I am here to document SHENANIGANS. (No, not the g3 pony.)

[LadyMoondancer]

I don't think there's anything wrong with a kid altering their own toy by cutting its hair or writing on it or whatever.  It's theirs.  (Just don't do it to someone else's possessions.)  Don't give a toy to a kid if you want it to remain pristine.

[BlackCurtains]

I marked my Kenner LPS as a kid so mine wouldn't get mixed up with my best friends LPS. We had a lot of the same sets so I put a black dot on the bottom of all my pets and accessories. I don't regret it or think it makes them worth less. I was very particular about my toys. I also gave some haircuts to stuffed animals, mainly around the eyes because they couldn't see

[LadyAmalthea]

I must have missed this whole thing. Too bad...it's amusing! Looking forward to your 'documentary' or whatever you do with it...I'll totally watch it!

Post Merge: February 06, 2022, 06:04:19 PM

As for thrift stores writing on their merchandise:
I have 3 of those ponies that I got in the same lot. They all had prices written on their sides with Sharpie. Who DOES that?!? 2 years later, I have successfully sunfaded Cherries Jubilee, and Peachy is about 95% cured, but I'm afraid poor Bowtie is going to have to live with her prison tat.

(I tried to quote the post, but it was long with lots of sub quotes, and I tried to cut it down to the relevant part, but I screwed it up, sorry!)

[Taffeta]

I wrote on the hooves of my ponies when I was a kid, they all had to have my name on if they went with me to school. ANd damage happened from play and a couple of unfortunate incidents at school.

My post got quoted but I was just clarifying the implication of what was said previously, I wasn't stating any particular position on the idea.

...That said, I grew up in a household where there was not a lot of money. I was taught to take good care of my toys because if they broke, or got wrecked, they wouldn't be replaced. I don't think that kids should be expected to keep their toys pristine. I do think they should learn to take care of what they have in the best way they can, or at least to understand that if they permanently change a toy, there's no replacement or quick fix.

I remember being in floods of tears when Star Gleamer's tail caught on Songster's by accident when I had them close together one time. Because Mum had to cut a small section from Star Gleamer's tail. To me cutting a pony's hair when I was a kid was literally an abomination, especially on a bng, because playing with the hair was so important to me. Although Mum did it so nicely you can't even see there's anything missing.

...So yeah. Kids shouldn't be expected to keep their toys pristine, but it isn't a bad thing to teach a child to value their possessions, especially if there's not a lot of spare cash around to buy new. This is especially true if there are several kids and toys need to get handed down through all of them, rather than being able to buy entirely new for each kid.

[LadyAmalthea]

I wrote on the hooves of my ponies when I was a kid, they all had to have my name on if they went with me to school. ANd damage happened from play and a couple of unfortunate incidents at school.

My post got quoted but I was just clarifying the implication of what was said previously, I wasn't stating any particular position on the idea.

...That said, I grew up in a household where there was not a lot of money. I was taught to take good care of my toys because if they broke, or got wrecked, they wouldn't be replaced. I don't think that kids should be expected to keep their toys pristine. I do think they should learn to take care of what they have in the best way they can, or at least to understand that if they permanently change a toy, there's no replacement or quick fix.

I remember being in floods of tears when Star Gleamer's tail caught on Songster's by accident when I had them close together one time. Because Mum had to cut a small section from Star Gleamer's tail. To me cutting a pony's hair when I was a kid was literally an abomination, especially on a bng, because playing with the hair was so important to me. Although Mum did it so nicely you can't even see there's anything missing.

...So yeah. Kids shouldn't be expected to keep their toys pristine, but it isn't a bad thing to teach a child to value their possessions, especially if there's not a lot of spare cash around to buy new. This is especially true if there are several kids and toys need to get handed down through all of them, rather than being able to buy entirely new for each kid.

I wrote my initials on my ponies as a kid, or at least some of them. My best friend and I played together with ponies frequently, and I tended to keep mine in better shape than she did, so there was no way I wanted them mixed up. We even had some duplicates between sisters in my household. I had the foresight enough to make the initials tiny, in only a corner of their hooves, and with a pink pen, which I felt was less obtrusive than black. I made slight tail trims if there were hairs that got pulled out longer, but I never would have dreamed of defacing them. I did re-pink with a highlighter once! They weren't pristine; some of my favorites went everywhere with me, including the lake and pool, but they were loved.

Not to mention, I would have gotten in trouble if I had intentionally damaged my toys; my parents probably would have taken objection to my tiny initials on them! My parents believed that responsibility began with our own possessions. I was the oldest of several kids, and our toys did have to last through all of us...with the exception of a couple of 'special' toys, they weren't just ours; if you ruined it, you ruined it for everybody.

I've been struggling with this with my own kids. They write and draw on everything despite my rules, threats, and bribes for good behavior. If there is even one writing utensil left laying around, it will be used for destruction. I stopped letting them have markers...it is colored pencil only (that's what my son prefers) because it is easily removable with magic eraser. Scissors are no longer allowed since some forelocks got cut once. I don't know if I'm just a weaker parent than my parents were or what. My kids are just a different kind of kids than my siblings and I were I guess. Stronger willed or something. I try to give them plenty of creative outlets that don't involve being destructive, but my 3-year-old twins seem to just take joy in being subversive and naughty...they laugh in my face at my discovery of their handiwork where I would have shrunk back in fear as a child. With my son, it's probably more about putting what he feels are creative touches on things...he's gotten better about not drawing on/cutting up toys.

Sorry if I've strayed off-topic a bit. I get ramble-y sometimes!

[LadyMoondancer]

or at least to understand that if they permanently change a toy, there's no replacement or quick fix.

That's another reason why I think it's fine for kids to mess up their toys.  It's a lot better to learn "oh, I should think things through and use foresight" over something harmless like scribbling on a toy, rather than when you're riding a bike without a helmet and are about to hit something, lol.

I also think it's just important for everyone to have something they have ultimate control over, and for kids what else is there but toys?  Adults decide pretty much every other detail of their lives (which is understandable because, yeah, you can't let a kid eat nothing but chocolate cake, skip school, etc.)  It just seems like a healthy boundary--the adults being like "You can do whatever you want to your toy, but if it breaks I'm not replacing it" and then the kid having fun with the toy whichever way they choose.  (Maybe not for toddlers because they still need to be taught rough vs gentle, but I'm talking like six year olds and up.)

I once got a lot of ponies from their original owner which included a So-Soft Magic Star who had her green hair cut off, yellow troll hair hot glued on, had nicks all over her body, and pen mark on her.  I was curious about this, since the rest of the ponies in the lot were near mint.  The owner explained that Magic Star had been "the Troll Pony" in her games who would terrorize the other ponies, and had been decorated accordingly.  Magic Star clearly got a lot of playtime / love and I found her so endearing that she sits on my pony shelves to this day, troll hair and all.  <3

[starscout]

or at least to understand that if they permanently change a toy, there's no replacement or quick fix.

That's another reason why I think it's fine for kids to mess up their toys.  It's a lot better to learn "oh, I should think things through and use foresight" over something harmless like scribbling on a toy, rather than when you're riding a bike without a helmet and are about to hit something, lol.

I also think it's just important for everyone to have something they have ultimate control over, and for kids what else is there but toys?  Adults decide pretty much every other detail of their lives (which is understandable because, yeah, you can't let a kid eat nothing but chocolate cake, skip school, etc.)  It just seems like a healthy boundary--the adults being like "You can do whatever you want to your toy, but if it breaks I'm not replacing it" and then the kid having fun with the toy whichever way they choose.  (Maybe not for toddlers because they still need to be taught rough vs gentle, but I'm talking like six year olds and up.)

I once got a lot of ponies from their original owner which included a So-Soft Magic Star who had her green hair cut off, yellow troll hair hot glued on, had nicks all over her body, and pen mark on her.  I was curious about this, since the rest of the ponies in the lot were near mint.  The owner explained that Magic Star had been "the Troll Pony" in her games who would terrorize the other ponies, and had been decorated accordingly.  Magic Star clearly got a lot of playtime / love and I found her so endearing that she sits on my pony shelves to this day, troll hair and all.  <3

That's adorable! Do you have any pics of troll pony Magic Star? I'd love to see her.

[LadyMoondancer]

Just went and took a pic . . . here she is. <3

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[MyLittlePonyUKCollector]

or at least to understand that if they permanently change a toy, there's no replacement or quick fix.

That's another reason why I think it's fine for kids to mess up their toys.  It's a lot better to learn "oh, I should think things through and use foresight" over something harmless like scribbling on a toy, rather than when you're riding a bike without a helmet and are about to hit something, lol.

I also think it's just important for everyone to have something they have ultimate control over, and for kids what else is there but toys?  Adults decide pretty much every other detail of their lives (which is understandable because, yeah, you can't let a kid eat nothing but chocolate cake, skip school, etc.)  It just seems like a healthy boundary--the adults being like "You can do whatever you want to your toy, but if it breaks I'm not replacing it" and then the kid having fun with the toy whichever way they choose.  (Maybe not for toddlers because they still need to be taught rough vs gentle, but I'm talking like six year olds and up.)

I once got a lot of ponies from their original owner which included a So-Soft Magic Star who had her green hair cut off, yellow troll hair hot glued on, had nicks all over her body, and pen mark on her.  I was curious about this, since the rest of the ponies in the lot were near mint.  The owner explained that Magic Star had been "the Troll Pony" in her games who would terrorize the other ponies, and had been decorated accordingly.  Magic Star clearly got a lot of playtime / love and I found her so endearing that she sits on my pony shelves to this day, troll hair and all.  <3

I agree with you there; every child is different and i personally got so upset when my toys even got a scratch! But i dont judge kids who experiment and make mistakes with one of the only things they own

[LadyMoondancer]

Oh yeah, I was actually also a very picky child--at least about ponies!  I wouldn't let my mom write my name on my pony's hooves, lol . . . and I cried when my sister braided SS Angel's hair because she had "ruined" her hair, i.e. it didn't look like it did right out the packaging.

But I also put eyeshadow in a vintage (probably from the 70s) Red Riding Hood doll, which never came out . . . I have no regrets, she looked great.  I also cut holes in a bunch of doll clothes because I wanted to dress up my Pound Puppies and they needed tail holes, of course!