Sometimes something looks familiar and you just can’t understand why it does. This happened to me when I came across ‘Hedgehog and Elf’ by James Zhan. I knew that little hedgehog looked familiar but I wasn’t sure from where. As a primary school teacher, you get exposed to a lot of children’s literature. So that could be the source. It sure looks like it could have walked straight out of a fairy tale. I still couldn’t pinpoint it. After googling ‘hedgehog’ and ‘Pokemon’ I must conclude that it looks familiar because it reminds me of the Pokemon Shaymin. And to be honest, that one looks like it is straight out of a fairy tale.
Posts by Bart Willen
Revamping mummies
LEGO Adventurers was my absolute favourite theme as a kid. Especially the desert theme. Seeing the Jungle Explorer Collectable Minifigure got my hopes up for the theme to be renewed. This might also explain my soft spot for LEGO Adventurer fan creations. This build by Kevin Wanner really hits the soft spot. We get very well put together fleshy minifigure renditions of all the familiar faces. Two very well designed vehicles. However the absolute highlight of this creation has to be the beautiful palm trees. There are dark tan eggshells used to create the trunk of the palm tree. The crown of the tree uses dark tan, green and bright green plant leaves to indicate the lifespan of a palm tree leaf. It looks stunning!
As fast as a mechanic snail
I love it when a really specific LEGO part gets used in an original way. The part I am talking about is the ‘Drone Charge Station’ disk from the Overwatch theme. To me, it is a piece that looks so specific it would be hard to imagine another use for it. For Isaac Wilder however this isn’t a limitation. Turning it into the home of a mechanic snail isn’t just smart, it is also cute as a button. Using minifigure spoons for eyes adds a lot to the cuteness factor. However, this still has me wondering if this cutie is as slow as its real-life counterparts.
If it acts like a Bellatrix and dresses like a Bellatrix, it is most likely a witch.
Building a LEGO house in Tudor style can be really challenging. Building a LEGO house in weathered Tudor style is even harder. Although you wouldn’t say so after seeing this creation by Jaka Kunpina. They created a medieval building in the famous style and made it look so effortlessly easy. However, there are some smart techniques hidden in this build, like the hinges used to make the top of the roof overlap the building more than the rest of the roof does. And then wedges are used to cover the gap that this creates. Although her home looks lovely, the owner isn’t having a lovely day — she’s being arrested for being a witch. But then again, what do you expect when you dress like Bellatrix Lestrange.
Parting is such sweet sorrow, until we meet again my love
LEGO castles are often grey, or dark grey. When they are a part of Hogwarts, they are mostly tan. Not this castle created by Elias Hübner. This castle is dark tan, combined with warm colours like nougat and some olive green. Which gives this creation an almost mediterranean feel. There is a lovely big tree in the middle of the square and the castle itself is overgrown with lush foliage. It is nice to see one of my favourite new parts, the Minion hair, being used in fan creations. And it gets used quite a lot! There are little sprouts popping out of the ground everywhere you look, which makes the square look a lot less polished and more realistic. Enough about sprouting Minion hair, focus on the lovely couple saying their goodbyes as the man is called to the battlefield. Leaving his loved one behind with noting more than the promise to return to her.
Out, out brief candle
LEGO love doesn’t always last. This creation by Kit Nugent is proof that sometimes even in LEGOland love ends prematurely. Kit created a massive church. I wouldn’t dare to guess how many bricks high it is. In the middle of the shot we can spot a woman mourning the loss of her lover who perished at the battlefront. Kit used not one, but two types of boats to create details in this creation. It is weird that something as big as a boat can be considered a detail. There is a ‘wooden’ rowing boat hidden in the altar piece. The boat is used to frame a wooden statue, which works perfectly. The other boat is a rubber boat that is used to frame a doorway. Best thing about this shot is the amount of light that appears to come through the enormous window and puts the scene with the lovers in the spotlight.
Kids truly are a labour of love
We feature a lot of LEGO medieval buildings here at TBB, but medieval interiors are less common. However, this one by Martin Gebert really hits the ball out of the park. We are treated to a lovely royal bedroom, which is obvious not only by the sheer size of the room, but also by the elaborate furniture in it. In the middle of the room there are two beds. The bed of the king and queen features a canopy made out of carved wood and heavy curtains keeping the couple warm and private. The other bed is a lot smaller. It’s the baby’s crib and is also adorned with curtains. While the curtains on the parents bed are made out of slopes, the curtains on the baby’s bed are made using a plastic minifigure skirt. Can you spot all the kids the royals regret having?
A story of young love and a lovely mosaic floor
We all love LEGO but love is only the subject of fan creations every once and a while. Thank god there have been a lot of LEGO love creations lately. One of them is made by Nathan Smith. We can spot a young squire sitting on a ginormous tree branch, singing a song to the eldest daughter of the king. It must be a serenade, a very catchy love song, or a Taylor Swift cover as the woman in question is looking quite love-smitten back at her admirer. There is an intricate mosaic on the floor which you would almost look over seeing how well the tree branch is made. The balcony with the arches is also very well put together. Placing the arches diagonally in the shot makes it look that much more dynamic. I wonder where their love story might go.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, which baby is the fairest of them all
LEGO is not just great for building. It’s also great for storytelling. This is exceptionally well done by Geneva Durand. We are witnessing an evil Queen on her way to kill a newborn who is said to be destined to one day end her reign. It almost sounds biblical with just a touch of Snow White. I guess the evil Queen also sometimes dabbles a bit in magic because her knights appear to be floating down from the village walls without being crushed. It is their task to find the little baby and end it. On that note, can you spot the little infant?
Cute outpost with cute outhouse
Sometimes you just wish that the inspiration for a LEGO fan creation is a real life building. When I saw Andrea Lattanzio’s latest build I knew I would love to spend a night in the cute little outpost. Surrounded by the sea and the waves. The wind passing along the little stilted cabin. Going to the outhouse in the middle of the night just because of nature’s calling. Well maybe scrap that last part. The outpost looks super cute. There are a lot of cute details hidden in this creation. We get wizard wands and officers clubs used for door hinges. There even is a hockey stick used as a railing. There are many more little details to be spotted, so do yourselves a favor and give this one a little zoom in. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to check if the inspiration for this creation is up for rent as a Bed & Breakfast.
I might have a soft spot for LEGO blacksmiths
LEGO has produced numerous sets with the blacksmith as subject. I have fond memories of really wanting (and not getting) the LEGO 3739 Blacksmith Shop. And now, after years and years, LEGO released the 21325 Medieval Blacksmith – a set that I most likely will also not be getting. This creation by Mbricks also sparks the same amount of joy. There are a lot of cleverly used parts in this set. For instance we get umbrellas used as door hinges. Treasure chest lids used to create a round bay window. Skirts are used as a chimney and the half circle tiles work perfectly as roof tiles. One of the things that makes this creation just work is the height difference in the buildings. This creates different levels to the build, each one with something interesting for the eye to behold.
Through Drudgery, Dreams, and Dread
LEGO fans draw inspiration from all sorts of places. Movies, series, books, architecture and travelling are the first things that come to mind. Music is one that we tend to skip over because it is less visible and often more interpretive. However this lovely creation by John Snyder shows how music can inspire an amazing creation. John explains that the music by Lee Muzzy & Ian Spacek has three different themes, using trees as a medium John shows how he interpreted the three different themes.
The first theme sounded slightly eerie, mysterious and industrial. After that came the middle part in which the mood shifted to something more magical, serene and peaceful. This reminds me a bit of Rivendell. The last part of the song gave an ominous foreboding. John surely managed to capture the way he interpreted the music in the brick.