Kids Lego collections

[Thewhoositsandthewhatsits]

My 4 year old is crazy about Lego. He’s always been fascinated by the box of Lego in the library but now he’s able to make little creations rather than just stacking blocks randomly so we got him a nice little box of Lego of his own from Vinted. Just an assortment of bricks, characters, wheels, doors and windows and so on. He’s having an absolute blast and it’s very nostalgic for me so I enjoy building things with him.

Got me thinking is that us doomed now to Lego taking over the house? Our house is small and just the right size for us but definitely low on space for crazy Lego collections. When I was a kid I had a similar box of just mixed bricks and that was it, but now it seems to be all about the franchises.

How does everyone manage the expanding Lego collections as kids get older? I’m enjoying the box of mixed Lego with no instructions more than I think I’d enjoy a set you build and then just plonk on a shelf. But I’m sure my son will really get into these kits when he’s older, I just don’t remember it being as big of a thing when I was younger.

I remember my brother having a lot in the 90s but was definitely more open ended feeling.

I really like Lego. We have a LOT probably over 60 sets (many just added to general pile of Lego) , I got 2 smallish Lego sets for my birthday (botanicals). There's so many specialised pieces now that make it feel a bit overwhelming at times (or maybe I'm just not creative enough!) and I sometimes feel ld like to scale those back to more classic bricks.

We do look at set instructions on the Lego site and try to make do with pieces we have, but often there's too many quite niche parts, but the actual classic sets don't have same appeal for my kids.

We also use a rental service called Brickborrow and get to try expensive sets, display as long as we like then send back to swap for another. It's not for everyone but I like that we don't need to store/display long term.

Also bought Lego by the kg so not just sets.

The good news is that Lego compacts well into containers.

My son loves it, and I'm fully supportive. I'd rather buy him Lego than most other toys. It is amazing for fine motor skills, problem solving, creativity, imaginative play etc.

I went and bought a big Ikea plastic container, and despite all the sets we have gone through, it still all fits in one container.

• Look for the 4+ sets, they are specially designed for kids your son's age to build. They are great.

Our favourite game at the moment is to get a small set (never get him a big one, attention spans just don't last that long, no matter how cool they think it is) build it as designed. Then take it all apart and use just those peices to build something creative.

Also the 3-1 sets are good value, same peices, 3 sets of instructions.. build, break, build again.

Also keep it well and it is a multigenerational toy.

My son plays with my Lego, and when we visits his grandparents, he plays with his grandpa's Lego from the 70s/80s. Amazing for a toy to last so long and still he fully comparable.

I got out some of my 1980s Lego recently and, as well
as the main build which you have instructions for, the boxes have loads of pictures of different models you could build with the pieces as inspiration. I think that’s why we used to break them down and rebuild creatively (but kept the bricks carefully in sets).

I think if you break them down and mix it all up it would be overwhelming as pp have said. So I like the idea of rebuilding just within each set. The 3 in 1 sets are good for this.

in response to the original question though, the “build and display” type sets are actually surprisingly small when built, even the “huge” ones, and fit on a narrow shelf so unless you are spending thousands you can probably fit them somewhere

This is my memory from the 90s too. One decent sized box of mixed bricks and other bits and bobs. No kits like there are now, although I know they existed. I don’t know if franchise sets existed like movie themes though. The box I got for my son also has very particular little green window shutters and green trees that were a big hit of nostalgia!

The amount of sets now definitely is overwhelming. I’ve found a book on Amazon that’s a general “Lego ideas” book so will get that for his birthday as inspiration for building things.

Brick borrow sounds good but I don’t think I could handle the pressure of making sure all those tiny bits are packed up and sent back again. I feel like the kits now have far more teeny tiny pieces.

Thanks I’ve favourited a few age 4 sets on Amazon that I think he would like. The box we’ve got at the moment is a good size and I feel like so much can be built with it I’m cautious of the Lego taking over too quickly. At the moment it’s a manageable size for a 4 year old (and for me!) but I do feel like I’ve been bitten by the bug. It’s so much more enjoyable building Lego with him than some of the other mad games he comes up with!

So do you have lots of boxes with separate sets in them? I can’t see this working for my son at this age. He likes the big jumble and choosing for all the random bits. Sounds like a lot to store too. I’ve been putting it out on a tray to help us sift through what we want. It’s a very meditative activity which is a rare thing with a 4 year old! Will check out the 3 in 1 sets though

We also don’t store it in boxes (def not resellers of the future!) but break it down into ziplock bags with the instructions and store them in kallaxes

My two are obsessed, and I’ve just started rotating sets so they don’t get overwhelmed. I store older ones in zip bags with a picture of the set on the front so they can pick and choose what to rebuild. New LEGO sets come out so often it's been easy to let birthdays and Christmas top up their collection without needing to hang onto every single brick all the time.