LEGO ICONS Santa's Visit 10293

Product Information

The red food mixer is cleverly assembled and two 1x1 bows comprise a loaf of bread, which is immediately recognisable. Additional food or kitchen equipment would undoubtedly have been appreciated, but the most important details are present and I think the separation between the kitchen and the neighbouring rooms is successful. LEGO has established a consistent aesthetic for Winter Village structures. 10293 Santa's Visit continues such conventions, including steep roof slopes and comprising vibrant light royal blue elements. This colour is shared with 77942 Fiat 500 and looks great, particularly in combination with the white roofs. However, greater contrast against 10229 Winter Village Cottage may have been advantageous, since these might be displayed together. Winter Village models are traditionally open when viewed from behind, enabling easy access during play. This example is no exception, although its shape creates an unusually large open section. Nevertheless, I am satisfied with this configuration because the open sides provide an excellent view of the interior and can be concealed when displaying the model. The dark blue windowsills and bands beneath each roof look marvellous, complementing the light royal blue walls. The contrasting dark bluish grey chimney appears perfect too, matching pieces around the door and incorporating light bluish grey highlights. Moreover, this deciduous tree makes good use of Technic elements, seeming suitably sparse and including a birdhouse.

If you actually look at traditional Christmas Village lines, like Department 56, they release a ton of new products annually, with their main focus being small town Americana, which seems to be what the “realistic” WVC is based on (they’ve also done a Santa village line). In that context, it is actually common to see a variety of different architectural styles and color schemes. Rural communities tend not to impose restrictions on individual expression, especially if the population is spread thin enough that you can’t see any of your neighbors’ houses from your own yard. Four minifigures are included, beginning with the residents of this charming cottage. The adults consist exclusively of existing components, although both characters are appropriately dressed for the season and their joyful expressions appear splendid. Moreover, these hair elements are reasonably uncommon, so their appearance here is appreciated. Remember, not everyone who has been collecting from the very start has actually bought the entire run. I see plenty of comments from people who skipped some over the years. The last two and Santa’s Workshop are too fantastical for some tastes. The train and station don’t appeal to some people. There’s a repeat of the Toy Shop in the gap, and one set is just a bunch of market stalls. Skip all of those and your town is basically toy shop, bakery, post office, blue house, fire station, blue house. To families who built these as families, the idea of co-building them has been there from the start. The LEGO Company certainly didn’t have that in mind or they wouldn’t have repeated the Toy Shop. Up until they got buried under phone calls, they hadn’t even really treated this as a distinct theme, and weren’t even planning to keep releasing annual sets. By the time the dust settled, they were aware just how many families had turned this theme into a holiday tradition for the whole family to participate in. Despite its abnormal attachment method, the wreath appears reasonable when viewed from inside, blending with the reddish brown door. The reddish brown accents above this door are attractive too, while dark tan is an appropriate colour for the floor. I think the balance between furnishings and open space is also effective, leaving ample room for placing minifigures.Trombones typically don’t have any valves*, making them unique among traditional brasswind instruments. They also have a slide that projects far forward of the bell, even when it’s fully retracted. Fully extended, there’s about twice as much instrument in front of the bell than behind it. Another wrapped gift is secreted in the rafters, above the sand green light fixture. This seems notably modern within the cottage, hence I would have preferred something more traditional in style. The consistent colour scheme of the rafters is brilliant though, resembling wooden beams and providing adequate support underneath the roof. Includes 4 minifigures with dad, mum, girl and Santa so you can recreate endless cosy family Christmas Eve scenes. See Santa drop through the large chimney into the fireplace. Meanwhile, the child features a unique torso and double-sided head. Her cheerful and sleeping faces are perfect for Christmas Eve, while the teal pyjamas include a brilliant snowflake pattern. These decorative snowflakes and this colour resemble the baby from 10263 Winter Village Fire Station, so perhaps both figures portray the same character at different ages. Santa's beard and traditional hat each remain unchanged from previous minifigures, although the head underneath is exclusive. This element appears friendly, but I prefer the bespectacled head featured on earlier depictions of Santa. Nevertheless, the newest depiction of this classic character is my favourite, particularly because of those dual-moulded legs.

The wooden dining table looks magnificent as well, featuring a red table runner and matching upholstery on the chairs. Their construction techniques are rudimentary, but the result is great and seats are provided for all four minifigures, should Santa Claus decide to stay. A decorative centrepiece completes the dining table, with two additional candles. Ideas sets have been running about a year out from initial announcement to final release. I would not bet money on seeing that before the end of the year.If you exclude the train and market stalls, the majority of WV buildings are shades of brown and tan, with two that feature blue. There are also two that feature green, and two with red. It’s just the fact that these are the only two regular houses that makes the choice to produce them both in shades of blue stand out, but this was probably a color of opportunity situation. With the blue Fiat requiring so many new LRB parts, they probably wanted to work them into as many sets as possible to justify the adjusted production runs, plus designers would have seen this as a chance to use a rare color without having to burn their own limited recolors on making it happen.

The cottage measures nearly 29cm across which is surprisingly large, but seems proportional with previous sets. The details are consistently impressive too, especially around the entrance where two lanterns with trans-opal glazing are positioned. My favourite feature, however, is the wreath which is ingeniously fixed through the windows in the door. This construction method is unusual, but feels secure.

Expandable

Santa's Visit completely embraces the charming aesthetic which has continued across the Winter Village series, particularly resembling its earlier models. The light royal blue colour scheme and dramatic roofs appear brilliant for this wintry environment, with various traditional Christmas decorations and foliage further enhancing the external appearance. Chequered white and tan tiles distinguish the kitchen from the dining area. Tremendous detail continues in here, as sand green units correspond with the aforementioned light fixture. These are similar to the kitchen units found in certain Modular Buildings, particularly since the realistic sink resembles that found in 10243 Parisian Restaurant and includes a pipe underneath. There’s a more complicated form of trombone where a single valve allows you to skip the most extended positions and instead use more retracted positions. It does so by opening up a curl of tubing located in the rear section that subs in for the extra length achieved by extending the main slide more. Not only does this allow a trombonist to change notes faster, but it allows people with shorter arms to more easily hit the full range of notes. It’s not something that was offered on student-level instruments where I grew up, but anyone who is seriously considering even an amateur career as a trombonist might consider the upgrade worthwhile. Chris McVeigh, LEGO Set Designer commented: “The holiday season is always a magical time for my family. It’s been fun to inject a few of my own family traditions and experiences into this set from the new Christmas cookie to the hidden gifts.” That realism is certainly appreciated, especially following two previous sets which focused upon fantasy. While those models were enjoyable, returning to the traditional origins of the Winter Village collection is welcome. This creation should therefore complement previous examples, or provide magnificent display value alone. Box and Contents

Attractive architecture has defined the beloved Winter Village and 10293 Santa's Visit achieves continued authenticity. This impressive cottage features distinctive roof slopes while the shape appears unusual, separating this creation from 10229 Winter Village Cottage. As someone who used to play trumpet, I can only see the many problems with the design (extra mouthpiece, short one valve, missing the main tuning slide, and an off-color bell), but I recognize that it would be difficult, perhaps impossible, to do better with existing parts. Short of molded elements like the bugle, saxophone, violin, and various guitars, the only musical instrument I can think of that was accurately depicted with existing parts only is the flute. All they had to do to represent an old-style wooden flute with open hopes for the fingerings was paint dots on a lightsaber blade.

Enjoy a magical Christmas build with this LEGO Santa’s Visit (10293) building kit. Explore all the traditional details of Santa’s visit with an enchanting Christmas house model to display.