This is a brief look at some of the projects that I like and would love to see make the 10K supporters “club”. But first some information about the LEGO Ideas program.

What is the LEGO Ideas program?

Lego Ideas (formerly known as LEGO Cuusoo) is a website run by Chaordix and The LEGO Group, which allows users to submit ideas for LEGO products to be turned into potential sets available commercially, with the original designer receiving 1% of the royalties.

It started in 2008 as an offshoot of the Japanese company Cuusoo, named after the Japanese word 空想 kūsō (daydream, fantasy). [Wikipedia]

LEGO Ideas says, “Love getting imaginative with LEGO bricks? Fancy yourself as a LEGO master builder? Well, this is the place to be. Share your cool creations and creativity, enter challenges, showcase your proposals for new LEGO Ideas sets and vote for awesome models dreamt up by your fellow fan designers.” [Ideas.Lego.com]

How does the LEGO Ideas program work?

The program allows LEGO fans to create an idea in LEGO. Once the concept is built, the idea is submitted along with a written description for consideration. If accepted, it gains a “concept page” which is publicly viewable.

LEGO Ideas allows the project to reach 100 supports in 60 days. Thereafter, the concept is allowed a further year to reach 1,000 supports, another six months to reach 5,000 supports, and finally, another six months to reach 10,000 supports.

If it fails to reach any of these thresholds, the project will expire. Expiry means that the project is no longer open for consideration or support from the LEGO community.

The overall goal of the created project is to obtain 10,000 supported votes from the LEGO community.

There are guidelines to the project

LEGO Ideas has introduced several guidelines within which the concept should be built:

• No new pieces or moulds may be used in its design
• No use of intellectual properties owned by competing toy companies
• The project may not be based on anything that has already been produced as a set by LEGO Ideas
• No adult content may be produced
• The concept is limited to a maximum of 3,000 pieces
• No replication of a life-sized weapon
• No projects may be based on third party licences that are already produced by LEGO, e.g., Star Wars, Harry Potter or Minecraft.

What happens next?

Once a project successfully reaches 10,000 supports, the project then earns the chance to be considered as a future LEGO set. LEGO Ideas says that the project is reviewed by a composition of professional set designers, product managers, marketing representatives, and other key team members.

The review process includes the following considerations:

• Products on shelves
• New products currently in development
• Brand fit
• Expected demand
• Licensing possibilities
• Production capacity
• Build quality (i.e., stability, safety)
• Feasibility
• Playability

To date there have been 49 LEGO Ideas sets that have been produced by LEGO. There are several more that have been approved and should be produced by LEGO at some point in the future.

Interesting LEGO Ideas that I like

Blacksmith – Wild West

This project idea is designed by llucky. llucky is an AFOL from Poland and is a big fan of Pirates, imperial soldiers and islanders, western themed LEGO.

llucky says of his project, “the blacksmith shop is a Wild West style one-story building with vertical dark red boarding. It has a living area and a workshop. A blacksmith lives there with his wife, who also helps him in the workshop.” The project includes 5 minifigures: Blacksmith, Blacksmith’s wife, Blacksmith’s helper, Customer, and Elegant Lady.

This project is rich with details and closely follows what I would expect to find in a blacksmith. I really enjoy the colours used in the build. Reddish brown, dark red, dark bluish grey, and tan, which all balance this idea.

If you like this project and would like that it is considered for production, support it here:

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/d1e622e6-3fa5-4465-9606-2dce805cd650

Great Ball Contraption Showcase

Designer jazlecraz says of the project that it features numerous great ball contraption mechanisms in a closed circuit, the Great Ball Contraption (“GBC”) showcase creates a fascinating display piece that celebrates LEGO engineering.

selected to bring the whole scene to life. The model can be actuated by the crank at the front, or by installing a motor at the back.

GBC modules are not always produced in a closed circuit, but this module self-contained and cleverly moves that ball from one “contraption” to the next. The circuit includes pirates, a ninja, and underwater theme.

This project already has 7,660 supports. If you like this project and would like that it is considered for production, support it here:

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/3969f2d4-b272-4cd9-a022-52245dbd995b

Snowy Morning in the Countryside

This gorgeously designed project is a collaboration between Castor Troy and Max Brich. It is described as being early spring somewhere in the countryside. It has been snowing all night and early morning sunshine reveals this snowy wonderland. The children rush outside in excitement to play in the snow.

The project comprises just less than 3,000 pieces and includes 4 minifigures. Despite this being a snowy landscape, there is something incredibly warm about the scene. There is so much detail with snow-ladened cottage which is exquisitely designed with colours in dark orange, tan, and olive.

The cottage has an open back that allows for playability. The tree is beautifully created to show new spring leaves covered by the night’s snow. I love the frozen stream that runs alongside the cottage. It definitely adds character to the scene.

The project reminds me of something that we would love to see in a winter village display. I love this!

If you like this project and would like that it is considered for production, support it here:

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/09b1a0d4-20e3-4f93-9f36-ea8923fc9d9c

What projects in LEGO Ideas have you supported? What projects do you want to see LEGO consider for production?

Happy building!