Review: 10340 Wreath from LEGO® Botanical Collection

Even at a glance, it's clear 10340 Wreath aims to combat the winter blues with a whole forest of green and some zesty orange slices. Let's see what else the latest entry in the LEGO® Icons Botanical Collection has to offer.

Products in this article were gifted by The LEGO Group; the author's opinions are their own.
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10340 Wreath

• Price: US$99.99/ £89.99/ 99.99€/ AU$169.99
• Pieces: 1194
• Release date: 1 October 2024

LEGO Icons 10340 Wreath on LEGO.com
 

Rare and recoloured parts

There are no new moulds included. Instead, we're treated to a veritable forest of recolours – many of which come en masse. There will be much knolling ahead. 

We'll start with dark green since it has the recolours in the highest quantities:

• 74x Palm Leaf Small (6420219 | 6148) - 3 other sets
• 84x Flower Stem with Bottom Pin (6498565 | 24855) - exclusive 
• 14x Bar Holder with Hole and Bar Handle (6499873 | 23443) - exclusive
• 12x Leaf 2 x 6 x 1 with 2 Studs (6491214 | 3565) - exclusive

Sand green comes next, with an unlikely pair of elements, both exclusive to this set:

• 16x Palm Leaf Small (6491215 | 6148)
• 4x Plate 2 x 6 with Wall Mount Hook (6495166 | 78168)

Sticking with the current palette, here's a couple of olive green recolours:

• 20x Leaf 2 x 6 x 1 with 2 Studs  (6495168 | 3565) - exclusive
• 24x Plate 2 x 2 Corner (6473460 | 2420) -  also in 21348 Dungeons & Dragons: Red Dragon's Tale and 10326 Natural History Museum

Now for a couple of exclusive parts in dark brown:

• 12x Plate 1 x 1 with Tooth  (6491211 | 49668)
• 12x Flat Cap (6501311 | 2514)

Followed by a trio of lesser-seen dark brown elements:

• 4x Plate 3 x 3 Corner (6473454 | 77844) - 4 other sets
• 9x Flower Stem with Bar and 6 Stems (6452882 | 19119) - also in 10369 Plum Blossom and 21060 Himeji Castle
• 12x  2 x 2 Curved Slope with Stud Notches (6308903 | 66956) - 4 other sets

This must be the 'tiny round things in rare colours section' because, look, we've got some tiny round things in rare colours:

• 18x 1 x 1 Flower with 5 Petals in Dark Blue (6495167 | 24866) - exclusive 
• 3x Technic Ball Joint in Dark Blue (6498566 | 32474) - also in 80107 Spring Lantern Festival
• 3x Technic Ball Joint in Reddish Orange (6491212 | 32474) - exclusive
• 3x Technic Ball Joint in Yellowish Green (6495163 | 32474) - exclusive
• 18x 1 x 1 Flower with 5 Petals in Dark Red (6458394 | 24866) - 4 other sets

Printed element

And finally, the only decorated element in the set:

There are three gorgeous orange slices, printed on a  6 x 6  trans orange dish (6509614 | 44375). This is a rare colour for this dish even without the print, having only appeared in two other sets.

The build

Depending on your temperament, the build will either be a mindful or tedious experience as it's repetitive right from the start.

The biggest test of patience is this particular sub-assembly; sixteen of them are required in total.

They form part of the sturdy frame composed of four identical croissant-shaped sections. It's at this point you make your big choice: wreath or garland?

We'll proceed with the titular wreath for now, but the process for both models is pretty similar:

Each quarter connects to its neighbour using clips, with plates and tiles added on top for additional support. Foliage comes next: initially added leaf by leaf, then later in clumps like the below.

Each clump is repeated at least four times and has a Mixels ball to snap into a socket on the frame. Despite being duplicated, the five styles are numerous enough to disguise any pattern on the finished wreath. 

Helping their cause are the decorations:

The pine cones are the most intricate of the three ornaments. Their construction is reminiscent of some of the other conical plants seen throughout the botanicals collection. In contrast, the Orange slices and cinnamon sticks are very straight-forward builds. They provide a pop of colour and some subtlety respectively. 

Wreath

With the final addition of some berry clusters in a colour of your choosing, the wreath is complete.

All that repetitive building pays off as it's a lovely looking model with a good balance of realism and LEGO charm. The many leaves and decorative elements have good coverage over the blocky frame which itself is disguised well thanks to its earthy colour palette. 

The suggested alternative arrangement removes the juicy orange slices and vibrant red berries for a calmer look, leaving just the blue and white berries on show. 

It's worth noting that there are enough stalks to have all berry clusters built simultaneously so swapping between styles a breeze. It also means that all three varieties can be on the wreath at once, if you prefer.

But why stop there? The abundance of exposed hollow studs can accept many more decorations besides berries provided.

Here I've borrowed flower heads from 10313 Wildflower Bouquet and 40747 Daffodils to make a summer-themed alternate. Doing the same with 10314 Dried Flower Centrepiece could work well for an autumnal version. 

And of course there's no end of possibilities if you go beyond mixing and matching official sets.

Garland

As mentioned, the build for the garland is largely the same as the wreath so swapping between the two isn't much of a bother. The critical difference is that the frame sections are arranged in a line rather than a circle.

It even uses the same five leafy subassemblies to populate the ball sockets along its length. The result is table display piece with all the same beauty and customisability as the wreath, just in a linear format.

Its look is spoiled only by the exposed connection point at one end. However, there's no incongruous colours to be seen, and you can always rotate the nearby leaves to cover it up – so it's a minor blemish, all things considered.

Final thoughts

Value for money is always a murky business when a set is a direct 'brickification' of a real-world object. The price of US$99.99/ £89.99/ 99.99€/ AU$169.99 is definitely expensive for an artificial wreath, but in LEGO terms it sits about right for the number of parts and the size of the finished model.

As a parts pack it is pretty good too. There's well over 200 rare or newly recoloured foliage elements and large quantities of other earth-toned parts as well. I'm excited to see how the community uses those trans-orange dishes; things like Sci-fi windows or big dragon eyes come to mind. 

The wreath makes a nice change from the pot plant and loose flower formats most Botanical Collection sets come in. The fact it can be re-built into a garland is an added bonus, as is the vast scope for customisation courtesy of its clever modular design. 

LEGO Icons 10340 Wreath on LEGO.com

READ MORE: Review: 40728 Brite Bomber GwP from LEGO® Fortnite™

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