Welcome to the sixth post in the Wand Queen series! In 2015, after experimenting with lots of toys in my first few months as a reviewer, I figured out what really works for me: broad stimulation, particularly wands. So now, in 2016, I’ll be reviewing at least one wand per month from March onward (even though I skipped June and September, woops!). Check out my previous five reviews in the series: Lovehoney Desire Wand, Svakom Emma Heating Wand, BMS Factory PalmPower, OhMiBod Lovelife Wanderlust, and Jimmyjane Iconic Wand.
I first saw the Dorr Avond Wand at SheVibe‘s Blogger Pajama Party at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit. I was initially intrigued because the Avond looked just like a compact version of a wand I was testing and really liked, so I mentioned to SheVibe that I was interested in it. They offered to send me the Avond as my first SheVibe review product, and I happily agreed!
When my Avond arrived in the mail, I couldn’t believe how small it was. (Yes, yes, I first saw it at the SheVibe PJ Party, but I wasn’t exactly sober and apparently completely misjudged its size.) The Avond is by far the smallest wand I own – it’s even smaller than the PalmPower!
Despite this wand’s size, it doesn’t feel like an insignificant toy when I’m holding it. It feels solid and well-made, and while it’s not heavy by any means, it is weightier than I thought it would be. The Avond is smaller than its similar-looking sibling, the Lovehoney Desire Wand, but it feels like a higher-quality toy because of the back panel’s material. Even though I’m still confused about why this back panel exists (it has no function), the Avond’s is metal while the Desire’s is plastic.
The Avond comes with all of the features one would expect: it’s made of silicone, it’s waterproof, it’s rechargeable, and it comes with a storage bag. It has 5 vibration speeds and 6 settings, and as with most wands, the vibrations go from rumbly to buzzy as the speed increases, but the top speed is more of a rumbly-buzzy combination than strictly buzzy. The Avond is also very quiet during use. However, the white label aspect of this wand and of Dorr in general makes me a bit wary – it’s what first drew me to this wand (because it is very similar to the Desire), but it also doesn’t say much for the originality of the design. Dangerous Lilly spells out what a white label toy is in her review of the Dorr Silker, so I won’t re-explain that here.
This wand looks good on paper, but in practice it’s mediocre at best. I am able to jump to the Avond’s highest speed immediately without any warm up, and the vibration intensity at that top speed is what I would look for in the first speed of a medium-sized wand, or a smaller wand that plugs in, like the PalmPower.
While the Avond isn’t exactly a pinpoint stimulation toy, it’s surface area is small enough to make it closer to pinpoint than any other wand I own. When I was testing this toy, I alternated between a larger wand and the Avond to compare vibration strengths, but my body didn’t respond to the Avond after using a larger wand. It’s not just that it wasn’t pleasurable – I simply didn’t feel anything. This isn’t unusual for me – I don’t like pinpoint stimulation – but it does defeat the purpose of using this wand for broad stimulation, which is why I prefer this style of sex toy in the first place.
If you’re the opposite of a power queen, the Avond may work for you. However, I’m not comfortable recommending this wand – even if you prefer gentler vibration settings, the speeds on the Avond don’t allow for any room to grow if you end up wanting more. Furthermore, for a toy of this size and power, the Avond does not need an $80 price tag. For a smaller toy with an incredibly wide range of vibration speeds, check out the PalmPower, one of my favorite toys.
SheVibe generously provided me with the Dorr Avond Wand in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. My unimpressive experience with this toy has no bearing on SheVibe – they are excellent and you should absolutely shop with them!
If you enjoyed this review and want to support the ongoing success of Formidable Femme, please consider using the affiliate links used throughout this post. Many thanks in advance!
