So you want to learn rope bondage?
To get started, you’ll first need some rope. See How to Choose Rope to get started.
General Beginner Topics
All rope students should start in the beginner section. You should practice every day until you are proficient in the Lessons 1-8. Lessons 9 & 10 cover how to treat and maintain rope, which you should know about but typically don’t have to do except when first buying rope, so they are included in this beginner material for completeness.
• What do “rope top” and “bunny” mean
• Square Knot vs Granny Knot (single strand)
• Running End and Bight End (double strand tying)
Single Columns
A single column means we tie one piece of the body, a limb— like an arm or a leg. Make sure not to tie around the ankles, knees, or wrists. It’s called a single column because we are tying around one column.
While you only need to learn one single column, not all single columns are equally effective. Some collapse (which means they will lose their shape and not stay secure), some loosen (which means they can become undone), and some collapse & loosen. You will start here and learn Basic overhand + square, overhand with slip knot (quick release).
The single column that you will learn that does not collapse or loosen is the Sommerville bowline.
More single columns are not listed here (see extra credit for a few ideas). Most rope tops have a go-to single column they get comfortable with and stick with for general purposes.
While getting started with the first single column, we’ll cover these topics:
• “Two finger” test for binding someone’s limb
• Keep tension while holding rope
• Running down the body or running up the body
| 1. | Single column overhand + square |
| 2. | Single column overhand with a slip knot for quick-release |
| 3. | The Sommerville Bowline (pronounced “bowlin“) Shibari Study video, Youtube 1, Youtube 2 |
Double Columns
A Double column means we tie two pieces of the body— for example, two arms or two legs (or a leg and an arm). In the double-column tie, we tie one limb to another limb. You will do double columns in Lessons #5 and #6.
Double
| 4. | Double column |
| 5. | Double column spread bar |
| 6. | Leg ladders — don’t tie around the ankles or knees! |
When doing longer ties on a bunny, you will eventually run out of rope.
To fix that, you’ll need to extend your rope. Some ropes ship with tied ends and others have whipped ends. (“Whipped ends” means that a small thread holds the end together to keep it from fraying.)
If you have whipped ends, you must use a technique to extend your rope: In Lesson #7, we’ll cover the Lark’s head extension, but you can also use the Sheet bend method (not covered). If you have knotted ends, you can form a lark’s head around knot and pull it tight to extend your rope. If you have knotted ends but prefer whipped ends, see Lesson #10 below.
Be sure to finish here with Lesson #8 to learn how to tie your rope up for storage.
| 7. | Extending rope using a Lark’s head |
| 8. | Tying up your rope for storage when done |
If you’ve completed all 8 lessons and are are proficient in all of the ties above, you may start attending any of the Intermediate classes or workshops.
If you want to stay in the Beginner material a bit longer, learn how to do drilling: that’s when you do the tie again and again and again to create the muscle memory of the tie in your hands.
Also, try some of the extra credit material. These make good short detours on your way to the Intermediate-level material. The final two lessons cover how to condition and whip your ropes, which you should know how to do.
| 9. | Conditioning Your Rope |
| 10. | Whipping the Ends of Your Rope |
Extra credit:
• Single column lark’s head (try this around your whole body at your midriff)
• Spreader bar with a double column
• Sheet bend rope extension
Extra extra credit:
• Fast Sommerville Bowline
• Bola Bola Single column
More rope topics: