Im 31 and I just got my 1st lego set.....tips needed

[bricklayer]

Hi,

Unfortunately I didnt have lego as a kid(mom and pops didnt have $)

But that changes once you get older!!

Anyhow,my son just turned 3.........and I knew since he was born that we are getting him some lego....the day finally came.

I got set 5933 http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=5933

He is a little to young for it,but hey,get em started early I say

What tips can you give me in terms of building.

I must say that I do lack creativity(hopefully this wont affect me)

I look on the box at the other things that didnt come with instructions,and I have NO CLUE how I could even attempt to build that.

Now I want to get myself a "big boy" set.........what would you recommend?

Thanks and I look forward to sharing with you on this Forum!!!

[unbornchikken]

Hey there and welcome! :)

In my experience, with my 5-year old and 2-year old, the age recommendations on sets are fairly accurate. We made the mistake of getting my 5-year old son the Shuttle Adventure set which has a 16+ recommendation and yeah, he loved it, but it didn't stay put together for long. To my point: you got something age relevant, and you know what, just about anything you build for your son will be fun for him. If he likes planes and cars, then build planes and cars, and don't worry so much if they aren't exactly like the box or that they look realistic/etc. :)

As for yourself, my generic recommendation would be to buy the bigger sets from the theme(s) that you enjoy or think you'd enjoy. Not only will you get better value for your money (in terms of the price per piece ratio), but you probably will also get a better build to learn new building techniques and understand how things that you enjoy are put together. I'm sure if you told us what you are interested in, and how much you're willing to spend, you'll get some fantastic recommendations from Eurobrick members.

Most importantly, have fun! Cheers!

[LegoCityFanatic]

Welcome to EB and the Lego community itself. The age recommendations are, in fact, more accurate than not. It is a good set to get for your son. Also, if you like realistic Lego sets, hop on over to city or town. If you like fictional themes, like Hero Factory, well choose that! There are also Licensed themes like Star Wars and Prince of Persia, Indiana Jones. You could go on Bricklink and buy some older sets of your interest. You could create your own models from spare pieces called MOC's. Do you have Lego Digital Designer?

[The Spark That Bled]

Congrats on your first set.

I think that you'll find your creativity come to life after you've built some things from instructions. I usually find a lot of inspiration in seeing how other people have done something and then figuring out how to make things my own. For this reason I have found the creator sets to be a good value. They usually have three sets of instructions for one set of bricks and they are usually a pretty good value.

The Log Cabin Creator Set #5766 in one that I really liked that is reasonably priced and I think might be a playable set. The Apple Tree House #5891 was good for building the models but doesn't have any minifigures and is not quite so good to play with. I've never tried any of the vehicle or creature creator sets because I'm more interested in buildings but I think the multiple instructions would be helpful for those things too.

[buddy]

Welcome to Eurobricks bricklayer!

~buddy~

[bricklayer]

For my 1st REAL set Im thinking of going with the Police Head Quarters 7744

I really like the City theme for its expanding options.

Has anoyone got this set and maybe an opinion to offer?

Thanks,

[Jareth]

Are you getting into the hobby for yourself or your son? Perhaps a little of both?

Anyway, I remember reading somewhere about a Lego Mom who, whenever her son got a new lego set, took the instructions away, punched holes in them and set them in a 3 ring binder. That Lego child is now an adult with all of their instructions intact. That is awesome. All of my childhood instructions eventually got ripped and destroyed, but if you do this for your kid, he will always have those memories.

[Legoist]

I got set 5933 http://shop.lego.com/Product/?p=5933

He is a little to young for it,but hey,get em started early I say

Those types of sets are really good for the youngest kids, because they have a mix of basic bricks and non-basic but clearly identified bricks (wheels, windows, doors...) and they come with minifigs which all kids like a lot.

Our daughter (3.5 yo) has played so far with some random selection of basic bricks from my wife's childhood (all mine were lost...) plus the Advent Calendar and some collectable minifigs. She loves the minifigs because she makes up lots of stories with them, and then she just freely builds some random stuff with the other parts. She could not follow instructions yet, so if you buy a set with instructions be prepared to build it for your son but don't try too hard to make him understand.

What tips can you give me in terms of building.

I must say that I do lack creativity(hopefully this wont affect me)

I look on the box at the other things that didnt come with instructions,and I have NO CLUE how I could even attempt to build that.

Now I want to get myself a "big boy" set.........what would you recommend?

Building something original is not as easy as it may seem

I suggest the following:

- play with your son or watch him play, and you'll get ideas on how to use individual pieces in a creative way

- buy some small-medium sets from the Creator line, which always have multiple models and are a great exercise; also their pieces will be always useful later

- copy from others' creations on this forum Stay here for a while and soon you'll get enough Lego fever (but stay calm, don't go on a shopping spree too soon) and lots of inspirations

- you'll probably like many themes, but I suggest to start with one theme only so that all your bricks from different purchases will be easy to mix