Rope and knot advice

Maddiel1

Really Experienced
Joined
Sep 30, 2011
Posts
643
Hello all, I need some advice regarding ropes and knots. What kind of rope photographs well? Also what are some simple knots or rigging setups (i don't know if I'm using that term right) for novices? I've seen some absolutely lovely rope work but I don't think I can do thst. At this point I'm just looking for simple yet pretty. Any help or advice will be appreciated.


I realize there is another thread asking about rope, but my questions are a little different and it would have been impolite hijacking the gentleman's thread. So I figured I'd start my own.
 
As for knots - hide them for photographs. Tie them in places that are out of the shot or tuck them behind the ropes. Knots generally never look good on photos.

For the rope your best bet would be cotton colored thick ropes. They look elegant, but they are less practical. Don't use white - use red or black.

With ropework you really want to make it neat, lined up, so no ropes are twisted or go over each other. Watch tutorials online to learn good ties - they aren't that hard, all of them.
 
As for knots - hide them for photographs. Tie them in places that are out of the shot or tuck them behind the ropes. Knots generally never look good on photos.

For the rope your best bet would be cotton colored thick ropes. They look elegant, but they are less practical. Don't use white - use red or black.

With ropework you really want to make it neat, lined up, so no ropes are twisted or go over each other. Watch tutorials online to learn good ties - they aren't that hard, all of them.

Thank you for the tips! I knew none of what you've told me, so I do appreciate the advice. I'm curious why red or black rope and where the heck do I find it?
 
you can get it on aliexpress if you want. Or in bondage stores.

Why red or black? Well, you don't want to go with blues or greens, because they are cold colors, less sexy and fiery. You don't want yellow because it has low contrast with skin (unless maybe on deeply tanned or african-american models, I don't know about that). And colored rope just looks neater than natural hues of brown that uncolored rope will have.

Don't get me wrong, it depends on what sort of photos you want. If you want very classy, playboy-kind of photos, go with colored rope. If you are going for a more dungeon-like feel, natural rope may be preferrable.

In either case, you need your ties to look very neat and lined up. rope-to-rope, several parralel loops, everything symmetrical.
Also rope is like lingerie. THe main focus is your model, not the rope, even if you are snapping parts of the body.
 
Check out Ken Marcus's tumblr site. It will give you a lot of ideas. Nezhul is right that black and red rope are good colors for a fetish- glam look. I like natural hemp rope for the smell and the look. The texture of the rope is more visible. For an excellent beginner how to guide try Douglas Kent's complete shibari guide.
 
As much as I usually think Nezhul's advice is sound, you know your body best & what colours look good on you. There's a girl who uses bubblegum pink in her YouTube vids; not my cuppa, but she likes pink so it works for her.
Twisted Monk and Wither & Dye have good ropes but please make sure you get a pair of EMT shears - safety is sexy!
There's plenty of harnesses you can try, even on yourself (chest, hip, torso, legs, feet, etc), but please please PLEASE do not try suspension without an experienced rigger.
 
As much as I usually think Nezhul's advice is sound, you know your body best & what colours look good on you. There's a girl who uses bubblegum pink in her YouTube vids; not my cuppa, but she likes pink so it works for her.
Twisted Monk and Wither & Dye have good ropes but please make sure you get a pair of EMT shears - safety is sexy!
There's plenty of harnesses you can try, even on yourself (chest, hip, torso, legs, feet, etc), but please please PLEASE do not try suspension without an experienced rigger.

Most definitely not!! I would never dream of doing something that complicated or dangerous without an experienced person on hand to take care of me. I'm thinking of a very simple and clean look.

I've got olive skin and really dark hair, so with clothing, red always looks good on me. So maybe I red rope would look good? I haven't a clue if that same reasoning would work in bondage. I've opened up a whole world when I decided to try this out! But in a way I'm glad, it's been so interesting hearing everyone's advice and looking at the different bondage photos. It's a whole new world that I'm exploring. (Unintentional Aladdin reference)
 
When it comes to artistic purposes, think of rope as lingerie. What colors suit you best? Which areas should e defined. In that regard, red rope will suit you jut as good as red lingerie.

But be careful. If you ARE going to wear lingerie too, make sure that your rope is different color.

Also, no matter how simple the bondage is, make it a rule to have tweezers or safe scissors on hand. Just make sure that the instrument you use is safe and has blunt ends, so that it can be safely fit between the rope and skin if it so happens that you need to cut it.

Are you doing self-bondage? I didn't understand that.
 
When it comes to artistic purposes, think of rope as lingerie. What colors suit you best? Which areas should e defined. In that regard, red rope will suit you jut as good as red lingerie.

But be careful. If you ARE going to wear lingerie too, make sure that your rope is different color.

Also, no matter how simple the bondage is, make it a rule to have tweezers or safe scissors on hand. Just make sure that the instrument you use is safe and has blunt ends, so that it can be safely fit between the rope and skin if it so happens that you need to cut it.

Are you doing self-bondage? I didn't understand that.

No the photographer that I'm working with will be helping in the process.
 
Agreed! Artistic ropework should make you feel the same as good lingerie.
Hot...sexy...beautiful...desirable...(and that's without being restrained)

It is smart to ask questions about a new adventure.
I hope you have a wonderful time!
 
I've seen some people have rescue hooks or belt cutters instead of EMT shears. You also want to learn where not to tie for risk of nerve compression.

As far as aesthetics, the look you're after is up to you. I like colored rope as well as natural rope. I like all colors of rope including blue. I think it's a matter of personal preference. You may want to do a bit of research on how different types of rope feels.
 
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