This attractive harness is simple, fast to tie, and can be used for suspensions, but only side suspensions with the weave facing down, and only where the chest is even with or higher than the hips, as in a horizontal side suspension; do not use this for inversions. It allows you to have a single connection point that transfers the pressure to the opposite hip joint, nicely cradling and supporting your partner on a very strong part of their body. With practice, this can be tied in around 2 minutes.
This is a part of a series of related woven hip harness with similar features:
- Woven Hip Harness – One-Sided – Locked with Half-hitch (This tutorial)
- Woven Hip Harness – One-Sided – Rosette
- Woven Hip Harness – Two-Sided – Rosette
- The Leto Hip Harness
This variant is the fastest to tie, but also has the least friction in the weave. Depending on factors, some find that this version is more apt to tighten on the inner thigh. If that is the case for you, try the Rosette version to see if that suits you better.
Use this in combination with a supportive chest harness like the Shinju, RopeFairy’s Caress or Fisherman’s Harness (among many other great choices) to allow your partner to lay sideways in rope. Also consider adding support for their legs, perhaps with just a simple Somerville Bowline or other Single Column above each knee or both knee and ankle, or with something more detailed like a Suspension Futomomo.
IMPORTANT: Do not use this if you intend to invert your partner to any degree where their head is lower than their hips. This harness provides great support if the force is angled upward toward the head and at any degree between that and straight out to the side. But note that this version does not have much keeping if from sliding down. Therefore, if the force is pointing downward at all, you run the risk of the harness sliding down over the hip. If you plan to have your partner tipped to any further than horizontal, choose a different harness, one that anchors solidly to the waist, perhaps the Drum Harness or Leto Harness (tutorial forthcoming).
For this tutorial, I used one 30′ (~9m) piece of Natural 1/4″ (6mm) hemp. Extend your rope if you need more; use it up if you have too much.
I use an amazing Natural hemp rope provided by my affiliate Twisted Monk. Check them out!
Prerequisites:
Video Contents:
- Core Technique (0:21)
- Horizontal Side Suspension Connection Point Demonstration (6:31)
This is shown on the left side: I am going to tie this so that the weave is on my partner’s left side. Tied this way it will be the left side that will face downward if this tie were to be used in a side suspension.
To do this on the right side: In the directions below, I direct you to use the right or left hand. Doing it in this way will increase your speed and efficiency. If you want to tie this so that the weave is on the right side, just reverse everything below. (That is: When I say “right hand” use your left, etc.)
Rope length: I used one 30’ (9m) rope. That was sufficient for this particular person, with this particular build, to give me a total of three wraps. If I was tying a person with a different build or if I needed 4 wraps, etc., I would need a different amount of rope. Keep in mind that you can extend your rope, if you need more.
Hi there!
Me (a 175 cm tall & 90 kg girl with a chubby build) and my partner (a 2 m tall & 100 kg athletic guy) tied this on each other and we’re running into the harness tightening itself around the thigh in a way that would end up being unsafe. We tried it over both clothing & bare skin, with 3 wraps & with 4 and the same issue arises – when weight is put into the harness the way it’s shown on pic 39, the part around the thigh starts tightening itself and it doesn’ really stop.
Is there any way to prevent this?
There are a number of reasons this might be, but my first suspect would be friction. If the rope itself has less friction between the strands, it can more easily slide in a configuration like this. So if, for example, you are using a synthetic fiber like nylon or mfp and you are feeling this effect, you may have a different result if you switch to a natural fiber like hemp which usually has greater ‘tooth’, i.e. more friction.
If you are already using a rope like that, you can add friction during the tying process by making sure there is enough tension in the ropes that the press into the skin for about 1/3 to 1/2 their diameter, and that you maintain that level of tension throughout the tie so that the weave is consistent and you can see the rope deflect around the other ropes as they go through the weave.
But before you spend time fiddling with that, I would suggest you try a different, related tie: https://www.theduchy.com/woven-hip-harness-one-sided-rosette/
This version does the lock off on the weave itself, automatically adding more friction. Try that version and see how it feels on you. Perhaps it is better suited to your needs.
Could you elaborate a little on the reasons behind avoiding inversion with this tie? Could you suggest a safe window in which your partner can be angled?
Certainly! I have updated it with the following: Do not use this if you intend to invert your partner to any degree where their head is lower than their hips. This harness provides great support if the force is angled upward toward the head and at any degree between that and straight out to the side. But note that this version does not have much keeping if from sliding down. Therefore, if the force is pointing downward at all, you run the risk of the harness sliding down over the hip. If you plan to have your partner tipped to any further than horizontal, choose a different harness, one that anchors solidly to the waist, perhaps the Drum Harness or Leto Harness (tutorial forthcoming).
Looking forward to trying this in a suspension. Tip: I had a lot of rope to burn. Too much to just wrap around the waste band, but not enough to go around both the waste and leg again. So I went just around the waste again, weaving it down and right back up and across the back.