{"id":610,"date":"2018-04-24T03:40:01","date_gmt":"2018-04-24T03:40:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bettybutch.com\/?p=610"},"modified":"2019-05-21T21:43:34","modified_gmt":"2019-05-21T21:43:34","slug":"review-the-big-oh-box-quarterly-sex-toy-subscription-box-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bettybutch.com\/index.php\/2018\/04\/24\/review-the-big-oh-box-quarterly-sex-toy-subscription-box-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: The Big Oh! Box (Quarterly Sex Toy Subscription Box)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201c…we make it easy to be good to yourself, your partner, and the planet.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

We\u2019re just one month into Spring, and the awesome folks at Big Oh! Box<\/a> are celebrating the season by filling their latest quarterly box with organic goodies<\/strong>. I was really looking forward to this box and wasn\u2019t disappointed \u2013 and that\u2019s despite me picking a box that didn\u2019t<\/em> come with the Noje Mini Wand (which is my absolute favorite sex toy<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

\"\"
An assembly of items on a wooden step outside: a coil of black and purple restraints, a pink vibrator, a bottle of lube, a bottle of toy cleaner, a box of towelettes, and a lit candle in a tin with its lid posed beside it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For those of you that don\u2019t know, Big Oh! Box<\/a> is a subscription service that sends you a new box of sexy things every few months. They\u2019ve tailored their entire business around providing pleasure to everyone<\/em> and not slapping gender or orientation labels on your shopping experience (though they can\u2019t control what sex toy manufacturers put on toy packaging.) They want to banish the idea of restricting pleasure and exploration to \u201cdate nights,\u201d and instead introduce sex positivity and new experiences into your bedroom. Or living room. Backyard? Guess it depends on how high your fence is.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Boxes contain an array of items with the focal point being a toy whose type\/function is your choice (g-spot, p-spot, stroker, vibrator, backdoor, dual stim, or you can opt out of getting a main toy.) Lube, impact toys, arousal products, bondage \u2013 there\u2019s all kinds of possibilities for what will be tucked in the discreet black box, but because you can choose the toy\u2019s function, you know the box will be for you<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Wonderlust Serenity G-Spot Vibrator<\/em><\/h5>\n

Toy choice came in handy for me this quarter because Big Oh! Box<\/a> went with the Noje Mini Wand as their vibrator choice, and I already have one. Plus, Buster isn\u2019t as keen on external stimulation as I am, and it felt nice to pick g-spot instead so they got a treat for once. So among the goodies was the Wonderlust Serenity, a rechargeable silicone internal vibrator. The grippable portion of the vibrator has an ABS plastic face and two buttons and is attached to the insertable head \u2013 which has a slight curve and pointed tip for poking the g-spot \u2013 by a thin, flexible neck of silicone.<\/p>\n

And \u201cpoke\u201d is pretty much the summary of the Serenity\u2019s capabilities as a g-spotter. (It\u2019s also how Taryn of Ace in the Hole<\/a>\u00a0described it\u00a0on Twitter<\/a>.) Between the jabby nose and the prominent seam that runs along the head (an intentional design, for reasons I\u2019ll never understand), the Serenity was an uncomfortable fuck even with liberal amounts of lube. Which is a shame, because its vibrations are rumbly but chill about it, which makes it a great fit for folks looking for steady but mild power against their g-spot.<\/p>\n

\"\"
A pink vibrator \u2013 the Serenity Wonderlust \u2013 sprawled on (fake) grass. It has two buttons, one with a circle with a line through it (on\/off) and one with a squiggle (settings.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I love it as an external<\/em> vibrator though. The silicone is buttery sleek, and the seaming didn\u2019t bother my junk. The flexible neck and modestly strong vibrations force me to take my time, which has been great for treating this week\u2019s persistent migraines with relaxed orgasms. The buttons \u2013 one to turn it on\/off, and one to cycle through the settings \u2013 are perfectly placed for me, with the settings button sitting closer to where I naturally hold it. The on\/off button works with one click instead of requiring several seconds of waiting; and since the Serenity also isn\u2019t particularly loud on its three steady power settings, it\u2019s a pretty discreet vibrator.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also an absurd<\/em> number of patterns (17!) and a favorites function that allows you to imprint your favorite setting so you don\u2019t have to click 20 freaking times to get back to it.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> The Serenity retails for $40 on Peepshow Toys and $45 at The Tool Shed, averaging $42.50.<\/p>\n

Sliquid Shine Organic Toy Cleaner<\/em><\/h5>\n
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A black bottle of toy cleaner spray \u2013 Shine by Sliquid \u2013 sitting on a wooden step. The bottle is the same shape as most beauty sprays: a plain tall cylinder with a small nozzle on top. There is a picture of a gold gender symbol framed in petals above the logo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I have a sink less than three feet from my bed thanks to the weirdness of RV living, so cleaning sex toys post-use is only as tedious as sitting up and leaning over. But when I have multiple toys and I\u2019m still a little wobbly after going it solo, or Buster and I have chosen to just toss everything in the sink and leave it for the morning because we\u2019re lazy beasts, I\u2019ve thought about having some sex toy cleaner on hand for peace of mind. I\u2019ve seen folks argue it\u2019s largely unnecessary since good ol\u2019 soap and water will do (and sanitizing is just a boiling pot away for non-mechanical toys), but I also peek out of my shower curtain at least fifty times even though I know nothing\u2019s there. Sometimes you just need that extra reassurance.<\/p>\n

Shine is Sliquid\u2019s anti-fungal and anti-bacteria organic toy cleaner, made with tea tree oil, jojoba oil, castor oil, and aloe barbadensis leaf juice. (No parabens or glycerin!) The bottle I received was 8.5 ounces but was actually a misorder \u2013 the bottles intended for the box should have been 4 ounces, but the folks at Big Oh! Box<\/a> gave the larger bottles to 20 of their subscribers. The bottle itself is very pretty: black plastic wrapped with a sleek black label with gold accents, with a gold plastic nozzle. It fits in unnoticed on our shelf of mildly fancy got-it-for-Christmas hair products and lotions. It says \u201cnaturally unscented\u201d but I imagine that\u2019s just shorthand for \u201cwe didn\u2019t add any extra smells\u201d because you can definitely<\/em> smell that tea tree oil, y\u2019all. It\u2019s easy to apply because it\u2019s not a foam and spurts smoothly from the nozzle. Just like the directions suggest, I like to put my toys in the sink, rinse them off with water, douse them in the cleaner, and then rinse them again.<\/p>\n

And there\u2019s been no lingering scent or residue on the toys, my hands, or the sink after the initial huff of tea tree oil fades.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> On Sliquid\u2019s own website, the large size of Shine retails for $15 and the small retails for $9.<\/p>\n

Toko Organica Organic Personal Lubricant<\/em><\/h5>\n
\"\"
A clear bottle of translucent lube with a black flip cap. The bottle is wider at the top than the bottom. Through the bottle you can see a label featuring art of a straight couple; a woman in yellow garments is straddling a man wearing green, their limbs artfully akimbo. It has a certified organic label.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here\u2019s where we get into some controversy (and raw honesty.) I\u2019m pretty anxious about what I put in my vagina, because I\u2019ve had infections on and off since I became sexually active. My stuff\u2019s super sensitive! I\u2019ve become very mindful these days about what I let near my junk, and one of my hard passes is lube with glycerin in it\u2026 even the (deceptively?) more innocent-sounding vegetable\/plant-based glycerin in this beautifully branded organic lube.<\/p>\n

But my stunt vulva-haver, Buster, has a much better tolerance than me, so we did still give it a chance.<\/p>\n

Organica, one of Shunga Erotic Art\u2019s Toko line of lubricants, comes in a 5.5 ounce clear bottle with a simple black cap lid. Through the bottle, you can see a colorful (and hopefully not appropriated) Japanese print of an entangled couple. The lube is water-based, so it\u2019s safe to use with silicone toys and latex condoms, gloves, and dams. It\u2019s scentless but has a tart, unpleasant taste.<\/p>\n

In use, Organica is good! It retains its slickness for a long time and feels pretty close to natural vaginal lubrication. A lot of friction does gather it up and turn it white, and it gets tacky after awhile \u2013 but like all good water-based lubes, adding a spritz of water slicks everything right back up.<\/p>\n

And I definitely prefer its cap over other styles, it\u2019s much simpler to figure out in the dark and easy to clean when spillage occurs. Which it often does, because I am the one doling it out.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> Organica retails for $18 on Shunga Erotica Art\u2019s own website.<\/p>\n

Sex and Mischief Enchanted Bed Bound Restraints<\/em><\/h5>\n
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A coil of black straps and two thicker purple straps piled on a wooden step; a strip of vegan faux leather with notches is draped down towards the (fake) grass below.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If the walls around my bed weren\u2019t so desperately in need of fresh paint, I might have just taken a picture of the Bed Bound Restraints still situated under my mattress, because I kinda hated having to tug them out to take pictures. I vastly underestimated how keen I\u2019d be on having a bondage set up that\u2019s literally \u2018set it and forget it\u2019, always there when I impulsively want to involve bondage in bed but don\u2019t want to stop what I\u2019m doing long enough to dig up a set from the closet. I was cranky to remove them not because it was difficult<\/em> \u2013 it\u2019s as easy as lifting your mattress a bit and sliding out the strap \u2013 but instead because in the two weeks I\u2019ve had them, they\u2019ve become as essential to my bed as my sheets or pillows.<\/p>\n

The Enchanted Bed Bound Restraints are easy to use, conceptually. You situate the long strap lengthwise beneath your mattress and adjust it the same way you would a backpack, pulling the strap through plastic buckling until it\u2019s at the length you need it. You put your wrists and ankles against the restraint straps (which are purple and feel soft but not sleek) and tuck the attached cuff straps into place on rounded metal studs. Because your wrists and ankles are bound so close together, your partner(s) can have you stretched out in an enticing straight line.<\/p>\n

\"\"
A close-up of a white rectangular box labeled Sex and Mischief sprawled on (fake) grass. A photo of a very thin white woman is prominently featured on the box. Her eyebrows are heavily styled into arcs above blandly staring eyes, and her mouth is open in an unhappy grimace. Her wrists are bound.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

They have their flaws. The cuffs straps and studs can fit a broad range of wrist and ankle sizes, but on the smallest notch they were so loose on my (thick) wrists I could easily slip out (which admittedly may be a benefit to some, especially for those nervous but wanting to try restraints, and folks who want to roleplay an easy escape scenario.) You have to tilt the cuff holes and push them onto the studs at an angle because they\u2019re actually too small for the studs. And the vaguely crushed velvet-y feeling purple finish on the restraint straps is only on the front, which cheapens the aesthetic when it curls over itself over your wrists or ankles. Honestly, the whole system feels weirdly complicated as compared to actual circular cuffs.<\/p>\n

And this is just a nitpick, but the woman on the box looks so displeased about the whole thing that it made me uncomfortable. Seriously, who thought this<\/em> was the best picture to go with?<\/p>\n

They\u2019re vegan, which is cool, and they\u2019re now a permanent fixture on my bed, so I obviously dig them. I imagine they\u2019ll also be useful as anchoring points for other bondage cuffs, since I don\u2019t have a headboard or any other hardware to bind them too.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> The Enchanted Bed Bound Restraints retail on Betty\u2019s Toy Box for $35, and (ugh) Lovehoney for $40, averaging at $37.50.<\/p>\n

Luxurious & Gentle Cleansing Towlettes with Lavender<\/em><\/h5>\n

Nothing that smells like these things is ever going anywhere near my junk. I don\u2019t buy into the idea that people\u2019s \u201csensitive places\u201d ever need to smell like flowers (or in this case, old lady perfume) and studies have shown that douching, soaps, and wipes actually cause irregular odors. My vulva smells like a vulva. The side of the box suggests (in what I imagine is intended to be a cutesy way) that you use these wipes for post-activity freshening up, or to prepare for your doctor, \u201cwaxer,\u201d or lover(s). If the people who regularly interact with your junk seem affronted by its scent, find different people to interact with your junk.<\/p>\n

\"\"
A close-up of a white box labeled \u201cBox Naturals\u201d in an elegant font. Vine designs are etched on the box corners.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On their website, Box Naturals insists the intention of their product isn\u2019t to shame \u201cwomen\u201d for how their bits smell: \u201cOur scents are not designed to leave a lasting impression. The last thing BOX Naturals are meant to convey is that a woman’s natural scent isn’t ok.\u201d But that narrative doesn\u2019t line up with its suggested uses, if you ask me. (You didn\u2019t, but I\u2019m tellin\u2019 you anyhow.) And the scent does<\/em> last, or at least it does from these lavender ones.<\/p>\n

\"\"
A close-up of a white box with a bullet list printed of suggested uses on its side. \u201cOn hands, faces and sensitive (they\u2019re PH balanced). For an all-over freshen up after the beach, gym, yoga, trapeze. To remove makeup. Before seeing your doctor or waxer. While traveling on planes, trains, hot air balloons, and through time. To prepare for a romantic rendezvous. Anytime, anywhere!\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The ingredients of these cleansing towelettes are clearly listed on the box (glycerin among them), but so are the things Box Naturals does not have: parabens, petrochemicals, synthetic fragrances. (So the old lady smell is all natural.) They\u2019re biodegradable, and made by an indie woman-run company that donates a portion of its profits to charities for women\u2019s issues. And they don\u2019t use animal-derived ingredients either!<\/p>\n

Despite the incredibly strong smell, I didn\u2019t hate these as face wipes. I have naturally oily skin, and they dried even my obnoxiously shiny forehead. Without making my skin flake! I would love to use these for long days at theme parks (my face shines like a freshly waxed hood in Disney photopass pictures) but I don\u2019t want to impose on folks with fragrance sensitivities. (Box Naturals\u2019 site says they\u2019re working on naturally scentless wipes, which I will definitely consider snagging.) For cleaning up my face after working in my yard for a few hours, these are dandy.<\/p>\n

Value:\u00a0<\/strong>These Cleansing Towlettes with Lavender retail for $10 on Box Naturals\u2019 own website.<\/p>\n

Isle of You 3-in-1 Massage Candle by Earthly Body<\/em><\/h5>\n
\"\"
A close-up of a lit candle in a tin sitting on (fake) grass against a wooden step. The tin\u2019s lid and a Big Oh! Box branded matchbox are posed around it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My favorite product in the box was definitely the Hemp Seed 3-in-1 Massage Candle. It comes in a palm-sized, 6 ounce brown tin, and has a little plastic spoon inside the lid. The scent \u2013 Isle of You \u2013 is earthy and sweet in a way I can\u2019t quite describe but absolutely love<\/em>, though when actually lit it disappointingly doesn\u2019t permeate its smell. After burning for about 15 minutes, enough candle oil will have melted\/warmed for massage use, and you can either pour it out into your hand or on the skin you\u2019re going to massage, or you can dole it out with the little spoon. In use, the oil is slick but a bit pasty, and will stiffen back into soft wax if left dense and untouched. (It softens back into oil if you rub it.) My hands\u00a0glided easily but weren\u2019t so slippery that I couldn\u2019t dig into unhappy muscles. It\u2019s pleasantly warm when first poured but does not burn like regular candle wax, and it cools to skin temperature almost immediately. It smells amazing<\/em> on skin, and both the sensation and the slick visual were very sexy. We loved it.<\/p>\n

Buster and I used to trade massages a lot when we first moved out together, but as with most folks, relationship\/sexual complacency crept in and we stopped doing it. When having my first look at this candle, I realized it had been at least six years<\/em> since the last time I gave Buster a rub-down. It was nice to get indirect encouragement to get back to old favorites,\u00a0and it was a sobering reminder that even good sex (and intimacy in general) can benefit from rekindling habits you\u2019ve abandoned, just as much as it can benefit from exploring new things.<\/p>\n

A shower was definitely necessary after using it for a massage. Though it says it can be used as a daily moisturizer, we found it too sticky even after prolonged rubbing to just be left on skin; and when Buster took a shower to rinse it off, it resisted being washed away to the point where after they got out they still felt a little tacky. (It also slicked the shower floor a bit, so be careful!) The scent did linger and was super relaxing to fall asleep with.<\/p>\n

Value:<\/strong> Isle of You retails for $16 on Earthly Body\u2019s own website.<\/p>\n

Total Box Value: $130-$140<\/h5>\n

I loved this box<\/em>. I loved the aesthetics of everything in this box (the Serenity stuck out a bit as a flamingo in an otherwise very handsome collection of products, but I\u2019ll give it a pass!) and the fact that everything was organic and\/or vegan. I admittedly knew I\u2019d love the box the second I peeped the photoshoot for its promotional shots on Big Oh Box\u2019s Instagram<\/a> (you should follow them!) because gosh, y\u2019all. I love the care Big Oh! Box puts into assembling a theme. And as someone who lives in the woods by choice, I can absolutely appreciate Nature\u2019s Pleasures. Like most millenials, I try to be careful about how big of a print I leave on this earth, and it\u2019s nice to be shown it\u2019s not impossible to be mindful of it even in the bedroom.<\/p>\n

\"\"
An assembly of items on a wooden step outside: a coil of black and purple restraints, a pink vibrator, a bottle of lube, a bottle of toy cleaner, a box of towelettes, and a lit candle in a tin with its lid posed beside it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This box was also such a big step up in terms of value; there wasn\u2019t a single item I would dismiss as filler, and each provided something new (or familiar but forgotten) for Buster and I to try. I also loved the inclusion of a Big Oh! Box branded matchbox, which is a clever bit of advertisement that will no doubt be used when starting this summer\u2019s fire pits.<\/p>\n

Just like with New Year New Sensations<\/a>, this quarter got us talking and playing \u2013 or, in the case of the restraints, bickering over whether or not we were fastening the cuffs properly. We\u2019ve had fun, we\u2019ve added the generously sized bottles to our cupboards alongside products we\u2019ve purchased for ourselves (as opposed to being given samples to be used and forgotten), and we\u2019ve impacted the planet maybe a little less than we might have otherwise.<\/p>\n

Want a box of your own? You can use the code BETTY to save 30% on your order.<\/strong> You can also find really great codes on Big Oh! Box\u2019s Twitter<\/a>, like this one<\/a> for a Nature\u2019s Pleasures box with a dual stimulation toy. And if you\u2019re not quite ready to commit to a box, you can still browse Big Oh! Box\u2019s store<\/a> for all kinds of toys and accessories as well as other curated boxes. They ship discreetly worldwide.<\/p>\n

I received this quarter\u2019s Big Oh! Box in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“…we make it easy to be good to yourself, your partner, and the planet.” We’re just one month into Spring, and the awesome folks at Big Oh! Box are celebrating the season by filling their latest quarterly box with organic goodies. I was really looking […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":616,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[721,10,326],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sex-toys","category-reviews","category-subscription-boxes"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t