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

Small columns never looked so good

Here at TBB, we feature all sorts of incredible LEGO builds from all sorts of incredible builders. We’ve seen equally awesome techniques on tiny creations as we have on giant ones. We’ve also seen hundreds of superb towers, pillars, and columns, and in fact, several of them are from this same builder, Ralf Langer. But I particularly appreciate these pillars, at this scale, because Ralf uses simple techniques to produce something awesome. Twisting the internal structure to alternate those pentagonal tiles is truly eye-catching. And the rest just sets it off perfectly.

There are several cool techniques here, but I’m sure plenty of us are making a mental note right now about those columns. I see you over there, trying to consider the reverse engineering so you can borrow it later! Just make sure to give him credit, and while you’re at it, take a moment to appreciate some of Ralf’s other builds.

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A micro monastery nestled in the rocks

There’s a lot more to this tiny build than a monastery on some rocks. In fact, the building isn’t its best feature! Talented LEGO builder Roanoke Handybuck did a great job at interlacing those light bluish grey elements to form the rocky outcropping. The pink flowers attached to reddish brown horns and minifigure hands are a superb fit too. But perhaps the most clever aspect is the use of only 3 pieces – two crowbars and a hotdog element – to try and recreate a Japanese torii archway.

If you like this, you should stick around and see more of Roanoke’s Handybuck’s handy-work.

Smooth as a baby’s... bottlenose?

I’m always impressed when a builder manages to make LEGO models completely smooth. Going stud-less can be hard, and even harder when dealing with organic shapes. This bottlenose dolphin built by Ken Ito (暁工房) may show just a few studs, but the body shaping is superb! The arch of the back end and tail are particularly well-executed.

It seems as though this builder has a knack and a penchant for these kinds of creations. Marine life is just a snippet of what he can do. Stick around to see more like this!

More than a room with a view

In a world where steampunk hot air balloons and sky-pirates exist, there is a need for sky-based communication and supply stops. This cozy LEGO “Cloud 9 Outpost” built by Marcel V and LEGO designer Markus Rollbüler is just the place. It may be cobbled together, but it’s home-sweet-home to its humble inhabitant and his trusty pup. He also has to be picking up all sorts of reception with so many satellites and antennae! There’s lots of funky and fun parts usage here, but I particularly like the minifigure goggles used as bench legs.

This could be a place for a weary traveler to find respite or just a solitary lookout. Who knows? But what I do know is that there are many more builds to see by Markus and Marcel!

LEGO and a little red bicycle [Video]

If you think about it, it’s probably safe to say that more people in the world know how to ride a bicycle than operate an automobile. In fact, there are some countries where riding a bike is the preferred mode of transportation. It’s also not surprising to know that Denmark, a friendly, quiet, and quaint country (and the home of LEGO) is one of the world leaders in using bicycles for transportation. This working LEGO bike, built by Donny Chen pays homage to bikes everywhere.

The details are totally awesome, from the body shape to the realistic drive-train, freewheel, and pneumatic disc brakes. You’re going to want to watch the video below to get a full tour of all the excellent features!

Wondering why there’s sheet music on the bike’s rack? That’s a nod to Donny’s magnum opus: the incredible LEGO Ideas set 21323 Grand Piano. Yep, he’s the fan designer of one of the coolest LEGO sets of all time! Check out our review, linked above.

Bold colors and some fresh beats

Virva Staccato is ready to tear the house down! Inspired by the drum kit from LEGO Friends set 41449 Andrea’s Family House, this exceptional drummer can only be the work of uber-talented artist, Eero Okkonen. The funky color scheme gives the character a ton of flair and attitude, but it’s the parts usage that gives it the wow factor. Details from the house, like the window shutters on her top and 1x2x2 trans opalescent window panes for the glasses. I’m also a big fan of the pigtails from tires and Hero Factory robot legs for earings.

This has to be one of my all-time favorites, but it’s hard to choose from all of Eero’s other great LEGO characters we featured! Stick around and check out a few more!

A mini Hitachi wheel loader

There are a handful of builders out there that are experts at recreating vehicles in LEGO form. We’re talking highly detailed, true-to-life replicas. One of those experts is Damian Z. and his most recent build is this Hitachi ZW180PL. I have to be honest, I recognize Hitachi, but that nomenclature doesn’t ring a single bell. But what I do know is that I’m positive I’ve seen this exact piece of machinery before. And when you look at the real thing, this little guy is spot on.

Who knew you could pack so much detail into such a small frame? But just wait until you see some other angles. Replica or not, this wheel loader is expertly crafted.

Click to see the other angles

There once was a little macaw

The smooth body of this little LEGO scarlet macaw, built by Nikita Filatov, contrasts perfectly with the texture of the branch she sits on. Speaking of which, the organic texturing and overall structure/shaping are nicely done in both pieces. The core of the branch has to be pretty strong to support the bird! The only thing missing is a few more tail feathers, but soon this youngster will be taking flight!

We’ve got what you need if you’re interested in seeing more builds of colorful birds! And if you’re looking for a menagerie, we have a whole zoo’s worth of awesome animal builds too!

Where’s Herbie these days?

It’s been a long time since everyone’s favorite love-bug hit the big screen. From 1968 to 2005, millions of hearts were warmed by the sentient VW Beetle’s escapades. But somehow, with as awesome as he is, he still winds up broken down and abandoned from time to time. (Lame humans!) But who knows where he is these days? According to Hachiroku92, he’s in a barnyard someplace, needing a little love. This sad but adorable LEGO version of Herbie makes great use of the small quarter-round curved slopes for that iconic body shape, and adds frying pans for headlights. That windmill is excellent too!

Stick around and you’ll find more Volkswagen builds and news in our archives! How do you feel about the new LEGO Volkswagen T2 Camper Van? Tell us what you think in the comments?

Beauty comes in all different shapes

One of the joys of building with LEGO is working with lots of shapes in order to create new ones. Clever builders will use parts with a particular origin and morph them into something with an entirely new purpose. Like shields for leaves or balloon panels for a vase base, or shoulder armor for petals. This expertly crafted render by _Regn takes it further by creating a particularly complex shape: a hyperboloid. Essentially, if you twist a cylinder at its center, you create an hourglass-shaped design. It makes for a gorgeous centerpiece!

Unfortunately, there are elements of this artwork that would likely be too difficult or impossible to build in real life. Those shields, for example, don’t come in green. And the connections would be very precarious. Still, it’s certainly beautiful to look at, and a superb bit of rendering!

If you’d like to see more flower-based creations, check out the exquisite new LEGO Botanical Collection and other custom flower builds in our archives. Oh, and if renders are your thing, we have plenty of those too!

Who says dinosaurs are extinct?

This colorful LEGO sculpture by Shannon Sproule is a pretty darn accurate recreation of a northern cassowary. It checks all the boxes in terms of color, shaping, and even size. In real life, this bird is mostly black aside from the head and it lives in New Guinea, northeast Australia, and surrounding islands. But one of the most notable things about it is that it’s giant and formidable. Its size and weight are comparable to the emu, although the emus have nothing on these guys when it comes to battle. Cassowaries are considered one of the most dangerous birds in the world.

These birds are actually pretty shy and try to avoid humans, but if threatened, they’re not afraid to attack. They can kick like a kangaroo and their dinosaur-like feet have terrifying raptor-esque claws. In particular, one toe has a straight spike that can get as long as a human hand. Yikes!

One of my favorite parts of this build is how well it’s photographed. Sometimes the right lighting can really make a build, and in this case the bird comes to life with that little bit of shine on the radar dish that is used for the eye. While you’re here, check out TBB’s other articles featuring animals. Shannon’s sci-fi/space builds have also been featured on our site.

Anansi the trickster and god of all knowledge comes to life in an astounding LEGO sculpture

When I first saw this magnificent LEGO sculpture by Ekow Nimako, I knew it had to be his. The elegant, all-black theme is his trademark. But what I didn’t realize is that this is much more than a beautiful fictitious character. This is Anansi, an important deity in West African mythos. Ekow has a wonderful talent for pulling you in and inspiring you to look further, both literally and figuratively. So I’m here to share the gift of what I learned… and you might want to zoom in.

Click to see more pictures and learn about Anansi