11 Beautiful Lego Sets You Can Put on the Shelf When You’re Done

It’s no surprise that Legos have been wiggling into households everywhere. During the pandemic and corresponding stay-at-home orders, many people are leaning into puzzles and other hobbies they can do in the comfort and safety of their own homes. But what do you do when you’re done with a puzzle? You can frame it and hang it, or put it back in the box, but there aren’t a ton of options. Enter Legos, which you can set on a shelf, take apart, and put it back together as something new, frame into stop motion videos, and more. 

Personally, I’m a fan of the “Star Wars” Lego heads that stand guard around my brother’s living room TV, and recently bought him the Boba Fett helmet Lego set to add to his collection. But you don’t have to be a “Star Wars” fan to use Lego sets as decoration. They have beautiful recreations of historical buildings, cars that look like they should run, and other themed sets from different franchises, like “Stranger Things” to “Jurassic World.”

Here are 11 of the most beautiful Lego sets you can put on the shelf when you’re done. (If the set you’re interested in is out of stock, simply sign up to receive an email when it comes back.)

If you’re a car enthusiast, or know someone who is, Lego has a variety of fun car puzzles, like the “James Bond” Aston Martin DB5, a Fiat 500, and even the “Ghostbusters” ECTO-1 (who ya gonna call?). My favorite has to be this Ford Mustang, a 1,471-piece replica of the iconic American muscle car from the 1960s that looks remarkably similar to the real deal. You can complete it with a corner garage, too.

If you don’t have space on your shelves, but still want to put together some Lego art, take a look at the slightly less 3D options that are made to be hung on your wall, like the Brick Sketches BB-8, Batman, or a First Order Stormtrooper.

Along those lines, you can also create iconic pop art with a Lego set, like Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe, Marvel Studios Iron Man, or The Beatles. You can even order a Personalized Mosaic Portrait.

If you can’t keep a plant alive, and love a good puzzle, build a Lego Bonsai Tree, or put together a flower bouquet, some roses, or a few tulips. Lego actually has an entire collection built around beautiful botanics.

There are plenty of ways to beautifully explore the universe from your home, from creating the Mars Research Shuttle to the Shuttle Transporter and the Space Shuttle Explorer and the Lunar Space Station. This massive, 1,969-piece NASA Apollo Saturn V deserves to be shown off.

You’ll have a New York state of mind every time you peak this 1,767-piece Lego Empire State Building. If that’s not enough New York for you, you can also create a miniature Statue of Liberty or even the entire city, which leads me to…

Lego has miniature recreations of London, Paris, Dubai, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Tokyo, to scratch that travel itch from home.

Yes, I mean Disneyland! Lego has an entire collection — including Cinderella’s Royal Carriage, Steamboat Willie, and sets for many of the princesses — but the most jaw-dropping item of them all is The Disney Castle, a behemoth recreation of the castle that sits in Disneyland. Even David Beckham couldn’t pass up the 4,080-piece set.

These dinosaur fossils will take you back in time without making your decor feel like it’s falling into the stone age. The 910-piece set will complete two of the most famous dinos — a tyrannosaurus rex and a triceratops. If you want some dinosaur decor that looks a bit more alive, there are the smaller, greener Mighty Dinosaurs, or even a recreation of “Jurassic Park.”

This Central Perk set is ideal for the friend who loves “Friends.” The 1,070-piece set includes all seven toy minifigures of Ross, Rachel, Chandler, Monica, Joey, Phoebe, and Gunther for you to recreate your favorite “Friends” scenes.

In a dark and moody office, next to a few leather-bound books, you might find a ship in a bottle. Now, you can create your own with this 962-piece set that is designed to be displayed perfectly on your bookshelf. If you decide to create a collection of ships — a fleet, if you will — Lego has you set, from a pirate ship to an ocean exploration ship. Good luck fitting those into bottles, though.

Have you always wanted to put a grand piano in your home, but you don’t have the space, or know how to play piano? This 3,662-piece set would not only look like art on a shelf, but you can actually learn to play it through the free Lego Powered Up app!