Before you take the plunge into doll ownership, you need to do your online research first. Communities such as this one and the bigger communities all have advise to give. Check out web articles relating to looking after your doll, especially on retailer websites, and then check out YouTube videos about Love (sex) Dolls. All valuable learning...
As with everything, you need to choose your first Love Doll wisely. They come in all shapes and sizes. There are limits to how small they can be because in certain countries, like the UK “Childlike” dolls are illegal and height has a lot to do with it. You can get quite tall dolls, but the taller they are the heavier they become. They come in all genders, skin colours, breast sizes and body mass.
The first thing you need to consider is the dolls weight. I have seen so many cases where a new doll owner has received their first doll and immediately realised it's TOO HEAVY. 30Kgs might not seem a lot, its half the weight of a real breathing woman, but you must consider that this is “dead” weight. She can’t help you lift her. Plus, a doll is as stiff as a board which means you need to learn new techniques to carrying her. Most doll owners use the bridal technique (arm under knees and across her back), or the bear hug, arms around her waist and buttocks and lift her feet off the ground, always keep your back straight, its very easy to get a strain.
I can't emphasis the weight problem enough, its the number one consideration you need to take note of.
After the weight, you need to pick either TPE or Silicon. Both have advantages and disadvantages. First is cost, silicon dolls are much more expensive than TPE. They are designed to last much longer and are easier to clean and look after than their TPE counterparts.
However this doesn't mean better, a lot of doll owners prefer TPE, myself included. TPE is softer and the skin feels more human, at least to me. There isn't the detail you get in Silicon, but its still very close to human, especially the higher end dolls. Kimberley pictured below is one of, if not the cheapest TPE girls you can get in the UK at under £500 (at time of writing). Even so, she is still incredible and the pictures you can get of her can be amazing. Especially using apps such as faceapp to put a smile on her face, more about Faceapp in a new article.
The cost of dolls range from as low as £500 for starter dolls such as Kimber dolls, which are excellent dolls. They are light at about 30Kgs, good quality TPE, the skeleton is nice and tight, she has standing feet and she has this lovely delightful face. However, there isn't much detail in her face, the skeleton can start to loosen over time, her wired hands will start to falter very quickly until she is left with broken finger wires or even as far as floppy hands! But at £500, you can just get a new one?
Then the sky's the limit to how much you'd like to pay for the higher grade dolls. The average price for a high end TPE doll is about £1500, you can add another thousand or so for a Silicon. Their faces have much more detail, they come with gel breasts, you can get them with articulated fingered hands, better skeletons and even robotic heads.
Dolls come in head and body combinations for the most part. Some dolls have her head permanently attached; most Piper dolls (which is a make of doll) are like this and can't be changed. For the rest you can choose which head goes on which body combination. Most sites want to sell you dolls already matched for you, the vendor should be able to help you with combinations if you want a custom made doll. Some heads fit certain bodies better than others.
Be aware of dolls at very low prices, these could be counterfeit dolls. Which mean dolls that resembles a doll from a top manufacturer and usually sold with a photo shoot from the very same doll, but will probably look quite different when you get them out of the box. They'll also have lower grade TPE and perhaps a less effective skeleton. That's not to mean that they are not good dolls for the price, but not as lovely or as reliable as their more expensive counterparts. The general rule is, you get what you pay for.
You're really advised to ask real doll owners about their experiences with buying dolls, so they can guide you to the more reputable vendors. If you search the vendor sites, you’ll know when you see the right doll for you. Just check with us here first before purchasing for advise on the retailers, the dolls aren't going anywhere.
It doesn’t stop with buying the doll though, then you need everything that comes with them….
The Story Teller