Category Archives: Models

This is what we’re all about. We scour the web for the best custom LEGO models to share with you. From castles and spaceships to planes, trains, and automobiles, you’ll find the best LEGO creations from builders all over the world right here on The Brothers Brick.

Luck, Prosperity, and LEGO

We’ve all seen the giant Chinese dragons given life by hidden dancers in their bellies. They’re especially popular in parades surrounding the Chinese New Year. But they aren’t just for fun. These colorful characters are created to honor the beloved creatures of Chinese tradition and culture. Dragons are a symbol of power and luck. They are also said to represent prosperity and strength. This LEGO build, by Vlad Lisin, is a really cool tribute to their beauty.

Vlad has done a great job of bringing the dragon to life with the details of the face. I’m especially fond of the expressive eyes, eyebrows and cheeks.

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A new kind of old temple in the new world

Mesoamerican temples lend themselves naturally to LEGO, with their blocky shapes and colours that are often abundant in collections, namely grays and greens. There seems to be an influx of Mayan and Aztec temples lately as you might have noticed on The Brothers Brick, and we have the Summer Joust competition to thank for this. One of the creations built for this contest is this one by Andreas Lenander

The first thing that catches our attention is the dark tan ground, a change from the expected greens that are used in similar creations. While I like the contrast that green gives, tan is probably more realistic. The sand and olive green overgrowth on the temple is an interesting colour choice, joined by dark green, which looks almost black in the photo. This darker colour gives a strong impression of wet moss, setting the scene in a particularly dank swamp. Some of the more unique parts usages include the Statue of Liberty headgear used as serpent’s head ornaments and the brown treads used as vines.

Not even brick can save you from me!

We’ve seen a multitude of characters built by YOS Bricks in BrickHeadz form and otherwise, inspired by everything from Disney movies like Wreck it Ralph to Blizzard games. A strange mix indeed, and the collection of Blizzard Brickheadz has been flying under the radar so far. But now, with the addition of the Prime Evil Diablo from Diablo III and his host Leah, it is about time Yos Bricks’ “BlizzHeadz” get some recognition!

YOS Bricks takes the popular theme of Brickheadz to its limits and further with his builds, and the builder has declared that the Diablo figure in particular was the hardest so far. It is very complex while still keeping the basic BrickHeadz look. The ribbed horns are captured really well with the use of hinge bricks and 1×2 plates with door rail. Other characteristics like the iconic forehead and patterns on the demon’s body are also captured perfectly. The addition of Leah in the picture adds a bit of a sad tone to those more familiar with the story.

Click to see more of YOS Bricks’ Diablo characters in Brickheadz style

“He had decided to call her Hedwig, a name he had found in A History of Magic”

Builder spacehopper’s digital LEGO version of Hedwig finds Harry Potter’s snowy owl elegantly perched on what I hope is a copy of A History of Magic. Although relatively small in scale, the use of slopes in varied shades of grey and white effectively suggest feathers. This works well when contrasted with the more formal tiled technique used to create the magical tomes; I especially like the gold ingot elements added here to give textural detail to the book’s cover. Simple inset amber eyes, so often referred to by J.K. Rowling in her novels, complete the build, bringing Harry’s faithful companion to life.

Tlachtli: The Mesoamerican ballgame

The Mesoamerican ballgame is an ancient sport played throughout Central America starting more than three thousand years ago. While some games may have been played purely for exercise or entertainment, there is strong archaeological and historical evidence for highly ritualized games that could even end in human sacrifice for some or all of the losers. W. Navarre has captured the action of a ballgame from the Aztec era, when ballcourts included rings through which players tried to bounce the rubber ball. The builder uses forced perspective to achieve a backdrop with a stepped pyramid temple — even the blazing blue sky is built with bricks.

The microscale pyramid includes decorative elements made from cut stickers — only official LEGO stickers, of course! The cheese slopes work wonderfully for the pyramid’s steps.

A new beauty born from a new beauty born from decay

Château Nottebohm is an abandoned mansion in Belgium, and while it may not be the only one of its kind, there has to be something special about it to inspire Marion to build it in LEGO not once, but twice! Abandoned buildings are an acquired taste, but even if we would not all agree they are beautiful, decades of disuse have granted the mansion an aura of mystery and the impression of nature reclaiming what man has taken.

This amazing creation really rewards a closer look, so click here to see more!

A miniature city on the edge of forever

Inspired by artist Mike Kelley’s series of works based on Krypton’s capital city, Grant Masters has built his own cool microscale LEGO version of Kandor. The collection of transparent pieces is well-chosen, with internal structural elements within the bricks showing through to add texture and visual complexity you might not expect for something so small. The dramatic presentation and lighting is excellent too — that hint of green subtly evoking Superman’s lost homeworld and preventing the model being too stark and cold.

Do you really believe your puny powers can threaten a member of the Order of Mata Nui?

Long-time fans of Bionicle may remember the character of Brutaka, released as set 8734 in 2006. Masteryker has completely revamped and re-imagined the classic design into a beautiful but brutal-looking Brutaka. Brutaka has his signature mask and pearl gold colors but is constructed at a much more massive scale. The overall build feels wonderfully organic.

See the weapons wielded by this mighty Bionicle warrior

A chapel that won’t be assaulted

With their towering stone walls, crenelated turrets, and ornate decoration, medieval churches could almost be seen as castles–an idea helped in no small part by the frequency of medieval clergy acting like their secular counterparts. So whether this structure by KevinyWu belongs to the church or the state, the Fortress of St. Jocosa certainly prepared for what the world may throw at it. The fortress’ foundations are a nice bit of rockwork, giving a great feeling of a tiny castle perched upon a lonely rock, and the winding path leading to it, while using simple techniques of stacked dark tan plates, cuts a striking line through the scenery.

Click to see inside the fortress

A well-planned house for a big LEGO family

Everyone can build a LEGO house, but what about a thoroughly planned one? aukbricks shares an outstanding project of a cottage featuring both a brilliant exterior and fully furnished rooms. Because of the dimensions of the LEGO bricks, building interiors in minifigure scale can be pretty challenging, but this house boasts a lot of pieces of furniture that don’t look bulky or weird.

See more photos of this gorgeous LEGO home

Play on, my dead brothers

Character is everything when it comes to building LEGO figures, and Redverse’s Calavera Caballerso – literally “skull gentleman” – has this quality in spades. Stepping straight out of the Mexican Day of the Dead Festival, these two skeletal musicians show off an exaggerated graphic style not easy to capture in LEGO. Look closely and every detail reveals another clever building technique: from the fluted sleeves of their jackets, built from layered cones, to the technic element that doubles as a cravat. My favourite though has to be the black t-bar and white clip plate that forms both a mobile jaw and a toothy grin.

The eyes have it

I am mesmerized by Djokson’s latest build, Mask of the Spirit Caller. The bold colors and intricate design of the Orient Expedition shields make the eyes really pop. After recovering from the trance induced by staring deep into those eyes, I noticed the rest of the build is quite wonderful as well.

In addition to some clever parts usage, particularly the Hero Factory armor plates that ring the neck, this model also has great color blocking. The dynamic pose chosen for this photograph also brings the character to life. Rather than simply showing us a greqt build, Djorkson shows us a moment of a story and invites us to imagine the rest.