Showing posts with label lingerie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lingerie. Show all posts

Friday, December 12, 2008

Shameless self promotion

It's that time of the season. Time for shamelessly plugging our website in case you need some special gift for the naughty people on your list. The Possibilities Room is the place to go. As a bonus for reading my mind numbing site, type the word "blog" into the coupon code area and you'll score 15% off the order.

So, there you go. Be good by being naughty!

Friday, May 23, 2008

Under where?

I'm on the fence here. It's great having new people reading the blog, but at the same time, I've actually met or might sometime in the future have a chance of meeting a number of you. As my focus of the blog has shifted to roughly 95% about my bike, I've posted less info about personal items. On that note, I've been debating on whether or not to start a separate blog to talk about things of a more personal nature: sex, toys, lingerie, etc. For now, I think I'll just keep things together and preface those posts of a more personal nature with a slight caution. This really isn't for my protection, but your own. I'm just not sure that many of you want to really know me that well. Hey, if you do, great, but if you don't, you probably should stop reading now.

OK, warning given, here we go. I mentioned a while back about our last trip to the International Lingerie Show in Vegas. We've received pretty much all of the test pieces we've ordered and had a chance to give them the initial once over. A few disappointed and won't be carried in the store, a number met the basic expectations and we'll select a few of them, and a few broke the mold for kickass pieces. As I'm not into trying on women's lingerie (at least beyond throwing the occassional pair of panties on my head and dancing around like a fool), I'll stick to reviewing some of the new men's line. Frankly, I never thought a pair of underwear would do much for me or my wife for that matter. I mean, it's just a layer of clothing meant to keep your junk from free swinging into orbit while you're ensconced in the daily grind, right?! Women typically get all the cool stuff when it comes to underwear and I'll be damned if I don't love all the choices we get to see, but us guys are stuck with roughly 3 choices- boxers, briefs, and the hybrid boxer-brief.

I'm pretty sure I started like most typical kids with the whitey tighties that mom picked out from K-mart or wherever. Why she wouldn't go for the colored ones and save some of the skids from showing up is beyond me, but whatever. I transitioned to boxers in high-school when it seemed that I should grow up a bit. Then I finally got tired of the riding and bunching associated with boxers and jeans so I checked out the boxer-breif and have been rocking those ever since. Where the hell am I going with this you ask? Let's just say, while the boxer-breif definitely has my highest regard for fit and function, the fashion is drab to say the least. Sure, if I were rocking the 6 pack abs and had a roll the size of a hard salami stuffed down the front, they might be a bit more exciting to the opposite sex, but suffice it to say, I'm not that guy.

This leads to our discovery of a vendor in one of the small rooms at the lingerie show. A gentleman hocking some pretty cool looking men's underwear. We stopped and talked to him for a bit and grabbed his catalog. Pretty cool stuff inside. We stopped again the second day and did a bit of chatting with him. The guy manning the booth wasn't just the typical sales simp sent to the trade shows, but the owner and designer of the line (along with the model for a number of the pics). He explained the thought process, extra attention to detail, and virtues of his product to us. We came back later in the day and put in an order for a number of his pieces to try out.

Fast forward to last week and the arrival of said test pieces. I managed to intercept the package while Miranda was out with Corley and snuck a pair under my jeans. As the evening wore on, I tried vainly to interest my wife in what was under my pants. Finally, she noticed I had something different peaking over my waist band beyond the usual gut (at least that's been shrinking). She asked me to model them and I obliged for as long as I could suck it in at least. Her approval was swift. She loved the design, the colors, and the "enhancement" look. Then came the question: "What do you think?"

At this point, I'd only had them on for an hour or so, but thus far they were comfy, didn't ride, and best of all, it would seem that filled out look suddenly appeared. Apparently, when a designer cares enough to put in the right details, the clothing you put on can actually accentuate and enhance certain elements of your body... We both were enjoying the enhanced version of me even if it were an optical illusion! As we ordered roughly enough test variations for me to rock a different pair for almost a week, I can give you some feedback now. Not only are these things visually appealing, the dominate everything else I've ever worn for comfort, fit, and support. I've tried some high end silk pieces from Italy and while they were nice, I'd say these still handily beat those. Now here's the real kicker, these things are manufactured in the US in Portland, OR, the fabrics are mostly organic, and the price, while seemingly a bit steep for men's undies, isn't out of line for what women pay for nice bras and panties. A bigger kicker is the reaction from my wife. A certain rugby styled pair managed to entice her and start up a bit of playful grabass that hasn't been seen for a while and a flurry of pix/text messages that we've never done before. Of course that all leads up to what else, but sex! Gotta love a product that delivers on all counts.

I hope that wasn't too much information for some of you. I promise I'll try to restrain myself from posting my own pictures so you're probably safe on that account, but I can't be held responsible for any mental images! Look for these to be online shortly in our store or if you're interested in seeing the catalog and possibly ordering a pair direct, shoot me an email rick@thepossibilitiesroom.com

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Color me red

Well, for several reasons the title of this post is appropo. I haven't written for over a week, last night was the first time I rode in a week, the last ride I did was through a place call Red Rock Canyon, and I also managed to get my first sunburn of the year on the last ride.

With our trip to Vegas, there hasn't been a lot of time to write. We spent an awesome four days in Vegas at the International Lingerie Show. We usually hit this show every year as it's the best way to see the new lines, explore for new vendors, and get some face time with existing vendors. This show proved to be no exception. We went out in search of expanding our selection for our mens line and our plus size line. We found some great vendors for both items and have new products coming to review.

We also had some face time with our favorite vendor of lotions, candles, and oils. This company kicks some serious ass in the quality of their product. We actually talked to them about doing some private labelling and becoming a distributor. The buy in amount is quite a bit larger than what we currently work with, but we'll get the advantage of buying at an even lower cost and having our name on the label. It's a definite risk, but we feel like this is one set of products we can really get behind and sell. We're going to start targeting some of the local businesses to see if they're interested in carrying them. Another bonus with our name on the label, it helps to advertise for us as well.

We had some seriously good eats while in Vegas. I think it's pretty hard not to find good food out there as long as you're willing to pay the price. Sunday was a BBQ joint in the Rio called RUB, Monday was mexican at Isla at TI, and Tuesday was Tao at the Venetian. Wednesday was the only letdown as we went for cheap on a friend's recommendation and headed off the strip to Ellis Island which is home to the steak and eggs combo. Definitely cheap food considering the most expensive thing was $11, but the food left a lot to be desired as it wasn't much beyond what you'd expect at a typically greasy spoon diner. Definitely a you get what you pay for place.

We did our typical walk the strip, wander through a few hotels, and gamble a little here and there. We typically like to spend a couple hours in O'Sheas casino as our favorite little dive to gamble in. Our luck was definitely off this time though as we shelled out around $150 in way less than an hour on the tables so we headed out fairly quickly. We wandered through the sister property to the Venetian, but I'll be damned if I can remember the name of it. It's just another rediculously huge and ornate over the top Vegas embellishment, but still cool to walk through and envision the cost of such a spectacle. We wandered through the stores and fingered many things that were way beyond our meager means. Damn, I can't see how they can get those prices even in Vegas.

We did get our gamble on back at our home hotel which was the Gold Coast. Great place to stay as the rooms are cheap at $60, it's across the street from our convention at the Rio, the have a free strip shuttle bus, and the rooms are pretty decent as well. This was our 3rd time there and we'll definitely be back again. We really hadn't gambled much there putting our preference on our strip favorite. This time we had some luck though with Miranda nailing $100 profit on the roulette table (her favorite) and me playing for 3 hours at blackjack and still walking away ahead a meager $20. Of course we only play for entertainment, so any money we actually win is just a double bonus.

Beyond that, we got some much needed time alone together. Of course we called and checked on the little one several times every day, but hey, we still had Vegas all to ourselves. The boost of one on one time definitely helped to recharge the sex life. We even had a chance to check out a new set of very light bondage cuffs given to us by a rep from Fun Factory. It's a new line they're coming out with to expand upon their all ready great toy line. They were fun while they lasted for all of about 5 minutes. The first minor pull against the cuffs sent the chain whipping past her head as it pulled through the silicone tab. Ah well, just a hiccup in the process and didn't slow us down much.

That about sums up Vegas. Sex, excess, and some indulgence. A great way to spend a few days. I'll catch you up on the next installment with my ride through Red Rock Canyon and some other fun things.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Jackpot!

Well, not really, but that sure would be nice considering we're headed to Vegas next week. 4 full days of fun in the sun mixed with browsing aisles upon aisles of barely there clothing. Yes, it's time for the spring installment of the International Lingerie Show! I skipped out going last spring and sent my lovely wife, daughter, and mother out to scout everything that is new and exciting in the world of scantily clad people. It's my turn this year and we're leaving the kidlet at home so we can throw down however we want.

I've been to this show 3 or 4 times all ready and it's always a good time. There are tons of vendors to peruse, always a few interesting new pieces, and usually a pretty kick ass time in Vegas for a few days. Of course that means nose to the grindstone catching up here at my real job and going helter skelter at home prepping the house for almost a week of baby sitting.

We ran a trial run of having Corley stay all weekend with Grandma a few weeks back and that went pretty smoothly. I'm hoping this time around everything goes just as well. I know Miranda is a bit anxious about being gone this long as it will be her first time away for more than a couple days. I managed my first long term excursion last summer at Burning Man being away for 10 days, so I know I'm good for it.

Our good friends at Freddy and Eddy are supposed to come hang with us for the day on Tuesday as a quick jump over from LA. Monday we'll probably hit the ground running and cover most of the show with follow ups done on Tuesday. By Wednesday we might make a quick perusal through the vendors one last time, but it will be mostly a free day along with Sunday. Thursday morning we're up bright and early and should be home early in the afternoon. Should be just the right amount of time to get out of town and spend with each other. We're definitely feeling the winter doldrums and haven't really been connecting lately. Hopefully a little alone time between us will give things a serious shot in the ass that I think we are close to desperately needing.

Anyone with Vegas experience want to chime in on their favorites? We typically try to walk some of the various shops, catch the skanky pirate show at TI, see the new hotels on the strip, snag a few good meals, and play a little blackjack and roulette at our favorite dive casino O'Sheas. If you've never been in O'Sheas, check it out. The decor and upkeep is pretty worn, but the dealers are nice, tables are uncrowded, and the limits are low. I usually hit at least one marathon session there every trip and almost always break even or better.

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Shameless self promotion

I'm pretty sure there are still very few people reading the blog, but for those that do, I've got a bit of a self plug here, so bear with me.

We're having a sale for Valentine's day at our lingerie/toy store. Check it out and hopefully you find something you like.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming, whatever the hell that may be....

Thursday, December 06, 2007

More catch up please

Since you all asked so nicely, oh hell, who am I kidding, nobody asked, but I'll tell you anyways. Here's yet another post dedicated to sitting back in the old easy chair regailing you with tails of my past two years. Let's see, thus far I've covered family and cars so that leaves business and biking. Can I get a woohoo? No? How about a, oh hell, let's just start.

I posted a hint back when I first started this blog about going into an adult industry business. We threw around a bunch of different ideas and even went so far as to look at a few rental spaces. As we guessed, most shut us down before we got past the words "adult oriented". Considering our friends in LA had trouble finding a space, we weren't too convinced that we'd ever find anything here. So, scratch that idea and let's look at something else.

We now were considering doing home parties. Hmm, sex toy parties for couples? What's not to love. Well, other than the fact that we pitched it to various friends and most thought it was an ok idea, we'd be jumping right into competing with some various other established home parties that were catering to similar crowds. Albeit, these other companies target strictly women, we weren't so sure about following this line of thinking.

Now we were starting to get a bit daunted by this task. We were just so enamored with the way our friends set up this awesome business and seemed to enjoy all the freedoms and interests we could see ourselves enjoying as well, we knew we had to find our niche. As luck would have it, we were soon to find that niche. During a visit to our friends in LA, they invited us to attend a lingerie trade show in Vegas with them. From there, an idea was hatched. Why couldn't we do for lingerie what they were doing for sex toys: find quality pieces, give them a personal review and stamp of approval, price them reasonably, and most of all have fun with the process.

We were sure we'd have people beating their way to our webstore in no time flat. Heh, those are the dreams that launch and fail countless businesses. We did some homework, put together a loose plan of attack, and jumped in head first. We went to Vegas on our own, bought a number of pieces for review, met manufacturers, and picked out some product. That's the easy part. We didn't figure that learning how to build a webstore would be the equivalent of setting up a colony on the moon. With neither of us having any real experience with website building, e-commerce, or anything much more advanced than using email or posting pictures on an internet forum, it's been a struggle.

We enlisted the help of some friends and I dug in to do our research on e-commerce. After what seemed like an eternity, we pieced together what we felt was a good start to a website and a fair e-commerce store. We modeled it loosely after our friends site with the store being secondary to the main page of reviews. I'm still not sure if this was a good idea or not, but it's up and running. We did a soft launch in January of 2007 in hopes of hitting the Valentines Day rush. Alas, our dreams of orders flowing through the door as soon as we hit the "open store" button were quickly dimmed. We're still plugging away though and working to make our store a success. We think the idea is the right way to go and eventually we're hoping to build a loyal base of customers along with a rock solid reputation built on quality, fast shipment, and excellent customer service.

Our future plans do include hosting some parties locally and a revamp of the store to make it fit better with our overall theme for the rest of the site. We even have a few ideas up our sleeves for some private label products. So, if you're still reading this and want to peruse the site, store, or even purchase something check out The Possibilities Room. I'll even throw in a bonus here. Use the word "blog" in the coupon code area when you check out and it will save you 15%.