Tag Archives: penguin

Something’s fishy about this holiday scene…

At first glance, this North Pole build by ForlonEmpire is as heartwarming as it is well constructed. A young penguin interrupts Santa’s fishing expedition to offer him a present. Santa himself is teeming with great parts usage, from the big-fig arms getting an upgrade as Santa’s upper arms, to the pair of bucket handles doing double-duty as his belt buckle. And the semi-circle tiles as bows are inspired. But the more you think about it, the more sinister this scene becomes. Why is there a sled full of presents in this remote location? The answer is obvious. Santa has laid-off his elf work force because penguin labor is so much cheaper. This penguin isn’t giving Santa a gift. He’s made the gift in exchange for a fish. Santa’s cornered the market on herring and if the penguins don’t work, they starve! Merry Christmas!

The North Pole

It only takes a pair to party properly

Nathan Hake proves that holiday celebrations don’t need to be crowded affairs. This adorable bundled-up penguin and his dancing crustacean friend are celebrating in style all by themselves. The penguin is sporting a one-of-a-kind jacket that’s just his size, with a furred collar, shiny buttons, and big pockets for keeping a few extra fish snacks on hand. The crab doesn’t need a coat to stay warm, as he dances the night away with a turn of the crank on his gift box – hopefully he doesn’t spill his drink.

Dancing Christmas Crustacean

An adorably unconventional couple

The holidays are approaching and gifts are on everyone’s minds. Though this time of year always brings its challenges, any gift-giving occasion can be a builder’s excuse to create something personal with LEGO. For instance, figure builder Mike Nieves recently gifted his newlywed friends this elegant fox posing in the snow with a fluffy penguin. Presumably their favorite animals, I’m sure the couple was delighted to receive this gift. I do wonder if they used them as cake toppers though.

Taking a look at the models individually, we can see that the builder had a good idea of the necessary forms and connections. The penguin’s thick, grey body consists of two mirrored sections of stacked plates and slopes. Modified plates are used as happy little feet peeking out from under the body. The wings’ connections are hidden but hinged, allowing it to flap about adorably. The rotating head even has a tiny opening mouth, which is pretty cute.

The fox is rather impressive. The slender, brick-built face closely matches the natural angles of the animal and this trend continues down the body. Clever connection points allow Mike to build out from a central core to achieve the fox’s figure. The chest is fluffy and the paws really stand out but that tail is the true star. I mean, the way the color blocking takes advantage of the structure is just smart.

It’s worth taking a look at the back of the fox to get a better idea of how it’s put together. Plus, I just wanted to look at that tail again. Achieving curves like that with LEGO is difficult and Mike really did well with both of these. What a great wedding gift for LEGO fans.

Unwind your day with a wind-up penguin

Weekends are the days that I reserve to unwind from a busy week, and what better way to do it than to let the pressure off and wind up someone, or in this case, a feature of a wind-up penguin. This cute and clever waddling was created by Peter Zieske . It’s always a delight to see how the LEGO curvy shell element is used to shape the belly of this flightless bird.

Wind-up walking penguin

Watch it in action, and don’t forget to wait to the end for the blooper reel.

Why did the penguins cross the road?

To sit on these awesome deck chairs of course! Sometimes an awesome LEGO creation can consist of only one part. This however only happens ever so often. The latest creation by Michael Jasper is a really good example of this. He made three deck chairs accompanied by a little table and a parasol. The deck chairs are made with only one part, the boomerang minifigure utensil. The design is so simple, yet so effective it blows my mind! Michael is an expert when it comes to designing LEGO furniture. And he is not afraid to use whatever piece he can get his hands on as long as it is produced by LEGO. In this picture there is a gear piece hiding. It’s the yellow ring around the parasol dish. It is actually a part of a LEGO watch. All this needs now is a couple of cocktails and we are all set for the summer!

Chill out on this spaceship!

Theme crossovers are always a delight to see, especially when there’s an absurd amount of Friends animals involved. Case in point, The Deep Freeze Befriender, a stunning SHIP built by Chris Perron’s. This spaceship pays homage to the LEGO Ice Planet 2002 theme, referencing its iconic color scheme and Deep Freeze Defender set. But there’s more to this ship’s unique shape and rad angular windshields. The absolute best feature is on its inside — a decked-out intergalactic penguin resort, complete with a full lounge and bar serving ice slushies with a pool and water slide. Measuring at 144 studs long and 73 studs wide long, this ship’s interior provides ample waddling space for a couple of dozen penguins.

The Deep Freeze Befriender

There’s something about seeing these guys playing Go Fish under the neon-lights of the VIP room that has made me let go of all the grudges I’ve held against Friends critters. The penguin lifestyle is nothing short of luxury, especially when there’s unlimited BBQ fish kebabs and ice cream cocktails to consume, all while cruising through space in the chillest of all spaceships.

The Deep Freeze Befriender

And remember — you can’t spell friendship without SHIP. Click here to see another penguin Ice Planet 2002 build by Chris from our archives!

Forget Murder Hornets. Here come the Penguins.

I’ll admit I’ve always been a bit of a pessimist. 2020 hasn’t exactly done much to curb that point of view. And maybe I’m just being alarmist. But it sure feels like MSIndustries creating weaponry for penguins is a bad idea. Oh, sure, from a LEGO standpoint this is a great thing. The “Penguin Ice Pistol” is sized perfectly for a flipper, and has great retro sci-fi styling. The “Penguin Communicator” has a great cheese-slope mosaic display and some unusual part usage including Brickheadz glasses and a push bumper. And that pouch of fish may be just a display piece (considering the parts aren’t actually connected) but it’s clever and packed full of protein.

Field Gear

So I’ll try and be optimistic about things. Maybe it’ll be a good thing to welcome our new Penguin Overlords. And if not, well, their weapons are made of LEGO so they’ll be easy to take apart, at least.

What a cute wittle penguin!

Now, what have we here? Far from its habitat in Mecha Antarctica, Mitsuru Nikaido’s Mecha Penguin is here. But why is it here? Well, from a distance we can’t really tell now can we? Is it here to destroy its enemies? Or perhaps it wants to endear us for treats of little robotic pilchards. The way I see it, all evidence seems to indicate the former. Observe the creature’s razor-sharp beak and wings. Not something you’d quite want to cuddle up with. The glowing eyes may also be a clue to his intentions. Whatever the case, I think it best to keep our distance and hope he doesn’t see us.
LEGO-Mecha-Penguin-Mk3-08

This LEGO Pingu is just too adorable

If you grew up in the 90s watching European television, there’s a good chance you love Pingu. The stop-motion animated adventures of the adorable little penguin ran for over 15 years starting in 1990. Builder Johan Alexanderson has made four tiny LEGO scenes of an ordinary day in the life of Pingu as he putters about his nicely furnished Antarctic igloo. The penguins are an adorable mix of minifigure elements and bricks with a little customization for the eyes. Noot noot!

An ordinary day for LEGO Pingu

Pingu has appeared on TBB a few times in the past, including a previous scene by Johan where Pingu meets a walrus. We also highlighted a cute larger-scale Pingu.

Birds of a feather that click together

This trio of 1:10 scale avian models by Luis Peña utilise unexpected elements in some unique ways. Take for example the humble LEGO macaroni tube. Here it’s reimagined as the elegant neck of a blushing pink flamingo.

Andean Flamingo .1:10 Scale LEGO Model

Check out the other two birds

It’s never too late! You still have time to build a Christmas themed BrickHeadz [Instructions]

If you have the Go Brick Me set on hand, you’re in luck! You have all the parts to build this cute penguin in black and white. Builder Stormythos designed this lil’ Christmas-themed fella with only the parts available within the kit. I love the detailing around the neck with a festive scarf that trails down to the front.

If you have a bigger stash beyond the Go Brick me Kit, you may want to try building this Elf on a Shelf. It breaks away from the standard BrickHeadz template with extended arms and feet which makes it a little livelier.

Get the instructions here and start building! And if you somehow don’t have the Go Brick Me set, it’s not too late to grab one off the online shelves for a loved one! It’s a perfect gift for hours of fun!

Pingu! Pingu!

Anyone who has ever watched an episode of Pingu! will instantly recognize this lovable penguin with a big heart and an even bigger knack for getting into trouble. CHUNG-HENG CHENG has captured his likeness, along with his adorable baby sister Pinga perfectly. Be sure to take a closer look, as the scale might easily fool you.

Pingu