LEGO® Creator 31174 3-in-1 Retro Telephone, 383-pc

This set is a pure hit of nostalgia. From the moment you start building, it feels like stepping back into a time when you actually knew phone numbers and dialing required patience. The details are where this set really shines. The rotary dial is cleverly designed and instantly recognizable, and my favorite touch is the subtle “cushioning” effect when you place the handset back on the cradle. That little bit of give is such a thoughtful detail—it feels intentional, playful, and surprisingly satisfying. As a nostalgic display piece, this build absolutely works. That said, I do have a couple of small wishes: I would’ve loved a different color option—something closer to classic beige, avocado green, or even that unmistakable 70s brown. The scale is a bit smaller than expected. At about half the size of the originals, it looks great on a shelf but feels more “stylized” than realistic. Overall, this is a fun, charming build that leans hard into retro vibes. It’s not meant to be a perfect replica, but as a nostalgic conversation piece with smart design details, it absolutely delivers.

I love the idea of this set, for the nostalgia and for how building this set feels like being in a time warp watching the telephone go through its changes in time, right under your hands! So yes, the idea is great… but the colour is “wrong” because it takes away from the design; the colours that were chosen for the telephones and the pencil, give the design too much of a kid’s toy vibe to my liking. I would have preferred a colour that would make it all a bit more realistic. So even when I was building, I knew that this would be the first set I was going to rebuild in a different colour. I got excited about rebuilding this set in the colours that would really give me the nostalgic feels…! The colours that I wanted to rebuild the telephones in, would have been “Brick Yellow” (that’s the colour of phone I grew up with). While looking up the bricks and pieces I would need to make the transformation, I discovered that some bricks and pieces aren’t available in “Brick Yellow”. (Big disappointment!) After I recovered from the disappointment, I decided that it would be funny to rebuild the retro telephone to look like the president’s red phone, as seen in movies and series. But again; certain bricks and pieces aren’t available in that colour. That’s when I decided to settle for “Stone Grey”. In addition to that, I was going to rebuild the pencil to make it look like the more common yellow pencil I grew up with, including its reddish-pink eraser. The other adaptations I was going to make were: - the coiled telephone cord. Mine was going to be black and a bit longer; the cord of the original set is too short in my opinion. Even for kids. Which is why I gave it four starst for playability. - the dial. Mine was going to be black and I’m thinking of using Lego Dots’ stickers to add numbers to the dial. Not all of the bricks and pieces to replace the blue of the original set are available in “Stone Grey” or black, but I found great solutions/options for those. I’m happy with the result and I love having it displayed on a side table, looking like it could start ringing at any moment…!

I love all of this set, the colors and details are stunning.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Per usual, Lego delivered a durable and fun experience to our little one. It isn’t an actual phone; but my child loves to pretend her battery is dead, or have never ending parents conversations with family and friends. It was easy to put together, and easy to move parts from place to place.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This was my first time doing a 3-1 lego set, and all I can say is that I had so much fun building it!!! Love how colorful and cute the design is and it wasn’t difficult to build at all.