bird

Creator 2026: 31376 Cute Hamster and Designer Insights

ramblingbrick Creator, interview, Lego, Review , , , , , , , ,
A display of LEGO Creator 3in1 set 31376 featuring a cute hamster, a small bird, and a purple flower, all on a light green background.

The 2026 Creator 3in1 sets are due for release on January 1 2026, and I have the full range to review, thanks to the LEGO Group. (All opinions are my own) Among the nine sets due for release, seven depict fish animals or birds in some shape or form, and only only 3 have more than 300 parts. Hopefully, we can get them reviewed in a timely fashion. Today, we will start with 31376 Cute Hamster with Flower.

BUT THAT’S not all. On my recent trip to Denmark, I had the chance to visit the LEGO Campus and catch up with Lennart DuPont Cort, one of the Creator 3in1 designers.

Two smiling individuals posing for a selfie indoors, with large windows displaying a modern building in the background.
Richard on the left; Lennart Dupont Cort – Creator 3in1 designer on the right.

We had a chat about all sorts of aspects of the Creator 3in1 process, and I will include these details through the 3in1 reviews. We rarely get the chance to talk to members of the Creator 3in1 team, so this was a really exciting opportunity. Special thanks to the Community Engagement team at the LEGO Group for making this happen.

Continue reading →

If anyone can, 31173 Tropical Toucan, can!

BrankotheFather Lego , , , , , , ,

Birds are dinosaurs. This is no longer a weird statement but well established; birds are the only dinosaur species still alive today. It’s no accident that Jurassic Park III starts with an opening shot of a raptor-like claw that turns out to belong to a bird, but I digress.

If you look carefully at birds you can see the connection to dinosaurs, but you also see that these are beautiful animals that see almost alien compared to ourselves with a range and variety that make my heart sing. The pattern of feathers with intricate colour patterns, the ability to puff up and move these feather jackets and then the ability to fly (for most of them)! If dinosaurs have manage to stay around this long and develop such beautiful variation, then there is hope yet.

A few years ago I built the beautiful rainbow lorikeet from Gabriel Thomson at which time I came to appreciate my love for our feathered neighbours. I also discovered that rainbow lorikeets are not entirely comfortable around a brick-built rendition of one of their brethren.

Out of all the brick-built LEGO animals I seem to fairly consistently be attracted to birds, and this 31173 Tropical Toucan is no different. With 225 parts it is quite a small set but it captures the shape of this striking bird very nicely and (spoiler) it is very nicely priced.

LEGO generously provided this set for review, but I present my own opinions. Please read on if you want to read a bit more about the other two models that are offered in the box, and what on earth a Toucan has to do with hotels/restaurants in the Netherlands (no Toucans are a tropical species, NOT native to the Netherlands).

Continue reading →

Is The Christmas Buildup for the Birds?

ramblingbrick Review , ,

Now, I am not particularly ornithologically inclined. So while I can recognise today’s build as a couple of birds, I am hard pressed to pick the actual species. Each bird is made of eight pieces, making today’s build amongst the simplest that we have seen in this particular series. With two days to go, and only one more model revealed on the box art, I am left wondering what is in store. It’s beginning to feel a bit exciting. 
Play well.