Vajazzling!?

[Guest W***ledi*Time]

Apparently "Vajazzling" is all the rage? I've never heard of it.

 

Zosia Bielski reports in the Globe & Mail today, 24 April 2010:

 

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/style/vaginas-are-enjoying-their-15-minutes-of-fame/article1544454/

 

Mints and dyes. Swarovski bedazzling and trimming manuals. Life-like scents direct from Germany.

 

To the glee of marketers and chagrin of feminists, vaginas appear to be enjoying their 15 minutes of fame in the commercial world.

 

In January, actress Jennifer Love Hewitt popularized ?vajazzling? when she revealed in her memoir that she'd had Swarovski crystals applied to her ?precious lady? to get over a break-up: ?It shined [sic] like a disco ball,? she chirped on

Lopez Tonight

.

Earlier this month, comedian Kathy Griffin underwent a poolside pap smear to promote feminine health ? and then got vajazzled herself.

 

Now available in several Canadian salons, the practice has raised the ire of feminist bloggers, who rank it alongside other dubious grooming trends such as pubic hair stencilling and Brazilians. They also aren't especially fond of Linger, a new line of vaginal mints, or My New Pink Button ? that's labia dye.

 

?Vaginas are having a moment right now in our popular imagination,? says Cynthia Loyst, host of TV's

Sex Matters

.

 

?It's the last frontier. These savvy entrepreneurs are marketing and creating a product, telling women, ?Maybe you should consider this. Maybe you've never thought about it before, but other women have.'?

 

On the other end of the spectrum is

VulvaLoveLovely.com

, an online emporium of wares intended to ?foster understanding and appreciation of Vagina.? The merchandise, which also sells on Etsy, includes ?portrait pendants? crafted from photos of customers' ?Yonis? and uterus-shaped pillows fashioned after feminist icons Frida Kahlo and Rosie the Riveter.

 

 

 

Perhaps the most baffling of the vaginal offerings, however, is VULVA Original. Launched in December by a German company called Vivaeros, the scent is made from the ?organic substances of a real woman? and is aimed at men.

 

 

?It is for your own smelling pleasure,? chief executive officer Guido Lenssen explains on the phone from Cologne. ?You just put it on the back of your hand, smell it and the film starts rolling in your head.?

 

Lenssen doesn't recommend wearing VULVA to the office, and won't divulge what's in it except that it involves the secretions of a real woman whose scent male testers preferred above other women sampled. (For this reporter, the aroma only invokes Parisian alleyways in summer's heat.)

 

The small vials sell for ?25 ($33) and are only available online. Americans are buying up much of it, Lenssen said, with Japan picking up the rear in recent weeks.

 

?Japan is wonderful,? he says, adding that the company is advertising with Manga images there. In

North American ads

, a blond, elfin man sniffs a sweaty exercise-bike seat.

 

According to Lenssen, some people have called him a ?pervert,? which dismays him, as do those who treat the product as a joke.

 

?Every adult man loves this scent, and every man who says no ? he is a liar,? he insists.

 

My New Pink Button, a line of non-permanent labia dyes, has been met with similar incredulity. The dyes come in four vivid shades: Marilyn, Bettie, Ginger and Audry.

 

?This wasn't something that was made up as a joke: It was something that really grew out of women asking gynecologists and plastic surgeons how they could get their pink back down there in their genital area,? Karan Mari, the California paramedical aesthetician behind the product, says from Sacramento.

 

Launched last summer, the dyes sell for $29.95 U.S. via Amazon and will be launching soon in France, which is also the capital of hymenoplasty.

 

?I didn't know that it would be such a big hit, because I didn't realize that so many [women] do not pay attention to their genital area,? Mari says.

 

In her view, pornography may have something to do with the increased scrutiny, but she swats away at the product's detractors: ?There's criticism from feminist blogs, although all it does is boost our sales.?

 

And

VulvaLoveLovely.com

owner Jessica Marie's take on the dyes, mints and bling? ?They make your vagina look like a freakish ? glittery acid trip.?

 

The 24-year-old Miami artist can't believe that vajazzling is a ?real thing,? pointing out that the practice was initially spoofed on YouTube with a fake advertisement for something called ?clitter,? a faux vagina glitter. ?Using Clitter while pregnant may result in sparkle babies,? read the disclaimer.

 

Marie thinks that many of the current offerings devalue women: ?They sexualize our bodies and retard people's abilities to appreciate them. They make people believe that ? you have to colour it pink, stick a breath mint in it and throw glitter on it. Things like this only encourage the low self-esteem women have.?

 

While the Etsy wares remind her of the youthful feminism of her university years, Loyst said she finds vajazzling ?silly? and the dyes and mints even more suspect.

 

?Although we're in a world that embraced second- and third-wave feminism, we've also grossly distorted it. A pornification of women's sexuality has taken place: It's [debatable] whether women are actually empowered or just acting out pornographic ideas.?

 

[dirkgently 1778]

i think i'm going to stay indoors for a while.

 

it's getting weird out there.

[omehgosh 736]

Interesting read WiT... thanks for sharing. That last question is such a great ending for the article!

 

?Although we're in a world that embraced second- and third-wave feminism, we've also grossly distorted it. A pornification of women's sexuality has taken place: It's [debatable] whether women are actually empowered or just acting out pornographic ideas.?

 

[/indent]

[Jabba 18389]

Vajazzling?

Oh well, I guess we had it coming - it's the marketer's final frontier. They actually came up with a name for it, and it's long overdue. In the Roman/Greek culture, you couldn't turn around without smacking into some phallus, so I guess it's time for the vagina to share in the glory.

 

I do find the scent thing distasteful though. But, on second thought it does have some amusing revenge applications. For example, accidently break a bottle in your boss's office, etc. Seriously, how many women would buy a cologne that smelled like a man's unwashed shlong? Pretty gross eh?

 

From the G&M article:

"Marie thinks that many of the current offerings devalue women: “They sexualize our bodies and retard people's abilities to appreciate them. They make people believe that … you have to colour it pink, stick a breath mint in it and throw glitter on it. Things like this only encourage the low self-esteem women have.”

 

 

 

Well, I guess someone had to play the "objectification" card. How many ladies out there actually believe that jazzing up the vagina only devalues themselves? I think some people need to get a grip on reality and stop trying to equate mere decoration with some type of male sexual deviation thing. I've got some piercings on my thing - does that mean I should have low self esteem?

 

 

 

"Although we're in a world that embraced second- and third-wave feminism, we've also grossly distorted it. A pornification of women's sexuality has taken place: It's [debatable] whether women are actually empowered or just acting out pornographic ideas.”

 

 

I think the person quoted above has a distorted idea about pornography. This person is uncomfortable with the level of publicity that women's genitals is now enjoying. Think of it as a vaginal renaissance. Pretty soon, we're going to get saturated with everything vaginal. TV and internet will have mainstream commercials and sit-coms, billboards will splash in-your-face ads across the landscape. Common, everyday objects like toothbrushes and doorknobs will have vaginal overtones OMG!!!

...sorry, am I sounding paranoid?

 

 

 

Let me step back into reality. I think we should let the humble vagina have its day in the sun. The world will still turn, the sun will still rise and hopefully the marketers will crawl back under the rock they came from.

[RedShirt 150]

It is ideas like this that makes me realize that maybe society has already thought of every useful idea and everything else is just fluff.

[Belleoftheball 395]

I saw a photo of a girl all vajazzled, as recently as two weeks ago. I was joking around with some friends and I called it vajazzling... I thought I was hilarious, and who the heck would do this? I went on and on and I couldnt believe that this was real, I truely thought it was photoshopped. Now I see I looked likea fool, because it REALLY EXSISTS?! What?!

 

I personally think that the vagina is gorgeous on its own, without bells, whisltes or GLITTER!

 

Jeez Louise! - Thats my 2 cents.

[Jabba 18389]

I saw a photo of a girl all vajazzled, as recently as two weeks ago. I was joking around with some friends and I called it vajazzling... I thought I was hilarious, and who the heck would do this? I went on and on and I couldnt believe that this was real, I truely thought it was photoshopped. Now I see I looked likea fool, because it REALLY EXSISTS?! What?!

 

I personally think that the vagina is gorgeous on its own, without bells, whisltes or GLITTER!

 

Jeez Louise! - Thats my 2 cents.

 

I thought the breath mint was a good idea.:lol:

[Belleoftheball 395]

I thought the breath mint was a good idea.:lol:

 

I suppose, but do you want to be going down on a lady that needs a breath mint down there??!

[BownChickaBown 4829]

What WIT? :shock:

 

You mean you haven't been 'cacjazzling' for years now? It's all the rage too! :pimp:

 

The ladies love it :motion: Get wit the times! :-P (hehe, jk)

[Guest M***ell***A]

Ok so I have read this a few times now and have given my mind a couple days to process this and no matter how I try to wrap my head around it I keep coming back to the same sentence.

 

In the illustrious words of those lovable South Park characters: "Dude, this is f@#*ed up right here!"

[Old Dog 179138]

Sooooo... if I meet someone who is all VAJAZZLED, do I in turn have to reply by PENIZZLING?

[Cara Silver 32412]

I firmly believe that rhinestones enhance ANY sexual experience. 'Cause they're dressy, and you might as well make a night of it. :mrgreen:

[Jabba 18389]

An evening of vajazzling is just what the good entertainment director ordered. Rhinestones, glitter paint, feathers, mascara and of course sugar-free breath mints are all fine accessories. Let's define the truly exotic though - maybe some ravioli with sour cream and bacon bits...eheh rrrrrrrr!

 

Ok, a little tongue in cheek perhaps, but I think this fad has legs. Experiment anyone?:wink:.

[Guest O***wa**W]

i think i'm going to stay indoors for a while.

 

it's getting weird out there.

 

 

This!:lol: