Getting Started with Rope
Article:
Basics for Any Play
Before getting into how to actually tie or be tied, you should spend some time learning about how to establish your boundaries, identify safe play partners and environments, negotiate for the play that you want, and so forth. The Topping Book and Bottoming Book by Dossie Easton and Janet Hardy are good introductory resources on BDSM play and relationships.
Advice for negotiating rope play in particular can be found at Negotiation and Consent.
Navigating the Rope Community
I've summarized some advice regarding the most common pitfalls while navigating the rope community in this one-page handout, which may also be freely printed and distributed at events.
Additional Resources for Bottoms
While I encourage bottoms to learn as much about tying as they can, and in particular to view all the various safety information on this site, I don't currently have a lot of content posted specifically about rope bottoming skills. Eventually I hope to expand Crash Restraint to include a true educational program for rope bottoms, but in the meantime, I suggest you check out the following excellent rope bottoming educators:
- Evie Vane has written the must-read Little Guide to Getting Tied Up, and also has a YouTube channel.
- Tifereth has some videos available on Kink University of her more advanced rope bottoming classes.
Screening Partners
I highly recommend using the Rope Bottoms’ Share Group to check up on people before letting them tie you up. There are real predators out there, some of whom even move from city to city as they get banned in various local communities. While it's no silver bullet, checking up on potential partners both in the group, and by asking other local bottoms, can greatly reduce the risks.
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Very educating . We love your site and will be learning from it for some time to come.
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As someone who's a former member of the International Guild of Knot Tyers (long before shibari arrived) with a background in military engineering, rope handling is something I learned long ago.
When handling long lengths, for example, never ever disturb the pile it landed in: as long as what landed on top is still on top, it will lift off easily 99 times out of 100.
When handling rope, keep one hand for the rope and one for yourself, which is another way of saying use one to control it so it doesn't flail around and the other to work with it. This way I can use far longer ropes than the lengths most people do: it's just a question of experience, as you also develop speed.
When freestyling, remember that shibari's far more about frictions than knots. A friction wraps the foundation line: a knot secures it. Ideally you only want to end with a knot.
And finally, the basic philosophy, because it's not been mentioned: keep it Safe, keep it Sane, keep it Consensual. SSC, every time. It's all very well a rigger attacking the work aggressively, partly to demonstrate their dominance, partly to do a crisp job, but that shouldn't be a constant, imho. A master is certain in what they do, but also measured in doing it.
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That was really great information to read. Those idiomatic lessons are much easier to remember in the heat of learning. Thank you.
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It should be possible.
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j'aime beaucoup
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ok get it
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I have worked in firefighting and rescue, so I’m not new when it comes ropes. But this particular form is a new area so it would be interesting to learn.
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