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.

Heading off some flowery NPU

The Botanical Collection has been a great source of Nice Parts Use (NPU) by the standards of LEGO sets, and it’s inspired builders to find their own clever uses for unusual parts. The latest to dig around in their parts bin is Jaroslaw Walter. The result is not one, but two flowering plants, presented in a nice little pond. The lilypad plants make use of some minifigure headwear: a crown in the middle, and the Collectible Minifigure series 21 ladybug figure headdress. There’s another headpiece in the bigger plant too: Ahsoka’s montrals sit at the centre. But what really catches the eye are the pterodactyl wings used as leaves! It borrows some of the floral tech from 10280 Flower Bouquet.

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Start your plasma engines, the LEGO F-Zero GP is about to begin!

While these days Nintendo’s F-Zero might be best known as providing a stage and combatant in Smash Bros, the franchise was once among the crown jewels of Nintendo platforms. Each game pushed the hardware limits of its generation to create a thrilling sense of speed, and the colorful hovercrafts and their alien racers added a layer of story and lore never before seen in a racing game. Nintendo super-fan Clément pays tribute to the intergalactic grand prix with a LEGO starting gate and three racers: the Wild Goose, Golden Fox, and Sonic Phantom. Clément nails the chunky aesthetics of the N64 era, when the franchise went 3D, witch each vehicle’s colors and silhouette instantly recognizable.

If Clément’s take on Nintendo’s space racers has you feeling the need for speed, consider revisiting the Brothers Brick speeder circuit for other zippy hover vehicles.

A mad scientist’s lab you won’t want to leave

In the early 2010s, while most people were watching LOST, I was engrossed in the mysteries of a different show: Fringe. It ran for five seasons before its unjust cancellation, but not before it proved itself to be one of the most thoughtful, creative, and well-written sci-fi shows on air. With that preface to anyone who missed out on Fringe‘s initial run, ledamu12‘s detailed LEGO recreation of Walter Bishop’s lab is a welcome blast from the past.

Take a tour of the lab

The lotus and the damselfly

Mattia Careddu takes us on a journey to Sri Lanka with a LEGO version of the Nymphaea Nouchali, or Blue Lotus, the country’s national flower. The model makes good use of Hero Factory cocoon elements as petals, and syringes double as stamens. Admiring the flower is a Prodasineura Sita, a species of damselfly endemic to the island nation. Minifig hands make for excellent hairs on the delicate insect’s spindly legs. Care Creation regularly finds inspiration in unusual LEGO elements or subjects not typically seen in LEGO models. This tiny model does both!

Dear John Deere combine delivers delightful detail

What is it that makes John Deere farm equipment such a compelling subject for LEGO builders? Maybe it’s the highly-specialized machinery that make a seemingly impossible task like harvesting acres of grain as easy as mowing a lawn. Or maybe it’s just the iconic green and gold colors. Reddish Blue makes their Flickr debut with an incredible John Deere combine harvester at minifig scale. The model packs in a remarkable amount of functionality through technic elements, without compromising the aesthetics of the best City vehicles. RB maximizes play features and utility with optional front treads and a trailer for transporting the header. Even if you’ve never stepped foot on a commercial farm, you can’t help but appreciate this impressive model.

Astronomy tower shoots for the stars

Centuries before Copernicus and Galileo would shake up our understanding of the cosmos in Europe, Islamic scholars like Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi were making breakthroughs about the movement of the earth, planets, and stars. Tylar_Lego pays tribute to the Golden Era of Islamic astronomy with this remarkable tower in LEGO.

The fictional tower impresses not only with the ornate architecture at massive scale, but with incredible landscaping and depictions of life at minifig scale.

Zoom in for a closer look at this telescopic tower!

A magical LEGO creation full of Prestige

Some LEGO creations are downright magical, featuring the very best of scientific advancements to put on a marvelous show! And the same can be said of the inspiration for this miniland-scale build by Daniel Church. Based on the 2006 film The Prestige, Daniel employs LEGO-compatible lights to recreate this ultimate magic trick from the movie, transporting Hugh Jackman’s Robert Angier in front of the audience’s eyes using fictional tech provided by Nikola Tesla. And given the technique displayed in this brilliant recreation, I’m equally moved!

Award winning builders are back with a champion LEGO diorama!

A team of elite historical LEGO builders have come together to create a sprawling diorama! Natelego_, Carson, Hunter E., Noah, Max, Matt, Hunter C., and Gary have taken on the Battle of Isted fought in 1850 between the Danish forces and rebels from the local provinces at the village of Isted. This build was displayed at BrickFair VA 2024 where it won Best Battle Scene! Take a look at the partially demolished church on the right side. While there’s one window still standing, the wall has collapsed leaving only the windowsill and part of the frame of the second window. And be sure to gander at the wider landscape too! Building hills and dips in the terrain one plate at a time must take a lot of patience. All of the lush vegetation really brings this scene to life, too.

Take a look at more closeups here!

Half-timbered LEGO cottage goes full goth

Half-timbered Tudor architecture is a favorite subject for LEGO castle builders. Peter Botcher has become adept at the style while making his mark by adding a pitch black sense of humor and goth gloom to his works (he even made his own tombstone out of LEGO). For his latest cottage, Peter impresses with use of color, especially the mossy brickwork and the splash of magenta vines against the black roof. He finds creative variations for the timber on the facade, including tail pieces and corner tiles. The model is titled “Nobody’s Home,” but the smoke coming from that spooky chimney, adorned with unholy accoutrements, suggests otherwise. Enter at your own risk!

A deluxe hotel for the deluxe LEGO traveler

With tons of LEGO bricks in pastel colors and plenty of curved lines, Hotel Deluxe by Andrew Tate really packs a punch of brick built nostalgia. The business is alive with the hustle and bustle of so many minifigure travelers, carrying in their luggage, dining at the patio tables, snapping shots of the impressive façade, or even sunbathing on the roof. The round windows in light aqua have got to be my favorite touch here, forming what would be a quartet of rectangular windows into a circular portal through the use of some 6-wide arch pieces.

And if you’re looking for things to do while staying at the Hotel Deluxe, be sure to check out all the other amazing LEGO buildings by Andrew in our TBB archives.

Woomy World’s torch of triumph

The Bio-Cup is an annual LEGO fan competition for creators who incorporate Bionicle and constraction parts, often focusing on organic shapes and evocative characters, with an emphasis on artistic interpretation of a theme. After a three month marathon of MOCs, the 2024 Bio-Cup winner has been crowned: Nathan Don (aka Woomy World)! The theme for the final round was, fittingly, “Final Boss.” Woomy’s answer is an epic jrpg-flavored manifestation of creative burnout, a villain many creatives are all too familiar with. The bottom half of the model, representing the “Soul of Emptiness,” features a wonderfully sculpted face in grey reminiscent of a stony Moai. Above, “Sheer Frustration” bursts from the head as an avatar of agony in all black. A behind-the-scenes peek, reveals more of how the dynamic statue was formed (including a vintage boat weight being used for balance).

We previously featured Woomy World’s enchanting owl from round 3 of this year’s competition, and the other builds that contributed to the win are equally impressive.

Take a victory lap through Woomy’s winning world!

Medieval bathhouse is a clean build indeed

LEGO models from Eli Willsea feature clean lines and smooth surfaces where studs have been all but scrubbed away, which makes a medieval hammam (public bathhouse) the ideal subject for his immaculate building style. I love the variety of arches stacked and nested the give the build an airiness, complemented by the bits of greenery around the scene. Of course this wouldn’t be a ForlornEmpire build without some mind-blowing parts usage. DUPLO brooms are a truly unexpected part that fit so naturally into the scene. Droid arms and binoculars link so neatly into the arches, it’s hard to believe LEGO didn’t design them for just that purpose. The greatest trick in the scene has to be the water effect, made from upside down transparent baseplates, creating the perfect bubbly surface.