A condom review from a girl's point of view...

I know I'm probably in the minority, but I've always liked condoms- almost to the point of having a fetish about them. Ribs, studs, and other textures really enhance the experience for me. I've always loved the anticipation of waiting for the initial penetration to find out which texture my guy has picked for me this time. For a long time, I was a huge Rough Rider fan, though I really liked the Beyond Seven studded condoms as well.

Imagine my dismay when I developed a latex allergy. Condoms went from an exciting, if unnecessary, part of my sex life to dreaded backup birth control. I went from a wide variety of choices at the local drugstore to ONE boring type of non-latex condom that was only sometimes available. I decided to broaden my search and I found Skyns online. I learned that they're made of polyisoprene, not polyurethane. A quick google search taught me that polyisoprene was supposed to feel a little better and may be more effective in preventing pregnancy (to be fair, the pregnancy claims all came from websites trying to sell Skyn condoms, so not sure how accurate that is). I decided to give them a shot.

Once they came in the mail, I was eager to try them out. Upon opening the first package, I was hit with an odor. I can't really describe the smell- kind of like burning plastic with some acidic/rubbery undertones. The condom itself didn't feel like polyurethane. It was more stretchy, almost like a cheap latex balloon. The fit was weird. My guy is kind of on the small side, but the condom was tight. He said it wasn't uncomfortable but it felt weird. He made the comparison of this condom feeling like spandex vs. a normal condom feeling like cotton. (If that makes sense.)

The performance was fine. He said the tightness never made him feel stuck or stifled or anything. The condom seemed more stretchy than usual, and there was no slippage. In the past we'd had several instances of condoms slipping off during longer sex sessions (hey, I said he was on the small side), but it doesn't seem that would ever be a worry here. No issues with transitioning from vaginal to anal, and no breakage during anal with no lube.

The second time we used these condoms I reluctantly agreed to try oral sex. Very reluctantly due to the disgusting smell. There was no taste, but the condom didn't really add anything to the oral sex experience. It was almost too tight for him to feel what I was doing. In the past, we both enjoyed oral sex on him with some of our favorite condoms, but I think we'll have to do without since none of the non-latex condoms add much to the experience.

All in all, Skyn is better than the other non-latex condoms I've tried. I will buy more once we finish this box.

After a long time on birth control, I recently needed a condom again. I had one Skyn left in the drawer and we pulled it out. After several months without having used a condom, I was pleasantly surprised. The Skyn was unobtrusive and the smell issue that I noted previously wasn't as big of a deal as I had remembered.

I wish that somebody would come up with a textured non-latex condom, but I'm more than happy using the Skyn in the meantime.