Checking for Real Iplehouse Dolls

I took this picture mostly for the different skin colors (white, normal, realskin, light brown) but you can also see the markings that Iplehouse puts on the knees of the dolls--an "IH", and the body type (SID, NYID etc.). If you are buying from somewhere like Ebay, it's a good idea to ask for photos of these. The oldest EID girls have the IH on their butts. There also should be a headplate on the back of the head "Iplehouse since 2003":

There were some batches of the older dolls (the smaller 60 cm ones) where the headplate was loose and fell off, and a few that went on crooked, but there should at least be an oval space for it and some remnant glue. The first of the larger dolls had a few issues--the first Light Brown/ Brown dolls had the color applied on the surface, so some Ashantis need to be treated carefully, but later, newer dolls have the color in the resin--Realskin goes all the way through so the inside of the doll should be the same color as the outside. The joints should fit together perfectly--here is an Senior Iplehouse Doll (SID) knee

This beautiful engineering is what makes these dolls so desirable--and expensive. Here is the inside of the hip (on dolls after 2012, I think)

Here is an SID elbow:

Ideally you should be buying a doll that has the original box (each size is color-coded), nested in cut foam, with a certificate, the heel feet if it is a female, the care guide, and a promo sheet of Iplehouses' other dolls. I realize that owners often toss these things (and they lose a chunk of the value of the doll when they do) but you can always ask for joint photos and the head plate. I won't go into a big thing about why you shouldn't buy recasts, but basically if you do, you are wasting your money. The money you'd waste on two recasts could buy you a non-toxic, "real deal" you will love, and support the artists whose work you admire.