is a comic and video game nerd, freelance writer, and science enthusiast living in the Frozen Tundra with her cat (who likes to chew on silicone toys) while exploring sex and romance in her mid-30s! She prefers clitoral to vaginal stimulation, deep vibrations to buzzy ones, heavy conversation to small talk, chocolate to vanilla, and books to movies with few exceptions. Her bookshelf includes erotica and books about human sexuality and browser history always include research papers, which give her plenty of blog fodder!
Wearing collars, cuffs or ankle restraints is often an expression of your style and personality if you’re into the bondage scene. Not everyone wants to wear spikes or plain black leather, however; some wearers like different colors or ornaments that reflect their personality or even make a comment about their BDSM relationship.
Unfortunately, not everyone is blessed with leather or metalworking skills to customize their leather goods. Purchasing these personal accessories generally means taking whatever happens to be in vogue or available, new or used, even if those items don’t necessarily reflect their personal style.
Fortunately, there are other options when it comes to custom leather gear. Many people want personalized gear that they have personally designed. Traditionally, craftspeople often accepted custom orders like this, but costs can be prohibitive and quality varies widely among merchants. Refunds or replacements are often hard to obtain from craft fair merchants, leaving customers wondering where quality merchandise can be found, if ever.
Merchants specializing in custom orders and guaranteeing professional quality do exist, however. Designing your own restraints using a company like thecollarshop.com gives you the freedom to choose exactly what you want. For example, you can choose from several different widths, colors, materials, linings, decorations and so on for your leather gear. Professional artisans produce exactly what you request and ship it directly to you discreetly.
The company produces a variety of leather goods, including collars, cuffs, leashes and belts. They also offer advice on the various types of items you may need and the appropriate settings for them if you’re new to bondage. The company has beautiful stock accessories for customers not looking for custom work at the moment. Stock pieces make great gifts for your special friend(s).
This post brought to you by a partner with Of Sex and Love who wants to provide you customized yet affordable bondage gear!
It’s a rainy Labor Day. Not so good for grillin’ out. Just fine for staying inside and playing, whether you’re alone or not. Perhaps shopping. Lucky thing I’ve compiled this handy list of Labor Day Sales.
Lovehoney’s spring sale is currently going on. Not only can you save $15 on $70 — no code needed — but there are some awesome toys available.
Ceramix No. 6
1. Ceramix No. 6
It’s like the Ceramix dildo that I reviewed, but stripey-er. The ridges are interesting, and you’d likely enjoy it if you don’t need a lot of curve for G-spot stimulation. It could also be use anally and with a harness. Yay!
2. The Mute Swan
Rechargeable. Silicone. Curved. I haven’t tried the Mute Swan, but the toy looks elegant and luxurious. It’s also 26% off right now.
3. Embrace Bunny Wand
I’ve been wanting to get my hands on an Embrace toy for a while. This new, USB rechargeable line comes to you form California Exotics, and it looks pretty nice. The bunny has a filling shaft and long ears.
Ceramix No.1
4. Ceramix No.1
Sexy purple mushroom straight out of Wonderland? I think so! It’s been a long time since I’ve done anal play. Maybe I should change it up with this plug. At $20 on sale, this is the cheapest you’ll find the plug, too!
5. Lovelife Dream
I like Cuddle, the g-spot vibe in this line, but that’s not on sale right now. However, Dream is a cute little vibrator with a price of just $54. The shafter is straighter so it’s good for general internal and external stimulation.
Out of everything on Lovehoney’s sale page, what would you get?
You don’t have to have a boring sex life whether you are married or still searching for the right partner. Adult toys can bring passion back into your romantic life if you have an open mind. Products are designed to be safe and comfortable to use and you can even order discreetly online if you are too nervous to visit a local adult store. Taking a few moments to browse websites like BedroomKandy.net can give you plenty of ideas for turning your fantasies into reality. Browsing with your partner is a smart idea if you want to find ideas that will work for two, or you can shop alone and surprise your partner with a romantic evening they won’t forget.
Today, you will find a wide range of adult products for both men and women. Lingerie can be the perfect gift for someone special, or you can opt for a more private gift to boost the passion in your bedroom. DVDs are a simple way to find the romance if your sex life has been lagging. If you are worried about surprising your partner because you aren’t sure how receptive they will be, you can begin with a DVD then move on to more exotic, and exciting, adult products to boost the romance and bring back the excitement
Babeland has officially released multiple gift guides for shopping for your loved ones this year. I figure I didn’t need to write my own. Epiphora already has one, and plenty of retailers do, too. Anyway, a guide would appear something like my “Best of” lists, and I’ll be writing one of those in a few short weeks. But I do have thoughts on some of the gift guides are that are out, so here’s my informal critique.
This list includes masturbators, cock rings, anal toys and a few kits. I’d recommend the Tenga Flip for individual users and the Mio cock ring for couples. I’m not really a huge fan of kits because they all usually contain something that I really won’t use. Of course, a nice bottle of lube is ideal for anyone on your list. Babeland carries Ride Rub Stroke Oil intended specifically for jerking off.
This list is almost entirely made up of vibrators with the exceptions of the Under the Bed Restraints, which I do love! To be honest, I don’t really like anything else on the list. The Minna Ola was frustrating, the Form 2 sucked and the Pikobong toys are a joke. I do have high hopes for the We-Vibe 4 but haven’t had a chance to try it yet. So here’s my recommendations instead:
If you’re running low on funds or just want to top of someone’s stocking this holiday season, Babeland also has a list of stocking stuffers under $30. This list includes Tenga eggs, which are perfect for masturbating on the run, and all sorts of Babelube. I’m a particular fan of Babeland’s massage products, so check out the bars on the list. There’s even a mini riding crop for just a little (tehe) bondage fun.
Although I said I don’t like kits, some of the pricier ones are an all right deal. There’s an entire page of kits. My recommendations are for the Start Kit that includes the Orchard G and a bullet vibe, Bootie + Sliquid kit, Mystic Wand + G-spot attachment, Jaguar Harness + Leo dildo, Power to the Pink (which has lube and a Siri) and maybe the Sweetheart Kink.
I’ve gone to my fair share of Pure Romance parties. The company seems to be the one that’s most prevalent in many places; although Passion Parties is another name that I know.
This isn’t the first time that I’ve written about sex toy parties. They can be a great deal of fun; although, that depends on who’s there and your consultant. The event might be right up your alley. I’ve had plenty of fun and made new friends at some of them, but others have been a little more lackluster.
However, my issue is with Pure Romance as a company, which doesn’t just sell you sex toys and bath and body items but sells you rebranded items that are marked up. I already knew this about the vibrators and such. As the rep went through the catalog, I recognized several pieces that I had tried by California Exotics. Marilyn was on the list, as well as a number of cheaper vibrators that were marked up 50 to 100 percent. Jaguar is a toy I wouldn’t recommend at $30 let alone $59.
The rep skipped right through the Diamond collection because “we didn’t have that much money,” but it was mostly Jopen products. The Wingman, for example, costs $189 from Pure Romance but the original in the Jopen Ego line is $110. Various items from the Key line are marked up $20 or more.
But, like I said, this is old news. I mostly go for the bath and body products, and I was curious about the pink cupcake scent that’s new. I love my pink cupcake products from Classic Erotica. As it turns out, they smell exactly the same because..
Holiday Products makes both Classic Erotica and Pure Romance.
Now, this could be convenient for some people, but the markup is ridiculous. Pure Romance brands both a shaving cream and a body mist, got $19 and $20, respectively. However, even sex toy vendors charge less than $9 for the body mist. Crazy Girl’s shave cream costs less than half the Coochy-branded cream and, yes, Coochy from either Classic Erotica or Pure Romance is essentially the same thing. The big different? The scents available and what products are there.
Both lines include Body Dew, but Pink Cupcake isn’t available from Classic Erotica. Similarly, not all of the Pure Romance products are available in the other brand. However, even if you can only get it from Pure Romance, you don’t have to buy it from a book party. You can usually hop onto Ebay and get it for much cheaper if you don’t mind waiting a few days for shipping.
However, that’s not the only issue I have with Pure Romance.
Consultants Are Not Given Enough Sexual Health Information and Some of That Information Is Plain Wrong
I don’t expect a sex toy party to be an eye-opening experience, but the last of information was pretty sad. For example, Pure Romance sells anal numbing and vaginal tightening creams, both of which are unhealthy. There’s no warning about them, of course. Plus, numbing creams actually negate you body’s natural response to pain (read more about this here). If it hurts, you’re doing something wrong. The consultant said as much.. right before she hawked the numbing products from the company.
And a warning about silicone lube and silicone toys? Nothing. Sure, she mentioned not to store your toys next to one another but not why. Pro tip: if you leave a jelly toy for long enough, it will leech mineral oil. No mention of using condoms and never using a porous toy that’s been used anally vaginally — ever again. She did mention that no silicone is ever clear, but I’ve seen some of the awesome stuff that Jollies made.
And when someone asked the difference between metal and silicone, she responded that silicone warms to body temperate and metal doesn’t. Actually, both can warm; although, metal feels quite cool if you haven’t prewarmed it, which you can do with warm water. Silicone is also available in a variety of firmness, which is what I wanted to say, but I knew it didn’t pay
Finally, I was absolutely appalled when the rep said that there was only one type of orgasm, and you’re stimulating the same party altogether. No, you are not. Mary Roach wrote a revealing article “The Immaculate Orgasm: Who Needs Genitals?” that’s in her own book and Best Sex Writing 2009. In it, she talks about research on women with spinal injuries who retain the ability to achieve one sort of orgasm but not the other because clitoral and G-spot orgasms trigger different nerves. Not only that, but saying that there’s only one type of orgasm negates all the experiences that women have had, the very women who are at a Pure Romance party to explore their sexuality. Negative comments can be permanently damaging to these women, and that’s just not cool.
Let’s not forget, once and for all, that..
Pure Romance is a pyramid scheme.
And it works only when you can guilt your friends into paying for products.
So let’s just be done with them. You can buy directly from manufacturers like LELO. Shop around online. PinkCherry always has amazing sales, and bloggers like myself are more than happy to write a review to set you on the right path.
Writer Rose Crompton explores how sex shops are no longer a male only domain.
There was a time when you said the phrase “sex shop” and floods of negative connotations would come to mind: tucked away down a dark alley, illuminated by a flickering red light or garish XXX neon sign. Once entering the shop you’d be accosted by shelves upon shelves of hardcore porn DVD’s – many with cover images that could lead to the question of the legality of it – each row filled with seedy looking gents in long coats, fingering the cases carefully as he decides which bit of grot to take home tonight.
This is, of course, total stereotyping and although there are still many scenes like this that ring true in red light districts around the world, it’s also hard not to notice that there is a big shift happening and the face of sex shopping, how we do it and the characters we come across, are radically changing.
Dare we say it, but it appears that sex shops are becoming more female friendly, even specifically targeting women. With the opening of sex stores or raunchy lingerie shops on the high-street, it means that adult stores are being taken out of the dingy back streets and thrust into the bright lights of acceptable consumerism and us women are definitely not turning a blind eye to it. In fact, we relish it, especially with the online explosion where sites like Vibrations Direct, which are tailored to appeal to women and couples specifically, it appears that sex shopping is no longer a male domain.
Men may still have porn, only just thanks to a number of female directors and production companies breaking through, but women definitely have the real pleasure chest at their fingertips. The number of vibrators, dildos, bondage gear and sex clothing that is targeted at women far outweighs what men have at their sexual disposal, if they choose. As the shops move into the light, so do the Sex toys companies as they create ever more desirable and lust-worthy toys. Some of these are even elevated to the status of designer brands and are distinctly aimed at women.
For savvy, sex positive ladies (or those of use that have watched countless episodes of Sex And The City), most of us know the difference between our bullet vibes and rampant rabbits. Where once men used to find shopping for the right lingerie for their partner intimidating a recent survey revealed that 90 percent of British blokes now have that down. The new frontier is now sex shops and knowing how to buy the right vibrator when she asks him to “surprise her” that is presenting a real challenge.
There have been too many times men have contacted Vibrations Direct to ask, “Where do I start? I don’t have a clue what half this stuff does!” and it’s clear that a domain in which men used to feel so comfortable is fast become deep, uncharted waters for them.
So, the tables have clearly turned: once it was that women would find it intimidating to enter a sex shop, let alone buy a vibrator, even with their partner and despite the fact they were otherwise a sexually confident lady. “I was dating a fetish model and even she found it unnerving to go in,” explains frequent sex shopper, Whiskey.
It’s now men that come in holding their girlfriend or wife’s hand and allowing her to take the lead when it comes to provocatively fingering the toy boxes and making the decision on which sex aide to take home that night.
is a blog about my personal sex (and love) life with posts to help educate you about sex, toys, relationships and more! I always aim to entertain the masses. Stay tuned for more sex toys reviews, smutty giveaways and some erotica of my own here and there!
The reviews on this website include items I have received in return for my opinion. I do not endorse any product that I do not believe to be beneficial to my readers nor do I sugarcoat my experiences. Love or hate a product or service, you will know it--honestly.
