Sooo... you wanna be a rigger?

So, you want to be a rigger

by aropedeevil  

I love rope.
I love touching it, smelling it, rubbing it between my fingers. I love feeling it on my skin and I love wrapping it around yours. I have made my own jute, I dye my own rope, I do self bondage and I tie up all kinds of people for all kinds of reasons (but always consensually).
I have taught quite a few people how to use rope, and it can be very frustrating when you are new. We do not learn rope skills by memorization, watching, talking or reading. We learn by body memory.
There is no lecture that will teach you how to feel the ropes tension and know what to adjust.
There is no demonstration that will teach you how to make your bottom feel connected to you as you wind rope on them.
No video, powerpoint, book, diagram or workshop that will create a rigger.
The only thing that will absolutely build your skill is practice. Rope bondage is a body memory skill. Your body needs to do it over and over and over and over and over (etc) to develop the skills to rig with confidence and ease.
We need the lectures in order to learn about the safety and care required to rig safely. We need the demonstrations to learn the structure of different ties, harnesses and 'knots'. We need the videos to be able to check our work as we practice. We need those diagrams and workshops as our building blocks to learning.
After that it is practice.
Over and over.
Learned to do a two column tie?
Do it on everything. tie your ankles, tie a chair to a stick. Tie your hand to your thigh, tie , tie tie. Over and over. Then get a volunteer. Tie two column ties all over the place. Finger to a toe, ankle to a forearm, ankle to ankle, over and over and over. Tie their ankle to your wrist. Think you have it? do it again tomorrow, next week, next month. Over and over. When you can grab rope, close your eyes and tie it on any two columns, you are getting close.
Learned a chest harness? Tie it on your bunny. Tie it on yourself. Tie in on a chair. Get volunteers. Tie it on all shapes of people. think you have it down? tie it again.
Forgot a tie? Google it, relearn it. Tie it over and over and over and over.