Girl's Doll w/Hair that doesn't "freak out"?

[Marshay]

Is there a type of toy doll where the hair doesn't get all messed up and raggedy? (American Girl? My Twinn Doll?, etc)

I'd love to get my DD4 a nice doll when she turn 5 but I want to make sure the hair will stay nice, like in the package when you first get it. I'm willing to pay more not to have to sit and brush out hair that has freaked out.

All of her Barbie dolls do this and I bought the Disney Girl doll at World of Disney, and the hair is just a mess.

Thanks for the help!

[eduk8r26]

The American Girl Bitty Baby has no hair, but the Bitty Baby Twins have short hair that should not get all ratty. For a 4-year old, I'd think she'd like Bitty Baby better anyhow.

[robinb]

Originally Posted by Marshay

Is there a type of toy doll where the hair doesn't get all messed up and raggedy? (American Girl? My Twinn Doll?, etc)

I'd love to get my DD4 a nice doll when she turn 5 but I want to make sure the hair will stay nice, like in the package when you first get it. I'm willing to pay more not to have to sit and brush out hair that has freaked out.

All of her Barbie dolls do this and I bought the Disney Girl doll at World of Disney, and the hair is just a mess.

Thanks for the help!

Sorry, but I don't think there is a 5-year old alive that can keep a doll's hair non-raggedy. It's more a function of the child than the doll. That being said, my DD's American Girl dolls' hair is in great condition. Start with a Bitty Baby (no hair at all) or one of the Bitty Baby twins with short hair that you can find on eBay. Often people will buy a set of Bitty Baby twins to keep one and sell the other.

[Marshay]

Originally Posted by eduk8r26

The American Girl Bitty Baby has no hair, but the Bitty Baby Twins have short hair that should not get all ratty. For a 4-year old, I'd think she'd like Bitty Baby better anyhow.

Thanks...she already has a baby doll with no hair...she wants one with hair now...

Originally Posted by robinb

Sorry, but I don't think there is a 5-year old alive that can keep a doll's hair non-raggedy. It's more a function of the child than the doll. That being said, my DD's American Girl dolls' hair is in great condition. Start with a Bitty Baby (no hair at all) or one of the Bitty Baby twins with short hair that you can find on eBay. Often people will buy a set of Bitty Baby twins to keep one and sell the other.

Sigh...I was afraid of that answer! I guess it's the user more than the doll, right?

Maybe shorter hair would be a good compromise. Not sure why I didn't think of that.

Thanks!

[Twoboysnmygirl]

American Girl. My dd has had her dolls for a few years and plays with them all the time. Their hair is in excellent condition and doesn't get all frayed and tangled like normal doll hair. It's one of the reasons I really like AG.

[owensamo]

My DD has 2 American Girl dolls - one with really long hair (Elizabeth) and one with short hair (Kit). Kit's hair stays *soooo* much nicer than Elizabeth's!! Elizabeth's gets tangled (though not matted/horrible) on a regular basis, but Kit's hasn't really had a problem.

I would recommend not only shorter hair, but straight hair - the curly hair seems to tangle more.

Fortunately, the AG hair is pretty easy to brush out. Dampen it with a light mist of water (make sure the eyes are well protected!) and then use an AG brush gently and the tangles will come out. It takes time and a little work, but it's much more reasonable than my DD's My Little Pony manes and tails - which I can never get unmatted, and which even she eventually takes scissors to!

[lindsmom]

Just want to add with AG dolls, the textured hair gets very matted - found out the hard way because DD asked for Josefina first! And it's tough to brush out - even the women at the salon in Natick struggled with her hair.

[mjkacmom]

We have 3 AG dolls who need a serious trip to NYC to the store to have their hair done! Dd6 and dd8 have finally gotten the knots out, but the hair is total frizz.

[Hannathy]

Originally Posted by robinb

Sorry, but I don't think there is a 5-year old alive that can keep a doll's hair non-raggedy. It's more a function of the child than the doll. That being said, my DD's American Girl dolls' hair is in great condition. Start with a Bitty Baby (no hair at all) or one of the Bitty Baby twins with short hair that you can find on eBay. Often people will buy a set of Bitty Baby twins to keep one and sell the other.

I agree with this 100%

My DD's American girl dolls hair is in excellent condition after 12 yrs BUT she took care of it! I have seen American Girl dolls with hair that was totally ruined after a few months. She also played with her doll a lot. The hair is of very good quality but if you brush it with a regular hair brush or use rubber bands on it it is going to look bad.

I do have a hint if you have a younger DD with an American Girl doll with long hair. You (Mom) braid the hair into one long braid and leave it like that for everyday play. It won't tangle or get frizzy and it stops your DD from brushing it too much or with the wrong kind of brush or any of her little friends doing it.

[Erica09M]

Even if your AG/BT doll gets tangled hair, you can send it to the salon to have it fixed (for a charge). So the doll wouldn't be a total loss.

And there are some 5 year olds who can keep AG dolls' hair in excellent condition. But yes, the user plays a huge roll in this... not just the doll.

[Marshay]

wow! Thanks everyone for all the answers. I may just wait another year and do a "nice" (i.e. expensive) doll when she is 6.

Just curious, do anyone have or know someone with a My Twinn doll? That's the one where you send them a picture of your child and they build the face around the picture.

[Hannathy]

Originally Posted by Marshay

wow! Thanks everyone for all the answers. I may just wait another year and do a "nice" (i.e. expensive) doll when she is 6.

Just curious, do anyone have or know someone with a My Twinn doll? That's the one where you send them a picture of your child and they build the face around the picture.

Yes it was nice BUT and this is a huge BUT, they are a lot bigger than the American Girl dolls SO none of the clothes fit, they are too big for the furniture or the knock off furniture that is all designed for American Girl doll size. So please consider this if buying one.

(unless this has changed just recently?)

[livndisney]

Originally Posted by Hannathy

Yes it was nice BUT and this is a huge BUT, they are a lot bigger than the American Girl dolls SO none of the clothes fit, they are too big for the furniture or the knock off furniture that is all designed for American Girl doll size. So please consider this if buying one.

(unless this has changed just recently?)

They are still 23 inches (vs 18 for AG). Plus the company has changed hands a couple of time and "gone out of business" atleast once. If they continue to have problems, it would make getting clothing and "stuff" in the 23 inch size even harder to get.

[sl_underwood]

My dd has several AG dolls and I must say the hair is far easier to take care of than many of the other dolls out there. I agree with buying one with shorter straight hair for while she is younger.

[zoemurr]

Originally Posted by Hannathy

Yes it was nice BUT and this is a huge BUT, they are a lot bigger than the American Girl dolls SO none of the clothes fit, they are too big for the furniture or the knock off furniture that is all designed for American Girl doll size. So please consider this if buying one.

(unless this has changed just recently?)

because my DD wanted it to have a birthmark like hers (and then my son decided he needed one too..) They wear newborn clothing which is easy to find on clearance. (There are also many talented women who make clothes like the one in the attached pic.) My DDs has long hair that is a pain, but probably not worse than any other doll. These have become a part of the family.

The company did have problems before, but I think they are owned by etoys now.

HTH. Sorry pic is so big.. I tried to make it smaller..