sex toys

In this series, Gabrielle Kassel fills you in on what a given kind of toy does, how it can be used, what’s needed to use with it, how to be sure to play safe, how to get it or DIY it when you can and more.

Despite being one of the most beginner-friendly toys, because there are so many different styles, sizes, and shapes, buying one can often feel overwhelming. Ahead, a guide to demystify dildos.

Anal toys—and anal beads in particular—are often dubbed advanced sex toys, but the category itself is not off-limits to those new to the wonderful world of sex toys.

A partner telling you not to use toys is engaging in controlling behavior. You have agency over your own sexuality.

Butt plugs do exactly what they say: they plug a bumhole because it can feel good.

Beginner-friendly and intuitive, strokers can help people reimagine masturbation or manual sex with a partner, adding textures, sensations, and sometimes vibrations.

Bullet vibrators are shaped like a baby carrot. Portable, petite, and discreet, bullets are great for first-time sex toy users and those who enjoy gentler stimulation.

Suction toys use pulses of air and gentle air pressure changes to stimulate nerve-dense areas without actually touching them directly. They create a sucking or throbbing sensation that can feel like oral sex.

Pinpoint sex toys prove that with pleasure products, more or bigger isn’t always better. Unlike wand and palm vibrations, which transmit sensation to a wide surface area, these toys excel at targeting one, tiny, nerve-dense spot. For those who enjoy ultra-exact external stimulation, they’re a great…

Easily recognized for their bulbous head and long handle, wand vibrators have been bringing magic, and sensation, to people of all ages since 1968.