There's a reason Melanie Rose is known as the Mary Poppins of sex rooms.
The British designer at the heart of Netflix's new design series How to Build a Sex Room has a little bag of tricks that's key to building the perfect safe space for sexy times. Case in point: In the July 8 premiere episode, Melanie introduced couple Taylor and Ay Jay to the joys of flogging, eventually including a spanking bench in the final design of their sex room.
Netflix's description of the just-released series further caught our attention, promising, "You've seen kitchen renovations, you've seen bathroom transformations, but you've never seen anything quite like this!"
Thus, with our curiosity piqued, we decided to sit down with the go-to designer of sex rooms herself and asked her all of our burning, NSFW questions.
Warning: If your favorite flavor is vanilla, this Q&A may not be for you!
E! News: What's one misconception most people have about sex rooms?
Melanie Rose: That they're dirty and disgusting.
E!: Why do you think that is?
MR: Because you have the word sex in it. And people don't like to talk about sex—and if you put sex and sex rooms together, they will run for the hills.
E!: Not always, because now you have a show! How did this come about?
MR: I did actually go meet with [producer] Adam Sher, and he was like, "Oh, my God! In the 20 years I've been doing this, I've never been so excited." Because there's nothing like it on television.
E!: What can we expect to see this season?
MR: I don't like to talk too much about how beautiful the rooms are, because it's very un-english. And it's really the people that I was working with that actually made the show even more special, and made the rooms even more remarkable. It's their stories behind why they want these rooms.
E!: So what is the one item every couple should have in their sex rooms?
MR: A vibrator. I would also advise a couple's vibrator so that you can both use the remote control.
E!: Why do you think people are hesitant to introduce toys like floggers into the bedroom?
MR: They think it's torture. They don't want to do it because it's associated with pain. But it's not. Flogging is different types of sensations that you get not only impact play, it's also sensation as well.
E!: Is there a space that you have yet to tackle that you would like to do? Like a sex bathroom or a sex attic?
MR: Because I'm so typically English, I'd love to do a double decker red bus. I've already got the images in my mind. So I would be terribly excited to do that.
E!: What do you hope the main takeaway is from How to Build a Sex Room?
MR: That couples can actually openly talk about sex amongst themselves without feeling judged. For a husband and wife or for partnership to be able to express what they would like between the sheets. That's really important.
How to Build a Sex Room is now available to stream on Netflix.
(This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.)