A few years ago, I bought a new set from eBay. It was an unused Bygglek product, the one with the bricks and figures in it. I had not long heard about the crossover between Ikea and Lego, and I wanted some of it. I found that there were a few different sets. The one with the bricks, a large box, a medium box and a set of three boxes. The moment you look at the minimilistic product design, you can see that it is meant to evoke the simplicity of Ikea homes and the building fun of Lego. Coming out in 2020, it tied in quite nicely with the current state of the world, seeing that we were all homebound! The one below cost me £5 from a charity shop. You can expect to pay upwards of £10 for this, even in used condition.
The boxes are interesting. They have the usual scaffolding on the top and on the base of the window spaces down the sides. (The box states the original name for the bobbles on Lego products, it calls them ‘knobs.’ This is a term I haven’t heard for a while. I have adopted the term ‘scaffolds’ from recent teachings.) The lids are not held on, solid, with the underside being a loose connecting plate.
The idea is to stack them up, creating a modular home. In fact, it looks alarmingly like an atypical Ikea Modern Home. All sets come together to form a nice playset, offering a mansion for your figures to enjoy. Looking at the history of these products, it seems that the word Bygglek is a mix of the Swedish words, ‘BYGGa’ and ‘LEKa’ (Build and Play.) There was a keen plan to bring the two firms together, drawing the love of our homes. Almost a marriage between the building and the fun, within.
As a product, it’s a solid piece of Lego. I’m not a fan of Ikea, but I like the idea that was presented. I am only one set away from it being complete, I wonder how long it will take to find it? One thing that interested me was the choice to make them ONLY available from Ikea. Although I bought an unused one from an eBay seller, buying them new, they can only be attained from the store or online, without Lego having any sales output. I find that strange, yet quite dedicated. I would say that, as an introduction, these sets are fabulous. They are great as collectibles, but even better for a large playset, in a small space!
First Impressions – Tidy and a pleasure to look at…just like all Ikea products!
Price-Point – Average
Time to Build – N/A
Score: 8/10
(All details were correct at the time of writing, 10th March ‘2025)
