About Bre Burns

After living in the LEGO mecca of Seattle for 9 years, Bre is now home in her native state of Oregon. She briefly worked for the LEGO Group as a Brick Specialist before she left to pursue her career in Zoology, and LEGO remains a huge part of her life. She and her partner Jessie are active members of SEALUG, SPSLUG, FabuLUG and SquatchLUG, and enjoy building creations big and small that span across many themes. Their build handle is Renegade Bricks. Both are also members of the Event Team for BrickCon, and Bre has previously been the Theme Coordinator for Technic/Mindstorms.

Posts by Bre Burns

This one’s a real page-turner! [Video]

When you build something really interactive, you naturally want to show off how it works. At conventions you might spend a whole hour repeating a demo. Then another. And another. And another… Until you realize you haven’t eaten all day. Of course, leave it to Jason Allemann to find a truly impressive solution to this problem. After he and his wife’s arms got tired opening and closing the LEGO Ideas 21315 Pop-Up Book, she told him it was time to make an automated, page-turning bookstand. So he has! And it’s brilliant!

As usual, Jason has developed a genius and inspiring mechanism. Just watch the video for the full explanation of what’s going on behind the scenes of this elegant lectern. I don’t know about you, but I find it mesmerizing!

While you’re here, check out Jason’s excellent addition to LEGO Creator set 31088 Deep Sea Creatures!

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

A whole new spin on LEGO roller coaster track

Roller coaster parts had been a long time coming when they were finally released last year. I, personally, was someone begging for them, and was ecstatic when given the chance to review the LEGO Creator Expert 10261 Roller Coaster. Since then, it’s been cool to see what others have done with the track. This time, Daniel Church has built a super cool Steampunk monowheel. All the greebly bits create a lovely design, and the triangular signs and 2×3 pentagonal tiles finish it off well.

The best part is that it actually moves! Who doesn’t love a good LEGO build with movement? I hope the next task is to make it stand by itself and remote controlled!

If Steampunk is your thing, we have another steam-powered monowheel (with other vehicles) for you! We’ve also drooled over a gorgeous windmill and a cool chess set, or two.

A LEGO Toothless to rule them all!

With the release of the most recent How to Train Your Dragon movie, we’ve seen several builds of loveable Toothless floating around. But none of the others are quite like this version, designed by one of our favorite artists, Jayfa! Great skill has gone into the shaping of the head. And feet… Actually, there is great shaping happening all over this little dragon!

Toothless’ playful nature is perfectly captured in this model. Perhaps my most favorite part is the eyes because they’re so expressive. A minifigure hand inserted into each of the ball socks was quite clever. And while I’m personally a purist, the little white bit cut from a claw/tooth element is undeniably a brilliant finish. Is it ironic that the actual tooth part was left behind?

Jayfa is a master of this style, and most of his creations come from his own imagination. Just check out a pair of some of his best mechs. Want to build your own version of a similar dragon? Check out this Toothless with instructions, designed by Build Better Bricks.

A Legendary bird of ice and snow

It’s amazing how some things never go out of style. They’re timeless. Like the Beatles, denim, and bubblegum. Underwear (thank goodness)… Harry Potter… LEGO! And Pokémon. Articuno, one of three Legendary birds, was born into the Pokémon universe in 1996 with 150 other First Generation creatures (like Pikachu, Charmander, and Squirtle), and is still popular today with Pokémon Go. This beautiful build by mk bricks is a nod to the famous bird. The layering of parts to create an icy feathered appearance is well-achieved here. It’s not all that easy to avoid making these kind of builds look blocky and repetitious, but not here! And perhaps the coolest (pun intended) part is the most obvious. The bending technique to shape the iconic tail looks great! It really could not have been better accomplished.

If you like Pokemon, also check out other articles about Oddish, Charizard, Eevee, and a build-your-own Bulbasaur.

This quiet gardener’s retreat deserves a double take

Have you ever played one of those games where you look at an image and find the hidden details? They used to be in magazines, but these days there are loads of apps for them. And now, there’s even a 3D LEGO version! This greenhouse, built by César Soares, is a hidden-gem masterpiece. While there are lots of LEGO creations with incredible parts usage, this one goes above and beyond, and may be one of my absolute favorites!

No spoilers! Take a moment to scan the whole thing, and read below once you get stumped. Can’t remember where you last saw that part? We’ll fill you in on a couple of those hard-to-pinpoint pieces!

Click here to discover which items you may have missed

Bringing LEGO to life with a handsome macaque

It takes a great deal more skill to sculpt with basic LEGO bricks than you might think. The ability to produce organic curves from rectangular bricks is awe-inspiring, and strikes envy in those of us who are always searching for that perfect shape. Upon seeing this life-size Rhesus macaque, I knew it had to be the work of Felix Jaensch, who is a master of the art. I must say, it really could not have been done better!

Adult males like this one (just in case you weren’t sure if it’s a male) are about 18-25in long and weigh an average of about 16-19lbs. They have an expressive face, which is perfectly captured here. Additionally, the lovely use of a select few slopes gives the fluffier bits texture and character, and the minifigure hand to finish the nose is genius!

Rhesus macaques are probably the most commonly known macaques in the world. That’s partly because these monkeys have a massive home range in central and southern Asia, and are invasive in several other places in the world. They’re also widely studied and used in research due to their high level of intelligence and fairly close physiological relation to humans. It was a study of their blood that led to our understanding of the Rh blood-typing system we use today!

If you like Felix’s style, check out some of the other life-size animals we’ve featured, like his Red Panda, Macaw, Rabbit, or American Kestrel.

Building good fortune on a rainy day

In many Asian cultures, koi ponds symbolize luck, good fortune, and abundance. They also tend to represent courage and perseverance. Perhaps that’s why, even with the abundance of rain, this geisha isn’t afraid of her makeup running!

Banter aside, this expertly photographed build by Architeclego is stunning. I personally find heavy rain beautiful and almost calming. From inside, its enveloping, rhythmic drone is even cozy. This is one of those picture that provokes those feelings.

While the photography in itself is compelling, the build is not to be overlooked! I’m a fan of the layout and recessed pool, and I especially like the inversion of the arch bricks for the roof. We certainly hope to see many more pieces of art like this in the future.

Stately castle lodgings for a weary traveler

I’m a sucker for the stories behind builds. I’m also one for nicely cut lines and color choice in architecture. This build by Brother Steven displays all of those traits. Although we’ve seen it done before, the journal of an adventurer chronicled in LEGO is a fascinating concept, and done well by Steven. This particular creation is part of a series of builds, all following “Zenas Abbington” as the hero. There are so many lovely aspects to the castle: the round base, the shape of the towers, the pearl gold carriage wheel in the windows, and the accents on the front door. Let’s not forget how adorable those sheep are too!

And the flip-side is just as pretty! That tree is magnificent, with its color and angled branches. I’m also a big fan of the underside of those mushrooms! It’s no wonder that this, coupled with a few other creations, won a “Brickee” at BrickFair Alabama 2019!

Some of the details of this build are reminiscent of other creations from Steven’s magical world, such as this floating castle we featured last year.

More than your average LEGO City garbage truck [Video]

What’s a city layout without the staple vehicles: police, fire, ambulance, bus, delivery, mail, garbage? You gotta have them all! LEGO has released a few generic garbage/recycling trucks, but none of them are this cool. At first glance this build by Scott Hasse looks a bit like an average set. But up close it’s pretty nifty. Rather than the typical manual dump action displayed in the City line, you get a truck that works much more like the ones you see on the street in real life.

A simple turn of the knobs not only grabs and dumps the bins, but also compacts the refuse into the dump collection in the back. The whole thing is really smooth and works like a charm! An if you had a fleet, you could put tiles on the sides to indicate garbage vs. recycling or compost. Would anyone else besides me get hours of entertainment from playing with this thing? My next step would be to motorize it!

This could become a real set one day, you never know. But in the meantime, you can use some simple instructions to build your own little garbage truck.

A new “swim” on LEGO Creator set 31088 Deep Sea Creatures [Video]

Inspired. That’s all I can say about how I feel every time I see one of Jason Allemann‘s new creations. And maybe a little jealous at how talented he is. Recently, we wrote and article about his update to the LEGO Forma mechanics with a custom shark. This time he has taken a recently released official set, LEGO Creator 31088 Deep Sea Creatures, and brought it to life. It’s done so well that you would think the set was always intended for this purpose.

With the turn of the crank or an attached motor, the drive mechanism of this build gives the shark an appearance of organically gliding through water. The most impressive part (as always with Jason’s builds) is how smooth and seamless the motions are. Truly fluid! And as a bonus, this creation isn’t just for admiring from afar! He has kindly shared these (and many other) instructions on his website so that others can build it too!

31088 Deep Sea Creatures is actually on sale at Amazon right now, along with LEGO Ideas 21315 Pop-Up Book, the official set that both Jason and Grant Davis collaborated to design!

HispaBrick Magazine issue 032 now available for free download [News]

In case you didn’t know, today is International Women’s Day! As tribute and in celebration of all the wonderful women in the LEGO community, HispaBrick’s latest issue showcases articles and interviews featuring incredible female builders and designers from all over the world.

Guys and gals alike will appreciate this issue. I’ve had a chance to read it myself, and as a female builder, it makes me proud of how much we bring to the table in a community somewhat dominated by the guys. But genders aside, the current issue is something everyone can learn and benefit from. Particularly intriguing is the interview with a few of the designers who are responsible for your favorite Collectible Minifigures. Best of all, the magazine is completely free to download.

Here’s Hispabrick’s press release:

Today is International Women’s Day, and the HispaBrick Magazine team has worked hard to create aspecial themed issue to participate in this celebration. HispaBrick Magazine 032 celebrates the Female Fan of LEGO (FFOL) in many different ways. The theme for International Women’s Day 2019 is #BalanceForBetter. To promote this theme we have invited Regina Mateos Rodilla to write an editorial as well as an article about what being a fan of LEGO means to her. We have also included interviews with female builders like Sachiko Akinaga, Mariann Asunama, Alice Finch and Jessica Farrell. Karine Linder from Stuck in Plastic has provided us with some insights from photographers like @by_a.n.n.a and @lady_brick. We interviewed Tara Wike and Austin Carlson who work for LEGO on the collectible minifigures series, and Asha Seshan and Anika Brandsma talk about their passion for LEGO Robotics. Patricia Tsoiasue talks about 2×4 Day, and Evelyn gives us an insider look into how some kids live their LEGO passion. This and much more makes for another issue full of different and engaging LEGO-related content. To underscore this celebration, we have decided to make this a free issue (like all the previous issues), so come over and download it from our website at no cost whatsoever. Spread the word: it’s free!!

A collection of New Zealand’s most famous birds

New Zealand has some of the most interesting fauna in the world, with many of their animals not found anywhere else in the world. While on holiday there, Patrick B. was so enamored by the birds that he decided to recreate them in LEGO. The results are lovely! This collection showcases the Kea, Pukeko, Kakapo, and the iconic Kiwi. I have to say, that last one is pretty adorable in LEGO form. Here in Seattle where I live, we have a pair of gorgeous Keas at Woodland Park Zoo. These endangered mountainous creatures are quite intelligent and always busy. They’re one of my favorite birds, and nicely done here.

Back in 2013, Thomas Poulsom also did a couple of these New Zealand birds (and a badger). And a bit more recently, we’ve featured an article about another LEGO build of the critically endangered Kakapo. It’s a parrot unlike any other in the world! Check it out, and then learn more about what you can do to help them.