Sylvanian families

[Fivefatsausages]

Hello, so thinking of some presents for my daughter nearly 6....

She’s not into Lego and Playmobil. She enjoys outdoor play, board games and craft but I’d really like her to play a bit more imaginative play. I was thinking of sylvanian families - as she can order the house, and the animals are quite cute looking for kids (or chintzy), which might inspire her?

Anyway, is six to old for them? It’s a lot of money to invest. She has one of those wholesome wooden Scandi looking houses with scary looking dolls which she doesn’t touch (I understand why as looks like something in the corner of a Drs surgery).

She keeps looking at them in the shop but I would hate to buy and for it not to be touched!

Anyway, views welcome!!

X

My granddaughter is coming up to 7 years old and loves them. She plays regularly with them. I bought alot off gumtree and FB, saved a fortune.

Your DD sounds like mine. We bought her a dolls house last Xmas. Barely played with it. Bought her a sylvanian family house. Has played with it once. It’s crap quality too. She doesn’t have an interest in stuff like that. More happy with craft stuff, outdoor stuff and just getting into music and instruments now (she has a keyboard and recorder).

I’d save your money on the sylvanian stuff.

Bought some play sets for my then 6 year old, I kept the boxes . She played with them Boxing Day , that was it and a year later they were untouched. I boxed them up and sold them on gumtree. She preferred the hobbycraft painting sets.

Maybe just get the Rose cottage starter kit. It’s only £20 and it will give you an idea if she is interested in it.

Neither of my DC have ever done that 'small world' kind of play. All the play sets I bought were ignored!

Mine (10 and 7) love board games and card games like Jumbalup, Uno and Dobble.

I meant to add, when they occasionally do imaginative play, it's with cuddly toys rather than figures etc.

They also love Gravitrax and Hex Bugs.!

I was still buying and playing with these when I was 10.... or maybe 11

Sylvanians are aimed at older kids than playmobil, due to having lots of fiddly bits. My 7 and 9yo play with them, so 6 is not too old. My kids play with them in a regular dolls house - could you repopulate the house you have? We have the car and a number of shops which get a lot of use (the supermarket is probably the most used thing we have).

But I liked Lego and dolls house type stuff and had started making dolls house items like bedding and fimo model food etc. If Nick Park had been around then, I'd have turned them into sets and animated them.

So it depends on the child really!

My 8 year old likes them. She and her 12 year old brother who is still into Lego have had fun amalgamating the two. (Last Christmas he built a battery poweredChristmas railway around the Sylvanian department store, and they gave the Sylvanian animals rides on it).

My daughter almost

Her most played with toys hands down. She will turn down family cinema night to play with them.

She’s played with them since 4.

I see at least 3 years left

@herecomesthsun

My 8 year old likes them. She and her 12 year old brother who is still into Lego have had fun amalgamating the two. (Last Christmas he built a battery poweredChristmas railway around the Sylvanian department store, and they gave the Sylvanian animals rides on it).

That sounds awesome!

My ten year old loves them!

My 4.5yo boy has asked for sylvanians. Do you think they are too girly and he would get bullied on playdates? Goes to a very Liberal school but there still seems to be a boy girl divide.
My sister had some and we loved playing with them.

My DD started with sylvanians when she was 4 and played with them until she was 10 or 11.i got most on ebay, and then when she had finished with them we resold her collection and she made about £80.

DD’s aged 5 & 3 play with Sylvanians. They are ignored for a while then played with a lot before being ignored again in favour of Playmobil.
We started off with the Cosy Cottage red roof set and added bits.

I used to love Sylvanian Families as a kid and still played with them when I was about 9-10 years old. Times might have changed though

My daughter got her first ‘family’ (rabbits) for her 8th birthday today. She loves them. They really are lovely.

My DD plays with hers every day and has asked for more for Christmas. She got more last year for both birthday and Christmas. Compared to some toys they don't take up much room which is a plus.
What I have learnt is that they resell for nearly as much second hand as new, and sometimes even more when you factor in postage. So if she doesn't like them you will make money back on ebay.
Do you do letters to Father Christmas? If so I would also just let her have a look at the different types and see what she is interested in with a view to "telling Father Christmas". If she doesn't believe anymore then just ask her if she wants some and which sort. There's a ship set, for example, that might spark her interest more than the school or houses.
But ultimately if she isn't into small world play that's fine, she's using her imagination in other ways no doubt. Maybe get her something like a den building kit instead.

www.amazon.co.uk/Celtic-Training-Polo/dp/B010DJWZBE/ref=asc_df_B010DJWZBE/?hvlocphy=9046616&hvlocphy=9046616&linkCode=df0&hvptwo&hvptwo&psc=1&hvnetw=g&hvnetw=g&hvadid=430970645445&hvadid=430970645445&hvpone&hvpone&hvlocint&hvlocint&ref&hvpos&hvpos&hvdev=m&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl&hvdvcmdl&hvqmt&hvqmt&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&hvtargid=pla-908974144315&hvtargid=pla-908974144315&hvrand=15756350318361309758&hvrand=15756350318361309758&adgrpid=101848150484

Eeek, sorry about that monstrous ship link.

My girls age 3 and 8 love sylvanians. Dont get a house. Just fill the doll house with sylvanian furniture!

My almost 3 year old is getting the Sylvanian starter pack 1 up 1 down cottage (red roof cottage), rabbit family, 2 babies and the Sylvanian camper van for Christmas as a combo of main presents from us and from grandma.

I have been questioning my motives.. it's obviously because I have massive Sylvanian nostalgia. Dd is just starting to get into role play games though (making teddies and figures talk to each other and act out stories etc). Hope I haven't Sylvanian leaped too early.

@TheMandalorian

My 4.5yo boy has asked for sylvanians. Do you think they are too girly and he would get bullied on playdates? Goes to a very Liberal school but there still seems to be a boy girl divide. My sister had some and we loved playing with them.

@TheMandalorian

My son loved playing with them. More so than his sister but looking back he was always more into creative play. It's one of the toys (we built up quite a collection) we've kept in the loft for them.

Yes my daughter same age adores them.
I agree don't buy a house as they fit in dolls houses perfectly. Also defo don't buy new as ridiculous price. I find eBay is also similar price to new FB marketplace is cheaper as people just want rid of stuff there - or s market/jumble sale but none of these atm!

Lottie doll is also good - clothing and accessories similarly £££ but you can get a bundle of bratz clothes which fit well on eBay v v cheap, if you don't mind slightly 90s fashions..

Tea set and picnic blanket or vet/doctor set for the cuddles?

And I adore Sylvanians as I never got them as a child!

My daughter had her first at 6. I removed the tiny tiny parts and kept them for when she got older. She’s 9, still loves them.

I would suggest looking at the “Red Roof” branded range - these ones can be added to rebuilt into bigger houses and a mansion in the end.

I would suggest you know already if your child likes small world play or not. Mine is 3 and it's totally clear she loves anything dolly/dolls house related. It seems apparent from your post that your child is just into different sort of play - that suggests she might not be that keen on sylvanians.