Since the release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace in 1999, The LEGO Group has produced many sets using the Intellectual Property (IP) of other companies. Harry Potter followed Star Wars in 2001, and over the next two decades, there was a surge of new licenses making it the most important factor in The LEGO Group’s stunning growth. In turn, LEGO fans have benefited from the expanded range which offers a broader array of themes, sets, and minifigures. This has provided expanded play options for kids and a resounding hit of nostalgia for adults. Images © The LEGO Group. Gabby’s Dollhouse 10787 Kitty Fairy's Garden Party But of course, all of this comes at a cost. Using the IP of other another organisation incurs a fee, and a portion of that fee must be passed onto the customer to make the product viable. Still, the increased prices can cause some contention...

Today, we dive into the most beloved part by LEGO GBC (Great Ball Contraption) builders: the chrome cup. This rare and elusive part typically sells for 6 euros ($6.50 USD) on BrickLink and is being hoarded by some of the greatest builders—and it isn’t because it is shiny. Animated gif by Frederik hareide. Where did the part originate from, and why has it only ever been produced in one color? Why is the chrome cup being hoarded by GBC builders? And are there any alternatives? Read on to learn about the legend of the chome cup. History of The Legendary Chrome Cup The chrome cup was released long before the first LEGO GBC ball existed in 1993. It was featured in sets 9701-1 and 9702-1 as part of the Educational & Dacta Control Lab sets. As the BrickLink name suggests, the part’s primary function is to reflect the light in a...

NASA’s Space Launch System – To the Moon and Mars by NASA RocketBuilder is the latest project to achieve 10,000 supporters on LEGO Ideas. Consisting on 1,745 pieces, the build features the complete Space Launch System and is built around its Core Stage. The project joins “Big Boy” Locomotive, Retro Arcade, Spartan Helmet of Leonidas, Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider, The Muppet Show, Red Bull Racing F1 Team RB18 1:12, Scooby Doo Mystery Machine, Western River Steamboat, Dreamwork’s Shrek Swamp, Asterix & Obelix, Venice, Stilt House, Red Bull RB18, Trojan Horse, Red Dwarf: Sleeping Quarters, TaleSpin Seaduck Meeting Seagull, Stud Lane Book Nook, Minifigure Gumball Machine, Greenhouse, Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Box: Dark Magician vs Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Phineas and Ferb Doofenshmirtz Evil Inc., Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Taylor Swift “Lover House”, The Motograph, Taylor Swift’s Lover House, Disney’s Phineas and Ferb: Perry the Platypus/Agent P, Flying Scotsman – LNER Class A3 4472 4-6-2 Pacific...

Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published August 23, 2021. Wait, is that smaller than I remember?? We’ve featured Wayne Tyler’s updated and gigantic “micro” build of the United States National Mall (actually it was a second update from our original post in 2018). He has built like mad and expanded the already impressive layout greatly. But now there’s a new twist to his journey—building a micro version… of his micro build! The New MOC in all its glory - And look, he labelled all the buildings! We saw the build and knew we needed to get the inside scoop, so read on to find out more: Doug: So how big is the new “small” version of the National Mall compared to your prior MOC, and were you able to cover the same subject material? Wayne: The microscale version of the National Mall is about 16 feet long and uses a...

September is almost here and here’s a quick guide on some of the new LEGO releases for the month on the LEGO Shop. The wave isn’t as big as from the previous few months but there are some really nice ones that you can expect to see. As far as promotions are concerned, we don’t know of anything yet as of this post. BrickHeadz • Sonic the Hedgehog (40627) – $9.99• Miles “Tails” Prower (40628) – $9.99 City • Passenger Airplane (60367) – $119.99• LEGO City Advent Calendar 2023 (60381) – $34.99 Disney • Walt Disney Tribute Camera (43230) – $99.99• Peter Pan & Wendy’s Flight over London (43232) – $59.99 Friends • Holiday Ski Slope and Cafe (41756) – $79.99• LEGO Friends Advent Calendar 2023 (41758) – $34.99• Igloo Holiday Adventure (41760) – $49.99 Harry Potter • Gringotts Wizarding Bank – Collectors’ Edition (76417) – $429.99 – September 4• LEGO...

The set has been out for a few months now but LEGO has released the designer video for the LEGO Ninjago City Markets (71799). LEGO Designers Markus and Angel talk about some of the many details that went into this 6,163 piece set. It features building that are four floors high filled with various shops as well as the first flushable LEGO toilet which took the LEGO team weeks to get it working correctly. There’s also a cable car that goes between two buildings. The post LEGO Ninjago City Markets (71799) Designer Video appeared first on The Brick Fan. Original linkOriginal author: Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published August 4, 2022. Today’s guest article is written by Ben Bartlett who is a student at St. John's College. You can find his work on Flickr as #1 Nomad. From TFOL to AFOL This year, I attended my first convention as an AFOL. And, in celebration of this, I displayed with a LUG and in a collab for the first time. It felt like I was ascending from my former TFOL self, becoming a grown-up doing grown-up things. It felt as if I had become a fully-fledged member of the LEGO community at large. However, I couldn’t have felt this way without the rich environment I had as a TFOL. I was fortunate enough to have great builders supplying advice and encouragement for my MOCs. These people made me feel included in the community at a young age; they wanted me to be heard...

Disney Pixar’s Luxo Jr Lamp by T0BY1KENOBI20506 is the latest product to achieve 10.000 supporters on LEGO Ideas. The build features the little lamp that usually replaces the “I” in the beginning of Pixar movies. The project joins “Big Boy” Locomotive, Retro Arcade, Spartan Helmet of Leonidas, Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider, The Muppet Show, Red Bull Racing F1 Team RB18 1:12, Scooby Doo Mystery Machine, Western River Steamboat, Dreamwork’s Shrek Swamp, Asterix & Obelix, Venice, Stilt House, Red Bull RB18, Trojan Horse, Red Dwarf: Sleeping Quarters, TaleSpin Seaduck Meeting Seagull, Stud Lane Book Nook, Minifigure Gumball Machine, Greenhouse, Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Box: Dark Magician vs Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Phineas and Ferb Doofenshmirtz Evil Inc., Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, Taylor Swift “Lover House”, The Motograph, Taylor Swift’s Lover House, Disney’s Phineas and Ferb: Perry the Platypus/Agent P, Flying Scotsman – LNER Class A3 4472 4-6-2 Pacific Steam Locomotive, Jumanji Game Board, Kerbal Space Program...

Howdy BrickNerd readers! It has been a while since my last article, and I have missed launching my nerdy thoughts out into the world wide web. Oy vey, I was just pooped after my last big MOC—but now it’s time to hop back on the wagon and build and write some more! And I’m excited to say I found a perfect bite-sized challenge to get back into the swing of things: The challenge was a self-run one-man task to build BrickCon trophies solely of the parts from sets provided by LEGO and BrickNerd! (You know, these MOC trophies for certain building categories that we wrote about here and here?) So let’s dive in and I’ll tell you all about it! Part I: From Whence Dost Thy Idea Originate? The premiere question I feel I must answer is “where’d this cool idea come from?” Two independent driving forces came together for this...

With the pubic availability of LEGO Braille Bricks, today we feature a guest article from Kat Sipe (drkatbuilds) about disability representation in LEGO. As a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), disability representation and adaptive equipment are part of my work every day. In my professional world, I have to help advocate for patients, recommend equipment, and educate individuals about mobility as ableism is still deeply ingrained in the medical world and beyond. Disability continues to be a stigma, but in recent years this is starting to change. However, I am absolutely thrilled to see improving disability representation within the LEGO world! It is well documented in psychology literature that it is essential to see individuals represented in the world they interact with, including toys. This article will highlight all of the amazing steps forward The LEGO Group (TLG) has made, as well as suggest a few ideas for future development. History...