Leather vs Ropes

[BoundNTickled]

As I have gotten older I have started to enjoy using leather and leather like straps and cuffs vs rope for when I play. I am curious if anyone has similar experience?

[Windrunner]

I like both. And other things, like scarves etc.

Leather restraints are great for quick, easy, struggle-all-you-want-without-getting-hurt bondage. And there's something psychological about the "tied up with something that was meant to be used as a restraint".

I like rope for either super-quick "just going to tie hands behind back and play" bondage, but I also have gotten interested in making rope bondage that looks good (for photos) and feels good. It takes time, though, and even with practice, no two people will want exactly the same level of pressure from the rope, or can bend certain ways or for amounts of time, so it's usually something I save for longer "let's experiment around, try a few things, and hopefully something will click and either feel terrific or look terrific - and on those rare occasions, both look AND feel terrific.

[copperfox]

Yes, I share both of your sentiments. However, I haven’t really used rope since engaging in self bondage as a kid and teen. I used it then since it was the only thing I had access to. At that point, I didn’t know anything else existed, nor would I have been able to buy any bondage-specific gear anyway.

I think I like the feeling of leather better, but would certainly use rope more if I thought my wife would be able to help at all. Not being mean here, but (between just me and this forum)—she’d just end up getting frustrated with me telling her, “It’s not tight enough!, “That’s too tight!”, “Use more rope!”, “What kind of knot is that?”, “The harness looks better in the picture.”—I’d be topping from the bottom like nobody’s business. And that would be the end of any more rope play for me.

As, @Windrunner, mentioned, leather is great for being able to struggle without getting hurt (e.g., no ropes digging into your skin or tightening due to bad placement). I also agree that there’s just something about getting into specially-crafted bondage gear that I absolutely love. it just feels right.

[Windrunner]

“It’s not tight enough!, “That’s too tight!”, “Use more rope!”, “What kind of knot is that?”, “The harness looks better in the picture.”—I’d be topping from the bottom like nobody’s business. And that would be the end of any more rope play for me. .

yeah, I may have done that a couple of times. I do the opposite, too - 'bottoming from the top' - putting someone else into some kind of bondage that pushes my buttons, call it vicarious bottoming lol

[BrittanyRN]

I’ve used plenty of both. They each have their pros and cons and good times to use them

[sami200456boyfriend]

Definitely Leather.

[MedicAndrea]

Both are great. I feel like rope is a bit more versatile where leather can be tighter while still being comfortable