LEGO® Icons review: 10315 Tranquil Garden

When we first saw images of the latest LEGO® Icons set, 10315 Tranquil Garden,  we were excited to see new elements, recolours and creative parts use all wrapped up in the aesthetics of a traditional Japanese garden scene.

The set was created in collaboration with Hoichi Kurisu, a landscape designer famous for his tranquil gardens across the world.  As they say in the instruction booklet, it's time to "make yourself at home, relax and be one with nature for a moment. Or stay as long as you like." 

Come this way...

Products in this article were provided by LEGO®; the author's opinions are their own.

10315 Tranquil Garden
US$109.99/AU$179.99/£94.99/€104.99/CAD$139.99
1,363 parts
1 August 2023
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LEGO® mould 4190

There is a new mould in this set that also appears in 21060 Himeji Castle; we call it the "Pagoda Plate".

• 12 x Plate Special 2 x 2 with Double Inverted Curve, 1 Stud in Dark Stone Grey/ Dark Bluish Gray (6447212|4109)
• 4 x Plate Special 2 x 2 with Double Inverted Curve, 1 Stud in Dark Brown (6456663|4109)

The Dark Bluish Grey version appears in both sets, but Dark Brown is exclusive to Tranquil Garden at present. 

Thomas Jenkins took an in-depth look at the Pagoda Plate yesterday - a must-read article!

Recolours

There are 12 recolours in this set, including some very welcome additions for landscaping and nature-inspired builds.

• 7 x Cone 2 x 2 x 3 Jagged in Earth Green/Dark Green (6461425|28598)
• 8 x Slope 33° 3 x 3 Double Convex in Dark Brown (6456639|3675)
• 6 x Technic Axle Connector Hub with Two Bar Holders Perpendicular in Reddish Brown (6459423|49133)
• 4 x Slope 33° 3 x 4 in Dark Brown (6456643|3297)
• 31 x Fern 2 x 3 x 2 in Earth Green/Dark Green (6447541|2682)
• 4 x Hair Tuft in Flame Yellowish Orange/ Bright Light Orange (6456642|68212)
• 4 x Crown in Medium Lavender (6456640|39262)
• 3 x Bar 2L with Stop in Centre in Reddish Brown (6451002|78258), also in 21060 Himeji Castle
• 6 x Arm Mechanical with 2 Clips in Red (6370686|30377)
• 4 x 7L Hose in Red (6456646)
• 2* x Whisk in Brick Yellow/Tan (6456641| 79808)
  *one in set and one spare
• 8 x Bar Holder with Handle in Red (6456644|23443)

Printed elements in the LEGO Tranquil Garden

There is one new printed element in this set - 6 x Tile 1 x 2 with Orange and Dark Tan Koi in Trans Light Blue (6459216). 

There are two Koi fish prints used in Tranquil Gardens, the upper printed tile is Coral and White Koi  (6435012) which is also found in another fairly new release which Caz Mockett recently reviewed, LEGO Friends 41757 Botanical Garden.

Note that there are two other known Koi Fish prints, which came in 80107 Spring Lantern Festival, but both have slight differences in colour to the ones in this set:

• White and Orange Kohaku Koi Fish (6331375) 
• Orange and Yellow Yamabuki Koi Fish (6331374).

Rare elements

These elements all appear in three sets or fewer.

• 3 x Tile Round Corners 4 x 4 x 2/3 in Medium Stone Grey/ Light Bluish Gray (6354325 | 68869) in three previous sets
• 1 x Animal / Creature Body Part, Tail / Claw / Horn / Branch / Tentacle, End Section, Large in Reddish Brown (6383996 | 67361) in three previous sets
• 2 x Tile 45° Cut 2 x 2 in Earth Green/ Dark Green (6390053 | 35787) has only appeared in 76907 Lotus Evija from 2022 previously
• 8 x Brick 1 x 1 x 3 in Dark Orange (6397875 | 14716) appears in two previous sets
• 1 x Plate 4 x 6 in Dark Orange (4208192 | 3032) in three previous sets

Building LEGO set 10315

Pavilion

The build begins with the private pavilion, a straightforward, yet satisfying small structure.  The small details like the shoes left outside and the preparations laid out for a calming tea-ceremony are perfect.  Note the use of the four new Pagoda Plate 2x2 in Dark Brown at the corners of the pavilion's roof along with the other recoloured Dark Brown slopes.

Garden base frame 

We then move on to with the basic structure outline for the garden, with the outline for the stream that will flows through the garden built using a mixture of Dark Green and Green wedge plates to give the impression of varying depth.

As the layers are built up, the garden takes shape with the Koi fish tiles in place and the floating Lotus flowers represented by the recoloured Crown in Medium Lavender (6456640) with Hair Tuft in Bright Light Orange (6456642) as the centre. There are square holes marked out that will become part of the 'islands' method to personalise how you would like to organise your garden later.  

The outer base frame for this model purposefully uses the same as the pot used for 10281 Bonsai Tree to, as noted in the instructions, "emulate a similar look and feel". One of my favourite uses of parts were the three Tile Round Corners 4 x 4 x 2/3 in Medium Stone Grey/ Light Bluish Gray (6354325 | 68869) that create a flowing set of stairs up to the pavilion.

This adorable bridge is cleverly designed to be securely held in place yet minimalistic in appearance. There are interesting little notes within the instructions to explain the meaning behind some of the design features; no doubt the basis for many of Hoichi Kurisu's designs.

"Weathered lanterns and structures add depth and ambiance to a tranquil garden and invite us to embrace the passing of time."

The pavilion sits on stilts and the roof/wall structure is easily removed to access the tea ceremony inside.  I love the mixed use of the 1/4 Circle Tiles, Tile Special 2 x 2 Corner with Cut Corner and 1x2 Tiles all in Dark Bluish Gray to build uneven stepping stones leading a route around the garden. The instructions note:

"Winding pathways invite you to see the garden (and maybe other things?) from a different perspective."

The finished base with pavilion, garden and stream is very attractive once complete, now we can move on to the second part of the garden - the cherry trees and foliage.

Foliage & decoration

The only repetitive part of the build is understandable, as we create the 17 cherry blossoms using Plant, Leaves 6 x 5 in White adorned with flowers.

There are six structures made to slot into the square islands: the two cherry blossom trees, two 'lush evergreens', bamboo stalks and the small decorative pagoda that uses the 12 x Pagoda Plates in Dark Bluish Gray (6447212|4190). The evergreens are created with the 31x Fern 2 x 3 x 2 in Dark Green (6447541|2682) – a technique we thought would be very effective when this element first appeared on the scene in 10316 The Lord of the Rings: Rivendell. 

The thought process behind the islands is that you will return and 'tend to your garden' - moving the lanterns or the trees,  changing the colours or perhaps creating your own builds to place in your garden.

The main elements can be slotted in and rearranged with ease, I simply switched them all around for this version to check for falling blossoms or pinging branches - they all passed the test for robustness.

Closing Thoughts

This is a calming, relaxing set to build, there's no denying it. I enjoyed the process and, while there were not a lot of new techniques, it was rewarding to construct the garden layer by layer. The notes of wisdom within the instructions explaining the significance of areas within the garden were welcome.

The final build is attractive as it stands and I particularly like the design feature allowing you tend to your garden. There's definitely scope for changing seasons or, for the more dramatic among you, maybe a post-apocalyptic garden? There's a lot of room for your own interpretation using the starting point of the structure above, and that's what LEGO is all about.

In terms of new elements, there are many lovely recolours; Fern 2 x 3 x 2 in Dark Green, Cone 2 x 2 x 3 Jagged in Dark Green and Bar 2L with Stop in Centre in Reddish Brown are probably my top three favourites, but I also love the new whisk colour, just because it's different. There's a lot of lovely elements for natural landscaping in this set for those that are looking for parts to make walls, rocks, foliage and water structures.

I think I want someone to come and design a tranquil garden for my actual garden now, as the final LEGO set looks so great, I want to actually go in there to relax in reality.

READ MORE: See inspiring techniques for using LEGO® part 4190: The Pagoda Plate

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