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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that muted pastel baby toys that cost about X5 the price of the average are a waste of money and a bit pretentious?

209 replies

FreesiaFairy · 26/05/2021 03:45

Have noticed that some mums seem to only tolerate muted pastel baby toys from brands such as Little Dutch or Liewood, that usually cost about X5 the price of the average for that toy, is this a first time mum thing?

I like to think I have good taste and appreciate good quality, but it's starting to annoy me how snobby some people are about kids toys, surely at some point they are going to have to break free of the muted pastel colour palette? I think Instagram might have quite a lot to do with it.

I get most of my little ones toys second hand and as long as he finds it fun don't massively care what it looks like. I feel like I'm getting judged on my taste for this!

OP posts:
PegPeople · 26/05/2021 10:03

Studies show that children who have mainly loud and flashing toys have smaller vocabularies, poorer motor skills.

I'd be very interested in seeing these studies. I strongly suspect they will outline other factors such as parental involvement or living in poverty as being responsible for smaller vocabularies or motor skills rather than the toys children play with.

All walkers are detrimental to physical development, whether wooden or plastic so I wouldn’t know.

Of course they are not all detrimental to physical development. Sometimes believe it or not GPs or health visitors actually recommend them.

PiccalilliChilli · 26/05/2021 10:05

DD is now a teenager but quite a lot of stuff passed to us from family and friends, then was passed on again to other families or went to the charity shop. I admit we had a fair amount of plastic crap, but we tried to freecycle or give away.

As for the pastel aesthetic...when DD was a baby it was all "buy this Scandi-made wooden toy" which were expensive and didn't last long in the sense DD outgrew them so quickly. Good intentions and all that, but friends who bought them, sorry, they were a false economy. Same with "posh" baby clothes...one friend bought her a very expensive cute dress and cardi combo when she was about 6 months old...I think she wore it twice! That went to the charity shop, too good to throw away.

Quite often she was happy banging a saucepan with a spoon or looking at board books. You don't need pricey stuff to entertain your baby.

NerrSnerr · 26/05/2021 10:06

@21Flora do you have a link to these studies?

Original poster
FreesiaFairy · 26/05/2021 10:09

Thank you for your replies, some of them have really made me chuckle particularly @RockPainting and @Sidesaladofchips so thanks for that Grin

Don't get me wrong I also like good quality wooden toys, it seems to be more about the colour palette than plastic VS wooden, although that does come into it. I like having some wooden toys in the mix because at the risk of sounding pretentious in a different way it seems good sensory wise for different textures and they make different sounds when banged etc, they do also look nice. I agree IKEA do some really nicely designed toys for very reasonable prices.

It's more the spending way over the odds on muted tasteful versions of things then being a bit rude about other peoples brightly coloured things that gets me. Seems to be taking it all a bit seriously, since my little one was born I've always thought the thing that looks best to me is a happy baby.

And yes a grey ball pit doesn't sound much fun at all, neither does a rainbow toy all in the same muted colour just different shades haha.

I think some people use these things to express how tasteful they are which is a bit sad tbh, I love art and design and very much appreciate nicely designed things and don't like the feeling I'm getting judged on my taste just because all my little ones stuff isn't bamboo and muted colours.

Think it's probably the age they are at too (12 months), as people have mentioned as they get older they will have their own opinions and will be harder to maintain such strict style guidelines I guess!

OP posts:
misspattylacosta · 26/05/2021 10:12

I like to think I have good taste and appreciate good quality, but it's starting to annoy me how snobby some people are about kids toys

oh the irony...
Reverse snobbery is just as bad, if not worst

StClairStreet · 26/05/2021 10:14

I think you’re being quite snobby yourself with your slightly sneery ‘is this a first time mum thing’.

Some people prefer pastels. How, in all honesty, does it matter at all to you?

AprilShowerThoughts · 26/05/2021 10:16

When I was expecting my first I was drawn to the muted beige and pastel/wooden stuff but my mum steered me to the colourful noisy plastic stuff saying "that looks fun." It was the first time I really registered that this stuff wasn't for me, it was for my child and I started to think about what they might actually like. As someone else said (noisy) plastic stuff can often be passed on, especially if it's one of the key toys like the jumperoo was or VTech/Fisher Price Activity Toys. Chewed pastel wooden toys less so!

Whinge · 26/05/2021 10:20

Some people prefer pastels. How, in all honesty, does it matter at all to you?

Surely it's about what the child would prefer, not about what colours appeal best to you / your home?

Ponoka7 · 26/05/2021 10:27

I agree with you on toys being primary colours, that's what appeals to children and they are a teaching aid. However
"I would rather have kids plates and cutlery that can go in the dishwasher rather than over priced bamboo and silicone ones "
They could be chosen because they are buying more environmentally friendly alternatives.

MobyDicksTinyCanoe · 26/05/2021 10:28

No idea about toys but couldn't help but notice that 'turd brown' seems to be the in colour for babies clothes at the mo......at least it will hide the stains I suppose. Confused

luxxlisbon · 26/05/2021 10:28

Complaining about other people being judgmental while being judgemental...

No one cares what baby toys you buy, do what you want and others will do the same.

LilaButterfly · 26/05/2021 10:29

I prefer the pastel ones because they just look nicer. Maybe im weird, but i dont tolerate toys laying around in my living room. Its fine when the kids take them out to play, but as soon as they lose interest and play with something else they have to put their stuff back to their rooms.
But if i hve the option to buy something that looks nicer or goes with our furniture i would obviously pick that over the brightly colored plastic stuff!

misspattylacosta · 26/05/2021 10:31

Surely it's about what the child would prefer, not about what colours appeal best to you / your home?

Kids don't need to be surrounded by garish colours, the colours you choose are just for you one way or another Grin

jasminoide · 26/05/2021 10:33

There's an instagrammer that I love, but she is so restrictive with her kids toys that it makes me sad for them. Her colour pallette is earthen browns and she even said she refused to buy them any bath toys until she found ones that went with her aesthetic. A complete waste of money too, as the companies she buys from are very expensive.

Acupofcamus · 26/05/2021 10:34

I love liewood and own a lot of their products, little Dutch too actually. Not on social media so it isn’t to show off to anyone or be pretentious, I just like the style and the products are good quality.

NerrSnerr · 26/05/2021 10:35

@misspattylacosta it's not about need though is it? I buy my children clothes and toys that I think they'll like in colours they like- because they're for them.

Both my children love rainbow stuff, if given a choice in a shop they'll always go for the bright option, not pastel so that's what they get as the toys are for them and not me.

misspattylacosta · 26/05/2021 10:35

Walkers are also terrible for the kids back. A few minutes here and there is fine, but not more.

TheKeatingFive · 26/05/2021 10:35

Walkers are illegal in Canada as they are so dangerous!

That isn’t the point you were making. People are asking about the research you referenced with regards to plastic toys.

Acupofcamus · 26/05/2021 10:36

I don’t have a ball pit because I tried that with my older three when they were small and it was a fucking nightmare to tidy up... Do have all wooden toys, lots of more expensive companies like grimms. High quality though and will sell or give away when I’m finished so they won’t go to landfill like broken plastic tat would.

TheKeatingFive · 26/05/2021 10:38

they won’t go to landfill like broken plastic tat would.

Why do people reduce this to ‘broken plastic tat’.

High quality plastic toys are totally indestructible. They’ll keep their condition far better than wood.

PegPeople · 26/05/2021 10:39

@TheKeatingFive

Walkers are illegal in Canada as they are so dangerous!

That isn’t the point you were making. People are asking about the research you referenced with regards to plastic toys.

I did chuckle that this was the only part they responded to. Walkers have their place and if you don't want to use them that's your choice but that's a side argument. I'm still keen to see this peer reviewed research on how nosiy bright coloured loud toys are so detrimental.
Original poster
FreesiaFairy · 26/05/2021 10:39

I guess I am being judgemental haha, it probably wasn't so much that I was disagreeing with them being judgemental more that I think it's crazy to spend so much more on stuff just because it's trendy or muted colours. I go for stuff that I think the baby would like and choose to spend money on other things. We all have our opinions / preferences and that's mine, some will agree some won't. Each to their own I guess, but it's nice to know some people are on my wavelength with it!

OP posts:
NerrSnerr · 26/05/2021 10:40

@21Flora lots of limitations to both the studies about play (can't comment on baby walkers we only used the push along ones that never got pushed along!)

PegPeople · 26/05/2021 10:44

[quote NerrSnerr]@21Flora lots of limitations to both the studies about play (can't comment on baby walkers we only used the push along ones that never got pushed along!)[/quote]
Those studies are not at all conclusive.

Also by baby walkers I was referring to the push along ones. I'm not sure if the other posters have gotten confused and thought I meant the ones babies are sat in but I was specifically talking about the push along ones which work similar to pushing a toy pushchair hence my confusion that they were detrimental to walking.