We were sent these Lite Brite sets for the purposes of this post. All images and opinions are our own.
Lite Brite is a toy that many of us of a certain age might remember from our own childhoods. It was originally launched in 1967 and it was and still is a light box with a set of small coloured plastic pegs that fit into holes in the box. With a flick of a switch, the light box illuminates to create a lit picture. You can use one of the templates included in the set or create your own design from your imagination.
Basic Fun Lite Brite Ultimate Classic
The Basic Fun Lite Brite Ultimate Classic contains a Lite Brite ultimate classic board with a fold-out stand, 200 coloured pegs, 6 art templates and a full instructions on how to create your illuminated art works. Batteries are not included, so you’ll need 3 AA batteries to get started.
The set comes with 6 suggested templates, Our box included templates for a boat, a mountain view, flying unicorn, flowers, truck and circus elephant. We opted to make the mountain view and then Ben decided to create his own. There are six peg colours: white, yellow, blue, pink, orange and green, and this box contained a mix of 200 of these pegs.
Ben opted to make the mountain view first. We separated the pegs into small bowls of different colours to make it easier, then he followed the template to create the scene. The pegs are small and really help you focus on your fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. I understand that Lite Brite can also help cognitive development too, as well as sparking creativity.
Following the templates reminded me a little of counted cross stitch, or making aquabead designs. You follow the colour coding on the templates and place the pegs accordingly. It seems like a more sustainable option than beads as the pegs can be used and reused forever.
Once you’ve finished your design, you just push the button on the back and choose one of the four different light shows; blinking, pulsing, steady and random. It lights it up like a neon sign and Ben said it would be great for Christmas designs, come the festive season.
The Basic Fun Lite Brite Ultimate Classic is suitable for ages 4+ and costs around £17.99. It is currently available from a wide range of retailers including John Lewis.
Lite Brite Mini Light Art Toy
The Lite Brite Mini is built for travelling. It is a just the right size to take along for any car ride, road trip or an out of the house activity. The Lite Brite Mini includes 4 design templates, 70 colourful mini pegs and a screen that measures 3.5″ wide by 3″ high.
The mini set is launching soon and will be available from John Lewis. It will retail for around £9.99, which makes it a good price for gifting to classmates on their birthdays. It is also suitable for ages 4+; although my ten year old really enjoyed creating little light shows with these Lite Brite sets.