Tightest arm pockets I've ever made. Two-layered hood with foam padding. Laced and zipped rear closure. It's one dark, lovely ride.
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The Finished Butterfly SJ with Padded Hood
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Bondage Fist Mitts - Let's make a pair!
For a long time, I've wanted to make a pair of super-tight fitting bondage fist mitts.
I've always thought boxing gloves had their own special appeal. Something about the way they render the subs' fingers useless, making them even more helpless. Especially when combined with additional bondage. These are going to be a sleeker version than a boxing glove, a more couture take in soft black lamb leather, with a zipper for quick on-and-off. Did I mention they'd be really tight?
I start with a careful, fitted wrap. Duct tape over plastic wrap.
There's a bit of foam at the tip to help the hand pocket retain its shape.
It gives me something to push against as I glue and flatten the seams.
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Fist Mitts Test Fit Gallery
So these turned out pretty nice.
I'm happy with the fit, after tweaking the pattern from the first go-round. The test mitten in lamb wasn't tight enough, and could actually be slid off. Unacceptable! It was probably the stretch inherent in this leather that allowed that to happen. You actually may have to make something slightly undersized to get it to fit just right in your desired leather. It's the opposite of "ease" in garment making.
I decided to put the zipper on the back of the hand, and I love the clean look of the inside. Now I really want to do a pair with lacing instead of a zip-closure.
The fitted, bulbous shape at the end is surreal-looking. Very stumpy. In a good way...
I am actually going to have to make a pair of cuffs just for these, as the tight ones I usually use are a bit too big. Ahh, the problems I make for myself...
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cat in the kneeling posture suit
The amazing cat at her master's (-EM-'s) feet in one of my kneeling restraints. This was just a quick cellphone pic, shared by cat on her fetlife gallery. I love these two... what a couple!
Apparently she was kept in there for about an hour. Even managed to fall asleep. It always makes me happy to know the gear I make is being put to good use.
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Prehistoric f-suit stone carving
A few years ago someone sent me these fantastic images of a figure carved in stone from a prehistoric site located somewhere either in the UK or Europe. These are actually replica souvenir trinkets available for sale. Unfortunately I managed to lose the specific information, and am left only with the images, which I have to admit, do bear a striking resemblance to the f-suit design.
You can either leave a comment (I won't publish it), or email me directly at christopherfetish{a}gmail.com.
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Balled-up Restraint Design Sketches
I've started working in earnest on the balled-up restraint, project number 3 from my "Top 10" list of last year. This promises to be a good challenge, getting the fit just right for what is a pretty complex shape, in a crouched, balled-up position. I've already created a wrap from my model, and am figuring out exactly how this restraint is going to work.
As it is now, this is going to take 2 zippers for entry. One in the rear from the top of the hood, down the back and through the crotch to the rear of the knees. The second zipper would be in the front, from the knees to the toes, securing the lower legs and feet tightly in the foot pocket.
I'm posting an old drawing from 1998, just to show how long this idea has been kicking around in my head. Obviously there are many differences in the details and specifics, but the general idea is the same: a balled-up straitjacket/sleepsack type of design.
By the way, I wanted to send thanks to everyone who has contacted me with support and encouragement for the ongoing "Top 10" projects. It's great to know there are people out there who actually enjoy following along and seeing the ideas brought to life. It does make a difference, and means a lot to me.
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Leather Thickness Conversion Charts
Have you ever needed to convert leather and found it difficult to get from one measurement type to another? You know, from oz. to fractional inches for example? It happens to me all the time (especially when ordering leather online), so I finally put together a couple of conversion charts for the leather thicknesses I use the most.
Leather suppliers usually describe their leather in oz. thickness, but the way I measure leather in the workshop is with a pair of digital calipers (which gives me the thickness in mm). These charts allow me to figure out right away that a 2.5 ounce leather will be about 1mm thick.
There are 2 versions of the chart: one with bands marking the oz. lines, one with bands highlighting the mm. These only cover leather from 1 to 4 mm thick - that's everything from a very lightweight lamb (0.7mm) or pig leather to a very thick bullhide (3.5-4oz.). Of course, many vegetable-tanned leathers can be thicker than 4mm, but I decided to leave that for another chart. Think of these as more for light, medium and heavy-weight garment or chrome-tanned hides that can be sewn with a typical industrial leather sewing machine.
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20 Questions for PD of InSex - A Follow Up
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| PD in his younger days... |
I have to admit, I've spent a lot of time thinking about it. I had such a visceral reaction to the site, and it always attracted and repulsed me in equal measure. This curiosity led me to my 20 questions post of a while back.
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| One of the many innovative ties from the early days of InSex. |
Someone wrote to me and said “You know, PD’s on FetLife, why don’t you just write to him?” I did, but never got a reply. After seeing the "Graphic Sexual Horror" documentary, I have a feeling I know why.
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| PD's artwork |
PD’s an artist. In the truest sense. He pursued his art. The line between his work, the the sex videos and content that he created and his personal life, all blurred together.
At some point there was no line for him. Models were expected to play with PD off camera, and if they weren’t willing, they would not be used for future shoots. According to at least one model interviewed, It was an all-or-nothing proposition.
The success of InSex gave PD the cash to realize some of his darkest fantasies. To collaborate with others who worked in a range of materials - leather, wood, steel, fiberglass.
The success of InSex gave PD the cash to realize some of his darkest fantasies. To collaborate with others who worked in a range of materials - leather, wood, steel, fiberglass.
There was intense financial incentive for models to complete the shoots if they didn’t complete the sessions, they wouldn’t get paid as much as if they did. And if they quit (safeworded out) the possibility of future work (and income) would go away as well.
I came away from my research with the thought of PD and Insects as being a sort of cautionary tale. What would I do with the ability to realize whatever fantasy I had? What if I had unlimited budget, an ample supply of nubile young models who would do my bidding if I waved enough cash in their faces? What if I had an unlimited budget for making whatever restraint I could imagine in whatever material I wanted, and could use them on real flesh-and-blood models? How far would you go? What kind of dark beautiful world would you create if you had no limits?
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| KGB, metalworker who realized many of PD's ideas with great craftsmanship. |
I admired the intensity and “honesty” of the images on InSex. This wasn’t faked, pretend tie-up games. It was real, graphic and hardcore. But for every beautifully executed bondage scenario, there seemed to be an almost nausea-inducing descent into pain, fear and surreal horror. That was the truth of insex for me.
The graphic Sexual Horror movie covers a lot of PD's background. An early experience of playing tie up games, which led to his sexual awakening, for one.
Next, exposure to a live bondage performance in Asia during military service left an indelible impression on him.
Pursued career as an artist and a teacher. But realized he wouldn’t achieve tenure because of the subject matter of his art. Rejected by the system, he determined at that point to “corrupt your children.”
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| The creation of the classic leather bondage hood is discussed... |
He's very visually oriented. Very sensitive to the aesthetics of his creations. Also pays attention to fit and functionality. Working with the seamstress, they based the hood design on a prototype PD had taken apart and re-sewn many times over the past 2 years. They would keep working on it until they got it just right. It shows.
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| Cool cameo by a Consew leather stitching machine in the background. |
It’s about control. His use of coded numbers for his models was an attempt to keep them from using insex as a platform to build their own following online. He didn’t want them to benefit from the exposure they got from on his site.
Was the allure of money (I won’t call it “easy money”) and promise of future work enough to encourage decisions that might not have been made otherwise?
Was the power and appeal of the site its dance on the edge of consent, sensation and safety? When all the rules of culture and polite society are thrown off, all limitations eliminated, all resources available, what do you end up creating? How far do you go?
Check out the PD interviews on Serious Images.com and Graphic Sexual Horror movie (available on Amazon). And of course, you can still subscribe to the original content here at InSex Archives. Fascinating stuff...
Check out the PD interviews on Serious Images.com and Graphic Sexual Horror movie (available on Amazon). And of course, you can still subscribe to the original content here at InSex Archives. Fascinating stuff...
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Tape wrap progress...
This is the first time I've attempted a wrap in a crouched position. You can see there is definitely a nice shape around the derriere part. I'm hoping to can keep that beautiful contour into the final piece.
I'm still working out where the seams are going to go when it comes to that shapely rear end. Lots of different options... This is really exploring new territory for me.
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Padded Sensory Deprivation Hood - PART I
This week's project: a padded, 2-layer sensory deprivation hood. This is a male version of the hood I attached to the butterfly jacket (project seen here), and I'll take you through all the steps along the way of making this one.
We begin with my wood head form, already dressed in a tight fitting leather hood. I'll be using the same pattern for the inner hood, only slightly modified for the different rear opening. The first thing I want to do is create a pattern for the foam layer, and for that we need a wrap.
The hooded form gets wrapped with pallet wrap.
Next time: Ready to start building...
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Padded Sensory Deprivation Hood - PART II
So, now that we have our pattern we can get started... First the inner hood, which I'm making in a Japanese plonge leather. It's thin (0.5mm) and soft, with a velvety suede texture on the back side.
I fold it back and sew along the neck seam using the post-bed, locking the foam in place.
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Padded Sensory Deprivation Hood - PART III
The initial idea for this hood was to have breathing tubes, but after experimenting with a mock-up of the foam and leather sandwich layers, the best option turned out to be using a plain old #00 grommet.
I couldn't find a sleek, low-profile way to have the tube secure on both sides. Maybe in future designs I'll figure out a way to make this work, but for now I'm stumped.
So finally we have the finished hood. And just in time for Christmas!
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Padded Sensory Deprivation Hood - Beauty Pix
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Posture Collar Step-by-Step
In response to a request, here's my process for making the locking posture collar with rolled edge.
I like this design because it fits a wide range of people really well, it isn't too hard to make, and can be produced in pretty much any color and type of leather you like.
I trace my pattern on the smooth side of the leather.
I do the final cut out using an X-acto knife. Try to keep the knife vertical.
Next up, I'll round off the sharp edges with an edge beveler tool.
If your tool is nice and sharp, you'll get smooth, continuous offcuts.
I use my cylinder-bed (which is set up to sew heavy-weight leather) to topstitch the outer and inner layers together.
At this point, I'm ready to edge-coat.
The edge-strip gets clipped to the collar, good-side to good-side, and stitched a bit more than 1/8" from the edge.
The bottom strip is clipped and sewn the same way.
Apply glue for the rolled edge to both the backside of the collar…
…and the backside of the edge-strip.
Once the glue sets up, the rolled edge is folded over towards the back (inside) of the collar.
Then back to the cylinder-bed to top stitch along the front side seam - holding the rolled edge in place. (This is the part that your portable sewing machine will probably not be able to handle.)
The excess rolled-edge in the back can now be trimmed off.
Sometimes I'll use tape to help me see the position of the holes that need to be punched. These marks are transferred over from the pattern. But you have to be really careful that the tape won't pull up the finish on your leather. Be sure and test first!
I use an oblong punch for the slots:
I use the same method for marking holes for the staple plate, which are riveted into place:
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The Art of BeE Workshop Japan
One thing I'd hoped when starting the blog was that a bunch of leather crafters and innovators around the world would be able to connect, share ideas and inspire each other. I think it comes from my days in art school, where I found it extremely enriching to just be around other creative types. It can't help but take your ideas and craftsmanship to a higher place.
I want to introduce you to BeE Workshop, Japan.
http://hatikoubo.blog116.fc2.com/
This gentleman is creating some of the most exciting and unique designs I've ever seen.
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I like the way he has the little pussy lips closed…
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He has also made some beautiful armbinders in a range of different styles. I love this classic looking design:
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He's also experimented with an open-hand style:
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A French-maid look with frilly edges in PVC:
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An over-the-shoulder style with a zip-closure:
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An over-the-shoulder style that laces up:
An open-shoulder style with zip closure, and contrasting red straps and collar.
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I only know of his blog here, but will let you know if he ever puts together a stand-alone website. Don't you agree that his work is just fantastic?
Thank you BeE workshop, for sharing your inspiring work with us!
I want to introduce you to BeE Workshop, Japan.
http://hatikoubo.blog116.fc2.com/
This gentleman is creating some of the most exciting and unique designs I've ever seen.
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| Custom-made straitjacket, belt set and 2-layer padded pussy mouth hood. |
He contacted me a while ago to let me know that my blog inspired him. I was so blown away by his work, I didn't know how to express it fully. I think in many ways he's more advanced than me as a maker. And his ideas are off-the-charts wonderful.
He developed his own unique pattern for a padded, 2-layer hood. And he created a pussy-type mouth opening - I've never seen anyone do this in leather. And as if that wasn't enough, he created a harness with detatchable mouth/pussy cover…
I think we have a shared love of hoods and complete coverage restraints.
It's always thrilling for me to see a new take on an old idea. Check out the unique, beautifully-fitted pattern for the straitjacket here. Love the attached rings, and the sleeve lacing. The collar fits beautifully.
Also, love the beautiful shape on this leg restraint. A really nice fit.
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| Take a moment to appreciate this fantastic photo… |
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| Cannot love this image enough… |
Really beautiful custom-harness strap and chain sets too… so much great work.
Thank you BeE workshop, for sharing your inspiring work with us!
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The Leather-Bound Heads of Nancy Grossman
I wanted to share a link to a book about the artist Nancy Grossman. I remember coming across her images when I was very young, and found them absolutely fascinating. This was well before I had any knowledge about the world of S&M, and the fact that they were so gripping, and so unusual - and completely lacking in context usually. They remained mysterious to me until fairly recently. There's now a book about her work: "Nancy Grossman: Tough Life Diary" which I'd recommend,
produced in conjunction with a major exhibition of her work at the Tang Museum in Saratoga Springs, New York in 2012.
Since all I know about her work is from the writings of others, I'm including some of it below:
"These wooden heads by Nancy Grossman “with their sensory parts strapped, zipped and nailed shiut. Her famous series is a reaction to “anxiety and turmoil that weigh upon the individual in contemporary society”. When it comes to artistic influences, the exhibit description is really ignoring the big, kinky elephant in the room."
Written by Marina Galperina May 20, 2011
Physical abuse in the artist’s early years and to some disturbing, inappropriate sexual attention from a male relative in her adolescence. Ms. Raven quoted Ms. Grossman: “After 25 years, I see that all of the head sculptures are self-portraits that refer to the bondage of my childhood.” That could partly explain her seemingly obsessive repetition of the image of the enigmatic, scary yet alluring, possibly predatory man.
But the heads might also be flirtations with a powerful but otherwise buried part of herself. The potential of the female artist had yet to be widely acknowledged in the late ‘60s. Ms. Grossman’s early heads were ferocious harbingers of the coming feminist insurgency.
Whoever or whatever that masked being was, he, she or it possessed Ms. Grossman like an occult spirit and led her to create figures that are as darkly weird as they are sensually beautiful.
Ms. Grossman’s heads seem to partake in a chilling depersonalization of sex at the same time as they celebrate demonic, thrill-seeking anonymity.
But there are other dimensions too. They can be taken as allegorical figures of extreme states of male consciousness.
Some have all of their orifices covered, which adds to the feeling of hidden, pent-up intentions and blind ambitions. Some have animal horns protuding from their foreheads. Others bellow and howl with toothy maws. Altogether they radiate a primal warrior’s spirit. Yet at the same time they appear captured by the gear they wear. They cannot escape tbeir own archetypal natures.
If you know Ms. Grossman’s heads only from reproductions in art books, you may be surprised at how lovingly they are made. She began by carving, filling, sanding, painting and polishing a chunk of found wood - a piece of telephone pole, say - into something resembling a classical or neo-classical head. With their strong features and thick necks hinting at muscular bodies, they read as male, although Amazonian femininity is not out of the question. As for the top layer of animal skin, only Ms. Grossman knows exactly how she fitted this covering and its hardware so perfectly to the complex topography ot the underlying sculpture.
Anyone passingly familiar with American art of the past half-century will recognize the eerie, erotically menacing leather-clad heads that Nancy Grossman produced between the late 1960s and 1990. Often including zippers, buckles, straps and chains, these sculptures most immediately evoke S&M bondage gear. Displayed in a high-end shop for the sexually adventurous, they would fit right in.
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| Love the red lining around the nose, and notice the use of buttons for the eyes. |
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Artist in her studio at age 25. |
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| "Signing" her work with nail heads driven onto the wooden base. |
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| Nancy Grossman being interviewed. |
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| This monumental sculptural figure is larger than life-sized. |
I hope this inspires some of you to do your own research about this remarkable artist and her powerful work.
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Pommel Horse Project
I've been wanting to make a pommel horse for a really long time. I just think they're pretty cool from a sculptural-furniture object standpoint, and of course they offer a myriad of perversion possibilities too… Plus this mostly came together from scrap material - I had a piece of foam sitting around, and a leather remnant that was about the right size. I just needed to purchase the 4x4 lumber for the legs, and it was off to the races.
As you can see from the photos, the structure isn't based on fine mortise-and-tenon joinery. I used the poor-man's method of wood glue and a shit-load of screws.
Hope you liked the project! Stay tuned, more to come…
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