Locktober: Taking Pleasure in Chastity

October is here at last! The 10th month of the year, associated with harvest, witches, ghosts, and.... chastity!?

To the rest of the world, October might be the time to get ready for trick-or-treating, but to kinksters, it's known as Locktober — a month-long challenge to keep your naughty bits locked up, preferably under the control of your chosen dominant.

Chastity can mean much more than putting on a cock cage or chastity belt for the month; chastity practices can incorporate everything from edging to tease and denial to a promise to not touch anything down there except for purposes of health and hygiene. What they all have in common is that the partner who's in lockdown isn't allowed to come, even if a little friendly stimulation is allowed now and then.

Chastity: Where's the Fun in That?

At first glance, this might sound like a strange kind of pleasure, especially if you're entirely new to the idea of Locktober or chastity as a kink. And of course, the Stockroom usually makes it our thing to encourage you to learn more about your cock, balls, vulva, clit, asshole, or other bits, and use them freely.

But just as locking someone's wrists and ankles down is a delicious way to intensify the sensations of sex, restraining your cock or pussy can make you even more aware of the intensity and nature of your desires. Making your genitals forbidden — whether by using hardware and a padlock or just a simply vow — suddenly makes them more important, and more ever-present in your consciousness. And when, at last, you're allowed to unlock and reach that climax, all that stored anticipation and physical frustration can explode with more power than you would have imagined possible. For many chastity enthusiasts, that final release is what draws them to this particular kink.

Locking Yourself Away: The Ultimate Act of Submission

And then of course, there's the idea of chastity as submission. It's hard to imagine anything more intimate or trusting than giving another person control of your genitals. Chastity kink can be a solo practice, where you and you alone decide how long you go before release, and what you can or can't do until then.

But in partnered chastity, the caged submissive usually has a dominant partner known as the keyholder. The keyholder is the one who locks you up and says when you get unlocked. They will literally be the person who holds the key if you're using a locking chastity device.

Of course, the role of the keyholder comes with a great deal of responsibility. As we said before, turning control of your genitals over to another person is an act of great trust. The responsibilities of the keyholder might include not only releasing the sub when time, but making sure they know how to keep themselves clean while wearing their cage or belt, and checking in with the sub to make sure that they are keeping themselves sanitary. While wearing a cock cage for long-term periods, it's easy for sweat, oils, and urine to build up and cause irritation or infection.

Devices: Chastity Belts and Cock Cages

When we start talking about chastity devices, the first thing that comes to mind most quickly is the chastity belt. Most of us have heard that they were frequently used during the Middle Ages by husbands to control their randy wives. It's almost universally acknowledged though, that chastity belts were a myth. Professor Albrecht Classen of the University of Arizona dove as deep into the topic as one can be expected to in his book, The Medieval Chastity Belt: A Myth-Making Process. The website Atlas Obscura quotes his conclusion:

“You have a bunch of literary representation, but very few historical references to a man trying to put a chastity belt on his wife,” says Classen. "And any literary reference to a chastity belt is likely either allegorical or satirical."

The first known illustration of a chastity belt from the medieval text Bellifortis (ca. 1405)

That being said, they are very common in the fetish community, and we carry (and make) a few ourself. They can be a great deal of fun, but most aren't intended for long-term wear. Because of the vulva and vagina's internal construction, it's hard to do much more than place a leather or metal covering over the front entrance.

The CB-6000 Cage, which comes with individually-numbered plastic locks for travelling through metal detectors.

Cock cages, which go around the entire penis and scrotum and can be securely closed with a padlock, are much more common and more sophisticated.

Chastity cages are generally made out of plastic or metal. Plastic cages generally have the advantage of being a little less abrasive against the skin when worn for long periods of time. And in this time of advanced security in public places, they have the additional advantage of not setting off metal detectors.

With regard to that last point, you might be wondering about the lock itself: Doesn't the lock have metal parts? Won't that send the sirens screaming and the lights flashing at the airport?

Not necessarily. While you can have a metal padlock making sure you don't get itchy fingers while wearing your cage, some all-plastic cages like the CB-3000 and CB-6000 come with an ingenious solution: numbered plastic locks that can only be cut off. That means if the submissive takes a long trip via airplane, their Master, Mistress, or Mxtress can check the number upon return to make sure there was no unsupervised hanky-panky while they were away.

Conclusion: Happy Locktober!

There is more to say about the practice of chastity and how to celebrate your Locktober. So much more than we can say in this one blog entry. If you haven't tried chastity play out yet, this may be your opportunity to look around, listen, and see if you'd like to try it. If you have, maybe this is a good chance to take it a little bit further than before. Either way, happy Locktober!