Handkerchief code, more commonly known as hanky code, was a way of indicating, usually among gay male BDSM practitioners or casual sex seekers in the US and Canada, whether they were a top or bottom, and what kind of sex they were seeking, by wearing color-coded handkerchiefs, usually in the back pocket. These were worn on the left side of the body for tops and the right for bottoms (this division is still somewhat common: tops may wear keys on the left belt loop and bottoms on the right, for example). The practice has largely fallen out of favour, perhaps due to the advent of internet dating and the coming out of more members of the leather and BDSM communities.
There is no universally understood color code, and there may have been regional variations. There was general agreement upon the colours for more common practices (eg: yellow for watersports), but there was no consensus for the more uncommon practices.
Further Reading
- Trevor Jacques, On the Safe Edge: A Manual for SM Play (ISBN 1-895857-05-8)
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