What does your wife/spouse think of your habit?

[def]

Just as it came up elsewhere, I thought this would be an interesting topic.

My wife is pretty accepting of my LEGO habit. I don't care for cars or sports or a lot of other traditional "man" things, so my money isn't being over-extended, but the storage is getting to be an issue. My storage space is over flowing, which she doesn't like, but it seems crazy to make a LEGO closet.

As long as it's about $50 a month, she's alright with it (though it's probably closer to $100).

Do you have to discuss it? Explain it?

I would hate to go back on the dating scene again with the LEGO I have now, as it might be a turn off for some ladies (though of course, who would want a lady like that )

[Shadows]

Hmmm... well, you could always ask her yourself... Alice

[Davey]

I'm sure my lovely wife will chime in here at some point, but I guess I would say that Stacy is totally cool with my LEGO habit. In fact, she's just as bonkers about it as I am. She's even let me go so far as to convert the basement to a 'LEGO Lair'. A couple of months ago, the collection started spilling into the rest of the house...and she fully encouraged that. Now the Death Star Playset sits in our family room. We turned one guest room into a reading room and most of my LEGO Star Wars stuff is up in that room on shelves and what-not.

We may build in different themes, but we still manage to get along when working down in 'The Lair'. To avoid the inevitable 'you stole my piece' arguments we have an agreement. If we run out of a specific piece for a MOC we are working on...we agree that the person needing the piece can go order it at Bricklink at any time...provided there are funds in the bank account. Basically...Stacy is awesome.

The nice thing for us is that this is really one of our main hobbies, so when we buy LEGO...it's not just for one person. It benefits both of us. I'm lucky though and probably a fairly rare case. Although Stacy is really trying to work hard to get more females involved in LEGO. If you're going to be at Brickworld, send your wife or significant other over to the ToT-LUG layout and Stacy will be happy to convince them of why building with LEGO bricks is one of the coolest and most rockin' hobbies out there.

I got me my 1x5...and she's good!

-Dave

ToT-LUG

[Alice]

I don't spend that much on Lego and only buy something when I love it. I probably spend on average of 25-50 dollars a month. I'll go a month and spend nothing and then spend 100-150 dollars the next month. It just depends. Most of my lego purchases are classic sets or parts so it just depends on whats out there. I try to get it when I can. Shadows likes my lego "habit" because I'm easy to talk into Lego purchases. I'm ok with his Lego addiction (habit is an understatement). I actually encourage him to buy what he wants, especially if it is something rare. Plus, I get to play with all the Lego he buys. We have plans for expansive storage for Lego in the future. He put me on the spot.

[KimT]

The wife's cool with me collecting LEGO.

She's even cool with me spending money, lots of money on it.

The issue is space - it's beginning to get on her nerves.

We live in a 3 room appartment and that doesn't leave much space for a hobby such as this, plus the invasion 2+ years ago has forced me to cut down the space previously used for LEGO.

So the way things are going right now I am downsizing the public display of LEGO and storing it in the attic.

She fully understands that this is my hobby and she would rather I do this than buy a motorcycle, start hunting or some other really expensive hobby If she only knew

Anyways, I'd never ever met anyone who thought I was nuts or teased me for having LEGO as a hobby.

Even my in-Laws think that it's a fun hobby to have.

Point is: She married me, she gave me a child and she accepted to buy an appartment with me (and get a debt that'll last forever) - so I think she's cool with it

[Holodoc]

For me it's pretty much the same as KimT already pointed out:

My lovely wife is fine with me buying more and more Lego, the only thing is space.

Although I´m in the comfortable situation to call a complete house my own, we´re running out of (Lego)-space.

It´s a 100 year old house, so the ceilings are high and the rooms are few. Still it´s a very nice house.

I´m currently working on a Lego dedicated room, but it´s a longer way to get there with a lot stuff being moved from one place to another.

I recall my wife saying: Well, isn´t it good now? Don´t buy any more Lego.

This was 2 years ago I think. I have a bigger MOC on constant display in my home town and even was interviewed in a local newspaper. Maybe this changed her mind. I´ve never heard anything again.

Some weeks ago I managed to buy the complete Lego collection from a colleague. Then 4 huuuge boxes crowded our "working room". She never said a word. Still I´m impressed about that.

Anyways, I'd never ever met anyone who thought I was nuts or teased me for having LEGO as a hobby.

Even my in-Laws think that it's a fun hobby to have.

That´s one impression I can second. And I´m amazed about it.

Maybe the people who think we´re absolutely crazy are too polite to say it.

Point is: She married me, she gave me a child and she accepted to buy an appartment with me (and get a debt that'll last forever) - so I think she's cool with it

When we married, I was still in my dark ages.

What a surprise when she realized...

[Sandy]

My boyfriend thinks my hobby is cute, even if it is a bit childish to him (although he's a devout Harry Potter-fan, so he has no say on the matter).

My collection is small enough so it can be hidden from our guests, so it doesn't bother him that much, but I'm starting to get to the point where I don't care anymore who knows about my rekindled passion for LEGO.

In my opinion we should cherish the child that lives within us all, whether it's building LEGO or reading Harry Potter or something else. Having a bit of innocent joy in our lives is nothing to be ashamed of, especially nowadays when many people's idea of fun is to get drunk and high and get laid with total strangers.

[Svelte]

I am stretching the limits of what I can fit in my apartment and live in a state of uneasy truce. Illicit Lego incursions into new territory are treated without mercy!

Over the next few months I am going to have to clear out a lot of older stuff, it just takes so much time to sort and clear the excess. But I have to do this if I want to keep on collecting in the next few years.

I've also become one of those people who sometimes pays more just to get the minifigs rather than buying the whole sets, since they're often what I want and the Australian dollar is reasonable again so it ends up OK, price-wise. (Hello Squiddies!) I'm also moving to getting bulk bricks in colours I want (eg lots of landscaping stuff) rather than worrying about collecting individual one-off themes.

Luckily Lego's golden age appears to be approaching an end with the new 2010 licensed themes - Toy Story, Prince of Persia, Ben 10 Maybe that will help?

[CopMike]

My collection is small enough so it can be hidden from our guests, so it doesn't bother him that much, but I'm starting to get to the point where I don't care anymore who knows about my rekindled passion for LEGO.

Don´t hide it Sandy, show it while mingling with the guest before you eat dinner ! You don´t hide your HP books & movies also, do you? And your so right, your boyfriend has no saying in this matter !

CopMike

[Shadows]

Don´t hide it Sandy, show it while mingling with the guest before you eat dinner ! You don´t hide your HP books & movies also, do you? And your so right, your boyfriend has no saying in this matter !

You know, if there is one thing I hope this community is able to do, it's help people come out of the LEGO closet and share their passion with the world.

Loud and proud! There's no keeping us down!

[Izzy]

I am stretching the limits of what I can fit in my apartment and live in a state of uneasy truce. Illicit Lego incursions into new territory are treated without mercy

You are being very vague there Svelty! Remember you are replying to what does your wife.spouse think of your habit?

Well for me... My husband thinks it's cool and has a few SW sets himself. But I am the one with it spread all over the dining table and bookshelves.

My parents thinks its fine too, Mum has semi-permanently loaned me the childhood collection of Lego. My Dad just laughs and says, "Oh ho! A second childhood eh?"

[DJ Force]

My wife´s cool with me buying Lego. Sometimes when she´s shopping she would bring me an Impulse set And she went with me to the Günzburg Event

Furthermore she has a nearly complete collection of Paradisa and Castle Fantasy. Paradisa is lose in plastic bags, Castle is boxed.

But same as many here, space is the magic word. I´ve got a REALLY huge collection of Masters of the Universe toys that take up TWO rooms in our flat. In addition, I´ve got every Exo Force set boxed, plus many many EF doubles in bags. Also the Dino 2010 theme boxed and this year I started collecting city.

But we´ve got a child and she needs her own room soon, so one of my hobby rooms has to go. Where to put the stuff? I don´t know! Basically I have to make one room out of two PLUS adding my Lego collection... And I wanna display some of the Lego stuff, too.

I guess we´ll have to move.

[CopMike]

Where to put the stuff? I don´t know! Basically I have to make one room out of two PLUS adding my Lego collection... And I wanna display some of the Lego stuff, too.

I guess we´ll have to move.

Easy, dump your stupid huge collection of Masters of the Universe toys! Whoala - lots & lots of free space + $$$ for more Lego !

CopMike

[Eilif]

Great topic!

My wife is totally supportive of LEGO. She is not interested in joining NILTC with me, but encourages my involvement in that Club, LEGO conventions, and LEGO purchases. She doesn't build much herself, but she has MOC'd a couple of times, and says someday she will build a the Willy Wonka candy garden! Mostly though, she just builds kits with me. Whenever I get a big kit or multiple sections, we split up the directions and each build a section/set.

As for space, we have work/office room set aside. She keeps her desk there, and I build there, unfortunately this means that she only gets about 1/4 of the room, but she's totally fine with that, and has no qualms about visitors seeing my workspace, even when it's a complete mess. Lastly, part of her support for LEGO is that it has replaced the Warhammer 40k that used to take up alot of my time. She didn't like 40k at all, and as well as finding LEGO to be a more enjoyable hobby for me, it's definitely worth it to have a hobby that the most important person in your life can enjoy and participate in.

[Paradosis]

Actually this is a good question, and I should ask her what exactly she thinks when she gets home tomorrow. For now, I can give general impressions. She seems supportive of me in pretty much whatever I do, including building with Lego. She probably views it as just one more hobby for me, as my interests tend to switch from thing to thing over time, and then return to repeat the cycle. She doesn't get frustrated with my spending money (sometimes a lot at one time) on the hobby, which I'm very happy about. Space isn't an issue for me yet, because I've sold a lot of the Lego that I've bought since I came out of my dark ages, and don't have a ton of pieces at the moment. As far as her involvement with the hobby, she will build models if she has instructions and the pieces right in front of her, but she doesn't like building MOC's and doesn't like the whole searching/sorting aspect of the hobby.

[Still Raindrop]

Great question. My fiancée is fine with it--she knows it helps me relieve stress, be creative, relax, etc. I just wonder how things will all work out when we get married next month and move into an apartment together. I want to have some LEGO display space in our living room (or, more properly, our "everything but the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom" room), and she said I could have a space of my own on the bookshelf. We'll see how that works out--I'll keep you guys posted, if you want

[Davey]

Great question. My fiancée is fine with it--she knows it helps me relieve stress, be creative, relax, etc. I just wonder how things will all work out when we get married next month and move into an apartment together. I want to have some LEGO display space in our living room (or, more properly, our "everything but the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom" room), and she said I could have a space of my own on the bookshelf. We'll see how that works out--I'll keep you guys posted, if you want

Definitely keep us posted! It's nice to see that, overall, most NLSO (non-LEGO Significant Others) are supportive of the LEGO hobby. I've found it interesting that over the past 3-4 years, the hobby seems to be gaining legitimacy among the non-LEGO masses. A lot of that may stem from the recent mass acceptance of 'geek culture' and the trend of what I call 'geek chique'. All over the world more and more people (especially celebs) are doting on their closet geeky pleasures (WoW, LEGO, Star Trek, Video Games, etc.). It's fun to see that so many people house an 'inner-geek'. I'm just incredibly lucky that I married someone as geeky as me.

-Dave

ToT-LUG

[Teddy]

This is a cool topic.

Me and my girlfriend bought an appartement together over a year ago.

But I was already in my Lego hobby for over two years then.

Although we know each other for five years now.

She is really cool with my hobby.

I even got a special Lego room with a tv, computer, and beer-fridge.

We bought a closet with partly glass doors to display my star wars sets.

She has a desk there as well were she can study when I build.

But Lego has invaded our other living space as well.

My castle sits on a table in the dining room and my city MOCs are on the window stills in the living room.

I even store some sets in large plastic containers under our bed.

Our storage space is full of Lego boxes because I save all of them.

I even convinced her to build some sets, which she actually enjoys to do. But not too often.

Her first set was the technic set 8285. She tougth it looked cool on the box art, but the building was an over kill.

Took her over two weeks to complete. Well she didn't build fulltime ofcourse.

We even planned some hollidays around Lego; going to Denmark and London.

Visiting the Legoland parks ofcourse, and we visited Legoworld in the Netherlands together the last few years.

She even encourages me to buy new Star Wars sets, because she likes the minifigs.

And she buys me the occasional set.

For a while Lego star wars was her favourite wii computer game.

So she actually encourages my hobby. I guess she likes the fact I'm around the house when I'm building with Lego.

My previous hobby, race-rowing, required me to train and later coach every day and twice on sunday.

And every other weekend there was a competition on saturday and sunday. So i was away a lot.

(Although I'm getting bit heavy without the excersize. )

And it helps that her grandmother is my biggest fan and her sister is into Lego too.

She even asked me to build a Lego painting for our Living room. But we still have to find a nice example.

Kind regards,

Teddy

Edited June 10, 2009 by Teddy

[Stacy_ToT-LUG]

Dave pretty much covered the main points above. He is completely accepting of my LEGO habit and fully supports and encourages me to keep building. I'm just glad that he didn't try to keep this great hobby to himself and let me play along with him!

[Davey]

Dave pretty much covered the main points above. He is completely accepting of my LEGO habit and fully supports and encourages me to keep building. I'm just glad that he didn't try to keep this great hobby to himself and let me play along with him!

Aww...but you're just so much fun to play with. Wait a minute...that didn't quite come out how I intended.

Oh who am I kidding...of course it did.

-Dave

ToT-LUG

[Dfenz]

I can blame my wife for my interest in recent years in Lego. She suggested a few years back that I buy our son a small Harry Potter set and I'd been reluctant to do so on the basis that any sets that contained anything other than bricks, plates and slopes was overpriced rubbish supported by marketing propaganda. Well, after Harry Potter, Star Wars, Indie, Spiderman, Batman etc. that was one expensive decision!! Little did she know when we built our house, I had plans for her 'sunroom' which rareley sees the light of day, her sitting room which has a dining table covered with whatever is flavour of the month, attics and cupboards under beds stuffed with secret stashes of sets and empty boxes and an Eiffel Tower display model which I'm trying to convince her looks like the lamp she had planned for that particular part of the room. Fortunately, there are a lot of worse ways to spend my time outside the home and this way I spend time with the kids. She even bought me a UCS Imperial Star Destroyer for Xmas one year!

David

[Capt. Kirk]

I can blame my wife for my interest in recent years in Lego. She suggested a few years back that I buy our son a small Harry Potter set and I'd been reluctant to do so on the basis that any sets that contained anything other than bricks, plates and slopes was overpriced rubbish supported by marketing propaganda. Well, after Harry Potter, Star Wars, Indie, Spiderman, Batman etc. that was one expensive decision!! ...

David

--> It's easy to blame your wife and kids...

--> I hope we see each other again at an event... and by the way bring your son Alan along, then can I draw for him a deadly Orc...

[prateek]

Easy, dump your stupid huge collection of Masters of the Universe toys! Whoala - lots & lots of free space + $$$ for more Lego !

CopMike

exactly

[Paradosis]

Curious as to what my wife would say, I asked her what she thought about my building with Lego. Here's her response:

I have no probs with you playing with lego... you enjoy it and if it makes you happy then that's great! Right now I'm not interested in playing with lego but I don't mind that you're into it. Maybe as the girls get older you can teach them how to build some stuff too... that'd be a great chance to have some father-daughter time between you and them I think. I don't mind at all that you play with lego... I don't even mind if you purchase more as long as you play with them and don't let them collect dust, just be sure the set you purchase will get lots of use out of that's all that I ask. If you got that corner cafe model and other building type ones that we were talking about in the past I wouldn't mind putting it together too... I'm just more interested in sets that are like the cafe, or fantasy ones that are maybe thought of as being more girly (not girly colors... just not 'fighting' type kinds that's all).

[Davey]

Curious as to what my wife would say, I asked her what she thought about my building with Lego. Here's her response:

You've got her on the hook...now reel her in. A Cafe Corner build and a Green Grocer and she'll be an AFoL in no time. I also notice that a lot of NLSO's (non-LEGO Significant Other) see LEGO as a opportunity for parent-child bonding time and I think that is awesome! My mom used to sit and build with me when I was a kid. She has never become an AFoL, but she tells me that playing LEGO with me as a child is one of her fondest memories. Dad on the other hand...might become an AFoL yet as he has an interest in the Star Wars stuff.

Anyway, glad to see she is supportive and even potential interested in building with you! I think if LEGO did more fantasy themes, we would bring in more female fans. Castle could definitely be expanded and the Medieval Market is a good start. That's probably another one to show her. Good luck!

-Dave

ToT-LUG