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

When you think back dolls were not made to be toys, they were made to teach children how to look after a baby or a small child, to help teach it manners and sharing. Fashion dolls came later initally as toys then as a tool for fashion designers and couturiers.

There is no wrong or right, as long as the child is taught to respect their toys then there should be no problem.

 

as long as the child is taught to take proper care of the doll and the doll is sensibly priced, i see no problem with it
however if the doll is being ruined/treated roughly etc or the parents are having to break the bank to buy what is essentially going to be a toy in the eyes of the child then I'd disagree with it.x

 

It's up to each person. If they truly want one and they'll take care of it - cool. I don't think they should be denied one simply because of age.

 

I let my 6 year old handle my tiny Molly. She's very careful, knows there are rules -- wash your hands before you touch, don't touch Molly's face, treat her gently and safely -- and has always handled her better than some careless adults I know.
My kid has her own doll collections (not BJDs) so she is used to thinking of them as special toys. It really depends on the kid. I won't hesitate to help her select her own BJD in a few years if she still shows an interest and decides to save her allowance for one.

 

I cringe to see an unkempt bookshelf; broken spines, rippling covers, stains, water damage... but I keep my mouth shut because it's none of my business. The books I keep are immaculate, my shelves pristine and the books well-loved. Old, but in new condition.

It's the same thing with dolls. It's their doll, they can do what they want with it and it's none of my business (no matter how much it may hurt to look at).

 

It depends on how young the kid is for me just because of how much the dolls cost you don't want some kid running around the house with your doll not taking great care for it.

 

if i were to give my child my doll she would tear her apart in less than a week.... >_> enough said

 

I think it depends on the child and how he/she looks after things. It would also be up to an adult to explain what is necessary to keep a BJD in good condition.

 

My boys love my dolls and respect them.
I believe, at their age (7 and 5) if I gave them a doll more fragil and expensive they would treat it as a toy, but they already learned my dolls are special and to be well treated, so I believe it is a matter of maturing a bit more.

 

My thirteen year old sister has two dolls :3 the SD she saved up and bought herself and the MSD was a Christmas present. It upsets me she doesn't give them half the attention I think she ought to but other then that she's not different then other doll owners, caring with her dolls.

I think why she can respect them so much is she saved up for one of them all by herself so she knows exactly how expensive they are and doesn't want to waste her money by breaking either in any way. That and she knows if I ever saw her be rough with one I would flip out.

 

Honestly, if they use their own money to buy the doll in the first place, I wouldn't mind. I would hope it would teach them to treat the doll well because it was their hard earned money that bought it. I hate seeing badly treated dolls to begin with, but I can't do anything about it. I would never just give a bjd to a child because they would take it for granted, but that's just me.

 

I'm 14 and I own one bjd, my other is taking an awful long time to arrive. I don't think there is anything wrong with it unless someone can't take care of them or doesn't know how, I have a younger friend who wants t go into the hobby and I'm going to make sure she knows how t look after them before she gets one, therefore there is no issue. However if a child is very rough with toys or personal possessions then definatley not, it just depends on the child.

 

I certainly don't think it's wrong to let younger children have BJDs, but I don't really think that they're age-appropriate. (For 9-12, anyway. 13-15 is a different story.) It's a little like letting your kid watch an R-rated movie. They may be mature enough and smart enough to understand what's going on and desensitized enough to shrug off any violence or gore, but it's still an R-rated movie that was intended for an older audience.

Personally, I'd say that if you're afraid that they'll break it, damage it, or ruin it that you shouldn't buy it for them. Even if you think they're mature enough, if you feel like you have to police their usage of it, they're not ready. Furthermore, if the thought, "Well it's expensive, so I want them to be careful with it," crosses your mind, then you shouldn't lay down the money, because the money you've spent has become more important than letting your kid have fun.

If you want to buy your kid dolls, there are other, more durable alternatives. Go for those instead, and keep the BJDs for later, when they've learned the "dos and don'ts" of doll care and don't need to be supervised when playing.

 

I think part of the reason people question if children should have dolls is because they are so expensive. But at the same time, there are kids running around who have iPads, cell phones, and laptops, and there are plenty of kids who take care of it all. If you are able to afford it, why can't a child have their own doll?
Also, i want to bring into question the definition of child. when i hear the word, I think of five to ten year olds. older than that starts to turn into adolescent, and I think they could definately handle a doll without any problem. Any younger than that though could actually be a danger to the children, as has been mentioned before with small parts and choking hazards. But as for my definition of children, as long as you explain to them that the dolls are special and fragile, they should have the capacity to understand and learn to take care of them.

 

It really depends on the kid. I personally would start the kid on a cheap doll that isn't a bjd like a monster high or Barbie or some other cheap doll kids have. If the kid could care for that in a simular way to the care required for a bjd, then they are mature enough and you can consider looking into a bjd for them. This way you also don't have the problem of spending hundreds on a doll for the kid and they decide the next week dolls are boring and all they like is dinosaurs.

 

A lot of my dolls have come with a thing saying 'not suitable for children' or 'ages 12+'. So I think any kid old enough for the dolls not to be a choking hazard and to understand that something is expensive and breakable could have one if their parents were ok with it. I guess it's up to the individual, it's certainly not inherently 'wrong'.

 

I got my first doll at 15 and all was fine, but I think it depends on the person. I know some 10 year olds who I would trust with a BJD, and others I would never go near with one. I agree with getting younger kids a different kind of doll first tho ^_^

 

I think 9 is a bit young to own a doll like this... Because of the face-ups, Wig frustration and mature parts..

I'd say a mature cautious child around the age of 13 would be alright, I'm only 16 and I have three. So, it honestly depends on their maturity and patience, not to mention their sense of a dollars worth. :P

 

It's up to an individual to decide whether their child can have a doll, it's not really got anything to do with other people who think its 'wrong' or whatever.

I absolutely will not let any of my daughters ( they are 7 and 10) have a BJD until they learn to keep their £10 monster high dolls in a half decent condition! They are not clumsy with them or break them but they get dropped, left on the floor, the hair gets matted etc. I'd be too much of a nervous wreck to let them have a BJD at the moment.

 

As a Christmas Present I am buying the girls I nanny for each a BID but as a twist I'm buying them sculpts that remind me of them. Chloe is going to go to the youngest and Serca is going to the elder girl. They both well understand how to take care of expensive dolls. Their mom told me not to worry about getting them a christmas present but I truly think of these girls as little sisters so I'm getting them the dolls. They already have porcelain and glass figurine dolls from all around the world so I think they'll like these. They both have dressers away from direct sunlight so the dolls will be perfect there!