Tag Archives: Building Techniques

2024 TBB Custom LEGO Advent Calendar – Day 5 [Feature]

All year-round, we here at The Brothers Brick spend our time featuring amazing builds made by the LEGO fan community. But we figured, for the holiday season, it would be great to build something together. For each day from December 1st through the 24th, we’ll be posting instructions to a custom TBB advent calendar build, one part each day. Want to participate? You can find all the parts you’ll need for the TBB Advent Event from our announcement in November. Read on to see what we’re building today!

The floor is done, so what comes next with day 5?

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2024 TBB Custom LEGO Advent Calendar – Day 4 [Feature]

See what we’re assembling on day 4 of this 24-part build!

2024 TBB Custom LEGO Advent Calendar – Day 3 [Feature]

What’ll day 3 bring in this holiday creation?

2024 TBB Custom LEGO Advent Calendar – Day 2 [Feature]

Day 2 waits for no LEGO builder!

2024 TBB Custom LEGO Advent Calendar – Day 1 [Feature]

Better get after it! Day 1 isn’t going to build itself!

Announcing the TBB custom LEGO advent calendar for December 2024 [Feature]

As many of our regular readers are aware, come December each year, we here at TBB open up all the LEGO advent calendars, showing off each day’s builds along with some choice witticisms from the staff. Well, of course we’re still doing that this year, but we’ve also decided to add on an additional, TBB-exclusive advent event this year. From December 1st to the 24th, we’ll be posting the instructions for 1/24th of a custom Christmas model, designed by me. Has your Yuletide interest been piqued? Read on to find out more!

Read on to find out how you can participate and for the set’s parts list

Build your own baby pygmy hippo Moo Deng [Instructions]

Pygmy Hippo calf Moo Deng is just two months old and already is the viral star of Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo. She has her own makeup trend, merch, cryptocurrency, and now, thanks to Cornbuilder, her own LEGO fan model. Cornbuilder perfectly captures Moo Deng’s bouncy meatball energy, and thanks to instructions generously shared by the builder, you can too!

Click here for Cornbuilder’s MOO DENG INSTRUCTIONS.

Build your own minifig scale Alien Xenomorph [Instructions]

We’ve seen a lot of impressive LEGO takes on the Xenomorph from the Alien franchise over the years, but I don’t think I’ve ever encountered one as perfect at minifig scale as this take from twin brothers Brandon and Taylor. The micro model packs in 41 LEGO elements and manages to capture the biomechanical menace of Giger’s design despite being smaller than a juvenile newt. The designers were generous enough to share the instructions so that you too can dabble in creating the perfect organism.

Click to see the instructions!

Learn how to build spaceships like a true master AFOL [Instructions]

There are some LEGO builders who, every time they present a new build to the world, have us scratching our heads wondering how on earth they’ve made those pieces fit together like that. For no one is that more true than Nick Trotta, whose spaceships feature frankly mind-bending ways of connecting things together. Have you ever wanted to see how he does it? Well, he’s just released instructions for one of his models, so you can do just that! This spaceship was featured here way back in 2018, and it still looks just as good now as it did then. You can build your own using the instructions over on his website!

And while you’re here – why not take a look through some of his other builds that have graced our Nick Trotta archives since the Resonance made its first appearance?

Arresting LEGO Medusa will rock your world

Medusa, she of the snake hair and stony gaze, remains one of the most captivating figures from Greek mythology. She even made an appearance back in Series 10 of the Collectible Minifigures line. Builder Kooky Bricks honors the hip and tragic monster with a diorama worthy of an Olympian. Here we see Medusa facing off with a would-be slayer in the ruined temple of Athena. At this larger scale, made from 14,619 parts, Kooky Brick is able to pack in incredible detail in both the figures and the setting. Medusa’s scaly body is achieved by overlapping rows of plate teeth, a great effect that feels both organic and a very solid snake form. As impressive as the figures are, it’s the temple itself that leaves us spellbound.

Gaze on for more mythic details!

Stitch together your very own lovable LEGO alien [Instructions]

Season 1 LEGO Masters US winner Tyler Clites is nothing if not persistent. A few years ago, he uploaded a LEGO model of everyone’s favourite havoc-wreaking extraterrestrial, Stitch, to the crowd-sourcing Ideas platform. We covered the first iteration way back in 2016, and it was subsequently re-worked twice before hitting the magical 10,000 supporters mark. Neither model was approved, but Tyler is not content to let this little blue alien be a footnote in LEGO Ideas history! He’s now released instructions over on his website for you to download and build your own. And the best part? They’re free! All you need to do is source the bricks.

And why not get creative with it? Tyler has shown that Stitch can be rebuilt in a variety of forms, so have a go at customising one of your own! My personal favourite is this Elvis Stitch-ley. Look at that immaculate quiff.

When and why did LEGO include progress bars in instructions guides? [Feature]

LEGO fans are extremely passionate and look into details of any slight changes that the LEGO Group introduces in all aspects. The latest visual change on the instruction booklets has led a few fans delighted and curious, especially on identifying when these first started to show up.

While we don’t know exactly when the first mass produced set it was introduced in, most fans agree that it started to appear in instruction booklets for most sets produced in 2022. The simpler design of the progress bar is LEGO round stud on a thick line that extends from edge to edge at the bottom of the printed page. The more fun looking ones are represented by Minifigures sliding across the timeline from one page turn to another.

Click to learn more about the progress bar in instruction booklets