLUF stand, where you can meet volunteers, and the new admin team, and find out more about the club.
You can also buy merch in person, which means you'll save a fair bit compared to the online prices. Come get your tie clips and badges!
I know some of you have Amazon Wishlists. You may want to check this out, if so
I'm not just posting all these for you to thirst over, and to make sure there's nice things on this new account to look at.
I've been thinking - prompted by a recent chat - about what happens to our legacy of kink when we're gone.
Will all these moments be lost forever, like tears in the rain?
Hello there; as I step back from BLUF, you'll find my own views and posts on kink and other stuff here. Nothing said on this account should be taken to be the official view of any group I am, or have been, involved with.
May contain filth; TERFs not welcome.
I mean, maybe just stop selling to France temporarily, like we've had to do with the US.
Oh such fun... from 1st March, there's an additional €2 per item on things we send to France, in addition to the VAT. And I probably need to register with the French tax authorities to be able to submit the information, because IOSS isn't actually a One Stop Shop anymore.
I suppose at least this means I have a spare tablet for nefarious playroom purposes!
Bought a new tablet for the team to use for our Point of Sale in Antwerp, because I thought the old one was locked away in a storage unit.
So, of course, I've just found the original one in a box in the flat...
A circular aluminium disc with a screw through the middle
Working on a fun little DIY project ... More pics later
