The Church Street Fetish Fair took over six blocks in the Village yesterday to celebrate all things leather, lace, fetish and fantasy. While there was much talk ahead of the weekend about how this year's fair was going to be dialed down a few notches, it still seemed crowds were excited to come out and strut their stuff. It's true, though, that the fair seemed like something of a shadow of its former self and nothing like what a fetish fair should be (see the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco for the model for this type of thing).

The rock climbing wall, ferris wheel, mechanical bull ride and even the roast corn booth seemed like force fits for the event and didn't see much action while I was there. The real excitement this year seemed to be off of the main street and inside the bars and clubs and on the overflowing patios at places like Boutique Bar, Steamworks and Flash. Sure, there were plenty who dressed up for the occasion in their best leather, military, cop attire and superhero outfits but it was too bad that the best leather was confined to the patio of Zipperz, a couple blocks south of the official event zone.

Check out more photos of the event below and stay tuned later in the day for a special street style post from the Church Street Fetish Fair.

Photos by Jesse Milns