Pretty much all of us had some form of sex education at school. All I can remember from my early years was the “when a man and a woman love each other very much…” talk, followed by a video of childbirth for the girls in the class. Then, later on in my school life, I recall a biology teacher handing round examples of different types of contraception so we could see what each looked like while she described what they did. I don’t really remember much about the lessons themselves but it was all geared towards making us rather cautious about this whole sex thing. Luckily for them, I put off starting the full-on practical part of my education until I was 18 and so had plenty of time to brush up on the specific details of the theory in my own time. I was a fast learner and so, if there’d been a test, I reckon I would have passed it in no time.
Thing is, that’s where most people leave it. You do a bit of theory at the start and then the rest is learned on-the-job, as it were. What happens if you want to get better at it? What happens if you encounter problems? Other than contacting an agony aunt about a specific issue you have, or wading through Google search results trying to find something relevant and accurate, where can you go for more information on sex? Well, if you’re in London, I’d suggest a good place to start is the erotic classes at Sh! They are small friendly sessions which cover a variety of different topics – female orgasms, finding your g-spot, better blow-jobs, anal pleasure, strap-on sex and even spanking – and they take place downstairs in the Hoxton Square store. Further education is rarely this much fun.
The other week, I went along to a class on orgasms, run by the lovely Joanna. We were welcomed with a glass of pink fizz and were soon being given a tour of the important (for orgasm) elements of our lady parts with the help of diagrams from 3Dvulva.com and a rather tactile vulva puppet. Then Joanna suggested ways of getting started to bring yourself to orgasm using fingers and lube (which I remembered from the last time I attended a Sh! class was her recommended item). Of course, manual stimulation alone isn’t always enough and so our attention was soon turned to some of the toys sold by Sh! that had been selected as relevant to this class. Joanna recommended putting a condom onto bullet vibrators for easy retrieval without damaging them, and also suggested that those new to using a vibe might find it useful to use them round the vulva or on the sides of their clit, as direct stimulation can sometimes be a bit much. After we all marvelled at the amazing SaSi with its customisable settings and the incredibly powerful Esprit D’Amour, our glasses were topped up ready for ‘the science part’.
Once we were all aware of what happens where and how, the conversation inevitably got around to how to have ‘better’ orgasms, which was when Joanna introduced us to a few of the types of vaginal ‘love’ balls that are sold by Sh! These are useful to provide resistance when doing your kegel exercises and certain types are comfortable to wear all day. However, it was mentioned by some of the women in the class that they can provide rather too much stimulation when sat near the engine on a bus! Handy advice indeed. In fact, many of the casual discussions we had and stories that we shared were both fascinating and useful. One of the great things about the Sh! classes is that they keep the numbers small, and the pink fizz flowing, so it never feels awkward to ask questions or discuss things further. We all left the store having learned at least one new thing and, thanks to our £5 vouchers and a little bit of shopping time, some of us went home with a little bit of something fun too.
If you are in any way curious about improving your knowledge of certain aspects of sex, or even if you just like talking to other women to find out if you are alone in how you feel or what does it for you, I would definitely recommend going along to one of the classes at Sh! It was a great start to a fun night, as I’m sure it was for many of the ladies there!
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