Almost every doll gets a small tear, a stain or a dent at some point in her life. The good news: with TPE almost everything can be repaired yourself with a tube of glue and some patience. These are the four common types of damage and the approach we use ourselves.
Small tears
Tears usually appear in the armpits, groin and at the fingers, where the skin stretches during movement. Repair them as soon as you see them; a one-centimetre tear is closed in five minutes, a five-centimetre tear is an evening’s work. Clean and dry the tear, press the edges together and apply a thin layer of TPE glue into the seam with a toothpick. Hold the edges together for thirty seconds and then let it rest for a day without loading the spot. The glue fills and fuses the material; after a day the repair is as strong as the surrounding skin. Never use superglue or hobby glue: they set hard and tear the skin further open.
Stains
Blue or grey stains almost always come from clothing or bedding. Fresh stains often come out with a mild soap and a soft cloth. Set-in stains are treated with a stain remover cream for TPE: apply thinly, leave overnight, wipe off. Repeat for a few days; the stain slowly draws out. Deep, old stains fade but do not disappear completely. Prevention remains easier than cure: light or pre-washed clothing only.
Pressure marks and dents
A dent from prolonged lying or sitting often recovers within a few days once the pressure is gone. If not, lay a warm, wet towel (no hotter than hand-warm) on the spot for an hour; TPE regains its shape with gentle warmth. Never use a hairdryer or hot water.
Sticky skin
Sticky skin is not damage but overdue maintenance: the oil in the TPE has come to the surface. Clean the doll, let her dry completely and powder her with a talc-free care powder. Within a day the skin is silky again.
When you are better off calling us
A loose skeleton part, a neck bolt that no longer holds, a tear at a joint that keeps returning or a head that moves while attached: those are warranty matters. Send us a photo via live chat with the item number of your doll; in most cases we send a replacement part or a repair kit, and in the case of a manufacturing defect we sort it out at no cost.
