We’ll go with the caveat that they aren’t allowed to buy anything truly dangerous, but beyond that, should kids be allowed to use their allowance to buy whatever they want? What exceptions would you make?
I’m going to be very general now, I’ll explain later what my kids want to buy that I’m unsure of.
We allow them to buy what they want, as long as it’s nothing dangerous or illegal. We take the position that if we’re going to tell them the money is theirs, it really has to be theirs. We might tell them to think a little more about something before they make an impulse buy, and make sure it’s something they want, but I also feel that experiencing buyer’s remorse is part of learning how to handle money.
Sure, anything that isn’t otherwise forbidden by the rules.
What rules?
Yes, although we have a plan (which might go right out the window when we try to put it into practice).
Junior will recieve his allowance and the money is his; however, 15% has to go into a long term savings account, 15% has to go into a short term savings account with a specific goal in mind, like a bike or a radio or something else that boys like, and the other 70% he gets to blow on whatever he wants provided it’s not harmful or dangerous.
I’ve gone through this with my son. I knew he would be disappointed with a fairly large purchase. I discussed my concerns with him, but in the end my attitude was, “Well, It’s your money”. He bought it and was bummed.
That all said, I’m a huge softy and helped him sell it on Craigslist, almost assuredly making some other kid disappointing.
Honestly, I’d say it depends on their age and the sum of money. Generally speaking I’d say that they should be able to spend it as they please, providing it is on something you would allow them to have anyway. For instance, I wouldn’t allow make-up below a certain age, whether I bought it or my child. Similarly, I like the idea that (depending on the amount) the child should be encouraged to save some of any money they come into, or give some to charitiy. Other than that, though, I’d say - their money, their perogative.
My eldest is still a bit young for this to be an issue, but she has been given some money by a family friend in the past, which she knows is ‘her’ money. It was £5, but since she’s only 4 1/2 herself, the amount is completely lost on her. She likes that she has a purse with some coins in it, and if we go to the shops and she remembers to take her purse I pretty much let her choose whether or not to spend the money and what on. However, I am banking on the fact that her only current desire is to buy chocolate magic stars for herself. She did decide she wanted to buy our dog a toy, but it turned out she didn’t have enough money to do that, so I sneaked the rest of the money myself! Actually, I think I majorly lost out on that deal…
As long as it’s nothing illegal or against the rules (we’re not allowed dogs or cats in this house, but she’s bought goldfish).
At 12 y/o, she’s just as likely to blow the lot on candy and soda or a new (6th) pair of sunglasses.
I do discuss large purchaes with her - she’s been saving part of her pocket money for a game system and I was able to show her a different system for less than half the price with more game options. This time last year she would have insisted on her first choice, now she’s doing more checks herself to see if there are other options. We’ve had **Kayaker’s **experience and she learned from it.
What is it your kids want to buy?
Concur completely.
And yes, this has led to some small buyer’s remorse… all part of the learning process.
When I was a kid (from 4-13) I would stay at my grandparents for the summer (for a while I stayed 1/2 the summer, sometimes most of it). And they put me to work for 5 days a week, 6-8 hours a day - pulling weeds, cleaning fish, painting, putting up a 2,000 foot fence, working on the seawall, cutting grass, doing the electric and cable hookups for new mobile homes in their mobile home park, hacking away at the plants that grew outside the sewage treatment plant, etc etc etc.
For .25/hour. When I was 10, I was bumped to .50/hour. I never got to keep the money - it all went into “savings”.
So, when I was 20 I was presented a check for 13,760, which amounted to my total earnings+interest (I also figured that my G'parents through extra in there, but they would not admit to doing so). I took that money, bought Texaco stock at $35/share, and watched that shit just jump 45% within a year as Carl Icahn made a play for the company, with me selling the stock in 1989 at $51.
I took the $20k and blew it (mostly on a car), but that’s my allowance story. I have little confidence that it helps the OP, but there it is. 
The issue is that my 9 year old daughter wants to spend her allowance on something that I normally wouldn’t allow her to have, but is not something dangerous. It’s most similar to the makeup example that Charley mentioned.
Yea or ney?
Bwahahah!!! Good luck with that.
I’m just giving you a hard time because I know you’re a new parent. No ill will intended. 
As to the OP: I agree word for word with Dio. My oldest would spend it as fast as he got it. My youngest though surprised the hell out of me. I picked up his pants he had laying on the floor. His wallet fell out along with $100. Not bad for a 13yo who only gets $10 a week!
The fact that it’s her allowance does not allow her to use it to break the rules. The rule isn’t that you won’t buy her makeup, it’s that she can’t wear makeup. (I presume)
That said, you don’t stop her from buying it, you just warn that the rules still exist.
Depends on how the rule is set up.
“I will not buy makeup for you because I don’t like wasting my money on things that you’ll get sick of.” Sure, let her buy it - it’s her money.
“You cannot wear makeup out in public until you are x age.” Nope. House rule isn’t trumped by her pocket change.
Now, what I would do is let her buy it if she wants, and let you store it for her, and let her have access on one day a week (or an hour or so in an evening) to “practice” in the house and wash it back off, but that’s just me. This involves what you’re willing for your kid to do in your house.
Absolutely they should. That is the entire point of allowance. To learn how to prioritize, save for larger purchases, or fritter it away on little pleasures like candy or a download off I-tunes. Some are savers, some are spenders, and it is important to teach them the value of saving, but the point is that the money they have to use at their discretion must be theirs or it doesn’t mean anything at all.
I would say it depends on how they came into the money. When I started to recive an allowance at maybe six I did nothing for it just got 5 dollars a week and there were limitations on what I could buy with it. After all it really wasn’t my money. However, when I turned 10 and living with my Grandparents I worked with my Pa after school and on weekends to earn money. My hours were logged and I was paid at the end of the week this was my money and no limitations were placed on it.
Let her buy the makeup. If she’s allowed to wear makeup in public, fine, but you have to approve of the appearance. If she’s not, she can put it on and wear it around the house. This is how girls learn how to apply makeup.
As a general rule, I think that kids should be allowed to make mistakes if the mistakes are just disappointing (like buying a product that doesn’t live up to expectations) but not dangerous. This is how they learn to make wiser decisions.
That’s the whole point of an allowance. You’re not giving the things directly to your kid; you’re giving them money they can spend on things.
When I was a kid, I didn’t have an allowance per se. When I wanted something, I asked Mom for it, and she would decide whether to get it for me (I didn’t ask for much, so usually the answer was yes). But it was never my money. She also made it clear, though, that I was free to earn money in other ways, and that money, being mine, I could spend on whatever I wished, whether it was something she would have bought for me or not. That’s how I got my Nintendo: I saved up money from babysitting, and since it was my money, I got to spend it on an expensive and non-educational toy.
I’m thinking this is something for an older girl? Like maybe a glittery bra she’s still too small for or a teen girl magazine?
If it can be worn, maybe it’s time for the ‘what you do in your own room is your own business’ privacy talk? She can have it, but can’t wear it outside yet?
If it’s something to read, tell her she can buy it, but she can’t read it until she’s 13. 
Why wouldn’t you normally allow her to have it? If you have fair reasons for not allowing her to have it, then they should apply regardless of whether it’s her money or yours.
If it’s something that you feel is not worth the money, like, say, a game you just know she’ll be bored of within a day, then that’s different - like Dio said, what’s worth spending money on or not is something she has to learn first hand.
But then you have to not top up her pocket money to pay for the things she would have been able to buy had she not overspent. My daughter tends to buy sweets with her money (and she’s 13). Then if she doesn’t have enough money left for a cinema ticket, that’s tough.
I’m curious now as to what this item is. Earrings? A too-short skirt? A fake tattoo?