Tag Archives: Modular

LEGO released 10182 Cafe Corner in 2007, setting a new standard for large-scale modular buildings. Since then, LEGO has continued to release new structures in the modular building series — 10190 Market Street, 10185 Green Grocer, 10197 Fire Brigade, 10211 Grand Emporium, 10218 Pet Shop, and 10224 Town Hall as of 2012. Meanwhile, LEGO fans have adopted the “Cafe Corner standard” and built hundreds and hundreds of beautiful buildings that fit with the official sets. See some of the best here on The Brothers Brick.

Emporium of modular goodness

I’m unabashedly a fan of brown and all its permutations, so that’s definitely what first caught my eye about this department store by Dita Svelte. But then the gift just kept on giving.

Like most Cafe Corner standard buildings it has modular floors, but it has a few added features such as removable ground floor wall panes so the window displays can be changed. To top that all off, the architectural details are well done and not too overwhelming. I particularly like the decorative tan technic gears on the top floor and the use of sea monster fins as potted plants.

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A place for the literate fig

I’m working on my second LEGO creation, which is in the Cafe Corner standard, so I’ve been looking around for good examples of that theme and am especially enjoying any builds that incorporate all kinds of interior details. “Page*s Books” by notenoughbricks sure fits the bill. It’s been under construction for over a year, and looks like it was well worth the effort.

The exterior has fun little details, including a flower piece as an apostrophe and nice use of a DUPLO water barrel, but the interior is what won me over for sure. The ground floor is a bookstore complete with genre sections, reading couches, stepping stools and a cash register. The upper floors are an apartment, including a big screen TV (with specs, just in case you needed them) and a nearly functional bathroom.

Also, it’s just wonderfully colorful and if I were a fig, I would love to live in this apartment above a bookstore. Wouldn’t you? Check out the whole photoset for details.

Modulex Cafe Corner and Market Street

In 1963, The LEGO Group spun off a company called Modulex to create planning tools for architects, including a completely separate system of bricks. Though Modulex still operates today (still based in Billund, making modular corporate signage), they no longer manufacture little plastic bricks.

Nevertheless, Modulex bricks continue to be sought-after collectors’ items among LEGO fans. Some fans even have enough in their collection to reproduce contemporary LEGO sets, as Marion has done with her collection.

The limited palette of bricks in the Modulex system doesn’t stop Brixe from an excellent recreation of 10182 Café Corner and 10190 Market Street.

Even though Brixe’s Modulex version is nearly a stud-for-stud clone of the LEGO set, this comparison shot shows the difference in scale between the two systems (LEGO on the left, Modulex on the right):

Public Library

Johan van den Heuvel (Teddy) uses his master LEGO architecture skills to create this public library that fits well into a modular town layout. The Greek revival style of the building is truly well done. Check out the gallery for more photos showing a peaceful courtyard in the back.

Street poets abound on Westminster Row

I’m new to the LEGO street scenes of L.G. Orlando (lgorlando), and boy have I been missing out!

The detail at the top of each is stunning. Though both buildings are distinct from each other in color and design, the tan in the red and green building ties in nicely with the other.

Here’s another group of L.G.’s LEGO city buildings. The yellow one is especially beautiful, and might be at home on Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

See more photos of L.G. Orlando’s excellent buildings on Flickr and MOCpages.

Okay, it seems a little crass to hype the Zombie Apocafest alongside these beauties, but these are all Cafe Corner standard buildings, and exactly the type of structures we’re looking for in the group display.

See you on platform 3 at Central Station

As great as they are, brownstones and storefronts are fairly common LEGO structures built to the “Cafe Corner standard.” That makes this great train station by Johan van den Heuvel (Teddy) that much cooler.

I love the columns and the arches of the recessed entryway. The size itself is a first, as far as I can recall — not only double-wide but double-deep.

See interior shots and detail photos on Flickr, MOCpages, and Brickshelf.

The past, present, and future of 10182 Cafe Corner

There’s no doubt that 10182 Cafe Corner will go down in history as a classic. But what would it look like at different point in human history? Crises has the answer.

10197 Fire Brigade, vintage LEGO fire station, coming Sept. 2009 [News]

UPDATE: 10197 Fire Brigade is now available from the LEGO Store online.

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In news that I strongly suspect reveals the mystery question mark in the 10194 Emerald Night announcement video, LEGO announced 10197 Fire Brigade at LEGO fan events in Germany and Portugal.

Here’s the full announcement from The LEGO Group:

10197 – Fire Brigade

Ages 16+. 2,231 pieces.

US $ 149.99; CA $ 199.99, UK £ 97.85, DE € 149.99

Build an authentic vintage fire station!

Ding ding ding! There’s a fire in town! The fire brigade drives to the scene from this detailed and realistic 1930’s fire station. Designed to fit with other modular buildings like 10182 Café Corner and 10185 Green Grocer, the station features rare LEGO® pieces and innovative construction techniques. It includes a ‘30s-style fire truck, 4 minifigures, a fire-dog, an opening station garage door, and a removable building roof for interior access. It also includes 2 fully-furnished floors with fire-fighting tools, racks for the firemen’s helmets, fire-pole, ping-pong table, kitchen with fully-stocked fridge, couch, bookshelf and a roof with a water tower and bell. Measures 14″ (35 cm) high and 10″ (25 cm) wide.

Includes a 1930’s-style fire truck, 4 minifigures and a fire-dog!

Features lots of realistic details including fire-fighting tools, racks for firemen’s helmets and even a fire-pole!

The station house features an opening station garage door and 2 fully-furnished
floors including a kitchen with fully-stocked fridge and a ping-pong table!

Remove the roof for interior access!

The roof is equipped with a water tower and bell!

Fire Brigade features rare LEGO elements including bricks and plates in dark tan, 1×1 dark red tiles, a red hot dog and the 3x6x5 Belleville® arch. It also features gold fireman’s helmets, a tan hand bag and a red sliding garage door!

Measures 14″ (35 cm) high and 10″ (25 cm) wide.

Add Fire Brigade to your LEGO® Town and combine it with other modular buildings like 10182 Café Corner and 10185 Green Grocer!

September can’t come soon enough for me, and you can guess where my second fire station will show up in October.

I’ve uploaded a full gallery of photos to Flickr:

UPDATE: Andreas Haase has photos from 1000steineland 2009, showing interior shots of the upper story:

Check out the album on 1000steine.de for more event pics from the event in Berlin.

Sebastian Arts’ Reality Dysfunction will eat your city

Run and hide your Cafe Corner, Market Street and Green Grocer! This creepy creation built by Sebastian “Aliencat” Arts will consume all!

Side note: haha, take that Nannan, I finally blogged a Black Fantasy creation before you!

Taking back our streets from the LEGO zombie horde

BrickCon is just around the corner. In fact, if you don’t register before September 8th, the price goes up to $60 and you won’t be guaranteed personalized stuff like engraved brick badges.

My contribution to the LEGO Zombie Apocafest display we’re organizing is an auto repair shop and a fire station in a diorama that I’m currently calling “The Outbreak”:

Zombies converge on the residents of my modular buildings as they attempt to fight back. The architecture may have been the focus of my building energies for once, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t neglected some good, old-fashioned minifig action:

Please see my Outbreak photoset on Flickr for a ton of pictures.

Rocko hunkers down for the Great Panic

Rocko reveals another LEGO creation he’ll be bringing to BrickCon in a couple of months. This modular building is Rocko’s contribution to our LEGO Zombie Apocafest:

Don’t miss Rocko’s Brickshelf gallery for lots more details.

Izzo goes to town

Izzo admits that of the hundreds of LEGO creations he’s posted over the last few years, only a handful haven’t been mecha. As much as we love Izzo’s amazing robots, it’s nice to see him change things up.

His latest batch of creations includes a trio of modular buildings. My favorite is this gray building with a green roof:

Here’s Izzo’s full lineup of buildings so far: