How to choose your first reborn doll

Choosing your first reborn is mostly about how you want it to feel in your arms. Work through these five decisions in order and the choice narrows quickly.

1. Decide how it should feel

This is the body type, and it changes everything else:

• Full silicone — soft and squishy all over, the closest to a real newborn, and the heaviest. Best for collectors and adults. See our silicone babies.
• Cloth body with vinyl limbs — lighter, easier to dress and cuddle, gentler on a budget. See cloth-body babies.
• Weighted cloth body — a middle path: the softness of cloth with a newborn's heft. See weighted babies.

The full comparison goes into the detail.

2. Choose a size you can hold comfortably

Most of our babies are between 16 and 20 inches. A 20-inch baby feels like a well-grown newborn and fills your arms; a mini reborn at around 12 inches sits happily on a shelf or travels in a bag. If a baby is for someone with limited strength, smaller and lighter is kinder.

3. Think about weight

Weight is what makes people gasp when they first hold one. Five to seven pounds reads as newborn; two pounds reads as a doll. Why weight matters explains how it is done and what it changes.

4. Girl, boy or either

Purely personal. Full silicone babies are often anatomically correct; cloth-body babies usually are not. Every listing says which.

5. Set a budget, then look at photographs

Prices in our shop start from around £45 for a cloth-body baby and from around £195 for full silicone. Within any budget, judge the photographs: look for even skin tone, natural blushing at the knees and knuckles, and neat nails. Every photo on our site is of the exact baby you will receive, so what you study is what arrives.

Before you buy

• Read the size and weight on the listing rather than guessing from photos.
• Check the outfit description: ours arrive dressed, with a dummy and bottle.
• Remember our babies are not suitable for children under three — more on ages.
• If you are buying as a gift, clothes and dummy sizes helps you add something that fits.
• New to buying reborns in Britain? Prices, delivery and returns sets out what to expect.

Still unsure? Message us with what you have in mind and we will point you at two or three babies that suit.