Culture « Jimmyjane Blog

Cosmopolitan names FORM 6 the #1 Best New Sex Toy of 2013

by Jimmyjane |

We like to sing the praises of our new FORM 6 G3… about how it’s powerful and waterproof, how it lasts for over six hours with our cordless recharging technology and how it’s completely body-safe and phthalate-free. But the compliments mean so much more when they come from external experts.

From Cosmo –

#1 Best New Sex Toy of 2013… Form 6 G3

“The latest version is tricked out for travel with a Universal Adapter, a travel lock so it won’t go off in your bag (thank you!), a portable charging base, and a cute little case so the TSA can leave something to the imagination.”

Read the article, or go buy FORM 6 G3 and make your own judgment call. » Read more. »

A look back at 2012, sexually speaking

by Jimmyjane |

Between the Summer Olympics and presidential election, 2012 was ripe with victories and losses. But there was one huge winner this year – sex.

Here’s a look back on 2012, and why it will go down in the Halls of Sexual History.

To see and share the full infographic, click here: Year in Sex – 2012 Edition.

Fifty Shades of Grey is leading to a very kinky Christmas

by Jimmyjane |

It’s a Christmas miracle. Fifty Shades of Grey is still—STILL!—on the New York Times Best Sellers list. That makes 40 consecutive weeks in the top ten and that means that more than one copy of this steamy paperback will be wrapped and waiting under the tree or beside the menorah (tonight is night number 6 – there’s still time!)

In addition to a copy of 50 Shades of Grey (or one of its sequels), wives and girlfriends everywhere can also look forward to opening fifty shades of sex toys – from vibrators, to Ben Wa balls, to a leather riding crop. Just as sales of the Rabbit vibrator sky-rocketed after Charlotte became enamored with her own on “Sex and the City,” the hot and mysterious Christian Grey has caused a surge in sex toy sales.

According to Business Week, “The $2 billion industry, » Read more. »

Harlequin and Cosmo are teaming up

by Jimmyjane |

Calling all brilliant authors, will someone talented please write a steamy erotic novel? Please?

If not, this perfectly lovely genre will continue to be left to the Harlequins and Cosmopolitans of the world. Yep, these two self-professed sexpert mediums are going to start bringing cookie-cutter erotic fiction to E-readers everywhere.

According to The New York Times, Harlequin will publish two electronic books each month starting next May. These short novelettes will be written by Harlequin writers, but be imprinted with the Cosmo name.

Clearly, Cosmo is going after the large and growing Fifty Shades of Grey audience. It’s fitting, really, since Cosmo has been producing sexual fiction for years.

College Kids are Kinky

by Jimmyjane |

We all know that college students hit the books hard. But as it turns out, they’re also hitting each other, with riding crops, belts, paddles, canes, and floggers. “Floggers are my favorite,” Says a Harvard Junior, who goes by “Maria” in this article by the New York Observer.

BDSM (short for bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism) has been around since the beginning of sex. But the accelerated mainstream acceptance of these practices may have something to do with the rise in popularity of erotic novels such as Fifty Shades of Grey. This acceleration is most apparent in Ivy league colleges such as Columbia, Tufts, MIT, Yale and Harvard.

All of these schools offer unofficial “Munch groups.” A munch group is an informal gathering to eat and socialize and discuss their interest in kinky sex. » Read more. »

What would your mother think?

by Jimmyjane |

As a Jimmyjane blog reader, you’ve probably seen the articles about our founder, Ethan Imboden, and how he got into the vibrator biz in the first place. But, have you ever thought about how his mother might feel? Well, now you can read all about it, in the New York Times post by Joy Overstreet Imboden (AKA, “Mom” to Ethan).

In this honest account, Overstreet discusses how she went from a prudish Boston upbringing to investing in (and helping with) her son’s vibrator business. Sweet, right?

Reactions to the article range from “awe” to “ew,” as you can read in Jezebel’s response to the article. Jezebel seems into it. The folks who commented below, not so much.

What do you think of giving your mom a personally engraved vibrator for her birthday? Let us know.

Care for a buzz with that buzz?

by Jimmyjane |

The conversation around female masturbation is changing… venues. According to the Tokyo Reporter, it’s moved out of women’s apartments (over a glass of wine) and into bars (over a glass of wine). After all, what goes better with vibrator talk than booze?

Japan has opened the first masturbation-themed bar. Love Joule, located in Tokyo’s bustling Shibuya district, features an assortment of colorful vibrators behind the bar in the place where you’d normally see an assortment of colorful liquor bottles. (Fact for the day: an indulgence in masturbation instead of alcohol is 100% less likely to result in a hangover the next morning.)

Proprietor Megumi Nakagawa created the bar as a safe space for women to openly discuss their sexual preferences and turn-ons. Men are allowed in, but not without a female chaperone. » Read more. »

Naked German People

by Jimmyjane |

You may have noticed that most people that you pass on the street – perhaps all of them – are covered in a soft, malleable substance known as clothing.

What is the purpose of said clothing? To keep us warm, certainly. To shelter us from the sun’s damaging rays. To protect us from the elements. However, there’s much more to it than that. Clothing denotes culture and class. It can communicate interests, self-image and of course, fashion (see last week’s post).

But clothing is also a shield, hiding our true appearance from all but a select few.

As the German website, Naked-people.de explains, “Clothing is our second skin. It disguises [or] reveals. It can reflect our innermost being, or conceal it.” » Read more. »

Ladies on Top

by Jimmyjane |

Many unsavory acts have happened in New York City taxi cabs. This Brian Atwood Fall 2012 Fashion Film though, was apparently just too racy.

According a recent NY Post article, NYC Taxis removed the film from their rear-seat TVs for its risqué content, and the banner ad (pictured on the left) was banned from Atwood’s Madison Ave.

We found it interesting that the banned ads feature sexy women in positions of power. Whether she’s chewing on a shoe while men stroke her legs, or watching sexy videos on a giant wall of screens, the woman is the one calling the shots.

During this Fifty-Shades-of-Grey age, in which casual conversation about “doms” and “subs” can be heard on the bus, why should ads like this not grace the streets of Mahattan. Is it because a woman is in charge instead of a man?

Lesbians. They’re so hot right now.

by Jimmyjane |

Put on your Prada and grab your Gucci; it’s fashion week in New York City. Starting yesterday, the world’s biggest fashion designers are gathering in Manhattan to display their latest collections. It’s the week that determines what’s “in” and what’s “out” for the coming season. So what’s “in” right now?

Lesbians, apparently.

Whether in a catalog for JC Penny or a full-page magazine spread for Barneys, girl-on-girl action seems to be the marketing trend.

Barneys fall campaign (pictured here) features two female models, Arizona Muse and Magda Laguinge. The shots aren’t completely explicit – they have no children together (as in the JC Penny ads), nor are they making out. But, as Barneys creative director, Dennis Freedman, explains to WWD, “they’re clearly meant to be lovers.” » Read more. »