3DXDoll interview with The Doll Laboratory

We often get a lot of inquiries about designing a custom doll here at 3DXDolls. It can be a very expensive and the investment is quite substantial. In the past I’ve often suggested for people to find a doll that closely resembles to what they’re looking for and then customize it through hair, make up, eyes, and clothing. From there you can get a pretty model to what you’re looking for.

Today I wanted to let our audience know what's involved in the creation of a professional doll from the people at WMDoll, one of our top manufacturers. For that we turn to The Doll Laboratory!

I first came across TDL on X when he first showed the initial design for the Bimbo doll, one of WMDoll’s newest models. I’m a fan of the bimbo look and was pretty impressed by the new interventions going on with its evolution. I reached out to TDL and he was kind enough to take time out of his schedule to talk to us here at 3DXDolls!

Hello, Thanks for joining us! Please if you could tell us a little bit about your background? Did you have any formal art training before getting into the doll world?

I am a 57 years old male. I was born in the north east of France near the German border.
I got my High School Diploma specializing in Art in 1985 and studied at the Art University of Strasbourg in the late 80’ and early 90’. Then I taught art in schools for more than 25 years.

What brought you into dolls?

I first heard about sex dolls in the 1990’. I read about it in a French magazine. I was impressed by the realism of these human replicas made in silicone by this new brand (at that time) “Real Doll“.
During the same period I sculpted and modeled male and female bodies around the thematic of Gymnastics. I made little figures but also bigger ones and remember saying to myself “why am I bothering doing these small things? I should produce lifelike sex dolls instead!“. At that time the cost of one such doll was almost that of a small car so I probably thought I could make easy money that way. Of course it wasn’t that simple. Though I had the artistic skills to conceive a sex doll I had no idea how to make a working skeleton for example. So this “brilliant“ idea never materialized.

I met my (future) wife in 1995. We bought a house, got two kids and I forgot about sculpting and modeling figures and even more about sex dolls.

In the end what really brought me into sex dolls again was the internet. I stumbled into a website by accident whose subject was something like “the 10 weirdest websites in the world!“. Amongst them was, you guessed it, The Doll Forum! Ha! Ha!
It was in the early 2010’ and I was fascinated by the photographic work of some users. I wanted to do the same so I purchased a small silicone doll from Mini Love Doll at that time but quickly sold her because she wasn’t realistic enough for what I wanted to do.
A few years later in 2016 I was still searching for my “perfect“ doll when I saw the promo photos made by Mandos of the WM140D with head #36. Especially the one with the doll in his kitchen sitting on a dishwasher. I literally “fell in love“ with her and ordered one. She became “Svetlana“, the main character of my Doll Laboratory Stories.

How did you first get into doll design?

When I did my first photo shoot with “Svetlana“ I quickly felt the urge to design accessories for her. I wanted to make her look alive in pictures so I made her teeth inserts and tongues. I guess people liked what I did at that time because my doll got quite popular on TDF and even more so when I started to publish my Doll Laboratory comic pages.
With Molly (my second doll) on her side I created “The Gym Session“, a story that would attract many viewers. Amongst them was the creator of WM who contacted me via PM. We discussed the hobby and he eventually hired me in 2017 when we met at the EroFame Expo in Germany.

What are some of your thought processes in designing a prototype? However may revisions and corrections do you regularly go through when making the first design?

With my very first designs my goal was to design dolls that I liked and weren’t available from WM at that time. My first creation was the WM167 Fitness. A doll with a muscular body type that wasn’t at all represented in the manufacturer’s catalog. When I received the doll and saw it for the first time in real I felt like Dr. Frankenstein with his creature!
Now I am more and more trying to spot trends on doll forums like TDF and also on social media. I try to find out what people could want and what is liked. This is why I created the Bimbo Doll. I am not a fan of Bimbos in principle but I thought it was about time that a doll manufacturer did one.

How many revisions and corrections do you regularly go through when making the first design?

It really depends on the model. Some are “well born“ and require very little or no modification. Others need much more back and forth communication to get them right. But since this happens at a very early stage, when the model is still only 3D data, it usually doesn't take more than a few days.
There is also a big difference if I am working on a subject that I have submitted or if it is an external proposal. In the case of commissioned work I inevitably find myself making more adjustments.

How much feedback do you get from WMDoll and their designers? Are they easy to work with?

Here also it depends. But usually the problems appear when the master model is printed in 1:1 scale. This is the moment when the workers at the factory spot the problems. Most of the time these can be easily fixed but for example in the case of the Bimbo Doll we had to re-print a new master sadly. Still I was lucky in the end because WM sent me the flawed example and now I have a very rare 1:1 master print of the Bimbo Doll at home. Usually these master prints get damaged in the making process and are trashed so I am in the possession of a very rare collector’s item!

For the bimbo doll, what was the initial concern you had about her design?

My goal for this doll was to make a doll with an extreme hourglass figure. She had to have very big fake boobs, a thin waist and a big round butt. Of course the heads should also have very big fake lips. That was the starting point.
It was also important for me that this doll should become a pure sex doll. Not only a sight for the eyes. Thus she had to be manageable in terms of weight and also in terms of love hole accessibility.
Lastly, and even if WM didn’t specifically ask for it, I made sure that size wise the doll could be packed in a standard shipping box because I wanted her to remain easily available and not only destined to a small niche market.
If you ever receive a WM#20 Bimbo Doll one day, you will see that she fills the big cardboard package to the brim! Ha! Ha!

I’ve found that most people purchase a love doll to be sort of a companion to help fill loneliness. The dolls become more than just sex dolls but almost a friend as a sort. So with the Bimbo doll you wanted her to mainly be there to satisfy sexual urges, as in the ultimate sexpot to say. She’s there not to be your friend, but there to be your fuck doll and nothing more. Is that what I’m assuming with your baseline design for her?

There is a trend nowadays in the doll market for hyper realistic silicone dolls. I don’t have a problem with that at all and also not with the fact that some doll owners are after a “companion“ more than a sex object. But yes, the Bimbo is definitely more the latter than the former and that is assumed.

What has been the general consensus in regards? Was the feedback expected?

It was my proposal to WM to publish a “making of“ thread at TDF about the Bimbo Doll with the knowledge that it is something that can be double-edged. Though we got some remarks that were negative I think that, overall, people at TDF enjoyed having an insight about how a doll was made. Also, if we received some comments at the beginning that our doll wasn’t looking like a “real“ Bimbo, it all stopped when the first promo photos of the dolls appeared. To us she is totally worth the title of “Bimbo“.

Where do you see Doll tech going in the next 1-2 years? 5?

For the next 1-2 years not very far. For the next 5 years I’m afraid not much more. But I am a skeptical person by nature. The reality is that competition and technical breakthrough can make things happen much faster than one can imagine.
However, rather than wait for a hypothetical 100% perfect and autonomous doll that can make everything by itself I would rather enjoy what the doll industry has to offer us right now. And that is a lot compared to one decade ago!

What are suggestions you’d make for others trying to get into this market?

This is a difficult question. It depends if you want to do business or if you want to be creative within this hobby. If it is the former then I am afraid I am not in the position to give you any advice. If it is the latter then I suggest you buy a doll or several (if you haven’t done this already) and get creative with them.
For doll designing, knowing how to use 3D software is mandatory but that’s not enough. Some artistic skills may be necessary as well as a certain pragmatism and a sense of reality.
Also, it is better to know how to get along with Chinese people because most of the dolls are produced there.

What software do you use in your design for the dolls?

Very old ones! Ha! Ha! My computer is almost 15 years old and most 3D software that I use on it aren’t even supported anymore. But to do doll design it is more than enough as long as you can send 3D files in the proper format to the factory for printing. Creativity is more important than any software anyway.

Do you see doll ownership increasing in the future? Is this a good or bad thing for society?

I suppose that doll ownership will indeed increase in the future. Even more so if society continues to evolve in the same direction as at the moment. Right now it is a hobby that most doll owners hide from others. But there will be a point when people will discuss it more freely.

I also believe that the younger Manga, Gaming and Cosplay generation will have a huge impact on the doll market in the future. Maybe the pioneer days are already over?

True, with the rise of waifus like Tifa, Ultimate Bunny, Eve from Stellar Blade, and more coming soon, the market for love dolls made in their likeness will be in demand!


We want to thank TDL for taking the time to talk to use here at 3DXDolls. You can purchase the Bimbo Doll here and here. If you have any questions please feel free to ask!