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Original poster

Are Sylvanian Families worth the price?

78 replies

AFewScrewsLucy · 18/09/2023 19:07

DD will be 4 soon, and thinking of some for her birthday. But they're quite expensive. Are they worth the price?

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Original poster
AFewScrewsLucy · 18/09/2023 19:08

... Christmas, not birthday 🤦

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WaitingfortheTardis · 18/09/2023 19:10

Dd is 5 now and has loved them for a couple of years, they do seem to get played with quite a lot. They are often on offer in Amazon if you keep an eye out

FortofPud · 18/09/2023 19:11

I think so, but start small and only grow the collection if she's interested. Personally I found 4 to be a bit young to get really into it, and the key ages were 6-10. There's a lot about second hand so lookout for that, especially the buildings which you can clean up nicely.

Goshdarnitgoofy · 18/09/2023 19:13

My daughter is 5 and is obsessed with them. Has quite the collection and plays with them all the time.

LaundryWoes · 18/09/2023 19:17

I got DD some aged 3.5, she’s 6 now and still plays with them loads. We started with a set of one family and one house, now she’s got a bigger house (the two houses can be made into one big one), the school, a car, a camper van, another family and some of the furniture sets.

It is a lot of bits of tiny plastic though, and can be broken so if she’s not a gentle child I’d be selective about which pieces to buy.

BitOutOfPractice · 18/09/2023 19:19

My kids loved them and when they left home (the kids not the sylvanian families!) I got a great price for them on eBay (the sylvanian families, not the kids).

BerfyTigot · 18/09/2023 19:20

We bought some on eBay - years ago

Hibernatalie · 18/09/2023 19:55

Yes - but look at 2nd hand, they are good quality and so good to buy 2nd hand a lot cheaper.

tescocreditcard · 18/09/2023 19:57

BitOutOfPractice · 18/09/2023 19:19

My kids loved them and when they left home (the kids not the sylvanian families!) I got a great price for them on eBay (the sylvanian families, not the kids).

Edited

😀Great Post

My kids loved them too and yes, they are worth the money.

fairyfluf · 18/09/2023 19:58

Absolutely. Buy a house and a family

whatwhatwhywhen · 18/09/2023 20:03

My 16 year old still gets theirs out to play with occasionally!

WeirdPookah · 18/09/2023 20:27

Absolutely, they are lovely and detailed.

PlantDoctor · 18/09/2023 20:32

I really hate their fuzzy texture! Just noting in case she doesn't like certain textures. Has she played with them before?

Original poster
AFewScrewsLucy · 18/09/2023 21:27

PlantDoctor · 18/09/2023 20:32

I really hate their fuzzy texture! Just noting in case she doesn't like certain textures. Has she played with them before?

She has, a little girl bought one figure to the park to play with and she shared it with DD. (I actually didn't realise it was a SF bunny until just recently!). She's careful with her toys and I don't think she'd break them. Although admit that she will inevitably lose the teeny pieces no doubt.
I'll maybe buy her a new one for Christmas and then keep an eye out for second hand. Unless there's a good one near by. I did have a quick look on Facebook and there's some, but with pieces missing oftentimes. Which doesn't really matter on the most part I suppose.

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Choconuttolata · 18/09/2023 21:38

My 11 year old still plays with them, her older sister who is 14 sometimes joins in too. We got loads 2nd hand off eBay about 6 years ago including houses, cars and furniture in a big bundle then we have topped up with their favourite characters over the years.

Shouldbehoovering · 18/09/2023 21:50

I want to say no, but my daughter plays with my old ones. I’m pretty sure I got them second hand and have had them 35yrs…

Vermin · 18/09/2023 21:54

100% yes. I started off with a big house and collection of furniture and random animals bought as a bundle on eBay. I set it all up for Christmas morning and daughter was young enough not to think about packaging etc. That was probably 10 years ago and we only sold / cleared out various sets in the last year! It was added to massively, but played with good and proper! Very well loved. It’s a good time of year to start looking for bundles on Facebook marketplace or eBay.

MissHoollie · 18/09/2023 21:54

Some of the sets are and some aren't
Th car and caravan set is v good

Redwinestillfine · 18/09/2023 22:24

Try eBay. Get a set and are how they go down

LilLauraloo · 18/09/2023 23:25

I am so glad to hear your 16 year old still has hers. My daughter who will be 11 in December loves her sylvanian families and has asked for more for her birthday and I was worried she was far to old now

Fizbosshoes · 19/09/2023 22:05

I cursed my Dsis for buying them when DD was 4 ....and DS had just started crawling! So many bits of tiny plastic. I had to count them back into the box each time! But DD loved them. We added to the collection and picked up some bits from ebay and charity shops and she sold them when she was about 11 and got about £80 back

Fizbosshoes · 19/09/2023 22:06

MissHoollie · 18/09/2023 21:54

Some of the sets are and some aren't
Th car and caravan set is v good

The caravan set was amazing!

Ihaveaskedyouthrice · 19/09/2023 22:07

Smyth's usually have one of the houses/log cabins/tree houses on offer before Christmas.

Chickoletta · 19/09/2023 22:09

Yes! They are wonderful. Brilliant role play toys, just like a dolls house but with an extra cute factor. Good quality. If you go to independent toy show, there are often good offers for the more basic houses. My DD10 still loves them.

SkankingWombat · 19/09/2023 22:56

Both my DDs (7 & 9yo) love them and have had them from around 3yo. I used to love them too, and was still occasionally playing with them around 12yo IIRC. I removed the teeniest pieces initially with my DCs and kept them safe until they were a bit older and less likely to lose them in the first 5 minutes.
Theirs are a mix of new, second hand, and my childhood sets. They are incredibly robust, and last many many years of use. We have regular wooden dolls houses with Sylvanian furniture (because standard dolls house & Sylvanian scales are very close and I already had the houses) as well as a few extra non-residential Sylvanian sets of various sizes and a selection of vehicles. DDs are obsessed with the babies more than anything, and the SF baby blind bags have made very welcome additions to their stockings over the years.
I've tended to get the new sets from TK Maxx, often in the clearance section for an even greater discount. You can pick up furniture and figures pretty cheaply on Vinted or FB Marketplace. Wooden dolls houses can be picked up even more cheaply than SF houses second hand, although it's worth looking around for more traditional ones than the cheap modern houses, which chip and get tatty easily.