After the sex :: tech happy hour (my images are here), I was out to dinner with a few friends and we brainstormed what has made our favorite conferences so memorable and valuable, and how that could be applied to sex. Then in my inbox today, I got the announcement for an interesting looking upcoming convention in Los Angeles, Love LA — it’s next sunday. It’ll be in a beautiful retro deco hall, will have demonstrations and lots of sex-ed seminars and from the looks of the vendor list, showcases many (but not all) makers of health and pleasure minded sex products. It looks really interesting, and a nice answer to the gated community of unsafe product, jelly rubber, anal-eze, sex stereotype hell of AVN/AEE. I love porn, and sometimes even stuff these folks might consider “offensive” so I’m not totally behind their overall mission, but this concept is still very refreshing. Here’s their impersonal email manifesto:

The main reason for contacting you at this time is to draw attention to a very important event and cause we’ve initiated to try to steer AWAY from pornography, cheap products, and inferior information. This effort takes the form of a consumer expo we’ve dubbed LOVE LA and is happening THIS coming Sunday. Love LA features over 35 of our industry’s finest manufacturers, retail outlets, educators, and entertainers who will be on hand to show you ways to enhance your intimate lives in beautiful, sexy, and dignified ways. This event is especially women friendly and there will be no porn stars, offensive materials, or non-sexuality related products. As such, we have gone to great lengths to cater Love LA to all women, men, and couples, regardless of orientation. We support love in all its various inclinations and will make every effort to provide a comfortable, sexy, and FUN atmosphere.

Link. Image of OhMiBod (a Love LA exhibitor) by Nate Kapi.