Minibrix

Minibrix set No. 2, UK, 1954. Museum no. Misc.154-1983. (click image for larger version)

Patented and first available in 1935, Minibrix were construction kits that enabled children to build their own miniature houses. Like the later and more famous construction toy, Lego, Minibrix consisted of interlocking bricks with moulded studs on the surface. Minibrix were made by the Premo Rubber Company which traditionally made rubber shoe heels.

Two series of bricks were available for making different styles of houses, the Tudor and the Modern. The instruction books contained details of real buildings to construct and make up into realistic models. The standard bricks were brown and white but multi-coloured sets were produced that had pink, yellow, blue and green bricks. From 1936, the building sets included a base to build on, made of rubber. The roofs, which were usually green, were made from cardboard, and the W6ndows were made of celluloid.

Minibrix accessory outfit C, UK, about 1936. Museum no. Misc.31-1984. (click image for larger version)

There was a Minibuilders Club that any boy who bought a Minibrix set could join. Membership was free but you had to pay seven old pence or twenty-five cents for the badge. Club members received a regular Minibuilders Bulletin and could send in new designs and plans for publication, for which, if printed, they were paid five shillings.