Review: Heart 2 Heart cuffs

I'm generally underwhelmed by mass produced bondage gear. They're usually made of cheap, poor quality materials, with shoddy workmanship. If they're made for any use beyond merely decorative, they're often uncomfortable after ten seconds because they pinch or chafe or, toy gods forbid, break during use. They're mostly ugly or tacky; most of the ones that actually look really nice aren't up to even moderately hard play.

The Heart 2 Heart cuffs offered by Babeland break that mold in many ways. To start with, they're actually made of leather. Real, honest to goodness leather. Mind you, it's not the kind of soft, luscious, just-smells-right leather that drives some of us nuts, but even average leather is better than the imitations so often foisted off on the unwary. After the initial break-in period they became quite supple, conforming to both my bony little wrists and to his much larger, more generously padded wrists.

Speaking of my wrists, this cuff set had a pleasant surprise for me. Like many cuffs, it advertises that it adjusts down to 6 inches. This is actually incorrect. Yes, it is six inches from the toggle to the smallest hole, measured flat along the back, but that has to wrap around the underlying band. When adjusted to fit my 5.5 inch wrists, there were still two adjustment holes to go. Unfortunately, this means that the measurements are off in the other direction as well. It will only fit up to an 8 inch wrist or ankle. While I like having cuffs that actually fit my wrists, they should have checked the in-use measurements of a prototype before putting this into production. That last small hole makes the cuff a perfect fit for a 4 inch wrist (that's about the size of a bottle of nail polish). I've never seen a wrist that small on anyone over age five; they would have been better off adding that hole to the other end for larger wristed and ankled users. For those who need it larger, a leather punch will add holes for you easily as there is an extra 2 inches of leather to work with in the adjustment strap. For many users, though, a range of 4"-8" will be just fine for wrist cuffs.

The cuffs are well made, with machine-perfect edges and stitching. Each piece is made of two layers of leather, glued and stitched together. Because nothing was said otherwise on the package, I assume the metal contains nickel. It seems to have some kind of coating over the alloy, so those with sensitive skin may be ok. Because these are made of leather, clean them with a damp cloth and dry them gently; store them in a dry place.

The Heart 2 Heart cuffs are very sturdy. None of our rough playing or my rougher tests has caused even the smallest of noticeable damage. So far they show no signs of wear - they're actually getting better with use. While not as comfortable as, say, my bullhide cuffs, not much can stand up to such comparison. In the end, I've had no complaints for these cuffs. And for only $35, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them!

This product was provided to me free of charge by Babeland in exchange for an unbiased review. This review is in compliance with the FTC guidelines.