In everyday life most of us are increasingly environmental conscious - reducing use of plastics, using sustainable materials where possible, recycling etc. I guess the sale of second-hand sex toys won't catch on (!) but you can do things yourself and sex toy manufacturers are beginning to innovate and respond with things like biodegradable sex toys.
Before getting into green sex toy ideas a quick recap on being environmentally friendly. It's a complicated equation but key aspects include:
- relatively low resources used in the production
- sustainability of the raw materials
- long life of the product
- being able to be recycled
- being biodegrade and in toxic free manner
Nothing will be perfect and something can be great in one aspect and not another. I can't begin to compare the overall environmental impact of different products over the full life-cycle but it is pretty clear some natural jute rope for bondage is much more friendly than a PVC inflatable sex doll!
How green are sex toys?
Well cucumbers aside, the score card is mixed and trends over the last few years are not great in many ways but things are changing.
Overall, there has been a lot of plastic in sex toys for some time and plastic is the environmental devil - from production, to difficulty recycling, taking forever to biodegrade and having a relatively short product life. There has also been a long-trend for much more "buzz" - vibrating sex toys which typically include plastic in some form, lot of electronics and batteries. And lot of buzz and plastic usually means a relatively short product life as things wear out and go wrong - my local council has yet to introduce a sex toy recycling option :)
If anything the the trend for buzz if is getting stronger with lots of remote and app-controlled vibrating toys and interactive and virtual reality gradually getting more popular. On the plus side silicone has become the predominant material and use of plastics is much reduced.
Are silicone sex-toys environmentally-friendly?
Silicone isn't the most environmentally friendly material but it beats plastic. If you have a choice go for silicone although often silicone toys are a bit more expensive. The cheaper vibrators and other vibrating toys tend to be plastic and the more expensive silicone but not always - for example, this OMG Silicone Wand is completely silicone top to bottom and reasonably-priced.
Silicone is made from silica but still uses hydrocarbons from petroleum like plastic. It also takes a lifetime to biodegrade if it ends up in landfill. It can be recycled but requires a special process and it rarely happens. On the plus it has longer-life than plastic so less likely to end up being quickly thrown away.
Best eco-friendly sex toy ideas...
Rechargeable not disposable batteries
Obvious perhaps, but if you go for cheaper toys, perhaps older models, often they will be powered by standard disposal batteries and people don't always realise. It's worth paying a little bit extra to get a rechargeable model - better for the environment and more convenient too.
Biodegradable sex toys
Bioplastics are polymers made from renewable materials like starch or vegetable oils that resemble plastics - and in most cases are biodegradable. They are tiny part of the global polymer market but there is lot of research ongoing and the first sex-toy products have emerged. Try the Gaia Biodegradable Rechargeable Eco Bullet or the Gaia Biodegradable Eco G Spot Vibrator
Lots more of these sort of products will emerge I'm sure. (Now got a vision of dildos in the garden compost bin along with the potato peelings.)
Glass dildos, butt plugs and kegel balls
Away from buzzing vibrating toys, glass is our favourite. It will last forever and is wonderfully sensual. There is also the option of temperature play, heating them up in warm water or cooling them down in the fridge before. There is the image of glass sex toys being very expensive, and some still are, but lots are very reasonably priced.
Click here to see our full glass collection but this blue glass dildo is amazing value and great quality and the glass butt plug is a work of art - both under £15.
Wood
Wood is one of the most environmentally-friendly materials and so sensual. Options are limited and hygiene issues for sex toys used internally but there are lots of wooden bondage items. We don't yet have a huge range here and they tend to be custom made but here are a couple of options - a wooden flogger and paddle.
Steel dildos, butt plugs, nipple clamps, etc...
A bit like glass, steel lasts forever and is stunning and sensual - most items are more like jewellery or works of art than sex toys! I can't imagine every throwing away but, if you want to of course, they can be recycled.
The downside of steel is that not cheap although some items are still pretty reasonably price - more of an investment in a beautiful item than buying a typical silicone dildo. Saying that plenty of times under £15 covering all kind of toys.
Click here and have a browse and perhaps you'll be surprised at the variety and price - cock rings, handcuffs, medical bondage, nipple clamps, butt plugs, dildos, kegel balls, etc.
Natural rope for bondage
Click here for our rope collection.
Doxy Die Cast Wand Massager
I saw this on another site, saying if you are going to buy a wand and then the Doxy Die Cast is a more eco-friendly option. Bit of a stretch but sort of get it. The body is made of metal so should last longer and easier to recycle - not sure about the other bits but nothing is perfect.
Everyday objects you can use as sex toys
If you use your imagination there are so many things around the house that can be used to as sex toys. Please have a read of a blog we did a while ago - click here. You can even be touch kinky while saving the planet!
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