Is it really a question on people’s minds if the answer is so obvious?
The question: Does sex still sell?
The answer: Obviously.
To kick off London Fashion Week SS27, R&M Leathers “Miss Leathers” staged a runway at East London’s Round Chapel to explore leather culture, sex icons, and downright fun.
Unlike some traditional fetish brands, R&M, and founder Ruby Mariani, approach leather with a more gentle and approachable use. There’s nothing wrong with traditional fetishwear, but this collection combines pieces that can be worn in the streets or the sheets, even though the looks of this runway do skew more sheet-friendly.
As the show was in collaboration with PornHub, some potentially familiar faces, like Asa Akira, Elly Clutch, and Frances Bentley, walked the pageant style runway. It only makes sense to have a show that talks about sex to have some people whose job is sex on it.
While this is R&M’s and PornHub’s first London Fashion Week show, it’s not PornHub’s first collaboration of this kind. They’ve worked with Shayne Oliver in 2017, Ludovic de Saint Sernin in 2022, and Vaquera in 2024, all in the effort to remove stigma around sex and sex workers in a time where anti-sex ideology is on the rise. Plus, as any designer could tell you, it is expensive putting on a fashion show. There were no doubts about PornHub’s presence, especially with the bedazzled PornHub t-shirts that had the logo sitting comfortably across the model’s chests.
As the models entered the stage, they appeared through peep show-esque drapes and strutted down a walkway that was constructed more as a pageant style than a typical straight-line runway, all to call back to the televised glamour of old beauty pageants. That’s why some models had big teased hair, leather bikinis in the signature PornHub orange and black, and one piece leather swimsuits that looked surprisingly comfortable to be in.
At first, the collection felt too basic to be seen as actually subversive. A deconstructed, two piece leather maid outfit (paired with matching white ‘cuffs’ and frilly black and white bag) or a co-ordinated set of a black, long sleeve, tight midriff shirt with lowrise leather trousers and a huge silver belt buckle felt so on the nose for what would be expected of a show about sex. And it is quite hard to make a statement with only three colours: orange, black, and white.
But, as the collection unfolded, the baby tees, leather lingerie and two piece sets of varying tightness and lengths, all made sense. The showgirl with her teased out hair and extravagant walk, the Bavarian maid, and the bride with her skimpy skirt and matching white leather bralette, became stand-ins for the subversion of fantasy and femininity.
The craftsmanship of the handmade leather pieces was visible even from the far corners of the room, as intricate design choices like crystal rivets embellishing leather strips that beautifully cage the model’s body could only be done by another human. Bikinis were trimmed with crystals and micro-chainmail to move like a playful fringe and the dresses had intention behind silhouettes and lengths, all to draw attention exactly where was wanted.
The collection was fun. It didn’t necessarily re-invent the wheel, but it didn’t have to. 2026 is a year in an unfortunately regressive era where people are being told to be ashamed of what they love and who they love. So a fashion show showcasing femininity and sexuality in a way that has women actually feeling empowered and connected to a wider history of it is something incredible.
Sex sells and so does having some fun. Who would’ve thought?
Amongst the glistening bodies at the show afterparty, we caught up with Elly Clutch to talk about her journey in the adult content industry, walking for R&M Leathers and more.
Would you like to introduce yourself?
I am what some would label as a porn star or adult creator. I’m an adult performer, adult actress, model, and a plethora of other things.I enjoy doing different projects, but I’d say that I’m a creative, whether that’s with using my body or not.
What other projects do you do? Behind or in front of the camera?
I love to sew and I love fashion. I also work with my husband on his productions and we own our production studio. We make a lot of things just between us with our own content out of our house. We do a lot of video editing and directing ourselves. We write the scripts and we’ve won a couple of awards for it over these last few years, which is pretty cool.
How did you fall in love with being in front of the camera, with modelling, adult content, or both?
I think I’ve always loved it. Even before doing porn, I modelled a bit. It wasn’t looking good that I fell in love with, even though that’s a great benefit. Everyone likes to feel important or special, but I love being able to be a part of something. I like being able to have ideas and bring things to the table and being part of something bigger than me. Even now, I do a lot of my own content, but I like having a theme, an idea, or a direction that I’m able to follow and do it with. I fell in love with the creativity of it more than anything. When I started doing adult content, which like many others was post lockdown, because it was way too hard for me to get work. I was streaming on Twitch at the time for extra income and because it was an outlet for me to be able to be a bit social in a time where we weren’t able to see anybody. But of course, everyone wanted to see my boobs and why not? I ended up falling in love with doing adult and I found it so freeing. I fell in love with doing things on my own terms and being able to work for myself. It was all the things about modelling, like traditional modelling, that I felt like I had been critiqued for were things that were positives in the adult industry.
Like being too sexy, or your body looking a very specific way that might not align with brand values. I did a lot of lifestyle modelling at the time, so it’s not exactly creatively rewarding to do e-commerce where I’m just in front of the camera for 12 hours.
When I first started doing adult, I was bored and alone and I wanted to masturbate wearing elf ears and it was freeing that I could do that and make money. Continuing doing that, I fell in love with it. I started doing it alone but then my husband very soon joined in. It really allowed me to be able to build on somebody else’s ideas as well. And go over that roadblock that happens when you’re looking at yourself too much. It helps to have somebody who loves you to look at you and tell you, ‘Oh, I think you’re really good at this and here’s some ways that we can portray that.’ And even at the beginning, he saw that my strength is my face. And I thought, how self-critical I am, and we all are, that I probably wouldn’t have found that myself.
So speaking of connection, what was your connection with R&M Leathers, and leather in general, before the show?
I was a huge fan. I love their work and I love all the pop girls. I love Charlie XCX and Addison Rae. I bought the hard copy of the Perfect Magazine edition that had Addison Rae in it and had a tonne of R & M Leathers looks in it. It’s literally in my closet, so, it’s funny cause I feel like I accidentally manifested it. I’ve worked with PornHub a fair amount in the past and they’re doing a lot more projects and collaborations with brands now, which I think is amazing. When PornHub started doing this collaboration and asked me if I wanted to be in the show, I was over the moon. Cause I thought for the longest time that modelling was something that I would have to give up.
What’s next for you with modelling or fashion or anything in that realm?
I’d love to walk for somebody else again. I’m continuing to try and put myself in a position to just be more in the fashion space because I enjoy it so much. It’s something that I’m truly passionate about, even outside of my adult career, because it is something that I’ve always loved. I was very fortunate to meet the casting director from R&M. She’s taking me and my friend to four different shows over the next couple of days, which has made this fashion week great and crazy. Eventually I would love to be able to be more involved in this world. I don’t want to be the speaker of all sex workers, but I do think that we’re an important part of culture. Adult creators and sex workers are always talked about, but no one ever talks to us. So I want to keep being involved in this world and so hopefully in the future, more people will open their minds and see that adult performers are still performers. And you know, we’re good in front of people, we’re good in front of a camera, and we might have more of an open mind surrounding certain things. I think we approach things with more of an empathetic outlook, because we’ve dealt with so many different things and environments.
What’s been a surprise about London Fashion Week?
So much has been a surprise, but it’s been interesting seeing all the different worlds in fashion come together. We’ve ended up at the H&M after party, which is a completely different vibe than R&M Leathers. And it’s not talking down on it, but it was much more corporate and different than maybe what I expected. But overall it’s been amazing being here.
