SEATTLE — Whether you’re a child or an AFOL (Adult Fan of Legos) you can join in the fun happening on Saturday because Jan. 28 is National Lego Day! National Lego Day commemorates the day the creator filed for a patent in Denmark in 1958.
The seemingly simple plastic toy has been dominant for nearly seven decades and has evolved in design and appeal with Lego retail stores, TV shows, movies and numerous amusement parks around the world.
Lego started making wooden toys in 1932 and by 1949, Lego introduced the now iconic plastic bricks. Today, Lego is considered one of the most influential toys of all time and as of 2020, it became the leading toy manufacturer worldwide with sales generating more than $7.2 billion in revenue.
The bricks have quite a passionate fanbase in Seattle.
SeaLUG is one of the largest groups of it’s kind in the country. SeaLUG is the Seattle Area Lego Users Group and has more than 600 registered members on the mailing list. The group is made up of AFOLs and prides itself on the diversity of the fanbase. RJ Coughlin is a member and supporter for the group's annual BrickCon, which is set for September in Bellevue.
“It's popular enough to where we have a warehouse to store our builds and things we need to put on a convention,” says Coughlin.
BrickCon is celebrating 22 years as the longest-running, fan-based Lego convention in North America. The warehouse itself is in an undisclosed location due to the surging popularity in Lego and the trend of thefts that have unfortunately made news in Seattle and around the country.
Many Seattle attractions have been given the Lego treatment and KING 5 shared the story of a local dad who bonded with his daughter during the pandemic by building the attractions they missed during the COVID-19 closures. He has since added a tribute to the Mariners by building an impressive highly detailed T-Mobile Park.