skin dye for the labia?
By Dr. Charlie Glickman • Jan 6th, 2010 • Category: Blog
Pink Button
I find out about all sorts of interesting and strange sex products. Until now, the oral sex snorkel was at the top of my list. But now there’s a new one.
There are plenty of products out there that prey on body insecurities, especially when it comes to sex. We have pumps that claim to make penises larger, we have labiaplasty to get rid of sexually sensitive skin in order to make the vulva look tidy, and we have all sorts of colognes, perfumes, hair dyes, makeup, and such to make ourselves look younger and, presumably, more sexually appealing.
But now there’s one that takes it a step further. My New Pink Button is a temporary skin dye designed to make the labia more even in tone and pinker. It comes in 4 colors (Marilyn, Bettie, Ginger and Audry) so you can get the right shade of pink. I can only guess that they mean “Audrey” .
It usually takes a lot to weird me out, but I have to admit that this one did it. Do we really need to make women feel insecure about the color of their labia? Do we really need to create one more way to judge bodies and rate sexual attractiveness? And do we really need yet another way to reinforce this idea that the only thing that’s sexy is someone 18-21 years old?
It’s time for us to let go of this idea. It’s not doing us any good, although it’s a great way for manufacturers to make money. And it’s not all that sex-positive to say that the only way that people can be sexually desirable is to look as young as possible. The fact is that bodies change over time. As long as we continue to believe that those shifts are bad, as long as we continue to promote the notion that we have to look the same at 50 as we did at 20, we’re going to keep reinforcing the same body-negativity and sex-negativity that have been plaguing us for so long. And in my opinion, this product does exactly that.
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Dr. Charlie Glickman >> Dr. Charlie Glickman has been working at Good Vibrations since 1996, when he joined the staff at our Berkeley store. Currently, he is our Education Program Manager and (among other things) runs our in-store After Hours workshop program, our Off-Site Sex Education Program, trains our Sex Educator-Sales Associates and writes copy for our website. In 2005, Charlie received his doctorate in Adult Sexuality Education from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, he offers classes on sexuality for psychotherapists and workshops on teaching for sex educators.
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Funny, I’ve liked the color of every one I’ve ever seen, just the way it was. I really hope nobody buys this product no matter how they misspell it.
You seem to consider this to be a “bad thing” loosely speaking. I’m curious if you feel the same about other permanent or temporary body mods, such as real or fake tattoos or hair dying. If not, what makes this different from or more onerous than growing or trimming a beard, adding or subtracting piercings, or applying or removing ink from non-genital areas?
@Geoff I think that those aren’t necessarily valid comparisons. Piercings, tattoos, and such aren’t (usually) about trying to look younger and the folks who advertise them aren’t preying on insecurities to promote them. And yes, I get that people dye their grey hair or wear makeup to make skin look younger. But I think that our cultural trend towards defining youth as the only thing that’s sexy or attractive is problematic. It fosters insecurities and promotes the idea that people who look a certain way are more valuable or interesting than others.
This affects women much more than men, but it has been influencing men more and more. And it really doesn’t do us any good.
Also note that they are supplying only shades of pink (pink being the only natural colour for labias, presumably). If they had black for goths, or if people wanting to wear their teams colours could dye their labias yellow and green, say, it’d seem less disturbing.
@isme That is a really good point. I’d love to see other colors. How about glow in the dark for the ravers? Red and black for goths? Or different colors for sports fans, to show support for their teams?
They really claim “restore the pink back to a woman’s genitals”.
I guess after everybody needs to be shaved and anal bleaching becomes more and more popular, this is the logical next step….