Never let it be said that being confined in a tight leather bag isn't a lot of fun. On the contrary, bugs never had it so good!
Story by Phil ("Silicon Valley Guy"), assistance by Eden, Mark, JG-Leathers, photography by LT-Switch
09 Jul, 2004
It was great to see Mark and LT-Switch again, and be introduced to Eden, who turned out to be a bright, attractive woman with an irresistible smile. We'd planned this photo shoot for some time, of Eden and I enjoying a delightful evening of bondage play with equipment I'd brought from my place in Silicon Valley.
Often, these stories don't include much mention of the photography itself, but with both Mark and LT-Switch constantly adjusting the lighting and snapping photo after photo while Eden and I played, the four of us had a busy, intense, and wonderful evening. I'm already looking forward to our next bondage rendezvous.
was delighted the first time I browsed through Mark's web site seriousbondage.com. The bondage was indeed "serious", but it was clear that the participants were enjoying this type of play. The text was not laced
with sinister nonconsensual overtones as in some BDSM literature ("not that there's anything wrong with that!", as Seinfeld might say). Mark's web site explored with clear-eyed wonder the simple joys of restraining, or being restrained, of playing mutual games of control and trust with others and fulfilling something inside.
I sent Mark an e-mail to say hello, and we were soon exchanging frequent messages on the joys of "serious bondage". While appreciating that there are many different directions that BDSM play and players can go, we shared a personal preference for inescapable bondage involving leather, locks, and latex, what Mark likes to describe as "Serious Bondage". I had seen a wonderful assortment of bondage goodies on his web site, and owned a number of fun bondage and kinky items myself, piled up untidily in a couple of my closets. It was a modest collection compared to his, but I sent him a list of what I owned, and we soon were off and chatting even more frequently about our mutual fascination.
How does someone get to a place like this? When I was in sixth grade, I had no idea what bondage was; I didn't know anything about kink or latex or leather. I was a fairly naive kid.
Our grade school offered a weekly first aid class where we learned what to do if someone is injured or unconscious, etc. Each of us was given a "kiddie" first aid textbook that was illustrated with numerous cartoon drawings of children applying and wearing splints, triangular bandage slings, and other interesting first aid items. I had no idea why I thought this was fun, but I was soon entertaining myself by sketching extra items onto the drawings: more splints, plus straps, blindfolds, body casts, even gas masks!
As I got older, my juvenile fantasies extended to things like being strapped down in a dentist's chair, being squeezed within a tight space by heavy-duty inflatable tubes, snug skin-tight clothing (on both men and women), and all sorts of other bizarre scenarios.
Side-by-side with my attraction to women, I slowly came to realize that these alternate fantasies were sexual too. In pleasant daydreams, I played with delightfully evil smiling women who would put me into these various inescapable situations and taunt me with my helplessness. But I had never heard anyone in real life talk about anything like that, and I wondered if I was the only one with these strange, compelling thoughts.
In college, my girlfriend Lisa and I were both a bit shy but sexually curious. Instead of buying photographic erotic magazines, we'd get the finest in the literary tradition (ha!): Penthouse Forum magazine, which consisted mostly of steamy articles and stories. It was in this magazine that I read my first interview of a dominatrix. This was my first glimmer of something bigger out there than just my own private fantasies.
Later on, Lisa and I got our hands on a sex products catalog. Thumbing through the catalog, in the back pages I found about 6 pages of sophisticated leather bondage toys and 2 pages of latex items. This was a shock and an eye-opener. This stuff turned me on big time! And it was in a well-made catalog, with items for sale. That meant there was a market for it, that there were many more people like me out there who were turned on by these kinds of things too. I was not alone after all. Needless to say, I didn't sleep well that night!
In my early twenties, I began a gradual exploration of what and who was out there. The Internet didn't exist in any practical sense at that point, and so learning more about bondage and other kinks, and making personal connections with like-minded people, was much more difficult than today. I slowly explored my kinky identity through occasional newsletters, bondage and fetish catalogs, and infrequent visits to a couple of pro-dommes. Their clever wicked kindness provided me with the needed affirmation of my kinky interests.
I moved to Silicon Valley in 1989, and occasionally drove up to the San Francisco to attend classes offered by the Society of Janus. It was good to learn more about both sides of the coin, how to negotiate and play in ways that can be fun for both (or all!) people involved.
In 1995, I decided I wanted something a little more intense in the way of bondage toys. My needs were, um, "modest"!: I wanted it to be not only inescapable, but to anchor me solidly in one place. I wanted it to be snug, an all-over tight body hug. I wanted it to be "serious" enough that James Bond, MacGyver, or even the Governor of California could not escape from it! And I wanted it to hold me safely, so that I could just let go inside in whatever way I wanted, whether to sink into subspace or to struggle for all I'm worth.
I went to the Mister-S store in San Francisco where I bought a custom-fitted sleepsack. I found a local kink-friendly carpenter, and commissioned her (yes, her) to build a padded wood base, fitted with straps along each side to hold the sleepsack securely. To hold my head in place, I originally had a leather hood with D-rings on the sides, anchored by straps, but another friend of mine made a great recommendation to use boxing headgear to secure my head. It was perfect. I called it my "cocoon".
I now had all the components for my dream creation, and played with them as frequently as I could, but up to this point I'd never had any photographic records to refresh my memories of the joys I had experienced. This changed though, when Mark invited me to his "bondage laboratory" for some play and photos. Needless to say, I was thrilled by the invitation!
Mark has a wonderful playroom devoted to all manner of serious bondage play. So naturally I brought my "cocoon" with me, complete with a short latex suit and hood, and upon my arrival Mark introduced me to his laboratory assistant - I mean friend - Eden. Eden and I had a delightful chat while Mark and LT-Switch (the photographer) set up the photographic lighting to create the scene, and soon we were underway.
For ease of carrying, the padded wood base is divided into top and bottom halves. A cleverly designed center-board along each side, fastened in place with bolts and wing nuts, holds both halves together.
The contoured pad was constructed to the size of my body when I'm restrained in the sleep sack. As a matter of fact, the measurements were taken upstairs at the Mister-S store, when I received and got to sample my completed leather sleepsack for the first time. I was zipped and laced snugly into the sleepsack and centered on a large sheet of cardboard on the floor. The carpenter drew an outline of my body on the cardboard by running a pencil around the perimeter of the bag, as office staff and leather workers looked on admiringly.
As you can see, my kink carpenter had done absolutely wonderful work on this project, and the padded wood base is nothing less than a work of art!
Once we had finished assembling the base, it was lifted it up and onto a short platform which raised it to a more accessible height. Eden and I then unrolled the leather sleep sack onto the black padding.
In the photos below, you can see the myriad of straps, buckles, and white nylon lacing used to secure the sack once some-one's inside.
I showed Mark and Eden the custom-made side straps and the associated attachment points around the base which serve to anchor the sleepsack firmly in position.
I've been asked before why the base is even needed since the sleepsack is so inescapable? While I am no Houdini, I have a Houdini mindset that must be humbled and put in its place. If I were "merely" laced into a sleepsack, my impish impulsivity can lead me to challenge the degree of my helplessness. The sleepsack itself isn't rigid, so I might be able to bend my legs and partly curl up, or roll my body side to side. I might be able to inch and scoot my way slowly around the room. Maybe, just maybe (if I don't accidentally bonk my head against something first), I might find something in the room to rub up against, maybe a corner or a hook with which I could try to snag the buckles or laces and begin to free myself! Would I succeed? Not likely! But my mind is already far too engaged pondering the possibilities for escaping my predicament.
With the sleepsack anchored at multiple points to the base, I am held almost completely immobile, in one body position and in one location. There is no moving about. There are no farfetched escape attempts. In such Serious Bondage, my so-called cleverness is quickly rendered completely useless and can now be moved aside. The classic phrase "Resistance is Futile" can register beyond my head and into my heart. I finally begin to slow down, and accept and appreciate the totality of my helplessness. That's what the padded base is for!
As part of the ritual to begin our "scene", Eden helped me don my snug latex outfit. Her warm touch, along with the impermeable hug of the rubber felt very sexy and at the same time, quite comforting.
The next stage was or me to pull on and straighten my snug latex molded hood. I enjoyed feeling its initially cool embrace around my head and face. I had to be careful, for this hood has no zipper, and I was concerned about ripping the material when I stretched it to put it on. But there were no problems and soon my head and face were encased and concealed within the tight rubber. It felt great!
It felt goofy and surreal, yet completely comfortable, to be dressed in this bizarre sensual costume while laughing and joking with Eden and the Seriousbondage crew!
Now came the big task, and a fun task it was, of putting me into the sleepsack. When I had originally ordered the sack, I was given the option to have the smooth side on the inside and the suede on the outside, or vice versa. Having the smooth side outside is more photogenic: All of the Mister S catalog photos show sleepsacks with the smooth side outside. But having the smooth side inside feels more sensual against the skin (in my opinion!), and also makes it much easier to keep clean. So I ordered the sleepsack smooth-side in and suede-side out, as you can see in these photos.
Eden positions a leather-covered foam pad between my legs. This pad is designed to protect my knee and ankle bones from rubbing uncomfortably together. The pad comes as a standard accessory with the sack. I have found that if I keep the nylon cord partially laced at the bottom, it saves a little time when lacing up the entire sack. I slide my feet and lower legs in underneath the laces.
Deep and snug internal sleeves are built into the sack which are designed to pin my arms and hands uselessly at my sides. It's possible, with a bit of effort, to get in and out of a sleepsack solo if you don't use the sleeves. But with the sleeves trapping my hands and arms, the sack is completely escape-proof. Eden helps guide my hands into the sleeves because the latex hood was reducing my peripheral vision. You can see my hand disappearing into the left sleeve.
Eden holds the bag while I move my arms further into the confinement of the sleep sack's inner sleeves, ensuring that they go all the way and with no chance for me to withdraw them. My increasing helplessness leads not to anxiety, but to a sense of delight and of feeling more grounded: I am being welcomed with the help of my friends into my safe and snug home.
As Eden draws the sack up and around my shoulders, we both enjoy the minor struggling required to fully insert myself within the leather bag. Even while I'm still sitting up, I can feel a slow encroachment of a total bondage experience when she tugs and adjusts the sleep sack. I can feel the strength of her hands and arms and her desire to make me as helpless as possible.
Eden slides the heavy zipper up the front of the sack, sealing me within. This is the moment at which escape on my own is now impossible. That thought alone gives me a tremendous rush.
I can no longer "help" Eden put me into the bondage. Laying there, I simply gaze up at her while she snaps closed the double overlapping leather collar, and I enjoy the wonderful sensations of her fingers and the leather on my neck.
As I feel myself starting to drift into my own private subspace reverie, I find reassurance in Eden's beautiful smile. It's clear that she is enjoying her position of complete control over me.
It would be normal at this point to experience some anxiety or fear over my total helplessness, dependence, and vulnerability. There are certainly risks in allowing oneself to be placed at the mercy of another person's sanity and kindness, especially when if you don't know them well, and informed caution is always a good idea. But I knew that Mark and his Seriousbondage friends are very experienced and trustworthy. In the semi-chaotic environment of this bondage photo shoot, we were all having a great time, and I felt very safe here with them.
First there's "trapped", then there's "snug"!: Eden began the lacing ritual as a shiver of delight shook through me from head to toe. She expertly threaded the nylon cords through their retaining loops, then pulled them tighter and tighter, as if she had done this a hundred times before. Unlike leather straps which only tighten in one location, the laces draw the sack together to conform exactly to the outside of my body, creating a skin-tight fit. The process reminds me of how ice skates mold to your foot when they are laced tightly.
I must say, there's nothing more exciting than watching a lovely woman in leather put her foot on my torso while she cinches the laces of my restraints!
As you can see in the photo to the right, LT-Switch must have thought this was pretty exciting too, as he jockeys for a better photo.
After "snug", then there's "tight"!: The final fastening of the bag itself came when Eden cinched and buckled the sack's six heavy leather straps tightly around my body, drawing this heavy enclosure even closer in a sensual, constricting, yet completely comfortable embrace. At this point you might wonder why the straps are needed when the lacing has pulled the bag quite snug. But it's amazing how well the body can tolerate, and indeed how much it can crave, this tight unrelenting body hug. The devious craftspeople at Mister-S understand this well, as the sleepsack is built with six pairs of D-rings along the sides through which feed the provided six leather straps. Like Oliver of the musical asking for "more", the captive can ask (or beg!) for the sleepsack to be tightened further.
Eden had said that she usually identifies with the "bottom" role in BDSM play, but as she firmly planted her foot on my torso and pulled on the straps, I could feel her gleefully dominant energy emerging.
As they say on the late-night infomercials: "But wait, there's more!" One of the most difficult aspects of "serious bondage" is how to firmly, but safely, secure the captive's head in one position. A friend had come up with the excellent idea to use boxing headgear! (My first step upon bringing the newly purchased headgear home had been to unstitch and remove the conspicuous brand label from the front.)
It was time for the head restraint to be added and immediately, when Eden slid it onto my head, I felt myself slipping into subspace, and gazed up at her in submissive gratitude. She fastened the chin strap firmly, then quickly attached the side straps, irrefutably anchoring and immobilizing my head against the padded base.
The bondage was now complete. The side straps held the sleepsack firmly in one place, and no part of my body could move more than an inch in any direction. I was utterly helpless. And I was utterly safe. I was with trusted friends, and no harm could come to me, whether I chose to gently fall asleep, or go screaming berserk. Letting go of my busy mind, surrendering to the unyielding sense of containment and safety, often brings me deep feelings of peace and comfort.
Eden left me for a while then to enjoy my immobilization. I lay pinioned in a state of blissful calm, like the eye in the center of a hurricane, as Mark and LT-Switch continued their frenetic activity all around me taking a flurry of photos.
I was quickly, but quite delightedly, pulled out of my private reverie as Eden began to "top" me - in a quite literal sense! It should be clarified that common sense and social respect apply to bondage and BDSM play, just as elsewhere. Consenting to be restrained does
not automatically include an open invitation to be approached and topped by others. Mutual understanding and agreement are essential.
In this case, of course, my consent was both immediate and enthusiastic. Without a moment of hesitation Eden straddled my helpless torso as if I were some kind of children's playground toy.
Whatever we had unleashed within Eden was clearly a natural response. I could see the gleam in her eyes, and feel the power of her actions. She was freely enjoying her position of control. I certainly liked whatever animal had been released!
With my head held quite immobile, she leaned over me and brought her face down close to mine. Our eyes were transfixed on one another, and as she broke into a beautiful unreserved laugh, I only hoped that she could see the delight in my face too through the obscuring black rubber.
As she rested her head comfortingly on my chest, I closed my eyes and savored the warm physical connection we were sharing, undeniable even through the layers of latex and leather.
This gentle shared moment was halted abruptly and replaced by wicked fetish madness as Eden quickly removed the boxing headgear and picked up an insectoid-looking gasmask. She slowly, and with delicious deliberation, pulled it down over my already rubber-helmeted head and drew its rubber straps taut. Instantly, a flawless, airtight seal formed between the gasmask and my latex hood, and I felt myself sink even deeper. My air supply was not impaired in any way, but my breathing quickened regardless.
Condensation from my breath began to appear on the inside of the gasmask lenses. With each exhale of warm moist air, the lenses fogged up more, and with each inhale of cool fresh air, the lenses partially cleared.
I intentionally began taking deeper breaths to accentuate and play with this visual effect. When I did, there was an additional, auditory benefit, for the sounds of the rushing air and clicking of the gasmask valves created an amusingly sinister Darth Vader-like impression.
While I was temporarily distracted with the gas mask, Eden moved away from my view...
The bondage play described on this page is not for beginners. Both the Top and Bottom should have
considerable experience and comfort with the individual bondage/fetish
elements of this multi-layered bondage scene before attempting
to combine
them all together. This style of bondage play can be dangerous, and even fatal, regardless of how simple it appears. Panic, over-heating and fainting can arise quickly without warning, not to mention unexpected events like house fires, earthquakes, gas leaks, electrical shorts or burglars. The length of time required to remove someone from this type of bondage can turn an innocent play scene into a full medical disaster. This removal time factor should be considered with any kind of bondage play. Remember, there is no such thing as "oh, that would probably never happen."
Both players are jointly responsible for their decision to play with bondage. Never put someone in bondage without full, continuous and uninterrupted monitoring. Never play with bondage by yourself. If you play with bondage, do so at your own risk.
The next thing I knew, Eden's arms were covered with long, thick, rubber gloves and much to my semi-terrified delight, Mark's gasmask hose "appeared out of nowhere" and Eden screwed one end onto the intake valve! "Oh wow!" was all I could think. (Safety Note: I was not re-breathing my own air. Fresh but rubber-scented air comes in through the hose then passes out through the gasmask's one-way exhaust valve below)
I disappeared completely into my own private world of inescapable bondage. Fastened, gas-masked, and immobilized, there was no possible way I could influence anything in the world outside my encasements and I knew Eden, Mark, and LT-Switch could, if they felt like it, just walk away, close the door, and leave me bound as I was.
There was nothing I could do to stop them... and more trembles (of delight!) ran through me while I struggled uselessly.
Too soon, this wonderful scene to came to an end. Eden removed my gasmask and latex hood first, revealing an amusing case of unruly "hood hair", accompanied by a brilliant, silly, and contented smile. I was quickly unstrapped, unlaced, unzipped, and finally but with reluctance extracted from the bondage of the sleep sack; able to rejoin the land of the free. This was an evening to long remember, and I was grateful to Mark and LT-Switch, and especially to Eden, for what had been for all of us a most rewarding scene of Serious Bondage.
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