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.

A small LEGO village that’s big on action

This three-building LEGO village scene by Daniël de Wit has lots of fun details. A fence made from long rubber hoses keeps a pair of LEGO animals in their pen. And some lovely stained-glass windows in the small church are born of transparent red and green elements and some studs-not-on-top technique. Vines can be seen growing up the side of that house in front, which seems to have caught the eye of a nearby goat. The slight angle of the church leads the eye to some sort of confrontation on the path… maybe this knight has been racking up a hefty tab at the local watering hole.

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A rose that’s as pretty as a picture

If you need some LEGO to hang on your wall, look no further than this build by Ethen T! First I want to shout out how Ethen has found the perfect frame to match the dimensions of LEGO bricks. the 1×2 plates and jumpers tile the frame perfectly and give a textured background for the star of the show. Speaking of texture, here’s a lot of 1×1 corner tiles in this build! In addition to the tiles, Ethen has used plenty of organic LEGO pieces to add interest to the build. There’s plenty of flowers of three different types sprinkled throughout the petals and the stem. Considering this is a rose, Ethen has also fittingly added heart tiles to the mix as well. Now for the all important question: would you rather step on a LEGO brick or the thorn of a rose?

Cats vs dog in a LEGO competition of cuteness

LEGO pets don’t shed, smell, or trigger allergies, so its only natural that more and more households will replace living pets with brick-build friends, just as we have with our botanicals. Hot on the heels of the LEGO Tuxedo Cat, builder LEGO 7 offers up a feline pair who purr-fectly capture the housecat’s ability to assume liquid form. While small and stylized these cats punch above their weight in personality.

Meanwhile, Ian Hou (DOGOD Brick Design) makes fetch happen with a a dynamic doggo in motion. I can practically smell the drool on that tennis ball. Ian is a prolific animal builder who again manages to model realistic anatomy while keeping the charm of the LEGO brick front and center.

Whether you’re a dog person or a cat fancier, we’re all winners today!

Microscale LEGO beacon of civilization

When building microscale, a certain eye is needed to find unusual uses of LEGO elements designed for a larger scale. Uncharted Fabrications demonstrates this with their masterful use of minifigure accessories in this ancient city nested among waterfalls and rocks. From the teapots used as gates to coffee mugs “holding” up the main angled roof to various bowls turned domed roofs, this build is packed with expert-level part usage. The rockwork which serves as a backdrop is also quite nice. Building with studs in multiple directions and a variety of curved elements, the terrain is almost as interesting as the city.

Take a break in this courtyard of calm

Hot on the heels of one great immersive Arabic LEGO scene, comes another courtesy of Ids de Jong. Although made on a slightly smaller scale, it shares some similarities in scope, giving us a view into the courtyards that are so typical of this style of architecture. The arch pieces framing the entrance immediately set the tone for where we are, and the minarets and towers in the background employ forced perspective to give the impression that we’re somewhere in a bustling city. And that’s all great – but what my eye is drawn to is that mosaic at the front. It uses some clever LEGO geometry: the ridges on those inverted slopes are a half-plate thick, which combines with two more plates to give the exact width of the tiles on the corners!

Pensive Paul Atreides contemplates the future of the Dune-iverse in this LEGO mosaic

Using only seven colors of LEGO 1×1 round plate, mosaic master Ethen T captures the very essence of Timothée Chalamet’s turn as Muad’Dib. With filt-plug equipped and the background of Arrakis displayed in orange and yellow, this singular image goes a long way toward conveying the emotion of Dune: Part Two. And the way that Ethen manages to create the collar of the stillsuit using only grayscale is impressive at this scale and in this medium.

Stairway into shadows

The Summer Joust building competition challenged builders to create “stairway stories,” and most participants assembled their LEGO stairs upward. Isaiah Kepner takes a different approach with his model “The Shadowed Temple,” in which a wandering wizard approaches an ominous flight of stairs descending into the unknown. The surrounding wall features some impressive brickwork, mixing profile bricks, tiles, and ingots in every direction. For the trunks of the aspen trees, Isaiah borrowed a technique from Markus Rollbühler and incorporated Stormtrooper shin armor. Most impressive is the technique Isaiah devised for the cave itself, with a gradation of ever-darker bricks accentuating the darkness within. It’s an evocative scene and showcase of Isaiah’s growing skills as a castle builder.

Prepare to meet thy (map) maker!

Some of the best LEGO builds are the ones that not only have a story behind them, but that subvert expectations somewhat. Now I’m not talking about all the Nice Parts Use (NPU) in Eli Willsea‘s little vignette – although it is absolutely chock full of it. A wrench is used as a very sturdy-looking door handle, doors make for an elegant staircase, and candles mimic scrolls on shelves made out of Duplo elements. The bucket handles shoved into lever bases for the bookstand are cool too. This creation is titled “Madeline the Map Maker”, but is that really all she is? Look how brooding this place is… The dark red evokes something a little sinister to me. And it’s not helped by Madeline’s black robes. Perhaps we should be wary of where these maps might lead us!

Welcome, foolish mortals, to this detailed Haunted Mansion

Can’t make it to Disneyland any time soon? While this eerily detailed LEGO replica of the Haunted Mansion ride by legocellus doesn’t come with the smell of churros wafting over New Orleans Square, it does come crowd-free, which feels like a fair trade. Our tour starts outside the stately old manor. Enter if you dare!

You don’t need a Ghost Host to step inside and see more . . .

Playing with perspective in LEGO “painting”

Here at The Brothers Brick, we love when LEGO builders play with depth and space through forced perspective. For his build “Stairway to Memories,” forestArcher creates a clever trompe l’oeil effect with a framed shadowbox that houses yet another framed image within. Layers upon layers of depth, rendered flat as a painting. I appreciate the added detail of a gold ring hidden behind the potted plant, seen only in reflection. forestArcher credits TBB favorite W. Navarre as an inspiration for using forced perspective, and with this creation he proves an apt pupil.

forestArcher built his stairway illusion for the Summer Joust competition. Check out some of our other favorite entries in this castle-themed building tradition.

The cutest cherry bomb this side of the Mushroom Kingdom

When you think about it, the Super Mario world has a lot of role reversal in it. Suddenly, humble plumbers are superheroes, mushrooms become a deadly nuisance, and cherry bombs are made to look so harmless you could almost describe them as cute. Make no mistake, those wide eyes are those of an explosive killer: the Bob-omb, as recreated here by Łukasz Alagierski. The bulk of it uses a technique known as the Lowell Sphere, with a few additions to recreate the features of this cold-blooded killer. The cherry on top of this cherry bomb is the fuse, made by twisting LEGO string into a rope!

Rock Raiders return in epic Onyxx Expedition Diorama

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Rock Raiders, a theme that for many adult fans of LEGO is always worth celebrating thanks to the evocative subterranean setting, cool colors (teal!), and wonderful vehicle designs. LegoMathijs still carries a torch for the theme and his latest project takes us deep beneath the planet Onyxx with a truly massive celebration of the Rock Raiders theme.

LegoMathijs’ diorama is pure, high-grade nostalgia, incorporating many elements unique to the Rock Raiders theme and working mostly with parts and techniques of the late ’90s, minus the BURPs (big ugly rock parts). With dozens of minifigures, an array of vehicles, and a motherload of crystals, the scene shows the promise on the package of Rock Raiders sets writ large.

Drill down with us for a closer look!