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Christmas

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Original poster

Lol dolls vs barbie

21 replies

Mommybearx · 15/10/2020 12:00

Which do you think is better for a lasting play experience? I have a 3 year old and 5 year old. I really wanted a traditional doll house I could keep for when they are all grown up as a memory (been watching too much american tv) but it seems like these big open ones suitable for Barbie are preferred now?

OP posts:

DinosaurOfFire · 15/10/2020 12:38

We don't have space for the giant Barbie houses, we have a Schleich one and a Sylvanian families one, as well as various Playmobil bits . They get played with the most. I figure that it's the parents choice to curate toys, so we have a handful of Barbies, no LOL dolls, and my kids are happy with what they have- personally I don't like the LOL doll surprise/ wasteful packaging/ long nails and makeup thing, Barbie has various careers, vehicles, hobbies, and I prefer that for when they choose fashion toys. My daughters are 8 and 5 years old. They haven't said they wish they had LOL dolls at all, but often see a new Barbie or Schleich figure they'd like.

NannyR · 15/10/2020 12:42

I would go for Sylvanian families or a Playmobil dolls house and figures- much more play value and things to add over the years and more age appropriate too.

PinkJam · 15/10/2020 13:46

I absolutely loved Barbies as a child but unfortunately DD isn’t interested in them at all. She prefers LOL’s as they’re quite distinct from each other and she says Barbies all look the same. But her friends play with LOL’s as well so she is perhaps slightly influenced by that. What do the friends of your DD’s have? Or show them both and see which they prefer?

Original poster

Mommybearx · 15/10/2020 22:40

My 5 year old likes LOL and has asked for the house (she has a few lol small dolls not the big ones yet). My 3 year old already has a castle and a little doll house and she plays with these all the time, she also likes the barbie dolls. So I want to get one they can share. Maybe I’ll go for one of those kidikraft houses where they can have a mix of barbie and lol, or buy the younger one sylvenian and older a large doll house. Just thought if my younger child is already use to playing with dolls she may find the Sylvanian animals less realistic?

OP posts:

UndertheCedartree · 15/10/2020 23:25

At 3 and 5 I would say playmobil or wooden animals and blocks etc are the most appropriate and with longevity. My 8 year old still plays with her playmobil and wooden animals.

She got some Barbies/Disney same-size dolls from about 6 and likes them.

She also got some LOLs last Christmas - she loves them but they are small with fiddly accesories and easily lost. Not suitable for 3 and 5.

Her favourite dolls are baby dolls and Our generation/designafriend dolls she has played with them everyday since she was 5

Xmasbaby11 · 16/10/2020 00:08

My dd are 6 and 8. They have Sylvanians with a few buildings, Playmobil and a large wooden dolls house which is used for all small toys. Also quite a few LOL dolls which they love. They had a few barbies and similar but never got into them. I won't buy them an LOL house as we have loads of houses already. They mostly play with the LOLs and Sylvanians- they are much loved!

Theonlyoneiknow · 16/10/2020 00:19

My 8 yr old has never been into Barbie but likes LOL and sylvanians. Sylvanians are good as others can buy gifts with varying prices and they sell well second hand

Mumdiva99 · 17/10/2020 07:15

I think 3 is a.little young for sylvanian. They are really fiddly.with tiny bits.
Although saying that my daughter was playing barbies at 3 when I thought they were for older kids!!! She loves them now at nearly 11. She also liked playmobile and sylvannian.

Yours are a perfect age to get a house...I would not get a barbie specific one as they are quite flimsy but would look at another large enough to take barbie dolls- amazon have a few, Costco have 3 large ones. Your girls will love them.

Alternatively if you prefer to change up their play - sylvanian and a playmobile are.small enough to be put away when they want to play with the next thing.

len1234 · 17/10/2020 07:22

I'd get a doll house that isn't for any particular type of doll so that they're able to play with any type. Wooden doll houses also just look a lot nicer then plastic ones to me.

Ohdoleavemealone · 17/10/2020 08:19

If I had the room I would be going for something like this.

www.costco.co.uk/Toys-Baby-Child/Toys/Dollhouses-Accessories/KidKraft-Kaylee-Dollhouse-10-Pieces-of-Doll-Furniture-3-Years/p/170095

It isn't made for a particular doll and would work with whatever they chose to play with in it. I personally hate LOL as they are not worth the money and the little bits get lost.
I stopped buying them after the first one turned out to be shit.

Original poster

Mommybearx · 18/10/2020 22:48

Thanks everyone. Decided to go for sylvanian. I am so excited for them, they are super cute!

OP posts:

nocutsnobuttsnococonuts · 18/10/2020 23:11

Going slightly against the grain but my dds never got on with sylvannian families (despite my best efforts as I love them!).

My youngest loves lol dolls, she has loads. The best house we bought was a shopkins mall and I've ordered her the lol clubhouse.

I have kept a mushroom house we bought for 50p at a carboot for nostalgia as both dds spent hours playing with it. They have used it with all the various favourite characters over the years. Dont buy something with the intent to keep it, it will be something random they love and cherish. (My most cherished possession was puppy in my pockets which my mum had kept and I found the house i used to have at a carboot sale for my girls)

User07 · 19/10/2020 07:56

We have decided to go down the lori doll route. They do some lovely sets such as the horse stables, caravan, car etc. They are similar looking to a barbie but they have soft bodies and are smaller.
You can get them in symths and tkmaxx but recently I found out you can buy from the lori.co.uk website. They are made by the same people who make our generation dolls and seem to be more popular in USA at the moment. We did try playmobil but my 3 year old finds them slightly frustrating because they are quite delicate.

Bid876 · 19/10/2020 11:05

I have 3 girls (3,6&8) and so so many lol dolls. Mine have been collecting them for about 4 years now. The first Christmas they asked for the big LOL surprise I thought I’m not doing this every year but they have gotten so much play out of them it’s been worth it. I bought 2 of the big ones last year, they are on their lists again this year. We don’t buy as many as we first did (they also use their pocket money to save up and buy them). My 3yo also loves playing with them too so even when the older ones grow out of them they will still get played with a bit longer.

Yes they are expensive but the ones in our house are played with every day and have been since they first started getting them so I’ve found they are worth it.

We also have barbie but I could not tell you the difference between an expensive barbie and cheap doll I bought fro B&M they are all naked and have knotty hair. The girls loose interest in them. Our generation & Designafriend dolls are more popular in our house now.

As for dolls house I bought a ELC off fb for £10 a couple Of Christmas’ ago, They love it, not the real thing but they don’t care. I saw a recent fb post where asda had an amazing dolls house that looked just as good as the lol one for £40.

Bid876 · 19/10/2020 11:10

Our £10 ELC house off fb, as you can see, plenty of room for lots off dolls, and little people!

LucyCharlotteP · 19/10/2020 18:06

We have both Barbies and sylvanians here. My dd 11 had them and now my dd 4 plays with those with added newer things too but the sylvanian families still like new they are something I will keep. We have the ridicules sized dream house which my youngest got for Christmas last year but I must admit she plays with it every day. I don’t personally like the lol dolls and my dd only interest she’s shown is the tooth brush so far 🤣 fingers crossed it stays that way.

Original poster

Mommybearx · 15/12/2020 00:30

Thanks for the replies! Ended up getting a kidikraft dollhouse and a mix of barbie/chelsea/disney princess dolls for them

OP posts:

Giraffeseatsmarties · 15/12/2020 07:03

My dd - nearly 5 - no interest at all in sylvanians. I’m not sure why really as loves all things tiny.
She likes barbies and the Disney princess dolls that are the same size. She has some LOLs but they don’t get anywhere near as much play. She does like playmobil.
I thought she’d prefer the LOLs (I do, they’re really cute) but she is still very much about the barbies and the 12” Disney princess dolls. She had a large house but it got ignored so I got rid of it. She has some smaller fold away houses and they get a lot more play for whatever reason. Barbie vet clinic, barbie ambulance, barbie plane and barbie camper are all popular.
For Christmas she has a funfair and a playground and a barbie with a unicorn.

HomeSliceKnowsBest · 15/12/2020 07:42

DD6 plays with her huge LOL Doll collection everyday, and the houses are strong and sturdy.
The Sylvanians have never been played with, nor have their plastic houses and I understand why when you see how basic they are compared to LOLs.
Barbie stuff is utter tat.

Franticbutterfly · 15/12/2020 08:15

Haven't RTWT but have a look at Lottie dolls, they have won loads of awards and are really cute.

truthteller91 · 04/05/2022 00:24

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