5 Years, 5 Giveaways – Week 2: Nobessence Seduction or Romp
At first, I loved Nobessence from afar – they’re pricey, and were out of my range. But slowly I got lucky and now own two beauties, the first one
(the Seduction dildo) I acquired in my second year of blogging. From the box to the object, these are fabulous.
For some reason, when people think of “wooden dildos” their mind goes to rough, unfinished wood, prone to splintering1. There aren’t many people making wooden dildos that are trustworthy and awesome; Nobessence is one of very few. They’ve refined their designs, they actually *test* their designs2 and they ensure that their products are safe. Every Nobessence piece is coated in multiple layers of a body-safe sealant called Lubrosity. This prevents the wood from soaking up moisture, and makes it non-porous. They use wood that is sustainably managed & farmed, with a wide range of exotic hardwoods. Each Nobessence piece is made in the US and no two are exactly alike. The wood retains it’s natural fingerprint of whorls, knots and grain patterns. Even though you may see a knot, rest assured that it, like the entire piece, is safely covered in layers of Lubrosity coating to make it smooth and safe.
I’ve tried very hard to strike a balance with these giveaways – I only give away products that I personally can vouch for, that I have tried and genuinely liked. This is why I don’t have many giveaways. Why saddle someone else with a sex toy that might suck or that I know is crap? So despite the fact that I’ve never actually tried the Romp, I’m taking the chance because I know that Nobessence is a wonderful company, I know how they designed it, and I have read many rave reviews from bloggers I trust. So the lucky winner will get to choose either the Seduction OR the Romp. Why the choice? Well, the Seduction could be used anally, if you use the smaller end only but the Romp is meant for the butt. Just because I’m not a butt toy person doesn’t mean that you who are, should suffer.
This week’s giveaway is sponsored by the fabulous folks at SheVibe.com. I adore them as much as I adore the Nobessence people. They’re just seriously genuine people with a passion for great sex toys.
Are you ready for some more non-traditional giveaway entry methods? No social media is involved in this one! I’m really bucking tradition now, eh?
How To Enter
Leave 1 comment on this post, satisfying all 4 required items – if you don’t do all 4, your entry is invalid!
1. Tell me why you want either the Seduction or the Romp. Your answer will be a factor in how I choose the winner!
2. SheVibe.com is working on making their site easier to shop. They’ve created a little Dildo Shopping Assistant. What I want you to do is try it out, and give your feedback on it here. Do you like it? Does it help you? What do you think of the results? Your answer will be a factor in how I choose the winner!
3. In conjunction with #2, SheVibe would like your input on their Vibrator Shopping Assistant, which is in the works. Tell us the top 4 things that you want to narrow down your vibrator search by. Material, length, width, color, intensity, method of power (i.e. rechargeable, corded, battery-operated), price, etc. You get the idea. Choose from those or come up with your own. Your answer will be a factor in how I choose the winner!
4. Sign up to receive email updates on new posts on my blog. If you’re already signed up, great! Be sure that the email address you put in the comment form (not visible publicly if it’s in the “email” section) is the same one you’ve signed up under so that I can verify. My email updates are run by Feedburner, and they require that you verify your intent to subscribe. You must continue through with the verification email, or your entire entry will not count. Some people report that Feedburner verification emails land in spam, so check there if you don’t get that verification email right away. Since the service is run by Feedburner, you’ll only get the updates you subscribed to, and nothing more.
Eligibility and Choosing the Winner
SheVibe will send the winner, who should reside in the US or Canada, either the Seduction or the Romp – winner’s choice. The color of the wood will be out of your control.
I chose the winner, it’s not random. I’ll first go through all the entries to be sure that you followed the directions, and that you verified your subscription to my email updates. If all of that is in order, then I’ll narrow down the winner by your answer for #1, 2 and 3 – Being convincing helps, but so does providing useful, good feedback to SheVibe!
WINNER!!!!!!! Congrats to Pandra! Her responses for SheVibe’s shopping assistants were really great and helpful, and I really think her husband needs the Romp.
I would love to try the romp on Hubby. We have the Seduction and I absolutely love it!!!
I already follow your blog via email. That’s how I found out about your wonderful giveaway.
~ Sorry but for a valid entry, you had to complete all of the required items, not just some…
1) I would like the Romp. It has been on my wishlist for sometime. I have a few other really good dildos with similar shape or that are great for g-spot but I can safely say I do not have anything in my collection like Romp. Plus, I LOVE variety and I as of yet do not have any wooden toys!
2) The Dildo assistant is somewhat helpful, but all it seems to be is able to sort by length or girth. It would be much more helpful to me if you could choose multiple parameters to search (such as I’d like to see all glass dildos in the 4-6″ range or I’d like to find something relatively short (<4") but squat (2"+). Other valuable search parameters would be "Bestselling" and "Highest Rated" those often help me in my search. Also being able to search by price is always nice.
3) For me, the ideal Vibrator assistant would have search parameters like material, vibration rpm (thumpy vs high pitched buzz), power source (battery vs rechargeable), insertable vs clitoral vs dual, Bestselling, Highest Rated, Waterproof, Price and possibly if there are multiple vibration patterns.
4) Done.
1. I’ve been craving a wooden toy for the loooongest time. I’ve tried lots of different materials, and was thrilled to discover that they all feel so marvelously different. Wood was the next logical step, but like you said, wooden toys can be very pricey and have always been out of my price range before now.
2. I liked the dildo shopping assistant, but I don’t know if I would really use it. While it was great for narrowing down my search, when I shop I usually already have a specific item in mind. If I was just browsing, however, looking for something new and fun to try, this shopping assistant would be absolutely perfect!
3. As for the vibrator shopping assistant, now there’s something I could really use. Again, while I usually have something specific in mind, it doesn’t always turn out to be what I really wanted. A lot of times I’ve had my heart set on a particular vibe only to find out it’s weak and crappy. What I would like to search by in terms of vibes would be:
#1, power of the motor. I need strong vibrations to get me off, and I don’t have the time or money to waste on anything weak.
#2, material of course. Anything that’s going inside me needs to at the very least be body-safe. I don’t share my toys, so I’m not worried about them being 100% non-porous, but it’s always a plus!
#3, power supply is also going to be a factor for me when picking a vibe. I was recently introduced to rechargeable toys, and I don’t know how I could ever go back to battery powered, unless the toy was really something special. I would also love to try a corded toy, just to see how powerful they really can be!
#4, and since I’m semi-broke, price is obviously going to be a factor when choosing any toy. There are lots of toys out there I’d love to have (I’m looking at you Stronic!), but I just can’t afford them right now. If I was narrowing down the results, I’d love to be able to only look at toys in my price range!
4. I think that’s it. I subscribed to your feed, which I’d been meaning to do anyways, and I’d love to be considered for this toy!
I would like Seduction, but the Romp looks damn awesome too. I haven’t had much luck with wooden dildos, but that doesn’t stop me from wanting them.
Seduction is something that I would never be able to purchase on my own. Only the husband works. Money is tight. I can’t afford to drop a lot of money on a dildo. And telling the husband “but it’s so pretty” doesn’t help any. I want the Seduction because I want to see if I just don’t like wood or that I just haven’t found the right wooden dildo.
Well, I’m glad that She Vibe is trying to make their site more user friendly because I’ve tried to look at their site a few times and was horribly distracted by comics and all the colors. I also had a hard time just finding the search bar.
The Dildo Assistant thing is pretty cool. Seems to work well. However, for me personally, it’s not something I would use. I hardly ever shop for a toy by it’s size, but for those that do it will be handy.
The Vibrator search looks neat. It’s organized and the search results appear to be accurate. They are also put into categories that I would actually use because when picking a vibrator I usually go…”Oh, I’m in the mood for…”
I do follow you already. I wasn’t sure at first, but your feedburner told me so.
Good luck to everyone. And congrats on 5 years, Lilly.
I forget to list what I’d search for for vibrators….
Material, color, price, and powered by.
I have not become friend with my g-spot yet and it could be quite frustrating. My boyfriend is even starting to think that the G-Spot is just a myth, and I really want to prove him wrong. As a full time student, I do not have enough support to afford myself a Nobessence Seduction and it would be great to be able to try a wooden dildo. And since Nobessence and you ensure that the product is safe, I don’t have to worry about getting another infection!
The Dildo Shopping Assistant is a great idea. However, I found it a little troublesome when I wanted to shop for another sized toy. I had to go back, go through the same process, and then search again through all the different type of toys. It would also be a good idea if they could make something that allowed me to choose the type of dildo I want (g-spot, fantasy, etc) and the size at the same time. Adding a material category will also be very helpful.
I like to narrow my vibrator search by material and rechargeable. That’s what I do normally, but I would really love if there was a search for either the intensity of the vibe, or type of vibe (more rumbly or more buzzy). That could be very tricky to do, but it would be awesome if SheVibe could have this type of search. The last search I have would be price which SheVibe already have.
I’m following you through feedburner. Additionally, I’d like to congratulate you on 5 years!
Thanks for giving this opportunity!
1) I’ve had my eye on the Seduction for AGES because wood is amazing (and Nob Essence’s is so beautiful, it really is a work of art), and my favourite toys tend to be ones with that kind of strong g-spot curve. And, of course, Epiphora’s rave review has convinced me that I need one, haha. I’ve been trying to figure out how to squirt for years but so far it’s been beyond me. I know that the answer probably won’t be some magical toy that just makes it happen, but after reading about the Seduction I really, really want to give it a go. Sadly, it’s always been too pricy for me to go ahead and buy – I’d love to win one! That would make my year.
2) I like that you can filter by size and material, but is there no way to filter by more than one attribute at a time? It would be useful to be able to combine filters, so you could search for, say, dildos of a certain size that were also a certain material, instead of having to scroll through all materials when you search by size only. If there is a way to do that already, then – make it more accessible? Because I have done a lot of clicking, and I can’t figure it out, haha. Similarly, it’d be nice to able to search for a certain length and girth at the same time. It might also be helpful to be able to search by texture.
3) My top four vibrator factors are: material, design (I heavily favour internal toys, especially g-spot toys, and I don’t like duals at all so those are disqualified pretty much immediately), rumbly vs. buzzy (buzzy vibes are generally useless to me so it’d be great to be able to remove them from searches right off the bat), rechargeable vs. battery operated (I favour the former. Hurray for not having to buy endless packs of batteries!).
As a bonus, I always enjoy when I can filter by “newly added” so that I can keep up with industry innovations that I might otherwise miss (say, if there’s been some kind of crazy advancement in dual vibrator technology and maybe now there’s a toy of that kind that would finally appeal to me and work for my body. I’m not gonna look through the dual section on the regular coz that’s a waste of my time, but if something cool pops up in the New section, I’m gonna wanna check it out). I realize there’s a New Arrivals link in the Features section, but it might be handy to have it linked directly from the vibrators section too, because it took me a few minutes searching to find it.
4) Done!
Congrats on your 5 year milestone! That’s a fantastic achievement.
Ooooooooooh pretty! We recently just discovered toys (I am 40, he’s 39…and we JUST discovered toys…stop laughing lol). Don’t get me wrong, we knew they were there, they were just something we never really thought about. One day a few months ago, we were driving along and he mentioned something about lingerie and how he’d kind of like to see me in some. We passed a toy shop a few blocks later and I pulled into the lot and took him inside with me to pick out something he would like me to wear. Before I knew it, I had lost him to the toys. So, we went on a shopping spree for things he would like to try. It turns out, I’m not really one for toys. I enjoy the ropes being used on me and some of the nipple toys, but the insertables and vibrators? Meh.
He LOVES me using the insertables and vibrators on him though, and I enjoy how happy he is so I’m grooving on it too. He has managed to break 2 plugs in 3 months (HOW do you do that?), so I would love having the Romp for him. That looks like something he would love…and it looks sturdy as hell (because seriously, sturdy is something he needs. I don’t know how a 130 pound person can break silicone the way he can).
The shopping assistant seems a bit clunky to me. Having to go back to the main page to use the search functionality with the assistant is annoying to me, but I imagine they didn’t want to integrate it throughout their whole site until they know how and what their customers want. It’s a neat idea, but I hope they plan on integrating a link to it on all of their pages.
I’m a bit of a noob in the toy shopping world, so I don’t know what kind of input I can give. But when I have looked on-line before, these were the things I looked for, 1 being the most important to me:
1.) Price. I have two kids, I’m poor. Price is a big thing to us.
2.) Size. A length/girth search would be helpful. Maybe as a drop down menu or something?
3.) Material. Still new to this one and learning what feels good and stuff, but eventually we will have figured out what he likes best and the material search would be nifty to have!
4.) Power method/intensity. It’s a toss up between those two things.
You know what would be helpful to me in a shopping assistant? A lube decision maker thing. Because we’re new and still learning, I have no friggin idea which lube is safe for what. If they had a section with like maybe 10 of the highest selling lube brands, and I would check the box for whatever lube I had, it would pull up the toys that the lube is safe for. THAT would be awesome!! And tedious and time consuming to code…but holy shit, I wouldn’t be confused and scared I was going to blow a toy up which equals AWESOME!!! (I don’t really know what happens if you use the wrong lube. I choose to believe the toy explodes. That’s just how my brain works.)
I just found your blog last night, and today started reading it. I’m learning a lot about products. I am enjoying the reviews, and a few of them so far have piqued my interest. I’ve seen some of these toys online and in the toy store, but we didn’t necessarily know what they were or how they were used or if they were even worth the money. Reading an honest review is great. I look forward to updates in my mailbox. :)
Also, I am thanking you for the lady who works in the toy store that we have begun to go to. While I would prefer the privacy of shopping online, we have been going there to buy things. And I’m sure she is tired of looking over, seeing me and hubby staring at things with our heads cocked sideways like stupid dogs, and having to come over and ask if we need help. Because we need help. Always. She fields questions of “What is that? How do you use it? What’s it for?”. I feel sorry for her. =D
1) I would be absolutely elated if I were lucky enough to receive the Nobessence Seduction. Here’s my story and homage to great sex toy reviewers, and how they helped me to become a smart consumer, to know that it’s okay to want the best sex toys available on the market.
***
I started getting into sex toys close to two years ago. I was 20 at the time, and I felt that I had a lot of pent up sexual energy. I have never dated and have never had a partner, never been kissed even. I’ve been an introvert most of my life and have never done well with people.
But anyway. It finally got to the point where it was becoming more and more difficult to get off with just my hand, so I decided to order a sex toy. I can still remember the smell: something by Doc Johnson, PVC I’m guessing. Like a lot of noobs, I had no idea what I’d ordered. It was huge, way bigger than anyone without penetration experience should attempt, and it smelled awful. After taking it out of the packaging to examine it and having the smell hit me, I knew in my gut that this was probably not something that I should put into my body. But what really scared me was when, a few hours later, my hands started developing a rash from handling the toy. Mind you, I have extremely sensitive skin that breaks out easily, but I was nonetheless quite alarmed. I turned to Google to try and figure out what was the deal with this toy.
And that was the beginning of my toy-collecting journey. I meticulously researched everything and learned as much as I could about quality toys and materials. I’ve steadily been collecting since then, learning a lot about what I like and don’t like in the process.
But not only did I learn about sex toys; I gained invaluable insight into sexuality and masturbation, that it can be much more than an impulse – it can be a way to truly connect with yourself. So now, at 22, instead of feeling sad and “forever alone” as the kids these days call it because I’m still single, I feel empowered and grateful that I was able to learn so much about myself through masturbation. It’s my favorite form of stress relief, and I hope that it comes in handy when I do enter a relationship someday.
And of course, everything I’ve learned, I’ve learned from others. The knowledge I’ve acquired from reading blogs – from people who are meticulous and thoughtful and actually care about being honest because they respect those who are reading their posts – has helped me more than I can describe. I will always be grateful to those who have so much passion for what they do, exposing subpar companies and materials, separating the bad from the good, and thus uniting us as consumers who deserve to know what we’re using to bring us pleasure.
Now to why I desire the Seduction so badly. I like high quality toys made with high quality materials, and a high price tag is sure to accompany these qualifications. I don’t resent this, because I believe that a company who takes the time to develop and produce quality toys deserves fair compensation. I have already treated myself to a Pure Wand, and I love it immensely. Its ease of use and excellent results will always be dear to me, but it has me wondering about other toys that have been given the g-spot seal of approval. I have been wanting the Seduction for this reason for a long time. I also like the idea of having the juxtaposition between the heavy metal of the Pure Wand and the light wood of the Seduction. Industry versus nature. I just love opposites like that. Not to mention me deep appreciation for nature has made me long to experience a wooden toy (as I don’t yet have any).
I would have bought a Seduction already, but I recently discovered that I have two more college courses that I need to take in order to graduate. This has put me in a very frugal position, but I don’t want to give up my newfound hobby of collecting and experimenting with sex toys. The Seduction would be very welcome and honored in my collection.
2) I am going to be honest and say that the current Dildo Shopping Assistant is only minimally helpful to me. This is because it only gives the options of dildo length and diameter. I have a shallow-ish vagina and only like 5, up to 6 inches in there, but if the toy is longer, it’s simple to just insert less, so this doesn’t factor much into my purchase decisions. Diameter is not high on my checklist for a different reason; I’ve discovered that I have a very accommodating vagina, but I also really enjoy dildos with smaller diameters. So I rarely am looking for a specific size, as I pay attention to the whole range of sizes.
Since the dildos are already categorized by material (basically my number one filter when I shop), I’m going to suggest two other ways to filter choices that folks might find useful:
Color. I might be in the minority on this, but I am a very color-oriented person. There have been times when I’ve bought a toy solely on its color (the florescent-orange Big Boss by Fun Factory, to give an example), and likewise there have been times when I’ve not bought a toy simply because it came only in pink (which I’m not a fan of). I like collecting toys in all colors of the rainbow, so I appreciate it when I can pick a certain color and look at all the options for that color.
Sorting by brand. There are only so many *good* sex toy manufacturers out there, so if I already have tried their products and know that they’re quality, there’s a good chance that I’ll want more, and to do that it’s nice to have a lineup of everything they carry.
3) For vibrators, my top four important specifications are:
If it’s rechargeable. I simply don’t want to mess with batteries because they’re expensive and not eco-friendly.
If it’s waterproof. I’m a germaphobe, so I need to be able to lather my toys up and rinse them thoroughly, or I’ll go crazy thinking that they’re not completely clean.
How powerful it is. I need oomph! It’s so disappointing to have spent money on a toy that doesn’t quite do it for me, so having an accurate power rating system could hopefully eliminate some of those instances.
What the material is. I think this is a big one for a lot of people, as we become more educated and want only the safest materials.
As an extra fifth one, noise level. I’m still confined to living with my parents, so being discreet is a huge priority for me. Hitachi-level noise is out of the question, so I need to have an idea on how much noise I can expect.
Having these filter options span across all the types of vibrators would be extremely useful.
4) Completed!
I would like to win the Seduction, again for my wife. She has always wanted something ornamental that could be on display in the house, this toy is a great example of that. Obviously, we don’t just want to use it for decoration and along with the pure wand, many reviewers revere this as an excellent toy with both ends providing a lot of fun.
The Dildo Shopping Assistant provides a good basis for something that could be very useful. Unfortunatly, it only provides two options for narrowing down results. For it to be truely useful, it needs to be extended to other areas such as material or feel (texture).
For their Vibrator Shopping Assistant there are many more factors for narrowing than there are for dildos. My top four things would be Price, Material (I always want the safest toy for my wife), Intensity and Power Method (I much prefer the idea of rechargable toys, less cost from batteries and less waste).
(Ugggghhhhh. I lost my post in cyberspace……insert frustrated groan here)
Hi Lilly,
I would love to be considered in your contest for the Seduction wooden toy. I don’t normally enter contests because usually they are US only and I have bad luck lol.
In answer to your questions above:
1. There are many reasons I would like to try the Seduction…
– Being environmentally friendly is of importance to me.
– I love non-phallic sex toys, especially ones like this that do not scream “I am a sex toy”. This is an incredible work of art and I admit to being in love with the dark cherry looking one, it would match my desk and china cupboard :)
– I am a g-orgasm woman. I don’t orgasm easily, when I do, it is through gspot, very seldom do I have a clitoral orgasm. This toy has the size that I need for full gspot stimulation.
– I have never seen wooden toys until I came across your blog….yep, true. I don’t know if it is because I am Canadian or….. I’ve been to sex shows with a multitude of vendors but never seen wooden toys. That in itself makes this very intriguing for me. (If by chance you happen to know of a Canadian vendor, I sure ‘wood’ appreciate the info) And face it, being intrigued is in itself, a turn on.
– this toy has the potential to help me have a squirting O/female ejaculation… Which is something I’ve only experienced once, approximately 15yrs ago. (I am 36) The experience was unlike any I’ve had since, I cannot fully do it justice, it was during a fisting experience and so very intense, my whole body shuddered head to toe, I came close to passing out, and I cried.
– Orgasm is not easy for me, for a lengthy amount of reasons that I don’t need to share here but am willing to privately in interested, so anything that perks my interest is worth exploring for me. Financially, having just bought a couple of toys based on your reviews, I will not be able to afford another “pleasure spending” for awhile. (Though I would have no problems paying for shipping if I should happen to be chosen for this prize)
– my girlfriend thinks the smaller end would work for her…. Bonus for us, a toy that works on both her smaller size requirements, and my larger fuller requirements.
Thank you for considering me.
2. I haven’t visited the she vibe site before, but your description of a dildo assistant sounded very promising…. Unfortunately, I was disappointed that it only offered searching birth girth or insertable length :-(. Yes those are 2 of the more important criteria, but there are many more criteria that I would have appreciated having the option to select. For example: both girth and length, material, brand….those are important to me when considering a toy.
3. Vibrator assistant: my top 4 criteria to search by would be: Size (both length and girth), type (meaning: gspot, clitoral, etc), material and price.
4. Done, thanks for pointing that out, I’m glad to subscribe to your updates, I love your blog!!!! My girlfriend and I have spent many hours combing through it so far.
Thank you for reading, and your consideration for this contest.
I want a piece of wood that I’ll like so.. that’s why.