"I always assumed I had a pretty decent sex life — that is, until my pal Heather dished the dirt on how she and her fiancé were regularly burning up their bedroom," recalls Justine, a 25-year-old paralegal. "Over lunch one day, she wickedly giggled that she was having incredible orgasms that gave her a round-the-clock, supersensual mind-set." After coaxing her highly satisfied pal to spill her prized secrets, Justine felt like she had stumbled onto a sexual pot of gold. "Heather's passion pointers have already taken my lust life from so-so to fantastically en fuego," says Justine.

So what did Justine learn from her doing-it demon pal? For starters, mattress megaprowess has nothing to do with possessing a perfect bod or loads of experience. What Heather and other vixens do have is a sex-cessful set of 10 pleasure principles they inherently follow.

Here, Cosmo's rounded up those randy rules so you too can become a member of the lusty ladies club — and keep your guy very, very grateful.

1. "I can switch on my sex drive."

"I conjure up a favorite fantasy — I imagine myself totally naked," reveals Cassie, a 29-year-old receptionist. "Whether I'm sitting behind my desk at work or I'm at the gym, I'll pretend my clothes are in a heap on the floor and that dozens of hungry male eyes are glued to my body."

Another libido-lifting trick is to wake up your senses: Spritz on your man's cologne, brush satiny fabric against your skin, or suck on some fruit. "Taking time to engage each sense — touch, taste, sound, scent, and sight — will quickly kick-start your lust drive," advises Susan Block, Ph.D., a sex therapist and radio show host.

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2. "My body is my pleasure palace."

To get better acquainted with your sexual self, take their cue and become your own passion professor. "My husband constantly thanks me for having such a swinging solo sex life," says Kerry, 27, a chef. "It's given me the chance to seek out my innermost hot spots and teach myself how to have a mind-blowing string of O's."

Another hands-on advantage: You take charge of your orgasmic destiny. "When a guy can't find my G-spot, I'll gently take his fingers and guide them," says Christi, 32, a teacher. "He still gets to be the source of my pleasure, but I'm the one exploding with ecstasy."

3. "I know I'm a sex goddess."
"I usually do a little striptease before sex — first disrobing seductively in front of my guy, then finishing by shaking my butt," reveals Rebecca, a 29-year-old therapist. Hearing that, you'd assume Rebecca has a tush as tempting as Jennifer Lopez's. Surprise — she describes her behind as Flat City. "Long ago, I learned that men are turned on by a woman who is uninhibited about her sexuality," she says. "My current beau would rather date a confident woman with an imperfect figure than a 36-24-36 chick who's too timid to show her shape."


4. "I speak up for myself in the sack."
On-fire femmes know that men love to please. But even the most perceptive guy in the world won't have your moan zones all mapped out. "I tell my partners how I want to be touched," says Eliza, a 29-year-old psychologist. "Then I giggle and scream to reinforce what he's doing. I let guys know how to send me soaring."


Remember: This is the electronic age; email can also be an erotic way to detail your desire directions. "My man's usual sex style — fast thrusting — was too rough. So I sent him a sexy message saying I was imagining him rocking me to a gentle, slo-mo climax," recalls Marion, 24, a real estate agent. "That night, he begged me for a demo. He loved the lighter touch, and now we go slow each time."

5. "It's not if I have an orgasm — it's how."
Women who ooze erotic energy don't view their Big O as a lucky bonus. Instead, reaching the pleasure pinnacle is their right. "Men don't consider it sex unless they have an orgasm," explains Maria, a 27-year-old sales assistant. "So why should I settle for almost-but-not-quite?" "I wish every woman would tattoo I deserve great sex on her brain," says Gina Ogden, Ph.D., author of Women Who Love Sex (Womanspirit, 1999). "Sexual satisfaction is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don't expect to be peeled off the ceiling, it won't happen." So start believing that every-time orgasms aren't elusive rewards reserved for select women — they're yours for the taking. "Once I became confident I would be able to come, I started having earth-shaking climaxes," confirms Stephanie, a 23-year-old teaching assistant.

6. "I've mastered one signature sex move."
"Most women try to please their partners with direct below-the-belt stimulation, so I devote my time to a guy's lesser-known erogenous areas," explains Mary, a 26-year-old jewelry designer. Her favorite place: that fleshy, supersensual web of skin between the thumb and finger. "Most guys I've dated don't even know about this hot spot."


7. "I get to know his secret desires."



8. "I never let sex get stale."


9. "I'm passionate 24-7."
"Sexuality is a round-the-clock activity, not an isolated act you do in 20-minute stretches," explains Dina, a 33-year-old nurse. "So I'll get up a little early to indulge in a luxurious bath rather than a five-minute shower. Or I'll wear silk stockings instead of drugstore panty hose."

We're not suggesting that silk stockings are a substitute for sizzling sex. But burning babes never separate their lust lives from the rest of their lives. "Great lovers integrate desire into everything they do so they feel sensuous all day long," says Susan Crain Bakos, author of Sexational Secrets (St. Martin's Press, 1996). "I love pre-sex tension and post-sex afterglow as much as I love doing the deed itself, so I'll make these moments extra sensual for me and my guy," admits Felicity, a 24-year-old MBA student. "Before sex, I'll flirt with him as if we were meeting for the first time. After we've climaxed, we keep touching each other, basking in how good we feel. Sex is so wonderful, why should it have a clear-cut beginning and end?"

10. "Sex is at the top of my to-do list."
Girls who love sex never make those tired, same-old excuses — "I got my period"; "I had a stressful day"; "I feel sooo fat" — for why they can't hit the sheets. Instead, passion is number one on their to-do lists, and they know that erotic action is the best cure for cramps, stress, and the blues. "Once you put off pleasure, it becomes easier and easier to postpone, and pretty soon you're out of the habit," explains Bakos. "It can be hard to get back in the sexual swing of things once your sensual switches have been turned off."

So even if you're not wildly turned on, you'll be doing yourself a favor by slipping into a sensuous state of mind. "When I come home flipped out from a rough day at work, sex is the furthest thing from my mind," remarks Amie, a 27-year-old reservations agent. "But instead of shutting out my boyfriend, I'd much rather re-spark my desire by kissing his five o'clock shadow and being held in his arms. Our lovemaking that night may not be mind-blowing, but it'll feel good — and making each other feel good keeps our bond strong."