Dear Condomunity readers, today I would simply love to wish you a Happy New Year.

By doing so I’d like to present the cute japanese Astrology Condoms. They are marketed by a very small company called Yamashita Latex. The company is so small that they don’t even have a website. I haven’t seen them available anywhere in western countries, but they’re a joy to look at anyways.

Right on time for the holiday season and New Year’s Eve the German Billy Boy Condoms launch party packages for the responsible-minded. Everyone is probably sooner or later confronted with this situation: Where to get condoms from after a party? Billy Boy want to make this super easy. From your drink of course.

A similar party drink failed to be marketed in Finland. Finland’s Product Control Agency found Mallaskoski’s campaign to be questionable and it had to be stopped. Billy Boy however already offers energy drinks with condoms and now launches new party drinks.

NHS (UK’s National Health Service) reminds us what’s the essential travel wear. Take condoms with you and keep them handy at any time.

They also remind us why that is important. Holidays, sun, sea, sand and beer make things look better than they really are. Watch the condoms on holiday video to see what we mean.

I remember some condom stories with the “eeeeeew” effect like the condom hairbands or the recent pizza condom. Let’s say I’ve just unearthed another pretty interesting example of condom use zen. Prepare for the Chocolate Condom Ice Cream.

Rumour has it that you can get an innocent Korean chocolate ice cream packaging with a cute turtle on it. However the instructions on the back of the ice cream packaging involves scissors and a somewhat strange shape for an ice cream.

It’s nothing new. Music influences young people. That is probably also why a new Spanish campaign produced a hip-hop inspired video and portal for youngsters to reduce the number of teenage pregnancies.

Just like in the recent condom ringtone campaign it lets you download the jingle (see canción del spot) as mp3 to your mobile or PC. People can join their facebook group or watch the tv-spot (all Spanish).

Condoms are in vogue. That is a fact we happily noticed over the last few weeks. The condom industry is not only recession proof, no, sales are always significantly up in tough times. Couples stay in to save money because of the credit crunch (or are they afraid they cannot afford babies?).

Another proof of this is the latest condom fashion craze. To celebrate World Aids Day the University of Oregon held a condom couture fashion show on the 5th of December 2008. Read on to see the results of the event.

• You might also enjoy reading the recent Jack Mackenroth’s Condom Wedding Dress

A few days ago we announced the LifeStyles Celebrity Pop Art Auction on Ebay. 7 A-list celebrities agreed to create their own unique condom packaging and sell it through Ebay. The proceeds then would go entirely to YouthAIDS.

Now unfortunately ebayers neglected the unique chance to see some celebrity condoms from up close and donate a considerate amount for World Aids Day. That didn’t happen. At least we now have some pretty pictures in store for you of celebrities holding condoms…

would look like this. No this is no joke. LifeStyles Condoms partnered up with A-list celebrities for this year’s World AIDS Day and AIDS awareness month. The question you always wanted answered is now waiting for you at Ebay: How do condom boxes designed by celebrities look like? And how can I actually get my hands on them? It’s easier than you may have thought, click on the pictures below, place a bid and wait out till the 5th of December to auction Tera Patrick condoms for example.

Here’s the whole story. The 7 celebrities are:

• Ashley Judd, actress
• Ethan Hawke, actor
• Margaret Cho, comedian and actress
• Dania Ramirez, actress
• Marc Ecko, fashion designer
• Dita Von Teese, model, burlesque performer and spokesperson for MAC Viva Glam
• Tera Patrick, adult film star

Their job was to transform the regular LifeStyles packaging into works of art. The exclusively designed condom boxes are available now in the LifeStyles Celebrity Pop Art Auction (1st to 5th of December) on ebay (with all proceeds being donated to YouthAIDS). Let’s have a look at the results. You can click on the pictures to go and start bidding.

Today December 1st is global World Aids Day and it’s a perfect opportunity to showcase some of the best Aids Awareness campaigns from the last few years. There were and still are many approaches to building awareness in the HIV/AIDS area but the following are the most brilliant ideas we’ve come across so far…

The selected campaigns are from many different countries and the striking thing about them is the endless creativity and various means to raise the awareness and educate people in a fun way. At the same time these are some interesting strategies to actually get more and more people to use condoms.

The bottom line is the same everywhere: Use condoms, protect yourself, AIDS is still deadly and a horrible burden for anyone affected.