
With the entrance of younger kinksters into the traditional BDSM Community (before you assume anything, I think this is good!), there is now an alt/ink/kink/bondage faction that is championed by these millennials. The “traditional” slave/slut tattoos have been joined by neck, face, breasts and even “black ink” tattoos. Many of these new lifestylers are pushing the boundaries of both ink and kink. And even though my lightly tatted slave said, “It looks like everything has been done” – this is far from the case. Still, the days of shocking people with a sleeve are long gone. (Maybe that wasn’t a good reason to get tattooed anyway.) Tattoos, like marijuana, have gone mainstream.
Yes, we have come a long way from the “Property of Master So&So” tattoo (the kiss of death for relationships according to professional tattooers). Since pushing boundaries is integral to our kinky lifestyle, there is one option for permanent marking that is, by definition, truly edgy – branding. The final frontier!
Branding, simply put, is burning the skin’s surface to make a mark. This mark can be either temporary or permanent. The temporary kind is often referred to as a “surface burn.” A skillfully done surface burn will usually begin to fade within a few months; after a year, the most that will remain is a residual redness – depending upon the skin type. Extreme masochists love this type of play, which has no shortage of pain.
The danger in surface burns lies in the cavalier attitude people have in both giving and getting them. As they are not intended to be permanent, most do not use branding professionals for this. They bend a copper wire into the desired shape, heat it up and brand away. Even assuming that the temperature was correct for the temporary effect, professional levels of sterility and aftercare are often ignored. This can lead to blistering and infection. I suggest having a branding professional do the surface burn and supervise the aftercare – just as if it were a permanent branding. Failing that, you should have someone skilled in the art of surface burns and its aftercare present when the branding is done.
Although there are those who get permanently branded just for the thrill of it, permanent branding is usually reserved for the most serious of BDSM couples as a mark of ownership. It demands the highest level of trust — the submissive must have total trust in the Dom/me’s branding skill or judgment in choosing a brander. It entails extreme pain – both during the actual branding and throughout the healing process. And it demands commitment – a brand is for life. It is not a temporary surface burn that fades in time; there is no “laser removal,” as in tattooing. In its totality, branding is the heavyweight of all markings.
Permanent branding is quite a bit more complicated than one would expect. Most experienced branders work in 316L stainless steel sheet metal and shape it into different parts of the brand. They build their designs using sequential “strikes” of thin metal pieces to make the complete brand. Heated by a propane torch, the temperature is critical. Too hot, you can injure muscle tissue or ruin the brand with too much scarification. Too little heat, the brand will look weak. And all the strikes must be applied with equal pressure and identical heat or an uneven brand will result. To properly brand a person takes a lot of skill; we are, after all, not cattle.
Issues of skill aside, the major concern for most people is the permanence of the brand. “What if Master/Mistress were to release me and I have a brand on my butt?” This would seem to be a legitimate question. Since few things last forever, the real question should be, “Can I live with this mark if the relationship were to end?” Framed in this context, the decision seems to be simpler. If the mark is esthetically pleasing and you think, were you to break up, that you can still wear your mark with pride, then branding just might make sense. On the other hand, if the relationship does last forever…wow!!!
By BaadMaster
After a ten year run as head writer for the legendary bondage.com, and an equally long run as the host of the hit internet show “Baadmaster’s Dungeon,” we are pleased to welcome the one and only Baadmaster to KinkWeekly. His thoughts about all things BDSM will now appear regularly on these pages. From the mental aspects of D/s to the nuts and bolts of S&M play, Baadmaster will cover every facet of this ever expanding lifestyle.
stuartshapiro says
Hi my partner and I are very serious about having her branded I want the brand to be text rather than pictures or images in other words it would be almost like reading newsprint on a newspaper and naturally I wantit to be very clear I am very concerned about the hygienics and aesthetic aspects and I’m wondering whether there might be some clinic or doctors in Mexico who have experience in these kind of things
Any help appreciated
Marcus says
Just out of curiousity, How long should a hot strike on the ass be? 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds?
Cyrano says
This problem of a potential ending of your relationship also meaning the loss of meaning of your mark can be avoided by simply leaving out this whole principal of “proof of property by this or that person”. I can imagine one is irresistibly drawn to the idea, to wanting to know what it feels like to be branded for real. But if you’re not doing it for the right reason, it can become a problem. You’d have to have it done for yourself only, I think, for the experience of the pain, not so much to seal some contract with someone else. For that relationship, indeed, can end, you never know, people change. But if you’re a real masochist, even after you’ve left your “master”, you’ll take your masochism with you. And for that, you need to undergo this branding for love of the pain, not for love of somebody who might leave you one day, or that you might leave.
I wonder what it feels like, during, and afterwards, when you sit down… :-O for I would never want to have it anywhere else but on my butt, very close to the center, as close as possible. Ouch indeed, double ouch!
But I wouldn’t see it as the stamp on a mortgage or a contract. That would totally take the fun out of it, if you can use that word in this context… It would be for me alone. And maybe also for the excitement of the one who’d do it to me, but that wouldn’t give him any rights on me.
S. Polar says
Do you really believe Millennials are going to undergo “branding”? Really? Their idea of S&M is 50 shades of play, and could never commit to the pain and suffering of a real branding of a femdom mistress’s initials on their buttocks in tribute and devotion. This is not spilling a hot cup of Starbucks coffee on you. This is not a generation for S&M.
WrightGirl says
You are not a millennial so you do not know what our ideas are collectively, and I can assure you it is not 50 shades of twilight fan fic! As my branding date approaches, I am full of butterflies and nerves but I’m excited and proud to wear Sir’s mark.
Alabama Moneoe says
I am a total novice to bdsm but just thinking about having someone worth of me, sacrificing my beautiful skin being branded is sooooo exciting, lovely, I can’t even explain this. No matter what will happen to the relationship, the memory of this special bond is worth of everything…
_Marcus_ says
My wife is branded with my initials above a “dina” rose. The brand is on her left thigh. The initials are mine, The rose represents her. She is proud of it and specifically likes to get a tan on her legs because it makes the brand more visible. Officially she is my wife. Unofficially, she is my property. We have been married eleven years. But when people ask me how long we’ve been married, I answer “Not long enough”. We both like it this way.
Roxette says
Can anyone tell me where I can buy a mold for branding. My master also wants to brand his initials but have to find a place where I can order it. Thanks for your answer.
Bridgett says
This is definitely a situation of your kink is not my kink and thats ok! haha to each their own. This makes me go Ouch!
BaadMaster says
I try to cover all aspects of our kinky lifestyle — with the aim of combining fun and safety. Branding is one area that needs some cajoling with respect to safety. And yes, there is an “ouch” in this kink!