Cutting and Bloodplay

By Unknown Author

Cutting is the S&M practice of using a scalpel or other fine blade to make a shallow cut in the top layer of your partner's skin. Play piercing is using a very fine needles to pierce your partner temporarily, removing the needles at scene's end. Burning is using high temperatures somehow in an S&M scene; note that the goal here is to play with heat, not to actually burn your partner, since burns are not friendly injuries to heal. Branding is, well, branding ... using small, shaped, highly heated pieces of metal to burn small scars into a partner's skin. Electrical play is playing with electricity. And finally, "blood sports or blood play" is a generic name for any S&M practice that involves blood.

Obviously, all these S&M practices are potentially very very dangerous, as any of these things, done wrong, could result in permanent injury. Properly done, none of these practices result in any damage that requires more than minor first aid to clean up and cope with. Also, I cannot give enough information on how to explain how to do these practices safely. You need to learn from an experienced top, and you need to see it done in person, before you will really know how to play this way with your partners. That said, onward we go with a feeble attempt to cover some of the groundwork.

First, cutting and blood play. The ground rules: cleanliness and safety. Most cutters I've seen use rubbing alcohol to clean off the surface of the skin, followed by Betadine to disinfect the skin area on which they're going to cut. The top wears latex gloves to minimize contact with their partner's blood ... remember, blood carries HIV, and cutting (blood sports in general, actually) involves blood. The usual instrument for cutting is a surgical scalpel, which is sharp enough to make a smooth, clean cut, using duller blades can leave a ragged cut which doesn't heal as well. Cuts are made on areas of the body where the skin is not stretched tight, for example, the shoulder blade, or the buttock, or the front of the thigh (though this can be problematic). Cuts are not made anywhere that the skin becomes taut, since such places won't heal well (the cut'll keep getting pulled open). Only one layer of skin is cut ... the very topmost layer.

Deeper cuts don't heal well. And cuttings generally don't form loops, as the skin in the center of the loop can be cut off from its blood supply. When the cutting is complete, the whole area is generally disinfected and bandaged.

When we talk about blood play, most people (especially those people who are new to the lifestyle) tend to think it's crazy and totally wacko ... and they are probably right. Blood play is one of the most extreme kinds of play ... not for everybody ... but some of us like living on the edge, and blood play is that.

Most people see blood play only as the kind of stuff we do with knifes, but that isn't all of it. There's also play piercing, but done with thinner needles, and you don't leave anything in the hole, so it can close up with time.

As for safety ... well ... it's pretty obvious that this kind of play can lead to infections and any other problems related to getting cut with anything, be it accidental or on purpose (as in blood play) so ... we need to follow some basic points in order to be safe. I'll try to cover most/all of them here with time, so keep coming back.

It is very important that you take very good care of the toys you use for blood play. Don't just grab a kitchen knife and cut/scratch your subbie with it, or grab one of the needles  she uses to sew your buttons and pierce her with it. That's the easiest way to get her an infection ... and as we said somewhere else, a sub without clit or nipples doesn't have much sexual fun.

Another thing that I have used for blood play is razor blades, of the disposable kind ... those are extremely sharp and generally leave no scars. Blades firstly should be sterilized by an antiseptic and then leave them soaking in alcohol for a couple of hours before and after play. Some people recommend lighting the blade as to make sure there is no alcohol left on the blade, to make sure.

Stay away from main arteries and vessels, which means, cut only on places that have a thick muscle/fat/flesh padding such as breast, hips and buttocks. Some players like to use knives on inner thighs and the back of the subbie. But if you do not know your anatomy well then DON'T go there. There are two main arteries that run on the inner thighs, close to the surface, and you have to know where they are, so you don't cut them and bleed your submissive to death or have to explain to the Doctors how she was cut like that.

It's also important that you make sure you don't cut too deep, unless you want to leave the scars, the deeper and wider the cut the more chance of scarring there is. The sharper the blade, the thinner the cut. So ask and experiment, don't cut on places that will be visible if she doesn't want scars and you don't know how easily she will or will not scar.

Once you are done with the play, do as you usually do with a cut, wash all the cuts you did with soap and water and use an antiseptic for good measure as well. It may hurt a bit but that is the fun of it for some of us. Medical bandages can be used for longer cuts to keep the cut closed to promote faster healing and also helps prevent the chance of scarring.

A plastic sheet is also recommended for placing the submissive on during bloodplay as blood does leave stains.