Maybe you’ve heard your little girl talking about them or seen the Youtube unboxing videos and you’re wondering…What is an LOL doll?
Here’s the short answer:
This!
What is an LOL doll?
But seriously, here’s a more full explanation.
An LOL doll is a small doll that comes with her own accessories inside a layered surprise ball.
The ball LOL dolls come in is layered so that children peel off each layer to get to the doll in the center. Each layer is filled with different items. Some have stickers and ring tattoos. Some have “blind bags”: small colored bags that you have to open to see what’s inside.
Different Balls Have Different Dolls
In general, there are two types of LOL dolls: big sisters (tots) and lil sisters.
Big sisters come in larger balls and have 7 or more layers to unwrap.
Lil sisters come in smaller balls and have the writing “Lil Sisters” on the package underneath the L.O.L. Surprise logo. There are 5 layers in Lil Sister balls.
Series and Waves of Dolls
The dolls come out in series and those series come out in waves. A series includes all the dolls of a particular type. The dolls in each series come out in waves. For example, if a series has 30 dolls total, 15 may be released at one time. The other 15 would be released a couple of months later.
Check out the dolls in Series 1…
And the dolls in Series 2…the napping dolls were part of wave 1.
Obviously, all this series and waves business is to maintain the excitement around the dolls so they will continue to sell. It would be boring if they all came out at the same time.
But there is an added benefit…
Between production rounds the makers often improve the quality of the dolls or add great features!
You Don’t Know Which Doll
One thing that is hard for adults to wrap their head around is which LOL doll their child is getting.
Here’s the thing…
You don’t know!
The doll on the package is almost never the doll that comes inside the ball. While this may be frustrating for you, children love it!
They want to be surprised and intrigued. It’s part of the fun of having the doll.
Time to Buy…
If your little one is into LOL dolls, we’ve got a few recommendations to help you NOT spend a fortune on them:
1. Buy them on Amazon. These dolls sell out fast in stores so it will be difficult to find them retail. Buying from other online sites isn’t advised because there is a black market where people sell fake LOL dolls and seriously overcharge. You can check the prices on Amazon using this list we update regularly.
2. Think about buying other LOL products. Once your little one has a few dolls, introduce her to the LOL board game or LOL jigsaw puzzle. These toys can fulfill her interest in LOL dolls, while entertaining her repeatedly. They are easier to find than dolls and can be given as standalone gifts.
3. Wait until after the frenzy is over to buy. Many people rush out and buy everything when it first comes out and are then frustrated when it’s gone immediately. That’s because everyone was thinking the same thing! If you wait one month to six weeks after if comes out, retailers will have had time to restock and the feeding frenzy is over. You won’t have to worry about the price gouging because prices will be normal again.
More Questions?
If you have more questions about what is an LOL doll, check out our complete beginner’s guide.
My brother suggested I might like this website.
He was totally right. This post actually made my day.
You can not imagine just how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!