It’s been a year since Rebellious started publishing Darling Nikki! Looking back on a year of reviewing sex toys, here’s a round-up of some of my favorites.
The Eroscillator: You can read my original Rebellious review of the Eroscillator here, but I still love it as much as I did back then. This was the beginning of my relationship with the wonderful folks at Betty’s Toy Box and every time my Eroscillator gives me an orgasm, I thank them. (OK, not really, but that’s how grateful I am for this product.) The Squishy Marshmallow is still my favorite attachment.
Ohnut: Maybe one day I’ll shut up about this thing, but not yet. I’m always re-learning that healing isn’t linear, so when I go to have PIV (penis in vagina) sex with the Ohnut and it still hurts, let’s just say I get a little frustrated. But that’s not the Ohnut’s fault (it’s my body’s, let’s be real) because when the Ohnut does work, BOY does it work. I actually reviewed it in my first piece for Allure! Chicagoans, come pick one up at Early to Bed.
Bella CBD Lube: This is a water-based lubricant with CBD, which is supposed to be pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory. I did not expect it to do anything special, but I found that it did help make penetration more comfortable—and not just less painful, but actually more pleasurable. Because the bar for good sex should be higher than “it doesn’t hurt.” Early to Bed carries this as well (only in-store)…come pick it up with your Ohnut!
Crystal Delights glass dilators: Remember when I got a little salty up there about healing not being linear? Six months after falling in love with this set of glass dilators from Crystal Delights, I’ve come back to them to help with a recent flare-up of pain. They make dilating so simple because, paired with silicone lube, they are really slick and will slide right in, usually with little effort. You can read my original Rebellious review here.
Independent Toy Makers: This is a little love letter to ALL independent sex toy makers, but this year, I was lucky to work with a couple of really amazing companies! Lust Arts blessed me with fuckable art and Strange Bedfellas offered me what ended up being, like, a set of alien dilators (THAT review is coming soon, depending on how cooperative my vagina is)! I am so grateful for the smaller sizes and softer silicone available through independent manufacturers and how dedicated so many of them are to their craft.
Yarlap: The Yarlap and I have a rocky relationship, but like the Ohnut, it’s not the Yarlap’s fault—it’s all to do with my vagina. Yarlap is an electro auto-kegel device (created by an independent family business!), which is why the rocky relationship. When I have a flare-up or take a few steps back in my pelvic pain recovery process, I like to do all of my exercises (kegels included) without the help of a toy or device. That just helps me better gauge where my pelvic floor is at the moment. But when I’m doing better and don’t feel the need to keep such a close eye on myself, I’ll pop the Yarlap’s electrode in and let it do my kegels for me. (If you experience pelvic pain, get assessed by a professional before trying something like the Yarlap or doing kegels on your own! Doing the wrong kind of exercise can cause more pain.)
Eternity Collar: Eternity is a company that makes kinky jewelry for 24/7 wear that is discreet enough to be worn in vanilla spaces, and they offered me their black titanium collar for review. All of their jewelry locks, a symbol of an exchange of power or a Dominant/submissive power dynamic in a relationship. Usually someone wears the collar, while someone else does the collaring. My Eternity Collar is my own, though. I wear it to remind myself of my submissive side (that I share with very few people), which I actually find to be one of my strongest sides.
My collar played a role in my pelvic pain journey, but that’s a story I’ll tell in a different piece. I’ve bought myself two more collars since the first. You can see me wearing one on my Instagram here.