Playroom Organization – Lego Minifigure Functional Art

Lego-lovers, Lego Minifigure collectors, playroom organization junkies, parents/grandparents who have stepped on one-too-many teeny tiny building blocks….read on, Friends. This beautiful home org DIY idea just might make you swoon.

Motivated to find a way to organize those easy-to-lose (painful to step on) Lego Minifigures, and armed with inspiration from fellow bloggers, my talented mother in law created this awesome piece of functional art.

The Lego Minifigure Display Frame

A simple, beautiful, functional piece of art is a big winner, and this Lego Minifigure frame display ranks top on our list. Here’s why:

1. We always love decor with clean, simple lines. Thanks to my mother in law, this Lego Minifigure display frame is modern, simple, and looks great in a kids’ playroom.
2. Let’s face it…so many storage solutions require bags or boxes that take up precious closet space. By using existing wall space, you can keep those Lego collectibles in one place and looking great. Plus, they’re off the floor!
3. When kids play a lot with the mini figures, they must be accessible. The genius design of this display allows kids to easily pop those adorable Lego Minifigures on and off the frame without damaging the tiny collectibles or picture frame. Win, win for sure!

You can easily modify this concept to suit your preferences – recycle a frame you have on hand, use different colors, or add details to the mat board…make really big frames (or lots of smaller frames) to fill a wall with your impressive collection…you get it. Lego-lovers are always the creative sort…isn’t that right? 😉

Who’s ready for a project?

How to make a Lego Minifigure “Functional Art” Display Frame:

Materials:

• Photo frame
• Mat board for frame
• Measuring System for Lego Minifigure Display Frame<–click the link to print your free PDF
• Pencil
• X-Acto Knife
• Frame hanging equipment (like saw-tooth hangers)
• Legos for Minifigure “bases” (these will be the pieces that your Minifigures stand on). Ours are 2×4 pieces. You’ll need as many as you like to fill up the frame of your choice.
• Super glue. We used e-6000 craft adhesive, because it’s worked so well for a variety of crafting projects.
• Lego Minifigures to display

Instructions:

1. Decide how big a frame you want for your display. You can use any size you like, but you’ll need the mat board, Lego Minifigure display “bases,” and hanging equipment to suit. Of course, you can find (or build) custom frames for this project, but recycled frames work great too.
2. Fit your mat board to the frame. If you already have a mat, great! Otherwise, cut a large mat board to size. You can use any color you like.
3. Decide where you want your Minifigure display “bases” to be.  This is an important step. Repeat: important step!  If your base Legos aren’t properly aligned, the artwork will appear crooked. Accurate measuring will help your art looking clean and organized. Use our Measuring System for Lego Minifigure Display Frame free printable (or fashion your own measuring system) to ensure clean, even lines. If you want your spacing to be different than ours, don’t use our measuring system – you’ll need to adjust your measurements accordingly.
   

   In this pic, you can see how we spaced the Lego “bases” in our measuring system. If you want different spacing, do not use our system – measure accordingly.

4. Create your measuring template. To use our measuring system, print, and trim the free printable. Then, tape as many printables together as you need to fill up the frame of your choice. Remember to measure off the grid lines to be sure your “bases” will be evenly spaced. Note: You’ll need to trim the edges of the guide paper to suit your frame. The finished paper will be your template.
5. Mark your mat board. On our measuring system printable, you’ll see a line where each “base” will be glued. Use your X-Acto knife to slice an opening where these lines are. These openings will serve as a guide as you mark your mat board for Minifigure display “base” Legos. When finished cutting, line up your paper template on the mat board, insert your pencil tip into each opening and lightly trace a line of the same size onto the mat board. Repeat until you’ve marked all lines for your “base” Legos.
6. Adhere the mat board to your frame in the back with the framers points. 
7. Secure the hanging equipment to the back of the frame. You must do this step BEFORE you glue on the “base” Legos. We used 2 saw-tooth hangers on the back of the frame, adhered 2″ from the corners. If you prefer to hang your art in a different way, use the equipment you like.   
8. Using your pencil marks as a guide, glue on your “base” Legos. These are the Legos that the Minifigures will stand on. We used 2×4, white Lego pieces, and glued them on with e-6000 craft adhesive. 
9. Let the artwork dry overnight. 
10. Place Lego Minifigures on the “base” Legos to display, hang the frame, and enjoy your new artwork!