Tag Archives: Jonas Kramm

A Nice Turkey Dinner Works All Year Round

Sure it’s January but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a nice gathering with immediate family involving fancy turkey dinners. In fact, during this ongoing pandemic, a fancy dinner at the dining room table could be just what you need to break away from the monotony of lockdown life. That being said, Jonas Kramm’s dining room model is good to go for all seasons.

The interesting use of elements is what really draws me to this model. I really love Kramm’s use of the tennis racket element in his wicker chair builds. The blonde hair-piece next to the turkey element really makes an appealing souffle. Other eye-catching uses of parts include a single red stud in a bowl either serving as ketchup or cranberry sauce and of course, the lamps made out of the black sausage pieces connected to golden eggs. Kramm’s model is just filled with a warm family vibe.

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Year: 2020. Location: my bedroom

Stop for a moment and listen. Can you hear the whole world signing with relief as we say goodbye to 2020? There are so many things we want to be different in 2021, but probably it’s not about my bedroom, which I have to stay in since March. Changing the scene now is almost impossible unless you join Jonas Kramm and his fabulous vignettes. Earlier this year, he shared a wonderful collection of interiors, and now one more room joins the company.

As usual, Jonas is at his best when mixing elements from different themes and eras. For instance, an old fence piece from Fabuland is used as a footboard for the bed. The whole build is a wonderful collection of ideas waiting to be borrowed by numerous fan builders.

We came from the land of ice and snow

While I’m boringly American in culture, I do have a significant amount of Scandinavian ancestry, as attested by my Swedish surname. Though I’m sure my ancestors were the same lowly farmers in Sweden that they were when they arrived in the United States several generations back, I like to imagine that somewhere among my forebears were some axe-swinging Vikings pillaging Irish fields so green with Led Zeppelin playing in the background, rowing longships like this LEGO one designed by Jonas Kramm across the North Sea. On they sweep with the threshing oar, seeking that rich western shore, crewed by a small army of CMF Series 20 Viking warriors. The serpent prow of the ship is lovely, as is the simplicity of the whole construction. Valhalla, I am coming!

Love Viking builds? Then check out the TBB archives here. And see more of Jonas’ builds here, too.

Brickin’ out some tunes

Everyone loves a good throwback to the ’80s or ’90s, and these days people are opting for analog musical devices over digital. What better build encapsulates these trends than Jonas Kramm’s boom box LEGO model?

All of the details on this build are done exactly right – from the dials to the tape deck. The speakers, as well as the switches, are composed mostly of yellow 9V track switches with black minifigure hands for extra detailing. The majority of the model comprises teal bricks and tiling; some yellow 1×2 slopes also form a stylish border around the box’s perimeter. Kramm even includes a couple of brick-built mix-tapes ready to be played. Overall this build really brings me back to the days before iPhones, iPods, and wireless internet, back when all we had was FM-AM radio and maybe some tapes to play around with.

This dragon will string you along.

LEGO is cool. Puppets are cool. Dragons are cool. Put them all together like Jonas Kramm did? You get something so cool it’s icy. And yet…somehow super hot. Built for the Iron Builder contest, this feisty creature was inspired by the 9V Train track switch element, but I think the coolest bit of NPU (“Nice Part Usage”) has to the the Minifigure Headdresses used to form the dragon’s mouth.

You can see the puppetry in action in Jonas’ Flickr post. And when you’re done there, check out some other cool LEGO puppets that we’ve featured. Maybe you’ll be inspired enough to build your own!

The happiest place on your desk

You can just feel your five senses firing at the same time by looking at Jonas Kramm‘s Micro Scale Fairground Series. The self-professed LEGO obsessive from Germany shrinks down the joy of amusement park rides into mechanical MOCSs that bring the fun indoors. His addition of a concession stand offering french fries, a hot dog, and popsicle also complete the experience. Let’s face it, we could all use a trip to an amusement park after the roller coaster year of 2020. So, for now, we’ll settle for the these three (l to r): Acku’s Adventure Ride, Guitar Top Spin, and Sunshine Ferris Wheel.

Without a doubt, Jonas’ Barb’s Disappearing was my favorite build from 2019. He consistently takes the parts we love from sets like the tree supports from Stranger Things and uses them to elevate his creations. In the case of his Fairground Series, or even Painting a Peacock each creation is an accurate portrayal of their real life counterparts. Each ride hides the mechanics inside the base. It might as well be a feat of magic in the way it all works through the simple turn of a crank. Each ride’s fluid movement is an upgrade from the similar LEGO Ideas Space Rocket Ride (40335). Watch these amusement rides in motion in the video below.

Pretty as a picture of a picture

It takes a talented builder to take a very specialized LEGO part, like a train switch, and turn it into something totally different. Of course, we all know Jonas Kramm is a talented builder, so it should come as no surprise that he managed to make a train switch into a painting of a peacock. It is unquestionably the best peacock head I have ever seen done in LEGO form, and perhaps the best bird head, too. The bumps on the switch make perfect nostrils, and it also works well as the eyes on the tail. But Jonas did not stop there: he also used the part for the lantern flame, and the drawer pulls. Not to mention the Jurassic World gyrosphere for the lantern glass and the green snake for paint. It’s a great composition of a great composition, for sure!

Like Jonas’ builds? Then check out some more. And don’t miss the Iron Builder action, where the train switch is the seed part.

Vegetables and Track Switches galore

Forty, that is the amount of LEGO 9V Track Switches used by Jonas Kramm in this creation. I am not going to point all of them out to you, but some of them deserve a special mention. You can look for the rest yourself. He used two in the tuk-tuk, which by itself is a charming build. He used one as the scale pointer. My favorite use has to be the sign of the elderly couple where they are used as minimalist faces.

Besides all the excellent applications of the seed part, this LEGO creation has a lot more to offer. There are a lot of hair pieces used as cabbages. At least one cactus girl lost her limbs to represent cucumber or zucchini. And quite some ball joints to represent turnips. Last but not least is the garlic made from ice cream scoops drying inside the little house. I love it when a builder adds little details like these to places in their creation that are hardly visible.

A Viking? That’s a switch

Making human-featured builds out of LEGO is a challenging task, but Jonas Kramm knows just how to go about it. The trick, as is often the case, is NPU or “Nice Part Usage.” For example, the nose is made from a baby dinosaur. And the fingers from minifigure arms. And the pupils from tiny hammers. And let’s not forget that glorious yellow tresses and beard, resplendent with 2 bananas and over a dozen 9V Train track switch elements. Even the display stand is finely decorated with a twisting branch pattern made from animal horns and claws. Every part of this creation is alive with great details and clever tricks.

The train switch is the seed part in the latest round of Iron Builder and is leading to some great builds. But don’t think Jonas needs any specific goad to create great builds. I mean, just check out the other great builds we’ve featured.

Quiet days in the garden

Sometimes the simplest builds are the best. Jonas Kramm is a talented and versatile LEGO artist who consistently delivers excellent creations, big and small. He is currently doing a vignette series, and this one is my recent favorite. There are so many cute details packed into a little space. The rabbit hutch, birdhouse, gnome, and picket fence are all so cleverly crafted. In particular, using skis for fence boards is a brilliant idea. Alongside the satisfyingly white-trimmed shed, it all fits perfectly.

While you’re here, you can check out all of Jonas’ latest builds in our archives. (Including the first three vignettes in this series.)

Let me give you a tour of the house

When I was a kid I fondly remember the Playmobil houses my friends used to own. You couldn’t build anything from them but they were packed with small little details, which I loved! I always wondered if LEGO would ever produce something of that sort. LEGO never did but Jonas Kramm sure did! Let’s get started!

Click here to start a tour…

An icy castle of the Great North

When I first saw this I thought it captured “cold” perfectly. Cool colors and just the right amount of snow and ice in the right places. But this LEGO castle, built by Jonas Kramm, goes beyond that. What’s impressive to me are the angles, shaping, and use of so many different elements to achieve the look. For example, he fit a Technic pulley wheel into the new Minions eye element to create a unique window, and dark brown scabbards are used for trim detail. Additionally, there are a number of pieces making up the icicles and snowdrifts. Most notable are the minifigure accessories used on top of the lamp posts and under the eaves of the front door. A couple of my favorite parts are the fiber optic cable for icy flowing water and the hidden parrot. Find them? Zoom in to take a closer look!

Jonas has been very busy lately! Take a look at more of his work in our archives.