A study of hip harness design

Level: Intermediate

Class style: Lecture, demo, and hands-on

Level: See the prerequisites

Class style: Lecture, demo, and hands-on

The hips are the center of gravity of most bodies. Whether you want to pull someone towards you, or suspend them in the air, hip harnesses are an effective way of controlling and bearing a large portion of someone’s weight.

The goal of this workshop is to empower bottoms and tops to work together to customize hip harnesses (or create new ones) so that they work better for the bottom’s body and for the intended play. We achieve this goal by sharing the framework and terminology that can be used to collaboratively work on that task.

We will examine the fundamental components of many hip harnesses and how they affect the way a specific harness feels and behaves.

In this class we will explore concepts essential to constructing a hip harness that suits the bottom:

• Hip anatomy

• Characteristics of good hip harnesses

• Primary hip harness components

• Distributing load across various components

• Good and bad directions of applying force to a harness

There are many hip harnesses out there. Most bottoms have some favorites, depending on their body and the harness application. We will examine several hip harnesses through the lens of the above concepts and learn to mix and match what they offer to design custom harnesses.

Prerequisites

• Working knowledge of

  • single column ties.

  • hitches and frictions.

  • inline cuffs (e.g., hojo cuff).

• Existing experience in tying bondage harnesses of any type.

What to bring

• 3-5 pieces of 7-8 meter 5-6mm natural fibre rope.

• 1-2 pieces of 3-4 meter 5-6mm natural fibre rope (optional).