LELO Iris Pleasure Object (2007 model)

Rating: 4.5/5
Impressions: This one's got it all: beauty, intelligent design and power.
Price: $134 from manufacturer, $119 from Wild in Secret

Readers of my blog may or may not remember my last experiment with a LELO "pleasure object," the ill-fated Nea. For those who don't, allow me to sum up the experience as succintly as possible: beautiful design, gorgeous presentation, not enough power.

Yes, I am a power tool girl. Any toy that feels like a small earthquake (with the exception of the Hitachi Magic Wand which, for reasons other than vibration power, didn't quite float my metaphorical boat) generally gets a thumbs up from me and any (vibrating) toy that lacks that power tends to leave me slightly less impressed.

But, never let it be said that I'll discount an entire brand because of a poor experience with one product (or even, in some cases, several products). Don't get me wrong, everything else about the Nea (aside from the nearly non-existant - at least by my high standards - vibration strength) was top-notch. It's beautifully designed (something that's true of all of LELO's small line of products), the presentation is downright posh (especially compared to some manufacturers on the market) and it really does give the impression of being worth the money. For someone who prefers a kinder, gentler vibrating experience, that is. Me, I want a jackhammer, but an aesthetically pleasing jackhammer, preferably made from silicone, my most favorite of all sex toy materials.

The Iris Pleasure Object may not be a jackhammer exactly, but it proved itself in other ways and its won a very big thumbs up from me all the same.

First up, let's just take a moment to ogle this gorgeous piece of sexual machinery. I'm not a girly girl, nor have I ever been one (although lately I've developed an obsession with high heels and pencil skirts, but that's another story altogether). Flowers aren't my thing and I don't generally go in for ultra-feminine anything (aside from my aforementioned blooming obsession), but I'm in love with the look of the Iris (especially now that it comes in blue for those of us with an aversion to pink). Look at it. It's gorgeous. It's classy. It almost seems too decadent to actually use, like a beautiful cake that you don't want to eat.

Granted, some of its features initially left me wondering whether it was even going to be practical. The ridges on the insertable portion for one. I hate to admit it, but after drooling over the beauty of it, I was suddenly struck with the notion that the ridges reminded me a bit of those reverse tire damage spikes, only backwards. Instead of feeling fine going in and hurting coming out (like some toys have actually done in the past, not that I'm naming names...::cough:: Magnum ::cough::), I couldn't shake the fear that it would hurt going in. Take a close look at the Iris and you'll see that the ridges forming the "petals" are actually fairly pronounced. Sure, it makes for a more aesthetically pleasing design (in my opinion anyway), but it seemed to have the potential to cause some serious unhappiness in my naughty bits.

Let's set aside that potential reservation for now, though, (I promise to come back to it later) and move on to the dynamics of the Lily, shall we?

You won't find anyone (leastways me) accusing LELO of putting all their effort into making the Lily beautiful on the outside and skimping on the insides. This piece of sexual technology has not one but two engines. Two. One in the tip and one in the base. Not only that, but they can be operated independently or together, depending on your preference. Slick designing, that.

The controls are another winning feature in my book, although Arthur was less impressed with the newly redesigned control pad. Indeed, the old controls were more polished, but the new ones are more (in my humble opinion at any rate) "user-friendly" to those who are more visually-inclined (I'm not one of those people myself, but there are several of said persons in my family who would, should they be handed an Iris with the old controls, have a hard time making heads or tails of the operation even with the instructions in front of them--and that's not to say they're stupid, they're just visual learners). Simply put the controls work like this: up and down control the program you're on (tip vibrating, base vibrating, tip and base vibrating, etc.) while left and right decrease and increase the vibration strength respectively.

I feel the need to point out, though, that the very fact that you can adjust the vibration strength of each program rather than cycling through low, medium and high and then having your choice of vibration programs on one speed only seems to be fairly rare among sex toys, at least in my personal experience. Granted, it's normally not an issue for me because (A) I don't generally use the program modes since I prefer a steady, strong vibration and (B) if I were to use a vibration program, I'd want it on the highest setting anyway, having the inhuman vibration tolerance that I do, and most toys' programs operate on the highest setting anyway.

And so all this waxing poetic about the sheer awesomeness of the Lily's design leads to the question that really matters: does it feel as good as it looks?

I'm happy to report that it most certainly does.

Those ridges that I was so nervous about before? I barely registered them. Either I'm in the same boat as Kelly and am insensitive to most textures or they've just got more bark than bite. I'm honestly not sure which one it is, but either way, no pain. In fact, from the little I felt of them, they had a nice, mild stimulating effect (a less pronounced texture and I don't feel anything).

I also have to say that the shape of the Lily is just phenomenal for lack of a better word. Ever since I discovered the joys of the g-spot, I've really come to appreciate toys shaped to stimulate it (ones that actually achieve that goal, I should say) and the Lily gets top marks in that category. The combination of the shape, the "petals" and the dual motors really hits the right chord with my finicky g-spot and it...is...glorious. Some slow, gentle thrusting (which also should tell you something as I'm generally much rougher with my insertable toys--something about this one lends itself better to a slow pace that lets me focus on every movement and vibration) with the Iris on the last vibration mode (tip and base vibrating and pulsing) and I'm one very happy reviewer. Add a nice strong bullet and I'm over the moon.

My only complaint is that--par for the course--it's not quite strong enough for my liking. I love my Lily, but I would wholeheartedly adore it if it were maybe 15-20% stronger. Of course, most of the time I use it in combination with the Seventh Heaven bullet (review coming soon, dear reader), which packs one hell of a punch to where I really need power and makes up for the slightly lacking power getting applied to my internal naughty bits.

I do feel the need to qualify what I've just said, though. I have an almost superhuman tolerance for vibrations. I like them strong. Really strong. Even toys that are more than strong enough for most women sometimes fall short of my standards, so that's not to say that the Iris isn't powerful. It most definitely is. Actually, I'm downright impressed with its vibration strength, to be perfectly honest. It truly is a case of "it's not the toy, it's me," and it doesn't stop me from raving about the Iris one iota.

(Buy an Iris from Wild in Secret)