LEGO’s journey into plants started with #10280-1: Flower Bouquet. This set is another addition to the LEGO plant line. It’s #10289-1: Bird of Paradise. It was released in the US on 19 June 2021 and contains 1,173 pieces. It retails for $99.99 and works out to $0.085 per piece. LEGO had the set on sale for $69.99 around the Christmas 2021 time frame and I picked it up then. I thought $100 was a bit much for this set and I assume it was put on sale as it was not selling as good at the Flower Bouquet has sold.
The box has a picture of the set assembled on the front and then another picture on the back. The back also shows some details, lists dimensions, and shows what the set looks like if you place it in a staged room in your photography area.
The set contains 10 parts bags numbered one through five. The instructions come wrapped for protection.
The instructions provide some details about the actual plant and include a picture of the set designer Chris McVeigh
The first bag starts to build the pot for the plant. It’s always interesting to see how different designers come up with ways to create rounded builds using a system built on right angles. This one is unique from what I have seen in the past and it uses mostly common pieces. The only one odd is a 2x2 double plate with textured sides. I’m not sure why they used this piece versus two plates, but it’s cool that you get multiples of these pieces with this set.
The second bag adds the outsides of the pot for the plant and then it adds a top section with Technic pieces. The outside pieces of the pot are all the same… well you build three one way and then three another way, but they are mostly the same. The Technic section comes into play when you attach the plant pieces next.
The third bag adds the larger leaves for the plant and some of the smaller leaves on the bottom. I followed the instructions for where each one goes, but you can place them where you want. You can also adjust the height of the leaves as well. Again, I just followed the instructions for the height of each leaf.
The fourth bag adds the flowers to the build. There are three, but you could probably make your own if you could come up with all the additional pieces. I’m not sure how common the purple sabre is in LEGO, but maybe you could some up with alternative pieces to use to make it.
The last set of bags, number five, adds a whole bunch of 1x1 brown plates. It’s actually two different colors of brown. You dump them in as the “dirt” and then the build is done.
Overall, the build is pretty quick and not too exciting. As mentioned, there are a few newer pieces, but the set is mostly a build to display piece. My NLS liked it and found a place where she wanted a real plant, but there wasn’t enough light to actually grow one. I guess I’m not the primary audience for this type of set.
I think the set is priced a bit high. This is especially considering many of the parts are the 1x1 plates that you add in as dirt. I’m glad I caught it on sale. If you’re looking to pick this one up, definitely wait for a sale to pop up. Maybe it’ll happen again for Christmas time 2022.
Happy building!
