would you or do you buy your children second hand toys for xmas?

[miche8]

my children 2,5,9 are not very careful with their toys, in the past i've got them second hand toys they want for a fraction of the price they would be new, i am fussy so would only buy something that looks almost new but can't help thinking its not the norm for xmas/birthdays, i could save us so much money if i got their xmas presents second hand this year, my daughter is peppa pig crazy and on sunday i got her the rocket for £6 at a carboot i think its nearly £30 new. Just wondering what everyones thoughts are?

Bought Dd 16 a second lego hogwarts express last year. She was thrilled

I do - but mainly for reliable things like Lego.

In the past I have ebay/gumtree trawled for loads of plain bricks, and then assembled them into a wacky diorama (incorporating other gifts to find). That way it doesn't feed 'second best' - it feels like 'extra imagination'.

(and under 3s - absolutely no issue. Baby had her own toys re-gifted for Christmas )

I absolutely do. This year dd 2 has a second hand present, dd 1 has something new, but she has had second hand in the past.

I have saved lots of my old toys and books, but I don't give those as birthday or Christmas presents, I just bring them out as and when. I feel they are a sort of bonus, that they are getting them because I took good care of my toys as a child (even as I child I always thought I would one day pass them on to my children, perhaps I am a bit strange). So i think of them as already belonging to the dc, and not really "present fodder". Maybe it will be an incentive to them to look after their own toys well, so they can pass them on too.

Absolutely! My boys are sharing over £100s worth if duplo that I've bought on ebay for £35. We've built it all in it's sets and packed it into three huge boxes. There's masses of it and that in itself will create Christmas excitement.

Yes definitely. One of dd's favourite ever presents was a massive bag full of dressing up clothes, all of it second hand and most of it like new.

Ds also got second hand wii games that year- I got him four games for less than the cost of one of them new.

Their bikes have always been second hand too.