Sex. Do you talk about it openly? And if you do, exactly how much do you confess or share in the company of others? How frank are your conversations?
Personal experience tells me that the act of sex and our perceptions of our sexuality often become more complex as we get older. Generally speaking, we’ve learned what we like, what we don’t, and often, with a little maturity and experience, find ourselves wanting to explore things that we may have been too timid to tackle or acknowledge in our youth. However, for many of us, finding the time and the space to talk about what interests us with other like-minded people can be difficult. And invariably the things we discuss and the conclusions we draw from our conversations are not widely shared.
The other week, I was contacted by a very lovely lady by the name of Angelina, part of the team from The Boudoir, who wanted to let me know about an initiative the latter have started in the U.K. called Girls Night In. The premise? Groups of ladies getting together to talk frankly about their sex lives behind their very own (chintzy) curtains and, in the process, helping to build an online information resource for others who may be less comfortable with being so open.
So how does it work, exactly? Well, you get a group of friends together (between five and ten women who you feel comfortable talking in front of), members of the Girls Night In team arrive with some wine and nibbles, and the conversation kicks off. All participants remain anonymous (unless they wish otherwise) but aspects of their discussion are captured (discreetly) and then shared with others via The Boudoir’s education section, The Parlour. So if you decide to talk about fellatio, for example, then your thoughts and perspectives will be captured and detailed for others in a variety of forms – in text, as an animation, or perhaps as part of a multimedia creative piece. (You can see an example of a captured Girls Night In comment in this Parlour article on mutual masturbation.) At the end of a Girls Night In session, as a thank you, all participants receive a gift from the Boudoir team, together with a £25 gift voucher.
Personally, I think this is a great idea. I have to acknowledge that The Boudoir is a commercial entity and will undoubtedly gain insights from these sessions that will help them from a business perspective – but I also think that companies who are willing to listen to women and are prepared to curate and maintain useful, relevant resources on pleasure and sexual health are worth supporting. Angelina’s philosophy?
‘The Boudoir is both a resource and a service, not just a sex shop.’
The Girls Night In team are prepared to travel, so wherever you are in the U.K., please do get in touch with them if you’re interested in helping them out. You can find everything you need to know, including how to get in touch and book your session here.
Title image: courtesy of The Boudoir