This chain of silicone anal beads is a good warm up to anal play with a partner or an added stimulus when playing alone. The beads start off really small and gradually increase in size so you can start small and slow and advance at your own speed. They are also delightful pushing in and pulling out as you get to feel the 'popping' sensation as you get to the larger beads. They have worked best for me when playing with a partner as it is easier for him to handle the insertion and I get more pleasure out of it. They can stay in place for a dp effect during vaginal intercourse, on the plus side he can feel the texture of the different beads when thrusting and gives a whole new sensation for him. The ring on the end of the chain is pretty flexible so I don't find it gets in the way during sex. We use it on me exclusively due to personal preferences but it could be used by either men or women for anal stimualtion.

These beads are made out of silicone which Eden Fantasys rates a 10 on the material safety scale. The silicone is a food grade material and hypo-allergenic, it can also completely sterilized which is very important in any toy especially those used in anal play. You can sterilize by boiling in water, cleaning with a 10% bleach solution or it can be ran through the dishwasher. Since silicone is non porous and easier sterilized the anal needs cshane shared just as long as they are properly cleaned before hand. The silicone has a nice feel to it, very velvety. But that can equate to a bit of drag against the skin so lube it a must. And because the a-chain is made out of silicone no using a silicone lube, water based is your best bet for these anal beads. Also a plus on the silicone side it is odorless, it won't have a funky plastic smell to it like some of the jelly toys can have. I find that with silicone if not stored somewhere lint amd dust free tends to have dust and lint stick to it which I don't care for, so I keep these anal beads stored in a lint free space between uses to help prevent that.

The a-chain is 10 inches long, 7.5 inches being insertable with six beads that start out very small and gradually increase in size to the largest bead in the chain which is about 1 inch in diameter, 3 inches in circumference. The end of the a-chain there is a flexible ring for gripping on and pulling the beads out. The beads on the a-chain are more of an oval shape rather than than circular which I find more appealing and comfortable for insertion. The first few beads are so small they're barely noticeable. The a-chain is very flexible, the beads themselves are firm but the chain itself is floppy. Due to the small size of the first beads and extremely flexible chain overall it can be hard getting them inserted to begin with when playing alone. But on the up side the flexibility of the chain means it can conform to your body and not be uncomfortable. I also find it pleasurable to leave it in during vaginal intercourse with my partner. Some people have mentioned that there are ridges on the side of the beads from the molding process but I have not had any issues with them. Overall its a tad in the small side for me, but it's good for beginning to experiment with anal play.

These anal beads make a great starter set for someone new to anal beads or as a warm up for more vigorous activities. We use them in foreplay and leave them in place during vaginal sex. My partner can feel the different beads during intercourse which is quite pleasurable to him. They are not some large in which leaving them in for sex becomes too painful. The smaller size of the first few beads can make them a little hard to initally insert, especially with lubed up fingers. Despite their smaller beads I still find them quite pleasurable and they stay in well once inserted. I tend to use them more with my partner than when I'm by myself. If you are looking for something more ridged you might want to consider a large rippled plug as an alternative.

Since these beads are silicone no silicone lube during play, it could ruin the toy. Stick to a water based lube. They are easy to clean and sterilize after play with some boiling water, toy cleaner or a diluted bleach solution. Again because they are silicone you are going to want to store them separately from ay other silicone toys to keep them from melting together. And store somewhere clean and lint free.

The a-chain came packaged in a plastic clamp shell case. It looked very attractive and showed off the beads well. I would not call the packaging discrete since the bright anal beads are on display against a black background. However the package was not salvagable once removing the beads and there was not an option for reusing it for storage of the beads once done playing. You've to come up with another storage option between uses. The information with beads gives Ophoria's website with a product code for tips and tricks, however I couldn't get it to work at their website.

This is definitely a toy that we will continue to play with, it's great for warm up or as a little something extra during sex. I would highly recommend these anal beads over some of the cheaper versions available. The material and the simple oval design make them a great bedroom accessory in my book.

We are fairly new to anal play so it is only a toy we have used a handful of times. We have a larger set but are sticking to these for now. I have used them alone but find them much more pleasurable to use with a partner. I must not have long enough arms because I find that with how flexible they are it becomes hard to get them inserted by myself.