Tag Archives: Microscale

Some say “Go big or go home!” but it takes real talent to compress something down to just a few studs and still keep it recognizable. Of course, many of the micro models we feature here aren’t so small after all, whether it’s a vast cityscape or starship.

Step on it! – A forest drive has LEGO bricks on the move

Have you ever been a passenger in a car when the driver is just going way too slow? Geneva Durand seems to have had that experience, and brings that frustration to life in an expressive, yet tiny, creation. In this scene, brick-built horses pull a carriage fit for microfigure nobility through a dense forest. Every feature is instantly recognizable, which is pretty astounding considering those microfigures are just under 2 centimeters tall.

It’s a twisty path, so maybe the driver is justified in a more cautious pace. Perhaps the passenger is just upset that his crown is way too tall to fit inside the carriage, requiring him to lean out the window the whole way. Geneva first designed the carriage back in 2013, and later updated it in 2017. Maybe their next iteration will include a little more headroom!

In the meantime, though, we can appreciate the skill that goes into the current build. I like the “studs down” building approach for the horses, the variety of techniques used for the tree trunks, and the subtle curves in the carriage canopy. There is also some great part usage, including minifigure hands for flags, and helmet plumes for the horsetails.

Be sure to check out Geneva’s blog post detailing the techniques that went into the forest background.

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An Atlas to take your personnel further

Sometimes I come across LEGO builds that add a new wrinkle to my brain as I’m scanning all the details while trying to spot all the exquisite parts uses. Markus Rollbühler tends to be a name synonymous with said builds. His newest addition to Mech Monday, #22: ATLAS – Multipurpose Carrier, is absolutely no exception. The first question I thought was, “Where do I start?” and the first elements to grab me were the Minifig Jet Pack and 1×1 Decorated Tile with Telephone Speaker Pattern. That combination is pure greeble at a tiny scale. Next, the new(ish) Minifig Blaster with studs on all sides. Not only did they get used for legs, they were also used for its well-armored head stock. It took me a few seconds of admiring Bucket Handles and Minifig Hands, to realise Markus is even hiding segments from a Yoda Wristwatch for the mech’s back.

All of that without even mentioning the paint job. The militarised tone is well balanced between its shell of sand green and its industrial framework of bluish greys. Add some touches of Dark Tan into the mix and its complete. I am curious to see it in other colour schemes though–adaptations for different purposes perhaps?

If you missed it, check out Markus Rollbühler’s last LEGO Mech we featured.

Beautiful microscale model of Saint-Tropez

If you have ever visited the charming seaside village of Saint-Tropez on the southern coast of France, then this model by Thilo Schoen will be instantly recognizable. There are so many details that make this LEGO scene by the sea come alive, including colorful shops along the marina, terracotta roof tiles, and the yellow-topped bell tower of the church (Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunció). Topping everything off is the citadel, which towers majestically above the town. Another enjoyable detail includes boats filling the marina, built studs-down using the new modified 1×2 rounded plate in white.

Microscale spiral-shaped building is mesmerizing

Aptly named The Spiral, the towering extension of the elevated park High Line in Midtown Manhattan will be a stunning blend of modern architecture and green space when finished. While the real building is currently under construction, Rocco Buttliere has completed a LEGO version that uses an incredible amount of transparent clear and blue plates. I love the way the builder has alternated the orientation of the plates along the greenway to reflect the open-aired areas, drawing the outdoors in.

The Spiral has been designed by Danish architectural firm Bjarke Ingels Group, who also designed the LEGO House museum in Billund

By Jabba, this may be the tiniest throne room ever

They say the clothes make the man…and sometimes, the hat makes the Hutt. This microscale LEGO model of Jabba the Hutt’s throne room by Grantmasters was inspired by the dark green bandana element and a rainbow of tiny statuette minifigures. Among them is a Dementor from the microscale Hogwarts set used to depict Luke Skywalker as he attempts to mind-trick the slimy crime lord. My second favorite part use, after Jabba himself, is the Niffler figure.

Robot rumble in microcity Meribia!

Italy’s extremely prolific Marco de Bon is ready to rumble! His latest creation pits two big bots against each other with an entire LEGO microscale city playing backdrop to their battle.

The black and gray bot is clearly the aggressor, roughing up the skyscrapers while the dark blue Midnight Ranger seems to be avoiding toppling any buildings, planting its feet carefully along the streets. There’s a great energy and enormity of scale on display.

The battle continues below!

A LEGO Los Angeles City Hall that is small yet towers tall

Bruce Lowell is a native of Los Angeles, which is one of the reasons he built this 1:200 scale LEGO model of Los Angeles City Hall. For Bruce, the model was a labor of love, having gone through multiple iterations since 2014. The finished product is richly detailed with architectural embellishments, a brick-built flag draped down the right side of the building, and dozens of tiny trees. Everything looks beautiful, and this is further enhanced by the natural background used in Bruce’s photography. In fact, I think it would make for a picture-perfect postcard.

See more details of this LEGO replica of Los Angeles City Hall

The little gray engine that could

Trains are complicated machines, especially steam-powered locomotives, which are a blend of smooth metal curves and a myriad of moving parts. Capturing this magical combination of sleek and mechanical details at a small scale can come down to a single part choice, and Niklas Rosén has really done it with his micro-model built around this Technic spring-loaded shooter. The curved lines along the side are reminiscent of riveted sections on the boiler. Meanwhile, the creation is finished off with a pair of driving wheels represented by hubcaps from the Speed Champions theme, and the smaller wheels are represented by printed 1×1 round tiles.

Not so tiny: This microscale LEGO Hogwarts uses over 75,000 pieces

In the Harry Potter films, Hogwarts looked massive and majestic. Although LEGO did a great job with the massive 71043 Hogwarts Castle set, builder Mathieu BL has built a microscale LEGO version of the castle that feels just as big as it should, despite its diminutive size. Part of this can be attributed to the surrounding terrain, which places the building within its proper context. The hills and cliff-sides have been carefully sculpted, utilizing a variety of colors and shapes to achieve a nice degree of realism. The sparkly water adds a touch of beauty, and it consists of loose trans clear and trans-medium blue elements mixed together to emulate the choppiness of the sea.

Turning the model around reveals a quidditch stadium behind the castle. A lot of time and care went into detailing this model. Mathieu spent over 1,200 hours designing and building Hogwarts, and nearly 75,000 pieces were used in its construction.

When photographed from certain angles, the little castle seems huge. Here, it looks absolutely stunning.

If you’d like even more LEGO Hogwarts in your life, be sure to check out our review of set 71043.

Try to understand the gravity of the situation

Classic Space seems to be in a boom recently, probably due to the recent re-release of classic space minifigures in the 70841 Benny’s Space Squad set. This gives us quite a few opportunities to share amazing Classic Space builds to share here on the Brothers Brick, including scenes, rovers and mecha. A big fan of Classic Space, Andreas Lenander gives us an immersive piece of action in this beautifully lit all-LEGO scene titled “Gravity failure at Epsilon IV.” It uses the brand-new pink classic spacesuit.

Click to explore more areas of the Epsilon IV base

Get all your LEGO Klämtares at this tiny IKEA

Need more Klämtares, Kuggises, or Ivars for your LEGO collection? Look no further than IKEA, now in minature form thanks to cubo31. IKEA announced a new partnership with LEGO last year, and we still haven’t seen many details on what that is. But we can only hope that it will include an awesome micro model like this. This Micropolis module is loaded with accurate details, from the incredible brick-built logo to the carefully crafted curbs and even an underground garage. There’s just one inaccurate detail that bothers me, though: there are open parking spaces within sight of the front doors. I’ve never seen that at my IKEA.

The castle of the dragon

Builder Corvus Auriac takes us to a magical place with this amazing render of a microscale castle. The towers are exquisitely detailed with just enough randomness to look real, while still feeling like an absolutely massive structure perched atop a rock. The dragon, named Beowulf, is one of the better microscale designs I’ve seen, actually have four legs like a proper dragon (and not a wyvern, which only has two). The frog for a head is perfect. As with all great microscale models, you’ll be rewarded by spending some time poring over the minuscule details to see what parts have been cleverly repurposed.