Inflatable Dolls

Two very different things share this shelf. The printed vinyl dolls at around twenty five euros are party props: they are loud, they hold air for an evening and they are made to be photographed. The LoveToy models cost two to five times as much because the openings are separate TPE inserts set into the vinyl rather than a seam in it, and those are the ones people buy to use. Decide which of the two you want before you compare prices, because the cheap one will disappoint anyone who expected the other. All of them inflate by mouth or with a pump and all of them pack down to nothing.

8 products

An inflatable doll is a body of welded vinyl that you blow up, use and pack away flat. That description covers two products with almost nothing in common: the printed doll that gets carried around at a hen night, and the heavier model with moulded TPE openings that someone buys to use. This guide separates them and says what to check on each.

Party dolls

These are the ones people remember: a metre and a half of printed vinyl, a face with an open mouth, a price around twenty five euros. They are made to be carried into a restaurant, photographed and taken home in a handbag. The seams hold air for an evening rather than a season, and the openings are part of the vinyl. If the doll is a present or a joke, this is the one to buy, and spending more buys nothing you will use that night.

Dolls made to be used

LoveToy and makers like them build the same vinyl shell but set separate TPE inserts into it for the vagina and the anus. TPE is the soft, skin-warm material used in masturbator sleeves, so this is not a marketing claim but a different part: it feels different and it is cleaned differently. Some models add silicone breasts with soft nipples. Reckon on sixty euros and up, and reckon on buying lubricant with it.

Inflating without splitting a seam

Blow one up by mouth and stop while it still gives under your hand. An over-inflated doll splits at a seam, nearly always at a shoulder or a hip, and a vinyl seam cannot be repaired invisibly. A bicycle pump with a needle adapter is faster and easier to stop at the right moment. Inflate it an hour before the party so a slow leak shows up while you can still do something about it.

Cleaning and storing

Wash a TPE insert with warm water and a toy cleaner, dry it right through and dust it with renewal powder, the same as any TPE toy. Wipe the vinyl itself with a damp cloth and nothing stronger, because solvents fog the print. Store it deflated and loosely folded rather than creased hard in one spot, and away from a radiator: heat is what makes old vinyl go brittle and crack along the folds.

Lubricant

Water based only. A silicone lubricant attacks TPE inserts and oil attacks vinyl. That is the one rule worth remembering here, because it is also the one that ruins a doll for good.

Read our guide: Choosing a masturbator