HOW TO TURN UP THE HEAT THIS VALENTINE’S DAY
Whether you’ve just met or have been together weeks, months or years, keeping the fire lit in your relationship is a continuous work in progress. While it’s easy to allow the daily grind and regular routines to eat into your bond, it’s imperative that we all actively work on maintaining the magic within our relationships.
But how do you spice things up and ensure your union is happy, healthy and hot? Well, we spoke to sex and relationships coach Gemma Nice to uncover her top tips for heating things up in the bedroom along with her favourite sex and wellness products to try this Valentine’s... We’re talking sex toys, fragrances, candles, lubes and more.
In This Article
GEMMA NICE'S TOP TIPS TO SPICE THINGS UP IN THE BEDROOM
Go Shopping
“Go out and buy sexy lingerie together. Try things on and let your partner see. ” Or how about shopping in an adult store? “Go your separate ways around the shop for around 10 minutes. Look and feel things, pick things up, try them out. Look around the whole shop and then come back to each other with what’s in your basket. Discuss your items and maybe buy two or three each to try at home.”
Communicate
“Communicate your wants, needs and desires. Start by writing this down as a journaling practice and then build up the courage to talk to each other about it. If you feel like you can’t, then use the back-to-back method and talk it out. To do this sit back-to-back with your partner, so you are touching each other. Take a few deep breaths and allow you breath to sync up. Then, one person speaks first while the other listens attentively without interrupting. Once the first person has finished, the other person then responds. This is a great way to find the courage to talk as you are not looking at each other.”
Guessing Games
“On a post it note, both you and your partner write down a sexual desire you'd like to try. Keep it secret and stick the notes on each other's foreheads. Then, take turns guessing each other's desires. Keep going until you’ve both figured it out.”
Quality Time
“Spend quality time together, making sure you get rid of your devices and are both engaged and having fun. Enjoy being together. Go back to when you first started dating. Try and replicate that to build the trust and fun back into your relationship.”
Change the location
“Be open to trying new positions. Maybe switching up where you get intimate. If you are always in the bedroom, take it to the sofa or home office.”
GEMMA NICE’S TOP SEX AND WELLNESS PRODUCTS
152.55€
“The Coco de Mer Pleasure Number 8 ring is a great vibrator to use together for sexual pleasure. It can stimulate the nerve endings in and around the vulva. I love that this is 100% waterproof and can be used in the shower to spice up your intimacy. It allows you to explore a world of sensation with 10 vibration settings, designed to take you and your partner on an unforgettable journey to mutual climax. This is a great present for the both of you. I love the little box it comes in, very luxurious and discreet.”
45.20€
“I’m certainly one for a great massage oil and Coco de Mer’s Roseravished Massage Oil is one to use. Its smells divine and has such a beautiful rich smell of rose and sandalwood. This oil glides easily over the skin, warming up as its touched. Use on your own for a very intimate time or with a partner to heighten your senses even more. The rose and sandalwood help to relax the muscles, taking you on a journey of intimacy.”
33.90€
“The Coco de Mer Pure Delight Orgasm Balm is such a fantastic product to use — especially if you have a little trouble reaching climax. It has magical powers to stimulate the nerve endings around the clitoris. Sometimes when you are on medication, stressed or anxious, it blocks the nerve endings around the clitoris making it harder to climax. Using this balm will help to stimulate them. It’s made with homeopathic remedies that are proven to increase arousal to that area. Menthol is added for a little more stimulation keeping the nerve endings excited. Use a small amount before solo or partnered play and enjoy intense orgasms over and over.”
2
39.55€
“ I love the Coco de Mer Divine Glow Aqua Lubricant –. It’s water based, so can be used with toys . The bottle design is beautiful and doesn’t look like a lube, it could be sat on your bedroom side or bathroom shelf showing itself off. It’s a silky smooth and soft lubricant.
7
8.98€
“I always advise my clients to stay clean before and after sex and the Smile Makers Silky (S)wipes are a great addition to your hygiene routine. There are 12 wipes per packet and can easily be placed in your handbag. They are biodegradable, vegan and have prebiotics added to them to keep the vulva flora happy. I always have some of these in my bag and use for a quick freshen up when I feel I need it. I absolutely love the packaging and the slogan for this company. Such a great little gift for yourself or for your partner for Valentine’s Day.”
4
135.54€
“I always talk to my clients about using a rabbit to intensify their orgasms. The Smile Makers The Artist is one for you if you like both areas stimulated. This has nine different settings which can be used for internal and external pleasure depending on what you desire. It’s curved to reach the G spot and rubs the clitoris making your orgasms intense . Its smooth, silky to touch and is a great addition to the bedroom.”
8
38.42€
“Now this is a weird one to throw in the mix, but The Nue Co. Functional Anti-Stress Fragrance Travel Spray is a great fragrance spray to add into the bedroom to keep you calm and enjoy a sense of peace and tranquillity. When we are stressed and anxious we are in the fight or flight response . This makes us not feel sexy or in the mood for intimacy at all. When we are calm and relaxed, we are in our rest and digest mode ( also known as the parasympathetic nervous system), this allows for the serotonin and dopamine – the calming hormones – to be released which we will then be able to feel intimate. This fragrance has very calming ingredients from cardamon, bergamot, jasmine and cedarwood as well as others. Its smells divine. ”
MORE SEX & WELLNESS MUST HAVES
34.80€
14
20.00€
2
45.20€
73.45€
213.57€
8.98€
28.19€
So, there you have it, a full rundown — from a sex expert no less — of the best tips and tricks to bring the heat back into your bedroom. Now, which sex toy are you gifting to yourself and partner this Valentine’s Day?
Rina is Cult Beauty’s Junior SEO Copywriter and has always had a passion for beauty and skin care (rich moisturisers are her obsession). What started as a love for The Body Shop and their famed Born Lippy lip balms (in ‘Watermelon’ of course!), she is now more interested in finding products with proven effectiveness instead of broken promises. A loud and proud VIEVE fan, Rina owns nearly every item of the range and recommends the brand to anyone who will listen... When she’s not intently reading ingredient lists, you can find her either immersed in multiple true crime podcasts or co-hosting her own parenting one, with an *extra* hot cappuccino in hand.
