To HATE getting my kids getting given plastic tat for presents?

[Oops41]

Of course, for birthdays and Christmas people give presents (which is so lovely and kind and thoughtful of course) but I HATE it when they unwrap it and it's a piece of cheap plastic tat from Amazon. Inevitably they are poorly made, last one play, end up in the bin this creating more landfill. I thought I would avoid plastic crap this year with the children not having parties but some friends and family members have still been really kind and given presents despite this lovely kindness, I'm always really pissed off when they open it and its some cheap nasty plastic toy. I dont mean that I want them to spend more on them, they needed get presents at all, but in honesty a handmade card, a book, some sweets would be so much better. The children are always excited to receive presents and generally tear then open, get the toy out and it never lasts. They're not massively interested or it breaks very soon. Gaaaaaaah!
Does anyone else get really pissed off with this or am I a miserable old bag? Its seen rude to request certain gifts but honestly it would reduce so much wastage and landfill!

My ILs do this.

Ask what Dc are into, but then buy a massive cheap knock off imported from China that doesn't last.

I do feel it's a bit thoughtless, though obviously I don't say anything.

After not having a birthday party for ds (7) this year I noticed how much easier his birthday present pile was. We bought lego and stuff he genuinely wanted, not a £5 bit.of rubbish that looks good, and am seriously considering next year asking parents not to give a present and if they really want to give something, saying he's saving for X so a few quid in a card would be much appreciated instead. Or saying to give book tokens or something if they don't feel comfortable with cash. It's the landfill thing that I hate so much.

There was a t.v. documentary about children who had started a movement against plastic, including agreeing they did not want to be given plastic toys. They are more climate-aware than their parents and grandparents. These were very young children.

From memory it began with a local communal litter-pick, then the children began to ask friends and family to help, and among other things, children themselves started a massive on-line protest to get a junk food chain to stop giving away plastic toys. M&S marketing department apparently knew nothing about marketing, and after the junk firm's climbdown and apology, they repeated the exercise of giving out plastic, with the same results of angering their customers and their customers' children and having to apologise and stop.

Would it be impossible to steer a course where you could truthfully declare they themselves were influenced by Extinction Rebellion, determined to reduce the amount of red meat and avoid all non-essential plastic? The bonus, if it is the children leading, is that you can claim to have been 'shamed by your own children' into being more climate aware yourself, and 'forced' to agree they are right.

@BethlehemIsInTier1 obviously, but not the point of the thread. However, my OP does state how kind it is of people to give then gifts

@formerbabe

No child wants a beautiful handmade card

😂 this is so true

@henio no it's not!! My kids have been given handmade cards from friends this year on their birthdays and have loved it!

There are a few miserable sods on this thread scoffing at handmade cards

[quote Oops41]@henio no it's not!! My kids have been given handmade cards from friends this year on their birthdays and have loved it!

There are a few miserable sods on this thread scoffing at handmade cards[/quote]
I'm not a miserable sod at all, just from experience not all kids would be impressed with a handmade card, if yours are then that's great 🤷‍♀️

I know what you mean but kids love plastic tat and so it will always be.

You could ask family to pay a bit into a junior stocks and shares ISA or buy them a silver Britannia coin.

Well, it's not unreasonable to not like waste/ plastic tat and I can see where you're coming from. But if other people buy it for you then there's not much you can do. It would be impolite to request a particular gift unless they ask you what your kids want.

Just give it to a charity shop when they're done with it instead of throwing it away, then it doesn't go straight to landfill at least.

@wildraisins I will always donate toys that my children dont play with. This thread is about tat that doesnt last so cannot be given away because it doesnt work anymore

[quote Oops41]@wildraisins I will always donate toys that my children dont play with. This thread is about tat that doesnt last so cannot be given away because it doesnt work anymore[/quote]
Ah, sorry yes just saw that distinction. Still, unfortunately there's not a lot you can do about what other people choose to give you as gifts.

The most positive thing you could do if it bothers you a lot is to get involved in some campaign groups or organisations which are trying to deal with plastic waste. Your family/ friends might then see that you are passionate about it and think twice about getting you that stuff.

At a societal level cheap plastic toys are not ideal obviously.

But your OP comes across as a wee bit sanctimonious. There are plenty of reasons why parents buy plastic toys for kids which you overlook: a) they are cheaper b) they are easier to buy c) kids generally prefer them and d) they are more durable than many more sustainable presents.

I think you are missing a lot of the nuance: for a working single parent on a budget for example it may not be that easy to find an affordable and easily sourced alternative,

Yanbu op, I hate it too.

If it bothers you so much tell everyone you know you are going plastic free, including toys. See if they take the hint.

Personally it dosnt bother me. Obviously I don’t like wast or the damage to the environment, but I put all the cheap plastic tat in an outside storage box and they are used as outside toys, the get planted in the garden, thrown down the slide, given a wash in the paddling pool... during the first lockdown my DCs made a whole magical kingdom in the dirt with all the plastic toys from the bin and buried stuff so they could pretend they were explorers bugging up treasure and fossils.

@thepeopleversuswork again, I am not talking about plastic toys in general. I am talking about cheap plastic tat that breaks easily and does not last. If it lasts GREAT, we have plenty of plastic toys that will outlast my lifetime for sure! Its stuffed that barely gets played with and then breaks, knock offs, shoddily made crap that I am talking about that inevitably has to be chucked. I've explained this countless times in the thread now because I dont think people understood what I meant by tat in my OP, which is fair enough and it probably wasn't clear enough so I clarified quickly

There's a definite difference between 'decent' plastic toys such as Fisher Price etc (robust, good value for money & very often educational) & bits of random plastic tat.

I completely understand not wanting to contribute to landfill & have a house full of useless plastic rubbish BUT the toy phase only really lasts a few short years so I think you just need to suck it up, smile & be grateful that people care enough about your children to buy them gifts.

If the gift givers are close enough to you, then you can try tactfully guiding them towards things your children (ie, you) would like, but in all honesty, part of being a kid is playing with things you wouldn't normally - what harm is there? YOU can buy them the things you'd prefer them to have.

You just need to do a surreptitious cull of all the rubbish every now & then - we've all been there!!

@BethlehemIsInTier1

Well at least your children are getting gifts this year because many sadly won't be.

100% this.

I think the mistake is

a) conflating price and durability. We've got wooden toys that were pricey that look really shoddy now and plastic tat that came free with a kids meal that will survive nuclear Armageddon (I really wish it would break so I could throw it away).
B) thinking books are inherently better than toys. Books are great but kids learn as much playing with plastic toys as they do wooden toys. There is no inherent value to wood over plastic.

I'd actually wonder if durable plastic toys are environmentally better than heavy wooden toys due to shipping. It always amazes me where the environmental footprint is in the supply chain.

Excellent post ThinkAboutItTomorrow I totally agree.

In many ways, quality plastic is an ideal material for children’s toys. Durable, strong, light, easily washed. We have Duplo on the go that’s about 35 years old. It’s already served many children and is still in brilliant condition. It will serve many more.

@TheKeatingFive

What are these toys that break after one use? I’ve never come across them. We have plenty of plastic toys, but all of them very durable and get lots of use.

For me personally- crowns and dress up things (plastic shatters, jewels fall off), Kinder egg or McDonald's type toys, Barbie-type dolls, those cars or toys that you pull back and they drive on their own, teasets or other accessories.

Cheaper things with moving parts tend to snap quite easily too.

For me personally- crowns and dress up things (plastic shatters, jewels fall off), Kinder egg or McDonald's type toys

I get those, but the OP is talking about m bigger, ‘impressive looking’ toys so I wonder what she means by this

My kids love to buy plastic tat with their own money

Could you decide to ask for next year for a charity donation, and just do one present for each child? You choose the present, make sure it is something that will last. Let those friends and family know well in advance.

I agree OP.
We discourage relatives to gift for our DC, and say no more than 1 gift if they really want to. The relatives tend to be quite environmentally minded so will gift responsibly. I try to gift mainly second hand for the DC (and encourage relatives to do the same) as I hate the idea of new things being manufactured in order for me to give presents, when perfectly good pre-loved equivalents are readily available. Clothes, toys, technology; it's all available second hand with zero environmental impact as the 'damage' of manufacturing is already done.