What to buy an AFOL for the holidays

[Bennemans]

Gift-wrapping season is upon us!!

What should I ask for christmas? Ah, I know! How about some of those plastic bricks I love so much!?

Well, easier said than done, as always. Because when it came time to tell the family and my significant other what was on my wish list, simply "Lego" didn't suffice for them. Questions like "What kind?", "Which one?", "Anything specific?", "but I don't know what you have already" (not to mention the occasional "don't you know any better gifts?"…. ex-f*cking-cuse me???) run rampant.

So, that got me thinking. Why is it so hard for non-fans to buy Lego-related gifts? Going to the toyshop, pointing at a box and shouting in your spouse's ear "I want that one!" really destroys the surprise and excitement of unwrapping the present later on. Getting a gift card is no fun either. And I've also had my share of gifts I don't like ("you like Lego, so here is a Lego flashlight!"… dafuq am I suppose to do with that??).

And what about the moments your partner just wants to surprise you with a gift? They can't just ask you for a specific set number then, right? Or people who come to your birthday; do you really wanna make a giant list of presents for everybody?

So what are gifts that us AFOLS would like to get, without getting too specific, and with a high success rate? To be clear, I'm talking about gifts everybody could give an AFOL; maybe a hostess-gift, a thank-you-gift, or just a little surprise (and of course birthdays and holidays).

I'm guessing that most of us would be happy if they got the following:

Minifigures! Who doesn't like minifigures? We could always use more citizens for our city, recruits to beef up our armies, and maybe it has that specific hairdo I could use more of. Even older series may be welcome. And because it's a blind bag, it's not the gift-giver's fault if it's a figure we despise! And it's cheap, small and easy; great as a stocking stuffer!

Basically anything from the Basic/Bricks and More/future Classic (2015) collection. Who can't use a big box full of plastic happiness? There are always colors and bricks in there we can use, and the ones we don't use we'll just store/sell/donate.

Tickets to a Lego Con, Expo or Themepark. We like to get some inspiration, walk amongst our kin, and have the chance to score some loot! But please buy two tickets, so we can take someone, maybe even you! So we can show you why we love what we love. (Or we can take our partners/kids/friends, whatever.) Anything to get us out of our basements and attics we spend all our free time in, surrounded by that damn addictive plastic!

I personally tell everybody they can buy me just about anything from the Friends and Creator series as well, and I'll just use those as parts packs. But I'm usually happy with anything with Lego bricks in 'm (I just use it as a parts pack). I've gotten things I don't like though; Lego flashlight, lunchbox, storage cubes (I seriously don't care for those), and unofficial stuff, like Lego-shaped piggybanks, pencil erasers and more. Things that'll just end up being donated to my local thriftshop.

So, how do you go about the holidays? Is Lego on your wish list? Do you ask for specific boxes, or do you like to be surprised? Have you ever gotten Lego related gifts you hated? Tell us all about it!!

Edited November 8, 2014 by Bennemans

[Gongoro73]

In my case, I always ask for specific sets. In fact, I buy them myself in order to get VIP points to my account or nice discounts on Amazon. So, sadly, no surprises for me unwrapping gifts.

And yes, there's always something like "what? you just want Lego?" "Don't you need anything better/more useful?" "when are you gonna grow up?"...

Edited November 8, 2014 by Gongoro73

[TheLegoDr]

Thanks for this. I get the same response! My wife said "I'm buying you presents this year, only a little bit of LEGO!" Aaaghhhh.. silly. I think she wants to give me something special and useful instead of more LEGO bricks. Understandable, but when the only thing I want is LEGO, it makes it more difficult. My mom buys me LEGO for my Christmas/Birthday and I just order it myself to get VIP points/freebies. She just tells me a total $.

You'd think it would be easy, but at the same time, there are certain sets I have no interest in and some I really want. So I'd hate to be surprised with something I don't want. So I usually just ask for money to buy them myself. Who needs surprises?

[K-Nut]

I've always been able to be pretty surprised when asking for LEGO sets for the Holidays. These days, I'm not really looking to get everything that's out there. I'll put on my list a big selection of set numbers that interest me (in years past I've been able to get 30 or so sets on there, though not all of them current). That way it's easier to get what I'm interested in, but also able to have the surprise factor. I do usually get some cash instead of sets too, so it's a bit nice to have something to fall back on if I don't get what I'm looking for.

[Jedi-Bendu]

I'm a Star Wars collector. Not just Lego, but Star Wars in general.

The last time I got something Star Wars that was a total surprise was back in 1983/1984

My parents ask me what I want (and I order it myself)

My parents in law ask what everybody wants.....but it have to be things which are easy to get (stuff they have to order online are NOT allowed, and it has to be stuff they don't have to visit more than 2 stores for).

My gf and I give ourselves a 'weekend trip' present (the kids go to grandpa and grandma....while we go shopping/relaxing in another country)

While I'm typing this I have to correct myself: last time I got something Star Wars I did not expect was at Xmas 2008; my gf bought me a Nintendo Wii with The Force Unleashed game. (this was the last year we gave eachother gifts...before the mentioned 'weekend trips')

Edited November 8, 2014 by Jedi-Bendu

[SMC]

I just buy sets all year round when I see them on a good offer and come my birthday or Christmas I get my family to buy them for me (give me money) then I get to open them. I have more than I should put away at the moment.

[dr_spock]

I don't ask for Christmas presents or have a wishlist. I am happy with whatever LEGO my kids give me for Christmas.

[Bennemans]

In fact, I buy them myself

I just order it myself

I just buy sets all year round

Really?? So you guys never wanna be surprised?? So what about when somebody wants to surprise or thank you?? Do people know what they can buy you when you don't know they are getting you anything?

I think there's nothing more wonderful (and maybe childlike) to shake a wrapped box and hear the all too familiar rattling of bricks, and not knowing what's inside . But to each their own, of course!

[Mikuri]

I don't ask for anything at Christmas. But I do ask all year long to look for specific sets in sales :P

But I wouln't mind any Chima Tribe pack if they are availlable by then.

[Gongoro73]

Really?? So you guys never wanna be surprised?? So what about when somebody wants to surprise or thank you?? Do people know what they can buy you when you don't know they are getting you anything?

I think there's nothing more wonderful (and maybe childlike) to shake a wrapped box and hear the all too familiar rattling of bricks, and not knowing what's inside . But to each their own, of course!

I really don't mind surprises anymore. If someone wants to surprise me, I just don't ask for lego, they can buy me anything else. (a good book or comic book, a vinyl, a box of nice colour pencils...).