I don’t keep in mind when my household first acquired our first Lego bricks. Like awakening from a fever dream, I regained consciousness prior to now few years and realized we now have an entire room devoted to Lego, with hundreds of bricks organized by shade in a chest-high shelving unit (and a giant bin of combined items on the ground).
Most fans can empathize and have an analogous expertise. None extra so than Stacey Roy, the “brickfluencer” who gained final yr’s season of Lego Masters. The Fox present is a contest between numerous pairs of Lego fans as they compete in opposition to one another in a collection of, frankly, insane themed constructing challenges. Final season, actor Chris Pratt guest-hosted a Jurassic Park–themed episode the place the groups needed to embrace fireworks and explosions of their dinosaur builds. Roy and her associate, Nick Della Mora, gained in a finale that challenged them to include their very first Lego set into their grasp construct.
Contestants Stacey and Nick within the “Brickminster Canine Present” episode of LEGO MASTERS.{Photograph}: TOM GRISCOM/Fox
The competitors removes one main constraint: Every workforce can choose no matter items they want and nevertheless many from the Brick Pit, an unbelievable wall with thousands and thousands of bricks and specialty bricks for every problem. If you happen to’re just starting out, accumulating sufficient items to construct something can look like step one on a path to insolvency. Sure, typically you’re simply broke. (I promised my husband the Colosseum for Christmas, FML.) However all of us have to begin someplace. We requested Roy for her tips about get began constructing a Lego assortment.
Begin With a Theme
Most of us get into Lego the identical method—we discover a set we actually need and go from there. “I felt the urge to get again into Lego a couple of years in the past, in essentially the most insane method potential,” Roy says. “I purchased the Millennium Falcon ($850). It’s a tremendous set and I extremely suggest it.”
Lego began making licensing deals way back to 1999, including iconic properties like Star Wars and Marvel to its roster. If you happen to’re into Star Wars, beginning out by accumulating every of these units might be the easiest way to construct up a group of specialty items to reuse. Probably the most recognizably distinctive items are probably the minifigures, however with a bit creativeness, different items might be repurposed as properly. Roy factors out that the Lego pink frog on a bonsai tree appears precisely like a cherry blossom if you take a step again.
When you’ve began with a theme, Roy recommends the modular building sets, which include numerous notably helpful constructing items. For instance, the Boutique Hotel ($230) has Victorian-style wrought-iron railings that, if you look nearer, are literally skeleton arms. “Lego is extremely imaginative with regards to reusing items,” Roy says. Take note of what you wish to construct, and you’ll be taught which items and constructing types you like.
Discovering Particular Items
If there’s a selected piece it is advisable have to finish a construct, Lego’s on-line Pick a Brick—the place yow will discover items by key phrase, piece quantity, shade, and set—is the pure first place to begin. Nevertheless it’s not your solely useful resource.
My household is subscribed to the Lego Insiders program, which, relying on what number of Lego bricks you purchase, is price it. You get factors for purchases and a heads-up on Lego gross sales. My 8-year-old additionally enjoys the Lego Life youngsters’ journal. It’s vital to notice right here that you simply don’t get factors for purchases made exterior of official Lego shops or Lego.com, which signifies that purchases made at Legoland and at Lego-certified or affiliated shops gained’t rely towards your totals.
Roy recommends visiting your native Lego retailer in particular person. “As a result of each Lego retailer is completely different and affords various things, I make it a precedence to go to each retailer in particular person after I journey,” she says.
