Tag Archives: Winter

Winter is coming? No, winter is already here!

For some, this time of year is closely associated with falling leaves, scarves and things being suddenly pumpkin-flavoured for a few weeks. But for those of us in the more Northerly latitudes, autumn is already starting to look like Michał Kozłowski‘s wintry scene. In fact, as I type this, there are two inches of snow forecast in a few days, and muggins here still haven’t changed over to winter tyres. How did they manage that in medieval LEGO villages? Do you think they had horsecarts with studded wheels? Or did the horses just have to look for the studs to lock themselves in? You’d have to hope your builder hasn’t exclusively used slopes and tiles to model their snow.

Winter in the Raven's Wharf_E8

A snowman attack in August? Sure thing!

With some extreme weather, wildfires, and record temperatures, it wouldn’t be so far-fetched to see this LEGO scene built by PeterBoxXu. I mean, we’ve already seen murder hornets and a Latter-Day Saint ghost town that keeps emerging from Lake Mead and we didn’t even have that on our weird stuff bingo card. Somehow I love the concept of a massive snowman who has had enough of your winter holiday cheer. In August, no less! I like the snowman’s red neckerchief and his grabby Maxifig hands. The snowblower figure hurling through the air has definitely seen better days. If this creation wins the contest for the “All Seasons” theme it just might be seen in the LEGO Ideas House. I’m rooting for the snowman. In fact, with oppressive temperatures and a hint of smoke in the air, I’d welcome a snowman attack right about now. Or was I thinking of a cold glass of lemonade? Yeah, that’s it, cold lemonade!

Snowman Attacks!

Back to Svalg Keep

With spring around the corner, Louis of Nutwood presents to us the amazing Svalg Keep, a very wintery LEGO build that features a Castle covered in a blanket of snow. Even though the entire castle wall is built with light blueish-grey brick, Louis managed to avoid the dreaded “big grey wall effect.” The highly textured wall creates gaps and casts shadows which makes the walls look intricate and interesting. This is one of those creations that I would love to see on the inside. Is it just impressive on the outside or is it possible to build something that looks this good on the outside and still has enough room on the inside to build a functioning interior?

Back to Svalg Keep

A construction rooted in cold, hard stone

As the northern hemisphere is awakening from the cold slumber of the last 5 months, Ventum Vox drags me back into the icy chill of winter with this frigid-looking LEGO scene. The trees here, with rootholds in this snow-covered crag, are a masterful compilation of brown bits. They eschew the typical grid of the blocky medium, instead providing some of the most natural gnarls of wood I’ve seen in a build. There’s plenty of flex tubing and minifig utensils in the mix helping to manage this natural aesthetic. And the rockwork these trees cling to is no slouch, either. There’s a clear delineation in style between the stone of the ruined structure and the rocky precipice it sits upon, going well beyond just the color change. And while managing that transition perfectly, Vox still is able to add in enough snow to remind us that this is a cold, exposed destination. Let’s hope that knight is wearing some long underwear.

Cold Solitude

A warm winter retreat

LEGO builders John and Isaac Snyder collaborated to bring us this magnificent winter tavern. It’s packed to the top of its steep roof peaks with great detail, and you can just feel the inn standing as a bulwark against the blustery winter winds. I particularly love the snowy forest surrounding the tavern, which makes it feel much more immersive than a stark building on a bare setting. You could (and should) spend some time poring over the intricate parts usages through the build, but take note especially of the Thor’s hammers surrounding the door; I’ve seen them used as stonework before, but they fit so well here.

The Wayfarers' Den

Hangmen hanging from a ghostly tree

Sometimes a LEGO scene is just capturing. I stumbled across this build by gGh0st and my eyes were drawn to the trees, and the great parts usage that composes them. We can spot lightsaber handles, claws, fangs, and even a broom. Still the trees look organic and natural. For me, it’s the first time seeing the minifigure claw in dark tan being used as tree foliage. And it looks like all the hangmen aren’t the only dead thing in this creation. The trees themselves look like conifers at the end of their days. Having lost most of their needles, the trunks and branches make for a sad skeleton that reminds us of what has been.

King of The Frozen Wilds

Hook, line, and A-frame

True story: back in college, my friends and I had a running joke about my evil twin Lyle. We certainly had more in common than the Nordic fisherman Lyle in this LEGO construction by Carter Witz. The rich brown wood, dark green leaves, and deep blue water stand in stark contrast to all the snow in this scene. I love the scattered patches of white amid the fir branches and on top of the house, as well as the rime-covered plants poking up out of the wintry blanket. But my favorite part has to be Carter’s expert use of the gaps between plates and tiles on the A-frame. We’re able to make out every board used to construct its roof, walls, and door as a result. It’s an expert technique that provides an amount of reality to this plastic scene.

Lyle the Fisherman

Here’s the scoop on this wintry scene...

The latest LEGO creation by builder Evancelt‘s depicts a wintry scene with an impressive castle towering above the nearby village. The castle, with its yellow colour scheme, is reminiscent of the classic LEGO Yellow Castle, but what impresses me with this castle is that the walls are made from a digger bucket! In micro builds like this, I’m always impressed when parts you wouldn’t expect should work really do work so well!

Winter Kingdom

But it’s not just a great castle on display here. Surrounding the castle is a beautiful wintry scene complete with snow-covered forests, using various horn pieces, and a small village which utilises the printed plate from the latest CMF series, but my favourite piece of detail in this scene? The snowy mounds made from white croissant pieces!

Now, all this talk of winter leaves me needing to find an open fire to warm up…

Icy winter wonderland

One of my favorite things about the winter is the beauty of a peaceful snowy mountainside, and this LEGO build by -LittleJohn looks just the part. It took me a little while to grasp the scale of this mountain, but then I spied the castle perched up on the ledge above the glassy waterfall. The ramshackle techniques used on this build come together splendidly to create a magical moonlit river.

Winter Wonder

A lone pop of colour in a lonely village

We love a good LEGO creation that uses about double the amount of LEGO pieces to be built as you’d expect. This creation by Joe is composed of a lot of small little pieces to create patterns and structures. The scene depicts an abandoned village with one sole visitor. The visitor is apparently the only living soul in the town, just as the blue door is the only thing with colour in the town. Your eye gets drawn to the door due to the vibrant colour, and the door itself is exceptionally well built. But if you look past it, you’ll notice that the rest of the creation is as well. All the walls are made by slopes, tiles and plates to resemble woodwork. The use of the paled fence for windows is quite clever. Throughout the entire creation there are a lot of fangs, horns, angled bars, plates with a handles, and small windows used to represent snow and ice. Of those four, the last two are most resourceful.

Cold Omens

A break from the heat

Nothing feels nicer in the depths of summer than a glimpse of a snowy landscape. Jake Hansen (Mountain Hobbit) leads us to Winter’s Gate, an early seasonal treat.  Filled with great techniques like mostly connected candles to form bamboo poles, inset cheese-wedge designs, and unusual angles, this build rewards you the closer you look. Case in point: that weathered staff the figure is holding is made from an umbrella and a minifigure hand. How many of you missed that at first glance?

Winter's Gate

If you want more cold-weather relief, our Winter tag is here for you.

Frigid bridges and cold, old stone

Winter may have passed, but its scenes still provide a tranquil allure. This small model by Eli Willsea is a delightfully cartoonish landscape of such a pleasant, icy kingdom. Aqua slopes and curves are built studs not on top, aside from the few exposed to secure the tiny trees and little huts. Using unicorn horns in sand green for different sizes or types of trees is a great method at this scale, but my favorite are the bridges. The mold for wands includes two of the pieces attached to a non-System piece for structural stability. Eli was smart here, wedging unattached wands into the gaps in the wand molds to create small wooden bridges connecting the islands. It might not be “legal” but it certainly suits the scene. Of course, the most complex element is the focal point, the Cold Castle itself. While the nearby huts sport maroon roofs, the castle is capped by dark azure. The stone spires of the structure seem to make use of inverted building techniques to secure the lightsaber hilts. Those create pressure to hold the forks of the bucket handle wedged above the inverted, rounded gold tile used as the castle gate.

The Cold Castle

This miniature scene is yet another example of the subtle skills that builders like Eli Willsea make use of for their models. It’s one thing to know how to operate within the System but another entirely to know how to break the rules. It starts as a simple suggestion, an experiment in limits, and becomes a signature that builders can rely on to set them apart.