LEGO 40648 Chinese Lunar New Year Money Tree 9+ 336 Pieces

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Kids can meet their hosts over a cup of tea and a moon cake in the café or explore cultural traditions in the activity center and temple. They can also simply play with the family under the shade of the blossom tree.

Celebrate Chinese New Year – Build a LEGO® Money Tree (40648) to make a fun display item for any room during your celebrations These sets were revealed at the 5th annual China International Import Expo (CIEE) in Shanghai. 80110 Lunar New Year Display LEGO have officially revealed its 2023 Chinese New Year sets – 80110 Lunar New Year Display and 80111 Lunar New Year Parade, 40648 Money Tree as well as a new Monkie Kid mech 80045 Monkey King Ultra Mech , and a Duplo set 10411 Learn About Chinese Culture!

The appeal may be limited unless you understand the cultural significance, but that’s expected in a set such as this LEGO 10411 DUPLO Town Learn About Chinese Culture introduces curious toddlers to the traditional Chinese culture. Parents can guide the little learners through fascinating aspects of Chinese traditions, from food to music, games to traditional dress. These LEGO Chinese New Year sets being available on LEGO.com, LEGO Stores and most specialty toy retailers.

You get about 20 orange pumpkins, which are used to represent kumquats/tangerines/mandarins. At this scale, they work reasonably well to create the intended effect, and I also like that each kumquat has a 3-leaf element attached to it for some further foliage variety. It’s complex enough to be an introduction to the LEGO Botanical Collection and has enough details to sit alongside them without being overshadowed

The variety of coins, tangerines and envelopes scattered in no recognisable pattern across the tree provides plenty of colours, especially for a natural build mostly made up of brown and grey. It makes for a stark contrast to the plant-inspired creation in the LEGO Botanical Collection. Although this set isn’t an entry in that range, it could easily sit beside them or as a budget-friendly alternative to the likes of 10281 Bonsai Tree. — LEGO Seasonal 40648 Money Tree price — The piece used for the mandarins, of which there are 20 in this set, started life as a pumpkin, 51270 VEGETABLE, NO. 3. 14 envelopes and 10 2x2 round coins, which have a new print, 101521 FLAT TILE 2X2, ROUND, NO. 1249 complete the decorations. The completed model stands about 17cm tall just about every frond is laden with either fruit, envelope or coin. The pot is red, and utilises some really interesting techniques for the sides, with the curves narrowing towards the base. The colour red represents good fortune and prosperity, and is common across all Lunar New Year celebrations.

One of the downsides is the trunk, which isn’t really visible as its obscured by all the leaves, but despite the branches from each angle, looks a little too straight and unnatural. The dense foliage, and generous inclusion of plenty of printed coins, red envelopes and of course kumquat fruit make for a really visually appealing model. Super excitingly, here’s a closer look at the villains in the set confirming that we’ll be visiting the Lion Camel Ridge from Journey to the West!The tree appears very organic, except at the very top, where the 45-degree corner roof tiles look a bit out of place when compared to the pieces used for the rest of the tree. Money Tree is a seasonal model and one in line with the likes of the Chinese Traditional Festival range too, so don’t expect it to be available outside of LEGO.com and some LEGO Stores. If there’s one thing that I think could be improved, it’d be to use darker leaves as the Kumquat Trees I’m used to seeing at Chinese New Year usually have darker waxy leaves, instead of the vibrant green used here. The individual fronds are securely fastened to the trunk, and the and hanging decorations are pinned to them using either carrot tops or espresso plates, so the whole structure is very robust.

Money Tree is likely going to be appreciated most by those who know more about the cultural significance behind the build, but we’d be lying if we said this set hadn’t impressed us more than we were expecting despite this. While its appeal to those who don’t annually celebrate the Chinese New Year will be limited, you may understand it a little more when looking at the set as an affordable introduction to the LEGO Botanical Collection. Money Tree is now available on LEGO.com or your local LEGO Store, and as its priced quite accessibly, might be a good set to add to your to-buy list when the rest of the January 2023 releases become available!Money Tree is a small 336-piece model of a kumquat/tangerine/mini mandarin tree, which is another common sight around Chinese New Year. One of the things that the Money Tree gets right is just how dense the foliage is, without it looking too overly busy. It matches the dense leaves of the kumquat tree, thanks to the generous helping of leaves that are layered subtly and closely to one another.