A LEGO You – Creating the perfect SigFig!

If you’re a fan of LEGO, no matter how big or small your collection is, there is one thing everybody should have or consider making, a mini LEGO you!

The majority of AFOLs and TFOLs (Adult/Teen Fans of LEGO) call them Sigfigs, which is short for Signature Figures. They are used in a multitude of ways and are great for giving your City, Social Media accounts and photos a personal touch using your LEGO identity.

Creating your very own Sigfig is very much a personal experience and one you should definitely get around to at some point in your LEGO life. It can be as easy as popping together a basic Minifigure, picking out only two or three personal traits such as hair style, expression and atire. On the other hand you could go all out and produce something custom which represents you down to the ground.

In this article we’ll cover what Minifigure parts & accessories are on offer, where to get them, and diving into custom printed pieces!

Here’s a handy index for you to jump to the section you need, after all you may have started a Sigfig already and need a few pointers on what to do next:

• Getting started
• What parts and accessories are available
• Where to find parts & accessories
• Custom printed elements
• Conclusion
• Sigfig Wall

Getting started:

It’s often the hardest part in Life, getting started, it applies to many aspects of what we do and what our level of motivation is. That can also be said when it comes to building with LEGO, although our hobbies usually give us a little more get-go than say cleaning the house. I’ll put my hand up and say that I’m no different, I sometimes have multiple LEGO related tasks to do in the evenings, but yet some nights I find the pull of my games console a little too much – and let’s be honest we all sometimes need a short break or some downtime from the things we love.

Creating the perfect SigFig takes time, if done properly of course, but a good starting point is to grab your spares, be it just a few random Minifigures or a big box of parts, it’s good to see what you’ve got to play with first.

You don’t need to settle on one idea as Sigfigs evolve over time just like we do, from clothing and hobbies to hair and expressions. The World of LEGO Minifigures grows more and more diverse each day with new sets and parts becoming readily available, there’s something for everyone, if you know where to look.

When building my Sigfig, I found it easier to start with a head and an expression I liked, although at the time there weren’t many Beard & Glasses combinations around, and I pretty much had to go with the one pictured below – glasses with a narrow frame and a ginger beard, which to be honest isn’t too far off.

What helped next was finding suitable legs and a torso that matched my style and looked good together. I used to wear black jeans a lot a few years ago and so went with plain black legs, I also wore my favourite grey hoody making my choice a lot easier, I had also just started to get back into LEGO and the parts available to me at the time were limited.

What I found most difficult was the final piece to creating the perfect LEGO me, the hair. At first I went with what I had, a generic part that must be on at least a million Minifigures, ok a slight exaggeration, but it definitely was a popular choice when Minifigures first came about and has been used many times on Han Solo!

That’s enough about me and my Sigfig, let’s get yours underway and find the perfect parts.

What parts & accessories are available:

LEGO has been around since the 1930’s making wooden toys, the first ‘Automated Binding Bricks‘ appeared in 1949, but it wasn’t until the late 1970s that the Minifigure was born, the ones we know and love today that is!

Since then there have been thousands of unique parts created for them, including heads, hair pieces, hats, torsos, legs, and accessories, and it doesn’t seem to be stopping any time soon.

When it comes to making your Sigfig there are millions of combinations at your disposal, it’s just a matter of finding the right one for you. We’ll run through what parts are needed to put together a LEGO you!

Starting from the top the first thing to pick out is a hair piece, depending on your hair style that is, LEGO has pretty much everyome covered, from long flowing hair to just a small amount around the sides and back, you could even leave the head blank for a bald or skinhead look.

Choosing a suitable head and expression could be the part that stumps you the most as your face is what everyone looks at when identifying and chatting to you.

There are also two ways you could go, the standard LEGO Yellow or Flesh tones, this again is personal preference and one you’ll need to decide pretty early on. As we mentioned earlier LEGO have become more diverse in their character choice and there are most certainly parts out there to cater for everyone.

Try to pick out something that easily identifies you, such as freakles, stubble/beard, glasses/sunglasses, prominent eyebrows, or a big grin. There may even be a combination of two or more, we’re sure you’ll find something suitable from the thousands available!

Clothing is the simplest part to get right in my opinion as you can keep changing it as you go, depending on the occasion such as general everyday wear to full blown suits and gowns, don’t be afraid to have multiple outfits ready to change into.

If you have a favourite top, jumper, or jacket, try and find the equivalent in Minifigure-form. Do you have a lucky black leather jacket? Do you like to lounge in a comfy hoodie? Do you like to keep cool and unbutton your hawaiian shirt? There are torsos for everybody!

As before with regards to Flesh tone heads, this is where you’ll struggle somewhat to match arms and hands. To make the whole process easier we suggest picking a torso that has sleeves, as LEGO have yet to produce enough variation in that department and tend to stick to LEGO Yellow for necks, arms and hands.

Legs come in various sizes and forms, from short, medium, and regular to skirts and peg legs.

LEGO relatively recently introduced medium posable legs which are great for Recreating younger TFOL fans, while the smaller legs are a perfect fit for Children.

You’ll usually pick the legs last as they need to match your torso, and again there are so many to choose from. Some are plain solid colours prefect as jeans or leggings, while others are dual-moulded and can be used as shorts or two tone trousers!

It’s certainly not a written rule when it comes to having an accessory or two but it sure is great fun rummaging around in your spares or searching online for. It adds another layer to your LEGO presence and may help get your message across of who you are just that little bit easier.

If your family or friends associate a certain object or game when they think of you then giving your Sigfig a LEGO equivalent is recommended.

For example let’s say you’re a student and always carry around a Laptop for School, LEGO have produced a few laptops over the Years and in different colours too.

Or perhaps you’re into Baseball, there is a very cool Baseball Bat and Glove available so switch out one of your hands for the glove, grab a bat, and batter-up!

You may be an animal person and have a pet you’d like to add to the mix, LEGO has you more than covered here, although finding the exact breed of Dog or Cat as yours may prove difficult. There are Parrots, Birds, Hamsters, Goats, Dogs, Cats, and so many more.

Where to find parts & accessories:

There are many places to find the parts you require and the first one that springs to mind and my personal go to place is BrickOwl, closely followed by BrickLink. I know that may surprise a lot of fans that I didn’t say BrickLink first, it’s nothing to do with LEGO owning it at all, it’s due to usability, or the lack of it, for mobile device users. But that’s by-the-by and not relevant here so just ignore me!

Bricklink and BrickOwl are essentially the same and offer pretty much every part LEGO has ever produced through a vast community of sellers, think of it like eBay, with individuals listing and selling the parts they have. Postage is usually added at the checkout stage so bear that in mind when putting an order together.

The search function operates in a specific way and you’ll have to be a bit more precise in terms of what you’re actually looking for. If you’re after a Head piece, for example, typing ‘head’ into the search box and hitting enter will obviously pull every single head piece under the sun. Adding a basic keyword will narrow that down considerably. ‘beard head’ or even just ‘beard’, for example, will pull from the head listings that include the word ‘beard’. Simple but a great tip for narrowing down the results.

Depending on how many parts you’re looking for websites like Bricklink and Brickowl are the top dogs, the added benefit of shopping here is every single part is genuine LEGO, so you can rest easy knowing your Sigfig is legit!

eBay is also an option but you’re far more likely to pay over the odds for single pieces than anywhere else. What I do recommend when it comes to eBay is to keep an eye on joblots, especially in this instance Minifigure joblots. It’s a great way to bump up your spares and create an entire army of custom Minifigures.

The same applies to Facebook Marketplace, Shpock, Gumtree and many more local services. I have picked up many cheap joblots and sets over the years and added to my personal Mini Minifigure Station considerably. Please do be careful when buying locally and adhere to any pandemic restrictions that maybe in place. Pay by a means you’re happy with such as PayPal Goods & Services, and don’t be afraid to ask for more photos or check the items condition before paying.

The final place I would highly recommend trying is a certified LEGO Store, their BaM (Build a Minifigure) station is loaded with what seems like thousands of random Minifigure parts and accessories. The overall cost is pretty decent too at £4.99 for three, and they come in a handy little case. The general rule for creating a Minifigure this way has changed somewhat since Covid-19 hit and you’re no longer allowed to pop them together yourself, that’s now the staff members job. But this doesn’t hinder the experience in anyway as you can request different combinations, such as swapping out pretty much every part of it, just ask – they are more than happy to help!

Custom parts and prints:

Onto the custom designed and printing services that take your Sigfig to the next level and beyond.

When it comes to custom parts and prints, again it’s pretty much a preference thing, it depends what you’re after. Here are The Brick Post we giveaway custom designed and printed 2×2 tiles, in the form of Vol.1 & Vol.2 newspaper covers, which we design ourselves and send off for printing to our good friends at BrickSanity.

We chose BrickSanity as we’ve had many dealings together over the Years, back when I joint ran another Instagram Account, we had our logo printed onto tiles, so we knew about them and their level of expertise in the industry, plus they’re very competitive and answer questions very quickly. They specialise in high quality graphics printed directly onto genuine LEGO parts, which is a definite must, and there catelogue of products on offer is outstanding, from Etch-a-sketch and other classic games to fish tanks and Christmas Jumpers – we particularly like their Classic Space logo mugs!

Another company we’ve dealt with before is Minifigs.me, this time purchasing some of their in-house designs. They do an extensive selection of well produced accessories, from Games Consoles and Controllers, to food related items, set addons, and so much more.

To enhance our recent purchase of the LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith (21325) set we grabbed their custom signs. We can now swap out the one included for any one of their three signs and change the set from a Blacksmith to a Bakery or Tavern, so handy to have and at a great price too.

Both of the above websites have a plethora of parts, be it custom or not, and should most definitely be used to enhance your Sigfig. Like I mentioned at the very start I found the most perfect head print which not only had the thick rimmed glasses but also a beard that matched mine, I still can’t believe how lucky I was to find it too, by chance in an eBay search!

Another company to mention, and one I have yet to use, are Fab Bricks, they actually have a very handy Minifigure creator program hosted on their website here. This would be a very effective and efficient way to test a few ideas and see what works, of course if you like the end result please buy the Minifigure from them.

A good tip, if you can call it that, is if you’re in any doubt or just need advice don’t hesitate to contact them, either via email or direct message through their Social Media accounts.

To help you with building your very own Sigfig we have kindly been given discount coupon codes by all three services and are available to use once per customer, so choose wisely and make the order count.

Discount codes/Affiliate links:

• BrickSanity (10%): BRICKPOST10
• Fab Bricks Ltd (5%): TBP5
• Minifig.me: Affiliate link

Conclusion:

Creating and having your own LEGO you is a fun and enjoyable process that never really ends, you’ll come across new hair pieces, torsos, and even accessories that you’ll want to make your own.

We’d love to see your creations and have a dedicated Sigfig Wall below which has already begun to grow. Please get in contact with us either via email, the comments section below or on our social media platforms.

LEGO regularly release new and innovative sets and Minifigures, why not bookmark www.thebrickpost.com and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Here at The Brick Post we are dedicated to bringing you a personal touch to LEGO news, reviews, and more!

We also make bespoke cases for your Sigfig which helps keep them safe and dust free, it also looks awesome on display. Head over to our shop for more details