Mumsnet users share their memories of playing with dolls with Baby Annabell

[LucyBMumsnet]

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Most people have some fond memories of playing with dolls in their childhood, from sweetly changing their nappy and rocking them to sleep, to taking them everywhere or ‘customising’ what they look like. Baby Annabell would like to find out more about your memories of playing with dolls, as well as how your children play with their dolls.

What was your doll’s name, and do you still like it now? Did your doll cry real tears, drink real water, burp after feeding, or need its nappy changing? Or did you have to make pretend because the technology wasn’t available yet? What were your favourite games to play with your doll? How does your child play with dolls now? How does it differ from how you played with dolls?

Share your memories on this thread and you will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky MNer will win a £300 voucher for a store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

Actually receiving a doll! My mum was very feminist, totally adamant I wasn't going to play with dolls, and I got a toolbox instead.

My aunt bought me a doll for my 6th birthday. I absolutely loved her, she had eyelashes and eyes that closed when you laid her down "to sleep"

Sadly, my mother never let me take her home, so I could only play with her at my aunt' house, and we visited only once or twice a year. Within 2 years I was too old to want to play too much with the doll, but I always remember just how much I loved her

I had a tiny tears that my mum knitted loads of outfits for but i always used to pinch my brothers action men they were more fun and didn't cry

I had a Tiny Tears who I adored, when I suddenly became obsessed with glasses. I pretended to walk into walls as I desperately wanted some glasses. I had an eye test and said the wrong letter for everything. Did I get glasses? No. Instead I was moved at school so I literally shared the teacher's desk, so I was right next to the blackboard. Gutted. Tiny Tears could have glasses, however, so I stole one of my teacher's biros and when I got home, I drew on a pair just like Eric Morecambe who my Granny loved. My mum and dad were horrified and tried everything to remove the biro. Then my grandad had a go. Nothing shifted it. I then decided I didn't like glasses any more and cried, for days. Mum offered to 'look after' Tiny Tears (who was never seen again) and bought me a Girls World to cheer me up. I won't mention what happened to that, but let's just say, It became painfully clear at an early age that hairdressing was not for me.

One Christmas I was given a doll with beautiful silky curls. I was five, and I wanted to be a hairdresser. But back then - I'm ancient! - dolls' hair wasn't washable. I was bereft when those beautiful curls turned into a Brillo-pad mop. I'm afraid I didn't love her once she'd lost her looks and that doll became the 'battered child' of the toybox!

I had 3 dolls I loved, a girl called emily with chin length blonde hair, she had a soft body, hard limbed and eyes that opened and closed. The boy was similar but with shorter hair and I called him Christian. I used to love feeding them and giving them bottles and changing their nappies. I still have these 2 in the loft and must get them out to sgow my daughters. My other favourite was a girl my Nana got me one Christmas who made sounds, she cried and sucked her bottle and dummy. I loved making her stop crying by putting her bottle or dummy in her mouth! I wish I still had her but I think she eventually broke and my parents gave her away.
My eldest loves dolls but has 3 clear favourites; her baby Anabell (basic doll with accessories but no sounds) and 2 corolle dolls calin Maria and a calin Yang they are around 25cm long have beautiful faces and features, she loves feeding them and taking them on walks, she always takes at least 1 with us where ever we go.
My youngest is only a year but has a small soft bodied newborn baby Anabell who she feeds with a bottle whilst making sucking noises, I think her main Christmas present this year will be a baby Anabell brother (I would like to get her a doll her sister doesn't already have) that has more accessories so she can learn to look after him.
Dolls play such an important part in a childs life and I remember mine fondly!

I don’t know why but I didn’t like plastic dolls when I was a child. However, I loved my rag doll made by my sister and I still have her today. She’s called Caroline. 😀

My first doll was Tiny Tears which I got for Christmas one year. She actually weed....well sort of and I was fascinated by this. I would even sit her on the toilet and watch her wee . My mum used to knit and make really nice outfits for her and I've kept some of them still. I progressed onto Sindy at about 7 or 8 and I vividly remember tying her to the swing and getting my brother's action man to rescue her. It was all a bit James Bond and I would have been about 10 as we'd moved house to Mansfield and my friend would bring hers round and we'd spend many hours enjoying our dolls. It's such a shame children grow out of them sooner these days. I've bought dolls and accessories for both my daughters and they moved onto teddies and other toys at a very young age. But as a reception teacher I always love to see the children in my class playing happily with the dolls and acting out scenarios. Dolls are great for role play, communication skills, personal and social development and fine motor skills. Big shout out for dolls .

I loved dolls when I was little! When I was very young (probably from about 2 till 8 or so) I had a succession of dollies from the Tiny Tears range. I had Tiny Tears, Teeny Tiny Tears, and Teeny Weeny Tiny Tears. I loved pushing them around in a pram or tucking them into their crib!
When I was 8 I got a "realistic" looking and sounding baby doll that cried loudly until you put its dummy back in! I absolutely loved that doll but sadly its head fell off after only a few months, and it was only attached by a load of electrical wires - I was a bit traumatised to say the least!
After that, I moved onto Sindy dolls, which were my obsession for the remaining few years of my toy-playing life!

I had what was called a 'floppy doll' (not sure of make or name)
It had a soft middle with soft plastic arms, legs and head, and it was real baby size.
I remember my mum giving me my old baby clothes to use for her. I loved her.
I had kept it for my future child but I think an estranged family member has disposed of it ☹️

My sisters and I loved dolls and had lots of them. Mine was a Cabbage Patch doll and i loved dressing her up in all types of different outfits and making outfits for her. I have two young boys now and they dont seem to be that interested in toys at all, they are much more interested in tech!

My favourite dolls were Sindy and Tressy. As mentioned by a previous poster Tressy had hair that grew when you turned a key in her back - problem was they all malfunctioned after a while and the hair would never go back in 😄

My baby doll went everywhere with me and I saw her as “my baby”. My best friend and I played mums and babies all the time. You’d think that I’d have ended up having loads of children because I appeared so maternal but as it turns out I’m not a natural at it so only had one.

When I got a bit older I graduated to Sindy dolls. I used to make them ball gowns from packs of pastel coloured tissues.

None what so ever

I had Pippa dolls - small and pretty - and Barbies and Sindys - those had odd proportions. My favourite was getting clothes for them from people on market stalls - had a beautiful pink faux fur coat for Barbie. Loved dressing her up.

I remember having a babydoll and I called her Georgina April. Thought it was the mist glamorous name ever. I drew all over her face while playing hospitals and was devastated when it wouldn't come off

My first doll was tiny tears loved that doll such a sweet face nothing like dolls they have now some are so scary looking lol! I got it when my youngest brother was born and was amazed they were the same size!!

I had an odd assortment of dolls, mostly because I took it upon myself to give them all a haircut in the belief the hair would grow back in again. It did not. Loved my dolls.

My beloved doll was called Rosanna and she was (terrifyingly with hindsight) realistic, she looked exactly like a 6 month old baby. I had real baby clothes for her donated from my mother’s friends. I played with her everyday, picnics in the garden in the summer, feeding her squashed banana sandwiches, took her on holiday on aeroplanes, took her everywhere with me!
Until one day, I was shopping with my mother and sister. My mother was in front and my sister and I were walking behind, each holding one of Rosanna’s hands so she bounced/dragged between us. A little old lady rushed up to my mother nearly in tears, saying “I’m so sorry to tell you this, but have you seen what your daughters are doing to your baby??!!!”
My mother wasn’t so keen on her accompanying us everywhere after that. Now, I’m 42 and she’s still loved by my two daughters. She’s a bit battered now, and one eye remains permanently closed (no one would mistake her for a real baby now . . .) but she’s currently sitting on my eldest daughter’s bed and there she will stay!

I remember getting a new doll for Christmas or birthday & "introducing" them to my other dolls & having little parties with them, my parents would ask me every Year what I wanted for Christmas & every year until I was about 9 I would always say another baby. Loved them all equally especially a set of twins I had one boy & one girl 😍

I loved to play with dolls when I was little. I had a few different dolls. I would take them out walking in the pram I had and pretend they were real. I loved the dolls that could talk, poop or feed etc.

I remember my doll, Susie, being accidentally broken. I was quite young and my parents told me she had gone to doll hospital. A while later (weeks I think) I woke up one morning to two dolls, a boy and a girl, with a note from a 'nurse' saying Susie had met a friend, Sam in the doll hospital and could I look after Sam too as they didn't want to be separated. I still remember the excitement of that moment and having 2 new dolls to play with instead of 1. Was also my first 'boy' doll. Great memory.

I had tiny tears from being very small, my Nan knitted her a yellow pram set of leggings, coat & bonnet in yellow & my mum's friend made her a lovely dress, vest & pants set, my mum's cousin knitted her a white poncho. I used to buy her clothes from our big toy shop, they were Faerie Glen brand. I had a lovely rocking cradle that was yellow & had a clown holding a bunch of balloons on it made at our local Blind workshop & a high slung pram that was the same as my mum's Silver Cross one that she had for me & my brother. Tiny tears is on the pictures of my brother's christening, I was allowed to take her with me. I also had Sindy dolls, one Christmas I opened my presents to find lots of clothes for Sindy, but no doll, my parents friends came for Christmas dinner & gave me a present to open, it was a Sindy doll, my mum had also knitted lots of clothes for her, I played with her all the time, the next Christmas I got some of the furniture & the ballerina Sindy. I played with them for years . I don't know what happened to my Sindy dolls, but my tiny tears is still on my little rocking chair in my childhood bedroom, I have just found some sewing patterns for clothes to fit her & I'm planning on making her some new clothes soon.

My favourites:

Tiny Tears when I was small
Sweet April (I loved her)
Jenny My Best School Friend (I loved her pleated dress)
Tressy with the extending hair
Sindy, oh ballerina Sindy with the beautful pink shoes
Sindy, oh beautiful ice skating Sindy
Sindy's beautiful house with cutlery and little glasses
Pippa with the tiny shoes that I used to stick up my nose when I was five

I loved my dolls, I played schools with them a lot and once used the washing line and an open upside down umbrella to make a zip-wire for my dolls, putting them in the umbrella and letting it go down the washing line

My first doll was like a mini middle-aged woman! It had tight curls and a knitted suit. It was large and cuddly with long eyelashes and blue eyes. I genuinely thought that if I loved it enough it would become real!