Riegillio de Wagt is a fashion designer whose work is as unique as his first name (more on that later). He has received a lot of praise for his innovative clothing brand Mr. Riegillio that is a crossover between fetish and fashion. Wings sat down to talk to this talented and humble Dutchman about his favourite designs and his love for unconventional materials.
What is Mr. Riegillio?
“We are a new clothing brand that sees potential in fabrics that others don’t. Our goal is to make fetish more fashionable and the other way around. The material we are most known for is PVC. It is a very luxurious item in the fashion world and it is quite small in the fetish scene, especially for men. The big fashion brands like to use it and that was a trigger for me when I came up with our first designs. This crossover between the worlds of fashion and fetish means that we appeal to a bigger audience. There are hip, fashionable youngsters who like to combine our PVC dress shirts with denim jeans and a good pair of sneakers, but there are also fetishists who want to wear a complete PVC outfit with leather boots.”
How did you get started in fashion?
“As a designer I am completely self-taught. I have never learned how to sow from anyone. When I was 14 years old I started changing clothes by cutting up t-shirts and pants, and I used to put my own prints on t-shirts as well. I signed those pieces with ‘Mr. Riegillio’ and that name stuck with me. The name ‘Riegillio’ is unique: I am the only person who appears in the search results when you Google it. So I thought it was a good idea to keep it. When I go to fashion parties I like to steal the show. Last year I was looking for materials that would make an impact and I found a bolt of PVC. I made an outfit with it, wore it to a party and within a week I received hundreds of enthusiastic reactions. People thought it was fun, exciting and whack. It was mega successful. Two months later I started producing my first Mr. Riegillio branded PVC clothing and within half a year Mister B sold part of our collection in its stores. It all went really quickly.”
You must be very proud of that!
Riegillio says nothing, but he answers with a huge smile on his face.
Fetishists new to PVC might like to know what the material feels like when you wear it…
“It feels smooth and soft to the touch, and it crackles a little when you grab hold of it. It feels like greased up rubber. Unlike rubber, PVC is lined on the inside; it would be impossible to put it on or off otherwise. I often receive erotic pictures from customers in our clothing, but at the same time I get pics from people in trains or on terraces wearing our PVC shorts. That is the clear difference with latex and rubber. You won’t see people wearing them while they are waiting for their flight at the airport in Milan. Our clothes embody fetish and fashion: you can wear them in the supermarket, and you can have sex in them. Our PVC pants and mini short for example have a zip that goes from the back to the front. Ideal for playing!”
What is your favourite Mr. Riegillio piece?
“I am most proud of our PVC tracksuit which consists of a jacket and a pant. It is the perfect combination of fetish, fashion and sport. The tracksuits were very well received. Sportswear boys love them and fashion people go for them as well.”
Is it difficult to work with a material like PVC? Does it limit your creativity sometimes?
“PVC can’t handle too much pressure, so you can’t make an outfit with a lot of applications because it is not strong enough for that. Making an overall or a full biker suit is also difficult since it doesn’t stretch enough. You could of course make one, but you would have to stand up all the time when wearing it. PVC might not be the easiest material to work with, but it forces you to think and ask questions. What can I make from it that is fun and innovative? And what look will fit the material best?”
What other fabrics do you use for your brand?
“I also like to work with leather and high quality artificial leather. We use an artificial leather that is thick, which makes it look more like the real deal. True leather men will immediately see if a piece is made from real or fake leather, but for young people with a smaller budget it is a nice alternative. During the Leather Pride in Antwerp we actually sold gear made from artificial leather to some diehard leather men, which pleasantly surprised us. We never thought that would happen. At the moment I am designing new items made from a reflective material and silver artificial leather, and I am working on PVC dungarees. There is a lot more coming up that I can’t reveal yet. You will just have to keep an eye out for us!”
Photography by: Rene Zuiderveld
Make sure to check out Mr. Riegillio in our online store www.misterb.com or hop on over to one of our brand stores in fetish capitols Amsterdam, Berlin and Antwerp and try on some Mr. Riegillio gear yourself!
