Fetish Fantasy Elite universal beginner's harness - double strap harness by Pipedream - review by leopardprint

This harness is pretty all-purpose. It's vegan, which is nice - there's no leather on the thing, it's all man-made materials (though I sometimes wonder if something made of plastic is better than something made of biodegradable materials... but I digress I guess). The straps are a little flimsy; less substantial than I expected. The other harness of its kind that I've reviewed (by Sportsheets), has far thicker straps that feel more secure - and, frankly, was a higher quality product. Not that this one *did* slip or do anything too funny - it just doesn't feel as secure as it could, and the O-ring was really stretchy, which may not combine well with all toys.

This harness will work for anyone who can fit in it. That said, let me stress to you that I'm a size 12/14 and this thing didn't leave a lot of extra strapping! So if you're a larger/curvier person, I'd recommend looking for a different harness. I had to slide the strap completely out of its plastic slider in order to get it around my hips, and then thread it back through its slider in order to get it to fit around my waist. There wasn't much room left over, which made me a little nervous. Mind you, it didn't actually go anywhere (or come undone completely), but I could see the potential for a slide-off.

This is made of a few nylon straps, black plastic strap slides, a stretchy O-ring, metal snaps and a man-made panel to pad the connection point between your pelvic area and the toy you're using. It smelled pretty plasticky and factory fresh when I opened it. I wouldn't want to get too close to the man-made front panel - even days later, it still smells a little bit like a shower curtain. The nylon webbing is pretty thin, but the stitching seems like it could handle some strain. The ends of the nylon straps required holding a lighter under their ends; after just trying the thing on it started to fray. When I got the harness to feel well-positioned, the O-ring was really stretched out and weird looking. I replaced it with a metal one I had on hand, which worked much better.

One benefit of nylon straps is that they are completely washable - so you could use this, get sweaty, wash it and feel reasonably certain that there wouldn't be any funk left on it. I don't know if I'd leave it in water - the snaps are probably cheap and might rust - but it could have some shower potential. The other benefit to nylon straps is that you can add length if you want to: just get some strapping from any craft store and sew it on. Another drawback to nylon is that the edges aren't super soft - they can cut in a little. You definitely feel like you're wearing something.

The design of this harness is totally standard issue, minimalist, and functional. I think that the fixed placement of the leg straps could make this fit really off-center for some wearers. It has two leg straps, which gives it the look I prefer: the straps come up under your butt and around the hips. I've used one-strap harnesses and they ride up my butt crack! I hate that, though I guess some people think it looks/feels nicer. I am more interested in comfort if I'm going to peg someone, but that may just be my preference.

The straps are pretty adjustable, though you can't slide the placement of the leg straps, you can only adjust their length. And the waistband seems like it should be two pieces instead of one so each side of the waistband would be adjustable; I like symmetry and it's hard to feel symmetrical in this harness! The O-ring is stretchy, so it will fit a lot of different toys, but also seems like if something had a small flange, it might come loose, which would be really inconvenient. I have other, sturdier O-rings on hand, and I changed mine out, because the O-ring is attached by four individual snaps.

This thing is not the "universal" size that I assumed it would be. I assumed that it would have some substantial, tuck-in-able slack when I put it on. But it didn't, really. I've got a 32-inch waist, and this thing seemed to barely squeak around my circumference (which wasn't exactly a self-esteem boost). Since the leg straps are sewn in place, but only one side of the harness adjusts and loosens, it felt lopsided.

This size and fit just barely work for me, and probably anyone who wears size 14 or higher shouldn't waste their time with this thing. If you're on the smaller side, though, this could be a cute, minimal, cheap option if you're just trying to figure out if you actually like strap-on play. It's also thin and hugs close to the body, so it would be possible to wear this under your clothes/lingerie without having to worry about too much interference.

I think that this harness is meant to be more about exploration and trying things out than actually getting down and dirty. It wasn't terribly comfortable, though it was adjustable and fit me well enough to function. Getting toys into the O-ring was pretty easy, too, though the only ones I felt would probably stay there were my double-ended toys, which have larger bases and are partly held by my muscles and pelvic bones. Using a double-ended toy like a Share or Nexus requires removing the front panel, which is easy with the snap-end connectors to the O-ring. Just slide the straps through slits in the panel and set it aside.

The O-ring is really stretchy though, and didn't hold non-double-ended toys very securely. This made things wobble around in a pretty hilarious way when I walked around. Because I didn't feel I could trust this harness in the heat of a moment, I didn't take it for its maiden voyage yet - maybe someday. Or I might just pass it along to someone smaller than myself who needs a harness (and suggest that they invest in a metal or less stretchy O-ring).

This harness doesn't take up very much room, but the box it came in sure did! Fortunately, it was recyclable, but there is no reason for something that fits basically in one hand to come in a big box with a plastic bag inside of that! I prefer minimal packaging, so this was kind of a surprise and a disappointment. There was not really any instruction included, (though it's pretty easy to figure out), unless you count the sexy photos on the box to be 'instructional.'