Dollhouse for boy(4) - would you buy?

[mebeforeyou]

DS(4) has started Reception and often tells us one of his favourite things to play with is the dolls house.

Would you buy a dolls house for a boy? One that is neutral colours and not pink and frilly styling but I’m worried he’ll get ridiculed when other children visit our house.

KidKraft do Everyday Heroes or Pirate-themed playsets but they are a bit too expensive for what we’d like to pay as he is already getting a new bike. eBay etc doesn’t have second-hand ones so far.

If your DS has a doll house or similar where did you get it please?

I’ve thought of perhaps seeing if I can buy a plain mdf one and paint and decorate it myself but I’m not really creative and would probably make a mess of it.

Why are people insisting the OP should buy a castle, fire station etc when they are not the toy the child enjoys?!

It’s no different to asking a male partner to buy you a diy kit and him choosing an iron instead as it’s a more suitable gift in a sexust idiots mind.

I wouldn’t risk it. Dollshouses that don’t look pink at first may turn pink over time. It’s not worth the risk.

House with 4 boys here, they fight over a kitchen we got them years ago. Any kids that come over will play with the dolls house, I guarantee it!!!

Our 4 year old boy is getting the house mentioned up thread. He loves small world play, and that look perfect without being girly or huge. Playmobil also has a great resale value, so if he does decide it’s not for him, or renders it too girly in a few months time, it’ll sell easily.

My son had a dolls house.
He wore Princess dresses and had a Princess room.
Nobody batted an eyelid, as it should be.

Some parents, including a certain CEO, are so tied to regressive stereotypes around toys that it has irreversible consequences for children.

Get the poor kid a dolls house and get him the one he wants (whether it be pink, spotty, sparkly, frilly, whatever). Society will impose stereotypes on your child, you don't need to add to that issue.

My DS has the Playmobile house, an Ikea kitchen and a cake/sweet shop thing in pink that I keep tripping over. Boys live in houses, cook in kitchens and buy/sell cakes. Just buy him a present that he wants and will play with.

Brought my DS a doll and a pushchair he loved it. Used it like a battering ram but hey ho popped the cat in as well. Also he loved Frozen which is a girls thing apparently 🤔

My DS7 has a wooden one from Asda. It has 3 floors and internal lights. Currently out of stock but not sure if it'll come back in again after the toy sale? We've had it 3 or 4 years now and he loves it :)

direct.asda.com/george/toys-character/wooden-toys/wooden-light-up-dolls-house/050222166,default,pd.html?bvstate=pg:2/ct:r

Absolutely. DS1 has a lovely one and his friends play too. Dollhouses are no way specifically girly.

DD had a huge wooden barbie house fitted out with the ikea furniture sets. She got so fed up of DS coming into her room to put his spiderman in she gifted it to him. He has the whole avengers team dolls living in it, and it gets played with loads when he has friends round after school.

I wouldnt for a girl either(dust traps).He'll still be able to play with the one at school.
Buy him something they don't have at school or Lego so that he can build houses,play houses and can be reused as he gets older.

I find it very sad that a parent wouldn’t buy toys for their children in case they trap dust. Most children are not harmed by dust. They are harmed by lack of creative play.

Thanks for the opinions.

We are happy for him to have virtually any kind of toy (well, except toy guns/weapons) but the responses I have had from people I know about getting DS a dollshouse have been negative so I wondered about seeking opinions from a wider audience.

DS has already been ridiculed when he was at nursery for wearing a Thomas the Tank Engine t-shirt (its for babies apparently), so the last thing I wanted to do was buy him a dollshouse which is traditionally usually seen as a girls toy and be ridiculed again by any school friends who may hear he has one. Then again, he is going to have to learn to stand up for himself and what he likes so we will get him one.

I'm the girliest thing as an adult. I played exclusively with transformers as a child.

DS had (amongst other things) a toy kitchen with a pinny, Thomas the Tank, a pink and yellow tea set, a rocking horse with a mane he plaited for hours on end, a drawer full of angry looking dinosaurs, and a pink satin hat that never left his side.

So far, he's not turned into a psychopath.

Olga,when my dd was small we lived in a very old house.Dust was everywhere and I hate cleaning.
My DD did not loose out on creative play but a ready built house is only one way.
There's a lot you can do with cardboard boxes
She is now at Art College so we got it right somewhere.

Yes why not

My 2 dds had tool benches, cars and dollhouses when they were little and my ds was the only one out of the 3 who played with the dollhouse.

He was also the only one who loved the doll and pushchair combo. It was pink too.
He is still intact and likes rugby. He is still good with babies though.