I can’t believe we are nearing the end of “Lighten Up! Tips for Letting Go in 2024.” I hope the resources I have been sharing have been helpful. As I said in the beginning, while you may not be shedding items from these categories in real time, hopefully this information is something you can save and come back to throughout the year. Today we will be talking about what to do with Legos™.
Lots of families have unwanted plastic play bricks of various types. Some are the results of kits that have been assembled, dismantled, and lost their appeal. Others are larger bricks like Duplos™ that your child has grown beyond. In some cases, families have simply acquired a quantity that is more than can be enjoyed. Lastly, many families find their children have moved onto other toys. [For more tips on how to store the Legos™ your family is still enjoying, click here.]
Your first inclination may be to simply put unwanted bricks into the recycling bin. Unfortunately, Legos™ are not a recyclable plastic because they are a mixture of Type 7 (ABS) plastic and sometimes other non-recyclable materials.
At the same time, if you’ve purchased Legos™ recently, you know how expensive they are. Therefore, it is a shame to just dump them into the trashcan.
Donating all forms of play bricks is a great idea. Your local charities may take them, but some will only take complete sets, so it is a good idea to check first.
Another alternative is to send them to an organization that will get them into the hands of children who want them. The Lego™ company itself runs a program called “Replay,” which partners with charities to distribute donated pieces to kids in need.Brick Recycler is a second option that sorts and redistributes Legos™ to children in need. To date, Brick Recycler has sent over 130 pounds to kids in Haiti.
Bear in mind that both of these options will require you to pack up and ship your bricks. There are suggestions for how to do this on their respective websites.
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Do you have Legos™ in your home? Is it time to let them go?
Oh, so good to know! We have a ton of Legos in storage that my son didn’t want to take to this duty station. When we are reunited with our stuff, he will have officially grown out of them. 😭 But it’s great to know that there are organizations out there that are dedicated to getting Legos into the hands of kids who wouldn’t be able to access them! Thank you so much for these resources.
I completely agree! They are expensive, and it seems a waste to just toss them. They are totally reusable, so why not pass them on, right?
Thank you for the reminder about Legos, I knew a lot about them as my kids were fans. Lots of teachers at schools would take unwanted legos. If you have a missing lego you can email the website and they’ll send a replaceable piece for free. Thanks Seana.
That’s great to know that the company will send a replacement piece if you are missing one – I didn’t know that! Certainly beats pitching the kit or having to buy another one!
We have SO many Legos in this house! My son has been obsessed with them since he was about 3 (he’s 19 now), and still loves to get the sets for birthdays, holidays, etc. We have shelves for displaying his finished creations all over our bonus room, and he swears he wants to take all of them for his own home someday (please…I hope!). That said, I know we have some dismantled sets and tons of random bricks. It’s good to know Legos has that program. I also read an article recently about a man who uses the bricks to repair walls and stone/brick structures all over Europe. It’s called Dispatchwork. Not sure how he gets the Legos, but it’s a cool idea!
That is a cool idea. I will look forward to checking out Dispatchwork. Legos are amazing, and it is so great to find a way to pass them on to those who can’t afford them. I’ve been surprised to see how expensive they have become!
Love these tips and will be going back through the others in this series! We’ve donated many legos to neighbors and teachers over the years. 🙂
I hope you find the rest of the series helpful, Laura. So great to donate to teachers and schools!
We had Lego’s but we got rid of them somehow before our last move. I know I didn’t throw them away. I think we have them to a division of my husband’s business who work with low income families. It is enlightening to know there are places that want them. You have given a lot of good tips to those who have no use for them anymore.
They are so expensive, and so easy to reuse, that it is a shame to throw them out! Good for you donating the bricks your family was finished with.
Great resources, Seana! I had lots of Legos from my sons and gave them all to my niece who is an elementary school teacher.
Giving to a school is a wonderful idea!
Oh my gosh! I am sure this is a dilemma for a lot of parents. I don’t know if we have a program like that here in Ontario but I certainly would look into it if I have a parent wondering what to do with all those lego. Passing them on is the best thing to do. I can’t imagine tossing them. I love your avatars. You are always so creative.
Thanks for the kind words. Making the images was part of the fun this year!
Completely agree that it is worth the effort to find someone who can use the Legos. They aren’t cheap, and they reuse so well. 🙂
What excellent resources! I’m holding onto this one for future reference. So many toys that kids have outgrown end up in the trash. It’s great to learn about places that accept and redistribute Legos™ and Bricks to give them an extended life.
I love your commitment to your January series. This has been a fun and useful one!
Thank you, Linda! I think fellow organizers benefitted as much as my readers on this one. Doing the research and gathering my resources was beneficial to me as well!
Oh, Legos! We had tons and tons of them. Lego building was my son’s favorite pastime for many years. He made towns and cities with time. We still have them because he just doesn’t want to get rid of them. I have stored them in a pull-out vertical bin, and it only takes up a small area in my basement closet. So, I plan to wait until he moves out and give them to him. Lol.
Sounds like a nice housewarming gift LOL!
I have been impressed with this entire series — I can’t imagine how long the research and writing has taken you, but it’s a resource I know many people will be returning to over and over.
I’ve been working on a small LEGO post for funsies for a while, but you’ve hit a whole category I hadn’t considered, letting them go. I love LEGO (probably because I didn’t have it as a kid) and am partial to the mini-figures. I knew they weren’t recyclable, but didn’t know about Brick Recycler. Thank you for sharing this information and for the entire series!
There is a lot to say about organizing Legos™ right? And many ways to go about it. I think they are like books, perfect “reusables.” I love seeing ways to get items into the hands that want them. Total win/win.