American Girl Doll for 5 Year Old?

I never got into dolls until my sister was about five. I bought ceramic heads and hands and feet, and made dolls(not having a kiln made making my own not possible, so I repainted and created and put elaborate wigs on the heads. My mother being a tailor, I guess crafty rubbed off on me. We had those cabbage patch dolls, and my mother and I made clothes for them. I still have mine(preemies, which is very ironic, considering my son was a preemie), and my son plays with them, and a friend gave me hers, which he plays with on occasion.

On the subject of American Girl dolls, they are made better, with better materials, but until you know if it will be a fad toy or not, I'd say go knock-off...you can get her doll a "best friend" later. Most dolls hair are rather easy to take care of(I can speak of it, because I have made dolls before).

Remember that this type of doll is a HUGE investment. They are more or less intended as heirloom dolls, like the Bébé Bru were in the late 1800's. With the advent of cheap plastics and resins, dolls like AG were possible, as it is cheaper to make, and less fragile than their predecessors.

On the subject of matted hair:

My friends girls Barbies got matted all the time(and we all know how cheaply Barbie's are made). I did this simple trick. I removed them by using a bit of cooking oil in them, then gently combing them out. I then took woolite or a gentle soap like the baby soaps, then washed the hair. After that, I towel dried the hair, and combed it out to remove any additional tangles. Once completely dry, we styled them as normal.

Luck to you!

The two times I think it's okay to "spoil" a kid is on their birthday and at Christmas. I was pretty cheap the rest of the year, but I always made Christmas magical. I usually tried to get them the main thing they asked Santa for. If in her case, she keeps oohing and aahing over them, then why not.

If that's the one thing she really wants, then get it for her. It's pretty special.

My younger daughter got her first one at 4. She took very good care of it BECAUSE it was an American Girl Doll, I think. She knew it was an expensive, special gift and she treated it as such.

No matter what kind you get, it's a great thing to have because you can always ask for accessories for birthdays and Christmases from family. I have two bins full of furniture, clothing, etc. It's cute stuff and the books are good too.

I would not buy an AG doll for a 5-year old. My SD's sister is 5 and she got an AG doll for Christmas last year. 2 days later she was carrying it and she tripped and fell and scraped up the face. Also, the hair is all ratty.

When my SD was 5 her grandparents bought her an AG doll and she didn't treat it very well.

They are recommended for 7-year olds and I agree. My SD now has 11 AG dolls, and she considers herself a collector. She takes excellent care of them, and she plays with them all the time. We are big AG fans.

I would go with an Our Generation doll from Target, or a Journey Girl doll. They are much more inexpensive and you can still get all the accessories.

When she gets older, if she really likes the American Girl dolls, I would invest in one. At that point she'll have some accessories from the Our Generation that she can play with.

The AG dolls are not only very well made, but the stories they come with are great. The accessories are also very detailed and very well made. I think only someone who is really into the dolls can appreciate the detail.

My daughter really loves the AG doll catalog. We use the catalog as an inspiration and we make a lot of the accessories. It's a lot of fun.

My daughter loves the Journey Girls, but she doesn't have the Our Generation dolls. The Our Generation dolls just don't look as nice as the AG dolls when you have them next to one another. Once you go AG, you never go back ;)

American girl dolls are made in China, not Chicago like everyone thinks. Try to find one that is American made.

I agree that if she's only five, you might start her on a knockoff (Michaels craft store chain carries a version, not just Target). If she knows the difference -- and she might, though some moms say their girls did not -- you can tell her that it's an AG "little sister" and the AG doll will come along later if little sister is well taken care of and loved!

Some folks also post how their kids "never play with the doll" after an initial time. I want to add, girls come back to these dolls over and over. My daughter got hers at age five, but it was a hand-me-down, and she played with it a lot, then didn't; but at age 11 now, she still will suddenly take an interest again and get "the girls" out (she got a second one new, as a gift, at about age seven) and play with them. We have an AG store very near us, and when we go in there, I see girls who are clearly at least 11, 12 and older with their beautifully kept dolls, looking at the stuff, eating in the cafe, etc. These girls aren't really playing with the dolls but enjoying them as collectibles. (And we never buy anything in the store--my kid's happy to have a hot chocolate there and look around, thank goodness!)

You can get knockoff clothes all over, but look online at a company called Dolly-Duds.com (you must have the hyphen in the address). Their clothes are not a heap cheaper than AG but are nicely varied and very, very well made (by hand, in the U.S., if that matters for you). The AG clothes are expensive but again, very well made and they do last.

One last thing: The catalogs are lovely but you don't have to buy a thing from them. Before your girl is any older, show her that you can MAKE things for her dolls! My daughter liked the idea of a dresser with mirror for the dolls, so we made one out of a shoebox, using tinfoil for the mirror. Made little "perfume bottles" out of stacked and glued beads, food out of craft foam, purses out of fabric and yarn, etc. In fact, American Girl encourages this with books like "Doll Crafts" though we did not use that book for our doll stuff! It's much more fun and creative to make accessories and furniture than buy them, even if you can buy them cheap at Target or Michaels. If you teach your daughter iin these early years that it's desirable and fun to make things instead of buying them, she is likelier to get creative on her own later. Just something to think about.

My oldest daughter never played with her doll but my 6 yr old plays with her doll all the time. They each have one AG and one knock off. I have never heard them mention a difference. They refer to all the dolls as their AG dolls. Yes, the knock off the hair is harder to deal with but does not seem to bother my girls. Maybe start with Target doll and see if she really gets into it. If so, then maybe do and AG for birthday. My oldest's loved her doll for two days and then it was not her thing. Maybe it will be a keepsake one day. The clothes and accessories from AG are really neat but very expensive.

My 5yr old niece has an AG. She hardly ever plays with it, though. And although my girls got theirs at 6 and 8, they didn't really start playing with them until around 8 and 10. THEN they played with them A LOT! Every playdate and sleepover included those dolls and it seemed that every single one of their friends had at least one.

If you do decide to get one, DO get the actual AG doll, not a knock-off. But as far as clothes and accessories go, get them at Target or eBay or Etsy. You'll pay a fraction of the price for almost the same thing.

My daughters both have American Girls Dolls but I started them out with the Target dolls. They were young enough that they didn't know the difference and were excited about them. It worked out good since one of the dolls ended up with a haircut. :-/ My youngest daughter who is 9 has the American Girl Dolls now and knows to take good care of them. She still get excited about the catalogs and circles everything she wants! She has a few of the American girl doll outfits (from Christmas and BDay gifts) but we mainly buy the clothes and furniture from Target. One difference I have found is that the hair on the Target dolls tend to get matted easier and the AG Dolls hold up pretty well.
Good luck and have fun! :)

I have an American Girl obsessed daughter, so I've had a fair bit of experience with these and their alternatives. If you want to see how she'll handle the doll before shelling out the $$ for a new one, check local classifieds, yard sales, flea markets, resale shops, and/or ebay for a gently used AG doll in decent shape.

Yes, there is a difference in the quality of the AG dolls and the less expensive 18 inch dolls, but at her age, your daughter might not care yet. The Madame Alexander ones have lovely faces, but the hair gets fuzzy very easily. We ended up braid those and leaving them braided. The My Generation (Target) ones have oddly proportioned heads and faces, but the hair is easier for a child to work with and not wreck. The Target clothes are also plenty good enough - my daughter loves them, and they are of acceptable quality.

I got my daughter her first "real" AG doll when she was 8 and had shown me that she wasn't going to tear up her dolls.

My daughter got an AG for her 6th birthday...she's know 7 1/2. The hair is alone is worth the money! When its tangled, a little water and it looks good as new. We buy all accessories at Target.

They sell a doll that looks just like the American girl doll at Target, another one at Toys R us and the one we bought our granddaughter at the Michaels craft store. Our granddaughter wanted one more than anything and we thought she was to young to take care of it. So we got the knock off. She took good care of it (she was 8) and the next year my 16 year old got her another knock off and her mom got her the real american girl. she plays with all of three of them the same way. If I was you I would get the knock off first then as she is a little older get the real one. Get rid of the catalog. she won't know the difference on christmas morning.

No way I would spend a hundred bucks + on a doll for a 5 year old. and the parents who do and say "they have to be put back in the box on the shelf each time your done" don't have kids who really really play with the dolls. my daughter and now my granddaughter played with theres all the time. they took them to movies, belted them into carseats, let them have sleepovers with blankets over the coffee table etc. not like a board game that you put away when your done. they played with them a lot.

AG makes something called "Itty Bitty" dolls for the younger set. They look like babies. As far as I know they are just as expensive as the regular AG dolls. My daughter got a Target brand one (Our Generation?) several years back. My complaint with that one is with the hair. It gets super tangly. That is the only difference that I can see between that one and the AG versions, with the exception of the My American Girl dolls come with a code you can use online to play on a virtual website, something that seems much more fun to my daughter than the actual dolls. My daughter got her first AG girl when she was 7. I think this is really your call. Whatever you do, shop around for the clothes. The AG clothes are more than what I spend for my own outfits.

My girls are 6 and 8. They got dolls last year, so yes I think a 5 year old is capable of having one. I got them the Target brand dolls and have been perfectly happy with them. My thought is also, is the AG brand worth the money.....what if they don't play with them all that much? Take the money you saved and add it to their college account. Or maybe a Target doll first to see if she is able to take care of it. If she really loves it and takes care of it invest in the AG brand.

Updated

My girls are 6 and 8. They got dolls last year, so yes I think a 5 year old is capable of having one. I got them the Target brand dolls and have been perfectly happy with them. My thought is also, is the AG brand worth the money.....what if they don't play with them all that much? Take the money you saved and add it to their college account. Or maybe a Target doll first to see if she is able to take care of it. If she really loves it and takes care of it invest in the AG brand.

My 4 year old is great with hers! The knockoff ones have horrible hair to maintain. I buy almost all the clothes and accessories on eBay or at target, toys r us, and Walmart .

My daughter got one when she turned six. I think she wanted it mostly because all of her friends were getting AG dolls. Although she likes it, she doesn't play with it much. She prefers stuffed animals or Barbies.

A few months ago, someone (probably my one year old) put a very small mark on her face. It wouldn't wash off no matter what I used. I took it to the AG store, and they charged me $55+ to have it fixed. Ugh. I almost could have bought a new doll for that much money.

If I were you, I would wait until your daughter is just a little bit older. Buying an AG doll opens up a whole can of worms. Their clothing and accessories cost more than what I pay for my own clothes and accessories! And then your daughter might want you to take her to the AG store, spa, restaurant, etc. There are books and DVDs that go with each doll too.

Maybe get her a knock off for now and tell her she can have the real deal when she is a little older. Good luck!

Maybe check and see if a friend or family member has an AG doll that they know longer use. Possibly sell or give to your DD. My 2nd cousin who is now in college was so happy to pass her doll onto my children.
L

Our daughter was that way, too. My parents bought her a knock-off from Sears at Christmas. She liked the doll but quickly lost interest and said, "I like baby dolls better."

I am SO glad we didn't spend a fortune on those AG dolls! She still oohs and ahhs over the catalog but that's it.

My youngest definitely had an AG doll at 5 and I think it was just before her 5th bday actually. Her older sister got one so my parents got her one at the same time. It's not a must have at 5 but my kids love those dolls. My oldest is 8 and reading the books now about "her doll" and they're teaching her a lot too about history. My youngest is a gentle kid so 5 wasn't too young from that stand point at all. I think you're fine either way. Not like you gotta get her it now but also not too early. I'd say Christmas or her 6th bday. Once the catalog is out of sight, she likely will forget all about it.

My daughter is 6 and this year for our summer vacation we went to the actual American Girl store where I purchased the doll for her. That was in July, it is now November and she does not touch the doll at all. If I had to do it again I would wait until she is older. I spent a lot of money on the doll itself and then she wanted the matching outfit the doll had on. She does not play with or wear either.....Start out with the cheaper versions. If she proves to be good in that area think about moving her up later. I have threatened twice to donate the doll to entice her to play with it and she chooses her Baby Alive Doll hands down.... :) hope this helps

Ha ha...I asked the same question a while ago...I had the same issue with my daughter too! Luckily she's kinda forgotten about it & is now on to Build-A-Bear.

A friend of mine got the knock offs at Target for her girls for Christmas last year. They love them. I also would not spend as much as the originals on them, that's for sure.