Chinese builder Qian Yj has been producing beautiful architectural models for a few years now, many of which can be found in the TBB archives, including the hexagonal Tianfeng Pagoda and the Sichuan home. The builder’s latest creation is a mammoth tribute to the Wuliang Hall of the sprawling 400-building Xiantong Temple complex in China. “Wuliang” translates to “infinite” or “immeasurable” but we think it measures up quite magnificently.
When I first saw this diorama titled Molly’s Castle, I actually thought it was microscale due to the overall silhouette. But then I spotted some minifigures high atop the turrets, and mounted knights wending their way through the forest. Built by Jon & Catherine Stead over just six days, this LEGO diorama features a rare tan castle in a verdant setting, with plenty of details to ogle. Measuring nearly 4 feet in length and 17 inches tall, you won’t lack for adventure here.
Click to see more of the castle diorama
Does your copy of 75810 The Upside Down look a little lonely displayed all on its own? To help celebrate the TBB Upside Down building contest, we’ve got step-by-step instructions to build a minifigure scale Castle Byers to keep it company. Created by yours truly, the creation features both Will Byers’ pleasant-looking forest abode and an upside-down version in the same style as the official set.
LEGO did release a tiny version of Castle Byers which we reviewed recently, but we think this one fits the theme a bit better. The instructions PDF can be downloaded here, along with the Bricklink Studio digital file. And if you have an itch to build more Hawkins locations and their corresponding upside-down versions, don’t forget to enter our TBB Upside Down building contest! There’s only a week left to enter, with the deadline on August 15th. Now’s your chance to swoop in and win a copy of 75810 The Upside Down, along with the LEGO store exclusive Castle Byers build.
What do you do after you buy the LEGO Harley-Davidson Fat Boy set? If you guessed build it a black and dark red friend and an entire garage for it, then you would be correct. That is clearly the most logical option and a builder who goes by the name Derboor has beat the rest of us to it. The result is part garage, part toy shop and part museum. The clutter, the disarray, and even haphazard pattern on the walls and floor make for a well-used, well-loved space. I’m seeing a refrigerator likely filled with cold refreshments, along with a toy train, model skeleton and an R2-D2 Polybag set. I also spy several trophies, a first aid kit, a spider and even Darth Vader looming in a most uncanny place — but I will let you find that for yourself. What other hidden treasures can you find?
After zooming in and discovering all the treasure you can, you might want to also discover our Harley-Davidson set review.
I’m always impressed when someone builds something with LEGO bricks that doesn’t have a strong tie to an established theme or building style. It takes a special kind of eye to look beyond the mundane, and builder why.not? has that vision. Or they had a vision. Or maybe just a very bad dream. Whatever the source, they have brought to us an unsettling image indeed.
The central eye is built from 1×2 and 1×4 plates, using subtle color variation in light blue, tan, and blue grey to create a convincing iris against a white brick background.
Eyelashes are constructed from minifigure hands clipped to the modified plates and tiles that create a smooth curve to the eyelid. There’s even a curved brick to represent the tear duct.
Additional creepy details include an abundance of Technic (eye)ball joints, a floating maw made of teeth and quarter-round tiles, and dangling red tentacles. The heart uses exotic elements like a sand blue dinosaur tail and medium lavender flexible hose. There’s even a dragon wing hidden in the blood(?) in the upper right.
I’m not sure what this piece says to me. But I’m kind of glad it can’t talk. I doubt I’d want to hear the messsage it brings.
When I think of all the activities and amenities I want in the perfect vacation locale, the first things that come to mind are: disease-filled swamps; crocodile-infested waters; dark, damp, and uncomfortable rooms; seminars on torture; unnecessary violence; and a complimentary continental breakfast. Fortunately for me, Patrick Massey has built exactly such a place! The dark green waters around Stormholme Castle tempt me with their malaria, West Nile, or dengue-carrying mosquitoes, and the lushness of the vegetation makes me certain that the humidity level is probably about as close to the carrying capacity of air as it can get; I love sweating profusely while being bitten by bugs, don’t you? The dark gray castle itself looks appropriately foreboding, given its swampy setting, and is, shockingly enough, Patrick’s first actual castle (he has specialized in the medieval fantasy genre for at least six years, yet never built a castle; a few towers, and small fortresses, but no castles). The wait has been worth it.
Click to see more of this incredible castle
Music is cool. Electric guitars are cool. Brian May, the guitarist for Queen, is cool. The Red Special, the electric guitar that Brian May designed and built with his father is very cool. You know what else is cool? LEGO. And here’s something very, very, cool – Nick Jensen‘s stunning 1:1 replica of the Red Special in LEGO.
Learn more about this icon of classic rock built from LEGO
Builder Malin Kylinger takes us under the sea with this lively and colorful model built in a picture frame. Ariel, Flounder, Sebastian and the evil Ursula are all on hand to welcome you to the depths where an array of sea life and corals await!
Sometimes inspiration can came from the strangest places, and in this case it came from IKEA! This compact little LEGO creations fits perfectly into a RIBBA frame which fortunately has enough depth to it that it can accommodate bricks and create a nice feeling of dimension. The school of silver fish with the blue transparent plate background draws your eye to the center where you can start to take notice of everything that surrounds them. The jellyfish are fantastic with their lightning bolt tentacles and I like the fact that the builder didn’t rely too heavily on sea grass to create the colorful plants. The sea floor bears closer inspection as it’s full of wonderful little touches. I really like the Swamp Creature’s mask at the bottom left in front of the gorgeous blue flower plant. I’m also quite taken with the interpretation of Ursula’s cauldron, ready to accept the witch’s brew she’s whipping up. So many beautiful details leave me asking: How many wonders can one cavern hold?
In this, the Caped Crusader’s 80th birthday year, what better way to celebrate the influence and impact of Bob Kane’s creation than with Timofey Tkachev‘s large-scale LEGO sculpture? The Batman has rarely looked better in the brick — the model’s shaping is spot-on, perfectly capturing those to-die-for Bat-Abs, and making a nice job of the comic world’s Second-Most-Iconic-Chin (Judge Dredd is clearly No. 1, in case you were wondering). The sculpting of the bat sigil on the chest is worth a good look, and I dread to think about the tricky connections which were required underneath all that armour to get the angles right.
Often, art ends up being a family business. How many Bachs and Strausses and Brueghels are there, to name a few? In the LEGO world, there are few notable families, too, one of which is the Durand clan. They boast such talents as Geneva (formerly known as KaiNRG), Isaiah (also known as Robert4168/Garmadon), Josiah (also known as W. Navarre), Sarah (also known as 24 Cupcakes), and Anna. All but Isaiah contributed to the collaborative build category of this year’s Summer Joust (put on by another famous LEGO family, Isaac and John Snyder), and the resulting story told in bricks is breathtaking. They opted for a full-frame, all-LEGO format for their presentation, which is exactly my cup of tea. They are telling, in four builds, the story of Ladyhawke, a 1985 medieval fantasy movie starring Matthew Broderick and Michelle Pfeiffer. The story begins in Aquila, built in technicolor by Josiah.
Click to see the other builds in the collaboration
Writers are often taught to write what they know, to create from a place of familiarity. This simple technique can also apply to building LEGO scenes depicting everyday life, like this delightful series by Khang Huynh, who, judging by their Flickr profile, is fairly new to building custom LEGO creations. They’re off to a great start, and I’ll be keeping a close eye out for more from this talented builder.
In this first scene, built using a colorful but muted palette, we see a city street being worked on by a most unusually colored excavator. Also, notice the teal brick separator tool stacked on the roof. I really like how the look of the separators is continued around the corner. Another great detail is the use of a Power Functions motor as a transformer.
Check out more Vietnamese scenes by Khang Huynh
Builder Patrick Biggs strikes again with another super-technical creation: “The Brothers.” This two-headed, dual-tailed dragon is enough to strike even the bravest of knights full of fear. The way Patrick designed the dragon is equally awe-inspiring.
I find the way the builder united both Bionicle-esque pieces with normal studded parts on the legs and tail of the dragon to be truly innovative. Additionally, the crazy amount of joints across the entire dragon allow for an large amount of potential poses, allowing for stories to take flight. I could easily see one of the heads breathing fire across a village while the other roars, announcing doom across the land.