{"id":266,"date":"2018-02-20T18:28:09","date_gmt":"2018-02-20T18:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bettybutch.com\/?p=266"},"modified":"2019-05-21T21:43:40","modified_gmt":"2019-05-21T21:43:40","slug":"review-the-big-oh-box-quarterly-sex-toy-subscription-box","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bettybutch.com\/index.php\/2018\/02\/20\/review-the-big-oh-box-quarterly-sex-toy-subscription-box\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: The Big Oh! Box (Quarterly Sex Toy Subscription Box)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Big Oh! Box is a quarterly subscription box service run by two cool folks<\/a> who believe \u201cpleasure shouldn\u2019t be reserved for any specific person\u201d and have structured their site and their service around being gender and orientation inclusive. Their boxes ship out once a quarter and contain a number of toys and sexy accessories; the box\u2019s focal toy is based on your chosen preference (clitoral, g-spot, anal, or stroker) so you\u2019ll get a toy that\u2019s actually suited for you and\/or your partner(s) if you\u2019re sharing!<\/p>\n

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An open box sitting on a table; sex toys and paper wrapping are protruding. A card with an inscription including the phrase “EXCITING NEW SENSATIONS” is leaned up against the box. There is a makeup case in the background.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is a huge deal to me. I\u2019ve peeked at a few other sex toy subscription boxes, but all of the ones I found were marketed to straight cis couples. One claimed it could cater to (cis) lesbian couples too, but when I looked at a recent box, it had condoms in it \u2013 and while condoms can be snipped into dental dams, I don\u2019t think the box service had that in mind. The generous part of me recognized that varying the contents of a subscription box would require additional labor and financial investment for a small company \u2013 but the rest of me, which is no longer cowed by the same old excuses, was frustrated. And even when boxes only had items for anatomy like mine, the aggressive and unnecessary gendering of its products reminded me that while the box might be made for my body, it was not marketed for me<\/em>. I like sex toys. I like surprises. Why didn\u2019t anybody want my<\/em> money?<\/p>\n

But then, the Big Oh! Box.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It started when they followed me<\/a> on Twitter. I flipped out a bit when I read their bio<\/a>, and immediately clicked to peruse their site<\/a>. I love to read FAQs (listen, y\u2019all, I\u2019m autistic, let me have my vices) so I actually clicked through theirs first \u2013 and noticed a few gendered words where there needn\u2019t be. Since the site itself and their stated mission emphasized wanting to combat that type of unnecessary caging, I decided (after some stress pacing) to shoot them an email and suggest alternatives. They emailed me back and were incredibly kind about it. And not only did they change the phrasing in their FAQ, but they offered to send me a box!<\/p>\n

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A white person’s hand holding a black box. Most of the information on the shipping label is blacked out.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The box arrived in just two days, even faster than the following Monday originally estimated by USPS. The design is pretty discreet: just a plain, sealed black box with a shipping label on it. The only indication of what may be inside is the inclusion of the company name \u2013 Passionate Ideas<\/em> \u2013 on the shipping label in small, nondescript text as part of the return address. In my opinion \u201cPassionate Ideas\u201d could just as easily be the name of a bath bomb manufacturer or a book publisher etc, and a nosy neighbor would have to really<\/em> be going out of their way to even notice it.<\/p>\n

The inside of the box is printed with their Oh logo, and the products are loose and blanketed in tissue paper. Inside, I found a card detailing the box\u2019s theme (\u201cWelcome the New Year with exciting new sensations\u201d), a bullet vibe, a bottle of lube, \u201cvibration\u201d arousal gel, a pair of aphrodisiac lollipops, a wrist bondage set, a flogger, and a heart-shaped plastic light. As an extra, there was a little plastic baggie with some batteries in it since the light didn\u2019t come with any \u2013 a thoughtful addition!<\/p>\n

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A picture of a pink bullet vibe with a little ball at the end, shrouded by some flowers on a red backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
SCREAMING O DOODLE VIBE<\/em><\/h5>\n

Because I chose clitoral\/vibrator as my box\u2019s type, the focal item of the box was the Screaming O Doodle Vibe. I have some not-so-happy feelings<\/a> about Screaming O, but the Doodle looked interesting enough: a small, battery-operated, hard plastic bullet in a silicone sleeve. On the end of the sleeve, the Doodle has a little silicone ball that oscillates from the force of the bullet\u2019s vibrations, serving as a tiny jackhammer for your clit, nipple, or wherever else you choose to tease. Unfortunately, despite promising \u201cdeep, rumbling vibrations,\u201d the single speed vibe is just buzzy and uncomfortable on my junk, and the sleeve creates a weird seam so that it doesn\u2019t sit on my clit the way I want it to. The silicone ball\u2019s thudding is mostly lost in all the buzz (and pinchy when it\u2019s not), though it\u2019s more perceptible to the skin on my arms and thighs. I don\u2019t hate<\/em> having it drifted across my skin as a sensation tease, but it\u2019s more of a novelty than a functioning toy. And it\u2019s gonna be hell<\/em> to clean it.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> The Doodle Vibe is listed as<\/a> \u201cout of stock and unavailable\u201d on Screaming O\u2019s site, with no mention of its price. Lovehoney straight up says it\u2019s been discontinued<\/a>; they sold it at $14 with a recommended retail price of $17. Good Vibrations has it<\/a> for $9, down from $18. Pinkcherry has it on sale<\/a> for $6.50, down from $20. If we consider the full retail price from these three shops, it\u2019s worth about $18.<\/p>\n

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A red-wrappered lollipop sitting in a bunch of purple and yellow flowers against a red fabric backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
PADORA’S POPS 50 SHADES OF EARL GREY<\/em><\/h5>\n

I hate tea. It tastes like the air you breathe in a tunnel. And yet, as I type this, I\u2019m sucking on a 50 Shades of Earl Grey lollipop and enjoying the hell out of it. I\u2019m serious, this thing is tasty<\/em>. I\u2019m not a food critic so I\u2019m not even going to pretend to identify\/discern the subtle flavors etc etc, but I will say it\u2019s yummy in a spiced way, with a slight tingle to its aftertaste. The lollipop itself is translucent amber and heart-shaped, and gets a little tacky the more you suck on it. According to the tag, which is cutely designed but unnecessarily gendered in its description, it\u2019s made with herbs and essential oils, and it\u2019s both gluten-free and vegan \u2013 awesomely inclusive! I haven\u2019t noticed anything with my sex drive, but my lips feel a little extra pouty?<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> Pandora\u2019s Pops lists the lollipops<\/a> as $5 each, with the ability to buy them for $2.50 each if you buy 100. If we consider the full price per pop, the inclusion of two lollipops is worth $10.<\/p>\n

SLIPPERY STUFF PERSONAL LUBRICANT LIQUID<\/em><\/h5>\n
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A white 4 ounce bottle with purple text beside a glass of yellow and purple flowers on a red backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I can\u2019t lie, I\u2019m pretty much married<\/em> to my Sliquid H20. But I don\u2019t hate<\/em> Slippery Stuff Liquid. Like H20, it\u2019s water-based (safe for silicone toys!), clear, and drips as easily as water \u2013 but unlike Sliquid, this stuff tends to hold strands from the bottle to wherever you\u2019re applying (no matter how far), and webs between your fingers if you spread them slowly enough. Which, if you\u2019re just trying to get it on, might be annoying\u2026 but if you\u2019re looking to up your aesthetic game, it\u2019s weirdly sexy in a messy way. It has very little scent to it; if I had to draw a comparison, it very vaguely smells of bland hand soap. It does have a taste though, and while it\u2019s been decades since I accidentally sucked in a mouthful of bubble liquid when blowing bubbles, I\u2019m pretty sure it\u2019s that exact same<\/em> taste<\/em>. In use, it does its job just fine, and doesn\u2019t leave much residue. It\u2019s also a lot easier to wash off my hands if I overuse it.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> On Wallace O\u2019Farrell\u2019s own website, Slippery Stuff Liquid is listed<\/a> at $6.50 for the 4 ounce bottle. Tool Shed carries<\/a> the 4 ounce bottle for $6. Lubezilla has it<\/a> for just under $6. You can get it in larger quantities at regular retail stores (for example, $11 for 8 ounces at RiteAid<\/a>.) I\u2019m gonna call it as worth $6.<\/p>\n

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A small white tube of gel, its box, and in the background, a glass of yellow and purple flowers, on a red backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
BUZZ LIQUID VIBRATOR AROUSAL GEL<\/em><\/h5>\n

I\u2019ve never used an arousal\/stimulant gel, so I was wary of BUZZ, which comes in a small 7 ml tube stored in a larger white and gold package. According to the hype, a few drops on your external erogenous zones will ignite nerves and produce a buzzing sensation. It smells like a gross, gingerbread-like cookie, but it was easy enough to apply with its arguably well-designed slanted nozzle. We tried it on Buster\u2019s clit and nipple\u2026 and nothing happened, except a very, very vague burning sensation. We applied more. Still nothing. Liquid Buzz was a liquid bust!<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> On Doc Johnson\u2019s own website, BUZZ is listed<\/a> at $25. Pinkcherry has discontinued it<\/a> on its site; it had<\/em> been on sale for $8.50, down from $30. I wanted another source for comparison and didn\u2019t want to resort to Amazon (where it was discontinued anyway), so I was left with Adam & Eve (ughhh) which carries it<\/a> for $20. If we consider only the full repair price from these sources, it\u2019s worth $25.<\/p>\n

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A picture of the Sxy cross cuffs, their box, and a glass of purple and yellow flowers against a red fabric backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
SXY PERFECTLY BOUND CROSS CUFFS<\/em><\/h5>\n

I was so excited to see cross cuffs in this box, I\u2019ve wanted this style of restraints for so long! Fastened with velcro, the foam-like material snugly grips your wrists one over the other, with a D-ring on top so you can get creative with attachments (a leash, ankle cuffs, a short chain on the headboard\u2026) I put these on Buster with just a bit of finagling because this style is new to us, and they found them to be soft but firmly restraining. It did put one of their hands to sleep because they were holding a vibrator against themselves, so be aware of numbness if those bound hands are keeping busy. Releasing Buster was easy even in the dark since it\u2019s velcro, so that was a nice bonus. And the red marks left behind from mild wriggling faded by the next morning.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> These cuffs were impossible to find on sites I\u2019m familiar with, and their manufacturer, Creative Conceptions LLC, is a wholesale retailer that doesn\u2019t list their prices<\/a> upfront. I found them on Tanga<\/a> and Rainbow Depot<\/a> for $30, and Gear Isle<\/a> and Amazon<\/a> for $26. Taking those prices as is, it\u2019s worth $28.<\/p>\n

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The top of a black flogger shrouded in purple and yellow flowers against a red fabric backdrop.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
FETISH FANTASY SERIES DELUXE CAT-O-NINE<\/em><\/h5>\n

To be blunt, the flogger is pretty cheaply made. It\u2019s very light-weight, and the tails are malleable enough that they have permanent kinks to them from being packed. The handle is actually quite long, so if I ever wanted to swing this sucker like a baseball bat, I\u2019d have the grip room. The tails, being so thin, actually produce ouchy sting on impact \u2013 which is more than I can say of another cheap flogger I own that retails for twice as much (thanks for nothing, Fifty Shades collection.) For folks who have never indulged in impact play before \u2013 and I imagine plenty recipients of this box haven\u2019t \u2013 it\u2019s an alright start. It does seem like impact toys are always the ones skimped on in subscription boxes, I hope to see higher quality ones made a priority in future boxes!<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> I didn\u2019t see a price on<\/a> the cat-o-nine\u2019s manufacturer site, Pipedream. It was difficult to find them elsewhere, as there are several very similar incarnations of floggers from Pipedream, all in the same price range. Pinkcherry sells it<\/a> for $6, down from $9. SheVibe also sells it <\/a>for $6, down from $9. I\u2019m gonna call it as worth $9.<\/p>\n

LITTLE GENIE LOVE LIGHT<\/em><\/h5>\n
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A heart-shaped light with the word “love” on it in kinda tacky loopy font. There’s a glass of yellow and purple flowers in the background.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The last item in the palm-sized, heart-shaped Love Light, which can be fitted to the wall with a nail (there\u2019s a wall mount hole on the back) or with the three little sticky pads stored in the battery compartment. When the heart is pressed, a red light pulses slowly in the center, and the white framing transitions through green, blue, purple, and red.\u00a0 The light is kinda cheap and flimsy feeling, and its inner workings (springs etc) show through the white plastic when it\u2019s switched on. Despite this, I actually kinda love it. I can leave it on all night without it heating up, and while most of the colors are soothing, when the lights sync red, the entire room goes from being illuminated by fishtank-like soothing light to drowning in the angry glimmer of hell itself. Punk!<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> This one stumped me, honestly. I found its wholesale site, Party Genie, but the price wasn\u2019t listed<\/a>. I found it on Sears, but the page was broken<\/a> and wouldn\u2019t produce a price. After regular googling didn\u2019t help, I clicked the \u201cshopping\u201d tab, and found it on two unfamiliar sites for $8.50 and $7.50. I\u2019m going to admit defeat and guess about $8.<\/p>\n

Total Box Value:<\/strong> $104.<\/h5>\n

Overall, I wasn\u2019t a big fan of this particular box. I loved the wrist bondage set and the lollipops, but I didn\u2019t really enjoy anything else except maybe the light. Only one of the three most expensive items in the box (the cuffs, the vibrator, and the arousal gel) proved fully usable for me, which impacts my perception of its worth considerably. I received this box in exchange for a review, but I imagine if I\u2019d paid $100 for it I\u2019d be kinda disappointed, especially when I could buy all these items at various sites for $80ish. That being said, I\u2019ve looked at the contents and reviews of previous boxes (such as Spring 2016<\/a> or Summer 2017<\/a>) and I genuinely think this particular<\/em> box is just a dud for me. The service itself is well worth giving a shot, especially if you\u2019re looking to diversify your toy box while also<\/em> supporting a business that\u2019s acknowledging the diversity of its market.<\/p>\n

I keep thinking about the theme of this box: new year, new sensations. And while they weren\u2019t all sensational to me<\/em>, none of them were sensations that precluded me. I joyously opened this box knowing that all of the experiences within would be experiences I could have. Even the outright fail, BUZZ, got Buster and I talking and fooling around in bed, intrigued by what might<\/em> happen.<\/p>\n

Curious what might happen for you? Big Oh!\u00a0has a shop<\/a> with all kinds of goodies, and a few boxes on discount<\/a>… Or, you can throw caution to the wind and sign up for a subscription<\/a>!<\/p>\n

I received the Big Oh! Box in exchange for my honest feedback. A previous version of this post did not include affiliate links; affiliate links with Big Oh! Box are now in use.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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