The Pleasure Principle: Ti Chang and CRAVE Give You Permission

The Vesper vibrator necklace sits on a woman’s chest like any piece of fine jewelry—a symbol of self-expression, not shame. Since its debut in 2014, the groundbreaking design has earned a prestigious Red Dot Design Award and caught the attention of celebrities including Janet Jackson and Madonna, photographed wearing it without apology. This is no accident. Ti Chang, industrial designer and co-founder of CRAVE, set out to transform how pleasure is perceived, designed, and discussed in the world.

Before CRAVE, Ti noticed a troubling pattern. Nearly all women’s pleasure products were designed by men, perpetuating stigma and shame around female pleasure. The designs were utilitarian, awkward, anything but beautiful. Less than 18% of women climax from penetration alone, yet the industry designed primarily phallic-shaped sex toys. The disconnect was glaring—a failure not just of design, but of understanding. Ti knew there was a different way.

Mindfulness anchors CRAVE’s philosophy. “Objects for life’s most intimate moments should be beautiful,” Ti says. This isn’t flourish—it’s intention. When she started, overseas factories took a chance on her vision, manufacturing initial production on faith alone. That belief in her mission shaped everything that followed. Every detail matters: the weight in your hand, the curve against skin, the whisper-quiet motor. The women-led design team obsesses over every element, from global supply chain to final quality control at their San Francisco micro-factory. Pleasure, treated as worthy of this care, becomes something sacred.

CRAVE’s expansion into luxury leather cuffs and pleasure jewelry reinforces a singular belief: pleasure is integral to identity. It’s not something hidden away in a box—it informs who we are, how we move through the world, and how we value ourselves. The brand has normalized conversations around female pleasure by bridging sex shops and mainstream retailers—appearing at Goop, Nordstrom, and collaborating with luxury houses like Saint Laurent. This visibility matters. When pleasure products sit alongside fine design, when celebrities wear them openly, the conversation shifts from shame to celebration.

In designing for pleasure, Ti designs for liberation. Her pieces are beautiful because pleasure deserves beauty. They exist in the world unashamed because pleasure is a human right, not a taboo. Every woman who owns a CRAVE product isn’t just purchasing—she’s claiming pleasure as a gift to herself, refusing to apologize for wanting it. Objects that honor that deserve to be as artful and refined as anything else you treasure.

  Photos | CRAVE