Below you’ll find all of the sex toy reviews I’ve written at Of Sex and Love. Find my opinions on vibrators, dildos, media (sex education books, porn, DVDs and erotica), bondage and BDSM gear, lingerie, anal toys, lube, massage products, and more!
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Raspberry Buttercream Frosting Soap
$16
from Jaqua
While browsing PinkCherry’s new products, I didn’t even wonder what a hand soap was doing on a sex toy site. Instead, I saw the words “Raspberry Buttercream Frosting” and basically freaked out because I’ve been on something of a sweets kick lately. So onto my list it went, and into my hands it was soon arriving.
Unfortunately, my dreams were dashed and my nose offended when I finally opened the package. Although packaged superbly (which I’ll discuss later) and gorgeously colored, Jaqua failed to deliver a promising scent with their liquid hand soap. I expected something berry and sweet right out of a bakery, but I’m still not sure what I got, and I’ve been using it for around 3 weeks. It’s a much heavier scent than I expected, as though there’s much too much of a single scent ingredient. It might be raspberry because my husband says he can smell the berry but I’m not sure. It does leave a berry-esque scent on my hands but actually using it isn’t my cup of tea. There’s also no trace of any frosting whatsoever. This is odd considering as it’s “enriched with fruit and plant extracts” (as well as aloe and Vitamins E). I’d think that fruit enriching would make is smell.. like fruit or berries, to be exact.
However, I’d like to point out that my husband really liked the scent of this soap, for whatever reason. He thought it smelled somewhat like raspberry and wanted more after we ran out.
As I mentioned, Raspberry Buttercream Frosting Liquid Hand Soap is still a good-looking product. It’s a typical, liquid soap bottle in cylindrical shape with a pump dispenser. You can see a dark raspberry-coloured liquid inside, but I’d say it’s a tad on the purple side; maybe it’s just because it’s so dark. The bottle is labeled quite nicely. The product name is on a solid square of raspberry red, and the ingredients are displayed on a similar panel on the back of the bottle. In between those, the stick itself is clear with light pink Jaqua symbols printed. for soap, it’s pretty sophisticated and you might even use it for decor if it matched your colour scheme.
Of course, using soap isn’t complicated. Give it a pump, add some water, lather. Rinse and repeat if you’re dirty. 😉 I found the soap to be rather thick, almost to the point of being solid. Sometimes chunks would like to fall right off my hands. Additionally, this made it resistant to lathering and my normal rather routine wasn’t sufficient. I realized this one day when I saw purple streaks on my white towels from drying my hands with stubborn soap residue. I’ve found I do have to lather longer and harder than usual. I have to be really purposeful about it, which is annoying. I do believe some of the water in the bottle sunk to the bottom as the last centimeter or so of product has been thinner and easier to work with. I wouldn’t call this “richly lathering” at all.
In terms of lasting time, I’ve had this bottle for about a month, and it’s nearing the end. That’s pretty average when it comes to hand soap and doesn’t stand out in any way.
While it’s not irritating and doesn’t dry my skin annoyingly (it neither makes my hands wonderfully soft), I’m not really enthused about Jaqua’s Raspberry Buttercream Frosting Liquid Hand Soap. I mean, it doesn’t smell as advertised and is difficult to work with. There’s not much else to redeem it. If all else fails, I want my soap to smell good and, considering as this was the draw, I’m pretty disappointed, especially for the price. At 8.5oz and 16.99, I could get several generic bottles of hand soap, which, in my opinion, would smell much better. I have a wonderfully scented raspberry soap sitting at the kitchen sink which probably cost less than $1. If this is the best that Jaqua offers, colour me unimpressed.
Better Than Chocolate
$89.90
from Amazon
Let me preface this with a great big thank you to Babeland for allowing me to review this luxury vibrator. I believe I am one of only five reviewers who had the chance, and I definitely appreciate it. Also, pictures will be coming soon. Apparently, something broke.
Jumping right in, I think it’s appropriate to say that anything named Better Than Chocolate had better be leaps and bounds above comparable items if it wants to come anywhere near its claim. I mean, it’s freaking chocolate, right? So I had some pretty high expectations for this vibe by Nomi Tang. It had better look great, be presented well, have all the details covered, be hygienically superior, perform well (including features and ease of use), and do all this in a way that is obviously unique. Let me run down this list and show you how well the Better Than Chocolate did.
Appearance: It’s only right to start with appearance because this is what initially drew me and others to this ergonomic clitoral vibrator. I’m always interested in uniquely shaped clit vibes, and the Better than Chocolate definitely fits the bill. In fact, it is somehow reminiscent of Star Trek and I know I’m not the only one who thinks so. I know I’m going to miss the mark by trying to describe this toy but, from the top, it’s roughly diamond shaped – wider in the center and tapering at either end. From the side, you can see that the wider middle also curves upward and each side curves up more than the rest of the toy, in a wing-like shape, creating a perfect resting spot for your hand while the bottom curves around your pubic mound. If you look at the vibe from either end, it actually looks a bit like a king cobra.
In comparison to other similar vibes, Better Than Chocolate is much larger. It’s definitely wider (2.5″ at its widest), longer (just over 4″) and taller(just under 2.5″) than the Laya Spot (and some people already find that too large for use during sex, so take heed). Their shapes are generally similar but the lines on Better Than Chocolate seem to be more exaggerated. My understanding of Lelo’s Lily and Nea is that they are also much flatter and smaller than the Layaspot so if you’re partial to that size/shape, you might be in for a surprise when it comes to Better Than Chocolate.
The longer end boasts a thin, plastic-covered, white touch censor, which also adds to the Sci-fi appeal, especially when it lights up blue or red. The other end has a small indentation of the power symbol, like a computer’s power button, which clicks the toy on and off but doesn’t add much in terms of visuals.
Available in either fuchsia or blue, Better Than Chocolate is sure to please most.
Presentation and Detail: This luxury vibe is definitely presented well. It comes in a heavy white cardboard box, like Lelo’s boxes, with the Nomi Tang logo in maroon on top (the logo is also printed, smaller, tone-on-tone all over the box). The box flips open from one end like a jewelry box, and the vibe itself sits on a velvet-lined cardboard tray within the box, which adds to the jewelry box feel. The box is also velvet lined and has Nomi Tang printed on the inside top. As is, the box would serve as a nice giftbox, if you gift a Better Than Chocolate vibrator to someone.
Upon removing the vibe from the box and tray, you’ll see it comes with an instruction book, a storage pouch and a message from Nomi Tang printed like a mini greeting card. Like anyone, I’m a fan of storage and because this vibrator is unique, an instruction booklet is a must. Of course, the inventive controls are definitely unique and show care/effort on Nomi’s part. Nomi Tang definitely paid attention to detail with this one.
Hygiene and Material; The booklet says that the surface materials are TPE and polycarbonate. I assume the censor is polycarbonate (a type of plastic), while the rest of the surface is made of TPE. I’m not sure what this means in terms of porosity because the TPE just seems to be a coating over a hard (plastic?) shell but I wouldn’t consider Better Than Chocolate something you can sanitize completely. This also means that Better Than Chocolate is quite rigid. You’d cause some damage if you threw it at someone’s head.
Performance and Features: I was a bit nervous about Better Than Chocolate because it runs on only 2AAAs (and, wouldn’t you know it, I was fresh out). The power button end twists off easily and twists back on very securely, which is important for any waterproof toy (it is!).
One click of the power symbol easily turns on the Better Than Chocolate. It’s easily felt and heard and the “NT” symbol on the touch sensor lights up. It seems that this vibrator starts on its highest setting which might disappoint some because if you’re a glutton for power, the impression is not just a taste of what Better Than Chocolate has to offer; it’s it. I was fairly impressed with the strength of vibration on this one. It’s right up there with the Laya Spot and definitely makes better use of the batteries than many toys. On the other hand, the lower settings are something I’d never have use for.
The vibrations are rather high in frequency but don’t make my hand tickle uncontrollably when holding it. They are focused in the tip but can be felt, mildly, through the rest of the toy. Better Than Chocolate never operates at much more than a low hum which I think is perfectly acceptable.
On to what you all want to know! How is the touch censor? It’s okay. It takes some getting used to. I found that I wanted to press it like a button instead of hold and slide my finger over it but, once I got over that, I quite like it. The censor means you don’t need 8 buttons nor do you have to press one button 8 times. It’s a very efficient way to control a multi-setting toy and I wouldn’t mind seeing use of this type of control more.
When it starts, on high, slide your finger toward the NT symbol to lower the vibrations or do the opposite from low. If you want something other than steady vibrations, hold your finger over the NT until it switches modes. From what I can tell, there are 2 modes: steady vibes, low pulsation and high pulsation. The high pulsation is a very enjoyable, throbbing pulse that surprised me by its power. If you find a setting you really like, you can hold your finger over the opposite end of the censor for 2 seconds to lock it; the NT logo will change to red.
In practice, I thought it would make more sense to increase vibes by sliding toward the logo and I tend to forget this. Also, because it’s a touch sensor, your speed, mode, and even lock status can be changed if something touches the censor on the Better Than Chocolate. My panties, thighs, and blankets changed the settings at one point or another. I think it might have been slightly more logical to make an actual lock switch somewhere on the toy because it’s absolutely necessary with a control as sensitive as this.
Although I will likely not use this vibrator in much water, you can, up to one meter. So if you ever need to get off in the pool or the ocean, go for it. It also means you needn’t be extra careful with cleaning so soap it up all over.
In Use: I found that Better Than Chocolate was just too large, too long. It’s not bulky per se but isn’t palm sized, either. It didn’t fit over my mons as well as I would like so it wasn’t effortless playtime. I don’t see how it would work well during sex at all.
I also found that the vibrating end was just too pointed and hard. I need something a little flatter and wider to provide adequate pressure, but Better Than Chocolate only provides pain if I press. I tried the other end, but the vibrations were much weaker, and this wasn’t any better. On the other hand, I was able to partially insert this vibrator and I found that to be enjoyable. If you like to stimulate the first couple of inches of the vagina and the surrounding area, Better Than Chocolate succeeds there.
I definitely needed to adjust to this vibe rather than use it in my typical way. This also means using lube, which I don’t normally do with clit toys. The TPE is finished soap that it’s sort of velvety, almost feeling like fabric and this creates a lot of friction. But once I applied a dab of lube, it was easy to move the tip of the Better Than Chocolate over, under, and around my vulva and clit.
Payoff: Although I did achieve orgasm, it was difficult and long in coming. After the initial orgasm, however, the following ones were almost effortless and came quickly. When all was said and done, I did feel quite satiated.
Final Thoughts: Nomi Tang’s Better Than Chocolate vibrator is solid and quality but not better than chocolate. It’s unique and, although the touch censor has some way to go before it’s perfect, offers a viable alternative to other vibrator controls. Although it gave me satisfying orgasms, I’d like to see it in a smaller size and perhaps rechargeable. Only then would I consider it to be a truly “luxury” vibe and be able to recommend it whole heartedly, especially at its current price.
Female Ejaculation& the G-spot
16.99 (Kindle)
from Amazon
It took me some time to finish Female Ejaculation& the G-spot by Deborah Sundahl, not just because it’s a longer book than most sex-ed books I’ve read (it is!), but because the direction she took was both unexpected and unwelcome by me.
Let me explain. By reading the first chapter and the last page of this book (of the actual content, not the very last page), you can get a very good feel for how this book is going to turn out. Ms. Sundahl does little to hide her attitude toward clitoral orgasms (which is that they are inferior) in “A Peek Inside a Female Ejaculation Workshop.” The last page of content is devoted to something I never, in a million years, would have expected from a book on female ejaculation: “A Female Ejaculation Blessing“. It is pages like this and ideas that are too tightly intertwined with the rest of the G-spot/FE content that tell a story of a woman who cannot (or will not) view Tantric/spiritual sex separately.
It’s not that I have anything against Tantric sex. It’s just not something I’m interested in now, nor is it something that I expect to read about in a book about female ejaculation. The two are not mutually inclusive to me and by taking the direction she did, I found Ms. Sundahl actually did a disservice to what is an otherwise helpful book. By the end, I was both frustrated at her insistence that women must have a spiritual experience with FE and amused at yet another flowery description of “feminine waters”. I actually began discussing this with my husband and would say, “Hey, she did it again, listen to this”. Neither of us could help but laugh at some of the ridiculous descriptions she used in the book.
Why do I say this?
I say it because while I do recommend this book, if you’re anything like me, the inclusion of spirituality in an FE book will be something of a hurdle. I strongly suggest you read the first chapter and the last page as well as leaf through Female Ejaculation & the G-spot before making the decision to buy it, lest you wind up with a fresh supply of hamster cage padding. If you think you can get past that or might actually like it, then go ahead and purchase Female Ejaculation & the G-spot. If you think it may be problematic, make one of your new age friends read the book and give you the run down.
That was the one major issue I took with Female Ejaculation & the G-spot, and, unfortunately, there was no way to get around it. Otherwise, I found this book was organized well and, within those chapters (each which started with a fairly useless story that was supposed to be related to the content but was really just laughable), contained information more complete and useful than any other writing on the G-spot or female ejaculation I’ve encountered yet. I think this book will be useful to any woman attempting to ejaculate for the first time or improve her FE experience. Partners may also find the book beneficial. However, if you’re looking to learn how to orgasm from the G-spot, you will not find this here; the inclusion of the G-spot in this book is generally only in relation to female ejaculation.
This book is split into three sections: The Phenomenon of Female Ejaculation, Techniques for a Feminine Fountain and Embracing the Feminine Spring. These sections could be looked at as introductory, theories in practice and improving upon the practice, respectively.
The first section covers Ms Sundahl’s intro to an FE workshop and takes a look at how people historically viewed FE. It’s especially apparent that Deborah Sundahl has spent some amount of time researching this subject and her passion shines through as she gives us our history lesson. In this section is also a chapter entitled “What is Female Ejaculation?”, a rather extensive anatomy lesson which gives the most complete explanation of FE and the prostate I’ve yet encountered. This chapter really takes away the mystery of the G-spot – in a good way! I can only wonder why it is not universally accepted as the view on the G-spot (I am also fond of her view of the G-spot, clitoris, perineum, et cetera as one interconnected female sex organ). The text and included images will introduce the reader to the G-spot, also known as the female prostate and show its different types (which account for how deep the G-spot is in different women).
I did find it interesting how orgasms are categorized in this book. Deborah Sundahl views the three types of orgasm as clitoral, blended, and uterine, as opposed to clitoral, vaginal, and G-spot. Her definition of a blended orgasm is G-spot orgasm and uterine orgasm, of which I’d never heard before this, is a deeper orgasm I suppose. It makes me wonder where there’s room for a vaginal, non-G-spot orgasm in her view. Or is there?
That aside, this introductory section leads quite well to the next, where Ms. Sundahl walks the reader through learning to ejaculate (in a chapter each), first without an orgasm, then with one as well as with a partner. The final chapter in the section is about “Men’s Role in Female Ejaculation”. This section focuses on techniques for finding and stimulating one’s G-spot, and Deborah Sundahl’s experience shows, once more, realistic descriptions of how a G-spot might feel rather than medical-sounding ones. Furthermore, there are personal anecdotes gathered over the years, which help to show the FE experience in all its variety.
“Ejaculate Without an Orgasm” instructs how to check one’s mental and physical readiness for FE. If one’s PC muscles measure too tense or loose, she suggests exercises to remedy the issue. There’s even some information about how menstrual cycle can affect FE, before she sets about helping the reader find her G-spot and locate all its parts. Like other works, Female Ejaculation & the G-spot touches on the difference between FE and urine, which is something I find personally interesting. However, Ms Sundahl basically says, “It’s not urine, but even if it is, oh well!” which I found to be awkward.
The following chapter discusses the types of orgasms and suggests ejaculating by stimulating mostly the G-spot but the clitoris as well, if it’s needed to orgasm. She wraps up the chapter with some information on sex toys for G-spot play. “Ejaculating With a Partner” helps bring FE into partner play, including position suggestions, but is otherwise a shorter chapter. “Men’s Role in Female Ejaculation” should actually be called “The Partner’s Role” and the personal experiences shared here are real and varied. In it, Ms Subdahl gives advice for those who wish to aid their partners in FE, even touching on how men can help by mastering multiple orgasms.
The third and final section has only two chapters, “Heal Your G-spot” and “Connection to Self and Partner”. While reading about G-spot healing was sort of interesting, this chapter is the most heavily focused in new age/spirituality/Tantra. In it, the author discusses emotional blocks, sexual healers, and healing sexual massage. In some places, this chapter comes close to fiction and if you’re not into it, I would advise skipping it completely. The final chapter continues with the Tantric theme in relationships and sums up the book. There are a couple of paragraphs each that explain what the reader (should have) learned in each chapter and suggest how the reader can further explore.jkmnnhbb
The book contains several pages of references, resources and glossary terms at the end. The reader can find the websites of people, places and products which were discussed by the author in this book; however, some of them no longer exist.
As one can see, the book is organized well and once the reader gets beyond that major Tantric theme (if that’s an issue), there is a lot of concrete information which can be helpful. I found that the descriptions really helped me to pinpoint areas on my G-spot and better understand its anatomy. I do have some final criticisms, however.
Deborah Sundahl frequently says things like, “All women can achieve FE just like all women are born with arms and legs.” I think generalizations like that are not only presumptuous but just go to show that, no, not all women can, just like not everyone is born with arms and legs. At one point in the book, she mentions that one should never look at things in absolutes; I believe she should take her own advice.
In the same vein, the author frequently says things like you will be able to achieve FE. While I know she’s trying to be supportive, her book may not help everyone and statements like these, combined with the statements above, could certainly make someone feel defective – especially when she emphasizes that a “numb” G-spot is from “body armoring” or emotional blocks. Could it not be that some people are just less sensitive?
I think that taking Female Ejaculation & the G-spot with a giant grain of salt is almost a requirement to get any use of it. If you can do it, there’s a lot to be had in between flowery descriptions and spiritual metaphors, certainly more than I’ve ever found online. When it comes down to it, I recommend Female Ejaculation & the G-spot to anyone curious about FE, with a couple caveats.
Hydra Water Based Lubricant
$19.08
from Amazon
Editor’s note: Intimate Organics is now known as Intimate Earth.
No one could argue that Intimate Organics went wrong when naming their water-based formula. In fact, I can think of no product that is more aptly based than Hydra. Plus, it gets cool points for being a mythical monster. But Hydra’s name is not the only remarkable characteristic about it so, listen up!
Hydra is absolutely, without competition, and I mean no-other-water-based-lube-even-comes-close, the slickest water-based lubricant I have ever used. It is so very slick that even though I knew it was water-based and I knew its name, I still checked the bottle after first use to make sure it wasn’t silicone-based so I wouldn’t accidentally, you know, ruin my toys. Yep, you read that right: it’s water based and incredibly slick and silky. And it’s not just my opinion, either. My husband, who usually thinks “Lube is lube” really enjoys this one because of its texture. So if slick is your thing, and maybe you usually prefer silicone lubes, you might give Hydra a try.
However, Hydra is rather thin and I do find myself always squirting out more from the push-top bottle than I intend to. Unless you prefer thinner lubes for anal sex, I’d skip Hydra for a thicker lube (like Maximus) for backdoor play.
Or if you like lubes that dry so completely that you don’t even feel the need to wash your hands, you might also give Hydra a try. After rubbing my fingers dry of excess lube, I didn’t feel tacky or gummy whatsoever. There was literally no residual lube like there frequently is.
But wait, there’s more!
If you like your lubes animal-friendly, completely vegan, and without harmful ingredients like parabens, glycerine, or DEA, Hydra might just be perfect for you. Like other Intimate Organic products, the company has been careful to use naturally devised ingredients rather than so many chemical ones which makes Hydra a good solution for those folks who have lube sensitivities. I usually don’t and, if you recall, the only other hypoallergenic I lube caused sensitivity (ironic, isn’t it?). I had no issues with sensitivity with Hydra.
Is there a catch? I’m glad you asked. Unfortunately, there is. While I enjoyed the feeling of Hydra right out of the bottle at the end, there were some less-than-desirable effects in the middle of the play. Hydra tends to be sticky as it dries (but, obviously, that fades when it’s dry), which requires reapplication of lube or the addition of water more than other lubes. This wasn’t a problem for vaginal sex, as I usually only need a little lube to get going if my husband hasn’t gone down on me. Past the initial penetration, I pretty quickly produce my own lube.
However, I noticed the stickiness much more when it came to clit stimulation. The hard and fast movements were really impeded by the stickiness of Hydra. I’m certain that adding a bit more lube would’ve freshened it right up, but, to be honest, I don’t like to do that. I’m a one-application-of-lube type of girl, I guess. Of course, I did apply the lube a few minutes before heading clit-side so it had time to dry. When I applied lube to a toy and used it right away, it was less sticky. All I can offer is a warning: If you want to avoid the stickiness of Hydra while it dries, be prepared to reapply fairly frequently or do have sex in an airless environment.
Not everyone minds reapplying lube, though, and if you’re one of those and the rest of Hydra’s properties sound appealing, I would wholeheartedly recommend it. It’s very uncommon for my husband to like a lube as much as he liked this one and I’m fond of its slickness as well. I was really surprised that Hydra is as silky as it is, just your run-of-the-mill lube; it may be the inclusion of aloe that does it. I usually like my lube a little thicker (like ID Glide), but Hydra definitely feels great in the beginning and isn’t messy at the end. This has been my second positive experience with Intimate Organics products and, despite the fact that I don’t care a lot about organic products, the quality I’ve seen thus far really has me intrigued.
Sex Tarts Tangy Lube Sampler Set
N/A
from
This is an archived review of a discontinued product.
When it comes to flavored lubes, Sex Tarts is a pretty common/popular brand and is readily available, so I thought it would make a good brand to review for TabuToys. I decided on the Tangy Lube Sampler set for a couple of reasons, mostly because I wanted to try more than one flavor but also to have a backup just in case I didn’t like what I tasted.
This set includes 1 2 fl. ounce flip top, squeeze tube each of Green Apple Fizz, Strawberry Punch and Cherry Pop lubes – all of which are flavours I generally like. The tubes are bright green, a medium orangey red, and a dark pinkish red, respectively. In the event that you are not down with size, these are much bigger than sample packets, and the “sampler set” might actually be a bit misleading unless you drink flavored lube for breakfast. There’s really a fair amount of product in this set; there’s also more than enough plastic. The 3 bottles are packed in a plastic container as well, and it’s really big. Upon opening the package it came in, I really thought it was wasteful both in space and materials.
Packaging aside, I gave each lube a taste/smell test. Immediately, Cherry Pop smelled most true to life, with Strawberry Punch Coming in second. The Green Apple Fuzz didn’t have much of a scent at all, maybe a sort of generic sweet scent. I found the same to be true about taste. Cherry Pop came in first being the most true to life. Strawberry Punch had a very strong, sweet, and tangy flavor but tasted more like strawberry flavoring than the actual fruit. Green Apple Fizz came up short, being generically sweet and rather unlike anything apple. My husband and I both noticed that the tastes and smells seemed to be covering up something else. I thought it was sort of Nutrisweet-y, but he thought it was more reminiscent of lube or even plastic. In his words, no matter how much the tastes covered it up, “It’s still lube”.
Lucky for him, I seem to have less of an aversion to it and was more than happy to glob some on his cock for the sake of review. While I enjoy giving him pleasure, oral sex is generally pretty uncomfortable for me physically. I don’t need lube for oral sex – although some folks with dryer mouths might – but I figured flavored lube might distract me from my discomfort. I was sort of right.
For starters, this water-based lube was pretty damned thin and came squirting out of the tube like it had a mission. I wound up with way more in my hand than I meant and forgot I had tissues on the nightstand, so I wound up wiping it all over my husband’s thigh. 😉 A smaller hole would easily fix that, however. I also noticed how sticky it was immediately. My hair was constantly sticking to my mouth or his cock, and while it can sometimes be a nuisance, it was generally more so because of the lube. It was also quite sticky for giving oral sex and impeded my efforts a bit. I guess it’s a good thing that it was quickly whisked away by my tongue and mouth, allowing for my saliva to create a better environment. On the other hand, if you want long lasting taste, this is not the product.
I am glad to report, however, that Sex Tarts lube does a good job of masking the smell and taste of ejaculate (as long as there’s still some left). If you’re not a big fan of either characteristic of a certain man seed, this might making giving oral easier for you.
Though, the taste was better on him than straight from the bottle. I did enjoy licking it up and it did make it a bit more fun. I felt more eager than I sometimes am to give head. But this was easily negated by the stickiness of the Sex Tarts lube.
Although you could technically use this lube for penetrative sex, and it is latex-safe, I wouldn’t. Even if you love sticky lubes (but, really, who does?), Sex Tarts does contain parabens and glycerin, which can be problematic for some vaginas. Interestingly enough, the Cherry Pop and Green Apple lubes have “sugar free” labels on them. I’m not sure if this means Strawberry Punch does contain sugar because the ingredients are nearly the same for all 3 bottles.
They all contain:
Cherry Pop and Green Apple also contain Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose and Citric Acid, while The Strawberry Punch is the only lube that has Cellulose Gum- which I guess is the sugar. This definitely isn’t a lube for vaginal use for anyone who is sensitive to any of those ingredients and I honestly wouldn’t really want to use it clitorally, either.
Ultimately, I wasn’t thrilled with the Sex Tarts Tangy Lube Sampler Set. Although it isn’t the worst product I’ve ever tried, it wouldn’t hurt if it tasted a bit better, wasn’t so sticky, didn’t gush from the tube, and had more body-friendly materials. While I might recommend the sampler for someone as a starting point, I will probably be looking for better-flavoured lube next time.
Oil of Love - Raspberry Kiss
$12.36
from Amazon
What can I say about Kama Sutra products that hasn’t already been said? Their name is synonymous with sensuality and products are known for quality. So to say I was expecting an awesome product with their Oil of Love is an understatement, especially considering that I have literally wanted the product for years. It was one of the very first products I considered buying when my husband and I wanted to try new things with our sex life. I’m glad I finally tried the Oil of Love, even if it took years for me to do so and I can say without hesitation that this is one of the few products that is better than I expected.
Like other Kama Sutra products, the Oil of Love came in the green/gold tin, slightly smaller than a soda can, with a black cap. This tin was also in an open-ended plastic bag, but, unfortunately, neither of those was sealed as the cap had popped off and was floating loose in the box. Inside the tin was the glass jar containing the oil, which is corked shut and sealed with plastic. Despite the seal, the bottle did feel slippery, as though it had oil on it already. I gave it a wipe-down before opening it to ensure the bottle wouldn’t slip out of my hands and break or spill all over. The only adornment on the bottle is a stick/band that goes around it with a floral motif and the Kama Sutra logo/Oil of Love label on the front. What you mostly see is a gorgeous dark fuchsia color of the oil itself, and while it might be a bit more purple than I would expect for something raspberry, it’s gorgeous to look through the liquid.
After breaking the seal and popping the cork (which doesn’t require anything near the strength of a wine bottle, thankfully), the scent isn’t immediately noticeable. Overall, I found the scent to be light and refreshing, never overpowering. The scent becomes discernible after a bit of friction by either rubbing the oil in my hands or on another body part. It was also much more noticeable to me as a massage giver than receiver, probably because I kept leaning forward to kiss and lick my husband’s back. As the receiver, I was a little disappointed that I could not smell it better, though.
Unfortunately, I have to say that this smells nothing at all like a kiss of raspberry as the scent – Raspberry Kiss – would suggest. It smells wonderful and sweet but not berry-like in the least. In fact, I think a perfect suggestion for this scent would be vanilla cotton candy and my husband agrees. It’s a great scent, just misleading.
So I mentioned the kissing and licking, yes? It’s because the Oil of Love is also flavoured! The Oil of Love have a sweet flavour that is reminiscent and very complimentary to it’s scent (in this case, vanilla cotton candy), to provide that much more experience. Really, it almost tastes like candy and I have half a mind to drink the bottle, but won’t.
But that’s not all!
It also warms upon blowing which just adds another element of excitement to your massage. I don’t think this property was as noticeable to my husband or myself as the receiver, but I definitely noticed the heat on my mouth/face when I leaned down to blow. This could just be because our backs are not as sensitive, and I know that the fan was on during my massage, so it may have been a little counterproductive. Kissing and licking also seemed to activate the heat so that’s another plus.
We’re not into giving really long massages, and you probably won’t get hours out of one application of the Oil of Love as it is a bit thicker/heavier (that is, if you don’t lick it all off first). I probably massaged between 10 and 20 minutes with one application, and it definitely made it easier to manipulate my husband’s skin. When it was my turn, it also improved his – usually awful – technique and helped him to not be so rough (although I’m still training him). It did get a bit sticky on my hands toward the end but we were both able to dress without feeling the need to wash off the oil from our skins.
I found that it really doesn’t work very well for hand jobs. It becomes too sticky for the quick motions and works much better for a luxurious massage. While the tin states that this product is latex-safe (because it’s water and not oil-based as one might think(, it also warns not to use it internally, so I would shy away from using it as actual lube.
You’ll be relieved to know that Oil of Love is non-staining, too, because, no matter how hard I try, I am a messy person. After massage time was over, I noticed pinky spots on the bed from the oil but they washed out in the laundry just fine.
I am more than blown away with this product, in the end. The few shortcomings absolutely pale in comparison to the scent, flavour, warming and non-staining properties. While Oil of Love may not be the perfect product for hours of massage, it couldn’t be more perfect for us.
Dream Maker Lunar Rabbit
N/A
from
This is an archived review of a discontinued product.
I was pretty excited when Evolved came out with their Dream Maker Rabbits. The pink Lunar Rabbit – which I have – is a fancy-looking toy with LED lights and multiple buttons and rotating beads, and a vibrating clit stimulator, and it’s waterproof on top of that. The Dream Makers were received with, generally, mediocre reviews but this only piqued my interest. I was even more interested in this bunny when some of the early reviews made no mention of shaft rotation – only awesome rotating beads and vibrating clit stimulators.
Packaged in Evolved’s typical metal box (although the lid is now plastic encased as well) and nestled in foam, was my pink Lunar Rabbit. I quickly discovered that the soft TPR material, which coats the shaft and clit stim, was one hell of a lint magnet. It seemed even more so than other Evolved toys I’ve tried and reminded me of my less than stellar experience with Cyberskin. The control pack is velvety, hard plastic like Evolved uses in many other products and does not attract lint, of course.
I had no issues popping 4 AAA batteries into an EZ load-style pack after unscrewing the bottom. It seemed plenty secure for waterproof purposes and made cleaning with soap and water quite easy. There is a sticker that says to push, and I expected it to click in and out of a secure position; however, pushing didn’t actually seem to do anything. The battery pack just sat there loosely the whole time. It’s not an issue, but it just seems pointless to tell us to push when it doesn’t do anything.
I immediately played with was the different functions and LED light. There is a master On/Off button which I appreciate. This is a great feature in times of unexpected.. interruptions. The clit stimulator and shaft have separate Up/Down arrow controls as well. On top of this, there is a function button for the shaft and clit stim as well, for a total of 7 buttons. This is definitely more buttons than some may be used to or even like. It’s a toy that takes a bit more practice before play to get a feel of and I was initially confused.
Overall, I prefer the control pack to Evolved’s other single-button styles because it’s much harder to accidentally turn off and there’s also 3 finger indentations on the back of the toy for grasping. I did notice that the buttons for the rotation were less responsive than the rest of the buttons, for whatever reason. I would have to push them several times to increase or lower the intensity and this was just during experimentation. It’d probably be more difficult and frustrating during actual play.
The light display is in the shape of a star, with a light at each point for a total of 10 lights. When first turned on, the Lunar Rabbit turns on the lowest setting of function 1. This setting corresponds with the lights at the bottom 2 points of the stars. As you increase the speed of either feature, another point on the star lights up (for a total of 5 stars to each feature). In all, there are 5 functions, each, for the clit stim and shaft with 5 settings/speeds for each function which results in hundreds of different combinations. The functions of the clit stim include steady vibration, short pulsation, fast pulsation, an increasing pulsation and roller coaster while the rotation/beads includes forward, backward, back and forth, faster back and forth and “stop and go” rotation. The shaft and clit stim can be operated separately by turning down the speed on the function until it turns off but I wouldn’t have minded a quick Off button for either feature, either.
I was also surprised by the fact that the shaft does rotate; it just rotates in very tiny circles which could easily be missed. Overall, though, disappointment did abound. I think Evolved made a grave mistake in powering this rabbit with AAA batteries and no matter how many you use, simply upgrading to AA would have seen a vast improvement in power. Even on the higher settings, the bunny clit stimulator wasn’t all that impressive. And while I appreciated the variety in bead rotation, it didn’t stand up to muscle clenching at all. As you can guess, I couldn’t even feel the shaft rotations even though I knew it was happening – or supposed to be. My muscles likely put a stop to that, too.
Furthermore, I found the hundreds of combinations to be lackluster, really, but I’m more of a girl who likes one or two really good settings/functions and sticks to them. I tend to skip “low” settings right for medium or high and more than one pulsation setting is pretty unnecessary for me. I would have been more than happy if my Lunar Rabbit had only a handful of stellar combinations but.. it didn’t. With that said, fans of light to medium stimulation, who love variety and build up might enjoy the power of this more.
There was one redeeming quality, however. It’s not well known and Evolved doesn’t advertise it as a feature, but the shaft can bend below the beads. I actually discovered this by accident when rocking the toy to stimulate my G-spot, which caused the shaft to bend. This offers much more noticeable stimulation via shaft rotation. Still, I especially enjoyed it with rotation off, using the rocking motion to create a very effective dual stimulator and to finally achieve an orgasm or two. Because it bends below the beads, it really offers an experience like no other rabbit I’ve tried. Unfortunately, the folks from Evolved say that continuous bending might cause this wire to break, which is a shame. I think this is by far the best quality of the Dream Maker Lunar Rabbit and without it, I was less than impressed by lackluster power, the confusing LED display, and the tendency to collect lint.
