Shibari Academy

Hello, we're here with Eve. Eve's the creator, instructor and Model Shibari Academy, the leading online Shibari course. She has spent the last five years focusing on removing taboos and making Shibari something everyone can learn. Today, she has helped over 100,000 students learn the art of Shibari and build strong relationships with others. 

Question: So tell us, how did Shibari Academy come to be?

 Eve: I was first introduced to the world of Shibari by a friend of mine who called me one day and asked me if I wanted to learn about this Japanese art that he had just discovered. He invited me over, along with a couple of our friends on a Friday night, to teach us how to tie a single and a double column tie. From that day on, we were all hooked. It became a regular thing with us, where every Friday night we would all get together and we would tie each other up in different locations. 

When I met my partner, I wanted to introduce him to the world of Shibari but in a more organized fashion. So we bought books, we went to workshops, we saw hundreds of videos online, and we realized that there was no single resource that would guide you from knowing absolutely nothing about Shibari all the way to becoming an expert. 

All the material out there was very visually impactful and it was so far away from our experience that home. Because when you're first approaching Shibari, everything regarding tops, bottoms, riggers (which are the people that tie) and rope bunnies (which are the models that are being tied) can be extremely intimidating. And for lots of riggers out there, Shibari is a lifestyle that's associated with tons of things that are not Shibari, like leather piercings, tattoos and sex. 

And I mean, don't get me wrong, we're not against any of that. But it just isn't what Shibari is about. Shibari is about building trust and building relationships. So we wanted to share Shibari without the negative connotations associated with BDSM and sexual kinks. 

We spent over an entire year recording hundreds of video lessons that were easy to follow and that were non-threatening. We chose ties that were not very dangerous or risky because we want to make them accessible for everybody. We created Shibari Academy first as a resource for us, but then we decided to share. We wanted to share the joy and we wanted to share the love and the connection that we found with Shibari. So we uploaded our videos. 

To date, we have helped over 100,000 students learn about Shibari at ShibariAcademy.com.  

One of the most difficult parts in our Shibari journey was learning all the basics. So we're talking about safety, getting to know ropes, considerations for tying, and considerations for being tied. We had a very hard time finding all of that information. So the first thing is create a Shibari 101 course and we made it completely free for everybody.  

So if you're trying to learn Shibari go to ShibariAcademy.com and enroll in our free Shibari 101 course. 

Question: And what makes Shibari Academy's courses so unique?  

Eve: Shibari educational resources come in three flavors. 

The first flavor are books. You can buy a book, you can have it at home, and you can access it whenever you want. That said, the material in the books is limited, it cannot be updated, and it can sometimes be very difficult to follow.  

The second flavor is you can sign up for a subscription service on website. These websites, there's tons of them, they're great because they have lots of material. That said, these websites can be very difficult to navigate. The material is non-sequential and itt is very confusing to get to the tie that you want to see. Also the video lessons tend to be recorded from far away so it can be difficult to follow the ties. And obviously, I mean, when you stop paying, then you no longer have access to the material.  

And the third flavor are workshops. So workshops are great because you do get this first person experience. That said, they can be very expensive. And also, I mean, when you're done with a workshop, it's not as if you can take it with you to review in the future. 

Shibari Academy takes the best of all of these worlds. It is like a book because we offer lifetime access, so you can watch the video lessons, wherever you want, whenever you want. It is also like these online subscription websites, because we have tons of material that is continuously updated. At Shibari Academy, all our video lessons are organized in body parts and also organized in levels of difficulty, so it is very easy to find the tie that you're looking for. And finally, it is also like a workshop because all of our video tutorials are recorded with a first person perspective.  

So what does that mean? The camera is between the person tying and the person being tied, so it is very easy to simply follow the hand movements, to understand how the ropes work and how the tie comes together. 

But most of all, what makes Shibari Academy unique is that we have a mission to make Shibari easy and accessible for everybody. 

Question: What experience level does Shibari Academy cater to?  

Eve: Shibari Academy caters to all experience levels. That said, beginners will find it especially useful because we guide you from not knowing anything about Shibari all the way to advanced ties in progressive difficulty so you never feel out of your depth. You don't have to have any experience to become a Shibari Academy student. 

Question: There seems to be over 50 classes that are offered for absolutely free. Is that true?  

Eve: That is correct. Our free Shibari 101 course will teach you all the theoretical and practical basics to have a successful Shibari session. 

Regarding the theoretical basics, we're talking about safety considerations, considerations for tying, considerations for being tied, how to set up the room, etc. And regarding the practical basics, we teach basic knots, and basic ties. So in reality, after you watch the entire Shibari 101 course, you have all the material that you need in order to start your Shibari journey. 

If you're creative enough, you can actually use what you've learned to create your own Shibari ties.  

Question: How many courses and lessons does Shibari Academy offer?  

Eve: Our Shibari Certificate consists of five courses. 

1. Shibari 101 where we teach all the theoretical and practical basics to have a successful Shibari session. 
2. Shibari Easy
3. Shibari medium
4. Shibari advanced
5. Couples 

These five courses have over 115 video lessons. Once you're done watching all of the video tutorials, you get issued a certificate of completion. That certificate of completion comes with a unique url which you can share with your network. 

Inteviewer: Thank you. Thank you very much.  

Eve: Thank you. And if you want to learn Shibari go to ShibariAcademy.com

See you later.