Tag Archives: Chris McVeigh

LEGO Ideas 21353 The Botanical Garden – Is it everything we’ve hoped for? [Review]

LEGO fans have been begging for a large botanical garden for quite some time. The LEGO Friends 41757 Botanical Garden is immensely popular, and many fans have been buying multiple to create a larger version. It comes as no surprise that fan designer, Valentina Bima, easily achieved the LEGO Ideas support threshold with her lovely submission – and that it was chosen to be a set. LEGO Ideas 21353 The Botanical Garden appears to be a beautiful ode to tradition Victorian glasshouses. But what’s on the inside, and how’s the build experience? Join us as we take a tour!

This 3792-piece set contain 12 minifigures and 9 animals, and LEGO’s in-house set designer, Chris McVeigh, even revealed to us that it includes at least 35 species of plants! It will be available for LEGO Insiders starting November 1st, and everyone else November 4th, retailing for US $329.99 | CAN $429.99 | UK £289.99.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

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LEGO Ideas 21349 Tuxedo Cat [Review]

Have you ever wanted to own a cat, but didn’t want to clean the litter box or pay for vet visits? The latest set from the LEGO Ideas crowdsourcing platform has got you covered, as 21349 Tuxedo Cat is the perfect feline friend who will always stay where you put it and rarely scratch up your couch. The project was first submitted to Ideas by fan Damian Andres (AKA The Yellow Brick) way back at the end of 2020 as a sculpture of his cat, a Siamese-Birman mix named Miro. The official set shifts the color scheme to a Tuxedo and makes a fair number of changes to the construction, but keeps the overall scale and pose the same as Damian’s submission. The Ideas model boasts 1,710 pieces, and includes pieces to swap out for yellow or blue eyes, along with an alternate lower lip to give the cat a different expression. It will be available starting June 1 for US $99.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £89.99.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

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LEGO Icons Botanical Collection 10314 Dried Flower Centerpiece – a seasonal delight for you dinner table [Review]

The latest in the LEGO Botanical Collection has finally arrived. This popular line has been a triumph for the brand, in that décor fans who have no experience with building are picking up these gorgeous sets. Likewise, experienced builders looking for something a little more sophisticated and elegant have found their niche. It’s one of those themes that have us thinking, what arrangement might they think of next? Well here we are! Join us as we take a tour of the 812-piece LEGO Icons Botanical Collection 10314 Dried Flower Centerpiece, which will hit shelves February 1st, and retail for US $49.99 | CAN $69.99 | UK £44.99.

Click for the full review!

LEGO Icons reveals 10306 Atari 2600 to celebrate Atari’s 50th anniversary with a brick-built console [News]

Following the success of 71374 Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), LEGO has unveiled its next nostalgia-laden set in the Icons theme with a throwback to one of the original home gaming consoles: 10306 Atari 2600. The iconic console, released in November of 1982, celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The 2,532-piece set includes the console itself and the distinctive joystick controller, along with a cartridge holder and three game cartridges with LEGO-ified artwork, Adventure, Asteroids, and Centipede. The set also includes microscale vignettes for each of the three games, as well as a pop-up minifigure-scale scene built into the console itself. The Atari 2600 will be available US $239.99 | CAN $299.99 | UK £209.99 when it’s available starting Aug. 1.

Click to see more pictures of the Atari 2600

LEGO Winter Village Collection 10293: Santa’s Visit – Some seriously fun holiday cheer [Review]

I know it’s hard to believe, but we’re already heading in the tail end of 2021. And that means it’s time for LEGO to unveil their yearly addition to the Winter Village Collection. This year there’s no beating around the bush – we get right to the main event. LEGO Winter Village Collection 10293: Santa’s Visit will be available to VIP members starting September 16th, and at LEGO stores starting October 1st, for US $99.99 | CAN $139.99 | UK £79.99, and brings that momentous event to life. But will it be a holiday disaster? Come along as we take a close look at this seasonal offering!

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Click to read the full hands-on review

LEGO 10289 Bird of Paradise designer Chris McVeigh talks about his design [News]

LEGO’s new Bird of Paradise set, designed by Chris McVeigh (also known as powerpig) is part of LEGO’s Botanical Collection subtheme. When compared to the other two sets in this theme, Flower Bouquet and Bonsai Tree, Bird of Paradise is the largest with 1,173 pieces and  retails for  US $99.99 | CAN $139.99 | UK £89.99.

Check out the designer video!

LEGO 40456 & 40457 Brick Sketches: Mickey and Minnie Mouse [Review]

In 2020, LEGO revealed Brick Sketches, a collectible series of brick-built portraits of popular characters. The first wave featured DC comic icons Batman and the Joker, and Star Wars fan favorites BB-8 and a First Order Stormtrooper. A second wave of designs will start arriving in stores on March 1st, and will retail for US $16.99 | CAN $19.99 | UK £14.99. The new sketches feature Disney’s Mickey and Friends, and includes 40456 Mickey Mouse and 40457 Minnie Mouse. How do these new sketches stack up? Are they of any interest beyond just being cute? Read on and see!

The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick an early copy of these sets for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Click to read the full hands-on review

LEGO Modular Buildings Collection 10278 Police Station [Review]

With last year’s 10270 Bookshop, LEGO returned to a more traditional style of architecture than the 1950’s style of the previous couple of years. With this year’s 10278 Police Station, LEGO continues a classic look that would not feel out of place on the streets of New York or London. The new Modular set includes 2,923 pieces with five minifigures, and will be available starting January 1st, 2021 ($199.99 US | $269.99 CAD | UK pricing TBD).

The theme of the set is not without controversy and some strong reactions from within the LEGO fan community. We’ll address this later in the review, but ask our readers up front to be respectful of differing opinions in the comments.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Read our hands on review of 10278 Police Station

LEGO 40386 & 40428 Brick Sketches: Batman and The Joker [Review]

LEGO Brick Sketches are a new collectible series of brick-built portraits of popular characters. A departure from the standard “building toy” concept, but in many respects similar to the collectibility angle of LEGO BrickHeadz, these are small pieces of art meant to be hung on the wall or displayed on a shelf. Slated to be available July 15, they will retail for US $19.99 | EU €19.99 each. The first four sets in the series are split between DC and Star Wars characters, and this time we’ll take a close look at the two comic book offerings, 40386 Brick Sketches: Batman and 40428 Brick Sketches: The Joker.

Click to read the full hands-on review

Behind the scenes of Brick Sketches: An interview with LEGO designer Chris McVeigh [Feature]

Last week, we had a chance to talk to Chris McVeigh, the designer of the new Brick Sketches series. Chris developed the concept of Brick Sketches long before joining the LEGO Group last year. Now he tells us more about his first major release as a LEGO designer.

Read our interview with LEGO Brick Sketches designer Chris McVeigh

LEGO reveals Brick Sketches product line featuring brick-built portraits [News]

LEGO has revealed a brand new product line called Brick Sketches featuring brick-built portraits of popular characters. The first four sets revealed include BB-8, a First Order Stormtrooper, Batman and The Joker. The Brick Sketches sets will be available July 15, and will retail for US $19.99 | EU €19.99.

Initially shared by our friends at Brickset, the 2D portraits are similar in packaging to the BrickHeadz product line and will likely become a new collectible series. Brick Sketches are no doubt the work of recently-hired LEGO designer Chris McVeigh who created the Brick Sketch concept several years ago (and has been featured on TBB many times).

Take a closer look at the new LEGO Brick Sketches sets.

Retro and Red [Instructions]

What’s retro, red, super spiffy, and something that you can build with conveniently downloadable PDF instructions? Chris McVeigh‘s latest LEGO range and refrigerator models, of course! Chris is well-known for his LEGO renditions of real world things. Like his lineup of retro technology building kits, for instance. His rendition of a retro range and refrigerator lives up to his reputation for clean, sleek lines and wonderful parts usage.

Retro Range, Refrigerator

Find links to instructions to build these models after the break!