American Girl Doll age?

[Anonymous]

Hi there. I have 2 young girls, 3 and 5 years old. Recently they have been playing with my 90s American Girl Doll and of course this season the catalogue ended up at my house. They are really wanting one for Christmas. What age do girls typically get these dolls? Is this the age? My young one feels little to have all the pieces such. But she is quick to follow and pick things up her big sis does.

[Anonymous]

Do you mean a Bitty Baby or a historical doll?

[Anonymous]

I have 2 older girls who were really into American Girl, and I think 7-years old is the ideal age to get them the historical dolls. They're expensive, and 7+ can take care of them better than littler girls. They also can start to understand the stories behind the dolls at that age. For younger kids, they have the bitty babies and the wellie wishers.

[Anonymous]

I think mine were 3 and 5 when they got the ones that you can pick to look like your child? They got them as “baby” presents when their brother was born. Obviously it depends on the kid, but they loved playing with them, and were never the kind of kid to draw on dolls or anything, so the dolls are still in good shape many years later.
As they got older, they got more do the small part accessories, which was better for older kids.

[Anonymous]

I highly recommend looking for some second hand. Or even trying out the Target line of Our Generation dolls. Target's are much cheaper and all the clothing fits both types of dolls.

My DD was into these for a very short amount of time. We were lucky to have several handed down to us by a cousin. She liked the idea of them, and liked shopping for new outfits from Target, but we never did the rest of the experiences bc she just wasn't interested beyond the initial excitement.

[Anonymous]

I think way too young. Plenty of people buy these for their 4-6 year olds (3 is young by any standards) and the kids treat them like crap because they're so young. I would not buy a $175 doll for a kid that young. Get them one of the $30 ones from Target.

I'd get an American Girl doll for a responsible, doll-loving 7 year old and most 8 year olds.

[Anonymous]

I think you have to be a little older too. You can take your dolls to American girl and they will clean them up/fix their hair, or you can buy some clothes. I wouldn't buy new ones this year.

[Anonymous]

Get one of the WellieWishers or Sisters dolls. They are smaller (14.5" instead of 18" like the historical dolls) and less expensive, but still high quality with all the attention to detail, which is what girls respond to with these dolls.

My DD has a WellieWisher as well as one of the $30 Target dolls. The WellieWisher is a lot nicer. It cost around $100 which is pricy but my DD has had hers for 3 years and still plays with her almost daily, so as toys go, I think it's been worth the investment. The $30 doll is noticeably chintzier and just doesn't feel good to hold or interact with in the same way. Also I think the smaller size of the WellieWisher is a huge asset. She fits in a backpack for road trips and takes up less room in DD's bed and is just generally more portable. Those 18" dolls feel huge to me.

The Sisters dolls are even less expensive, I think more like $65. We got the WellieWisher because my DD had read the books that go with that line at the library and really loved them but if it's just the doll they want, the Sisters line might work too. I think the quality is comparable but the WellieWishers come with more accessories and might have slightly nicer hair?

One tip I will give is that once you have the doll, you can get much cheaper clothes and accessories off brand. I just search for stuff for a 14.5" doll and buy what looks cute and is affordable. The AG stuff is really pricy. It's better quality but my DD just wants to have lots of different outfits to play with and likes matching (they have matching holiday nightgowns I got from Carters on a Black Friday deal for really cheap -- she loves them). The dolls themselves are good quality at AG but you don't have to go in for all the stuff there. Another reason to stay away from the historical dolls because if your kid is locked into the story/timeline of one of those dolls, it's harder to find off brand stuff that works. But with the other doll lines it's way easier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get one of the WellieWishers or Sisters dolls. They are smaller (14.5" instead of 18" like the historical dolls) and less expensive, but still high quality with all the attention to detail, which is what girls respond to with these dolls.

My DD has a WellieWisher as well as one of the $30 Target dolls. The WellieWisher is a lot nicer. It cost around $100 which is pricy but my DD has had hers for 3 years and still plays with her almost daily, so as toys go, I think it's been worth the investment. The $30 doll is noticeably chintzier and just doesn't feel good to hold or interact with in the same way. Also I think the smaller size of the WellieWisher is a huge asset. She fits in a backpack for road trips and takes up less room in DD's bed and is just generally more portable. Those 18" dolls feel huge to me.

The Sisters dolls are even less expensive, I think more like $65. We got the WellieWisher because my DD had read the books that go with that line at the library and really loved them but if it's just the doll they want, the Sisters line might work too. I think the quality is comparable but the WellieWishers come with more accessories and might have slightly nicer hair?

One tip I will give is that once you have the doll, you can get much cheaper clothes and accessories off brand. I just search for stuff for a 14.5" doll and buy what looks cute and is affordable. The AG stuff is really pricy. It's better quality but my DD just wants to have lots of different outfits to play with and likes matching (they have matching holiday nightgowns I got from Carters on a Black Friday deal for really cheap -- she loves them). The dolls themselves are good quality at AG but you don't have to go in for all the stuff there. Another reason to stay away from the historical dolls because if your kid is locked into the story/timeline of one of those dolls, it's harder to find off brand stuff that works. But with the other doll lines it's way easier.

PP again. I just peaked at the website and actually the WellieWisher is $70 -- the $100 version we got came with a ton of accessories so that she could start out with a couple outfits and some stuff to play with. So less than half of what an historical doll costs if you just buy the doll.

[Anonymous]

My 5 year old got a Wellie Wisher (Camille), and loooooooooved her. She got an 18" doll in First grade (age 7). Not sure why everyone keeps calling them the historical dolls. You can go that route for an 18" doll, but most girls get the "Truly Me" 18" American dolls ...the series where you pick the one that looks like your DD in terms of skin color, hair, and eyes. She now looooooooooooooooooves that doll. The two dolls play together all the time, ha This is personality dependent (my older DD was never really interested in dolls), but not one penny was wasted on my younger DD's American Girl purchases.

[Anonymous]

I got one at 6.

But the quantity of American Girl dolls has really, really dropped since the 90s.

[Anonymous]

I think 3 is too young, but a good age for a Bitty Baby.

I had a few historical dolls as a kid. I gave my daughter the first one for her 5th birthday. I read all of the books of that character to her when she was 4, so she was familiar with and excited about the character when she got the doll. I repeated the same with the other dolls for the next couple of birthdays.

I think between 5 & 7 is a good age to start.

[Anonymous]

I agree that 5-7 is probably the youngest I would go, and you know if you're 5 year old would be responsible with it.

I got the catalogue, too, and see they now make soft dolls which could work better for younger kids, but that takes away the fun of dressing them up.

I'm not a doll person but I have to say the American girl dolls are a great entree into American history for my family. If you do Felicity, pair it with a trip to Colonial Williamsburg.

[Anonymous]

Second grade was peak American Girl time for my DD.

[Anonymous]

I think 5 is great, she’ll get several years of use out of it and can collect accessories as she grows. Would you do a Bitty Baby for the 3yo? May be a bit young but my best friends DD started playing with one at 3 and it’s been her fave toy for 3+ years. If she loves pretend play you’ll get your moneys worth.