How do you play with lego?

[HobnobbingAboutHobnobs]

DH and I don't seem able to settle this between us and our friends are evenly split. Mumsnet collective, please help us decide!

When playing with lego, do you keep sets separate and rebuild them/keep them standing (using them as basis for play or enjoying the act of building them multiple times) , or do you build them once then add them to the "lego box" to mix with the pieces of every other lego set you have (building your own creations out of the chaos)?

We build the sets once and then put them on display 😂. Eventually the pieces go into the general collection in our house though, but we do display them first (sad bastards)

Either?

Expensive sets these days seem to be designed to be made and displayed.

But a big pile of general lego for creative play for children is good.

My husband and adult children build sets to put on display. For kids it's a big box of all sorts of pieces to make whatever they want with.

ETA - on display means in their own office/room, not for guests to admire!

We used to make play and display. The aim was to re box to eventually sell on. The reality was that quite a lot went into colour and sorting boxes and that re constituting sets from that point from box and instructions is harder than you'd think.

When mine were into Lego, sets were built,
played with and eventually broken up and added into the box of Lego for general play.