Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

To let ds fully indulge in his penchant for all things pink and glittery?

29 replies

lecce · 20/01/2013 19:55

He is 3.6 and for some time now has been mad for all of the above. He has a poundland tutu he loves to wear and a pink garland thing, also from the wonderful poundland, that he is similarly attached to. When we are in the supermarket he asks for pink tops, especially those with glitter on but, while I am happy to do the tutu-garland type thing, I draw the line at actually buying him clothes that have been made for girls. Tbh, this is really a moot point as, as a ds2, his clothes are nearly all hand-me-downs anyway.

The other day, in the queue in Next, he was asking for a set of glittery hair-slides. His hair is gorgeous, blond and curly and long enough to take a clip. I said no because I pretty much always do when they ask for stuff while we're queueing but it got me thinking - would that be a step too far? I would love to get him some as a little surprise treat but am I taking advantage of this stage he's in and will he hate me when he's 15 and sees all the photos of himself in tutus etc?

We are moving soon and we've been discussing his and his brother's new bedrooms. Ds1 wants his painted green and ds2, predictably, has said he wants pink. Will that be a step too far? Will it make him a laughing stock on playdates? It may seem trivial but it will be hard to say no as he will be well aware that ds1 has had the colour he asked for so will wonder why he can't. It's just a colour, right? But I don't know anyone else whose son has a pink bedroom...

He has also had his head turned by glittery hand-bags, barbie dolls (No.Way.Ever.) and nearly walked into a lamp-post in the park the other day eyeing up a little girl's deluxe pink toy buggy.

I am probably over-thinking it all (dh thinks so) but I am worried about how it will look to him when he's older and wondering how it will look to his peers when he is slightly older than he is now.

OP posts:

Bakingtins · 20/01/2013 19:58

You're overthinking it. He's three. He will very likely outgrow it, particularly when he is a bit more aware of peer pressure that boys only do blue as he gets into primary school.
When he's 15 he will hate you displaying any baby photos of any description.

did delay painting DSs room until he was out of pink phase and wanted orange though

manicbmc · 20/01/2013 20:00

Let him be pink and glittery. Paint his room pink. If he gets bored with it you can always paint over it.

Why shouldn't he have Barbies (although tbh I hate Barbies but Bratz dolls are worse)?

cocoachannel · 20/01/2013 20:00

For some reason (knackered and have had wine) I read that as 'let DH....'

LadyKinbote · 20/01/2013 20:01

He sounds lovely . The way I see it, he'll either love pink and glitter his whole life (in which case you'd better get used to it!) or he'll get some new interests when he's at school (in which case it's no big deal if he wears the occasional hair slide now). Probably best to avoid anything permanent like bedroom walls though...

HappyAsASandboy · 20/01/2013 20:06

I would indulge it. But not with anything you're not happy to change when he starts school and his peers change his mind for him!

So in my view, tutus, hair clips and walls would all be fine, as I'd be happy to change them when he wants to. But you may see decorating as a bigger task than I do!

BarbarianMum · 20/01/2013 20:07

Ds2 loves all things pink. He is now in Reception, is experiencing considerable peer pressure and is not budging at all.

I draw the line at girls clothes but we have found quite a few T-shirts/shirts for boys in pink. Father Christmas also bought him some pink boxer shorts for Christmas (actually he had to dye some white ones - he's nice like that).

Ds2 would love a pink room but as he shares w Ds1 that is not happening. He does however have pink bedding - a happy halfway house if you are worried about redecorating in a year or 2.

Personally, I'd go with one pink and glittery feature wall, on the basis that you can have too much of a good thing.

DoItToJulia · 20/01/2013 20:07

Indulge him! When my ds was tat all he wanted was vacuums. Toy ones, real ones, pipes off them, attachments, anything at all to do with vacuums. He is 7 now and is not remotely interested in them, nor does he seem to remember it!

The only slightly sad thing about your post is this view that it is because it is pink you are concerned. If we changed the word pink for green or blue, or any other colour it wouldn't be an issue.

Bless him!

DoItToJulia · 20/01/2013 20:08

Tat all=that age. Bloody ipad.

floweryblue · 20/01/2013 20:08

DSS went through a pink stage at about 3yo, just go with it. A tin of paint and some glittery hair slides are just that, not a big deal if they make your son happy.

megglevache · 20/01/2013 20:11

oh god yes. Pink is the most divine colour- how boys don't love it at this age is baffling to me.

I have a gorgeous pic of my ds aged 3 in a lovely pink bridesmaid dress, he didn;t take it off for 3 days and kept it pristine.

He'd kill me if I got the pic out or if it ever saw the light of day now. (he is almost 9)

leave him- he's utterly normal.

SirBoobAlot · 20/01/2013 20:17

All pink here with a 3.2 year old! He has pink high heeled dancing shoes (the cheapy ones from poundland, not actual high heels...), pink and purple tights, sparkly pink hair clips, a pink hair dressers kit, pink fairy wings, pink flannels...

And is insisting that exP paints his room at the new house pink as well.

If DS is happy, then all is good.

monkeymamma · 20/01/2013 20:19

What about a lovely deep magenta or richer/redder pink that you can accessorise with funky white/orange/green accents later down the line, if the glittery n pink phase passes? I think a pink bedroom could be pretty cool. Or do just one feature wall in both boys' bedrooms, so they are easier to change (your other ds may also tire of green).

I was adamant I wanted a yellow room when I was given the choice (teamed with blue carpets and blue and white striped curtains natch, it was the early nineties) and chose a particularly intense shade called 'bumblebee'. My mum was as keen then on interiors as I am now (and still is), so I realise it must have caused a lot of biting of the tongue at the time! When I went to university I noticed the walls had been subtly updated to a primrose yellow and the carpets became much more neutral eventually :-)

I guess what I'm saying is I absolutely loved having the choice at the time and it is very empowering for little ones; it would be a shame to deny your ds or make him think he'd chosen the 'wrong' colour.

FabulousFreaks · 20/01/2013 20:21

You could paint both boys rooms a neutral colour with coloured accessories. They are both likely to change their minds many times and bedsets and pictures are easier and cheaper to replace than painted walls. That way everyone gets what they want

CaptChaos · 20/01/2013 20:32

When DS2 was about 3 he had a thing about pink as well, tutus, old boas, all things glittery. I'm not a huge fan of pink at all, it reminds me of icky yoghurt, but I indulged him in all his glittery gorgeousness! He outgrew it, along with dinosaurs, tractors and all the other phases they go through.

You may well be over thinking this. If, say, DS was a DD who wanted everything blue, would you still be concerned?

My DS still likes pink, he's also happy enough to tell school chums he does as well

MadBusLady · 20/01/2013 20:32

Re paint, it doesn't have to be Startling Barbie Pink, there are some lovely strong, rich pinks around, eg this (colour-match it from Dulux obviously). Reminds me of those 19th century portraits you get of military types where the red jacket has faded to pinks. Or old regiment flags in churches.

I may be over-thinking this.

Original poster

lecce · 20/01/2013 20:36

Oh good, I have been told what I wanted to hear .

I had already been thinking along the lines of deep magenta-type pinks but, yes, a feature wall is a good idea just in case he goes off it.

Thank you all - lovely to hear about all the other pink-loving boys out there. I love the colour, too, and dh often wears it. No idea why I got concerned, but hey.

OP posts:

BadRoly · 20/01/2013 20:41

I haven't read back so sorry if I'm repeating. I am lucky that both my ds have slightly older sisters so have been able to play with their toys - dd2 and ds2 currently have all the Barbie stuff set up and have been playing with it beautifully all weekend.

Don't worry about it, he'll start conforming to all the gender stereotypes once he's at school and wants to fit in

foreverondiet · 20/01/2013 20:43

My ds1 loved pink between age 2-4. But by the time he started reception and 4.5 he was horrified by his previous love of pink. So hair clips fine, but don't paint his room pink.

Original poster

lecce · 20/01/2013 20:46

I know how it reads but I really am not worried about him conforming to gender stereotypes in the way that you seem to be implying. My only concerns are that he will be teased in the near future and that he will question my decisions in the more distant future (though I suppose it is inevitable that he do that for one reason or another at some point).

OP posts:

BonnieWeeJeannieMcCall · 20/01/2013 21:03

DS loved all things pink at 3. Pink was still his favourite colour till about 9 / 10, although by then he didn't have much pink stuff. He got teased a bit, but not enough to put him off. He's now 19 and mainly dresses head-to-toe in black.

We had a bit of wiggle room in that he had a sister, so if people noticed e.g. the pink toothbrush in the bathroom when he was 8 or 9 they tended to assume it was hers. And by 8 or 9 his only pink stuff was stuff like toothbrushes.

DD however hated pink with a vengeance!

MogTheForgetfulCat · 20/01/2013 21:50

Both of my elder 2 DSs have loved pink and glittery things - made a beeline for them in shoe shops in particular, and used to look terribly crestfallen when the navy/brown/grey boys' shoes were brought out - fair enough, frankly, they were dull as ditchwater. We ended up with several pairs of red Kickers and some very pretty sandals for the summer . Also lots of pink t-shirts etc. Both now at school and deride pink as a 'girl's colour' - but I think they both still like it really.

UniS · 20/01/2013 23:04

Go for it, let him have a passion for colour. DS was V keen on pink at 3 and now he's nearly 7 has purple as his favourite colour. Left to pick his own clothes at the weekend he will chose purple tracksuit trews and a purple fleece over a red T-shirt.
I have so far refused to paint his room purple, but he has a purple rug and purple and orange and white striped duvet cover, and a purple sheet.

Lilithmoon · 20/01/2013 23:13

DD (5) on the other hand has blue walls, blue bed and prefers clothes that are not pink. Forget getting her into a skirt or dress I really want to put her in pink and glittery stuff, her preference is a pirate costume. :)

Samnella · 20/01/2013 23:19

DS aged 4 loves pink and was walking about with his sisters hello kitty clip in today. I think its adorable. They will be grown up and serious before we know it.

qualitytoffee · 20/01/2013 23:25

My Boy is 16, he loves pink and glittery!
He is young and gorgeous, and sparkly, and at that age, has a different girlfriend every week.
I couldn't give a toss either way as long as he's happy and secure in his world.

Leece, don't be worrying, he likes pink and glittery, indulge him x

Flip

1 2

Swipe left for the next trending thread