My Horsehair Whip

Many years ago, I came across an Irish designer named Paul Seville. Educated by the Christian Brothers, he was introduced to corporal punishment at a young age. While he wasn’t keen on his education, this early introduction later helped form many of his design ideas for paddles, whips and floggers.

Paul’s journey is an interesting one. The fashion industry is hard to crack into, especially when you’re on the outskirts and creating incredibly niche pieces only desired by a few.

I have several Paul Seville creations. I love them all because of their exceptional craft and Paul’s attention to detail. He mastered men’s tailoring and corsetry, intent on creating perfection. Paul’s creations aren’t cheap; I consider mine to be collector’s items, objects I’ll have forever.

He’s worked with Karl Lagerfeld, the wonderful late Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen. My favourite piece of his (and I will reveal my entire Seville collection in time) is undoubtedly the black horsehair whip. It’s made from 100% English-dressed black Horsetail hair, and the handle is wrapped in black leather.

I’ve had this particular piece for about ten years, and in that time, I’ve never come across anything else quite like it. I was hesitant initially because I’d never used horsehair as a whip. I lived in the country for a year when I was young and had a friend who had a beautiful white horse, so I had felt horsehair before, and I knew it was coarse and scratchy.

I have whips made of softer materials, but this whip gives a different sensation. You can use it to gently tease by running it across the body. The horsehair is quite long, so you don’t get as much control as a whip made with shorter material, so you need to practice swinging and flicking it to get used to the movement of the hair. And if you’re using a horsehair whip, you want to remember that it can give quite a sting, so play with caution.

You can check out Paul’s collection of horsehair whips here.

Love,

Theodora

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