10 People Reveal Their DIY Sex Toys

Now that I am considered an legal adult, I can safely enter a store and purchase a vibrator to fulfill all of my masturbating needs. When I was younger, I didn't have such luxuries. I was forced, by virtue of circumstance, to get entrepreneurial. I used my hairbrushes, my lipgloss container, and even my loofah to get myself off in my early stages of sexual experimentation. But what are other household items you can use to pleasure yourself with?

I know I'm not alone with my seemingly strange post-pubescent masturbation habits. Dr. Michelle Viglianco Van-Pelt of the University of Michigan says:

"Masturbation is a common childhood habit. Most children—both boys and girls—play with their genitals(external sex organs or “private parts”) fairly regularly by the age of 5-6 years. By age 15, almost 100% of boys and 25% of girls have masturbated to the point of orgasm. Girls often don’t discover their vulva (female external genitalia) until about ten to eleven months of age. They may even insert objects into their vaginas as a matter of curiosity—much like the beans and small toys children of this age like to put into their noses and ears. Genital play in both sexes can also take the form of rubbing with hands or rubbing against other objects such as a pillow, stuffed animal or the bed. Often the child will be found staring, flushed, with an absent look on their faces, breathing fast or irregularly while masturbating. The behavior generally increases with boredom, sleepiness or stress in the child’s life. "

I spoke with five men and five women about the first thing they used to masturbate with, in the dark days of makeshift vibrators and sex toys. I learned just how creative young people can get:

1. *Josh, 28:

"A banana peel."

2. *Kyle, 22:

"I used to steal the condoms from my brother's nightstand and use those."

3. *Chris, 20:

"A sock"

4. *Dom, 22:

"Old shirts."

5. *Latham, 25:

"The jets in the hot tub."

6. *Alisha, 20:

"I used to turn my phone on vibrate over and over and put it on my clitoris."

7. *Krysten, 18:

"My hairbrush."

8. *Ciera, 22:

"Phallic shaped office supplies — like pens and highlighters."

9. *Lindsay, 27:

"My tampons.

10. *Ariel, 25:

"[When I was in high school] My little brother had a big red fire truck he always used to play with. I had always played with myself using my fingers and sometimes my hairbrush but I was curious about experimenting with something bigger. I know it was wrong on so many levels, but one day, I took it and masturbated with it. "

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Images: Meg WIllis/ Flickr; Giphy

*Names have been changed.