The Brothers Brick

Guy Himber, aka V&A Steamworks, has created a mind-blowing, mouth-watering, magnificent, and majestic Mold-A-Rama machine. I saw it at BrickCon and even got to breathe the same air as the builder. Let me tell you, it was a pleasure and the machine definitely deserved the “Best Use of NXT” award that it received. I didn’t get to observe the effects in person, but I understand that many paying members of the LEGO-viewing public were reduced to quivering pools of confusion while trying to figure out how Guy’s contraption worked. And that, dear readers, is the sign of a great LEGO build.

I insist you watch the video:

I like to think they’d look something like this. Well, that is, if Cat were literally run by caterpillars. In any case, this is an awesomely original take on a space freighter by flickr user Lord Pappadhum. The unique shape is definitely the highlight here, but it’s also worth noting the huge number of colors he’s managed to incorporate without making the ship look unnaturally busy. Also, using those train tracks in that orientation: genius.

According to flickr user Tikitikitembo, there’s a whole city in there. This awesome microscale municipality fits neatly into the bowels of a brick-built 2×4. The blue lining on the box is a touch that works magnificently, and there are lots of neat pieces in the structures, ranging from the super old-school to the brand new.

I just received an exciting announcement from LEGO. It seems that their design team is accepting submissions for ideas in something like a contest. It seems like one person will get to work with LEGO Designers to develop their idea into an official theme.

Find the full text of the announcement from LEGO, after the break. (more…)

This outstanding recreation of Roman Colchester is another example of peggyjdb’s (James Pegrum) excellent ability to interpret history through the medium of Lego bricks. The sheer scale of the diorama is impressive, but when you look at the architectural features it is hard to believe that he did not have help from the Roman engineers themselves. James did have help from Malravion (Thomas Coleman) on this… I think you will agree that they did a great job.

This was on display at the UK lego event STEAM in Swindon.

It took the brutish beauty of this steam powered Juggernaut by Jerac (Jerak) to get me fired up today:

Check out his Flickr stream for images of the interior and alternative views.

Paul Janowski recently posted a wave of custom minifigs each matched with a display case and printed background. The Iron Man and Silver Surfer stand out from the crowd because they were custom chromed using vacuum metallization. Even better, Paul has donated both minifigs to this year’s Creations for Charity fundraiser! UPDATE: and they’ve been sold for $150 each!

This charming castle by True Dimensions and his significant other is straight from the pages of Dr. Seuss’s fantastic book, Oh The Places You’ll Go! The elegant and smoothly curving build style fits with Seuss’s illustrations wonderfully, and the bright color palette really makes the model look like it’s from Seuss’s pages.

I don’t know why but I have always had a thing for those crane games. So when Luke Watkins built one I had to smile. Built for the current edition of Iron Builder, he managed to pack a ton of detail in a very small space. In fact it took me a moment to realize just how small it actually is. Well done!

David Frank (aka Fraslund) has been working on a medieval Castle layout for most of the last year and he finally unveiled it at BrickCon. His work was nothing short of breath-taking. The level of detail was stunning and I discovered incredible new details everytime I looked it over. David is definitely a builder to be reckoned with. Take time to examine all of his pictures of this creation, both wide-angle and closeups. You won’t be disappointed.

Creation for Charity‘s annual sale of custom Lego creations starts today! Take a look at the MOCs donated by fans and make a purchase to support giving Lego to underprivileged children during the holidays. Check back for new creations added until November 30th or donate a creation before November 15th.

Don’t see what you’re looking for at the store? Head over to Creations for Charity’s Indiegogo campaign to get a commissioned creation or pick up one of these cool gifts!

Join the crowd and take part in the Lego community’s annual tradition of giving back!

If you like Lego stop-motion animations and want to see the best films from the community gathered in one place along with tutorials and more, then check out BrickAnimation.com: a blog written by experienced animators David Pagano (Paganomation) and David Pickett (fallentomato). The blog has built up content since its launch in August, so take a look at the latest talks among the brickfilms community.

Is of course in a decked out, all-terrain Land Explorer, like this monster from Luis Baixinho. I love the way the treads pull up under the vehicle to give it maximum clearance over rough terrain, but then lower to afford easy egress for some pedestrian exploring and surveying, via an awesome retractable ramp. Plus it’s got an easily removable roof to give it lots of playability.

You know a creation is awesome when the first thought that pops into your head is, “I want that!” Brickthing made a life size version of the new double barreled Alien Conquest blasters for the MOC Olympics. Lego should seriously consider making life size versions of these things.  Pew pew.

Couple this with Norbert Labuguen‘s Hero Factory built life size Alien Clinger, I think we’ve a great new meme bigifying things!

Custom-painted Lego creations are rare due to the labor-intensive process but more so due to its blatant violation of purism. But when done properly, it can look gorgeous as demonstrated by this Maschinen Krieger inspired hovercraft by VolumeX.