If you think of a hot-rod, there’s a good chance you’d think of a modified old car, perhaps something like the Ford Model A. In LEGO form, there’s one theme that sticks out for styling its cars in a similar 1930s aesthetic: Fabuland. And if you think that theme’s bright colours wouldn’t suit a rapid straight-line rat-rod, here’s captainsmog‘s drag racer to change your mind! It’s a great tribute to the theme, making use of old parts – the windscreen window frame, and Ricky Raccoon, of course – alongside newer ones, like the red bucket headlights. Even the Wacky Racers-esque rocket on the back fits the vibe!
Tag Archives: Fabuland
Fabulous LEGO Cloud Nine Car from an old smoothie
Stewart Lamb Cromar‘s Star Wars x Fabuland mashups have been viral sensations and appeared at LEGO shops and conventions, but his latest creation the Cloud Nine Car, was created for a much smaller audience. The adorable build, made from vintage parts and presented in custom packaging, was a wedding gift for friends. Stewart originally designed the pods using yellow Fabuland boat hulls to match the theme’s iconic red, yellow, and blue color scheme, but ultimately swapped them for red to better match the source material. Whether in smaller sets like the Fabulandspeeder, or on the massive scale of the Tie Bungalow Hanger, Stewart’s builds always deliver smiles.
Should you find yourself in Billund, Stewart’s work can currently be found at LEGO House where his Fabuland paddle steamer recently joined the World Explorers experience.
A Star Wars Fabuland hangar with a special feature for folks dealing with sight loss
We seem to love the LEGO theme of Fabuland here at The Brothers Brick. We’re also big fans of Star Wars, in case you haven’t figured that out. So naturally, when Stewart Lamb Cromar posted his new Fabuland Tie Fighter hangar, we were pretty thrilled. The Darth Vader TIE Fighter and the army of Perry Pandas looking very much like stormtroopers are quite charming. What we didn’t expect, however, was to learn that Stewart has been dealing with sight loss. As a result, this hangar, which would have normally taken him a few weeks to construct, took nearly a year factoring in eight eye surgeries and their associated recovery time. For individuals such as himself, Stewart included an extraordinary feature built into the detailing of this hangar.
This small LEGO fishing boat is simply Fabu-lous!
Building the gentle curve of a boat hull in LEGO bricks can be a challenge. That is, unless you find an old Fabuland boat part in your collection like Norton74. He promptly put it to good use as the start of a fishing boat full of the kind of details we have come to expect from Andrea. The simple dock gives a good setting without taking attention away from the vessel. It includes a small cargo hold and a rig for hauling in the day’s catch. Round, white studs give the boat a proper wake in a bed of transparent blue as it approaches the dock at the end of a long day.
What the world needs now is a TIE Bungalow
The other day I was telling anyone who would listen, which was precisely no one as it turned out, that LEGO has never produced a UCS TIE Bomber. Well, if Stewart Lamb Cromar was within earshot we might be best bros by now as his write-up for this creation states pretty much the same thing. There is no UCS TIE Bomber so Stu (can I call you Stu?) took matters into his creative hands with the Fabuland TIE Bungalow. It combines the joy of living in a sweet Fabuland-style house with the exhilaration of being all Star Wars-y and bombing rebel bases. Sign me up! Billy Bear even somewhat resembles the all-black-clad TIE Fighter pilots. Combining awesome themes is pretty much Stewart’s thing. If you dig the Fabuland vibe, (and who doesn’t, really?) then check out our Fabuland Archives to see unique creations by Stewart and others.
Fabulous + soldier = Fabusoldier?
When it comes to arming animals, Moko is one of – if not the – best in the business. We’re big fans of his work, and apparently so are the residents of Fabuland. They’ve moved on from the happy-go-lucky bright colours of the 1980s and are upgrading their armory. After Peter Pig and Lionel Lion, Bonnie Bunny is the third character to get their own mech, and this one gets airborne! There’s some serious Apache helicopter vibes here – the olive green looks great. And there’s in-flight snacks! It seems even a mech-suit army still marches, and flies, on its stomach.
Picking up the pieces, Fabuland style
I’ve always had a fondness for a good fan-made redux of an old-school LEGO set, and this lovely overhaul of 3634 Charlie Crow’s Carry-All by Jens Ådne J. Rydland fits the bill perfectly. The classic Fabuland truck has been expanded drastically from its original 17-piece build, adding lots more detail like the wooden truck bed and more details on the undercarriage. The trash bin was in the original, but a lamppost and cobblestone street have been added to complete the diorama.
Then why is it a HAMburger?!
This cyborg version of an old Fabuland figure is pretty torn up about your food choices. Flickr Builder Moko has been making mechs for a long time and, after creating some cyborg versions of LEGO animals, they’ve moved on to some LEGO legends. For the unfamiliar, Fabuland sets were introduced at the end of the 70s and went out of production at the end of the 80s. As Moko puts it in his blog, Fabuland offered a more “picture-book-like world view” with anthropomorphized animal citizens. Think of them as the middle sibling between Duplo and LEGO with a twist of Richard Scarry’s Busytown. Though these figures and sets aren’t produced by LEGO anymore, they still have a core fan group among some collectors due to their rarity and obscurity. Here Moko has created a mercenary cyborg soldier with an edgy appetite. The plethora of detailed, hinged elements that Moko uses combine in the arms, legs and bodies provide a thick, responsive frame to protect the rider within. Fully armed and prepared for combat, this mech only has one week spot but its a necessary one. After all, how else are you supposed to keep eating during battle? Can’t have crumbs in the cockpit either.
Aside from all of the amazing details and angles that Moko has created, the solid yellow crystal piece with a red brick as French fries is a stand out detail here. The color-blocking and range of motion that Moko employs always renders a satisfying product that reads well and strikes envy in LEGO mech fans everywhere. Either that or fear, given its intense arsenal and bulk.
Fabuland celebrates LEGO’s 90th Anniversary
Stewart Lamb Cromar regularly delights us with his Fabuland creations. But his work has never made us this hungry before. To celebrate LEGO’s 90th anniversary, Stewart has crafted a layer cake large enough to be the party venue for these Fabuland mice. We can almost taste the numerous 1×1 round tiles acting as sprinkles, and the dozens of Unikitty tails subbing for piped icing…but, unfortunately, the mice are making us second guess having a slice. At least one of them is willing to vacuum up the crumbs.
Fabuland Ganesha doesn’t judge you
We’re used to being in awe and maybe a bit flabbergasted by the wild and wonderful LEGO creations of Ivan Martynov. But this time we’re like; is that even LEGO? It’s a computer render, as it turns out, but still a neat concept. Here we see Elton Elephant as Ganesha, the Hindu god of beginnings and the patron of intellectuals, bankers, scribes, and authors. He’s one of those cool, laidback dieties who doesn’t judge your shortcomings because he himself isn’t without folly. I, on the other hand, can be judgemental, at times. I am forever furrowing my brow at the antics of others. If you’d rather we didn’t shake our heads with quiet condemnation at how you treat others then quit acting like an entitled high-and-mighty brat, Karen! (Wow, that escalated fast.) While you’re clamoring to reach my manager, why not take a gander at some other Fabuland creations built by totally fabulous grown-ass adults.
Fabulous Fabuland AT-AT walks straight into our hearts
When you hear the words “Star Wars,” I bet the word “trilogy” pops into your head. Whether it’s the Original Trilogy, the Prequel Trilogy, or the Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars defines itself by its cinematic trios. That’s why it’s so fitting that Stewart Cromar has created a third model in his Star Wars x Fabuland series – the FAB-AT-AT, or “Fabuland Playhouse.”
Fabulous Fabuland Homestead
No Fabulous Fabulandspeeder is complete without a Fabulous Homestead. So we are very grateful that Stewart Cromar continued to fabulize Star Wars sets. Whenever you buy a LEGO Star Wars set and you open up all the bags and spread out all the parts on the table you’ll notice that a lot of the parts are light grey, dark grey, or black. Then there are some pops of colour but those are mostly used in the construction of the vehicle and later covered up with light grey, dark grey, or black bricks. Completely the opposite of the Fabuland theme and therefore it is ever so delightful to see these sets get the Fabuland treatment. Some of the original Fabuland parts work so perfectly that LEGO might have to consider recoloring those parts to light grey, dark grey, or black for future releases of Star Wars sets. For instance the mailbox top works perfectly as an arched rooftop and the refrigerator door looks stunning as a front door to this lovely Tatooine Homestead. So LEGO, please consider bringing back some of those iconic Fabuland pieces.