Intro to Shibari with Christian Red and Entwined Star

Are you interested in learning more about Shibari, the Japanese art of rope bondage? Perhaps you've seen some photos, videos, or even live performances and it's caught your eye, or maybe you're looking for a new hobby that has some interesting practical applications... 

Come and join our introductory workshop and give it a go! 

This is a one-day workshop taking place on Sunday 15th November alongside The Rope Immersion day retreat. Participants for both events will be together for core parts of the day, but will break away for workshops that are aimed at different experience levels - this event being for beginners, and The Rope Immersion for people with knowledge of the basics. We will all get to enjoy a day of rope in a beautiful location, and plenty of opportunities to practice your new skills and mingle with fellow rope fans.

Shibari is the art of binding with rope for enjoyment and control.

This beginner-level workshop will address the most pressing questions, such as:

• Why do people like being tied up?!
• How do we bind our partners or ourselves in a risk-aware way? 
• How do we tie knots that don’t fall apart?

Once we’ve established safety and core skills, we’ll start building on them by tying in a more free-flowing way, and looking at how we can approach Shibari in different ways depending on the reasons why we are tying.

Our aim is to create ties that feel good from inside and outside of the bondage. 

What to expect:

We will include a mixture of learning through discussion, theory, demonstrations, and hands-on practice.

This workshop is designed for beginners and people relatively new to rope. You're equally welcome if you've never explored rope bondage before, OR if you've dabbled a bit and want to bring together what you've been learning in a more structured way.

You don't need a partner to attend. Some of the workshop activities are more easily done in pairs, but a significant portion of the exercises can be done solo through self-tying. It is also possible to partner up with another participant if you'd like, and we will give you some tools to support conversations around negotiating consent. If you already have a friend or practice partner who you know is coming, you are also welcome to stick together and practice with each other throughout. 

We are welcoming of all genders, sexualities, and relationship orientations.

Our schedule for the day - at a glance:

10.30 - 10.45 Arrivals - give yourself time to orient and settle in before we begin.

11.00 Introductions and some lighthearted ways to connect

11.30 Workshop part 1 (90 minutes)

1.00 Lunch break and Rope Jam - free time to wind down, tie or take photos, or maybe watch a performance from the team

2.30 Workshop part 2 (90 minutes)

4.00 Break and Q&A with the team

4.45 Workshop part 3 (90 minutes)

6.15 Wrap up

6.30 Event finishes

** The running order and timings are all subject to change if we need to make adjustments **

The venue:

We will be returning to the same gorgeous venue that we have used for our previous two Rope Immersions. It is a jaw-droppingly beautiful private venue on the edge of the Peak District National Park. We will have exclusive use of the venue, except for the owners who will be on site throughout the day.

Here's a little teaser...

There are 3 acres of private woodland to enjoy, including a natural stream. You are welcome to explore the outdoor space but at our own risk - it may be wet and muddy - it is the UK, after all!

If you're travelling by car, onsite parking is available at the venue but please note that there is only one way in and out of the parking and so, if you might not want to stay for the whole day or might need access to your car during the day, please use the free car park which is approximately 5 minutes' walk from the property. We also encourage you, if possible, to car share to help the environment.

If you're travelling by train, the nearest major station is Stoke-on-Trent, which is less than 10 miles away (approx. 25 mins drive). You can get a direct train from Manchester Piccadilly (approx. 35 mins journey time) and London Euston (approx 1 hr 30 mins). Alternatively, Congleton train station has a similar drive time to the property, and Macclesfield and Crewe are a little further at 35 mins drive.

This is an "indoor shoes only" venue, so we will be asking you to remove your shoes on arrival. You are welcome to bring slippers or other indoor shoes to change into.

** Please note that this is a sober event and the venue does not allow the smoking of cigarettes, vaping, drinking alcohol, or taking drugs on the premises.**

What to bring and wear:

You will need at least two lengths of 7.5 metre rope (between 4-6 mm thickness) and a pair of safety shears. If you don't already have these, we have added the option to pre-order a rope package from us, which will be posted out to you. Please note we can currently only take rope orders from the UK.

We will provide hot and cold drinks and light snacks throughout the day, plus a spread at lunchtime. We recommend bringing your own water bottle plus any additional snacks/food to sustain yourself during the day. If you are bringing any food for the group to share, please keep it in the original packaging or label with any allergens.

We recommend wearing comfortable clothes that you can move around in. Layers are generally a good idea. If you plan to venture outdoors, it's advisable to bring something waterproof plus suitable footwear. A change of clothes might be handy to bring in case you get wet or muddy, or if you have something specific you'd like to wear if you're planning to have photos taken.

We will mostly be using floor mats for the workshops and rope jam. There will be some chairs at the venue but you are also invited to bring your own backjack or camping chair for breaks and/or if you find this more comfortable.

About the team:

Lex (any pronouns), your host for the day, is the embodiment-focused sex and kink educator behind Pleasure Rebels and The Kinky Classroom. They guide individuals and groups in explorations around topics such as consent, sexuality, pleasure, intimacy, identity, relating, and power. Professionally trained as a Certified Sexological Bodyworker, Embodied Facilitator, and Certified Dominatrix (among other things), a big focus of their work is around how kink - done ethically - can be used as a route to empowerment and us becoming whole, integrated humans.

Christian Red (he/him) is a rope/takedown teacher based in Nottingham who has been teaching since 2012. His focus as an educator is giving people tools and ideas to express themselves by breaking complex topics into simple ideas. Christian Red's involvement in the kink community has lasted 22 years so far. In recent years, he has taught at Prague Shibari, Athens Rope, Anatomie Studios, Rope On!, Rope Office Hours, String Fling, UKREX, and Oxford Peer Rope. Christian is a regular guest teacher for Pleasure Rebels workshops.

EntwinedStar (she/her) loves meeting diverse, sadistic, and creative minds and that's part of the attraction of rope for her! She has been active on the UK rope scene for around eight years, teaching in Nottingham and learning from incredible riggers and models from across Europe. Rope brings out EntwinedStar's exhibitionist side, and engages her sexuality, masochism, and enjoyment of degradation. She adores the energy that she takes from rope and how that leads her to challenge myself.

Tied For Thirst (he/him) is a professional rope bondage, nude art and kink photographer, with an adaptive style focused on enhancing emotional and sensual scenes with unique composition and dramatic lighting. After developing an obsession with rope, as both a rigger and a model, he turned his decade of photographic experience to documenting the beauty of shibari & kink and the connections found in power and vulnerability.

Fennel (she/they), a.k.a The Fenwitch, is a qualified life coach (empowerment, relationships, attachment styles), workshop & event facilitator, speaker, writer, Mindfulness trainer (MBSR), and practicing witch. They have been working with personal development, health & wellbeing, mental health, spirituality, and Emotional Intelligence for 30 years (in the corporate world, conscious communities, and in personal/private practice). They lead (with a lot of help from gorgeous souls) the sex positivity community Vermilion, that encourages awareness of, and co-education in, autonomy, authentic relating, consent & boundaries, neo/tantra, various therapeutic modalities, inclusivity, diversity, and conscious kink & BDSM.

Pleasure Rebels (via The Kinky Classroom) runs regular workshops and courses in the North West and beyond with the goal of providing a friendly, non-intimidating environment to explore concepts and themes of kink in a way that centres curiosity, consent, and empowerment.

Joining us:

We are selling paired and solo tickets for this event. We have tiered pricing for this workshop to try and make it as accessible as possible. If you feel that price is still a limiting factor to your attending, or if you would like to discuss a payment plan, please get in touch and we will see what we can do!

Location

Private location in Leek, Staffordshire, TBC on booking (ST13)