Review: 43239 Mirabel's Photo Frame and Jewellery Box
Posted by benbacardi,
Released in 2021, Disney's Encanto proved to be a hit, with the catchy songs and the family Madrigal working its way into the hearts of Disney fans all round the world. Surprisingly, LEGO has only released seven sets from the movie so far, though they do range nicely from small storybook sets to a large model of the family house (hola, casita!).
Unfortunately, there's no set focused on my particular favourite character, but then again, we don't talk about Bruno, so what else can I do? Perhaps there's just not enough surface pressure to expand the line, and we're all just waiting on a miracle?
But enough of the musical puns before I irritate all of you. I've taken a look at one of this year's four sets, 43239 Mirabel's Photo Frame and Jewellery Box, which seems to be continuing the legacy of the Dots theme with its included bracelet and tile-based designs.
Summary
43239 Mirabel's Photo Frame and Jewellery Box, 334 pieces.
£24.99 / $29.99 / €29.99 | 7.5p/9.0c/9.0c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A nice little photo frame and jewellery box for fans of the film, with a couple of downsides.
- Excellent minidoll and capybara
- Nice design to the frame and box
- Photos fit a little awkwardly
- Very small interior to the jewellery box
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Mirabel is the only minidoll included in the set, accompanied by Chipsi the capybara, one of the menagerie of animals who join Antonio when he receives his ability to speak with animals. The specialised part is new this year and appears in three of the four Encanto sets—I wonder where else LEGO will find to make use of this excellent piece!
Mirabel herself has appeared in a number of sets previously in this exact incarnation, but I see no need for change—it is an excellent minidoll, with fantastically detailed printing on both her torso and skirt. The hair and printed facial details such as the circular green glasses represent the character flawlessly.
Mirabel is holding the Miracle Candle, the physical representation of the Madrigal family's magic. The round 1x1 brick is printed with a beautiful illustration of a butterfly, faithfully recreating the design engraved on the candle itself in the film.
The set includes both a photo frame and a jewellery box. The frame itself stands upright on a base comprising three curved sections, attached together by clips that allow them to be angled slightly. There's room on either side of the base for a figure or character to stand on top. Both the frame and the base are decorated with a variety of floral designs, using plant parts such as leaves, flowers, and a pair of 1x1 tiles printed with a butterfly design similar to that on the candle (were these perhaps once dos oruguitas, now grown up? Sorry, I'll stop now). These printed tiles can only be found in this set, though I expect they'll turn up elsewhere eventually.
The frame is made from a pair of 6x10 plates and surrounded by a 2-stud wide border with a wavy design that makes use of a recent addition to the tile parts, Tile 2x2, w/ cut out. I enjoy the way the tiles fit together perfectly, enabling more intricate designs than simple squares or circles would allow. The frame is topped with an ornate design and finished with a butterfly.
A pair of photo holders form the rear of each side of the articulated base, allowing the stand to display three photos—one in the frame, and one on either side. The frame is attached using a click hinge, though there is no reason to angle it at anything other than vertically.
A photo can be inserted into the frame by removing the top border and sliding it between the rails on either side. It takes a photo roughly 55x70mm.
Unfortunately, the two photos held either side of the frame don't fit particularly well—the bamboo foliage prevents them from sitting nicely, either bending them backwards, or having to angle them significantly to avoid the leaves.
The final part of the set is the jewellery box. It's a solid little construction, making use of more of the various curved tiles in different colours to make a curved design on the front and sides as well as the top. It would be trivial to use your own pattern, of course—particularly if you have a number of Dots sets lying around with spare tiles of various designs.
The lid hinges open, revealing a small space inside roughly 6x6 studs square. It just about fits the Dots bracelet that is included with the set, but it is rather cramped. When the lid is closed, the rear of the box is rather unsightly and there are decent-sized gaps that would allow anything small inside to fall out if the box was tipped.
Altogether, it's quite a nice little set. I like the design chosen for both the box and the frame, and appreciate the customisability afforded by replacing the tiles with your own should you choose. The Mirabel minidoll is excellent (though not unique), and both the frame and box would look great on a shelf in the bedroom of a child who's a fan of the film. It's a shame the photos sit a little awkwardly in their holders, but it's not difficult to swap the bamboo leaves for an alternative part that doesn't get in their way.
43239 Mirabel's Photo Frame and Jewellery Box is available at LEGO.com for £24.99 / $29.99 / €29.99.
48 likes
13 comments on this article
Put the capy on bricks and pieces and I'll buy like 100 of them.
That poor little click-hinge, being the only thing to hold the entire frame. I wonder how long before it snaps. Seems a rather strange building technique.
The capybara, and the brick and tile with butterfly prints are the definite standouts in this.
@Capybara554321 said:
"Put the capy on bricks and pieces and I'll buy like 100 of them. "
No, you'll have spent all your money on goats.
Another load of old tosh
@HJB2810 said:
" @Capybara554321 said:
"Put the capy on bricks and pieces and I'll buy like 100 of them. "
No, you'll have spent all your money on goats."
Goats are mid at best animals.
Nice going, somehow naming every song in the movie in the introduction of this article lol
I like the look of it, and for the price point it seems fair. I’m not strictly the target market, mind you, but can appreciate such. Thanks for the review, Ben!
A Theme subcategory for News Preferences would be nice, before the Duplo articles start!
Can we get a brick built capybara? Or a brick built capybara jewelry box to stay within the theme? Please and thank you! ??
I only want that fat, moody rat.
I basically bought it for the capybara and a few of the pieces for cheap, but I don't quite see how it would appeal to kids. Everything is way too small to have any real utility and the wrist band feels like they just threw it in as stuffing. This would have made more sense as a triple photo frame set or something like that.
I feel like we are not the target audience for it and are thus struggling to justify in the comments why this set exists. There is clearly some demand for DOTS, as seen as how LEGO kept it around for more than 2 years, and Encanto still remains popular among younger children. LEGO probably imagines there is a sizeable cross-section between these two groups, a section that most of us do not fall in.