Rope bondage is an art which has developed in Japan over centuries originally in the martial arts and then as an erotic practice (known as shibari). Rope is appealing for its safety, aesthetic, and the sensual feeling against the skin.
A single-column is a common shibari tie. It's easy to learn and ensures the rope doesn't tighten when it's being pulled, which can cause unnecessary discomfort and potential damage.
We'll demonstrate how to tie a single-column knot on an arm below.
Always use proper rope, never twine, washing line or anything too thin.
Jute, hemp, or cotton rope work best against the skin. You will generally want the rope to be about 6 mm in diameter (sometimes as small as 4 mm) and between 7 – 8 m long.
Make sure you have a pair of safety shears that you can keep handy.
Before starting, make sure the person being tied takes off any wrist jewelry/watches.
Then take the rope and fold it in half so the looped end is in your right hand and the rest is held by your left hand.
Use your right hand to wrap the rope loosely around the wrist twice (above the joint to avoid circulation problems).
The four ropes along the wrist should not twist or overlap each other, as this would create too much pressure in one spot.
Cross the lower rope end over the other end and then tuck it underneath all the ropes at the wrist.
Pull the rope through without twisting its shape. keep the knot from coming undone.
There should be room to move the wrist within the tie, but not enough to slip the hand out of the tie. You should be able to slide a couple fingers underneath the ropes.
GIF illustrating how to wrap the rope around wrists
Use your left hand to make a loop and pull the other end through.
Create another loop and pull the end through again. Pull tight on the knot — it shouldn’t tighten on the wrist at all, and you should still be able to slip a couple of fingers between the ropes and the wrist.
Secure the other end to a stable piece of furniture like a headboard or bed legs. You can use a more standard knot or use the single-column knot again for practice.
REMEMBER: Never leave someone alone when they’re tied up - not even for a minute!
If you’re already comfortable with bondage, try kicking things up a notch:
* Instead of tying someone to the bed, play with positions where they’re tied to themselves, like wrists to ankles. Then you have the freedom to roll them over and play from different angles.
* Try some predicament bondage where the position they’re in forces choices about what kind of discomfort to feel.
* Add toys! Rope conducts vibration well so adding a vibrator to your play can be lots of fun, you can also use rope to tie toys in place, or make a DIY strap-on harness.
Have fun! 😘