Today we are quickly interested in the two "extensions" of the set's bouquet 10280 Flower Bouquet (756 - 49.99 €) marketed since January 1: LEGO references 40460 Roses (120 - 12.99 €) & 40461 ​​Tulips (111 - € 9.99).

These two small boxes allow in principle to add some flowers to the basic bouquet but they have above all the advantage of being able to compose other thematic bouquets and to do without some of the plants provided in the set 10280 such as the lavender plant or the snapdragon.

We usually offer red roses to someone for whom we have deep and sincere feelings and the tulip allows to mark a more nuanced intention according to the chosen color: white to be forgiven or to emphasize the purity of his feelings. , yellow to declare his flame and his despair of not being loved in return and purple to wish happiness and prosperity to the one who receives the bouquet. LEGO does not provide a red tulip, the flower embodying the same intention as the rose supplied in the other box.

The two roses in the set 40460 Roses are built on the same principle as those of the set 10280 Flower Bouquet, with the two green steering wheels but without the car cowl overlay, replaced here by a series of 4 elements identical to those placed near the center of the flower. the flower is therefore a little less voluminous but the effect remains successful. The stems with their thorns are based on the same assembly as the roses in the bouquet, but the wings of Pteranodon which embodied the leaves are here replaced by more classic elements, which is not to displease me.

Tulips in the set 40461 ​​Tulips are logically all three based on the same combination of parts. It's a bit simple at the assembly level but the effect is visually very successful. The stems are relatively coarse and the leaves will limit the presentation possibilities a bit depending on the vase chosen. If you plan to put together a big bunch of tulips, you can always remove some of the leaves to get a more even distribution of the thing.

In short, these two small unpretentious boxes that may convince some fans to invest in the bouquet of the set 10280 Flower Bouquet also offer many possibilities by collecting several copies, on condition that you agree to pay € 12.99 per set of two roses and € 9.99 for three tulips. I let you calculate the cost price of a large bouquet of red roses with at least ten flowers, we quickly reach peaks.

Some find the bouquet from set 10280 a bit bland and the two red roses sold separately will provide a bit of contrast to the set. The tulips can eventually fill a few spaces left empty by the basic composition, but it will be necessary to put up with the stems and leaves which are more green. flashy in these two small boxes and which will stand out in the middle of the elements in Sand green more discreet in the bouquet.

Note: The set of sets presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 17th January 2021 next at 23pm. "The" I try, I participate "are automatically deleted, make an effort. Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health, consume in moderation.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

Today we take a quick look at two small sets from the Creator range that LEGO took the trouble to send for us to talk about: the references 40468 Yellow Taxi & 40469 Tuk-tuk, both currently sold at the public price of € 9.99 on the official online store.

The theme: the transport of people for remuneration across the world with two very different versions of the concept: on the one hand the classic American yellow taxi with its advertising panels on the roof as we see it circulating in the streets of New- York, on the other an Indian tuk-tuk with its colorful bodywork and traditional decorations.

The two vehicles are not the scale of each other, as you can imagine. The 124-piece New York taxi is strangely "crushed" in the passenger compartment and we can't really say that LEGO succeeds in selling us a Ford Crown Victoria. But it's Creator at 9.99 € and simplification is essential. The taxi is 6 studs wide, which should please fans of the LEGO Speed ​​Champions range who have not appreciated the recent change in format of the vehicles in the range. No elaborate windshield, we are satisfied with a few almost transparent bricks.

The 155-piece tuk-tuk is much more successful, we find all the attributes of the machine that circulates in the streets of Indian, Pakistani or Thai megalopolises: a mix of more or less assorted colors, traditional decorations, packed lunches placed on the roof, everything is there. The assembly of the machine is more interesting than that of the yellow taxi, the latter being ultimately a pile of bricks on wheels. If you only have 10 € to spend and you have to choose between these two boxes, the tuk-tuk should be taken, both for the end result and for the pleasure of assembly.

With their reduced inventories, these two machines are quickly assembled and it will then be up to each to find a place for them in a diorama: the yellow taxi can circulate in the streets of a "classic" LEGO city and the tuk-tuk can eventually expand a thematic exhibition shelf on Asia (Ninjago, Monkie Kid), even if the version delivered here is not really emblematic of China or Japan and that it is not on the minifig scale.

Only the taxi is accompanied by stickers for the license plates, the mention on the doors and the advertising panels placed on the roof. No minifigure in these two boxes and that's a bit of a shame. A passenger hailing the taxi and a driver for the tuk-tuk would have been welcome, just to pass the pill on the public price of these small boxes.

In short, these two small sets probably do not deserve that we spend hours there and if LEGO had not bothered to send them, we would probably never have talked about them beyond the announcement of their availability. .

These are small additions that can possibly enhance a more global staging and only the tuk-tuk seems to me sufficiently accomplished to deserve to belong to the Creator range. The yellow cab is more eyeing the universe 4+ and with its vintage yet crass design it might bring back memories for those who had LEGOs in their toy boxes 15 or 20 years ago.

Note: The set of sets presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 15th January 2021 next at 23pm. "The" I try, I participate "are automatically deleted, make an effort.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

Today we are interested in the LEGO Star Wars set 77904 Nebulon-B Frigate, a box of 459 pieces which was only marketed across the Atlantic via the official online store and at Amazon. The set was sold at the public price of $ 39.99, since its sale it has been a hit with resellers on the secondary market where you currently have to spend a little more than € 70 excluding delivery costs to acquire a copy.

I ordered three copies from Amazon US as soon as the product went on sale, I repatriated the package via Shipito, I offered a copy, I keep one and I will therefore give you some impressions of this product at using the third copy received.

Putting aside the current price of the product in the aftermarket, I think this is a really nice set that deserved better than being an exclusive product at a canceled convention, San Diego Comic Con 2020. La The box still bears the mark of this exclusivity and LEGO has not bothered to modify the packaging of the product before ensuring its distribution through other channels.

The ultra-limited availability of this reproduction of the escort frigate Nebulon-B, which boils down to an exhibition product, only served to remind many fans that the ship had so far never had the right to a "general public" interpretation. Yet it would be difficult to imagine a version "System"of this vessel which would not be accompanied by a support to allow the frigate to stand upright and the scale of this small model is a compromise which seems to me acceptable.

The support provided here is sober enough not to spoil the setting and the ship, about thirty centimeters long, holds without tipping even by shifting it a few studs. The most observant will have noticed the micro-Millennium Falcon stowed under the central section separating the life modules from the engines of the vessel, the wink is appreciable.

The internal structure of the ship uses a few colored elements which bring some variety to the inventory and make it easier to locate during assembly. The exterior finish is mainly in two tones and it gives pride of place to what is called the "greebling", a technique which consists in creating surface details using various and varied elements.

Microphone, revolvers, roller blades, monochrome minifig heads, ski poles, binoculars, skeleton feet, everything goes and in my opinion it is very successful. The counterpart to this overbidding of small elements: a relative fragility of certain appendages which will tend to come off easily. This frigate being a pure exhibition product, it is ultimately not a problem and the central section is strong enough to allow the suspension of the model, I know that some love to hang their vessels from the ceiling with fishing line.

This frigate is not to the scale of any other ship available in the LEGO Star Wars range but it will easily find its place alongside some of your UCS sets (Ultimate Collector Series) thanks to the presence of the usual small black display. Too bad that LEGO did not crack a sticker with some characteristics of the ship, history of making a mini UCS (!).

In short, this pretty product could have joined the collection of any fan of the LEGO Star Wars range if its distribution had been more global, but unfortunately you have to agree to pay at least double its retail price to be able to exhibit it on a shelf alongside other vessels in the range.

With all of the expense of ordering from Amazon and reshipping through Shipito, the three copies I received ended up costing me as much as if I had ordered through the aftermarket, but I at least got the satisfaction to fend for myself without having to call a reseller and I do not regret this investment. It is you who see, depending on your desires and your means, if the purchase is justified at the current prices. on Bricklink ou on eBay.

If you are not interested in the box, you can easily reproduce this ship using the instructions in PDF format, the set does not contain any exclusive element apart from the sticker which pays homage to the 40th anniversary of theEpisode v.

Note: The set presented here, purchased by me, is put into play. Deadline fixed at 15th January 2021 next at 23pm. "The" I try, I participate "are automatically deleted, make an effort.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

We continue with the other set of the very "fresh"  Botanical Collection which will be launched in January 2021 by LEGO: the reference 10280 Flower Bouquet which allows, as the title indicates, to assemble what to compose a bouquet of different varieties of flowers using the 756 pieces provided.

On the program for this bouquet: two daisies, three roses, a California poppy flower, two snapdragons, a lavender plant and a blue peony aster. These flowers are accompanied by three leaves and two small decorative bushes. No vase to build in the box, LEGO only provides the content, not the container.

The assembly of the set is completed in an hour with a few repetitive phases depending on the number of identical flowers, it's a bit short to really relax or unwind after a tiring day of young dynamic executive. Strictly speaking, there are no really original techniques here, it is above all the diverted use of certain parts that makes the exercise interesting.

This set is also a bit like a vegetable car show with many elements whose primary purpose is not to embody petals or receptacles. Seven copies of the ECTO-1 steering wheel in Dark Green and twelve car hoods are used here alongside more generic parts or representing vegetation. There are also three Pteranodon wings and three surfboards that take on the role of leaves.

The stems of some of these plants are Technic flexible axes in Sand green which can be "shortened" by removing the sub-assemblies threaded at the end. This possibility will eventually make it possible to create volume and to distribute the different elements of the bouquet according to the diameter of the vase used.

Rose, blue peony aster, California poppy and snapdragon seem very successful to me. The lavender plant seems to me on the other hand a little rough and the two daisies lack in my opinion of finish at the level of the length of the petals. I also found the three decorative leaves a bit too massive to really blend in with the bouquet but it is possible to minimize the effect by carefully organizing the composition.

Those who swear by the availability of certain pieces in new colors will be delighted by discovering the contents of this box with in particular a beautiful assortment of elements in Light Nougat ou in Sand green.

Some of the flowers are very fragile, so it will be necessary to handle this bouquet with care before finding a place for it on a shelf or on the dresser in the living room and regularly dusting the various flowers will probably be a very tedious exercise. It will also be necessary to find the right vase so that the bouquet is pleasing to the eye without appearing too hungry and without having to resolve to invest in a second copy of the set or in one of the "extensions" already announced, the sets. 40460 Roses (120 - 12.99 €) and 40461 ​​Tulips (111 - € 9.99).

As for the bonsai of the set 10281 Bonsai Tree (878 - 49.99 €), we could debate the interest of exhibiting plastic flowers. There are already a lot of plastic products out there that more or less convincingly imitate houseplants or flowers and I personally find that really very kitsch. Here it is a little different and you get something more stylized that does not aim to make us believe that these are real fresh flowers.

The exercise was not easy but LEGO is doing quite well with this product which manages to put elements that are not always very "graceful" in the service of a bouquet with an original aesthetic. From there to spending 50 € to install these plastic flowers in my living room, there is however a step that I will not take. Flowers are ephemeral, they live and die, this is what makes them interesting and which reminds them that it is time to replace them or to offer new ones.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 8th January 2021 next at 23pm. "The" I try, I participate "are automatically deleted, make an effort.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

Today we are interested in the LEGO set 10281 Bonsai Tree, one of the two references of the new "Botanical Collection"stamped 18+ which for the moment includes this box and the set 10280 Flower Bouquet.

Don't bother drawing you a picture, I think everyone knows what a bonsai is. LEGO therefore goes with its interpretation of the thing with a construction of 878 pieces which will be sold for 49.99 € from January 1, 2021.

One could debate for a long time the interest of reproducing a plant element using plastic parts and invoke the snub to a certain conception of environmental protection, but that is not the subject of this article and everyone will have their opinion on the matter. Note that LEGO specifies in the pages of the instruction booklet that the sheets delivered in this box are elements in biopolyethylene made from sugar cane.

I would point it out for those who would not have followed everything from this change of raw material for certain elements manufactured by LEGO: This biopolyethylene is (fortunately) not biodegradable but it is recyclable via the same processes as conventional polyethylene. It should also be remembered that the use of sugar cane does not change either the manufacturing process or the mechanical and aesthetic properties of the plastic obtained at the outlet.

It is therefore proposed to us to assemble a bonsai, here a Japanese cherry tree, judging by the alternative foliage during flowering. If you are looking for where are the 878 elements of the set, know that 200 of them are to be poured loose in the pot, that there are 33 green leaves and that we also have 100 pink frogs and 40 flowers for branches in the process of flowering.

The assembly of this bonsai does not present a real challenge at the level of the base, the pot and the branches. There is hardly that the trunk which proposes some original techniques to obtain the desired "wood" effect. From a distance, this trunk with its shades of brown and its roots that plunge into the pot will be an illusion.

The 200 pieces that make up the substrate, a mixture of fine gravel and potting soil in real life, are to be poured loose into the pot. A bit lazy but the visual effect is convincing. Be careful when moving the model, avoid overturning the pot otherwise you will have to run after the pieces scattered around the living room.

The set allows you to vary the pleasures by replacing the branches with their green leaves by appendages in full bloom. It is not necessary to replace the sheets one by one, it is sufficient here to remove four sub-assemblies, three of which are identical, and to install the alternative modules so that the tree changes its appearance. This express modularity of the product is appreciable, it makes the change of season less tedious.

The cherry blossom tree is covered with pink frogs, which in principle represent the buds. I must admit that I have a little trouble with these hundred frogs scattered on the foliage: a few specimens around more classic flowers could have been a snap, here it is the visual overdose even if from a distance this dressing based on amphibians is an illusion.

In short, for around fifty euros, this product should please those looking to put LEGO as decoration on their shelves without having to expose ships or castles and this is a purely product. lifestyle which seeks to seduce an adult clientele not necessarily nostalgic for pirates or knights.

In my opinion, the real question should be asked: should you invest in a real bonsai or be content with this 18 cm high plastic imitation (support included) which vaguely pays homage to the traditional art of dwarfing of plants, an activity that requires real know-how and a lot more patience than putting together the 878 pieces in this box.

There is also a chance that you will one day find this product at Nature et Découvertes or on the shelves of another brand of this type, LEGO having announced a few months ago considering placing corners products for adults in stores that until now have not necessarily sold sets of the brand.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 7th January 2021 next at 23pm. "The" I try, I participate "are automatically deleted, make an effort.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.