So you want to tie a person down so they can’t get away.
Wow. That sounds sinister.
But let’s face it, sometimes that’s something you want to do. Because it’s fun.
However, you also want to do it in such a way that you can get them undone reasonably quickly should the unplanned happen.
Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, your mother in law, that overly attached ex-partner… yeah, there’s a bunch of reasons why you might want to finish things up and get people untied in a hurry.
So I’ve put together my two favourite ways to tie off to furniture, the first of which also serves to illustrate great ways to make use of half hitches rather than knots.
The reason to do this is that a) half hitches are fucking magical and should be used whenever possible, and b) knots tend to compact down and be a pain in the butt to untie.
So yes, I’ve decided to show you via video. Because I’ve never done it before, which makes it terrifying and therefore something I should do. Gotta push those limits.
These videos were made with a smartphone and Charlie the Tripod
This first video is the most decorative of the bunch; probably also the slowest, but it’s good for photos etc.
With this next one, you might possibly pick up on the fact that I’m pretty into hitches, and that’s because they seem impossible and that they shouldn’t do what they do.
But they do! Dark magic, I tell you.
So that’s me and half hitches and also the cow hitch. Probably one of the easiest ways to illustrate how to do those and what you can use them for.
This third video is of something I developed more recently, and just works really really well for getting things both tied and untied very quickly. Absolutely love it.
That said, don’t tie it to a limb, because it’s essentially a slip knot. You can use it to tie off rope to other rope or to tie off to furniture, but don’t do it to a human limb, because that is damn near guaranteed to harm circulation.
(That’s bad, ‘mkay)
Other than that, go nuts! It’s my favourite.
Have fun tying people to beds and things!
Work, work, work. I know, right?
Obviously I’ve picked up and remembered something up over the years – when I’m doing the tying, those are exactly the ties I use on the bedlegs 🙂
Useful videos, and I appreciate that you show them slow and fast!
xx Dee
Thanks Dee!
I’ve got this belief that when people have been doing rope for awhile they tend to end up at the same solutions for things, because those are the ones that work best. I’ve also used “sword hilt wrapping ” which is a bit more decorative; have you used that one?
I don’t think I know what the sword-hilt wrapping one is! Colour me curious now 🙂
xx Dee
It’s basically a half hitch, then wrapping your working end round and round back down your rope (similar to “vining”) and finishing off by splitting your ends and doing a quick overhand knot or something similar. It actually takes a bit more time, but looks great for photographs etc
A neat variation on the third option is the Sliding Sheet Bend. Similar knot but generally won’t collapse, and the tension can be adjusted after tying.
Ooh. That’s handy. Thank you for contributing! I hadn’t even heard of that option
I practiced both ties and I found that Pete’s method is easier to do with double rope, especially when I imagine a bottom who’s trying to escape at the same time. Squeezing the first half hitch with your fingers stops the loose end until the second knot is tightened. The sliding sheet bend doesn’t offer such a resting point, on the plus side It is indeed adjustable.