Children handling your dolls?

My niece is 14 months old and I've let her hold my Obitsu Gretal head, in case she decided it was a ball and would throw it. I simply told her to "be nice" and she just carried it around with her everywhere in the house. Then my sister-in-law walked in, gave me an odd look and I just simply replied, "Starting her young."

 

The very first doll meet up I went to, with my brand new BJD, was at a shelter house at a public park, at one end a nice normal African American family was holding a birthday party for a little girl of perhaps six, at the other end was all us kinda weird white girls having a doll meet. The two groups largely ignored each other, except for this one little girl, she was very quiet, and very lovely, beautifuly dressed, and she kept edging closer to look at the dolls, her mother monitoring her from nearby, she stood and stared at my doll for a long time before softly asking if she could hold him. Of course I let her hold him. She was so sweet and polite and well behaved. My own nieces and nephews I probably would not allow to hold him... as I have seen them lob dolls across a room. It just depends on the child.

 

Yeah, no. I don't like or trust kids, so I would never let them handle my dolls.

 

I have a four year old daughter who has her own AOD MSD size doll which I bought for her on the secondary market. She is kept safe with my SD dolls but my daughter does get her out and hold her and hug her. In my experience my children only learnt to respect things if they were given the trust and respect to be allowed to handle them in the first place. I dont let her handle my SD size dolls as they are too large for her to hold comfortably but she loves having a sort through their clothes and shoes.

 

I was going to make a post somewhat similar to this so it's good that this one came up I guess. My family recently had a baby come in, my new (now nine month old) sister! She's a doll really and the sweetest baby I have ever met. She spends hours and hours with me in my room and this morning as I was waking up (my mom gives her to me at four in the morning so she can go to work) I just heard random baby babble. I'm literally like "what is this girl up to now?" As I look over I see my baby sister sitting my bed next to me talking to my Bjd. I couldn't stop laughing! It was so cute! I like to keep my dolls next to me so their the first things I see in the morning and here's my little baby sis talking to them before I even say hello! She was so animated to! She pointed at them and baby babbled, she even showed my dolls her little princess sofi dolly she sleeps with. So cute!

Im im sure as soon as she's a bit older I will have to worry about her endless curiosity but for now it's just plain cute seeing her conversing with my dolls.

 

I'm actually hesitant about adults, not kids xD The complete opposite, I know.

The adults, like my older sisters all see them as Barbie dolls or the bendable vinyl Bratz dolls. So, they would "play" with them and twist and move their arms around mimicking a talking person and such, making them reach up and touch their hair and that kinda thing. I feel very uncomfortable with it, and I always say it nicely, but their replies are "It's a doll, its meant to be played with..." xD Next time, I'll get a casket or a display and lock it up when I'm not using them lol!

The kids on the other hand, are surprisingly very very well-behaved! o_o I'm still in awe actually, especially at the girls. They're my cousins, and they're very young, from ages 3 to 10, and I'd expect them to touch and hold them, but they did no such thing. I think my dolls carry this 'You're not allowed to touch me' vibe, it's actually cool, muahahaha! :P One of the little boys however was curious with a weird head being face-up'd before and-Oh my God! Yes! Touched it
Haha, just kidding, I'm fine with it. Nothing got ruined

 

I would never let a kid play with my dolls until it was my niece but other then that ages 0-10 can not play with my dolls. 11-15 year ods can hold them but no one other then myself my sisters or my niece can touch my dolls.

 

I think it would depend on the child, for me. If I know the kid, and if I know that they treat their own dolls and other peoples property nicely, I would consider letting them "play" with my doll. But if I know that they're unruly and would strap a firecracker to his back the moment I looked away, my doll would be locked up without hesitation.

 

I honestly don't trust kids, so I don't think I would let a child hold one of my dolls. I've always had the impression that they trip more easily than adults, and I wouldn't want to risk that a child falls down while handling my expensive property.

 

My partner has two children who are about 4 and 8 years old. I trust neither with my dolls but perhaps that is because they aren't 'my' children. I'm pretty sure I'd be comfortable letting my own children handle them once I deem them responsible enough. I don't want anyone to handle my dolls but me though. I let my partner touch them occassionaly but he's not a big fan so that's not an issue. I'd probably say no to anyone else asking me to hold my doll. If I had to trust anyone with them it would be my mother.

Besides that I feel like his children don't take responsibility for their own toys let alone the 'expensive toys' of someone else. I'd be scared to death if any of you would let them hold your doll. If they do anything to it, it would be my wallet draining and let me tell you there isn't much left to drain. I'm pretty sure there are children out there that would treat these dolls with proper respect but neither can be found here so for now I don't let anyone play with them.

I do let them enjoy the experience by helping me comb a wig (removed from the doll off course) and pick out clothes or draw clothing designs. I always turn to them for naming help and comment on how the doll looks. Children are brutally honest about looks so their feedback is actually very useful. You should try it sometimes, haha~

 

I think the big thing here is that our BJD's are collectibles and not rough and tumble dolls. An earlier post in this thread said it right..would you let a kid handle a $300 porcelain ornament? No, of course not.

I have a 1/12 scale BJD and am renovating a BIG dollhouse for her home. I get asked all the time what kid I'm doing all this for? haha...me, I'm the big kid.

My lads are grown and moved out of home, I worry more about our cat touching my little elf. I have Lilac Dreaming out on the table next to me all the time, when the cat wants attention she jumps up on the table and swats at her! I had a bad dream the other night that I had left LD out on the table and the cat had grabbed her and gone and buried her in the garden..that woke me up in a sweat!

 

No never! I don't trust many adults touching them and I have absolutely no intention of letting a child near them. I see them as no different to any expensive or limited piece of art and I'm not taking any chances.

 

If there was a kid in my house, I would hide the dolls just like I do when there are other adults. I don't like to be pestered with questions and weird reactions.

 

I let my nine and 12 year old touch my doll and I have one hidden away for my eldest daughter as a Christmas present. Both of them have been taught to respect lovely things that other people have worked hard to pay for. My youngest has had porcelain dolls, large one and doll house ones, since she was seven and they are in perfect condition. I wouldn't let their friends near them though and nor would I let my mother. That woman is so clumsy, things just fall apart in her wake!

 

For me, it would largely depend on the child and the surrounding environment/circumstances. My first inclination is to say no, I would never let a child hold, touch, or handle my BJDs or any of my other expensive/OOAK dolls. But I realize that it completely depends on the child's age, zir demeanor/behavior, and the environment we're in -- because if an eight-year-old who was very quiet, careful, gentle, and respectful (of other people, their property, their boundaries, etc.) politely asked to see one of my dolls, and assuming I could very closely supervise the entire time, then I'd be fine with it. I can't say I'd allow a child much younger than eight to handle my dolls, though, regardless of other circumstances.

 

Honestly, I don't trust most people MY age(I'm 21) to handle my dolls. I have had things stolen from me, borrowed and then not returned(Or worse, returned to me in poorer condition than it was when I lent the item to them), or purposefully knocked off of tables/desks many times in the past, so needless to say I'm paranoid and extremely possessive about my stuff(Especially since it's important to me that my things are treated well and kept in good condition. I was raised to take care of my things and it infuriates me when people mess up my stuff).

Beyond that ... it would depend entirely on the kid, how well I know them, and how they were raised. I wouldn't let my sisters kids anywhere NEAR my dolls since they don't even keep their own toys in good shape and have no sense of respect for other people's property. My brother's kids, I'd probably be alright with as long as they ask first, since they're quite a bit older(13 and 16) and weren't raised to be out of control BRATS. The elder of the two actually showed a little bit of interest in them and wanted one herself someday. Not sure if she still does, but, one can dream, right?

 

I think for me it would greatly depend on who these kids are, the relationship I have with them, how much I trust them, etc. Same goes for people my age as well. I know and have seen way too manypeople who just don't care about respecting other peoples things let along their own...so of course I wouldn't trust someone like that handle a doll.

 

The two eldest nieces? Hell no. One is 12 going on 22 and very impulsive. If I catch her in a calm mood, I'll give it a try. Yikes Tweens... Though she did indicate she'd like one. Maybe if she still likes them when she's older. I'm HOPING that the Geek influence is stronger than her Dad's "bro dude" self centered lawyer, Ed Hardy and Abercrombie attitude. (Can you tell what "side" of the divorce we are on?) the 8 year old has a lot of dolls, but gets overly excited and forgets herself.

The just turned 5 year old has held my dolls the most. She knows we wash our hands first, and unless we are having a tea party, no food with dolls... she also knows to handle dolls on their clothes. My boyfriend bought her a "New in Box" Madame Alexander Easter limited edition at an estate sale. The seller asked if it was going to "a collector". William took almost perverse pleasure when he said it was for a kindergartner.

Some back story, my sister and I both played with Madame Alexander dolls as children. We were very careful children. Women at the doll shop in Old Town San Diego were shocked that we were allowed to play with them.

I prefer kids who I can instruct over "adults" who think they have a right to touch my stuff, and are indignant if I tell them to only touch the doll's clothes when handling. Anyone who attempts to tell me they're too expensive? Eww no.

 

Once. My older sister's friend's daughter... Maybe she was... 5 or 6 years old at that time. she touched my tiny dolls. I just worried about, but she touched very very slowly and safely, so it is pretty fine to me :-)

 

I'm nervous about this because I don't yet own a full-sized bjd, and the dolls I do have really interest my children. My daughter, who is nearly three, is always pointing to them. Even my 9 year old son asks to go into my bedroom and see the dolls now and then. I don't let them touch them... but how long can I keep them away? And what will happen when a much more expensive (and likely more fascinating) doll enters the house? Eep!