Lego is one of the most renowned and beloved children’s toys. For over 80 years it has occupied children, brought out their creative sides and provided hours of fun. Of course, it has also been responsible for countless vacuum cleaner problems and sore feet when people unknowingly stand on pieces. More than 320 billion Lego bricks have been manufactured and they are sold in more than 130 countries around the world.

The beauty of Lego is the fact that it offers an infinite number of possibilities to design and build something. Just a handful of blocks can be put together in thousands of different ways. When you look closer, building is actually a learning experience because it can help children to understand how things fit together and balance.

There are natural links between the colourful children’s toy and architecture. Some specialists even use it to help them model their initial ideas. The new Lego Architecture Studio is designed solely for this purpose, with the manufacturer hoping it will take off and eventually become an essential resource for property designers.

The Lego Architecture Studio is a little different from traditional Lego sets. Gone are the instruction booklets and different coloured bricks; instead you receive uniform white or transparent pieces and an inspiration manual. The set includes 76 different types of brick and over 1,200 pieces. No characters are included so architects are free to decide on the scale of a single block rather than having to adhere to a set 1:48 ratio.

The big benefit of using Lego to model buildings is that it gives you an opportunity to think with your hands and examine the form of properties. You can even make changes easily if you find something you build doesn’t work well. Many architects promote the idea of “thinking with your hands”, especially if you are struggling to find inspiration. Not many other materials give you such a great chance to let your creativity run wild and see what you end up with.