Use

The California Exotics Toy Covers are thick, stretchy, tough latex covers for toys. About as thick as a latex exam glove, they have a durability advantage over thinner condoms when it comes to toy use (but they shouldn't be used as condoms).

These are designed around phallic-shaped penetrative toys, and work best on phallic-shaped toys, such as dildos and insertable vibrators. They also work pretty well for small to medium butt plugs. I had difficulty getting the Toy Covers to stay on toys that get larger towards the base.

Why use toy covers? There are many possible reasons. Toy covers make cleanup easier, they help to keep porous toys more sanitary, and they provide a barrier between you and any irritating chemicals that may be in a favorite toy. They're also good if you're planning on moving between the mouth/vagina or anus so you don't have to stop and wash.

Material / Texture

The Toy Covers are made from smooth latex rubber. My sample did not have a noticeable smell or taste, and the smooth surface doesn't add any texture to the toys.

Design / Shape / Size

Unrolled and measured the Standard Size Toy Covers come in at approximately 1-3/8" in diameter by 7" in length. Since latex is stretchy, it's difficult to get a feel for what the toy will cover on numbers alone. To get a better feel, I tried it out on several different dildos and plugs. It had no problems covering my Fun Factory Tiger (7-1/4" long (usable) X 1-34" in diameter), and it didn't take much persuasion to get it on my Tantus Captain (6-1/2" usable length X 1-7/8" in diameter). Use on toys with noticeable curves or large bulges was a bit more problematic, but the Toy Covers could easily be used on small to medium butt plugs.

Functions / Performance / Controls

Easy to roll on, the Toy Covers hug mid-sized toys tightly to let the toy's texture come through. People with smaller toys might want to opt for the smaller size, though, as the standard size can get a little baggy on small toys.

Care and Maintenance

Care for the Toy Covers couldn't be easier. Roll one on your toy, lube up with your favorite water or silicone based lube, have your fun, and then remove and discard. Note that as a latex product these aren't good for use with oil-based lubes.

Packaging

The Toy Covers come packed in small plastic condom-style pouches, with "Toy Covers" emblazoned on them in pink so you don't need to worry about getting them confused with condoms as long as the lights are on (since they aren't medically rated it's best not to get the Toy Covers confused with condoms).

Personal comments

I had several practical questions about the Toy Covers that I explored in testing: Would they work to keep incompatible lubricants away from toys, would they keep irritating chemicals away from my body, would they make cleanup easier, and would they hold lubricants well during use.

Starting from back to front: Do the Toy Covers hold lubricants? Yes, the Toy Covers do hold water and silicone based lubricants pretty well. There's a bit of bead-up on initial application of a water-based lube, but the Toy Covers hold enough to keep things smooth.

Do the Toy Covers make cleanup easier? Yes, since the insertable portion of the toy is covered cleanup is easy, with only some spots of lube at the base where the Toy Cover didn't cover. You do still need to wash your toys after use, and you do need to keep in mind that some material can get around the toy cover at the base of the toy.

If I had a favorite toy that had phthalates or other irritating chemicals in it I would have no problems using the Toy Covers to keep them away from my personal parts. They're tough enough to stand up to a lot of use before something tears or leaches through.

I'd stay away from using the Toy Covers to keep silicone lubricants away from a favorite, silicone-lube-incompatible toy, though, unless the toy was small enough to fit entirely inside the Toy Cover. During tests lube did make its way down onto the uncovered base of the toy, and this could cause problems.

I had some trouble getting the Toy Covers to stay completely on some toys with bulged bases (Tantus Curve) or pronounced curves (Bad Boy prostate massager).