This year, I have been slowly building my first Lego collection. My kids and GeekMom Jenny each have tubs of Lego bricks that belong to them individually. I felt left out after visiting Legoland with Jenny, so I started my own collection. When I started buying, I did a lot of research, so that I could get the most out of my investment in a fairly expensive hobby. The first thing I needed, no argument, was bricks. There are many ways to get a bunch of bricks at once. I started with the Lego Build and Play Box. It’s a great starter set, highlighted by its large storage box, but I’ve found some cheaper options. Here is a breakdown of the average prices I could find: 884 piece Lego Education Brick Set 779384 = 6.1 cents per brick 650 piece Lego Bricks & More Builders of Tomorrow Set 6177 = 6.3 cents per brick (discontinued and no longer available, as of 11/2016) 1,000 piece Lego Build and Play Box 4630 = 11.6cents per brick 650 piece Lego Creative Building Kit 5749 = 7.1 cents per brick
1,600 piece Lego XXL Brick Box 5512 = 13.4 cents per brick (this one has been discontinued, hence its elevated price) As you can see, the Lego Education Brick Set has some serious bang for its buck. It’s a medium size kit, with 11 sizes and 9 colors. The bricks are pretty basic, but that’s the best place to start. I get the most use out of basic shapes, because they are so versatile. Specialized pieces often have just one purpose, and don’t get used as much. The next thing I needed was a plate. Plates are the foundation that you build your creations on. It’s possible to build on a table, but plates make the whole experience simpler and more fun. Lego makes two 10″ plates, one in green for general use, and one in blue for water scenes. Generally you can find one for about five bucks. There is also an XL gray plate, which measures 15″, but it runs around $15 right now. I own just one green plate, and it is worth its weight in gold. Honorable mention goes to the Brick Separator.
Another thing that is invaluable. Saves me so much trouble when disassembling. Though these are often included in specialty kits for free. The last thing I needed was minifigs. There are hundreds of options. As a matter of fact, according to xkcd, there will be more minifigs in the world than people by the year 2019! Where to start then? This is definitely not a case for the basics. I wanted my minifigs to be special, ones I’d like looking at forever. Since Rory is my favorite character in (I mean, how could I not like a total dork with the same name as me?), I got the Series 10 Roman Commander (read: Centurion). The kids then surprised me with a pile of parts from old minifigs that they didn’t want any more. This was great because I was able to make a few that I liked, and have the ability to change things up. After that, the sky (read: wallet) was the limit. There are so many themed kits it would take an enormous amount of money to get them all. I suggest ignoring sets like the ones, for example, because the scenes are not versatile at all.
This makes me sad, because I love everything. I just don’t have room in my house for a permanent installment of Krang’s Lab, and it’s not fun (for me) to keep building the same thing over and over again. There are a couple of exceptions. If you love one of the kits so much that it’s worth its own place in your home, buy away. GeekMom Jenny has three Lego Architecture sets that have their own shelf in her office. Also, Lego Creator sets are somewhere between free form and regular kits. Each of them makes three things officially. I love the LEGO Creator Fierce Flyer 31004, which has three official builds: an eagle, a beaver, and a scorpion. The only rule of buying Lego products is to never buy something you won’t use. If that means you never buy basic kits because you’d prefer to build a Lego Delorean, that’s okay! Buy things you love, so you will get the most out of them. One last thought: If you are buying for your kids, let them help pick out the pieces they want.
Our kids keep a running list of which sets they might like to have. This is mostly so they know what they want to buy with monetary gifts, and so we know which sets to buy them as a surprise or as a gift. (Kit prices are current as of 11/21/2016)LEGO sets are brilliant for boosting building skills, co-ordination, patience, concentration – and of course, keeping 'em busy when your own hands are full. There's LEGO DUPLO (for 18 months and up) and Juniors (for ages 4 to 7) for when they're little, and as they get older, they can graduate to LEGO City (ages 5 to 12), Friends (ages 6 to 12), Ninjago (ages 7 to 14), Creator (ages 7 to 16), Technic (ages 8 to 16), and more complicated branded sets, such as the popular Star Wars series. Check out our 10 favourite sets for girls and boys of all ages and stages from the list below... Age: 18 months to 5 years What it is: A 29-piece DUPLO set that builds into a moving food truck. Comes with a market stall, a crate, food bricks, 2 mini figures and a white cat.
Why we love it: It's a really 'proper' build for small hands, this one – and, for that very reason, it won big at our 2016 MadeForMums Toy Awards. It also offers tip-top play possibilities once assembled: our child judges loved playing shopkeeper and delivery driver and had loads of mix-and-match fun with the differently coloured pairs of food bricks. And that cat is CUTE. See the award-winning features of the LEGO DUPLO My First Truck Compare deals from top retailers What it is: A 516-piece set that builds into a siege machine with spiked wheels, catapults, monster teeth and a disc shooter. Comes with 3 shields (which you can scan for a related free app game), 3 mini figures and various accessories including stuff to fire from those catapults. Why we love it: Some LEGO gets built quick, but our MadeForMums Toys reviewer Arjun found this one to be a proper (but enjoyable) challenge. And the pay off (especially all that catapulting) is definitely sweet! Watch Arjun, age 9, review the Siege Machine Of Doom on our MadeForMums Toys YouTube channel
What it is: An 824-piece set that features a 'mobile operations centre', an excavator, a wheeled dumper, a drone with spinning rotors and a volcano that actually erupts. Comes with 6 mini figures, and accessories including boulders, a camera, a pickaxe and a walkie talkie. Why we love it: Well, what's not to love about being able to make a volcano erupt and shoot fireballs? But we also rate this set for its awesome play potential, once built: lots of scope for sciencey story-telling and lava-topped action drama. What it is: A 66-piece Marvel superheroes set featuring Iron Man's car, with rolling wheels and cosmic-cube container. Comes with Iron Man and Loki minfigures and magic sceptre. Why we love it: This is a nicely priced set and the car has a nice big base piece to make assembly a bit easier for younger fingers. And, of course, the inclusion of our favourite Marvel superheroes (and villains) opens up the potential for lots of imaginative, world-saving play…
What it is: A 292-piece LEGO recreation of everyone’s fave movie castle! Comes with Elsa, Anna and Olaf mini figures, plus skis, ice skates, glittery wall elements, decorative stickers, 2 capes, a tiara, a hair bow and – of course – a carrot nose for Olaf. Why we love it: We also love the disappearing 'secret' staircase and the princess-worthy snowmobile. Unlike some other of the bigger sets, Elsa’s castle doesn’t seem too difficult to build, either – so you won’t be frozen (arf) in the construction stage for too long. What it is: A 726-piece tree house with a climbing wall over a waterfall, a turning bridge obstacle, a slide, a tire swing and a house with kitchen and sleeping area. Includes Stephanie, Emma and Joy mini-figures, plus an eagle and a fox. Why we love it: Summer camp isn’t a huge part of our lives here in the UK but your little one and their friends can vividly imagine what it’s like through the 5 human and animal characters and let them take part in traditional US summer activities, such as climbing and tyre-swinging.
It’s a tough build but worth it – and is one of the most colourful sets for older kids we’ve seen. What it is: A 355-piece set that builds into The Inquisitor’s top secret starship, packed with advanced technology, like folding wings, 2 spring-loaded shooters and an opening top hatch. Comes with 3 minifigures and assorted weapons, including blaster pistols and, of course, a double-sided lightsaber. Why we love it: The LEGO Star Wars range has some really impressive pieces. We love the impressive Death Star… but we don’t love the £400 it costs. The TIE Advanced Prototype combines the cool factor of the bigger pieces with a more purse-friendly price tag. We think it's much easier to play with, too – with the foldable wings, minifigures and blaster pistols. What it is: A big box of 95 brightly-coloured DUPLO pieces, including 2 figures, a turtle, a rabbit, a wagon base, 2 window elements, and a door. Why we love it: The variety of blocks in this particular set is perfect for growing minds – we like the numbered blocks, in particular.