Tag Archives: Vignettes

Vignettes are like the haiku of the LEGO world. Usually built on a base 8 studs wide by 8 studs deep, vignettes show a little scene or a moment in time. But like written poetry, there’s plenty of variation on the basic theme.

TBB Cover Photo for December 2020: Into the Wintery Wild

This month’s cover photo from Andrea Lattanzio takes us back to the wild. The Magic Bus we’ve been treated with before has now been treated with snow, which makes for a lovely winter scene.

The bus remains familiar, but there have been some added details to give depth and texture to the snow. Additionally, trees that were once leaf-filled are now barren and covered with snow, the firs have been replaced with white branches, and the clever touch of icicles added to the bus windows complete the scene.

Be sure to visit Norton74’s flickr page for a bit of history on this bus that no longer resides in Alaska’s wilderness. It’s an interesting story that makes for a great scene.

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Exploring the galaxy for fresh vegetation

I’m loving everything about this other-worldly scene by captainsmog! From the satisfyingly shaped spaceship that is reminiscent of the Rocket Boy LEGO Collectable Minifigure, to the cleverly crafted plants. The creative parts usage is rad and makes me want to go dig through my oddball parts. I particularly love the claw elements used to make the wavy red and orange… thingy? Genius!

This builder is not a stranger to TBB. He built one of the first tensegrity builds we featured.

A different kind of LEGO mosaic

Sure, 1×1 studs or square plates certainly can get a mosaic job done, the fairly recent LEGO Art sets are case in point, but there is always more than one approach to an art form. In this recent LEGO model built by Andreas Lenander, he admittedly takes a crack at a different way to mosaic with some inspiration from Katie Walker.

The approach here is primarily utilizing the 1×1 cheese slope in the creation of the mosaic. Lenander not only does a beautiful floor with this process of mosaic-work, but he also creates an amazing brick-built wall that has the aesthetic of a stained glass window using translucent clear 1×1 cheese slopes in popping complimentary colors. Of course, the structures formed by this technique are not stable as there aren’t any stud connections made here, but as long nobody is turning this model upside-down or giving it a good shake, we have an amazing build to look at. Pictured below is a closer look at the painstaking process.

The tiniest Bantha you ever did see

How many pieces does it take to build a great LEGO creation? Not a lot if you’ve got a great imagination and a little bit of skill. This tiny vignette by Dan Ko of a Bantha on the sands of Tatooine consists of only around 20 pieces, but it’s perfect. The brown minifigure hair forms the furry body of the poor Bantha tied up as bait, which is a scene that may look familiar to fans of The Mandalorian. The tauntaun horns stand-in for the pack animal’s giant curved horns and a black wand serves as the hitching post.

And up from the ground came a gumblin’ dude. A Ghoul, that is. [Instructions]

Spooky builder extraordinaire Covus Auriac is back with another creepy Halloween scene. The bony arm of a skeleton bursting from the ground may be a farily common trope, but this is one of the best LEGO renditions of it that I’ve seen. I’m particularly fond of the construction on the hand – the combination of white lipstick tubes and a cow horn works disturbingly well. The minifigure hands on the bones give a hint of rotting flesh, and a minifigure skirt is a great way to suggest tattered clothing.

If you’d like to make your own, Corvus is ready to help you get started with step-by-step instructions for the skeleton arm. If you want hints on the gravestone, you’re currently on your own. Maybe you can find some inpiration in the Hidden Side theme?

A pastoral post office makes postal work pleasant

The work of the postmaster is never done, especially in troubled times like those we find ourselves living through today. If anyone deserves a quiet place to sit and rest after a long day’s work, it would be the fellow delivering your mail. Ayrlego has built a very pleasant home and office for this public servant. I love the clean and simple walls and the terra cotta tiled roof. Also, the use of the wand elements from LEGO’s Wizarding World theme still attached to their sprues make the perfect finely carved wooden railing on the balcony. Speaking of the balcony, that vine trellis is another great detail.

If this postal paradise pleases you, you’ll probably enjoy another post office we recently featured by Ayrlego.

A lived-in universe

One of the things that made the Star Wars universe so magical was its relatively groundbreaking take on approach to depicting a lived-in, weathered place, that felt like it had history and people striving to earn a living, unlike the clean, sterile environments of scifi predecessors like Star Trek. LEGO builder DarthBricks has set about building a series of large vignettes as part of a LEGO RPG they’re playing. The detailed scenes perfectly encapsulate the cluttered, imperfect world of the Empire. First up is this scene from Corellia, where a few Rebels spy on an Imperial patrol.

Next is a scene from the desert world of Tatooine, where the Rebels ambush some troopers. The amount of detailing feels just right, with enough texture to the dust-covered walls to make it feel worn, while still keeping the focus on the action.

Let’s see where DarthBricks goes next. Perhaps Kashyyk or Scarif?

Morning is for tea and contemplation

Summer is winding down and where I live the trees are already starting to change color just a little bit. The morning light hits the leaves in such a way that is similarly portrayed in this built LEGO vignette by Instagram user architeclego.

Looking at this vignette, I can smell the crisp autumn air and even feel a light breeze hitting my face like on a chilly but sunny morning in late September or early October. Architeclego makes use of many different plant pieces such as the tree limb element and even some LEGO pumpkins and logs to create this peaceful fall scene. Hopefully this little vignette will help the less autumn-inclined folks mentally prepare for the beginning of a new season.

The Mandalorian Mudhorn Showdown

With new LEGO Star Wars Mandalorian goodies finally making their way to store shelves this season, scenes from the popular streaming series are becoming easier to recreate. Builder Kevin on the other hand recreates an iconic and perhaps more difficult scene to remake out of some unusual LEGO elements.

While Kevin renders the terrain of the planet Arvala-7 pretty simply using plates and tiles, the most eye-catching components of this build are the creatures included; the Mudhorn as well as the child. The body of the mudhorn can be broken down into two segments: the brick-built head and the rest of the body which creatively makes use of the LEGO mammoth element. The most striking parts utilized in the mudhorn head build would be the 1×1 round tiles with eye prints and the grey claw shaft used for the horn.

Read on to see the brilliant model of The Child in more detail

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.)

Back to school, in some way or another, we hope

Is 2020 going to be the year that every kid stays back a grade? I sure hope not! I’m seeing an alarming number of adult students making a mess of their educations this year, with distance learning not being their strong suit. Hopefully, the kiddos are faring better than their parents. In the meantime, Instagram user brickdesigned presents some neat LEGO back-to-school elements. Various desks, lockers, a chalkboard, and those noisy metal benches from chemistry class are surely hitting me in the nostalgic feels. This is usually the time, in the late days of summer, that kids are gearing to go back to school. So whether you’re going to a physical place or learning from home, your old uncle Lino wants you to please make the best of it and be safe out there. Got it, you little whippersnappers? Good! I’m glad we could have this talk. Now get the heck off my lawn!

There and back again

Some LEGO creations manage to turn up a soundtrack in your head. A new series of builds by Thorsten Bonsch is a perfect example. The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies had numerous wonderful film locations, but the journey always starts by the Bilbo’s home Bag End in the town of Hobbiton located in the lush pastures of the Shire.

Click here to take a look at other creations in the series