The five strangest LEGO merchandise pieces

LEGO’s long history has produced plenty of non-LEGO items – but some are a little more unusual than others.

While LEGO fans think they might have a handle on what LEGO looks like, increasing levels of LEGO merchandise are challenging that assumption. 2022 alone has seen more than 200 pieces of LEGO merch produced, with everything from backpacks to playing cards for the discerning LEGO fan. 

Of course, not everything is so obviously useful. We’ve scoured LEGO’s merchandising history to bring you some of the odder items to bear the LEGO name.

5 – 7000 Educational Suitcase

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LEGO-branded storage solutions are old news, but we don’t typically use a suitcase like this to keep our bricks organised. This stylish bit of luggage dates back to 1978, and was reportedly sold in Canada alone. The interior includes six compartments for storing LEGO bricks (with some included to build with) and appears to have been more of an educational tool than, say, a carry-on bag. Still, anyone using one of these in the ‘70s was clearly ahead of the curve.

4 – Zipper Pullers

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Want to add some subtle LEGO flair to your clothes or bags? The LEGO Group was happy to oblige with a small selection of zipper pullers in 2012. Ironically, these pullers didn’t use actual LEGO elements – just pieces of rubber or plastic designed to resemble them. 

Still, with both black and aqua colour options (always the two most stylish colours) LEGO fans of the early ‘10s couldn’t really complain.

3 – EL150 DINO ATTACK Sand Mould Set

Another 2006 release, this item was a tie-in to Dino Attack – think LEGO Jurassic World with the serial numbers filed off. However, its connections to LEGO are about as tenuous as you can get; it’s a bucket, a spade, and six plastic moulds you can use to create sand dinosaurs. A solid enough seaside toy, but a particularly strange choice for any LEGO theme – particularly one about fighting dinosaurs in four-wheel drives.

2 – 851652 Corkscrew & Bottle Opener

The LEGO Group doesn’t tend to depict alcohol in its products, but it clearly doesn’t have a problem with LEGO fans consuming it. That’s because in 2007, the company released an official LEGO corkscrew and bottle opener set. Each one uses a LEGO brick for the handle, albeit with a few modifications to preserve the basic functionality.

As such, if the lack of alcohol in LEGO sets is stressing you out, you may need to unwind with one of these instead.

1 – 5003579 Batman Head Lamp

Batman is famously ready for any adverse scenario, but somehow we suspect this isn’t to be found in his utility belt. Released in 2014, it’s your typical head-mounted lamp – housed in an oversized LEGO Batman minifigure. While Superman and Darth Vader versions were also made available at this time, this is clearly the most stylish – and given Batman’s love of gadgetry, the most thematically appropriate.

Sadly, none of these merchandising essentials are currently available at LEGO.com – but it seems that there’s plenty more to take their place. Check out LEGO.com’s Merchandise section to see for yourself.

(Header image: Scott Warman at Unsplash)

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