If you're a beginner to anal toys, read our lowdown on what you need to know as a newbie.
First and foremost - anal toys need to be safe
This means either having a flared or wide base or a ring or handle to keep a tight hold of the dildo, butt plug, or butt beads.
There's a very good reason for this: The rectum is a hungry li'l beast and toys can vanish quicker and easier than you might think...
Getting lost toys back out is stressful, to say the least, and, in the worst case senario may involve a trip to A&E. With this in mind, we have designed all Sh! silicone dildos with our trademark heart-shaped base, ensuring you can get lost in lust without worry.
Always use lube for anal play
The anus, unlike the vagina, isn't naturally lubricating, so lube is a must to keep things slick, safe and painfree. Thicker lubes are better - Sh! Pure Plus is perfect for anal play, it's thick and long-lasting and very smooth.
Customers ask us how much lube is 'enough' and we always give the same answer: Add as much as you think, and then add a bit more.
Water-based lube will sink into the delicate membranes, so don't skimp on the stuff. There's also silicone-based lubes and these are great for skin-on-skin anal play.
Silicone-based lube doesn't sink into skin or membranes, so will literally stay slick until you wash it off with soap and water.
However, silicone lube isn't great for silicone toys as it can degrade the surface over time, so think about how you'd like to play before choosing the type of lube that will work best for what you have in mind.
Anal beads are great beginner toys
Anal beads are a string of beads designed to be slipped into the bum one by one. Starter beads will have teeny-tiny beads at the tip and then gradually increasing sized beads.
You don't have to insert the whole string if you don't want to, two or three beads are enough if that is all you feel comfortable with.
Butt beads feel amazing for both female-bodied and male-bodied peeps, but they feel especially fantastic for those with prostates. The prostate is a gland located inside the anus of male-bodied folx and a fun trick when using anal beads on or with someone with a prostate is to pull the beads out slowly but firmly at the point of orgasm.
Anal toys with vibration
Anal Vibrators are lots of fun and they come in a variety of sizes. Vibrations can help relax a nervous butt and offer a whole heap of pleasurable tingles to the nerve-endings in the area.
We'd recommend starting very gently - vibrations tend to be felt more intensely in the bum so go slowly.
Silicone is the best material for any sex toy, but especially so for any toy destined for your bottom. Silicone is non-porous and hypoallergenic, and so easy to keep clean.
Butt plugs have narrow necks so they stay in place
Which is ideal if you want your hands free for other things ;)
Butt Plugs are designed to stay put once inside, unlike anal dildos which are designed to slide in and out. Plugs provide feelings of fullness and pressure, and they give you something to squeeze against.
This 'squeezing' involves the PC muscle which is key to great orgasms. Using butt plug during clitoral, vaginal or penis play can ramp up the pleasure and bring on incredibly strong orgasms, so well worth experimenting with.
Pegging - anal sex with a strap-on
Pegging, or anal penetration using a strap-on, is a super-hot activity for couples that is just growing and growing in popularity. Men are finally discovering the fun of being on the receiving end of penetration, with their partners discovering the fun in donning a strap-on harness and dildo combo - a win-win situation if there ever was one!
Choosing a strap-on for the first time can feel overwhelming so we've taken the work out of it by creating an anal strap-on kit with everything you need to get started.
We also manufacture a strapless strap-on that allows both partners to enjoy the intimacy of shared penetration during pegging - it's a toy for subtle movements rather than wild in-and-out action. Using a strapless strap-on is the advanced level, and we always advise starting with the classic combo of harness and dildo.
