Your Valentine’s Day Guide to Sex Toys

Valentine's Day can be nightmarish enough when it's not in such close proximity to Friday the 13th -- which is bad news for all you procrastinators -- so try to keep your luck in play with a few tips from romance and sex expert Ethan Imboden, founder of the imaginatively seductive site JimmyJane.com. He's got some suggestions on gift ideas to "turn it up a notch this Valentines' Day."

1.Pick the right accessory: If you want to introduce a vibrator into the relationship, pick something that is simple and approachable (read: smaller than he is). It is much more likely for a guy to be comfy around the vibrator if he feels like it’s not intimidating. Also choose something that’s not non-distracting (read: noisy), so you don’t feel like you’re having a threesome, which can be overwhelming for some people. For V-Day, try the Little Chroma Vibrator in red or magenta, which is waterproof and completely silent, or the Form 6, the world’s only vibrator that is both waterproof and rechargeable. The brand new hot pink color was launched just in time for Valentine’s Day.

2. Get playful: If you’re not comfortable enough to go with a vibrator, try a game like Spin Me, a twist on spin-the-bottle that makes provocative suggestions you might be self-conscious of making yourselves. Spin it just as you would when you were a teenager, but when the bottle stops, you pull out an adventure strip and follow the instructions. The strips range from really simple and approachable to a bit edgier, but it’s very helpful for many people to have those suggestions come from someone (or something) else.

3. Find yourself in a compromising position: For some easy fun, try Indulgences, a little kit that fits easily into your pocket and includes all the essentials that you would need—a couple of condoms, some lubricant, a little feather tickler, and even a mini waterproof vibrator. Alone, this would just be a bunch of products, but we’ve also included the love decoder—a little fortune-teller that chooses a body part and an action to incorporate the products in the kit. So the activities are up to the love decoder, it’s not up to you.

4. Take it slow: If this is a new relationship, a more approachable solution is to start with something more sensual rather than sexual. Massage is a great way to ease into a new connection, so try the Afterglow Sensory Set, which combines the AfterGlow Massage Candle and Contour Stone into an unforgettable experience. The massage candle melts at a very low temperature, so you can blow it out and pour the warm oil directly onto the skin. It’s warm enough that it’s exciting but it’s not hot enough that it would ever scald and the massage stones can be heated up or cooled down for an extra sensation to give a great massage.