Is it OK for Me to Call Myself “Master”?

So, you’ve got this title, “Master”. What are the origins? How did it come to be part of the BDSM language? “Master” might refer to: someone with a high level of skill in something (a Master Swordsman or Master Electrician, for example). To be recognised as this type of Master by your community you may…

The Error of Silence

by Isaac Cross For those of us to the left of the slash (dominant, top, etc), we often make decisions for the good of our partners without telling them. Even with the best of intentions, these decisions often have the opposite effect if we fail to communicate. I recently had arranged for a particularly brutal…

A Top’s Guide to Being in the Bootblacking Chair

Top or bottom, we don’t always instinctively get it right first time, and we’ve all got incidents in our past that were “learning moments”. I’d like to tell you one of mine. I was at a fetish bar in Philadelphia some years ago when I had my first encounter with a bootblack. yangpup was with…

20 Unsolicited Tips for New Dominants

BY _Min_ Based on a conversation I had today, I wanted to jot some things down that were told to me when I started in the lifestyle and helped me (I think) be a little bit less of the idiot I could have been. These are things that helped me, however, may not be applicable…

The Dungeon Doorway Effect

If you’ve ever walked into a room to get your keys and forgotten what you’re looking for, or found yourself staring into the fridge wondering what it was you came to the kitchen for, then you’ve experienced the Doorway Effect. It’s not just you, it happens to all of us, and there’s a straightforward enough…

Objects of Surveillance – Initiating a Virtual Leash

If You could have a real leather or metal leash locked on Your property in public, many of you would definitely do it. It is an ultimate symbol of ownership, control and power. A leash, hooked to the locked collar of your property, symbolises the ownership of that property. Perhaps on the way into the…

BDSM as an Art Form

… a BDSM scene is a work of art, not science, not technology. A work of art is something unique that is created using special skills and reflects the personality and creativity of the artist. Hermes Solenzol – BDSM is not science, it’s an art! We all like to escape our everyday life once in awhile….

BDSM is not science, it’s an art!

by Hermes Solenzol Borrowing from the name of a popular website, I fucking love science! I fell in love with science when I was a pre-teen and have studied it ever since. These days I make a living doing scientific research on the physiology of pain, which is kind of convenient for a sadomasochist. I…

Doms: How Controlling Do You Need to Be?

Power exchange in Dominance/submission is characterised by one person wanting to give up some degree of control, and another wanting to take that control on. On the surface it’s not a difficult concept, but like all things that involve degrees, there are infinite points of balance and it is only successful when both people feel…

What’s the Buzz about Barbershop Scenes and Head Shaving?

“Hi. My name is Keith, and I cruise barbershops. This is one form of legal nudity. Shaving is sexy. The vibration of the razor’s teeth [on my head] is sexy, plus Dad likes it. It makes me look so fucking good.” There are many reasons for getting, giving, or having a buzz cut. There is…