A gathering point for family and friends. A secret hideout. A fortress. A sleepover. LEGO fans can now immerse themselves in the intricately detailed LEGO IDEAS Treehouse. A challenging build, the exclusive set, made up of more than 3000 elements, is one of the largest LEGO IDEAS sets to date.
The Treehouse is packed with play-inspiring features and comes with a landscape base and removable treetop to reveal three detailed cabins. A special feature of the set is that all 185 plants and leaves are made from sustainable materials sourced from sugarcane. This includes the treetop canopy, which has interchangeable sets of green summer leaf elements and yellow and brown fall leaf elements.
Tim Brooks, Vice President, Environmental Responsibility, the LEGO Group, said: “When I first saw the model, I was blown away. Not only because it looks amazing, but also because it connects strongly to the very reason, we are investing so much time and effort in identifying new and sustainable materials, which is to preserve natural resources and fulfill our planet promise. It really is an important step in our ambitious target of making all LEGO elements from sustainable materials.”
During 2018, the LEGO Group began making botanical elements, including trees, leaves and bushes, from plant-based polyethylene using sustainably sourced sugarcane. Children and parents will not notice any difference in the quality, durability or appearance of the new elements, because plant-based polyethylene has the same properties as conventional polyethylene. These elements represent the first milestone in the LEGO Group’s ambitious commitment to making products using sustainable materials by 2030.
The Treehouse is an example of how the LEGO Group uses co-creation to foster innovation, as the original idea was submitted through the LEGO IDEAS platform, where LEGO fans can upload their creative builds. Users then have a chance to review and support the model and, given sufficient support, the build can end up as a certified LEGO set with the help of LEGO master designers. In this case, the model was submitted by fan designer Kevin Feeser from Nancy, France. Kevin’s motivation for creating a treehouse stems in particular from his passion for the great outdoors combined with pretty sophisticated LEGO building skills.
The LEGO IDEAS Treehouse model is available directly from LEGO Retail Stores and shop.LEGO.com exclusively for LEGO VIP members beginning July 24, 2019, with general public availability beginning August 1, 2019.
