How a mother of three invented vaginal glitterbombs and why doctors are warning against them

A gynaecologist has taken to the internet to warn women against the product, calling the capsules ‘shameful slime’.

Woman put the glitter capsule up their vagina one hour before sex.

All that glitters is gold ... or a vagina.

Passion Dust Intimacy Capsules — pills that women put into their vaginas to release a dusting of candy-scented sparkles from their nether regions — went viral this week.

According to the product’s website, the pills (AU$9 each) should be “inserted into the vagina at least one hour prior to having sexual intercourse”.

There, they dissolve, releasing “sparkling candy-flavoured passion dust” that makes sex “magically delicious”.

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Their creator, Lola-Butterflie Von-Kerius, makes and sells the novelties out of her Houston, Texas home. In the past few days, she says her website has received half a million visits.

“A new order is coming in every minute,” the erotic entrepreneur says.

Demand is so high that she temporarily closed shop this week to deal with back orders.

The capsules are put in to the vagina and release a dusting of candy-scented sparkles.

Every cloud has a glittery lining

Though business is booming, life isn’t all candy and sparkles for Von-Kerius. The mother of three told the New York Post she was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2013.

“[It’s sitting] right on my optic nerve,” she says. “Some days, my sight just goes in and out.”

Doctors want to remove the tumour, but Von-Kerius has been holding off on the procedure until she can figure out child care. In the meantime, she’s taking things day by day — a strategy that’s not without its challenges.

Unreliable vision means “I can’t have a normal job,” Von-Kerius says. “I can’t drive a car or even flip burgers.”

The former test-centre manager had to find a creative way to support her family. That’s when she began selling cosmetics.

“I’ve always [made] glitter lip balm, eye shadow and other sparkly stuff for myself. So I started to sell homemade cosmetics to my friends, and then to locals in the Houston area,” she tells The Post.

A sexier way to shimmer

It wasn’t until 2015 that Von-Kerius had the thought to make a uniquely personal product.

“I saw a T-shirt that said, ‘I sweat glitter,’ and ... I thought, I want to sweat glitter, too. What would be a safe way to glitter from the inside?”

That’s when the idea for Passion pills hit.

“I mixed up a batch [of Passion Dust], placed it inside myself and forgot about it — until the next day, when I used the bathroom. I looked down and saw the sparkling everywhere.”

Von-Kerius began testing the product on friends and decided it was safe to sell based on what she calls “experience-based evidence.”

The Passion Dust Intimacy Capsules.

One happy customer is Kim Chedi, of Corpus Christi, Texas. She tried her first Passion pill on Valentine’s Day. “I was pleased with the results and the sweet taste and so was [my partner] ... Just boosted same-old to something magical.” To date, she’s used them several times.

When asked if she has experienced any adverse side effects, Chedi says, “No. I have a woman-wellness exam every six months. I’m healthy and ... my sex life is da bomb!”

Sparkling controversy

Von-Kerius claims that not one of her clients has ever reported a bad experience with Passion Dust, but she knows some gynaecologists are sceptical.

Among them is Canadian gynaecologist Dr. Jen Gunter, who denounced the product as “shameful slime” in a blog post. “Could [it] be an irritant and cause a vaginal contact dermatitis? Yes and ouch. Think vaginal sunburn!”

To her critics, Von-Kerius points out, “Doctors say ideally nothing would be inserted into the vagina, ever. But we still use condoms, sex toys and lots of crazy flavours and colours of lubricants. This is no different than that.”

The capsule should be inserted one hour before sex.

She says that the ingredients of Passion Dust are “non-toxic and FDA approved,” and similar to what you would find in a vaginal lubricant combined with a cosmetic intended for eye or mouth application.

“If you’ve ever used shimmery lip gloss, you’ve inhaled more glitter than you would have inside of you using [a] glitter pill,” she says. (However, Gunter wrote in her blog post, “Just because something is safe for your lips, for example glitter gloss, doesn’t mean it’s safe for the vagina.”)

Safety aside, some feminists see Passion Dust as a political issue. The product, they point out, insinuates that a woman’s natural body fluids aren’t good enough.

Von-Kerius says, “It’s just a happy, fun thing. It’s not meant to harm anyone or even to say anything is wrong with your body fluids as is.”

She plans to ignore her detractors and continue making Passion Dust.

“It’s just for fun,” she stresses. “You can see yourself shine and play with it all day.”

This article originally appeared on the New York Post.