Making LEGO furniture that meets the needs of your minifigures usually means utilising some of the smaller, more fiddly LEGO parts. Sarah Beyer has created some beautiful LEGO homes, each furnished for the most discerning of minifigures. There are instructions for three different chairs that feature in Cocoa Jungle Cottage and House on Striped Pillars. So take a relaxing seat in a comfy looking armchair…once you have built it of course!
Click here to see the instructions for two more chairs
The orange and blue colour scheme of the Ford GT40 Gulf represents the corporate colours of Gulf Oil. The original race car took part in Daytona and Sebring in 1967 as an independent entry by Gulf Oil executive vice president Grady Davis. Joachim Klang has managed to accurately build a LEGO version of this famous car using both brick and sticker solutions to pick out the orange highlights. The shaping of the chassis is fantastic at this scale, the sloped hood and front bumper are particularly well constructed.
It is worth noting that everything in the image is brick-built, from the paint brushes and paint pots, to the scalpel used to cut the stickers. No detail has been missed, including the unfinished driver still on the sprue.
You may occasionally still see the unmistakable Citroën 2CV gliding along the lanes of rustic French towns, some 70 years after its first introduction. Builder Nico71 pays homage to the iconic economy car with this 1/15 scale model.
The model features independent front suspension and rear suspension, opening front and rear doors, wheel-operated steering, and an opening trunk compartment (with a surprise hidden feature inside!). It also sports many brick-built stylistic touches, from the engine under the hood to the exhaust pipe in the back.
Rather than using Technic panels, each door consists of multiple Technic beams stacked pin holes-up to form a single, solid surface. Likewise, the roof, A-, B-, and C-pillars of the 2CV combine multiple beams to create the silhouette of the vehicle. The wheel wells and mudguards, however, show the curved building technique that strings Technic 1 x 3 beam pieces along a soft axle hose, creating an elegant arch. It’s a similar technique to one the that impressed us in the recent Shanghai LEGO Architecture set, where it was used to construct the twisting Shanghai Tower.
You can read more about the design and functionality of this model from Nico71’s website.
If you’ve studied antiquity or maybe just seen the film 300, you are familiar with the story of the Battle of Thermopylae, where a small collection of highly trained Spartans defended the “Gates of Hell” against an overwhelming Persian force. Letranger Absurde has created a cute little vignette featuring the shields of at least 50 battle hardened Spartans forming a protective dome or tortoise formation. I love how the simplicity of the colours juxtaposes the textures of the shields and rocks. A cracking little build.
In many movies depicting robots, artificial intelligence (A.I.) and the challenge of determining whether an A.I. is sentient often develops as part of the plot. Movies and shows like Westworld, Star Wars, and Short Circuit all feature robots that appear to share more human emotions like empathy, curiosity, hurt, anger. This LEGO mecha built by Nick Dryvvall captures the impression of robot sentience in my mind. The crouched pose, inquisitively reaching out to touch something newly discovered is reminiscent of a child crouching with the same intent. I find it most endearing and I can almost hear a few delighted little beeps emanating from the captivated robot.
The same mecha looks altogether different in a more agressive pose with its inquisitive arm stowed and weapons at the ready.
Building the lunar lander module from the Apollo 11 mission presents a unique challenge: to create the base of the lander in gold, which traditionally has not been a very common color for LEGO elements. However, with the help of some newer pearl gold elements, tankm has accomplished this very nicely. The model almost feels like minifig scale, considering just how cramped the lander was. Some flower parts in light gray make perfect thruster nozzles (just like on the official LEGO Saturn V moon rocket), and I love the use of black roller skates as ladder rungs. Maybe we will get a rover to go with it?
Portugal’s premier LEGO fan event Paredes de Coura is now celebrating it’s 3rd year. The show is from June 8th through 10th, with setup on the 7th. Slots for AFOL attendees are filling up fast and registration closes on February 28th, so don’t delay! The registration fee of €100 includes 3 nights of boarding house accommodation and 3 meals per day for all 4 days. For an additional €25 you can also attend a special AFOL dinner on Saturday night.
From reports we’ve heard from fans who have attended this event previously, it’s not to be missed, not only because of all the great benefits included in the registration price, the amazing food and glorious location, but also the amazing club house with it’s own communal LEGO collection! I’m looking forward to my first visit there this summer and to meeting you all there.
Steampunk is an always present theme in LEGO fan creations, and it pairs well with many different motives, from aircraft to architecture. Andreas Lenander adds to the latter with his recent build named Department of energy, a part of a larger collection of steampunk creations.
The building is a prime example of classic 19th century western architecture, with quite an interesting rooftop – a part often neglected. It appears as though the numerous technical additions were built on top of an older building in a time of disproportionately fast technological advancement. The multiple steam exhausts give a lot of character and the little touch of digital editing for the mysterious shine is a cherry on top.
As the last place to buy a few essentials or enjoy a good nights sleep before continuing on your journey, Minnie’s Haberdashery is a key location in Quentin Tarantino’s movie, The Hateful Eight. Marion has built a replica view of the haberdashery in LEGO and it really is an amazing likeness. There are hanging dried herbs and vegetable swaying from the ceiling, a huge assortment of jugs, boxes, barrels, lamps and mugs scattered across tables, shelves and chests of drawers. I love the placement of certain key features; the large beam frames our view to the left and the stool and table are in the forefront with a chest of drawers and open wooden shutters on the right.
Comparison with the actual set from the movie is a must, although Marion has added a few blood spots as we would expect in a Tarantino film.
Photo: Andrew Cooper, SMPSP © 2015 The Weinstein
This row of colorfully crooked medieval houses by Ralf Langer depicts his first attempt at building a custom LEGO creation. While it’s hard to believe a new builder’s first LEGO creation can be a masterpiece, it’s certainly possible but usually requires lots of studying other creations and experimenting with building techniques. Ralf has probably done plenty of both, and the result paid off beautifully. I like the style of using detached landscape elements to enhance the setting, which adds a lot of depth to the scene.
Yes, the future is now! No more tying your own shoes: Flickr user vmln8r has designed the “Self-lacing shoe.” Better late than never, Marty!
The design looks simple and requires relatively few parts. The single axle accomplishes the real work of winding the shoe laces taut. The genius of this contraption, I think, shines in how the powered components—Power Functions L-Motor, IR Receiver, and AAA Battery Box—wrap snugly around the sides of the shoe. The transfer of power bears attention, as the machine uses a series of gears, including a worm gear, to direct the twisting motion from the vertically-oriented L-Motor to the horizontal axle.
In case you’re wondering: yes, the contraption works! You can watch the self-lacing shoe in action in this YouTube clip:
Starting today, LEGO IDEAS 21313 Ship in a Bottle is available at your local LEGO Store and the LEGO Shop online for $69.99. We predict this set will be a popular one, so we are hoping LEGO has the appropriate amount in stock to handle demand.
For larger orders of $125 or more, the promotional set 40290 60 Years of the LEGO Brick is still available from the LEGO Shop, so this is a great opportunity to get both amazing sets if you haven’t already.
