Review: 41311 Heartlake Pizzeria

"Buongiorno!" Welcome to Heartlake City's newest hot-spot for sit-down/take-out Italian fare! Will we give it five stars? Read on to see...

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs (AR&P) team of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans. Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.



Is 2017 "The Year of the Pizza?" It sure seems like it! No less than four of the announced 2017 LEGO sets feature the yummy circular food. Everywhere you look, from DUPLO to Friends, to City and Batman - our little characters are munching slices of Italian pie. 

Did I just say, "slices?" Yes! Hot on the heels of last year's watermelon wedges and pie portions, we now have glorious quarter-tile slices of crispy pizza! Now... I was all set to write a brief history of LEGO pizzas here but, someone has beaten me to it. They even created the exact pizza tile comparison shot that I was envisioning! So, rather than duplicate their work, I'll link to it. But if you do take a peek, please come right back because we still have a Friends set to discuss...!



Briefly putting this set in historical context, a few other sets come to mind. One is, of course, 2015's "Stephanie's Pizzeria" (41092) which, though smaller, had some similar features. Meanwhile, a spark of nostalgia strikes as I fondly recall my first LEGO pizza experience: 1994's "Pizza To Go" (6350). That same era brought us the "Breezeway Café" (6376) and its elegant upstairs dining experience. One could say that the "Heartlake Pizzeria" is a modern (and improved) combination of those classics. I may refer to these sets again later for comparison. But first, let's take a look at this box! 

Review: 41301 Puppy Parade

This cute little set offers something different. It’s about puppies, doing what they do best, showing off and winning! This set includes a puppy named Apollo, a winner’s podium, a movie camera, a themed parade limousine, and Andrea (Apollo’s master).

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans. Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

This set is part of a new Friends sub theme which will introduce six new puppies into the Friends world:


The box art for this new theme has a modified ribbon which is appropriately, a dog collar, that wraps around the entire box.

The front of the box highlights a parade Limousine which Andrea uses to show off her canine companion.  A winner’s podium and video camera are shown in the background.  These little add-on’s round out this set providing some additional play features.  Andrea and her BFF’s appear in the top right corner, as usual.

Review: 41314 Stephanie's House

When she’s not lounging around at the Beach House, Stephanie can be found at her parents’ house.  Let’s take a closer look!

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs (AR&P) team of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer.
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

The front of the box shows Stephanie’s House located in a quiet suburban street, with lots of grass for the bunny. The inset at the bottom left gives a snapshot of the back of the building, while the inset at the right shows us that this set includes her parents, Alicia and James.

The set box carries the familiar purple flanges on the sides and ribbon wave across the top, indicating that this set belong to the base theme and not a sub-theme.

The back of the box highlights the numerous playing features and accessories included in this set.

Review: 41307 Olivia's Creative Lab

Zobo is back – and now he has a family! Let's meet them as we check out this fabulous updated version of Olivia's lab.

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans. Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

Up-front warning: I may be biased in this review... Olivia is totally my favorite Friends character! Her love of science, building, and technology, and even her brown wavy hair, are all things I relate to. As we all waited for the January 2017 Friends sets, this one had me the most excited. Why? Five years ago, my first foray into the Friends line was "Olivia's Invention Workshop" (3933), which could be described as an earlier incarnation of this set - and it got me hooked. So, naturally I was curious to see how The LEGO Company would re-imagine my fav character and her metal sidekick in a new workspace. Well, I wasn't disappointed! I'll take you through everything I found...

My copy of this set was kindly provided by the LEGO Company and came from Denmark. This European box printing differs slightly from the North American, but the artwork is the same. Selling for around $10 USD and containing 91 pieces, the packaging is of expected size. 



The cover shot shows everything well except for a few additional tools and the baby bottle element. Motion lines in the picture indicate that Olivia is controlling Zobito. The lower left corner illustrates Zobo waving at us, while the lower right shows Olivia with her remote control. We are told there that she loves ...remote controls? Haha! With that big antenna, it almost looks like a retro cellphone to me, but ok. The back of the box does a great job of showing the elements that were missing from the front plus some play ideas. It also suggests additional small sets featuring the other Friends characters.

Note: Background artwork on the box front places our model in what looks like a ground-level setting. We see flowers, gravel and sunlight beyond some large double doors - implying that we may be in a large shed or outbuilding next to a garden. This differs from the recent official video setting which places Olivia's lab in a finished basement (see below). Personally, I'd prefer working in the lovely sun-lit spot. But I do also love the idea of constructing a lower level for my copy of "Olivia's House" (3315), just to accommodate this set! 

Review: 41312 Heartlake Sports Center

Happy New Year. 2017 is the 5th anniversary of LEGO Friends. To start off 2017, Robert is going to the Heartlake Sports Center (41312) to work on his New Year's resolution with Mia's help. Let's get active.

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer.
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

The front of the box shows the front of the sports center with Mia and Robert. There is an insert showing the inside and back of the sports center.



The box has the familiar purple flanges and ribbon wave across the top indicating this set is part of the base theme.

Review: 41308 Stephanie's Friendship Cakes

2017 is LEGO Friends’ 5th anniversary! To celebrate the occasion, Stephanie has baked a special cupcake for each of her 4 best friends and herself! 

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. 
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.


This set is part of the Hobby sub-theme, and as previously seen, each of the five sets has special pictures of the Friends character and her favorite pet on the front of the box.


The back of the box shows a few play features of the set as well as the other four sets in the Friendship Collection.


On the top of the box, the actual size of the best friend charm is shown. Yes, it is too small for your baby brother, and no, don’t let him eat it!

Review: 41309 Andrea's Musical Duet

2017 is LEGO Friends’ 5th anniversary! To celebrate the occasion, Andrea goes on stage with her new singing partner, Cleo the parrot! 

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. 
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.


The overall box front design is the same as last year’s, but it also has the pictures of Andrea and her pet friend, which is unique to this new “Hobby” sub-theme. 

This set is one of the 5 in the sub-theme also known as “Friendship Collection”.


Each set in the Friendship Collection features one of the 5 main Friends characters and her favorite non-human friend. 

It also comes with a buildable heart (“best friends charm”) in the character’s favorite color.

It is shown on the box top for the size reference.

Review: 41305 Emma's Photo Studio

We know that Emma loves all things fashion and design, so it's no surprise she is also into photography. Let's see how Emma's Photo Studio stacks up!

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the 
purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. 
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

The front of the box shows Emma's Photo Studio located in a building with large windows that let in lots of natural light. 



The set box carries the familiar purple flanges on the sides and ribbon wave across the top, indicating that this set belong to the base theme and not a sub-theme. 

The back of the box highlights the three main playing features - the grooming station, the backdrop and the printer. It also shows the small sets for the other four Friends, which I don't recall seeing on set boxes previously.



The sides of the box show the usual warnings in various languages.

   

2017 Friends 2HY Sets & Toy Fair images

~~~
New York Toy Fair 2017

 

Snow Resort Ski Lift

Snow Resort Chalet

Snow Resort Ice Rink

 2017 LEGO Friends Advent Calendar

 Heartlake Hospital

Andrea's Speedboat Transporter

Heartlake Surf Shop

Sunshine Catamaran

-------------------------------------------------------

Inside Heartlake Hospital
pic by BZ Power
-----------------------------------------------
Nuremberg (DE) Toy Fair 2017
LEGO Friends snow Resort sub-theme:

images via PromoBricks

London Toy Fair
~~~
Read all our reviews!

Happy 5th Birthday LEGO Friends!

   Today we celebrate the 5th anniversary of the global launch of the theme LEGO Friends.  January 1, 2012 a dynamic shift in building options began.  It affected playtime for millions of girls.  It affected LEGO fans.  It affected other toy companies.  LEGO Friends inspired a whole new world of imagination building.

A look back:
   The number of girls building with LEGO products in 2011 was only 9% and after only one year of the release of LEGO Friends, that number had tripled to 28%.  LEGO Friends went on to become the second highest selling theme in the LEGO product array.

   How that shift began:

"Be a LEGO Designer" for ages 6-12

   The LEGO Friends Design team has launched a building contest to stir up some creativity in the fandom during the year of the 5th Birthday of LEGO Friends.  The chosen Heartlake City "place" creation will be released as an actual 2017 LEGO set and one of the mini-dolls will be of the winning builder!

   Kids aged 6-12 can design and build a creation with their bricks (or create using LDD) and submit it, along with their parent's consent.  There are prizes (such as 2017 sets) for semi-finalists, in addition to other "local" prizes tailored to and offered in various countries for this worldwide contest.
   A trip to Denmark for a week to spend time with the LEGO Friends Design team to perfect the winning creation is the culmination for the builder and family.  See the terms & condition for all details. (Please click through and then select your country to read the page for location-specific details, as there are variations in prizes and ways to enter.)

What will the new Heartlake City place be?

   The winning design will be released as a set sometime in August or September 2017, as an exclusive to Toys'R'Us stores.

It's exciting to think that LEGO Friends begins their 5th year in 2017!

Friends Bricks is proud to have one of our admins, Kristel, as a Judge.

2016 LEGO Friends Advent Calendar Reveal

LEGO Friends Advent Calendar
#41131
Piece Count: 218
Year: 2016

This set was provided by the AFOL Relations & Programs team (AR&P) of The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer. 
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.


It's December 1st, so the time is finally here to open the advent calendar!

Let's flip the box to see the back!

The box has the playmat and backdrop for the fun holiday scenes you create.


LEGO Friends started in 2012, so this is the 5th LEGO Friends Advent Calendar. 

I thought it might be fun to show you what we got in the advent calendars in the past. Do you remember these?


Now let's open this year's advent calendar!