Nudeletter #1: orgasms, autumn, witchcraft, self-care

Welcome to our Nude world <3 Through these nudeletters, we will maintain direct and open communication, always in the first week of the month. We’ll talk about topics that inspire us, introduce our brands and products and give cultural recommendations, all permeating the expanded universe of sexuality! We will also give discount coupons (nudeletter1, 10% off) and present you our news first-hand.

In preparing this first nudeletter, we were inspired by this almost lost art of writing intimacies to people and touching them in the privacy of their own spaces. Today, Nudes are exchanged through online messages, but it was inevitable to think of these Nudes of the past, where it was necessary words and creativity to exercise erotic imagination. James Joyce, irish author, wrote sordid letters addressed to his wife, his “sweet little whorish Nora”. The letter of December 2, 1909 begins like this:

It is a shame that Nora’s letters addressed to Joyce are lost, but the naughty tone was reciprocal: a few days later, in another letter, Joyce says he did what she asked of him, which was to masturbate himself while reading her letter.

There are some other less explicit examples, like when Virginia Woolf asks that her lover Vita Sackeville-West “leave her man” and go find her, where they can have dinner by the river, walk by the moonlight, drink wine, get tipsy, and when she may say things that “don’t stir by day, only by dark on the river”: “Throw over your man, I say, and come”, she wrote, madly in love.

Virginia wrote a full book dedicated to Vita, her great passion: Orlando is a love letter in which Vita (Orlando) is portrayed as a mysterious and always young being, that naturally transits between times, genders and relations. Theres also a movie adaptation with Tilda Swinton interpreting Orlando.

“My love for you allows me to pray to the spirit of eternal beauty and tenderness mirrored in your eyes or fling you down under me on that softy belly of yours and fuck you up behind, like a hog riding a sow, glorying in the very stink and sweat that rises from your arse, glorying in the open shape of your upturned dress and white girlish drawers and in the confusion of your flushed cheeks and tangled hair.”

Vita-Sackeville West, with her dog with bright and sad eyes. Vita had polyamorous practices and was bi - which had its Visibility Day this last September 23 <3

With these nudeletters, we don’t want to write as lovers nor as mere publicity as other stores and brands. We want to be almost as your confidants, so we can create together a safe space for sexuality and related topics. We also want that you trust us enough to share your thoughts, doubts and give suggestions :)

Much of what inspired Nude to exist were precisely personal experiences, big changes in life that came from healthy sexual exploration, with a lot of freedom and pleasure. But it wasn’t always like that: not always an active sex life leads to a pleasurable one, and specially the first years of this journey can be quite tough.

A big problem that we face is the orgasm gap: the difference that exists in reaching sexual climax, with gender and sexual orientation variables. A research published in 2017 in the USA (and largely publicized by the media) pointed this out. In short: men (regardless of their sexual orientation) come more than women, specially heterossexual women, that in the sexual and gender spectrum are the ones that come less. Between women, lesbians are the ones more sexually satisfied, followed by bissexuals.

ironic art made by @sheisangry found on IG @theorgasmgap, to address the question of lack of knowledge of the feminine pleasure anatomy

We know that sex isn’t only about orgasm, but it is a good indicative to know how much a sex life is healthy. Colective data as like this research show social and cultural tendencies, as well as important points of action, where we should focus on as society. If September is mental health month, we want to remember that sexual wellness is as important and as connected to it: sexual pleasure is a key component to our well-being.

Nude wants to look at women, to encourage sexual practices through respect, pleasure and self-knowledge: we want to do our part to close once and for all the orgasm gap. We’re here to give you a hand: not only with products, that can be incredible partners in this journey, but also by talking about all the nuances that pleasure and sexuality may have (by the way, have you read our series of posts Ways (and detours) of Orgasm? Go check them out!)

After fingering yourself, before sleep hits, you sometimes feel the urge to watch a series, maybe a short and cute one, with characters that we identify with. So here is a nice tip: Insecure (HBO), 5 seasons, shows the daily life of black young adults. Confused and fun lifes, with good music, good friendships, bad dates and instable relationships. It's mostly about friendships, from the point of view of insecure (but trying to work on it!) black women trying to figure out (or invent) their places in the world, in a reality crossed by racial and gender issues.

Scene from Insecure, a series created by and starring Issa Rae

Summer is very nice, but fall is also beautiful: a time of change, very favorable to self-reflection, of giving love to ourselves and to our equals. No wonder it’s also the witches month: women in close touch with nature, their spirituality and energies surrounding them, happily comforting one another.

A very autumnal sound (and a little witchy), perfect for listening while you wait for your sextoy to charge, the cake to bake or the tea to be ready, is that typical folk made by women in the 70s: Tapestry, by Carole King, is a great companion for that slow sunday that we spend in our pajamas while staring through the window.

We want a society in which all the woman have a free and calm enough life to make good music and relax with her kitten

On a tropical note, the biggest witch we have is Maria Bethânia: with her profound voice and her well known long and indomitable hair, (now) gray, she is our MPB queen. Bethânia sings with an intensity which we listen with equal levels of joy and melancholy, and if her voice echoes through the bar table we know it’s time to hug our glasses, close our eyes and look deep inside.

Maybe play her Maria Bethânia, show her you’re intense.

Besides being the witches and the fall month in the north, october is also the month of prevention of breast cancer - so we want to remind you all of the importance of self-examining yourself, regardless of your gender, each month. You can check how to properly do it here, and if you note anything odd you must make an appointment with your doctor!

Lastly, besides thanking you for reading so far, we also want to share the news that november starts with a great little surprise: we’ll have a product give-away! So stay tuned ;)

Kisses and see you in november! <3