Top 4 Myths about Fetishists

Having a fetish isn’t as bizarre as it may sound. Having a paraphilia – a physical object, role or thought that is the principal center of your sexual drive – can be somewhat invigorating and fun in the room. It doesn’t matter if you’re into straight, gay, bi, transgender dating or just want to meet online – fetishes can show up anywhere and under any conditions.

Some people develop fetishes at a very young age due to various causes, while others only figure out that they have a sexual paraphilia much later in life by accident. There are pretty simple and common ones, like fetishes that focus on body parts which already have established sexual attributes, and then there are rarer and more intriguing, such as fetishes that put odd things in a person’s sexual focus (feet, hair, nostrils, etc.).

Still, it’s by most considered as weird, freaky, even disgusting and sick for some unknown reason, even though it doesn’t have to be that way. For the most part, this is caused by prejudice and people’s fear of that which they do not understand or which they do not perceive as a part of everyday life – which fetishes totally are for some folk. In that name, here is our attempt at explaining the phenomenon that are fetishes by addressing the top 4 myths about fetishism.

Fetishists are Perverts

Does having an interest make somebody debased? With respect to why that happens, hypotheses extend. One, clarified by therapist and sex scientist Justin Lehmiller, is established in traditional molding, whereby “to the extent that a specific object repeatedly appears just before we experience sexual arousal, we may eventually come to see that object as a cue for sexual arousal.” Another hypothesis is geographic, as the zone of our brains that control our sexual parts may cover or be firmly situated to another piece of the cerebrum — say, “the region that manages your feet.”

Once again, this myth can be attributed to the common misconception that just because something is “out of the box,” it automatically has to be freakish and bizarre. Surely, there are certain fetishes that can make others queasy, but that does not justify any prejudice which would mark fetishists as weirdos or perverts.

Only Certain Folk are into Fetishes

There is no such thing as a standard fetishist, as the obsession group is extraordinarily various — indeed, it’s not even a solitary group. “There are communities for foot fetishes, latex and rubber fetishists, chastity fetishists, lingerie fetishists, diaper fetishists, and myriad other specialized sexual interests,” sexologist Gloria Brame said.

Indeed, even inside individual interest groups, tastes can change, as a certain foot fetishist wrote in a 2014 Medium exposition: “It’s all a matter of taste, and like music, some fetishists have a narrow, refined taste while some guys don’t care if their girlfriend has hooves and sausage toes.”

Basically, this means that having a fetish isn’t a simple phenomenon in any way. As we’ve mentioned before, there are fetishes that focus on things that are already sexualized in general (and sometimes people don’t even know that they’re having a fetish), while on other occasions there are fetishes that are very specific and very out-of-the-ordinary. This all means that there’s no telling who can or cannot become a fetishist or who is or isn’t one already.

Fetish is the same as Kink

Yet another case misdefining something that has to be defined right in order to be understood.

As noted over, a fetish is frequently based on a physical object or particular activity. Kink, in the interim, is frequently used to depict any sexual practices that fall outside of the standard — however, there can be overlapping, making some perplexity even inside the group.

“I have always referred to my main kink, which is being spanked, and being submissive to my partner, as my fetishes,” Jessica Wakeman wrote for the Frisky in 2013. “Technically-speaking, however, my ‘spanking fetish’ and my ‘submission fetish’ are not fetishes.”

If we were to really get into the terminology here, we would have to separate spanking and submission from fetishism simply due to them belonging to two different groups. The first two are actually a part of a very complex sexual preference known widely as BDSM (bondage, discipline, domination, submission, sadism and masochism), while for something to be described as a fetish, it needs to have a paraphilia, or in other words, an object or body part that would be in the center of a fetishist’s sexual focus.

Fetishists are Hard to Find

Despite what might be expected, Internet people group propose that fetishists are all around, and they exist in huge numbers. Interpersonal organization FetLife alone has almost 4 million individuals.

“The Internet has been the single biggest boon to sexually unconventional hook-ups in human history,” Brame says “It has been demonstrated time and again that if you build a site for an interest you don’t think anyone in the world shares, within a few months you’ll have a bustling membership.”

If we’re being honest, weirder things than fetishists can be found on the web, and furthermore, it’s not really that hard finding them. Remember all those fetishes Gloria Brame mentioned earlier? Foot, latex and rubber, chastity, lingerie, diaper – all these fetishes and many more can be found all over the internet, from sites that deal with the social and sexual problems  and dilemmas of fetishism to full-blown pornographic videos and live sex cams that revolve exclusively around fetishes.

Top 5 Books to be Released in 2018

January and mid-February 2018 have already brought some pretty compelling reads, and come spring-time there won’t be anything else for us to do, but sit back and relax with a bunch of great books that are to come. Our list of the top 5 2018 releases features stories written by award-winning authors who keep raising the bar in their genres, and drawing in more readers with each subsequent release. Instead of spending what is left of this winter logged into Tinder, trying to meet people online, check out our picks for the best fiction books we look forward to reading in the following months, and see for yourself why we think these new novels about to hit the shelves are so incredible.

#1: A Long Way from Home by Peter Carey

Set in the remote country towns in Australia, A Long Way from Home is a story about a married couple, Titch and Irene Bob, who enter a 10,000-mile, 17-day car race to promote Titch’s used car business with the help of their neighbor Willie Bachhuber. Along the way, Willie faces issues related to his heritage, and the book beautifully explores the shameful treatment of the Indigenous people in Australia.

#2: An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

Celestial and Roy are a happily married couple in the New South with the anniversary of their first date as a safe word to stop rough sex or conversation aimed at painful topics, “November 17”. That night, as Roy utters these words during a fight with Celestial, he’s wrongly accused of committing a violent offence, and subsequently sentenced to 12 years in prison.

#3: The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin

Word has spread of the arrival of a mystical psychic, who can tell everyone the date they will die, to Manhattan’s Lower East Side in 1969, and four Gold adolescents sneak out to hear their destiny. Their next five decades are mapped out, and they each go their separate ways to probe the line between fortune and choice, telling a wonderful story of the nature of belief and family bonds.

#4: The English Wife by Lauren Willig

Annabelle and Bayard Van Duyvil live in New York during the Gilded Age, have three-year-old twins they adore, and following their passionate romance in London decide to make their family home in Manhattan. When Bayard is killed on the night of their 12^th Night Ball, and Annabelle goes missing, Bayard’s sister Janie forms an alliance with a reported to uncover the truth. The more she learns about her brother and his wife, the more the story unravels, revealing who Bay and Annabelle really were, and why Bay died with a name George on his lips.

#5: The Wife between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

A story about a tangled love triangle, The Wife between Us seems to be about a jealous ex-wife, and her younger, beautiful replacement who’s about to marry the man they both love. Assume nothing as this twisted story exposes the dangerous truths we ignore in the name of love.

10 Small Romantic Gestures That Boost Your Relationship Big Time

When looking for the perfect ways to spice up a bland relationship, couples often turn to grand gestures. They go out and splurge on a fancy date at a steakhouse, travel out of town, and buy expensive things for their partner. We tend to forget that it is the smallest, simplest things that keep a relationship moving.

Oftentimes, you don’t have to go outside. Genuine and heartwarming gestures of love and affection are displayed at home

It doesn’t take that much amount of time, effort, and money to make your partner feel valued every day. To build a strong connection and bond that lasts, here are some expert tricks to fit into your routine.

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Positive Facts about Dating Sites

Online dating is a practice of searching and hooking with a romantic match, a match that is of your taste and preference. You can say kind of our very own Rachel and Chandler from the well-known series “Friends” where they ran into each other several times for hookups and breakups. Dating is healthy for the body and minds it gives stability, patience, perseverance, understandability, and generosity of human nature. Online dating is a decent idea to come over shyness and to forthright one-self.

Dating for today’s fast pace generation is a restaurant which has all over the world cuisine. One can choose any dish and relish it if the taste is good can eat it if not can leave it. Same is the case with online dating you can hook up with the one you like, can have breakups, can only converse with single people and make friends. At any point in life if someone feels lonely can use these dating sites to find a new companion, a friend that listens to you without judging your moves as everyone there are on the same page.

Online dating sites used by some people with a wrong intention. There is misleading information in one’s profile and misuse of the same. The dating sites is an open platform thus there are some security issues in such websites at some point in time.

Surprisingly there are some lessons that one can know about oneself while dating online. There are various types of behaviouristic personalities who react in different behaviors, one learns from the experience of online dating. 

Stranger interactions

A person can talk to anyone he wishes too after stalking one’s profile and interests. There is a choice of connecting with individuals and can also disconnect that connection if they do not match a perfect portfolio. The confidence of an individual increase while talking to a stranger. Interactions are fruitful in terms of knowing a person’s personality. 

Self-Portrayal and Self-Realization

One should portray one’s true self. Fake profiles do no good. A profile reflects a personality that one shows to the world. The profile should have the latest photo and a real photo without using any animation or filters. It helps in knowing oneself better. You start to recognize your real side and it leads to happy realization mode. Self -portrayal is the key to self-realization.

Breakups…It’s Fine

Every person deals differently with breakups, but by online dating sites, one can easily go through hookups and breakups phrase. A person learns to say no and move on easily in online dating. At a time you can date more than one person and know about them and choose a perfect match out of those hand-picked personalities. A breakup is a teacher that teaches, molds an individual personality, and increases one’s confidence to move in a correct direction with the right people by the side. 

Figuring Out A Way

Whether you meet a right person or a perfect match for yourself but you will definitely figure out ways to escape out of situations and awkward conversations, you will be pro when it will come to dating and figuring out the person sitting in front of you. You will learn to detach your emotions easily.

Myths about relationship

There are some relationship false notions in one’s mind when it comes to commitments, breakups, hookups, and a thin line between friendship and to be a couple. Dating helps you understand these stages with a proper process and how to deal with that too comes with the passing time. We all have our own stories and experiences which savor and bitter but that does not stop us from experimenting with other personalities through online dating sites. You become keen to hang out with some of the other people to mingle around, eventually to break the myths about the relationships.

Friendship Goals

A dating site does not always end up dating people, another positive side of these sites is you end up being very good friends. Friends for life as while chatting you start knowing the person inside out. If you do not go on dates, you definitely will have a couple of friends around you. A world that is waiting to chat with you on dating platform. This is a guaranteed platform for making friends and that too with positive results.

Online dating is a convenient way to check one’s personality, to stop judging oneself and knowing that he is not alone in the world facing such problems, there are a bunch of them dealing with the same. “BYGONES ARE BYGONES” is an appropriate saying for the dating sites for today’s generation to nurture a new trend. Dating sites are a boon for some individuals as they meet their soulmates and evolve as personalities Every Beauty Needs A Beast!! Casual Dating attracts the young generation more as they do not want to commit and stick to each other for long, they want to enjoy their freedom at its best and live the moments with their wildest imagination. There is no baggage of emotions like hatred, sadness, betrayal; freedom is the only vibe one gets from online dating sites.

No Strings Attached is a perfect example which goes with the concept of online internet dating, everything happens at one’s ease and with permission. You will also have goosebumps when you see the response of people trying to reach you on dating sites to date and set a friendship goal or a strong connection. It is a platform for trial-error phenomenon till one meets the actual match, a place where all souls grieve for a single loaf of bread i.e. a date to mingle around, have a fling, have some stranger interaction and walk off being a happy soul. Dating is a form of entertainment rather than a meaningful relationship. Experience the fun of such sites and know yourself like the movie Inside Out, give your emotions a place to grow in you and be a better person by studying the know-how of other personality sitting opposite you. Chat with all freedom online and speak your heart out, be the one person who remains calm under every situation and has control over the emotions.

4 Unique and Affordable Home Décor Ideas for Newlyweds

As you and your spouse begin your life, you have an exciting adventure of creating your home together. And this isn’t only about introducing new hot trends to your space, but rather about discovering a way to join your unique styles into one look that will reflect both of your personalities. It’s also about creating a warm, nurturing environment that will one they be richer for one family member. Whether you’re renting a flat or you’re living in your own home, these affordable ideas will enable you and your partner to give it your personal touch.

New wall color as a refreshing change

Changing the color scheme of your home is one of the simplest and most affordable home transformations. Not only will it give your space a new look, but it will provide you with an opportunity to make a joint design statement. If you want something truly different and exciting, you can try black for accent walls or even entire rooms. If you are going to go for such a bold colour, it may be wise to find a professional painter, perhaps with the help of a site like https://www.myhousepainter.com/painters/new-york/, who will be able to come out and do this for you, as they will know how to get an even, opaque finish with statement colours. However, if one of you is reluctant to go bold when it comes to wall paint, you can opt for a subtle color palette that will later on allow you to introduce quirky and authentic accent features. Beige, grey, greige and earthy tones are all beautiful, understated options that can be used for a backdrop. Vibrant colors can be used for accent walls in the living room or home office, while soothing tones should be welcomed in your master bedroom.

A clean and healthy environment for an open atmosphere

 Designing a home with an airy and open atmosphere will help you feel comfortable and happy in your home. In addition, the overall atmosphere in your space can affect its décor and the general vibe, as well. Therefore, it’s essential that you keep your home clean, clutter- and allergen-free. Not only will this accentuate its beauty and openness, but it will also ensure that your growing family enjoys a healthy environment.

Apart from cleaning your place from top to bottom, you also need to pay special attention to allergens and indoor air pollution. This will be of the utmost importance when you start a family since newborn babies are highly sensitive to health hazards. However, keep in mind that even meticulous cleaning can’t remove all of the pollutants in your home. For instance, mold is a component of dust that may remain in the air, causing health problems. Thus, you should consider getting an effective air purifier for mold that will keep your home allergen-free, increasing its indoor air quality. You should pair it with houseplants for the best effect since plants act as natural air purifiers. This will also provide you with an opportunity to decorate your home with greenery, including potted plants, hanging planters, succulents and even living walls. This will help you design a clean, healthy and stylish home that you and your spouse will love. 

Lighting: varied and authentic

Another great way to create a lovely ambience in your home is to style up your lighting fixtures. You can use lighting to set the tone of romance in the bedroom, promote productivity in your home office, inspire relaxation in the bathroom and encourage family togetherness in the living room and kitchen. If you and your spouse are not only newlyweds, but also design newbies, it’s important that you layer your lighting and implement several source of light in each room. General lighting, for instance, chandeliers and pendants, are the primary source of light that can also be used as a stunning décor statement. Task lights will make every task easier by providing you with focused light while accent lights will elevate your décor. You and your partner should experiment with different fixtures for a unique effect. For instance, lovely pendants can be used instead of bedside lamps, a stunning chandelier can work as a statement above your bathtub and vintage lamps can give your home a retro flair.

From accessories to décor statements

Finishing touches will give your home an authentic character, enabling you and your spouse to express your personal tastes. Intricate patterns used for rugs and fabrics, enticing wallpapers for accent walls, antique pieces of furniture placed under the spotlight and your personal collections are all inspiring ideas to make your space truly feel like home. You can use your favorite paintings to design a mesmerizing gallery wall or exhibit your quirky items that remind you of your most wonderful memories together. It’s important that you find what inspires you both and express it through your home décor.

As a newlywed couple, you and your partner have numerous adventures ahead of you. One of them is designing your space together and creating a dream home for your family.

First things to do soon after you are engaged

Your engagement is indeed a special, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Days after the proposal, the bright engagement ring on your finger may still seem surreal and you will be reeling from the excitement of the proposal.

Enjoy every moment of this phase! Nevertheless, there are certain tasks you cannot put aside for later. The wedding planning experts at Best for Bride, Canada tell us what they are.

Inform your family and close friends

The social media announcements can wait. Your family and close friends deserve to know the happy news first. Inform both sets of parents first and then the rest of your family and friends. Do this over the phone or through a private message and they are sure to appreciate it. Once you have informed the people who are closest to you, let the rest of the world know.

Discuss your wedding dreams

Family and friends will want to know all about your wedding plans. Before you speak to them, discuss your wedding day ideas with your fiancé. Try to understand each other’s vision of the perfect wedding and come to a compromise on when and where your wedding will be. This can also help with venue and facilities planning.

Celebrate the big event

Your engagement calls for a celebration, and you get to decide how big or small it is. You can go all out and have a big bash with all your friends and family or keep it small and intimate with just the two of you. Nevertheless, make sure you have a special celebration on this account. This post on the Brides website has valuable advice for newly engaged couples to plan a great engagement party.

Fix a tentative date

Wedding planning is a momentous task. The earlier you start it, the better your chances of having all the wedding details you want. Start with just the wedding date. If not a specific date, at least decide upon the time of year to have your wedding. Everyone you know will also want to know when the wedding is, when you announce your engagement. Therefore, having an idea will allow you to give your well-wishers a little direction.

Work on the budget

Prepare your wedding budget and take the stress out of wedding planning. It may not be possible to figure out the exact distribution of funds at this stage. However, you can find out how much each of you can contribute. This will help you decide how big or small you want your wedding to be. It will also help with research on venue, vendors and other wedding planning aspects. For all the factors to consider when making your wedding budget, visit this post on the Knot website.

Sign up for an engagement photo shoot

As you celebrate this special phase in your life, document memories with stunning engagement photos. A pre-wedding photography session by a professional wedding photographer will help you gear up for actual wedding photography. It will allow you to get comfortable with your photographer’s style of working. Capture some beautiful glimpses into your life at a meaningful spot, in your unique style with this photography session. You can also use these photos in your save-the-date cards, invitations or favors. Check out this post on the Bridal Guide for inspiration on planning your engagement photos.

Begin a wedding planning board

A wedding planning board will help you with research and getting your ideas organized. There are plenty of options to consider. You can create a Pinterest board to compile images of your favorite elements for inspiration. On the other hand, make a folder on your computer with images; excel sheets and to-do lists for overall organization of ideas. Mood boards will help you compile all your ideas in one place and add or remove ideas as your vision develops.

Explore wedding planning apps

Digital tools make wedding planning much easier. There are several mobile applications to organize and simplify every part of the planning from the attire, vendor co-ordination, décor ideas and documentation. The best part of using these tools is that you can do your wedding planning anywhere and at any time. All data will be available in one place, so you can simply pick up from where you last left off. Since each tool is different, it is best to explore your options and find one that suits your style. Learn more about the many options available on this guide on the Brides website.

Start the search for sales and trunk shows

Trunk shows are a terrific way to score brand new designer dresses at bargain prices. Wedding shops host trunk shows once or twice a year. Enquire about the schedule of the next one at the bridal shops near you and plan your wedding dress shopping at that time. Also, subscribe to social media channels and newsletters of bridal boutiques carrying your favorite designer to receive prompt alerts of upcoming trunk shows and discount sales.

Do something fun

Before you dive into detailed wedding planning, take some time to unwind and enjoy your new-found relationship status. Go away for the weekend, have a fancy dinner, or return to the place where you first met to just relax and relive happy memories. Enjoy each other’s company and discuss your goals and future. This will prep you for the tedious wedding planning that lies ahead.

Author Bio: The modern bride’s all-in-one wedding destination, Best for Bride is Canada’s leading wedding dress chain. Apart from wedding dresses, bridal accessories, and wedding day services, they also stock bridal party dress collections and dresses for special occasions. Learn about their extensive collections and services by visiting the Best for Bride website.

12 Things Happy Couples Do After Work To Rekindle The Spark

One surefire way to make a fiery relationship go cold and blue? Let the day pass without getting in contact with each other. Period.

The lack of time for each other is one of the most prevalent reasons for breaking up – and our hectic work schedule is commonly the culprit. With huge job demands and financial strains, it’s inevitable to become busy and stressed out the whole day. The first thing we’d love to do as soon as we leave the doors of the office is to just hit the sack and forget about everything. But your relationship, like your job, also demands attention.

Finding time to bond with our partners despite our demanding schedules is crucial in establishing a stronger, happier relationship. We’re not suggesting to splurge on an expensive romantic getaway or “get physical” every night after work to keep the spark ignited. The ways can as simple as holding each other’s hands and exchanging jokes and laughing together.

There are a lot of things happy couples do after their workday and during the weekends or their free time in order to keep their relationship intact.

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Wedding Gift Ideas The Bride And Groom Will Love

A celebration of someone’s love – there are so many things to be excited about. You have to choose a dress or suit, shoes, gift… Wait, gift?! Two families work so hard arranging the event, so the couple deserves the perfect gift. While you are choosing what to wear, you have to think about the couple’s wishes and choose a gift that they will appreciate the most. Yes, you can always give them money, but maybe you can try with something more unique, personalized, something that will make a real impression. If you want to give them a thoughtful gift that the couple will show off to their friends, or that will stay in their heart as a nice memory, follow our suggestions and get inspired!

A gift for travelers

The couple is starting their marriage journey, so you can compare it with traveling. Which country did they go to, and where do they want to travel? Buy them a globe with corks so they can easily track their travels and explorations. This can be a great reminder of their goals and wishes. Also, you can buy them matching travel bags with their last name, or even with a Mr. and Mrs. tags as an accessory.  

Personalized gift

At weddings, everything is about the couple. If you know them well, you can find a nice photo of them and print it on any decorative item, such as a photo frame, photo collage, throw pillows, or even a lamp. Moreover, you can think about their first Christmas together and put their names on a nice ornament or an embroidered stocking. This kind of gift they would not only cherish themselves, but they would also love to show off to others. Also, this will show them that you’re thoughtful and that you celebrate their love yourself.

Surprise gift basket

If you want to surprise your dear friends, you have to be creative. We’ll give you a little hint – buy all these small decorative things you know the couple will like and put them in a basket. For example, you can find a magazine holder, carpets, candlesticks, a jewelry box, ice bucket, table lamp, tray, or anything that suits their home decoration the best. If you like this idea, you can always take a look at some beautiful Karavan homewares and accessories. Next, you have to think about gift decoration. When you pack all of these things in a basket, put their favorite flowers and chocolate in it. This will bring a surprise effect, so when they remove the flowers, they will find all these things they love.  

Tickets to a class

What does the couple have in common? If they are passionate about cooking, dancing, history, culture, or anything else, you can buy them tickets for a class or course. If you want to be funny, you can even buy them tickets for a lap dance class. They will probably get a lot of items for their home from other guests, so this gift can be something different and priceless. They will get out of the house and enjoy each other’s company. After they finish the course, they will both have a skill that will stay in the family forever.

Kitchen appliances

For most families, the breakfast is their favorite time. They are sharing their troubles and expectations and discussing them while preparing for a long day. So, think about buying a coffee or a sandwich maker built for two. These things can make their mornings easier and give them time for chatting.   

Something useful

What if they’re not a romantic couple? The truth is that not everyone likes the matching towels or pillows. If the couple is practical and they like to do things on their own, you can always buy them a tool set. For a couple that has just started living together, this can be extremely helpful. This set can last forever, and they can even get creative and try to make things on their own. Moreover, you can add an inspiring note such as “build your life together”.

 

You have so many exciting options, so which one would you choose for your wedding? Think about the couple and you will know which suggestion is the best for your gift.

How Did Tinder Influence College Dating?

Anyone who wants to meet people online should ask the college kids for help, right? Well, wrong. You’d be surprised to learn that college students are a lot more old-fashioned than modern technology and media would have us believe. Today, we take a closer look at how college students use dating apps, and how they prefer to find new dates.

Tradition VS Technology

According to a study which included 3,500 college students done by Abodo, the apartment hunting app, these kids might be online for the better part of their day, but still prefer to meet new people through traditional means. Of those who participated in the survey, only 4 percent said they liked to meet matches using dating apps. A total of 80 percent of survey participants said they liked to meet through mutual friends or shared interests, while some 15 percent said they preferred to leave things up to chance, and meet people when out and about.

The Purpose of Dating Apps

These results look pretty old-fashioned, and certainly not what we expect to see. At the same time, college kids do use dating apps, but they don’t prefer to use them to date. Over 90 percent of respondents say they use Tinder and other apps for purposes other than to hook up with someone over the weekend. In other words, Tinder & Co have not led to a culture of endless hook-ups, as is the popular belief.

Those other purposes include entertainment, which is a response given by 35 percent of Tinder, Bumble and Grindr users. Also, 15 percent of women and 9 percent of men said they used the apps for an ego boost, and the rest of the respondents said they used dating apps to find friends, although the term “friend” wasn’t clearly defined.

The Popular Apps

In terms of dating apps that surveyed college students used, 85 percent said they preferred Tinder, 17 percent said Bumble was their first choice, and OKCupid came in first for almost 9 percent of the respondents.

In practical terms, these results suggest that college kids live in a structured social environment that seems to present plenty of opportunity to meet people organically, without having to enlist the help of technology. When we take the size of campuses into account, it actually makes sense that they build their romantic lives in the offline world.

At the same time, their habits are likely to change when they graduate and enter the workforce where they won’t have as much time to socialize, and are expected to lean on dating apps much more to find suitable partners.

When it comes to Tinder influencing the dating habits of college students, this survey suggests Tinder is most often used out of boredom, not to cure loneliness or find a date for the upcoming weekend. This is not to say college kids aren’t dating as crazy, but they sure don’t depend on their phones to connect them with potential partners.

Instagram is a Dating Site, too! Here’s how it works

Back in the day, there was a rather clear distinction between matchmaking platforms and social media sites. For example, if you wanted to meet people online, you had to make a profile on a dating site. Nowadays, that’s not exactly the case. Most people these days are using Facebook and Twitter as dating platforms, and up until recently, Instagram was the only app that wasn’t used for such purposes. However, after a few big changes, this app became one of the most popular dating sites out there. So, if you have Instagram and you want to use this particular app as a dating platform, here’s how it works.

The Stories Changed The Game

A few years ago when Instagram didn’t have stories, it was rather hard for people to know who is really interested in them, who likes their photos out of courtesy, and who’s actually “stalking” them. Today, however, stories are one of the main indicators that tell users who their biggest fans are. As you probably already know, once you finish watching someone’s story, that person receives a notification that you watched their content. So, by reviewing their notifications, users can easily determine if you’re just a follower or a secret admirer. Also, you can use this method to subtly state your intentions without being intrusive or straightforward.

Discover And Search Options Help People Find Exactly What They Want

It’s safe to say that the advanced and improved options like “search” and “discover” are helping people to find the perfect potential partner. The intuitive search engine allows them to easily track down any person they know, both in real life and via other social media websites. Also, if users want to find someone completely new, they can search the Instagram by using specific hashtags and they will find exactly what they’re searching for. For example, if a guy is looking for redheads, he can simply insert #redhead and #redhair hashtags and the app will provide him with a number of beautiful girls and photos on his feed. As you can see, searching for a specific type is easier on Instagram than on other matchmaking platforms.

Direct Messaging Transformed Instagram

One of the options that changed the game completely is, of course, direct messaging. As you know, at first, Instagram only had “like” and “comment” options, while messages and chats were reserved for Facebook, Twitter, and specialized dating platforms. Nowadays, however, Instagram users are able to send direct messages to their followers. Naturally, this particular option allowed people to contact users they are attracted to in a private manner. In other words, they can use the previous options we mentioned in the article to track down a perfect person, follow them, and contact them via messages. These intuitive and rather convenient options are the main reason why this social media site is now one of the most popular matchmaking spots on the Internet. Therefore, even though this network was never meant to serve this purpose, it’s safe to say that Instagram is now a dating app too.