Mommy boutique vs. BBB for littles

[englishteacha]

We're planning Z's first trip for sometime next year! She'll be 4ish. She's all about princesses and fairies right now. The highlight of her life is meeting Cinderella and the other fairy tale characters at Story Land, an amusement park in NH. She plays "Cinderella" several times a day. (I'm usually the prince!) She loves to play dress up.

We want Z's first trip to be awesome, but I just can't justify paying $55+ for BBB for her, especially since she doesn't have a lot of hair to begin with. I was thinking of doing fancy hair and some makeup myself for her, and letting her dress as a princess for a day (or two). I'd rather direct that money toward a character meal where she can interact with princesses. (She also hasn't had her first haircut yet, so I'm hoping we can hold off till we're at WDW for a professional cut at the barber shop.)

Have any of you gone the DIY route rather than BBB for your girls?

 

[sug78]

I would just go to the barber shop and get her first hair cut. I've read they will style it and do glitter as well we started with BBB about 6 years old

 

[kteeter]

We are taking my nice age 11, but to save money we are doing barber shop hair cut and bring a fancy princess dress from home as well. We would rather have the character interaction than have her sitting in the chair for 30 min.

 

[Thing 1]

I"m the boy mom so I have never really had this decision to make, BUT I am pretty sure I would choose to do it myself. You can fix hair in a style you like and is comfortable for her, do her nails and make-up and purchase ahead of time a dress, etc MUCH cheaper than BBB . You can choose a character meal with princess and get the best of both worlds!!!

 

[scrapquitler]

We're planning Z's first trip for sometime next year! She'll be 4ish. She's all about princesses and fairies right now. The highlight of her life is meeting Cinderella and the other fairy tale characters at Story Land, an amusement park in NH. She plays "Cinderella" several times a day. (I'm usually the prince!) She loves to play dress up.

We want Z's first trip to be awesome, but I just can't justify paying $55+ for BBB for her, especially since she doesn't have a lot of hair to begin with. I was thinking of doing fancy hair and some makeup myself for her, and letting her dress as a princess for a day (or two). I'd rather direct that money toward a character meal where she can interact with princesses. (She also hasn't had her first haircut yet, so I'm hoping we can hold off till we're at WDW for a professional cut at the barber shop.)

Have any of you gone the DIY route rather than BBB for your girls?

My daughter was never interested in BBB, so it was never an issue for us, but I absolutely agree with you. I would have much rather done the hair/makeup/dress up thing on our own and done meet and greets or the meal (which my child was also not interested in doing). I think the first haircut at the Main Street Barber is a great idea.

 

[jacknsally19]

I would definitely do it yourself. Honestly, she will not know that she's missing out. She will notice that some girls have princess dresses but if she's wearing one herself - you have nothing to worry about!

 

[newestkg06]

I have heard that the BBB hairstyles can be really hard on hair because they pull it so tight into a bun on the top of their head. The barber shop with glitter will be cheaper and probably cuter. Or maybe find some princess bows to decorate her regular hairstyle and ask for some glitter?

 

[Hezzy04]

When we went in May, I did my girls' hair (ages 3 and 4). It worked out perfectly and they had no clue BBB even existed.

That said, next time we go, I might splurge and let the. Go to BBB because I think they would absolutely love the experience!

 

[ruthies12]

Both of my girls did their first haircut at harmony barber shop and it was awesome both times. They will do glitter in the hair as well. I've done BBB once and am going again on our next trip. It was very worth it IMO.

My first question to you is- will this be an only trip? If it is once in a lifetime and you don't think you'll be back, then I'd spring for BBB. If you think you will go again then I'd wait until she's older and more able to appreciate it and enjoy it more.

If you want to go the do-it-yourself route, and you want to make it more magical at the same time- have makeup, nail polish, and maybe even a new tiara delivered to your room as a gift from the princesses. I've done this with my own daughter and it works like a charm! Wrap the items in glittery paper, and have them "magically" appear in your room in the morning when she wakes up. The little trail of gold glitter from the gift to the window proves that it was delivered by the fairies. A fancy font on some pretty paper for the note from the princesses letting your dd know who the gift is from and you are in business and still will come out way cheaper than the BBB route.

 

[North of Mouse]

We're planning Z's first trip for sometime next year! She'll be 4ish. She's all about princesses and fairies right now. The highlight of her life is meeting Cinderella and the other fairy tale characters at Story Land, an amusement park in NH. She plays "Cinderella" several times a day. (I'm usually the prince!) She loves to play dress up.

We want Z's first trip to be awesome, but I just can't justify paying $55+ for BBB for her, especially since she doesn't have a lot of hair to begin with. I was thinking of doing fancy hair and some makeup myself for her, and letting her dress as a princess for a day (or two). I'd rather direct that money toward a character meal where she can interact with princesses. (She also hasn't had her first haircut yet, so I'm hoping we can hold off till we're at WDW for a professional cut at the barber shop.)

Have any of you gone the DIY route rather than BBB for your girls?

This is her first trip and will be so excited in 'everything' she sees and doesn't even know BBB exists. I would definitely go the DIY route and she will be just as excited and not missing a thing. They are way too expensive for what you get anyway. I think a lot of the little ones are getting BBB for 'Mommy' and not themselves. A cute dress and hairstyle by you will make her very happy.

 

[worm761]

Personally, I'm going the DIY route when/if DD wants this. DD is 5, has a ton of hair, and I don't look forward to washing that stuff out of her hair. She also rarely likes having her hair pulled up. But they sell those cute little crown things in the gift shops so I'll just buy one of those and do her hair up for her.

 

[Aliceacc]

I agree with the OP, absolutely.

An updo, some glitter and makeup, and a princess costume from Halloween will make her feel like royalty. And the princesses at the character meal you choose will refer to her as "princess" or "your highness."

There's a tendency on these boards to believe that EVERYTHING is a "must do." And that if you skip any thing that anyone else has done, your trip will be somehow... less. And the reality is that our kids are a whole lot smarter than we are: they recognize that a trip to WDW is wonderful, even without someone else's idea of a "must do."

Skip BBB.

 

[Baklava]

Do it yourself. Cheaper, probably nicer and you have an easier control over the details. (BBB cakes on make up and you may want a cleaner look for your kid, you may want a gentler hairdo, etc.)

 

[ChasingLeslie]

Personally, I don't like the severe buns they do at BBB, so I plan to do my daughter's hair myself. She has some very pretty tiara-like headbands, and I do pretty good updos...she doesn't need makeup/glitter or nail polish.

 

[englishteacha]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who thinks a DIY will be fun and special! This won't be an "only" trip. We will try to go every few years. She may not be interested in BBB when she's older (I can hope, right?!) and this first trip she doesn't know it exists. I ordered a Cinderella dress today from Mom Approved Costumes (and it comes with a letter from Cinderella!). I hope I can contain my excitement and hang on to it till Christmas!! If the quality is what I'm expecting, I may let Z choose a new princess dress from their shop for our trip.

 

[Capang]

When DD was 3 we did her 'do ourselves. She had a dress she picked out and I hit fancy barrettes and ribbons before we left for WDW. I did her hair and she loved it. I also gave her some Chapstick/lipgloss and she thought she was a real princess. Enjoy your trip!

 

[mom25kiddos]

Another mom who is of the do it yourself view-not only because of cost and the little one's age, but also time. I always think, well that is time we could spend doing something else that we can't do at home, we would rather be going on rides or meeting characters than getting hair done. But that is just me. I always feel like time is precious at WDW.

 

[4littleones]

I have done it myself. Not as magical as BBB but if they have never been there they will never know.
Really that's the best part about being the planner. The other in your group including the 4 year old don't know what they don't know so only you feel disappointed if you miss something you wanted to do. They don't have a clue. Always remember that and you will stress less about your planning.

 

[Mousemommy1]

I'll play devil's advocate and say that I am soooooo glad that we did BBB when we did (our girls were 3 and 5) because now I can't get either of those tomboys within 30 ft of a dang dress!!! I'll always have those memories and photos though, lol!

What about Pirates League for your daughter, OP? My girls absolutely LOVE Pirates League (they are 8 and 11 now) and it's way easier on the wallet.

 

[kmdrago1783]

Both of my girls did their first haircut at harmony barber shop and it was awesome both times. They will do glitter in the hair as well. I've done BBB once and am going again on our next trip. It was very worth it IMO.

My first question to you is- will this be an only trip? If it is once in a lifetime and you don't think you'll be back, then I'd spring for BBB. If you think you will go again then I'd wait until she's older and more able to appreciate it and enjoy it more.

If you want to go the do-it-yourself route, and you want to make it more magical at the same time- have makeup, nail polish, and maybe even a new tiara delivered to your room as a gift from the princesses. I've done this with my own daughter and it works like a charm! Wrap the items in glittery paper, and have them "magically" appear in your room in the morning when she wakes up. The little trail of gold glitter from the gift to the window proves that it was delivered by the fairies. A fancy font on some pretty paper for the note from the princesses letting your dd know who the gift is from and you are in business and still will come out way cheaper than the BBB route.

Love this idea!!!