About SquarePeg Toys
Why do you measure circumference rather than diameter?
Since most of my toys are made to fit our bodies, the majority are constructed with oval cross-sections making the diameter vary. Anyhow, your hole really doesn’t care how ‘wide’ something is….it sees things in terms of how far around it’s going to have to stretch ‘around’ an object. And for my irregularly shaped creations, circumference gives a much more accurate reading of how big you’re going to have to stretch to get around it. Also, being hand-made objects, even those that may appear spherical are still not perfectly round.
Can I fix my toy if it has a crack or tear?
Unfortunatley not. The good news is that the silicone won’t crack on its own. Guarding the integrity of the surface against knicks, crimps and undo stress is the best insurance. I never recommend throwing them in a drawer or chest, upright on a shelf is best.
Are your toys very flexible?
How much give do they have?
I formulate my silicone to have a nice ‘cushiony’ spring to it but still be firm enough so it can stand up on its own for handsfree play and make it easy to handle. My toys are definitely softer than most of the hard latex ones, and even more importantly, they don’t harden with age either. They are definitely not pliable to the point of jelly toys or some of the really soft vinyls. From both a creator’s and a users’s standpoint, I feel that if a toy is well designed there really is no need for the rubber to have excessive give. I have tried to find that balance between comfort, feel and durability. Overall, silicone is stronger and will flex much more than vinyl or latex can.
New for 2006, recent advances in silicone technology have allowed me to introduce a SuperSoft silicone in limited shapes. Its about half as soft as my original formula.
Why don't some of your toys have stops to prevent them from going in?
Most all of my toys do have a base of some sort, taking different forms depending on their intended use. People seem to take issue mostly with the ‘table top’ models like the “Stubby” or “Uncut”, which are relatively shorter and appear they could fall in to someone. I am a member of the very same community that I sell to, so I only design toys that I would feel comfortable playing with myself, using proper judgement. If a toy is so small that you would be excessively worried it might go in all the way without much force, then it is definitely a toy I would not recommend you play with. I have to design shapes for all statures of men and women, so chances are there will be toys much too small for the expeienced player to use. I ask that you use your own judgement to play with toys that won’t cause you worry.
Where do you get your silicone? I'd like to make some toys of my own.
Silicone is an extremely difficult elastomer to work with and requires some specialized industrial equipment, techinical and practical experience, and vacuum processing to get a successful result. Something I could not recommend just anyone attempt. Silicone runs in the range of $100 per gallon and mistakes quickly become costly. The combination of the initial investment in research and equipment combined with the high cost of the raw material is probably why there just aren’t that many studios creating toys in silicone. The reason why I think I am the only producer of large silicone toys on the market today is my very personal interest in the product.
