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Review: Tracy’s Dog OG Pro2

Kate Sloan

There’s a lot to like about the Tracy’s Dog OG Pro2 – it’s waterproof, made of smooth silicone, has a powerful motor and an elegant aesthetic – but I just don’t think my body is cut out for this type of toy.

It’s a good idea in theory: a pressure-wave clitoral stimulator attached to a vibrating internal portion to hit the G-spot. I have enjoyed some other toys of this type before, and I’ve enjoyed this one too. The issue for me, though, is that generally with this type of toy you can’t use just one part of it at a time – you have to use both. You can’t, for example, get turned on by using just the clitoral stimulator, until you’re wet enough to insert the G-spot arm. You also can’t use the G-spot arm internally by itself without the external part blocking access to your clit. For this reason, I’m glad that this vibrator only costs $59.99 – I’d be hesitant to spend much more than that on a toy that lacks versatility the way this one does.

That said, if you already know for a fact that you like clitoral pressure waves paired with G-spot stimulation (likely because you’ve used two separate toys to achieve this purpose before), the OG Pro2 could be a good upgrade for you. It pairs intense clitoral stimulation with deep, rumbly G-spot vibration, and is one of the best toys of this type that I’ve tried, at a reasonable price point.

I just don’t think I’m the ideal person to use this toy. I prefer to start at a mild level of external-only stimulation and work my way up to higher intensities and dual stimulation, and this type of product doesn’t really allow for that. Its settings, both internally and externally, start at a pretty intense level for my preferences. That, alongside the logistical impossibility of using either of the toy’s two functions separately, makes it so that I have to warm myself up with my hands and/or other toys prior to using this toy, every time. I find that somewhat irritating because, when I buy a sex toy, I want it to be able to take me through the whole arousal process from start to finish. But if you only tend to reach for a toy once you’re already turned on, then this would be a moot point for you.

Another reason I’m not terribly fond of the OG Pro2 is that it’s pretty damn loud. Both of its functions make enough noise to be clearly audible from across a (large) room, though perhaps not through a closed door. I tried using this toy in the bath, and even underwater it made enough of a racket that I got a little self-conscious about being heard.

The clitoral stimulation portion of this toy just… doesn’t feel that good to me. It’s high-pitched/”buzzy,” as far as pressure-wave stimulation goes, meaning that it doesn’t feel like it resonates in the deeper tissues of my internal clit. It’s also shaped in a way that makes it abnormally easy for me to accidentally break the suction seal created by the toy just by moving around slightly, the way I normally do while masturbating. The button that controls the pressure-wave end of the toy seems to make it pulse faster rather than stronger when I turn it up, which makes it pretty hard for me to reach orgasm with this toy; when I get close to climax, usually I want the speed of stimulation to remain fairly consistent while the intensity gradually increases, and this toy can’t really do that.

But as for the positive aspects of this toy, of which there are actually quite a few… I really do like its rumbly G-spot vibrations. They’re stronger and deeper than what I’d generally expect from a $60 toy. They do get buzzier as you turn up the power, but in a way that my G-spot finds pleasing (once properly aroused) rather than annoying or overly numbing. There are only 3 solid speeds followed by several patterns, but I don’t mind that as much in a G-spot vibe because my internal spots appreciate the sense of “motion” created by vibration patterns.

I love that this toy is waterproof. Being a dual-stim toy that stays put pretty well when my thighs are closed around it, I can use the OG Pro2 hands-free in the bath while reading erotica on my Kindle or just letting my mind wander. The amount of pressure/tension provided by the toy’s “neck” makes this even easier; it doesn’t tend to slip out of me or move around too much of its own accord, even as I get wetter and more turned on.

I also really like that each of the toy’s two functions is controlled independently by its own button. The buttons are easy to locate in a hurry, whether visually or by touch, and require a decisive press, so they aren’t prone to skipping speeds or needing extra presses like some toys’ buttons are.

While I think the Tracy’s Dog OG Pro2 is overall a great toy in its category and for its price point, it just doesn’t really work for my particular body and preferences. But if you love pressure-wave clitoral stimulation mixed with powerful G-spot vibration, and you’re looking for something easy to use and even potentially hands-free, I think it’s an option worth considering.

 

This post was sponsored, meaning I was paid to write a fair and honest review of this product. As always, all writing and opinions are my own.

You Don’t Have to Do What Your Sex-Positive Friends Do

Kate Sloan

I’ve had a nearly lifelong love affair with the sex-positive movement. It has made life better and brighter for me, given me a solid community to connect with, and helped me recontextualize my sexual desires outside of a patriarchal, slut-shaming lens. I’m very thankful it exists.

That said, the movement has attracted its fair share of criticisms. In my view, most of its critics focus on ways that individual practitioners fail to uphold the actual values of sex-positivity. The movement itself is based on the idea that sex is inherently natural and that any sexual activity performed in a risk-aware and fully consensual way is A-OK; of course, the implication is that the inverse is also true, that sex acts achieved through force or coercion are not acceptable. However, some people within the movement use sex-positivity as a guise under which to propagate harmful and coercive values, such as “more sex = better” (nope!), “everyone wants sex” (definitely nope!), and “having as much sex as possible is what makes you cool” (nope, nope, nope!).

 

Here are 5 activities I used to think were, in some sense, an important part of being sex-positive, which I’ve since realized are no such thing:

1. Having tons of group sex all the time. Lots of my sex-pos pals are way into threesomes, foursomes, and moresomes, and I’m happy for them! I’ve just learned over time that I’m too introverted, anxious, and hypersensitive to really enjoy group sex most of the time. I’m open to the possibility of small group encounters with trusted and beloved folks, but I no longer attend orgies hoping irrationally that I’ll somehow like this one even though I haven’t liked any others. Good for me!

2. Anal sex feels pleasurable and freeing for many people, but I’ve tried it a couple times and it has mostly just made me feel ill! I still like some forms of anal play – wearing a butt plug while I do other sex stuff, being rimmed, fucking other people with a strap-on – but actually getting fucked in the ass is probably just not for me. Remember: even when using what people think is the best anal vibrator in the world, or when hooking up with someone who claims to be an anal-sex pro, it’s entirely possible that you just won’t like anal – and that’s fine!

3. All my life I’ve heard that it’s important to avoid “starfishing” during sex – i.e. to be active and participatory at all times rather than “just lying there.” However, in exploring kink, I’ve learned again and again that some people like a partner who “just lies there”! I will clarify here that I don’t think it’s generally fun to have sex with someone who has no reactions to what’s going on, unless that’s your specific kink – but as a submissive, bottomy person who lives with daily chronic pain, sometimes I just want to lie back and receive during sex, and often my partners are delighted by that, because I tend to date/hook up with people on the toppier and dommier side of the spectrum. You do you!

4. A lot of porn shows people getting into acrobatic sex positions because doing so makes for a better visual. I’ve also seen many people doing this at sex events, orgies, etc., presumably because either those positions feel good for them, or they enjoy the exhibitionism of showing off that way, or both. That’s great for them, but I can only physically sustain a few different positions, and generally I’d rather feel good than look good.

5. There are also many sex-positive-identified people who will counsel you that not wanting an orgasm every time is doing a disservice to yourself, or is in some way less “empowered” or less “feminist” a choice than the alternative. While this is certainly true for many individual people (particularly straight women who have been conditioned over time to accept a status quo of zero orgasms, while their male partners are getting off left and right), I think it’s pretty useless as a society-wide mandate. Sometimes I just don’t feel like coming, or being touched sexually at all, but am perfectly happy to get my partner off – and that is my choice and my right!

What sex acts have you felt pressured to do because those acts were described as “cool” or “empowered” or “sex-positive”?

 

This post was sponsored. As always, all writing and opinions are my own.

How to Have Sex in a Long-Distance Relationship

Kate Sloan

For a long time I maintained that I would never be in a long-distance relationship, because sex and other forms of physical affection mattered too much to me.

However, then I fell in love with a brilliant, beautiful, dominant-leaning switch who lives 500 miles away from me, so… that whole “never ever doing an LDR” thing kinda flew out the window.

Before we ever even had sex IRL, it became apparent to us – in the many many hours we spent falling in love over the phone – that we couldn’t be one of those long-distance couples who wait until they’re physically together to share any kind of sexual intimacy. There’s nothing wrong with that type of relationship, of course, and if it works for its participants then I wish them well! But this post is for people who aren’t happy with that being their status quo, and who want to explore alternate ways of building a satisfying sex life within a long-distance relationship. Here are some of the things that have worked for me and Matt…

 

Phone sex

This is the first way we ever really had sex, and is still, by far, the most common way we get each other off. Although it’s largely gone out of vogue in favor of sexting and other more “modern” forms of long-distance sex, I still think nothing really beats the phone. Sexting feels too abstracted for me a lot of the time, as if I’m having sex with my iPhone rather than with my partner, whereas Skype sex, Zoom sex, etc. make me too self-conscious about my own appearance to really focus on feeling good. Phone sex strikes a happy medium between the two, allowing for the intimate immediacy of hearing your partner’s thoughts and reactions in real-time, but without the hyper-scrutiny that can arise in video sex.

My top tips for phone sex:

  1. Don’t use the actual phone, if you can help it. Do an audio call on something like FaceTime or Skype (yes, these normally video-centric services allow for audio-only calls). The quality is much better and so your experience will be better too.
  2. Get the right equipment. You don’t want to be fumbling with your handset while you’re trying to, um, “fumble with your handset.” For years I’ve used a pair of standard wired Apple earbuds, which have a microphone built-in, leaving my hands free to do other things.
  3. Talk about what you would do if you were physically together. It’s that simple. Or, if you prefer, you can use your imaginations to craft a roleplay scenario that would only be possible on the phone.

 

Sexting

It’s not my preferred way of having long-distance sex, but many people enjoy it. Personally I find it too hard to juggle typing and touching myself at the same time. Many of the folks I know who are into sexting say that they don’t really masturbate during the sexting, but moreso after it, when they can scroll back through the messages to their heart’s content. I prefer the real-time aspect of phone sex.

However, sexting can be really fun, and may be especially useful as an avenue for communication if you struggle to tell your partner about your sexual desires and preferences. After all, sometimes it’s easier to type “I want you to [x]” into your phone than to say it out loud to your partner’s beautiful face. I suggest reading Tina Horn’s book Sexting if you’re looking for advice on how to sext like a pro.

Sexting can also involve the exchange of sexy photos or videos, both of which can be lovely to receive (consensually, at appropriate times) when you’re missing your partner’s body.

 

Long-distance sex toys

There was a time when virtual sex via high-tech toys – a field of products sometimes known as “teledildonics” – was an exotic, futuristic concept, something technology magazines wrote about with wonderment and awe. These days, though, that type of toy is pretty widely available, so “touching” your partner via Bluetooth is a beloved option for many long-distance couples.

My partner has a long-distance stroker and butt plug, both of which we frequently use not only when we’re apart but also when we’re together, because sometimes my chronic pain is such that it’s easier for me to control sliders on my iPad screen than to actually give sensation with my own two hands.

The folks at Honeysx recommend the Magic Motion brand of remotely-controllable sex toys for long-distance couples. I like their bright, punchy aesthetic and reasonable prices!

 

Video sex

If you or your partner have an exhibitionistic or voyeuristic streak, this is probably something you’d enjoy. Personally, performing in front of a webcam or phone camera feels too much like, well, performing for me, which makes it hard for me to relax into arousal – but I know lots of people feel the polar opposite!

Make sure you use a medium that’s totally secure (someone Zoom-bombing your private moment would be pretty awful). Consider having sex toys on hand to use on yourself, as proxies for your partner’s hands/mouth/genitals/whatever.

 

What’s your preferred method of having long-distance sex?

 

This post was sponsored by Honeysx, a site that has a great selection of long-distance sex toys. As always, all writing and opinions are my own.

In Defense of Fantasizing During Sex

Kate Sloan

I remember the first time anyone said those magic words to me during sex. “Think about whatever you want.”

He was a vanilla boy with a nonetheless toppy sensibility. His craving to evoke moans and expletives out of me was a recurrent theme in our fucks. He was happy to get into any position that made me yell into a pillow, happy to spank me if I explained how and why, happy to use my favorite dildos and vibrators and butt plugs with me whenever I asked. So it makes perfect sense that he wanted to use another crucial “sex toy” of mine that we had at our disposal: my mind.

See, fantasies are powerful when you’re trying to feel good and get off. If you’ve ever fantasized while masturbating, it’s likely you know that they can spike arousal, alter headspace, and make already-pleasurable sensations feel somehow even more pleasurable. Why wouldn’t that be true during sex with a partner as well?

The common argument against fantasizing during sex goes as follows: You should focus on the person in front of you (or, uh, behind you) while you’re having sex. You should be mentally present, and anything less is unfair to your partner. You especially shouldn’t fantasize about sex with someone other than the person you’re currently having sex with. How rude!

There’s a lot about this argument that I actually agree with. I agree that being mentally present during sex can create deeper intimacy and connection, and that not being mentally present during sex can be a sign that something is going awry with the sex or the relationship. I also agree that for some of us, it can be hurtful to hear that your partner was fantasizing about someone else while you were fucking them.

However, I don’t think any of that is sufficient grounds to completely dismiss the idea of fantasizing during sex as a categorically bad and rude thing to do.

In the years since that toppy friend-with-benefits first encouraged me to let my mind wander while he fingerbanged me, I’ve fantasized during sex countless times. I’ve fantasized about the partner I’m currently fucking: the face and sounds they make when I go down on them, how good it feels when they do a sex act other than the one we’re currently doing, different situations I’d like to fuck them in. I’ve pictured alternate-universe versions of the person banging me – like a dommier version of my vanilla fuckbuddy, or my spouse if they were a withholding English professor. I’ve placed myself in wild situations with faceless strangers – like in a brightly-lit film studio with a porn cam trained on me, or being gangbanged by the cast of a musical after the final curtain call. And yes, sometimes I have thought about actual, real people other than the one in my bed at the time.

This is a very complex subject, morally speaking. (That time I almost got a philosophy minor is definitely gonna inform what I’m about to write.) Some people would say you should always tell your partner if you think about someone else during sex, and that doing anything else would be dishonesty tantamount to cheating. I disagree; I think Orwellian “thought police”-type notions are terrifying, and I don’t think any thought can be inherently immoral if it’s never acted on in the real world. I feel strongly that you’re allowed to sexually fantasize about whatever the hell you want – these thoughts only become problematic when and if they start to influence your IRL behavior. Which, to be clear, can happen. I would imagine, for example, that watching a ton of racist porn would tend to deepen any existing racist biases a person had. There’s also lots of debate over whether watching child pornography makes pedophiles less or more likely to assault a child, but I would guess the answer is sometimes “more.” (These are extreme examples with too much complexity to really get into here, unfortunately, but you get the idea.)

My position is that you don’t have to tell your partner if/when you fantasize about other people, but you might want to, for a few reasons. First of all, a secret becomes less of a threat when it’s not a secret anymore. My partner knows I have a thing for butch women in leather jackets, and pretty much always have, so if I fantasize about one, it doesn’t mean I’m gonna leave them for one – but if I had that fantasy and kept it a secret, that would seem immediately more suspect and hurtful. Secondly, communicating your fantasies about third parties can actually, ironically enough, promote the very intimacy and connection that their critics say they threaten. If my partner is fucking me and knows I’m thinking about the barista around the block, then they know where I am mentally and can join me there if they want, by talking dirty about the fantasy and even including themselves in it. Thirdly, the more you let your partner into your inner erotic world, the better they can understand it. If I was in a hyper-vanilla relationship but kept fantasizing about dominant folks, telling my partner could prompt a conversation about kinky stuff we could explore together. How can they know about your fantasy if you don’t tell them?

All of this presupposes that you have a partner who is not so far gone into Toxic Monogamy Land as to think that fantasizing can be cheating. If your partner does think that way, well… that’s a tough spot. When two people want to be monogamous to each other but their definitions of monogamy differ, either they have to compromise or they have to break up. It’s a difficult choice, and I wish you strength in making it. My view is that pretty much everyone fantasizes about people other than their partner from time to time, and sometimes that means they’d rather be with that person than their partner, but most of the time it doesn’t. It’s just a normal human thing that happens. Personally, I would rather use those fantasies as a catalyst for greater pleasure and intimacy than see them as an obstacle to those goals.

My spouse is a dirty-talk master, brilliant at weaving filthy narratives that keep me present and focused. But they also know when to use my own brain the way they’d use a vibrator. “Let your mind go wherever it wants to,” they’ll say as they work their way down my body for a luxuriant oral sex session – and I lie back and breathe a sigh of sweet relief, knowing the thoughts in my head can be all pleasure, no guilt.

 

This post was sponsored. As always, all writing and opinions are my own.

Review: Wowyes OYE-030 A7 Sucking Vibrator

Kate Sloan

I was skeptical about this vibrator. And then it made me come in under 5 minutes, and I was sold.

The Wowyes OYE-030 A7 Sucking Vibrator has, without question, one of the worst names I’ve ever seen in this industry, but despite that, it’s got a lot going for it. It’s a We-Vibe-esque toy that can vibrate against your G-spot while simultaneously applying pressure-wave stimulation (à la Womanizer and Satisfyer) to your clit. It’s covered in silky-smooth silicone and has a little pink flower on its one button – cute.

Despite the similarities between this toy and the We-Vibe Sync, it lacks one of the Sync’s much-discussed features: a bendable “hinge” between the two sections of the toy so you can adjust it to find your preferred spacing and pressure. Ultimately, this is probably for the best – a hinge likely would’ve increased the toy’s price point as it did for the Sync, and when I worked at sex shops, customers accidentally broke our Sync floor models at the hinge so many times that we had to stop leaving floor models out. However, that lack of adjustability means that this Wowyes toy will only work for people who have a clit that’s about 2 inches (or less) from their vaginal opening. Any more than that, and you run the risk of over-bending the toy and/or finding that its nozzle can’t reach your clit.

When testing this toy, I scribbled a frustrated note about the lack of a hinge, but when the toy gave me an orgasm 5 minutes later (I’ll get to that in a second), I started to understand how this was actually a good design choice. Although I love the bendable Sync, it tends to slip out of position periodically as its hinge widens from the pressure of masturbation/sex; the Wowyes toy, on the other hand, stays tightly pressed against my G-spot and clit throughout the session and doesn’t tend to slip out (in part due to the stimulating ridges on the G-spot end). This ultimately results in more satisfying orgasms because the toy maintains pressure on my spots even while my pelvic muscles are rhythmically clenching.

So, how does this toy actually feel? The pressure waves feel like they’re blended with some buzzyish vibration that makes them intense but also slightly numbing after more than a few minutes. The internal vibrations are, similarly, on the buzzier side of the spectrum, but they have a bunch of excellent patterns that somehow negate that for me. The first pattern – rhythmic pulsing at a medium speed – is the one I stay on 90% of the time, because it pairs brilliantly with steady clit stimulation, lending a sense of motion and rhythm to the overall sensation.

The “mouth” is one of the smallest ones I’ve seen, so unfortunately it’s probably not a good pick for people with medium-to-large-sized clits. Normally I don’t like super pinpointed pressure waves, but this toy has a protruding silicone “lip” that runs the perimeter of its mouth and stimulates the area around my clit, as well – the clitoral hood and some of the labia, depending on how my legs are positioned – so it still feels pleasurable to me even though it’s laser-focused on the tip of my clit. Squeezing my thighs together takes the intensity of the buzziness down somewhat, making the pressure waves feel rumblier and like they’re penetrating deeper into my internal clit.

Both functions of this toy have multiple settings and patterns, but to be real with you, in my testing I have rarely ventured past the first or second pressure-wave speed and that first pulsing vibration pattern. They just work too well in tandem for me to want to explore much else beyond what’s necessary to write this review.

Used alongside a fabulous blowjob porn clip, this toy gave me a fast, intense orgasm with its steady clit-sucking portion and those rhythmic vibrations pulsing away against my G-spot. I’ve often found that pressure-wave toys tend to make me come quickly and unsatisfyingly, but something about this toy makes orgasms unexpectedly intense for me. I think it’s the firm pressure against my G-spot (owing to that lack of bendiness in the neck of the toy) and the “lips” surrounding my clit while I come. It’s definitely not as profound and world-altering a sensation as can be provided by something much rumblier, like the Eroscillator or the Tango X, but it’s pretty damn good for a $50 toy. I will say, however, that (uncharacteristically for me) I tend to crave another orgasm just a few minutes after having one with this toy, as if the first one hadn’t quite satisfied me.

The toy’s one button is gratifyingly clicky to push, and its smooth, domed shape is easy to locate by touch in the heat of the moment. After you’ve turned the toy on by holding and pressing the button briefly, hitting it again activates the vibration portion, and double-clicking it activates the pressure-wave portion. You can cycle through each motor’s different modes separately by either single-pressing (vibration) or double-pressing (pressure waves). It seems to me that it would be easy to make mistakes while controlling the toy this way – after all, “double-clicking your mouse” can distract you from any other double-clicking you might be doing – but I actually haven’t screwed up even once while scrolling through this toy’s settings, because the button is so well-designed that each push feels distinctly discernible. Cool.

In any case, it doesn’t matter that much because the toy comes with a little heart-shaped remote (watch battery included). Unlike almost any other toy I’ve tried of this type, the remote arrives pre-paired with the toy, so you don’t have to mess around with Bluetooth settings before playing. The signal even travels through my pants, underwear, and closed thighs. Neat! I wish the remote was a little more substantial-feeling – it’s light and feels cheap, reminding me of some kind of knockoff Sailor Moon children’s toy – but for a product that only costs $49.50, I find it impressive that they included a functioning remote at all. Remote-controllability also tends to make toys more accessible for disabled folks – always a plus.

The remote would be especially great for the toy’s main intended purpose: enhancing partnered intercourse. Much like the We-Vibe, it’s designed to be worn vaginally while a partner penetrates you with their penis or strap-on. I did not try it this way because my partner is 500 miles away right now (boooo), but I imagine it would be passable-but-not-amazing for that purpose. Whereas something like the We-Vibe benefits from the friction and motion of a partner, rubbing its vibrations all over your clitoral area with every thrust, pressure-wave toys comparatively tend to need to stay in one spot in order to maintain their suction on your clit and keep feeling good. That’s especially true when a toy has a nozzle as small as this one has. I think PIV would jostle it off its target too often for it to really feel good, but hey, feel free to prove me wrong.

This toy definitely doesn’t work as well for me in the absence of porn to watch. Granted, that’s true for a lot of toys, but I think this one in particular really benefits from mental stimulation; on its own, it’s a little too buzzy to really feel impactful, but when porn is arousing my brain, the toy’s sensations feel amped up and make me come easily.

Sadly, this toy is pretty loud, especially the clitoral portion. It quiets down when it’s actually sucking my clit, or when it’s pressed tight between my closed legs, but it gets noisy if I try to reposition it. Not a huge deal for me, but certainly not ideal for people who need to keep their toy usage on the down-low.

Overall, I’m really impressed with the Wowyes OYE-030 A7 Sucking Vibrator, and will probably keep it in my regular rotation for those days when I just want to get off fast. Its remote works better than any I’ve tried, it stimulates both my G-spot and clit surprisingly well, and it’s cute as fuck. Assuming it fits your anatomy and you can deal with the loudness and lack of flexibility – and that you like mild clitoral suction and rhythmic G-spot vibration – I think it’s a perfectly viable toy to spend $49.50 on. Its name is the worst thing about it, and if you know the sex toy industry, you know that that’s a backhanded compliment but a compliment nonetheless.

 

Thanks to the folks at Honeysx for sending me this toy to try! This post was sponsored, which means I was paid to write a fair and honest review of this product.