I don’t usually have luck with vending machines because I’m a rather picky person, but if I were in Germany, I know there are 500 machines that would have me happy to make a purchase. TG-Gold-Super-Markt, a German company, has plans to install vending machines that sell gold as if it were chocolate bars. The machines will be in airports and train stations. The company hopes to capitalize on the increased interest in gold investments since people are wary of investing in other commodities. The machine prices will be 30 cents higher than the market value and will be updated every few minutes. TG-Gold-Super-Mark owner Thomas Geissler said, “German investors have always preferred to hold a lot of personal wealth in gold, for historical reasons. They have twice lost everything. Gold is a good thing to have in your pocket in uncertain times.” [Impact Lab]

Head to the make-up counter. The Wall Street Journal is reporting on one woman’s against the tide career change: As a teacher at a Montessori School (aka a fancy, alternative education-based school) in an Los Angeles suburb, Desiree Tordecilla, wasn’t exactly bringing home the bacon. When her husband decided to quit his job and go get his MBA, she needed to really get hustling on the income front (not to mention the health insurance situation, the family was without any form of medical backup). So when a cousin, who managed their local Nordstom Chanel makeup counter, mentioned there was an opening at the Dior counter across the aisle, Desiree applied. She interviewed and was hired not long after. Four years later she jumped to MAC and became an account manager which had her managing all the retail managers. Quite the steady climb—and all this while still teaching. Finally, long story short, she landed at Stila and has since become the vice president of global sales, artistry and international marketing. Oh and the MBA-seeking husband who left the family in a lurch? Long gone. She’s happily going it alone.

Next time you’re sprinting through the gauntlet of fragrance spritzers in your local department store, give the ladies a second thought. Just saying. [WSJ]

If times were tough—I mean, really tough—would you sell your body for money? In her Salon column “Pinched,” Tracy Clark-Flory reports that more women are entering the sex industry due the recession, including Marie, a 30-year-old former white-collar professional with a degree, who now operates out of hotel room and has “been paid more times than she can count, or cares to count, for sex, blow jobs, hand jobs and sensual massage.”

We already knew that sex still sells during a recession—sex toy sales are up, lingerie sales are booming, and sex workers—from prostitutes to strippers—aren’t being as adversely effected by the economic downturn as other businesses. But otherwise professional women who never considered a career in sex work suddenly taking it all off to make ends meet? Is this really a trend?

According to researchers, bloggers, and bitter, unemployed men, our recession has a gender-specific twist. They argue that the recession is in fact a “he-cession,” since four out of every five people who have lost their jobs during the past two years have been men. The shift in unemployment is due primarily to job losses in manufacturing and auto industries; men make up the majority of these work fields.

Weddings are just one opulent aspect of life that has gotten downsized during this recession. In an effort to at least make it look as though they’re not spending loads of dough on their wedding, more brides have been taking a “down home” approach to the ceremony and reception. The New York Times reports that more women are throwing backyard barbecue-like parties with pies instead of tiered wedding cakes, and slider burgers instead of salmon. This is cute and all, but more folksy weddings don’t actually cost less than extravagant ones. But, since we’re not really into excessive displays of wealth, here’s what we’d serve if we threw tradition (and smoked salmon) out the window…

While our government tries to figure out how to get us out of the recession, the Onion News Network “reports” on an option that could solve our sticky economic sitch: Why don’t couples who live in separate apartments move in together? As one girlfriend supporting this course of action says, “In a recession, it just doesn’t make any sense for two people who say they love each other to pay separate rents.” Meanwhile, the boyfriends fear they’ll lose any last semblance of independence.

Nary a day goes by lately without another store closing, one more report of plummeting sales figures and a bright glint of hope that Crocs may finally go under due to massive losses. Some economists and fashion analysts are even saying that these tough times have resulted in Depression-era style having a resurgence (not always a bad thing), like muted color palettes and longer skirts. But while the tanking economy is forcing some of us into Ramen dinners, ankle length sack skirts and boring colors, others are telling all economic indicators to screw themselves and sticking with bright, hot little dresses. And they’re doing better than most.

Times are tough around the world, and we’re all cutting back in some area of our life. In Japan, one common cost-cutting measure seems to be diamond engagement rings. The percent of men who bought engagement rings will slip from 1993’s 80 percent to just 50 percent this year, according to estimates from the Yano Research Institute. Some couples are deciding to spend more on wedding bands, or to buy watches or other jewelry rather than investing in a rock. Certainly, people shouldn’t purchase engagement rings they can’t afford, but do you think it’s even necessary for a man to propose with a ring? We asked three women for their thoughts.

Apparently Topshop, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Forever 21 aren’t doing too badly in the recession, even as their peers are experiencing millions of dollars in losses. A WWD survey of a 100 luxury industry experts came up with those four brands as the most likely to succeed in this economy and, as you can see, there’s quite a disparity in price points. We understand why Topshop and Forever 21 will do well—they’re on trend, fun and dirt cheap—but Chanel and Louis Vuitton need a little further explanation. Why Chanel and LV, not Prada and Dior? What is it about these particular $3,000 bags that makes them relatively recession-proof?

Plus-size fashionistas are going to have a harder time finding clothing that fits because plus-size clothing companies are being hit as hard by the recession as high-end designers and department stores. Many stores have decreased the amount of plus-size clothing they carry or have eliminated the department altogether. Plus-size clothing costs 10 percent more to manufacture, and the demand for it isn’t as high as smaller-sized garments. Sad. At least they can still shop at Faith 21 and Pure Energy. [Fashion Indie]

If your bedroom buddy has been sporting the same skivvies over and over, it may be a sign that the recession is still in full throttle. According to economist Alan Greenspan, the former Federal Reserve chief, underwear sales are a great indicator of the economy’s status. Over the course of 2008, male underwear sales declined by 12%; as we all know, GDP took a sharp drop as well. So just in case you didn’t already have enough on your mind during the brutal economic meltdown, you now have to worry about (and be wary of) your dude’s holey undies, too. Here’s hoping the economy—and our boyfriends’ boxer collection—are on the rise.

Further confirmation that sex-related industries continue to do well during a recession: Sales of personal lubricants increased 32 percent this quarter, up to $41.2 million. “When the economy goes down, sex goes up,” according to a spokesman for Johnson & Johnson, the company behind K-Y Yours & Mine his-and-hers lubricants. The “sexual-enhancement” product category is growing even faster, with sales up 74 percent this quarter. So, it seems the recession is good for something, namely taking away everyone’s money so they can’t afford to see a movie in the theater, but they have enough to pick up a few ounces of lube. But while you’re at the store, don’t forget a pack of condoms. An increase in unemployment rates increases fertility, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research, and we see a mini-baby boom as a result. [Ad Age]

There’s a follow-up to a story we told you about the other day. Alina Percea, the 18-year-old who auctioned her virginity to a wealthy Italian businessman for $13,600, may have to give 50% of her earnings to the government who say her act was “tantamount to prostitution.” The Romanian-born teenager lives in Germany where prostitution is legal, but heavily taxed. “It is not a moral standpoint but a fiscal one,” an official said. “Prostitution is not an illegal act in Germany, but not paying tax on earned money is. Consequently we are assessing her case and it looks likely she will have to pay around half of the sum she gained.”  Alina may also get stuck with a big VAT bill (value added tax), which would work out to another 19% tax, leaving her with only $4,700 for the sale of her virginity (she’d hoped to make at least $75,000 to help pay for school). So, let this be a lesson to you virgins out there: skip the auction block and just give it up the old-fashioned way — slightly drunk and to some guy you feel so-so about! [via DailyMail]

In case your first sexual experience wasn’t awkward enough, Alina Percea, the 18-year-old who auctioned her virginity on a German website to help pay for college, is dishing all the details of her experience. Proving he’s a real romantic, the 45-year-old Italian businessman whose $13,600 bid won the auction paid to fly Alina to Venice — after she underwent to medical exams to prove her virginity. In Venice, the two toured the city before retiring to a luxury hotel for the main event. “‘We kissed, then undressed each other,’ Alina says. ‘I’d never done that before, so I was nervous. He laid me on the bed and started kissing my body, then we had sex. I was attracted to him, so I enjoyed it, even though it was quite painful.’” The next morning Alina, who, as part of the auction, didn’t use protection, enjoyed breakfast with the winning bidder “like any other couple” and took a morning-after pill. The romance doesn’t stop there, guys! “He told me he’d like to see me again, and I agreed.” Although the money raised fell short of the $75,000 she hoped to earn, she says, “I hope to see the man again. And next time I won’t make him pay!” Awww. [via DailyMail]

In this economy, a lot of people are suffering, but at least one corporate giant doesn’t think our sex lives should. Pharmaceutical company Pfizer announced it will give “free prescription drugs—including its anti-impotence drug, Viagra—to people who no longer have jobs and health insurance.” Pfizer is offering about 70 other prescription drugs, which will all be available for free for up to a year to anyone who has been laid off since January 1st. But sorry, guys — to qualify, you need to have already been taking the drugs before you lost your job. [via NYDailyNews]

As we’re all trying to figure out what went wrong in our banking system to cause the recession we’re in, we’re blaming just about anyone and everyone involved, especially the men at the top. Yes, I said the men. Not many of the folks getting blamed on the news are women, so it leads us to wonder, would we be in this position if there had been more women leading the banking industry? 

German news magazine Der Spiegel interviewed Mary Ellen Iskenderian, the president and CEO of Women’s World Banking, an international micro-finance organization, and she addressed this. While she didn’t come out and say the recession wouldn’t have happened if women were in charge, she does say the story line might have played out differently…

If there’s one thing we’ve learned during the recession, it’s that sex still sells. Sex workers are pulling in the big bucks, the online porn business is booming, and the sex toy industry is thriving. The only person not reaping the rewards? Hugh Hefner. Playboy has hit a major slump, reporting a loss of $13.7 million this quarter as advertising dipped 26 percent. The magazine is considering raising their $5.99 cover price and reducing the frequency and circulation of the magazine. Interestingly, the magazine represents less than a quarter of the company’s total revenue, which has insiders speculating that Hefner will offset its losses and keep it afloat despite its decline. Regardless, major changes are in store. Last week, we told you that photographer Terry Richardson shot a recent cover, giving the magazine some much needed edge, and this week Heidi Montag Pratt confirmed she’ll be posing for the magazine, all in hopes of boosting newsstand sales.