Host Melanie Rose blows into the lives of her How to Build a Sex Room clients like a raunchy Mary Poppins — same posh British accent, but with much dirtier tricks in her bag. Over Season 1, she helps nearly a dozen couples (including a polycule and one independent woman) realize their sexiest dreams, with intimate spaces designed to indulge their most intimate fantasies. Some couples — like Shenika and Matthew or Ouima and Jesse — need a place to ignite the spark in their marriages. Other lovers, like Orlando and Matthew or the polyamorous septet anchored by Lester and Soriya, require a room to explore their already established kinks.
Either way, Melanie gives the How to Build a Sex Room crew the space and tools to be able to experience love in a whole new way. So, has it helped? We caught up with the cast to find out.
Spoilers ahead for How to Build a Sex Room, darling.
Since filming, the self-described Fambam — the seven-member polyamorous group introduced in “Sexy Vegas Glam Suit” — has seen two members, Prince and Grace, move out of How to Build a Sex Room’s home base of Colorado (they’re still in the group chat though). But the group has added two new members, Kat and Angelica, now making them a nine-person polycule. The Fambam has also added to the sex toy closet, which is called the “Art Room” as it was built with member Arturo in mind. “It has gone from full to almost bursting with things to play with,” polycule member Nate tells Tudum.
The space is so “amped up,” Nate says, “it has become a bit of a local legend in the nonmonogamous community.” Not only does the group use it to connect together — as member Catherine tells Tudum, the supersized bed is a game changer — but they’ve hosted special scenes in the room along with dates within the polycule and for their outside connections. “It’s provided us space to reinforce our kinks and certainly made the Fambam home even more of a beautiful place for us to gather and express ourselves,” Nate says.
Burlesque performers Bettie and Brody receive an art deco dream sex room in “What’s Your Stripper Name?” complete with a sumptuous tub and staging area. The couple has been putting the space to good use. “Two of our new favorite acts have been created since,” the pair tells Tudum. “Getting to rehearse them for each other while someone luxuriates in the bath is just the icing on the cake.”
The bath has become a central part of the couple’s relationship, which is “stronger than ever” these days. “Our nights in the sex room have turned into a game of who can one-up the other person on Bougie Bath Night,” they say. Brody is the “reigning champ” of the sexy competition. “We’ve deepened our intimacy because we’re able to connect more in this new space. Our communication has evolved too, making space for us to continue to grow together and try new things,” Bettie and Brody add. “We learned the importance of slowing down to really set the mood and get into the right mental headspace. (Hello, foreplay!)”
Meghan and Dave ask Melanie for a spalike sex room in “Different Kind of Family Room,” but they also get an engagement out of their experience when Dave enlists Melanie’s help for his proposal. And now, Dave and Meghan are married; the pair wed in February 2022. The sex room is helping the newlyweds continue to grow their relationship, as they enjoy their new hot tub and the “tranquil” atmosphere of their space.
“Sex is a part of any good relationship. But in this case, it’s about connection rather than an itch to scratch or a scheduled booty call,” they tell Tudum. “Having this room allows us to strengthen an already amazing bond and adds opportunities to explore some boundaries.”
Shenika and Matthew enter How to Build a Sex Room in “Best Basement Event” determined to reconnect as a couple. Well, mission accomplished. “We had no idea we’d gotten so far away from an intimate relationship because our marriage never lacked love, but we definitely realized it was without intimacy,” they tell Tudum. “We now have a space to enjoy each other and focus on what makes us happy, and we developed a game plan to continue spicing up our relationship.”
The couple has enforced some new rules to break them out of their previous “slump.” They banned their kids from their “adult-only space,” barred phones from bed, kept work at work and are “dedicating a few hours a night to actually enjoy some levels of intimacy.” The change has done “wonders” for their love life, which now includes time spent in their new soaking tub. “Our marriage has grown stronger since the room was completed, and that forced us to create boundaries and balance within our marriage and relationship,” Shenika and Matthew say.
A central part of Orlando and Matthew’s How to Build a Sex Room journey was their desire to maintain their connection while living apart. Well, things have changed since their introduction in “Best Basement Ever.” The pair sold their condo “to a buyer that loved the room,” they tell Tudum. Still, the couple took all the sex room goodies to their new shared apartment in Houston. All they left was the wallpaper. In their new home, they painted their master bedroom walls — including the ceiling — in “almost black” to match the original sex room and continue to appreciate the images captured from their photoshoot during filming.
“Our outlook on sex and romance and self-care hasn’t changed,” Orlando and Matthew say. “We were and still are very sex-positive people. If anything, we are a more romantic couple than before because we’ve grown closer together.”
Young married couple Ouima and Jesse receive a Moulin Rouge cabaret-themed sex room in “Frisky Farms.” They’re using the space as an “escape” from real-life stressors. “We’ll be talking about something not fun and suddenly say, ‘It’s time to hit the room,’ and we’ll come out feeling much better,” they tell Tudum. “We are now able to separate having fun and being intimate from everyday life, and no longer feel the need to treat [intimacy] like a chore to be done every so often.”
The pair’s continued favorite part of the room is the way the multiple mirrors reflect light at night — “as well as how they reflect other things.” Following filming, they added a small couch “for more optionality of activities.” Ouima and Jesse think all this space for play has made them more productive outside the bedroom (or sex room), and they theorize this is because “we spend less time stressing out about why we’re not having more fun.”
While you didn’t catch this on-screen, Lisa fills Tudum in on a secret: She met a “very special someone” during production. “Our relationship has blossomed, and we are enjoying a very magical ‘third chapter’ of our lives,” she says. “Now that I have a safe, beautiful space and a partner I trust completely, I feel more sexually fulfilled than ever.”
The sex room has “enhanced” her new relationship. Lisa reveals, “Our favorite part of the room is definitely the custom coffee table. It is a gorgeous work of art and a whole lot of fun, especially when we use the toys Melanie selected for me.” Although Lisa was initially reticent to dive into the world of sex toys, she and her new partner are particularly fond of the floggers, pink leather paddle and handcuffs curated by Melanie Rose. “The room increased my sense of independence, confidence and openness to exploring my sexuality with no regrets and no apologies. Who knew, at this late chapter, how much I could grow?” she says.
