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teach your daughters to iron and air laundry

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louiseRyan2020 · 26/10/2020 14:56

I was shocked in Aldi this weekend to see toys - clearly marketed at girls - that involved an ironing set (complete with toy iron and ironing board) and a 'clothes airer' - clothes horse (complete with laundry basket).
Ironically both toys were labelled with the slogan 'imagination and creativity' and 'curiosity and discovery'.
The mind boggles . I fail to see how teaching little girls how to iron and air clothes will feed their curiosity or imagination. Both toys seem to show a total absence of imagination - unless perhaps 'how to imagine yourself fulfilling a 1950s stereotype of femininity'?
Perhaps the toys are meant to be ironic and this is actually a plan to teach little girls to rebel against such limited gender stereotypes and domestic drudgery. Apart from anything else, what a total waste of money. It would be cheaper to buy a real clothes horse/ airer than this toy one.
does anyone else find the so-called toys highly objectionable in the 21st century?
I recently went to the new exhibition on the women's rights movement 'Unfinished Business' at the British Library. Well absolutely, this is clearly 'unfinished business' when these kinds of toys are still be marketed at girls.

teach your daughters to iron and air laundry
teach your daughters to iron and air laundry
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DidoLamenting · 28/10/2020 17:19

There's nothing wrong with a man ironing and hanging up clothes either

And depending on which version of the Aldi ads you see , you will see boys doing ironing and girls playing with trains and boys and girls playing with tea- sets.

DidoLamenting · 28/10/2020 17:16

@RHTawneyonabus

Lidil Otoh have chosen a little boy to advertise their play ironing set while the little girls play with the race car track. I thought it was a nice touch.
Yes , that was in the booklet in the Sunday papers advertising their wooden toys.
Wearywithteens · 28/10/2020 15:34

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn at the poster's request.

GrolliffetheDragon · 28/10/2020 15:07

Only thing I’d used it for was Hama beads.

Snap. (good choice of user name btw)

There's nothing wrong with a woman ironing and hanging up clothes.

No, the problem is when it's seen as women's work. Which it isn't in my house. DS has never seen me iron a single piece of clothing. I'm not sure he even knows that's what an iron is really for.

Steamfan · 28/10/2020 09:23

I saw the Argos Book of Dreams Christmas catalogue. I have never seen so many sexist, stupid toys. DH looked at it after I did, and the first thing he said was how dreadful it was. It's in the recycler now!

timeforanewstart · 28/10/2020 09:16

Because children like to roleplay
Often the house corner in a playgroup is popular
My ds had a toy hoover that he loved ( would also be a boring toy you would think )
Unfortunately at 17 he no longer loves the hoover

ErrolTheDragon · 28/10/2020 08:37

And don't forget it's not just parents - kids are bought presents by grandparents, aunties and uncles (who may not have kids and be looking for clues as to suitability). The most 'female coded' presents given to my DD tended to be from classmates' parents who themselves only had boys - Barbie dolls or pale pink clothes.

ErrolTheDragon · 28/10/2020 08:31

@rorosemary

Children won't notice the packaging. They will notice if they see their dad doing his share of the ironng. Just make sure you model fair behaviour.
Unfortunately, children and adults do notice packaging - it's been discussed over the years (I was on the thread which spawned Let Toys be Toys). Children pick up stereotypes even when they seem outmoded - eg the idea of doctors being male even if they've only ever seen a woman GP.
EarthSight · 28/10/2020 08:26

Children like to copy parents and it's not true that everyone is creative.

What we should be asking is not why little girls might be given this, but why little boys might raise a disapproving eyebrow from parents if they wanted it, even if it showed a boy on the front.

MarthaWashingtonsFeralTomcat · 28/10/2020 08:10

Girls doing female-coded things isn't inherently bad.

This doesn't bother me at all. My kids would be ripping into the packaging when they get a present they really want. I do get that as a wider thing, the pinkification of small world toys is an issue, but that doesn't seem to be the case here - they look nice little toys. It's just a little girl (or a long-haired feminine boy in a floral top...) playing house.

en0lagay · 28/10/2020 08:04

@ErrolTheDragon

It would have been much better if they'd had pictures of both a boy and a girl on the box. I think that should be a general rule for all toys.

It's odd they don't do this more, increase the size of their market.

I wonder if it really makes a difference ? The parents who would be aghast aren't likely to be influenced by a boy on the picture and ones who don't care about stereotypes won't be bothered anyway? I do think it's a foolish move not to though.
rorosemary · 28/10/2020 08:00

Children won't notice the packaging. They will notice if they see their dad doing his share of the ironng. Just make sure you model fair behaviour.

ErrolTheDragon · 28/10/2020 07:56

I suspect the poster who objected to irons may have seen a child hurt by one. However, having a toy version may make it more obvious that the little one is theirs and the big one belongs to their parents and older siblings (my big brothers were competent ironers).

timeisnotaline · 28/10/2020 04:45

There’s nothing wrong with a toy iron! For the poster who objects to it in principle. It’s basic role play. My older son used to iron like daddy with an aeroplane and play scarf as the props.

fairydustandpixies · 28/10/2020 03:57

My boys had toy ironing board, iron and dust pan and brush. When DS1 was potty training, he swept his rather large accident up and down the hall with aforementioned dust pan and brush 😂

Mariola212 · 28/10/2020 03:10

There's nothing wrong with a woman ironing and hanging up clothes.

I agree because child likes to copy parents and much more women staying home and being housewife than the men.

AnnoyedOfTunbridge · 27/10/2020 20:09

Definitely thought from the title of the thread that this was going to be a clever pun on teaching girls to "air their dirty laundry" in relation to some kind of sexism or anti-shaming around periods.

Disappointed. Grin

(and very aware of the scale of my over-thinking!)

june2007 · 27/10/2020 19:46

Winterterrace, with that phylosephy you wouldn,t let children play with toy ovens/hobs as these arte too dangerous. And what about hammers and tool sets??

ByGrabtharsHammerWhatASavings · 26/10/2020 20:15

Asda do a good range of toys like this, play kitchens and dolls houses and ironing boards etc all in lovely neutral colours with both boys and girls playing together on the packaging. My son loves to help with cooking and laundry, he's always loved the washing machine from when he was really tiny. It's normal for children to mimic their parents. I'm buying him and his sister a load of "caring for a baby" play stuff for Christmas as a joint gift (pram, sling, baby doll etc) and I had a really hard time finding stuff like that which wasn't super sugary pink. I didnt really need to bother even because they both like the colour pink, but seeing it so obviously targeted at girls really got up my nose. They have a "playing home" corner at his nursery which is the same, 99% covered in pink and flowers etc. No reason he can't still use it of course, which he does, but it's clearly not aimed at him.

PaleBlueMoonlight · 26/10/2020 19:37

@Frequentcarpetflyer

Of course not! But advertisers shouldn't always have to show a child of,the "opposite "sex for people,to consider it an acceptable advert. Nothing wrong with a boy or girl playing with an iron or a toolset.
I agree that they shouldn’t have too (nor should they have to shy away from pink), but this is where we are. I think we need toys to be scrupulously for either sex.
Winterterrace · 26/10/2020 19:36

I hate toy irons full stop. Irons are dangerous and something children should stay away from.

StealthPolarBear · 26/10/2020 19:35

A pp has reminded me of when we left out floury 'santa prints' one Christmas eve night. When ds who must have been coming up three saw them he dashed off to get his toy mop :o
A decade on and he was traumatised by me offering to show him how to work the washing machine...

Qiry · 26/10/2020 19:33

That little boy ironing is adorable! Smile

june2007 · 26/10/2020 19:31

Yes I would buy the toy, but I agree needs a boy on it somewhere in the packaging.

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