Buying Soft-Cotton Clothes Line Rope Just Got Awkward

The New York Post reports that mommy porn sensation Fifty Shades of Grey is a real boon to the hardware biz. Apparently inspired by the BDSM-heavy novel, women are “slipping into hardware stores and demurely asking for bondage material — the very type of natural-filament rope in the trilogy.” And Park Slope’s Tarzian Hardware is onto the trend: cashier Christina Davila told the paper, “I’ve actually read the book. So when the women buy rope, it was kind of like, ‘Hmmm, that does seem a little unusual.'” So much for Tarzian for your discreet rope-buying needs.