Playtime: Tension

In this shibari demonstration and discussion, Margherita, Shakti Bliss and TrueBlue share a tension-themed playtime session designed to take fundamental technical skills and put them into practice in the most impactful way possible. “Basic” or “easy to tie” don’t necessarily equate to basic or easy when you’re the person in ropes. This inspirational rope session is not a tie-along class but instead is intended to showcase some of the challenging experiences you can start to mindfully create with even just the tension of your ropes. Think breath play, sensory deprivation and more! In the first part of the course, Margherita offers a bottom-centric perspective on the breath in ropes, and how you can adapt your breathing when restricted. In the second part, Shakti and Margherita begin to explore wrapping for breath play, offering perspectives from each side of the dynamic on how to start playing with restriction through rope tension. In the third part, Blue wraps Margherita’s head and face, explaining how the addition of ropes here can both affect breath and sensory input, as well as highlighting important safety considerations when tying this delicate area. Finally, the trio debrief after the ropes have come off, offering feedback, insights into their decision-making while tying, and how mindfulness and intention showed up during the session. This inspiration session is intended for shibari beginners and forms part of our Getting Started curriculum.