Category Archives: LEGO

You’d probably expect a lot of the posts on a LEGO website like The Brothers Brick to be about LEGO, and you’d be right. If you’re browsing this page, you might want to consider narrowing what you’re looking for by checking out categories like “Space” and “Castle.” We’re sure there’s something here that’ll fascinate and amaze you.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for October 15, 2017 [News]

In addition to the best LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick also brings you the best of LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the third week of October 2017.

TBB NEWS: This is your last chance to win a UCS Millennium Falcon and to get double VIP points at the LEGO Shop online! Hurry!

Last day to enter the TBB LEGO Millennium Falcon Contest — You have until midnight PT tonight to post your custom LEGO creations featuring the Millennium Falcon for a chance to win the most epic prize pack in history
Review of Chris McVeigh’s My First Computer DOS Edition — Chris McVeigh’s builds are always designed with detail and care, and this computer did not disappoint.
Instruction to build your own TIE Fighter — Thanks to instructions provided by Inthert, you can build his LEGO version of this iconic starfighter and take on the nearest X-wing.
Double VIP points + a cart load of freebies from the LEGO Shop — The LEGO Shop online started its latest Double VIP Points event this week, with a slew of other freebies.

OTHER LEGO NEWS: This week had quite a few other interesting LEGO-related news articles. Here are the best of the rest.

Become a LEGO person with this DIY cardboard costume, CNET — Feeling ambitious this Halloween? Go for brick with this LEGO minifig costume how-to video.
LEGO vs Architecture: BBC film explains how it’s all connected, Arch Daily, — Lego – The Building Blocks of Architecture, explores the history of LEGO and its relationship to architecture, from its origins with carpenter Ole Kirk Kristiansen to modernist ideals.
LEGO model of Florence cathedral to be made, The Florentine — 20,000 LEGO bricks will be used to make the a large-scale model of the Florence Cathedral and the Baptistery.
This guy built a giant Leica camera out of LEGO, PetaPixel — Danish designer Milan Madge recently built himself a gigantic Leica III rangefinder camera out of LEGO blocks.

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Alive from the Night of Frankenstein Rock and Roll!

Halloween is coming and this hideously adorable Frankie by Ben Fong is opening the show. Despite his very strained face, the monster is utterly enjoying his new loud guitar. Speaking about this awesome red guitar, I bet there’s only Marceline the Vampire Queen who could steal the show with her iconic instrument!

Modern day Sisyphus

They say great minds think alike, but I’m sure it is much better when great minds think together. Last month Josh DaVid shared a mesmerising lawn mower kinetic sculpture. And now JK Brickworks gets into a game by upgrading Josh’s work with a figure from one of his own masterpieces, Sisyphus kinetic sculpture. The result is a very witty sketch of a modern day Sisyphus. Times has changes, so have the instruments, but not the human’s nature.

The video shared on Youtube is just 4:30 minutes long, but, no doubt, one can spend a whole day just watching this endless battle between the human and the nature.

Master Wu’s Secret Hideout

This looks like it could have come straight from The LEGO Ninjago Movie. Titled “Master Wu’s Secret Hideout,” this temple-like structure by Lysander Chau is comprised of a nice mix of future Zen-type designs on the bottom third of the build and the remaining two floors are very classical Ninjago-ish themes. What makes it stand out a little more is its use of gold adornments — just enough to make it feel grand but at the same time homely. I’m beginning to wonder if Master Wu has a second job in order to afford such a luxurious abode.

It’s close to midnight, and something evil lurkin’ in the dark...

There were a couple of things about Plants vs Zombies that kept me hooked to the game a little longer than it was probably supposed to – the mesmerizing and never-ending melody and seeing this particular reference to Michael Jackson in zombie form! Builder Hsinwei Chi beautifully captures the in-game version of Michael in full detail, including his signature one-handed white glove. The power of pop culture just makes me want to whip out my mobile device and take it for another spin!

Hit more to see a couple extra iconic poses!

A palace fit for a minifigure queen

Royal palaces are normally buildings with amazing architecture, plush interiors and rich decoration, and this LEGO palace is no different. Built by Johan Keuterink, this huge modular palace has a few similarities to Buckingham Palace, not just in its Neoclassical architecture style, but also the two Royal Guards that the Queen has lent to protect the entrance! Although the Baroque details will not be to everyone’s taste, the aim is to impress visiting heads of state, and Johan’s palace should certainly achieve such an aim. I love intricate exterior street lights and the front door with some suitably impressive gold handles.

Johan has taken the time to ensure that his palace has a lavishly decorated interior — Donatella Versace would feel at home in this house! The throne room is an example of the extensive details inside the palace with vast chandelier, patterned floor, and more gold than Fort Knox.

The unappreciated droids from classic Star Wars

GNK Power Droids are better known as “Gonk” droids because of the low, honking sounds they produce while moving about. This larger build by Eric Druon gives us a close-up detail of what we usually see represented with smaller bits and fewer details.

I do appreciate how the builder took the time to even showcase the battery packs inside. The best way to understand its purpose in today’s context is the equivalent of your mobile power chargers — they’re there to provide juice whenever you need it. If there’s one thing from the future that needs to happen soon, this is it. We’re definitely going to need more of these turned into a reality as they simply wander around on-screen as in the Star Wars movies, and I’m assuming be available for you on demand. It certainly beats carrying around an additional battery pack in your pocket today.

The escape of a colourful monster

The Masterpiece Gallery in LEGO House has creations from seventeen different fan builders from all over the world. French builder Samuel Pister has specially designed this fantastical monster for the display. Samuel explains that the build is the story of a colourful monster who is confined in the display case and wants to escape. The only language the monster speaks is modelling colours to express his emotions, and he is trying to call out to visitors to help him. The monster looks at the outside world with the face of the lime goblin, and he tries to push up the display with the orange tree. He is asking for love and touching the window with an aqua hand.

You might think that there is no way this monster can escape but by leaving a mark in the mind of the visitors, engraving colours and leaving questions, he will escape with them when they exit the house.

To move space cargo, you need space freighters

Freighters are a not uncommon amongst LEGO spacecraft, but still notably less frequent than fighters – that is why they are always a welcome change from the usual militarized space genre. This time we can thank James Zhan for the refreshment, although the guns mounted at the side still hint at a somewhat violent universe.

The cargo crate’s shape and texture contrasts nicely with the core of the spacecraft, but I do wish James contrasted the colour too. As far as the freighter itself goes, it has a lot going for it. The rounded shape, while simply constructed, is pleasing to the eye and the body is filled with different doodads and details to break it up without making it look too chaotic and scattered. The careful little hints of orange make an otherwise utilitarian colour scheme quite a treat too.

Chris McVeigh’s My First Computer DOS Edition [Review]

Even if you’ve not heard of Chris McVeigh, you’ve probably seen his builds in one way or another, especially his iconic Classic Mac that’s been featured quite a bit across the media. As a brick artist, Chris specializes in capturing fragments of details in tiny builds that give maximum impact. The other great part about Chris’s builds is that all of his build guides are available free for download and all you need to do to enjoy his wonderful creations are to source the bricks from sites like Bricklink or gather what you have from your very own stash. Of course, there are those that may not have the time or knowledge of the secondary LEGO market to gather all those parts, which makes purchasing a custom kit directly from the artist becomes a great option. For those that do, there’s no detail spared in the experience. Trust me on this, I’m going to bet that you’ll be impressed by the level of care and detail that Chris puts into this.

Read the full review

Good coffee is like good building – it’s all in the technique

Sometimes the use of interesting techniques, or a lot of clever parts usage, can overwhelm a LEGO model — distracting from the creation as a whole, interfering with the design intent. However, this
café model by César Soares manages to create an attractive and cohesive scene whilst being packed to the hilt with ultra-smart building techniques. The brick-built signage and the lovely brick-built furniture might catch the eye first, but don’t miss all the surrounding textures. It’s worth zooming in to check out the tile roofs built of air tanks and ingots, the uneven stone paving, and those walls — the red brick facade is constructed from plates and bars, and the lower grey wall is built out of briefcases!

Futuristic military truck is packed with grunt

When LEGO builders tackle the future, they’re often tempted to make everything smooth and sleek. No danger of that here, with Joshua Brooks‘ Manticore Truck offering a serious sense of heft and gritty purpose. This comes in no small part from the impressive levels of texture and detailing evident despite the relatively restrained colour scheme. I particularly like the winch on the front fender, and the tools clipped on the sides — details which evoke classic Jeeps and Hummers, helping make this military vehicle feel realistic as well as futuristic.