Today we’d like to introduce you to Ropebaby.
Hi Ropebaby, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Initially, I started an online zine in 2015 where I interviewed sex-positive models and artists and featured educational resources that were women and femme-friendly. As it turned out people were more interested in me sharing my personal lifestyle and adventures, so I opened my first Tumblr as Ropebaby which is where it all started!
In 2016, I moved to Brooklyn and opened an art shop online selling hand-dyed pastel rope. There was only one other brand making that at the time and so my business really took off. I was also managing an adult toy shop in Manhattan at the time and realized that I was earning more working for myself, so I decided to quit and focus on my own business. In 2019, I went on tour co-teaching rope art all over the United States and Europe. At the end of that year, I landed on the west coast and since then I have been here, working in and out of LA!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It was not a smooth road, and I would be a totally different person if it had been! I grew up the oldest of three with a single mom on the outskirts of DC. I had to leave home when I was 16 and figure out how to navigate being an adult on my own. I had supportive people then who kept me safe, but I didn’t really have guidance so I learned everything the hard way and took a lot of detours along the way! Though it was all of those detours that really shaped who I am today.
During my career, I had several major account deletions. The social media I lost included my original YouTube, Tumblr and Instagram. When they were taken down it was really difficult to bounce back, and there was a lot of history lost there!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an artist and performer, I run my own chain shop selling my handmade jewelry and chainmail body adornments.
I am most well known for my aesthetic rope art. I had a large audience on YouTube, Instagram and Tumblr between 2015-2018 where I would post rope art tutorials and Q&A about my lifestyle.
I still get messages today from people who were inspired by my tutorials and my rope art to start their own journeys into that craft and I think that’s what I am most proud of! I love knowing that I helped to open a creative door for other people.
I think that no matter what medium I am using, I try to tell a story. With each new experience, the story evolves and so in that way, it is always unique. With the medium of rope, I gained valuable insight into body mechanics, form and function that I apply to my current work with chains and chainmail.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
I am currently really inspired by ancient history, physics, chemistry, cosmology and sci-fi so I consume as much media as I can on those subjects!
Contact Info:
- Website: Cosmiclinkshop.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/ropebabyy
- Youtube: Youtube.com/c/ropebaby2
- SoundCloud: Soundcloud.com/doomfaerie
- Other: Onlyropebaby.com
