A Basic Primer On Gags For Bondage Play

I love gags. I love the way they look when worn by a helpless damsel, her eyes above it wide, angry, or even erotically inflamed. I love hearing a girl trying to talk through a gag and failing miserably, her ability to express herself reduced to a series of growls and mmphs. And I love watching her trying to relieve herself of her gag, contorting her face, pushing with her tongue, or rubbing against a pillow or furniture in a futile attempt to accomplish an otherwise simple act, were her hands free.

To me, a gag represents a sort of cherry on top of the bound girl sundae. I’ve taken away her ability to move about freely, then I’ve removed her ability to express herself verbally. Typically when you see a damsel in distress in the mainstream media it’s the gag which has the most attention lavished upon it, as almost nothing represents “helpless hostage” more than her hands behind her back and the lower portion of her face being covered.

Of course, the sort of gags you’ll see in movies, television, and magazine covers are utterly ineffective, complete and utter bullshit. A single strip of tape lightly pressed over the mouth, a bandana tied over or through a gal’s lovely lips, they’re almost comical in their inability to stifle speech or muffle a statement like, “You’ll never get away with this!”

For the BDSM or bondage connoisseur there exist a variety of gags to keep your girl quiet or muffled, a veritable cornucopia if you will. These run the range from effective coverings which cover a closed mouth to various balls, plugs, tubes, rings, clamps, and hooks which range in effectiveness from complete to strictly aesthetic. If you can’t find one to satisfy you and your girl you simply aren’t looking hard enough.

But first, a few basic safety tips.

Covering someone’s mouth such that they can’t easily remove it can be very, very dangerous. You run the risk of suffocation if it blocks the mouth as an airway and the nose becomes impeded, which can happen very easily if she gets emotional and cries during a scene. Additionally any gag which goes into the mouth runs the risk of triggering a gag reflex, which can easily lead to vomiting. I suppose I don’t need to point out that vomiting while your mouth is covered can be hazardous to your life.

So it’s important to pay extremely close attention to your girl while she’s gagged. While I’ve heard a variety of techniques, my favorite is the “no nodding or head shaking” rule. That is, if I ask her a question, she must answer as best she can verbally, which can lead to delightful exchanges whereby you truthfully or purposely fail to understand her. However, an actual head shake or nod leads to my full attention, a quick query as to whether she needs the gag removed, or an actual attempt to understand what she’s trying to say (you’d be surprised at how well a girl who’s often in such circumstances can express herself while tied and gagged).

Then there’s the issue of wearing a gag for longer periods. Simply put, the mouth’s natural, relaxed state is closed. When it’s open it’s under stress. Thus keeping it open involuntarily for any length of time can be extremely painful for many people. Sure, there are girls who can wear a two-inch ball gag for hours at a time, but there are also those who can sit with their elbows tied behind their back during the entirety of a Netflix binge of ‘Daredevil’. Don’t assume your girl is extraordinary until she’s been tested and passed. If she says it hurts, believe her, and don’t push the issue.

Then there’s the issue of swallowing, as in your girl could choke on her own drool. Some gags by their very nature can cause a girl to drool a lot. Some let the drool escape easily, others don’t. This is why it’s vitally important to test any gag ahead of time.

I always recommend first trying any gag while she’s entirely untied, and let her apply it as well. This way she can come to terms with the fit and feel while experiencing the emotional comfort of knowing she can remove it at any time. Let her wear it a while, see how long she can comfortably wear it, and make some attempts for her to communicate through it. Once she’s comfortable with it, only then should you apply it when she’s tied up.

Another thing to keep in mind is that a gag does not keep someone entirely silent. Indeed, a gagged girl can make a lot of noise if she’s determined, or motivated, enough. So if your room has thin walls and you’re counting on the gag to keep an especially noisy girl silent, be aware that all it’s gonna do is muffle her speech; that orgasmic, “Oh my GOD!” will instead come out as a slightly less noisy, “Mmm mm MMMMF!” Which may lead to even more questions.

As I said earlier, there are a lot of different sorts of gags. I’ll try to cover the essentials here but I’m certain to leave something (or a lot of somethings) out. And as always, YMMV. I’m sure that people will angrily correct me in the comments, so there’s always that.

Closed Mouth Gags – These are the sort which allow the mouth to remain closed, keeping the lips together such that the girl can only issue forth with comments beginning with the letter “M”.

The first (and my favorite) is good ol’ duct tape. Yes, a duct tape gag can be a very effective one, such that it muffles speech quite well and can’t be removed by an appropriately bound maiden. But you’re going to need considerably more than the single strip seen in most mainstream media. They can be done with something in the mouth (handkerchief, sock, ball, etc) or without. The former are most effective if not without some potential issues, but the latter can also work surprisingly well.

Basic precautions to use with the “something in the mouth” version, particularly with a cloth, is to place the center portions in first, with the loose ends and edges towards the front of the mouth. You don’t want a stray handkerchief corner or panty lace inadvertently tickling the back of the throat, as this could lead to tragedy. If you use something like a Nerf ball, be aware that it could expand to the back of the throat. And if you use a rubber ball, excessive saliva which can’t easily be swallowed can be a significant issue.

Once you decide whether you’re going with or without mouth packing, it’s time to apply the tape. Have your girl close her mouth, lips together (yes, you can pack her mouth so full that she can’t close it, but that wouldn’t be a closed mouth gag now would it?). She should have no makeup on, certainly no foundation, that the tape can adhere securely to her skin.

You’ll want to use the good duct tape; not necessarily the Gorilla Tape, but not the cheap stuff either. Start with one strip around six-inches long, applied straight beneath the nose and over the lower lip (be certain not to restrict her ability to breathe through her nose). Be certain it’s attached very securely, particularly the upper lip. Next use two seven-inch pieces to form an “X”, running from each upper cheek, under the corresponding nostril, over the mouth, and ending at the opposite corner, just under the ear.

Now take another seven-inch piece and run it from under one ear, under the jawline, to the opposite ear. This will leave a small hole at the tip of the chin which you cover with a four-to-five-inch piece of tape, starting under her chin and rolling up-and-over, creating some folds and wrinkles. And to cover those, a last piece of six-to-seven-inch piece goes flat over that, from right to left.

When properly applied this can be a formidable obstacle to coherent speech. Sometimes the adhesive on the upper lip can fail, or she can manage to get her tongue through her lips and wet the adhesive, slowly working it off. But most of the time I’ve found it stymies the most determined convolutions and contortions of a girl’s face. I’ve challenged securely bound girls simply to get the tape gag off that they may be set free, to no avail, even with five-to-ten minutes of determined effort.

And the other major advantage of this sort of duct tape gag is it’s relative comfort (barring the obvious pain involved with its removal). I’ve Netflixed-and-chilled for hours with my girl, even having her nap next to me while wearing it (she was also ensconced in a straitjacket).

I have reached the limit of my words for this session, necessitating a part the second. But before I go, a quick word about tape. Some people are allergic to duct tape, so test it on the skin first. There are a variety of medical tapes out there that work very well. And there’s also clear tape, and packing tape. All have their advantages and disadvantages.

In part the second I shall cover muzzles, then move on to open mouth gags.

About the Author

PirateStan has been involved in his local BDSM community for over 11 years, after having had a lifelong inclination towards it. He currently lives a contented life in Southeastern Virginia with his girl, zeirah, while working by day for a Major Metropolitan Publication.