Summary: This posting describes the alt.sex.plushies newsgroup, including where to find more information. It should be read by anyone who wishes to post to the a.s.p newsgroup. Archive-name: asp-faq/welcome Posting-Frequency: Weekly Last-modified: Apr 25, 2003 Version: 3.6 URL: http://velocity.net/~galen/asp-faq.txt Copyright: (C) 1994-2003 Maintainer: FoxWolfie Galen =========================================================================== ADVISORY -- ADULTS ONLY The following text contains information on erotic acts with plush stuffed animals (plushies) and furry animal costumes (fursuits). If you are a minor, or believe you may be offended by descriptions of eroticism with plush stuffed animals or animal costumes, please stop reading this text now. =========================================================================== Welcome to alt.sex.plushies Frequently Asked Questions version 3.6 (last revised Apr 25, 2003) (C) 1994-2003 =========================================================================== Table Of Contents: 1. What is 'alt.sex.plushies'? 2. What is a 'plushie'? What is a 'plushophile'? 3. What is a 'fursuit'? 4. What kinds of subjects are discussed on alt.sex.plushies? 5. How do people really feel about their plush companions? 6. Why be intimate with plushies instead of with people? 7. Just what exactly do people do with plushies, anyway? 8. What exactly do people do with fursuits? 9. I think I'd like to explore this. How should I begin? 10. Am I welcome here if I like plushies but don't have sex with them? 11. Why is there so little traffic on this newsgroup? 12. What other plushie newsgroups are on the net? 13. Are there any plushie web sites I can browse? 14. Are there fursuit web sites I can browse, too? 15. I've seen some unusual terms used here. What do they all mean? 16. What is the 'Plush Code'? 17. How can I clean a plushie? 18. How can I modify a plushie? 19. Where can I buy plushies on the net? =========================================================================== 1. What is 'alt.sex.plushies'? 'alt.sex.plushies' is a newsgroup for adults who have special personal feelings for plush stuffed animals (and plush puppets, too). It's also a place where people talk about 'fursuits'. alt.sex.plushies was newgrouped on August 9, 1994. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. What is a 'plushie'? What is a 'plushophile'? A 'plushie' is a plush stuffed animal, like a teddy bear. 'Plushie' is also sometimes used as a short form for 'plushophile': an adult who loves or is otherwise attracted to stuffed animals. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. What is a 'fursuit'? This is a full-body costume that makes the wearer look like a favorite animal, or an animal character. Costumes like this are commonly seen being worn by staff members at amusement parks dressing up as popular cartoon characters. They're also seen at sporting events where the team has a mascot in a costume. Since a person in a fursuit looks (and feels) a lot like a 'living plushie', such costumes are understandably popular with some plushophiles. Several of us here have made or bought our own animal costumes. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. What kinds of subjects are discussed on alt.sex.plushies? Many people assume that the group is just for talking about sex, sexual techniques, and ways to modify plushies to use them for sex. While these subjects certainly all come up, they are far from the only things that are discussed here. Some other topics that arise are what kinds of plushies people have, what they look like, where to buy them, how to make fursuits and other kinds of costumes, what kind of plushie gatherings are coming up, and just plain conversation between friends. alt.sex.plushies is a small, friendly group, and nobody minds if a discussion drifts a bit away from the subject of plushies now and then. About the only things that are unwelcome are binary posts, and the SPAM advertisements that flood the whole alt.sex.* hierarchy. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. How do people really feel about their plush companions? While most plushophiles probably feel at least some degree of affection for their plushies, the ways they express it depend on the individual. Some may view their plushies as just sex toys, while other plushophiles love, even venerate, their stuffed animals. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Why be intimate with plushies instead of with people? You don't have to choose between one or the other - you can have both plush and human partners at the same time - but the great thing about stuffed animals is that they can always be there for you, whenever you feel the need for intimacy. People can be 'too busy', 'too tired' or 'have a headache', but a plushie will never say 'No!' when you crave closeness. Stuffed animals can be truly ideal companions. No plush partner will ever break your heart, give you a disease, or hurt you in any way. Plushies can bring pure, unfettered happiness into your life, and if you're open to it, wonderful sensual experiences, as well. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. Just what exactly do people do with plushies, anyway? Probably the most common thing plushophiles do with their plushies is to simply cuddle them. Many of us sleep with our stuffed animals, as well. Concerning plush sex, two common methods are to hug a plushie while pleasuring oneself, and to rub against the fur of the plushie until achieving orgasm. Some people modify their plushies to form a space for penetration. This can be as simple as an opened seam, or a more elaborate insert can be constructed. People can also modify a plushie with a penis-like attachment. Some plushophiles have such strong feelings for plushies that they can make themselves peak just by looking at one, or just sniffing its scent. Many other fetishes can easily be combined with plush sex, as well. Also, you can involve human partners with plush. Rubbing a plushie against a sex partner's body is nice, as is 'sandwiching' a partner's body between yours and a large plushie (or sandwiching the plushie), or frolicking with your partner in a big pile of plush. The potential ways to enjoy plushies are limited solely by the imagination. Indulge freely in your fancies! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8. What exactly do people do with fursuits? Probably the most common thing plushophiles do with fursuits is simply to wear them or to cuddle with others who are wearing them. Many sleep with, or in, their fursuits as well. For those who enjoy fursuit sex, there are a number of methods used. In many cases, fursuit sex will require that a fursuit be modified for sex. This is usually an opening in the front or the rear that can be concealed for non-sexual use of the fursuit. Some fursuit heads have modified mouth openings to facilitate oral sex. You can masturbate yourself or others while wearing a fursuit. Or you can enjoy loving a plushie while wearing a fursuit. An under-the-tail opening can allow anal penetration by another fursuit lover, who may also be wearing a fursuit. Some people just love to hump or rub against people who are wearing a fursuit, without any form of sexual penetration. One or both partners might be wearing a fursuit. Sandwiching a plushie, or another person, between two fursuiters can also be fun. Some people will actually stuff a fursuit with plushies or clothing to form a full-size giant plush-like partner with which they can cuddle with or use for sex. There are many possibilities, which are only limited by the imagination. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9. I think I'd like to explore this. How should I begin? First and most importantly, find a stuffed animal that appeals to you in a very personal way. It may take time, but eventually you'll find one that's irresistible. If you currently have a stuffed animal that you've got special feelings for, chances are you've already expressed those emotions in some intimate manner. In general, probably the best way to learn about plush love is to take your special plushie to bed with you, and just cuddle at first. That might be as far as you want to go, but if the sensations of softness, warmth and closeness bring on arousal, simply follow your instincts. You'll find that plushies make very nice love partners. They will gladly do anything you want and any time you feel like it, so you can totally set your own pace. Just start with cuddling, and sleeping with your special plushie(s), and in time, you will learn all the Joys Of Plush(tm) for yourself. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10. Am I welcome here if I like plushies but don't have sex with them? Certainly! Many of the posters here collect plushies for their appearance, because they love animals, or various other non-sexual reasons. There are plenty of things plush collectors can and do discuss here, whether they are into sexual uses for plushies or not. Please feel free to join such discussions or start new ones, and just skip over any other topics that don't interest you. You'll find that many discussions here are actually not sexual. You may also find interest in the alt.fan.plushies newsgroup, which is similar to a.s.p, except that discussions involving sex or eroticism are not allowed. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11. Why is there so little traffic on this newsgroup? A lot of people stopped posting to alt.sex.plushies when the SPAM advertisements flooded the group. a.s.p isn't completely dead, though. Many of us still monitor the group for on-topic posts, and newcomers are always welcome. Don't let the SPAM discourage you from joining us! If you do post to a.s.p, though, *make sure* your Subject: line starts with a tag like 'PLUSH:'. Many of us have filters that kill posts whose Subject: line doesn't contain the word 'plush' or 'plushies'. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12. What plushie/fursuit newsgroups are on the net? These Usenet newsgroups are devoted to stuffed animals: alt.sex.plushies (fursuits are also on topic) alt.fan.plushies (fursuits are also on topic) alt.collecting.teddy-bears alt.collecting.beanie-babies alt.collecting.beanie-babies.forsale alt.collecting.beanie-babies.uk Plushie pictures can be posted to: alt.binaries.pictures.plushies (fursuits are also on topic) alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.plushies (fursuits are also on topic) alt.binaries.erotica.beanie-babies Also, 'alt.lifestyle.furry' is a 'furry' newsgroup where plushophilia is on-topic, and 'de.alt.fan.pluesch' is a German plushie newsgroup. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13. Are there any plushie web sites I can browse? Of course! Here are a few for starters: FoxWolfie Galen's Plushie Page http://velocity.net/~galen/index.html (Established in April 1994 - probably the first adult plushie web page) Captain Packrat's Plush Central http://plushie.info/ (Home of the plushieRing and the afp/abpp FAQ) Maximilian's Plush Page http://www.coyotes.org/fangwolf/plush.html Vortex Kangaroo's Plushie Page http://www.vortexk.com/ From any of these sites, you can follow the 'PlushieRing' to a number of other plush-lovers' webpages. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14. Are there fursuit web sites I can browse, too? One of the most comprehensive webpages on fursuits is at: http://www.best.com/~nico/fursuit.cgi There you will find links to many other fursuit-related webpages. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15. I've seen some unusual terms used here. What do they all mean? We plushies have come up with a lot of unique jargon over the years. You can look up the meaning of just about any word or abbreviation we use at: http://velocity.net/~galen/plushlex.txt --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16. What is the 'Plush Code'? It's a categorical code of letters and symbols that's used to summarize one's personal plush preferences. The key to translate someone's Plush Code can be found at: http://velocity.net/~galen/plushcod.txt --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17. How can I clean a plushie? This subject is worthy of a FAQ by itself. It's a complex question, not only because many stuffed animals have individual qualities that require different approaches to cleaning, but also because it seems most of us have different ideas about how to clean our plush friends. As for myself, I think the best way to keep a stuffed animal clean is to try not to get it dirty in the first place. Most importantly, I always make sure *I* am clean before I handle or snuggle my plushies, because inevitably, whatever grime is on my hands, clothes, or body is going to end up in my cuddlemate's plush. Dirt, dust, body oil, sweat, skin flakes, hair, lint, even the smoky fallout from one's kitchen - all these foreign substances will accumulate in a plushie's fur over time, and getting them out - especially if the fur has become tangled or matted - can be a major chore. Since most stuffed animals are 'limited editions' which years from now won't be replaceable, keeping a favorite plushie clean is crucial to prolonging its life. On a week-to-week basis, the best thing to do for a regularly-cuddled plushie is to give it a good thorough combing. This will minimize the tendency for the fur to get tangled and matted. Plush that you have around the house just for display purposes should be combed at least once monthly to get the dust out of their fur. Make sure to use a comb that is dedicated solely for the purpose of grooming your plushies, though. Anything that is on a comb will work its way into a plushie's fur, too, and you definitely don't want to get scalp oils, dander, or the residue of styling gunk embedded into a stuffed animal's plush. For simple clean-ups, there is an excellent commercial product called 'Bubble G u n d' that works wonders on plush that is moderately soiled. Spray lightly onto the soiled area, rub it into the plush with a clean dry towel, let it dry thoroughly, then buff the fur briskly with another clean dry towel. The results are usually quite pleasing. Sometimes, however, radical surgery is required to clean a seriously dirty plushie. This should only be done, though, if you're skilled in the art of sewing. Undo enough of the seams to completely remove the stuffing, then hand-wash the plush 'skin' in a dilute solution of a mild detergent like Woolite. After you're done with the hand-washing, dry the fur by hand, as well. Re-stuff the plushie using only fresh new Poly-fil (available at most arts and crafts stores), and re-sew. Be aware that semen or vaginal fluid can mar plush fur if it's left to dry untreated. If this concerns you, be sure to comb and dry the fur thoroughly right after sex, and untangle all the stuck-together plush. If the sexual fluid has already dried, re-moisten it with a damp cloth, and then untangle the plush. Whatever method you choose to clean a plushie, try to avoid soaking the inner stuffing. Some stuffed animals are indeed made to be machine washable, but most are not, and getting the stuffing wet will at best make a plushie undesirably lumpy inside, and at worst, ruin it by encouraging the internal growth of mold and mildew rot. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18. How can I modify a plushie? As alluded to above, there are two principal ways people may modify plushies for sex. One is to form a space for penetration. This type of modification is called a 'strategically-placed hole' (SPH). The other basic type of modification is to give a plushie a maleness, for receptive sex, or simply for anatomical correctness. This is called a 'strategically-placed appendage' (SPA). The specific techniques of how to create these modifications are really beyond the scope of this FAQ, however. If you have questions about mods, though, post them to the group, and someone will likely know where or to whom to direct you. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19. Where can I buy plushies on the net? This FAQ used to include a list of plushie resources on the Internet, but it became too much work to keep it updated. If you'd like to view this list, go to one of the three sites below, but bear in mind that each of the new hosts have permission to modify the resources list as they wish, so the info available at these sites may differ. http://velocity.net/~galen/sources.html (or */sources.txt) http://www.spottycat.com/marlos/plushres.html (includes updated info for Canadian plushie resources) =========================================================================== The latest alt.binaries.pictures.erotica.plushies FAQ can be found at: http://velocity.net/~galen/asp-faq.txt Constructive comments and suggestions regarding this FAQ can be sent to: galen (at) velocity (dot) net FoxWolfie _]\-/[_ =_^o^_= ^U^ Galen