Wolf has been doing rope bondage for years. He cautioned beginners to go slowly and be very careful. He mentioned that there are a set of questions which are necessary for and specific to rope bondage. Wolf said to always be polite, especially when asking personal questions. He asked these questions of CeCe, the second person he bound, as a demonstration of how to ascertain someone's experience, desires and state of mind because he is far less familiar with her than with Margaret, whom he bound first. He asked these questions of CeCe right before he "played with" her (after the break). Below is a list of as many of the questions as I caught and understood:

• Did you like what you saw (when I bound Margaret)?
• What did you like?
• Did you like what you saw (when I bound Margaret)?
• What did you like?
• What bondage have you experienced?
• What do you like about bondage?
• What position(s) do you not like?
• How limber are you?
• Is it ok to touch your body?
• What would you like beyond bondage?
• Are you driving afterward/ getting yourself home or have you someone to help you?
• What amount of dress or undress are you comfortable with? (Wolf asked the health and physical/medical history questions on some date or time prior to the demonstration.)
• Is there anything else you would like?

Wolf said it is very important to ask how the person you are about to play with is feeling. He also insisted that the (Top/Dom) keep a sharp object, whatever tool s/he is most familiar and comfortable with, immediately handy at all times. Wolf suggested sharp scissors with safety tips, such as paramedic scissors. He also said several times that practice is very important. For example, Wolf told us that he got much of his ease and skill from tying up chairs for hours each evening. He now does human bondage so well that he has been paid to a television special on rope bondage (of humans) for HBO.

Wolf says the most inexpensive places to get rope are usually lumber stores, such as "Goodman's Lumber" and "Discount Lumber". He usually chooses a cotton/rayon blend. He prefers a soft hemp, but that cannot be obtained in this country in lengths long enough for his preference. Wolf told us to look for rope without a "center" (because removing the center is tedious and potentially impossible). If you want softer ropes, try yacht stores. For pretty ropes (in various bright colors and interesting shapes) try mountain climbing suppliers. If you use scratchy or rough ropes, go much slower. Also, be very careful of the ends! They can easily hurt your "victim".

Wolf cuts most of his ropes into lengths of twenty five feet or longer. Then he binds the loose ends of each rope in such a way that he can tell how long that rope is in the dark. He "whipties" the ends rather than melting them because this creates a soft end (sharp ends can cut easily). In between using them on people, he washes his ropes in cloth bags in a chlorine solution of one part bleach to five parts water. It is all right, but not necessary to add soap to this mixture. When he is in one mood he washes them at home, and when he is in another, he takes them to the Laundromat. Either way, when he dries them, he takes them out of the bags and lets them tumble free. He thinks it quite amusing to watch people look at the loose ropes in the dryer.

It is very important to know the person you are tying up well enough to put them in bondage that will not cause unnecessary stress or any injury. Wolf mentioned that he has tied up people who "freak out" either before, during or after the play. For this reason and for comfort and safety, it is best to either begin or end with the person's wrists so they are at the end of the rope and can be released immediately at any time.

If someone "freaks out" on you, and you are experienced enough, sometimes, by calling "time out" you can reassure them with touches and other forms of tenderness and talk them back to "sanity/consciousness". Then, if you are both willing, you can go on with the scene. If not, then get them out of the rope quickly and safely. Starting with their hands. If safety requires you to move slower than their emotions or mind can handle at the time, CUT THE ROPES.

Whenever you put rope on someone, keep the pressure light and allow for some movement of every limb and body part. Always ask about intimate body piercings before putting on a "crotch rope". "Victims" be cautioned: shyness can result in injury and pain. Be honest. Never leave a rope around or across the front of the neck. Always secure the rope to something below the neck; pull it down and attach it away from the neck. Otherwise, it may slip and choke someone.

When binding someone, think first what you want to accomplish; bondage is a scene by itself. It can range from gentle to painful. The rope, says Wolf, is like a lover. Move it slowly and carefully along the bound person's skin. This gentle caress is both arousing and soothing. Also, a rope pulled quickly or carelessly will make an unintentional rope burn, which can happen easily. This slowness is as important during the loosening and unweaving of the ropes as it is in the construction of the "body harness".

Soft rope makes a lovely caress. Scratchier rope is nice for its own effects. Wolf says that the varying textures add a nice dimension to the play. He cautions to be very careful to avoid pinched nerves! Watch for them during binding and throughout any subsequent play.

When binding the wrists, protect the underside of the wrist by either using many wrappings of narrow rope (less than 1/2 inch thick) or a few wrappings of wide rope (thicker than half an inch). They may be bound with the palms together (as if in prayer), crossed one over the other (face up or face down) or laid beside or on top of one another (so the fingertips of one hand point toward the other elbow). These three positions, depending on your "victim's" flexibility and comfort, may be in front or in back of her body.

When binding the breasts, use an anchor. Wolf used CeCe's body harness for this. First, he made sure that the harness went above, in between and below each breast, so that when he asked for and received her permission to demonstrate breast bondage on her, he had a secure anchor to start from. Wolf said that the thinner the rope, the easier it is to bind breasts. He also said to put each binding "behind", meaning closer to the ribcage/torso than the one before it. He followed his own advice by pulling a thin rope through the middle of the harness (between her breasts). Then, encasing one breast at a time, patiently winding the rope around and around and around each breast. I believe he must have encircled each side ten times or more. Once bound, CeCe's breasts deepened in color, and were much more sensitive, but she was not uncomfortable.

Whether binding wrists, or some other body part(s), be aware that the higher up a person must hold any body part, the more physical strain (over time) this will cause her. Thus, if you want to play for quite awhile, change the bound person's position as often as possible. This relieves the pressure of limbs held too long in one place and lessens the likelihood that the body will "fall asleep" and therefore increases the playing time. For example, restraint and support is a good combination for the arms.

Bind first what you are "least interested in". If you intend to play with a body part confined by the ropes once your "victim" is bound, bind that part last. Also, if you want to "get at" a particular expanse of flesh, whether it is clothed or bare, do not put rope across it when you are binding.

As Wolf binds someone, he endeavors to make an openwork cage or body suit, which he calls a "body harness" that follows the curves and planes of her specific body as well as fulfilling the needs of that particular session. Wolf considers building the body harness part of the play. Each particular harness is constructed to glory the body it adorns. Thus, each time he binds someone, the harness is at least slightly different. However, he often leaves a large loop at the sturdiest end of the rope as he enjoys suspending his "victims" by this loop (upon an immobile apparatus) once they are bound.

To the best of my recollection and observation, the following are descriptions of the two body harnesses Wolf created:

The first person Wolf bound was Margaret. She was loaned to him by permission of her Dominant. Wolf and Margaret have played many times, so he is used to her and her limits. Wolf said that the best way to start binding is by halving the rope. With Margaret, he tied her wrists in back of her first. Then he wrapped the rope underneath her breasts, crossed it, brought it back around her and crossed it in back. Then he tucked it in front of her arms and brought it around to tie it in back of her behind her arms.

The second rope, with which he bound Margaret, was much scratchier, so Wolf worked more slowly. He hooked it onto the first rope in between Margaret's breasts, then over her shoulders and attached it to her mid back. Then, opening the rope, he drew it around either arm and crossed low in front. Next, through her legs, to the back, then around the top of the thighs, then, at the torso, crossing the rope in front of her, around to her back, crossing it in back and up, through the open breast area and over the top of her arms. Then again, crossing in the back and below and around the breasts. Next, he secured it in back and pulled open the rope across her bottom. Next, he crossed the rope around and in front, wrapped the rope around her thighs and lower body several times, then through the loop in back of her, back through the crotch, then used the left over rope as a leash to lead her to her Dom.

After the break and the question and answer period (see above), Wolf tied up CeCe. He began by drawing his rope through her bra strap in the middle of her back, across her shoulder blades, cautioning us again to watch the ends of the rope, through the front strap, to the front, around and through the bra, playing with the sensation of the rope against her skin, crossed in front and then in back, pulled up to pull the rope down and away from her neck. Then tied it to rope under her breasts. Next, he crossed and wrapped the rope around her, drew it under the back of her panties, down through her legs and up the front of her panties. Thus she had a crotch harness. Then, he tied a loose knot which he slid beneath her panties and deep between her legs. He then gently pulled the ends of the rope up and tied them to her wrists. When he stood beside her, answering questions from the audience and checking in on her, he noticed she was not moving her wrists, so he moved them for her, joking that he gave her a toy she would not play with.

Wolf took extra care and gentleness with CeCe, who is new to rope bondage. Several times, he told us to be gentle and slow when binding someone. Especially when that person is new to the scene, new to playing with you and/or new to ropes and/or bondage. Then, when the play was over, he reminded us, while unbinding the ladies, to be just as slow and careful when removing the ropes as you are when putting them on.

Posted with permission from Society of Janus
Ó Society of Janus http://www.soj.org