Too young for the hobby?

Excellent post!

I actually feel the same way...When I was 14 I saved for my Playstation on my own, which was $200 at the time. Before that my brother and I scraped and saved for our Gameboy (from a yardsale) that we shared, Sega Genesis games, etc. I was raised dirt poor on welfare, and definitely was taught an appreciation for expensive things (since we couldn't afford to replace anything if it broke...) We handled our Nintendo and Sega Genesis games like pure gold. I think a $200 Bobobie or something similar would do well in a young person's hands if they understand and appreciate the value of it.

I especially feel that as long as it's legal, anyone should have the right to buy anything with their own money if they saved it themselves. First lesson is already learned in that sense I actually get really frustrated when I see that some younger folks still have to ask their parent's permission to buy a doll even if it's with their own money! When you're that age what ELSE are you going to spend money on? O_o (though there were always those weird kids in class whose parents gave them pocket money but also charged them "rent." Whatever that could be when you're 13 years old I have no idea...)

 

I think it depends entirely on the child. I was always a really responsible child, and I know a lot of really responsible kids, so definitely a case by case basis.
Best example on my part is with really young kids. Family friends have two sons, 6 and 4, and I have two cousins who are 6 and 5, both girls. Now, Finley (family friends' eldest) is a boisterous, know-it-all, dinosaur and train loving boy. However, if he wanted to hold or look at or play with Porridge (my only doll, a puki) I would have little to no hesitation. Yes, there would be a very big instructions at the start, and I certainly wouldn't leave him alone while playing with her, but he has a very strong understanding of "this is not my toy, I have to be careful as it is precious to someone else". Same with his younger brother Liam, who I would help play with her, but still, no worries. My cousins on the other hand? I didn't take her to dinner to meet my grandparents on the premise my cousins would be there.
The main difference is the way the kids have been brought up. Fin and Liam are from a pretty standard income family, and when they were little and I saw them often, and helped to teach them about other peoples things and boundaries. Their mums loved the fact I would help, because I was a lot more patient than other children! But I would bring things over, and they would have to learn that if I said they couldn't pull something or touch something, then they couldn't.
On the other hand, my cousins parents are incredibly expensive lawyers, and the kids are used to getting lots of brand new toys, and that if they break they can get another one. They don't know where the boundaries are.

I don't approve of parents buying BJDs for children like they would a Barbie or Bratz doll. Because they aren't on the same level of investment, and also difficulty. When I was little I had Bratz and Barbies, but I also had really lovely porcelain dolls, two of which I saved and bought for myself. I didn't let my friends play with them, because I was used to seeing their toys chucked around and not looked after.

So yeah, definitely ok if the child is going to be responcible, if not, then no.

 

I was always a really careful child. It used to HORRIFY me to see my friends had cut off their barbie's hair or scratched their faces. That's irreversible damage! Every kid reacts to that differently. Some think it's a free-for-all and some, like me, treat their dolls like their very, very fragile children. If I had a doll at 12, I know it would still be in near pristine shape, though I'm sure it would have had a lot of ugly faceups in its past! Not all kids are cautious, levelheaded, and mature enough to one a bjd, but some are!

 

i think its all about whether the kid has done the research or not. but anyone younger than 12 might be pushing it. I think the 12 year old girl in the description isn't ready for a bjd because to just buy it on a whim like that whothout even knowing anything about the dolls isn't good. If the kid knows how to take proper care of their doll and has a safe place to put it then i think its ok for them to be a bit young

 

Alysonsfriend on youtube got her first Volks at the age of 9. By 17 she was a staff writer of Doll magazine. >_> Not half bad. It's because of her love of dolls at a young age, she found something that makes her happy (and supplies the money to get more dolls xD ).

 

I think, that if someone her age isn't saving for it, that can be an indicator that she might not be ready for it (of course, if my mommy wanted to buy me a 400 dollar doll for my b-day, I'd be down with it). But, my mother helped me out on my doll for my birthday when I was fifteen, and I know someone who deeply loves her little girls, and photographs them constantly, whose mother bought them for her for holidays. i think, in an area where this was obviously her first exposure to said dolls, and with non of her own money at stake in the doll, a twelve year old might not be ready, or old enough, for a BJD.

 

if i saw a 12 year, even 11 year old with a doll i wouldnt look at him/her like ''tsss. he/she's too young for those kind of dolls!''
buuut, knowing how I was at this age, i wouldnt buy one for a kid and i would discourage parents in doing so.
but everyone is different so i belive some are mature enough to take good care of their things at a very young age and other will be very uncarefull until they die... :/
and if a 12 year old is ready to save up for a 500$ doll, i think he can have it! and deserves too

 

You'd be surprised by maturity levels in people! You have kids the age of 5 or 6 having common sense you tend to not see at that age -- and of course, you have 25-year-olds acting like 5 and 6 year olds. Everyone's different. You really can't have a 'cut-off' age for this sort of thing because people will surprise you.

I had 2 porcelain dolls I used to play with when I was a kid. I was a young kid, too - but I knew enough about what porcelain was, and that these dolls break easier than Barbie dolls, and so on. Also, my grandpa somehow broke and re-glued the face of the one I got from him. And I decided that she needed a friend, and there you go. (and, no, I was never scared of them)

Just saying you can't have an age requirement for things like that. Some kids understand, some don't. That's that.

 

Like others have said, I don't think it's an age thing as much as a maturity thing. I kind of feel like if you don't save up for the doll by yourself, you probably shouldn't get one.

The girls who got me into BJDs were the kind of dumb kids whose parents just bought them stuff if they begged hard enough. They treated their dolls as if they were just $20 playthings (I recall vividly a sticker thoughtlessly applied to one doll's back, and heavy nail polish gooped onto the other doll's fingers), and just didn't care. To them, the doll had been free. I scrimped and saved (and begged my mom for permission) to buy my first doll, and I still touch him like he's made of glass!

There was a girl (~11yo) at my last anime convention who was very interested in my doll, and whipped out a notebook to interview me about the doll (!!!). She asked where I got it, how much was it, how long was shipping, where do you get the eyes/hair, is there some special doll stand you have to buy, etc etc! She said she'd saved $200 to spend at the convention that year, but that she was only going to buy a couple books of manga, then put the rest into her doll fund! I was so impressed with that girl for being so mature about it.

(Also, she was surprised my doll was anatomically correct, but then she said, "Well, they have joints in the right places, so it makes sense!" It's really a shame I was too dumb to get her email address/keep in touch!)

 

It depends really. Someone who actually wants that certain doll would most likely take care of it. Kids are no different. She might put lipstick on it and oil based makeup, but she'll probably ask someone to fix it once she got frustrated of cleaning it herself. XD The parent should research how to take care of it specially if she acknowleges that it is delicate, or at least have the child study/learn all those things.

 

I am 14 and plan to get my first doll soon. When I was younger I had American Girl Dolls which are around $100. For a kid that is an expensive toy. However, unlike some of my friends, I kept my dolls in prestine condition and cared for them extremely well. When it comes to my belongings Im a bit of a psycho with keeping them perfect and making sure I do everything right. I'm al ittle nervous about getting a bjd but I think I'll be able to handle it haha. I know I will take really good care of my doll, and I like to think I am pretty mature for my age.
I have also been saving for a doll but plan to ask for it for my birthday so I don't have to buy the full thing and have been researching like crazy.

 

this

it always depends on the person mentally most young girls are quite mature on this subject of Bjd's or on the dolls they own

 

Apart from how mature the person is(which age does not accurately indicate) I believe that it all depends on how much passion that person have and how much effort he/she puts in in taking care/saving up for the doll.
I started loving BJDs when I was 14, started saving up when I was around 15 and finished saving up for my doll around two months before my 16th birthday.
The last two month of 'waiting to be old enough to get a debit card' was nearly unbearable.
I have now ordered my first doll (a luts Delf) ^w^

I believe that this is partly due to the way I was brought up as well. My parents used all means to make me learn to be independent (including sending me for a 2 week camp when I was 7+ years old. Despite not knowing anyone and being the youngest in the entire camp, it was pretty enjoyable xD). Before I turned 12, my parents have successfully (indirectly)kicked me out of their house(for my own good) by sending me to permanently study overseas(got to visit them around 5times/year). So, at the age of 12, I could already take care of myself (of course, not including making money and cooking my own food xD I really can't cook) and manage my own funds. This amount of $$$ spent in BJD is not unfamiliar to me as I have to manage my own funds since young (started paying school fees at 13, paying house rent at 15)
So, I believe that it is not the matter of 'how old' but rather 'how mature' the person is.

 

Depends on person.

I got interested in ABJD at mere age of ten and got my first doll an year later, and the girl is quite fine. Many people seemed to find me quite mature for my age, and still do, so I quess the age alone isn't an accurate measure of maturity, as many other people here have already said. I have to say that at one point, I lost my interested for a while, and Vivian was pretty much just sitting on the self, but it passed and now I'm even more interested about my dolls. ^^'

My first doll was bought by my uncle, and I'm grateful for that, I probably wouldn't own one now if it wasn't for that. Second one was my own money, thought I couldn't say I really worked for it At the moment I'm saving up for a little girl, and I actually feel kinda happy that I get to work for it. It just a nice feeling to know, that I ,by myself, was able to save up so much without help...somehow it makes the doll even more precious. I get to understand money's value too, when I work for something myself.

 

I suppose it depends on how they child is raised, and their mindset. Some kids can handle the delicate stuff, others can't. My mom has collected Tudor Mint's Myth and Magic pewter & crystal series for years, so even when I was like 8 I remember being taught how to carefully handle them and so she would let me put them in my dollhouse or even take them to school, and no figure was less then $100, the biggest is her $2000 chess set, which even as a little kid, I was allowed to play with. I was just taught how to be careful and respect them. Granted i had some friends I would NEVER allow to go near them because they were too rough, but others were just fine.

 

I am 15 now, but first found about about BJD's when I was 13 going on 14. I think that if you're mature enough to save up for an expensive doll like a BJD, then you're mature enough to take care of one. As for parents going out and buying them, is that really that common when these dolls are usually over $200?? I know my mom thinks this hobby is absurd, and won't even let me buy one with my own money which I'm making at my current job! I won't lose hope though! I think these dolls and the hobby are wonderful. =]

 

Well personally, I don't think age is a good factor to judge anything (e.g. the legal age to drink etc). I was responsible with drink from 14, because my parents were open about it and allowed me to do it whereas some people are still reckless and immature with drink in their twenties. Based on that, I don't think there is a 'too young' for this hobby, different people can handle things at different ages. That girl might treat her doll terribly, not have a clue what to do with it and end up breaking or staining it somehow. Or she might search for loads of information, learn how to take care of it and be as dedicated to this hobby as the rest of us.

But honestly, even if she got one of these dolls and decided to experiment to see how hard she could throw it before it broke - it makes no difference. It isn't for us to judge whether she deserves one or not, that's her mother's decision if she's the one spending the money.

 

Well, like most people have said, it really depends on the person. I for one, have always had to buy my own stuff from a young age, and so I'm really protective of it, and know what will hurt it. I don't mind people playing with my dolls or taking pics or anything, as long as they listen to how they're supposed to be handled. I am like that with everything hehe. And yeah, so because I have to buy them (except if I get one for my birthday or something, and they're never over $250, and if so, I help pay for my own present lol) I really appreciate their worth, and I also quite like the feeling of achievement I get once I have finally saved up enough!

 

Honestly, aside from them potentially hurting my own property at meets - and that can happen with people of any age - I don't see how it really matters how old someone with a BJD is or how that ties into whether or not they deserve to own one. No one deserves to own a doll more than any other person on this planet, no matter what their background.

 

I concur. I think an excellent measure of responsibilty is the child's efforts to obtain the doll. Speaking as a 21 year old student with no current job (curse you veterinary school for always making me volunteer to get my hours), it's hard to save up when you're that young. If they can scrimp and save to get $400-700 to buy a doll, then they will either take excellent care or it or learn a valuable life lesson.

As for expensive dolls in the hands of children, I had plenty when I was a kid (porcelain vs BJD, but still, they were expensive dolls). They all survive to this day without a scratch or smudge. I'd let my kid have a go if they really wanted to and could prove their responsibility.