Is it "wrong" to let younger kids have BJDs?

I think it should depend on the child. It is never "wrong" to spend a large amount on a child if you can afford it. Better than getting the kid a pony and he/she never takes care of it. My grandmother had bought me some expensive toys I did not take care of in the past and regret it, but that's my own fault. But that's life.

My mom's bosses would buy very expensive things for their spoiled children. A playhouse with electricity and later water, couple Shetland ponies, pretty much anything these girls wanted. While it isn't my say in what they spend their money on, I honestly wish they wouldn't have indulged them so much. The ponies found new homes a year later, the house was played in often though, but many of their toys would not be taken care of. Good thing is the mother often donated the lesser used toys before new ones were given. They turned out to be okay kids growing up though, went through a snotty phase but alright in their preteen and older. I've no doubt if they wanted a bjd their parents would have gotten them whatever they wanted. Still, in no place to call it wrong. I'll buy my children a bjd if they want one, but will take it away if they don't take care of it.

 

Oh and if an older child/younger teenager saved up their pocket money/allowance/birthday/christmas money and wanted to buy a BJD I'd allow them to.

If they broke it, I'd be 'oh well, you spent your money on it, your problem, don't expect me to replace it' (I'd be a lot more annoyed if it was a doll I'd shelled out for)
But again, if a friend of theirs broke a doll the kid had saved up for, that friend's parents would be expected to pay

One thing really annoyed me growing up, some of my sister's friends broke things belonging to me and my mother refused to ask their parents to pay for it because she didn't want to offend the parents or something.
Some neighbourhood kids stole money from us and when I went to their parents to complain the parents were cool about it, but when I told my mother I'd told them, she freaked at us because in her tiny little mind her social standing was more important (She used to lecture us about stealing, 'never even steal a ha'penny (hay-penny)' 'stealing is a mortal sin' but it turned out it was OK for other people to steal from us')

In my opinion, if a child wants their friend's parents to replace for/pay for something their friend broke, but their parent doesn't want to because they don't want to risk offending the parents, then they should pay for their child's broken item

 

I got into the hobby when I was 11, but didn't own one until I was just 13..... I did a LOT of research beforehand. I feel that actual age has little to do with the maturity needed for this hobby, BUT.

At the last meetup I went to, a woman brought her son who was maybe 5 or 6. She would bark at him if he got close to any other dolls but she had bought him his own BJD. I couldn't tell what brand it was, but he carried it around by the ankle and wapped it around like a ragdoll and clearly had NO IDEA what it was! I was astounded that anyone would give a child THAT young such a fragile 'toy'. I mean, I have younger cousins who are 6 and 7 who respect my and my grandmother's BJDs and fashion dolls, and have for a very long time, understanding that they were special and they could only use them gently, but they DID understand. This little boy at the meet clearly did not. I wanted to smack his mother, especially since she was being pretty hypocritical, yelling at him not to touch everyone else's dolls while he trashed his own. THAT was messed up to me.

 

Like some have said, it all depends on the kid. If the child is mature enough to take care of the doll then sure! But if the child is going to treat it like a sad beat up barbie doll, then not so much

 

I don't think this is a moral issue. It's how the parents or older sibling feels about the child they're buying the doll for. Do they feel as though they should give that child something that costs $150+? It definitely depends on the child and how they treat their other toys.

 

Like so many other said, it depends so much upon the child.
I gave my sister (14 years old) a PukiPuki for Christmas and I have no doubt whatsoever that she'll take good care of it because I know her and how she is with things. Especially since she had been drooling after that doll for some time too :P
However, a friend of hers who is actually a year older should probably never be trusted with a bjd, so I don't think it should depend on the age at all, it's more about the mental maturity of the child in question.

 

It all comes down to maturity as others have pointed out. I would trust a 13 year old over an 18 year old if that 13 year old is far more mature at handling more delicate things. As well, if they saved up their own money for it, I don't see why they couldn't have it as it's their own money.

 

Personally, I would love to buy my future kids a ball joint doll, perhaps when they are nine or ten. There are plenty of inexpensive dolls around and bjds provide a rare sense of responsibility, care, and creativity. If I can see that my kids are mature enough to handle the doll, than yes, that doll is theirs, especially if we work out some sort of deal with paying for it. I'm not expecting a child not yet in their teens to pay for the whole doll, but if raised half or so, I'd match it. I think there are so many benefits to owning a ball joint doll, I really see no reason for a reasonably responsible child to not have an inexpensive one. My boyfriend and I are huge on bjds and creativity, so this is something we definitely want to do with our future kids.

 

I think 15+ is ok mostly because of personal experience i'm 16 and i am extremely careful with him and research about him all the time before i do anything on him and i know other people my age who care just as much as anyone older
although i think it is very wrong for a child below 13 to own a bjd, children change their minds all the time, and they are clumsy, these dolls arent toys and sometimes children will not understand what it means to have a bjd, thet are also too young to research things for their dolls. Perhaps a tiny will not be so bad, but still

 

I'm part of the "children" group and I have my first BJD sitting in my lap as I type, I paid for half her fees. I think that really it depends on how you can handle such a fragile item, I treat my doll like she's a real person and I basically take as much care for her as some older people do. I think I am mature and responsible enough to handle BJDs and so I requested my own. Of course some people who are older than me might treat their dolls worse than I do, again, it really depends on how mature the "child" is.

 

I believe that it all comes down to the individual and their maturity level. I'm 16 but I know that at 10 or 11, I was responsible enough to have been able to treat my doll correctly despite my age. Every person is different when it comes to maturity. If the kid can handle it, and they pay for it on their own, go ahead.

 

No. Bottom line is, it depends on the child, as so many have said. Being a kid does not necessarily mean recklessness, immaturity or even playfulness. I've met some very mature kids...

 

I have two children, Natalie 5, and Nathan 8...one of the reasons I found BJD's was because I was looking for dolls that would be enjoyable to play with together (hate Barbie!). I have several BJD's now and each child has one of their own as well. There are several less expensive dolls on the market so that your children can enjoy one too. BJD's are actually easier to take care of than many toys. BJD's can be completely cleaned! If a part of their body gets stained...you can just sand, buff and viola! If makeup gets scratched...it can easily be redone. If a part of body gets chipped it can be replaced. Vinyl dolls are almost impossible to fix makeup, breaks and stains. So to me it is worth the small investment so that they have a quality toy that they can have their whole lives if they choose to.

 

It really depends on the child. If you feel that they are mature enough to have a doll, then supervise them playing with it for a while until you're confident they can take care of it.

 

Depends on the kid, at the age of 15 when i started my doll hobby years ago i def. handled it well obviously. but im not as trusting with others lol. my friends have a 12 year old who i cant stand when they bring her over because she oogles my dolls and i dont want to bark at her to not touch, but REALLY DO NOT TOUCH THEM so....i wouldnt personally...but of course everyone is different!

 

As everyones said, it depends on the maturity of the child. I think most kids have a sense of something 'precious' that they'll happily have sit on their lap and they'll be gentle but then again, not all kids are like that. I know for one I ruined many a barbie when I was younger because i liked to paint but if we're talking 12ish I think hey, as long as they realize what the doll is, and how they have to treat it. but I do think not to spend too much money on said doll, because i dont think there would be anything worse than having a $800 doll get ruined.

 

Depends on the child, as everyone else is saying.
I have a friend who is from a very rich family, and she had both a BJD and a pullip when she was a kid, and purposely broke and threw away both because they "scared" her. This was before I knew her or I would've rescued them. To her, the money spent on those dolls is absolutely nothing.
She's not an awful person, though! Just not the type to play with dolls I guess. x)
However, I know that as a kid I would've kept good care of BJDs, it's just my family are poor and I was never rich enough to buy one either.
C'est la vie.

 

I'm just going to pop in and point out that when I drive by middle schools I see 9 year olds with I-pods and expensive cell phones which are much easier to break than BJD's. I don't see then why they couldn't carry the responsibility for a doll of similar price. At least the doll doesn't accrue an additional monthly bill to use it XD

 

Thinking back to my youth, I would have been great with a BJD even as a child as young as eight. Like many said, it really would depend on the child. Now, don't take this as me saying a kid (lets say pre-teen) should get a doll that's crazy expensive ($250+), but I could see giving them an affordable BJD to start off with, then helping them save for more if they enjoy the hobby.

 

I really think it depends on who the owner of the person is, as every person is an individual. Myself, I'm fourteen. I haven't gotten my first bjd yet, but bought him. And I've met other bjd owners before and held in their dolls etc. Also I'm like the most careful person ever when it comes to delicate things, although I'm veeeery clumsy so I drop stuff a lot. I haven't dropped a bjd yet and I really hope that it'll stay that way! ^^'

But anyhow. My point is, some younger kids might be mature enough to own bjds, others aren't. I know that some of my friends that are my age would probably just not read on forums or study bjds at all, and let their dolls be in the sun all day and such. Which is kind of disappointing in a way. But it's their money, I believe. Who would buy a really expensive thing and then not take care of it anyway? I know I wouldn't.