Sensation play is more of a way to play than a fetish in itself.
All kinds of sex use some kinds of sensation, and many kinks or fetishes involve particular sensations that especially appeal. For example, leather or pantyhose fetishes may depend on the tactile sensation of the fabric or the smells.
Consciously incorporating sensation play into the bedroom, into a kink scene, or into your BDSM expands the experience. It also slows down the sex and allows a full-bodied, unrushed experience.
Sensation play defined simply is playing with the senses, using a variety of sensations to enhance the erotic encounter.
Sensation play is sensual and takes into consideration all of the senses: touch, taste, smell, hearing, and seeing.
Read: How the 5 Senses Affect Our Kinks and Fetishes
Add more sensation play into your erotic experiences, or try a session devoted to as many kinds of sensations as possible.
Experimenting with different kinks and fetishes for fun and adventure automatically exposes lovers to new sensations and kinds of sensation play. So trying your partner’s fantasies or exploring new kinks together will expose you to different kinds of sensual experiences.
Sensation play is unlimited. Strive to use your imagination and see how many different ways you can add sensations to your erotic time together.
Read: What Are My Kinks? 13 Ways to Find Your Kink
50 Sensation Play Ideas
1. ASMR
Autonomous sensory meridian response includes sounds that many people find comforting and calming. Whispering and crinkling are so pleasing to some that ASMR is used by many as an actual kink of its own.
Read: Erotic ASMR: 12 Ideas for ASMR Sex
2. Binaural Beats
Binaural beats are claimed to induce a similar state as meditation practice. When you hear two tones—one in each ear—that are slightly different in frequency, your brain processes a beat at the difference of the frequencies. This is called a binaural beat. If this sounds exciting, open your ears and mind!
3. Blindfolds
Sensation play can include reducing access to a sense as well, which will heighten other senses’ perception. Use a blindfold to increase anticipation during sensation play.
4. Blowing
Blow on your lover, on wet and dry skin, for different kinds of feelings.
5. Body Paints
Use body painting as a form of sensation play and explore your lover’s body in a colorful way.
Read: Get Creative in the Bedroom with Body Paints
6. Bondage
Experiment with bondage while exploring sensation play.
7. Brushing Hair
Brushing someone’s hair can be a very intimate act and it feels amazing.
Read: Hair Fetish: What Is Trichophilia All About?
8. Bubbles
Take a romantic bubble bath and enjoy the sensation of fragrant bubbles.
9. Cold Room
A cold room creates intense, different feelings, including vulnerability.
Read: Cold Temperature Play
10. Clamping and Pinching
Light pinching is interesting if your tastes are mild, but you can mix sensation play with nipple torture using BDSM clamps.
11. Cream
Try drizzling cream over your lover’s lips or sipping it out of his belly button.
12. ElectroSex
Electrostimulation toys add intense new sensations to lovemaking. Always use toys designed for the purpose.
Read: 12 Electrosex Toys for Kinky E-Stim Sex
13. Feather Tickler
Use a feather or a feather tickler to stimulate the surface of your lover’s skin in a variety of gestures. Try the face, under the ears, armpits, buttocks, and genitalia.
Read: Tickle Fetish and Sexual Tickling Games
14. Feeding Your Lover
Feeding each other is a very sensual experience.
15. Flowers
Fresh flowers have beautiful scents to enjoy. You can try using a flower as a tickler or just stroke each other with the petals.
16. Foot Rub
Use scented lotions for a foot massage. Foot play is wonderful for sensation play, whether you have a foot fetish or not!
Read: 8 Types of Foot Worship & How to Worship Feet
17. Fruit Buffet
A fresh fruit basket will add a wide variety of tastes to sensation play.
18. Furry Rug or Blanket
Snuggle up in an animal hide or fake-fur blanket to experience tactile sensations that are fuzzy and warm.
Read: Fur Fetish: 10 Ideas for Kinky Fur Lovers
19. Golden Showers
Experimenting with new kinks is sensation play. Golden showers feel warm and strange and erotic!
Red: How to Enjoy the Golden Shower
20. Heating Pad
Warm up parts of the body with a heating pad or heating blanket.
21. Honey
Ancient erotic love poems are filled with honey. Don’t forget about taste when it comes to sensation play.
Read: Food Fetish: 13 Kinks Involving Food and Eating
22. Hot Wax
Dripping hot wax is classic erotic sensation play. Be aware that there are special candles for this purpose. Regular candles can leave burn marks and may burn too hot to use safely.
Read: Literally Hot Sex: The Essentials of Wax Play
23. Ice Cubes
A classic sensation play technique is to use the intense cold of an ice cube to trail along the contours of a warm body. Rubbing an ice cube against nipples will bring immediate response from the nervous system.
Read: BDSM Ice Play Ideas for Kinky Ice Cube Sex
24. Kissing, Licking, Sucking
Kissing is sensation play! Rekindle the slow sensual unhurried make-out sessions of the days you were first dating if you’re with an old flame. Oral sensations are not just for kissing and oral sex. Use them all over the body.
Read: Licking Fetish: 10 Kinky Ideas for Lick Lovers
25. Leather
The smell and feel of leather can be primal and sensual. And the leather fetish is a staple in the BDSM community.
Read: Primal Play: 8 Ideas for Primal Sex
26. Lighting
Explore different lighting ambiences.
27. Lubrication
Experiment with lube for sensation play. Try using a ton of lube for massage or wrestling.
Read: Your Complete Guide to Lubes
28. Makeup Brushes
Use different makeup brushes and sponges to stimulate different parts of the body. You can pretend to paint or write, or “dust” or rub down.
29. Massage
Massage is an opportunity for prolonged touch and different kinds of body sensations.
Read: 5 Kinky Massage Ideas and Techniques
30. Massage Ball
Use different balls like golf balls, tennis balls, or nubbed massage balls for sensation play.
31. Music Playlist
We instinctively create playlists of music for fucking or sweet seduction. Play with different songs and sounds like jazz, hip hop, trance, and metal to suit your moods and desires.
Read: 18 Music Videos and Songs about BDSM
32. Needle Play
Some hardcore BDSM fetishes such as needle play are a kind of extreme sensation play, as well as a form of bondage.
Read: BDSM Needle Play and Play Piercing
33. Ocean Sounds
Natural soundtracks like birds or ocean noises can be very relaxing.
34. Powder
Powders have a different feeling than creams or liquids. Play with different cosmetic or food grade powders.
35. Reading Poetry or Erotica
Get literary and recite some old fashioned love poetry or steamy new erotica stories to warm each other up.
Read: Writing Erotica for Your Lover
36. Scented Oils
Sensation play sometimes forgets about playing with smells. Scents are deeply connected to our memories, so you’ll create new memories, too. Use spices, candles, perfumes, and foods, to tantalize the sense of smell, along with scented body oils.
37. Seaweed
Seaweed wraps are a way to indulge your lover at a spa. These treatments offer a unique full-body sensation. You can also play around with seaweed while frolicking at the beach.
Read: Best Places for Kinky Outdoor Sex
38. Sex Pillows
Experiment with sex pillows for a variety of different kinds of feelings during sensation play and sex.
39. Shampoo
Washing your lover’s hair involves the shampoo scent, the feeling of warm water, and the massage as you lather their hair.
40. Shaving
Shaving someone else feels wonderful and it draws on trust, especially in the sensitive nooks and crannies.
Read: 4 Ways BDSM and Kink Can Build Intimacy
41. Silk
Rub different fabrics like silk or satin along each other’s skin.
42. Slime
Have some fun with kid’s slime recipes!
Read: WAM Fetish: Ideas for Wet and Messy Kink
43. Spanking, Flogging, Paddling
Impact play can be light and lighthearted, or a more intense form of submission and dominance. Use different implements for varied sensations—a flogger is very different from a cane or a paddle.
Read: Erotic Spanking 101: A Guide for Spanking Beginners
44. Stretching
Stretching your bodies together can be a leisurely experience and bring relaxation and heightened sensations.
45. Sucking Toes
Sucking on different body parts brings all kinds of different sensations. Toe sucking is great for those with a foot fetish and can also bring laughter to sensation play. Others with an ear fetish will love to suck a lobe or two!
Read: Partialism: 17 Body Part Fetishes from Head to Toe
46. Suspension and Floating
Do not use BDSM suspension unless you are experienced, but if you are, adding suspension as a form of sensation play can really intensify responses to stimuli. You can experience suspension by using a hammock. You can try floating in a pool or even in a floatation tank.
Read: Suspension Bondage for Advanced BDSM
47. Squishy Toys
The tactile joy of squeezing dough-like textures is wonderful. Nowadays you can find all kinds of foams and other squishables in toy stores that transfer easily to kinky sensation play.
48. Trickling Water
Use warm and cold water to trickle over hair, breasts, genitals, anywhere. This is instinctive when lovers bathe together, and use a sponge or cup to gently pour water over each other’s body.
You can use a shower head with various massage functions to stimulate the body and genitals and if the shower head has different settings, enjoy a variety of sensations.
Read: Shower Play Ideas for Sexy Lovers
49. Vibration
Use a vibrator on different body parts and muscles, or use vibrating sex toys to heighten arousal and orgasm.
Read: How to Use a Vibrator during Sex
50. Wine
Try wine tasting as foreplay!
What are your favorite sensations to experiment with during kinky play?
Tell us what you think