10 Pastel Portal Pack Build Ideas to Inspire Creative Play

The Portal Packs introduce a clever mix of open‑frame tiles and rotating magnets that expands what children can build. With two sizes of nesting portal squares and Smart‑Spin™ mini squares featuring magnets that turn freely in any direction, children can layer pieces, angle connections and create structures that move beyond typical magnetic tile builds.



These thoughtful design features open up new possibilities for creative learning through play. Children can experiment with light, space and movement, test how different pieces work together and explore early engineering ideas. The result is building that feels open‑ended, expressive and full of discovery!



Both the Pastel and Bright Portal Packs include the same innovative components, so every idea and build below can be explored in either colour palette and easily combined with the wider CONNETIX range.

2. Campground Adventure



Pitch a tent, build a campfire and create a cosy campsite scene. Portal pieces make great “tent flaps” while mini tiles can become logs, lanterns or stepping stones.

3. Gentle Turtle



Use a large portal piece as the shell and layer smaller tiles to create texture. A sweet build for younger children and a great introduction to animal shapes.

4. Dino Friend



Bring prehistoric play to life with a pastel stegosaurus or brontosaurus (or any other favourite dino!). The rotating magnets help create impressive spikey tails.

5. Multi-Level Ball Run



Build vertically and horizontally using the clear ball run tubes and nested portal pieces as frames and supports. It doesn’t just look cool; the large portal tiles help stabilise tracks for more adventurous runs, while mini tiles help stabilise angled tracks for more adventurous runs. Spin™ mini tiles help stabilise angled tracks for more adventurous runs. Spin™ mini tiles help stabilise angled tracks for more adventurous runs.‑Spin™ mini tiles help stabilise angled tracks for more adventurous runs.

6. Fairytale Castle



Create tall towers, coloured windows and layered walls. The open-frame portals allow light to shine through, giving your castle a magical stained-glass effect.‑frame Portals allow light to shine through, giving your castle a magical stained‑glass effect.

7. Gentle Elephant



Create a gentle elephant using a large portal piece for the body and layered tiles to form ears, legs and a trunk. The rotating magnets help shape expressive features and stable angles.

8. Mini Rainbow



Create a super cool mini 3D rainbow by combining the mini tiles with pastel triangles (available in other CONNETIX packs). A beautiful display piece and a great way to explore colour gradients.

9. Number Tiles & Counting Frames



Use the clear baseplate and the mini tiles to create numbers. Ideal for early numeracy and playful learning.

10. Friendly Robot



Create a friendly robot with a portal frame body and mini tiles arms. A brilliant build for exploring symmetry, balance and imaginative storytelling.