Hide-and-seek is a game that some people take very seriously, like the person in this scene by PaulvilleMOCs. Try to find them… I’ll wait. When I first saw this build I thought it was a lovely model of a front porch, with solid building techniques and some well-made plants… okay, did I spoil it? I did, didn’t I? The plant on the left is actually a Collectible Minifig wearing a plant costume. I bet the seeker will have as much trouble finding them as I did.
Frequently featured LEGO builder Eli Willsea is on a roll with a series of vignettes, this time building a scene around a collectible Minifig and a crustacean, who share something something in common: The hermit and the hermit crab meet each other at the local watering hole. The candle piece is used to create several bamboo stalks above the scene and as a path for the crab to follow to the water. Recently released Ninjago sets that include the katana in lime green make perfect plants along each side.
If you like this build, be sure to check out some other vignettes by Eli we’ve featured here on TBB previously.
Not to be outdone by his friend and competitor, Caleb Shilling has a few tricks up own sleeve and has used the dark azure LEGO saddle piece eighteen times in this captivating little scenario. The reason? Well, Iron Builder is currently heating up like a used Toyota on a cross-country trip. If you’re observant you’d note that was an entirely different metaphor from the one I used earlier today so clearly, I’m a literary genius. While I await a lucrative book deal from Simon and Schuster, check out the predicament these intrepid divers are in. This was also entered in Vignweek 2022 where they are mashing up styles. In this case, we have Aquanauts divers of yore executing the Chewbacca maneuver from Star Wars in which they brace the trash compactor, call for help, and escape from peril, then it’s Miller Time. So is that pulling triple duty then?
A long time ago, in a LEGO theme far, far away…. NikiFilik gives us a wonderful mashup of Star Wars and LEGO Castles in this cute vignette! Luke Skywalker crashes his knightly cart in the Dagobah swamps where lives Majisto the wizard. Majisto, much like Yoda, finds Luke to be lacking in confidence and belief in the Force–ahem, pardon–Magic of the land. Majisto must raise the cart from the murky waters lest it be claimed for all time. The bright colors in use here lend a cute and fairytale-like feel to the overall scene. The lovely sculpting of the grass and water also helps with this lively feeling, showing that Star Wars pairs nicely with other fairytale themes! I also love the door, with the different layers standing out. And shoutout to the horse watching over Luke’s shoulder–I can only assume its name is Artoo after that spunky little Astromech droid we all love.
Fantasy books have long given inspiration to LEGO builders like Eli Willsea. This time the source comes one of my personal favorite authors, Brandon Sanderson and his Mistborn trilogy. Eli has perfectly captured the high class ballroom of the Venture mansion, with absolutely gorgeous window frames, and the main protagonist, Vin, skulking about in the mists above. This build was completed within 24 hours for day 5 of RebelLUG’s Vignweek competition. The prompt of the way was to only use the original 7 colors that LEGO bricks were available in. Aside from minifigures, you will only find parts in black, white, light grey, red, blue, yellow, or green within this build.
This towering tribute to Tangled, built for Vignweek, comes from the brilliant Robert4168/Garmadon. The tower and the shrouding valley around it are immediately recognizable and full of lovely details. A leftover green sprue wraps around the tower’s midsection to act as reaching vines. Minifig syringes stand in for the spire’s peaks. And a purple minifig arm represents the central spire. Most important of all, a pearl gold minifig prybar hangs off the tower as Rapunzel’s golden hair. Let’s not forget to acknowledge the excellent landscape sculpting. There are wonderful slope usages from the walls of the valley down to the floor. The greenery helps bring some life and contrast to the vignette. I feel particularly drawn to the tree beside the tower with how the leaves form an amazing canopy.
Two LEGO themes come together in this cool vignette from CheeseyStudios. Steve seems to have a love for the explosive lure of TNT–maybe he’s found the secret joy of creepers… The knight seems unsuspecting of the danger waiting outside the castle gate, but his horse is vigilant. This vignette is built for the day 2 Vignweek prompt of ‘Theme Mix’, and CheeseyStudios’s has a great love for the awesome themes of Castles and Minecraft. The two blend together wonderfully with their blocks and bricks, most obvious in the rocks, land, and wall near Steve. I also admire the castle banners with their dual blue and the clever use of the Friends theme horse saddle. Another great use of the horse saddle is for the underside of the brick-built horse and its raiment. The horse towers over all with its long legs, ideal for catching Steve before he lights any TNT!
Eli Willsea brings us a double dose of fun by combining two LEGO themes into one. This mash-up of Adventures and Island Extreme Stunts brings the best of both worlds into a radical ancient skatepark, with plenty of obstacles like ramps, stairs, and even a quarter pipe. I like to think that Dr. Kilroy is trying to deduce the perfect sequence of tricks to open a secret passage.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve been playing so much Valheim for the past few months that you’re going around muttering things like “the bees are happy” in your sleep. So naturally, when I saw this LEGO longhouse by Jake Hansen, I immediately thought of the game. Jake doesn’t mention that this was built with Valheim in mind, but it’s a beautifully simple Norse scene regardless. There are lots of great details but I think the best one here might be the wooden doors with handles made of bucket handles.
