Cross-posted from Tied Up Events who are hosting this party!

Empowerment is something that adult film star and gallery owner, Madison Young, is passionate about. Her passion has led her to direct cutting edge films that push boundaries and buttons in an effort to give the viewer more than just “bang for the buck” but also to immerse them in an experience that leaves them thinking about boundaries, sexuality, gender and the intersections of pleasure and pain. But that isn’t the only way 29 year old Madison has chosen to spread her mission of empowerment. Founding Femina Potens, a non-profit art gallery and performance space, in 2003, Madison brings that message to the gallery’s San Francisco neighborhood, combining art, education, theater, kink and sexuality in a safe and welcoming space for the LGBTQIK community and their supporters to congregate and experience art in a way that often blurs the line between artist and audience.

Tied Up Events supports Madison Young and the vision she has created and nurtured. We’re delighted to announce that on Friday, March 19th, Madison will be in New York City and we’d like to ask you to join us for a special fundraiser for Femina Potens to be held at Fontana’s.

From 6PM to 7:30PM, there will be a private wine and chocolate party (donation $35 in advance through Eventbrite), limited to 30 guests who will get to enjoy some one on one time with our guest of honor. Outstanding erotic photographer JM Darling will be there to photograph guests with Madison.

At 7:30PM the general public is invited to join us at no cost for the second half of our evening. Madison will be doing a special, interactive performance. Sexy, sultry N, ecdysiast and co-producer of Hypergender Burlesque, has generously agreed to perform for us. And, of course, there will be a raffle with fabulous prizes graciously donated by sponsors such as Stockroom and Kink Academy. So be sure to bring your cash; maybe you’ll even be one of the lucky guests to purchase your tickets from Madison. Spend $25 or more on raffle tickets and if you’re among the first 50 people to do so, you’ll receive a signature Tied Up Events gift bag.

So come on out, belly up to the bar, order a gratis Original Sin Cider as long as the supply lasts, and heat up this cold and snowy NYC winter while supporting the arts and enjoying art, burlesque, a beautiful and brilliant adult film star, prizes and gift bags. Attend This Event

Yep, I’ll be there for the whole thing! I might be a little starstruck though….Madison is HAWT. I’m also going to attend my first In The Flesh reading the night before. Finally will get to meet Mollena!!

Tags: NYC

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One of the things that I did during my NYC trip was attend a “sensual rope bondage” class given by Twisted Monk, purveyor of fine bondage ropes. My prior experience with rope was pretty damn inconsequential. Basically I have reviewed two mass-market bondage ropes (which, now that I have been spoiled, I don’t want to use) and two books on how to tie people up. At that time I was researching it all so that it could be used on me by my then-dominant or by me on a potential submissive guy I was getting to know. Obviously, neither panned out in the end and my items have languished in my kinky bag.

But even with those two books, I wouldn’t have been able to do much. For one, my spatial imagination isn’t very good – trying to figure out the knots and ties via words and pictures wasn’t always easy. So I went looking for instructional videos online and found the series that Monk has up on his site. Huge huge learning difference. Recently when Tess and Diva announced that they would be  bringing Monk to NY for a class, I signed up right away – and I was not disappointed!

Shibari is what I had been previously learning about, but I didn’t quite “get it”. It seemed complicated and unnecessary to me. Time consuming and more about precision and patience than anything else. But Monk’s class was different – catering right to my train of thought (I later found out he’s a fellow ADDer so it’s not damn wonder I love his teaching methods and outlook).  From his blog:

“Sensual Rope Bondage for the Not So Vanilla”

Rope, everybody is doing it.

So what is up with all this rope bondage stuff anyways? Seems like everywhere you look online these days folks are tying each other up and having sex. Maybe you have tried in the past, ya know silk ties to the bed posts perhaps, and now you want to know more?

Monk, founder of Twistedmonk.com the oldest and most trusted name in bondage rope, is hosting a very rare class and Q&A session on erotic rope bondage. More than your run of the mill “rope 101” class with a bunch of frustrating knots you will never remember, this class is all about the providing you with the building blocks as well as how to “think” in rope to expand your play options and confidently bring rope bondage into your bedroom.

Topics Include:
Why Rope? Or “So, do you get a lot of chicks with this rope bondage thing?”
Resources
Rope Safety
Single and double column ties and variations
Chest Harnesses with variations
Boy and girl ‘bits” bondage
Incorporating Rope into your play

If you are just starting to explore bondage or perhaps just very curious, this small hands on class is for you.

The best thing about this class is Monk himself. He is a fabulous instructor with this gift of making every bit of his class highly entertaining and truly educational all at once. I really can’t say enough good things about this guy. Very personable and charming, funny and intelligent (really now, what instructor is going to just launch into a bad impersonation of Mickey Mouse Doing Bondage? It was painfully funny – and by painfully funny I mean Monk, you might wanna practice your Kermit impression, it might work for ya better). With every step of the way he’d stop and let the participants try out what he just showed, on their partners, while he walked around to guide and observe. I wish more instructors had his approach and personality. After the class portion was over we went to the main area of Fontana’s where he had his suspension rigging set up, and there was a casual gathering while we watched him do a few different suspensions (photo at the end). It really felt like you were being taught by a friend, rather than the kinky ‘net-celeb that he is. I think we all hid our fan-girl moments quite well ;)

Also during this class I finally got to see and feel his famous rope, up close and personal (no, that wasn’t a euphemism you pervs) (and by personal I mean it was wrapped around my tits). A few of you commented on my last HNT that the chest harness looked painful. There was only one uncomfortable spot and that was because the rope wasn’t laying flat. If this kind of ropework is done right then its not going to be painful – and I have an auto-immune disorder that affects my perception of pain so if I can say it’s not painful, it’s really and truly not. Plus his rope is super high quality. I’ve always wanted to have some of his rope, and this just solidified it. His rope is very high quality and can be bought in pretty colors. It wasn’t at all like I imagined hemp rope would be, I didn’t even notice it on my skin. The small portion of bare skin that the chest harness rope pressed against was left with this really pretty indentations from the rope. Another cool thing about his rope is the way the ends are finished. It’s called “whipped” and appears to be pretty much indestructible.  He had offered up a special limited-edition kit to class participants but I very sadly couldn’t afford it that weekend. I would want it even though I currently have no partner to use it with, it’s just that good. Even though I have little experience with rope, I could tell that using this hemp rope lent itself better to secure ties than the cotton/nylon ropes I have reviewed. For those with sensitive skin he also sells silk and bamboo rope, in addition to supreme quality hemp ropes. I’d also be very interested in trying the softer “exotic” ropes, but being a girly-girl I’d likely end up choosing the regular hemp so that I can have it in pretty colors.

The ties he taught us are very simple and versatile. No need for intricate spider-web designs here. As he put it – you don’t want your bottom thinking “Would you just tie me up and fuck me, already?” so you don’t want to get involved in intricate designs and having to remember 30 different knots. Some of the things he taught us were in the “building block” category: how to change things up in the middle if you suddenly realize you don’t have enough rope for your intended maneuver, how to use the rope like a leash for tossing around your unruly submissive or how to put said unruly submissive into a better (more restrictive) tie when they wiggle out, and so on. Then of course were the fun bits of using the rope in positions and places to create the most tortuous pleasure. The main tie that the class did as partners involved the chest harness. It was at this time that I realized that a properly done chest harness was like an obscene bra for me.

As I watched him run the rope this way and that in rapid succession over his demo bottom…..I “got it”. The control he had at every moment would be intoxicating to experience. Even if the sexy playtime isn’t a big bad D/s scene, the rope provides just enough kinky control/loss of control to be right up my alley.

When the announcement for the special class was made, I was informed that he hasn’t taught a class in quite some time and that this was a rare treat. I hope he changes his mind because seriously you guys, if you’re at all into rope bondage or think you might like it, I cannot endorse this guy enough. If I ever hear about any classes I’ll be spreading the word.

Also, Monk, if you ever happen to read this – this kit is really awesome for plus size ladies such as myself but would be even more awesome if you also offered it in 6mm rope :)

*All photos are property of Stacie Joy, the wonderful NYC-based kink & fetish photographer, who graciously let me re-post her work her. Thank you Stacie Joy!!*

Tags: bondage rope, NYC, Photos, Twisted Monk

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One of the *very amazing* people I met in NYC recently is Princess Kali. My first impression of her was how genuinely nice and sweet she is and how you just feel at ease around her. Beneath that sweetness is an air of poise and control that commands respect quietly.

Wait no, scratch that.

That was my second impression.

My first impression was staring discretely at her lithe ballerina-like body as she grabbed her breakfast in the hotel lounge, wearing this tiny stretchy little black dress with no bra and these big menacing black punk boots. Duh yes I wondered if she was wearing panties. *grins* Sadly she was, hot pink. Of course, by the time I realized that, I also found out that she is a pro Domme and so I tried my very very best to be discrete and respectful in my perving (moreso than usual, that is. I’m nothing if not a discrete and respectful perv). In other words folks, she’s hot – just rolled out of bed with no makeup and no effort. When she’s dressed to the nines for her sessions and such? It makes me reconsider a few things ;)

In addition to her regular site, Kali is the headmistress and founder of The Kink Academy. It’s not a free site but it’s really worth the admission price ($9.95 a month) because of the vast amount of knowledge and lessons shared. It’s better than a book because many lessons are in video form – I don’t know about you but watching someone show me how to do things is easier for me than just reading directions.

The topics that are covered are in a vast range of kink and experience level. The mildly kinky can get information on corsets (how to lace, how to buy, etc), floggers (how to, the different types of floggers and the sensations they bring), anal play (for men and women), condoms, lubes and sextoys and so on. Those wishing to extend their BDSM knowledge can learn more about fire play, how to use a dragon tail whip, pet play, age play, liquid latex, service and protocols, and a lot more. The sheer volume of information and range of topics will appeal to a large number of people. There’s a number of topics that I know I could have used a few years ago when I started out as a Top (knowing what I know now I can’t bring myself to say that I was a Domme). The information on this site seems to be much more realistic and usable than the information I gleaned from books such as “The Mistress Manual” or “The Sexually Dominant Woman” – I found those and similar books to be largely ridiculous to me and found myself thinking “Oh no WAY could I say that!!”. The information that Kink Academy gives you can be specific or generic enough for you to build from, all while helping you gain confidence via knowledge that you may currently lack via experience.

Going beyond one-sided information, there is a forum where you can ask a specific question for one of the instructors to answer or interact with other members. Princess Kali has done an amazing job with this site and I hope that it becomes as big of a success as it deserves to be.

In the gift bags at the NYC Sex Blogger Calendar Party, we were given a voucher for a free month subscription to the site – it expires December 1st  though (meaning you have to redeem it by then, not that the free month runs out by then) so I don’t need to use it – if any of you would like it, please leave a comment here. I have only this one code so the first person interested in it will get it.

Tags: bdsm, kink, NYC, reviews

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One of the things that I did during my NYC weekend was to attend a Sensual Rope Bondage class taught by Twisted Monk. I’ll be talking more about him and the class next week but for now I thought I’d share the rope chest harness that was done on me. I had taken off my bra for this because I knew that snug rope over an underwire bra likely wouldn’t feel too good. What resulted was an almost anime-like effect.

photo credit: Stacie Joy

This is the harness not quite done yet, but hey there was a leash!

Photo by BadBadGirl

And this is the finished (mostly) harness that offers more “lift”. A second, shorter piece of rope could be added on to this to keep the leash effect, or to add even more lift/constriction to my breasts. BBG got a little help at the end with this, finishing off the end pieces into little half-bows and basically making me into a gift-wrapped set of tits *grins*

We had talked about trying out the chest harnesses on our own back at the hotel, sans shirts for better photos, but never got around to it. Hopefully in the somewhat-near future I’ll get to try this out again with the good rope and this time I’ll be sure to just throw shyness to the wind and whip the tits out right then and there. For now though I lack both the good rope and the rope-interested partner.

Tags: bondage rope, HNT, NYC, tits, Twisted Monk

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So, So what I’m still a rock star
I got my rock moves
And I don’t need you

And guess what
I’m havin more fun
And now that we’re done
I’m gonna show you tonight

I’m alright!
I’m just fine!

And you’re a tool so
So what
I am a rock star
I got my rock moves
And I don’t want you tonight

~Pink “So What”

Take that. To R, who’s out of my life. To a few friends, who shall remain nameless. And cheers to the beautiful people whom I had fun with that night and that weekend, you all fucking rock.

Tags: HNT, NYC, Photos, tits

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