BlueBrixx

When ordering sets from BlueBrixx I occasionally added some parts packs. And honestly, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. They have some really nice parts not available from the others mentioned here, or the obscure Danish brand some people may be familiar with. The clutch for the parts is very tight and strong. However, the color compatibility isn’t fully on par with others. White bricks have a bit of a bluish appearance when used together with other brands. The prices vary wildly. Sometimes you get a great price for parts when calculated per piece, other times it will be a lot cheaper to just use Bricklink. With BlueBrixx you can only buy part packs in predetermined (bulk) quantities. Unless you live in Germany of course, where their stores have a parts service similar to PaB walls. This means you might have to buy somewhere between 10-200 pieces per pack while you might not need quantities that big.

Another negative is the availability of parts. Recently I noticed that a lot of parts had disappeared from their website. So this makes me question if long term availability of their parts is secure enough to switch over to this brand (and therefore I tried out the others in this article).

But the parts I did get were really nice, to show some of the highlights:

The black rings can be used to reverse plates or tiles to build in different directions. The green and trans-clear (hard to see) double plates have a similar function. The reddish brown octagonal plates are useful for trees etc. and the bushes I needed in tan for a build buying a used one on Bricklink was almost as expensive as buying 20 new ones from BlueBrixx and to be honest I can’t tell the difference. The white one is weird however, since it has a bit of a weird color and shape.

The best thing they have is the flextube cable. Building with flextubes can be really good, but the tubes can be expensive and hard to get. So buying a 5 meter cable and cutting it at needed sizes is a really good solution. It’s perhaps slightly less rigid compared to other brands but it’s good enough to build with.

Webrick standard parts

Webrick standard parts are the cheapest and fastest way to get bricks from them. The parts are from unspecified manufacturers and it sometimes shows a bit. The consistency can lack at times but I wouldn’t call it bad quality though.

An easy example are these reddish brown stud shooters with quite some color variation. In this case it’s not an issue for me, I’ll be using these for tree trunks and the variation adds a bit of character.

For future purchases however I’ll be mindful however that inconsistencies like these can occur with standard parts. Therefore I’ll be more inclined to pick premium parts if the option is there. In some cases however, certain colors or parts are not available as premium parts. I got dark orange and medium nougat leaves from standard parts as well. The color difference with medium nougat is a bit bigger compared with dark orange, but it’s not horrible to be honest.

The website for Webrick is very user friendly. It’s easy to find parts. It’s a bit cheecky perhaps, but often LEGO part numbers and Bricklink color codes are used to help find exactly the parts you want.

With my first order there was a mistake made with one of the lots, but customer service sent me replacement parts without any problems.

Webrick premium parts

When I first ordered from Webrick, the difference between standard and premium bricks was quite unclear. It was just marketed as better compatibility, whatever that was supposed to mean. It wasn’t clear what brand those bricks were and there were some strange things like having to order in quantities of 40 (or a 1kg bulk). But there were some parts available in unique colors which I’m happy I bought.

Recently however, a major change was made. Premium bricks are now Go bricks. These might just be the best bricks currently available. The clutch is tight and strong, plates don’t have the clear markings from the molding process like some other brands like Bluebrixx have, and colors are similar to the notorious Danish brand. It’s because of this great quality that companies like Mould King and Funwhole (hihi) and a few others rely on Go bricks for their sets. So the news of this switch was quite exciting, since I was already looking for a good Go bricks seller having read about their reputation.

Gobricks colors are basically the same as LEGO and they have a few more of their own colors

Premium bricks do have a longer handling time at Webrick compared to standard parts but great care is taken of orders. Most lots are placed in separate ziplock bags (see pictures for impression of packaging) making it easy for those who don’t like to sort. The price is probably the best I could find for Go bricks too. If you Google a bit or subscribe to their newsletter you will find plenty of good discount codes. A small warning with their newsletter: they go a bit overboard with this, it seems like I get mail from them every other day or so.

Because Go Bricks is a brand with a good reputation their bricks are not the cheapest you can find, but still cheaper than most of us will be used to. Shipping is not free, but in my case probably similar to using Bricklink.

mygobricks.com

Since I’ve already discussed the quality of Go Bricks, I can be short here and just mention the difference in ordering and delivery compared to Webrick. The packing is quite different, everything is in 1 bag and you have to sort yourself. A lot more eco friendly of course because less plastic bags are used. And to be honest, I quite like sorting these kind of orders because I can have a good look at the parts and already get inspired what to do with them. So for me that’s a big plus for mygobricks.com.

The shipping is a bit faster as well, I ordered similar sized orders from them and Webrick (premium) on consecutive days and this service was about 7-10 days faster. However, the site is not as user friendly, when making changes in shopping I often got an error and color names are not the familiar ones.

And being Dutch it’s my national duty to report I couldn’t find discount codes for them online like I could for Webrick. The assortment is a bit different from Webrick premium as well, some parts they have I couldn’t find at Webrick and vice versa. In short: great service, more eco friendly and faster, but you pay a bit more for that.

Love having all these extra color options! And there are a couple more available.

Conclusion

None of these services gave me a bad experience and I can recommend all of them. There are, however, pros and cons in every case. Different people will have different priorities. I hope this blog was helpful for people considering making brick purchases from alternate brands. Happy building!

In this annual a lot of the factions get dedicated pages, like Wolfpack, forestman and dragon masters.

It’s not only classic castle that can be found here, other classic themes like Space, Wild West, Adventurers and Paradisa are also appreciated. In total it’s 67 pages of Classic LEGO fun! Even the ‘adverts’ are done in a very fitting way. I won’t give all away here because you should of course have a look for yourself.

But this is quite a nice activity book for younger fans as well, with puzzles, colouring pages and even a Wolfpack Easter Bunny mask!

Last but not least Classicstylecastle also shows some sketches how some of his MOCs started and there’s a competition where you can win quite an impressive bundle of his building instructions.

After my first look at the annual I immediately got some bricks out and started building a few of the available models. I had to make a few minor adjustments for not having the right parts at hand. As I discovered, it was quite easy to substitute the missing parts without fundamentally changing the models. In total there are 17 instructions included.  They vary in sizes so here’s a few that I picked with parts I had available:

There’s a full village market included with a lot of different stalls and medieval market activities like a jester on stilts, I choose to build the ‘Butcher’s Stall’ and the ‘Village Stocks’. Even as a vegetarian I love the creativity for the rotisserie pig roast. It’s just some basic parts used but it manages to capture the shape of a pig really well! So of course I recommend building that one. The stocks are funny for a minifig scene, so even though the build was simple, I really liked it!

From the other builds I picked the ‘Hedgerow Handcart’and the ‘Wolfpack Ballista’. With only a small number of sets released for the Wolfpack faction it’s fun to get a few more builds for them. And Forestmen is surely one of the other fan favourite factions from Classic Castle. If you know how many sets there were, be sure to take the quiz in the annual by the way, it will test your knowledge with fun and interesting questions like that.

And to be honest this is just a quick overview, there’s a lot more to get into! So if you’re a Classic LEGO fan, be sure to download the annual and spend a day with your family enjoying all the fun it has to offer. You can download the full version here: https://linktr.ee/classicstylecastle

A big thank you to Classicstylecastle for providing the community with such a well produced annual! It’s awesome to see the dedication and enthusiasm that no doubt has gone into creating this. And I will no doubt build a few more of the instructions once this feature is online.

Be sure to show your support for the creator by following on social media and check out the instructions for the bigger builds that are available on Rebrickable!

Rebrickable:

https://rebrickable.com/users/classicstylecastle/

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/classicstylecastle/

Building Challenges can be a lot of fun. Not just the creative aspect with building, but also the social interactions with other builders from around the world. In December most challenges will have a holiday theme, which will give an extra excuse to get your bricks out and join in the festive building! And if you’re not building these can be some fun hashtags to follow to check out the creations from other AFOLs.

#YourLEGObaubles

Anabelle @brickswhynot is hosting the ornament hashtag #YourLEGObaubles. These can be sets, MOCs, digital etc as long as it’s LEGO. So the prompt is simple: show your LEGO balls on instagram, tag @brickswhynot and add #YourLEGObaubles.

#LetsBuildHolidayHabitats23

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Life Day, Festivus, or just enjoy the excuse as a break from work to go on holiday, this prompt is entirely open ended to your interpretation and celebration of choice! Build as many or as few as you’d like, most will build one for each of the six days, or at least three to have a mini stack for stack day, but one is just as fun and will allow you to qualify for multiple prizes.

#DiversifyLEGOholidays

#BuildToGive

Are you planning to join any of these challenges? Or did we miss a fun activity? Let us know in the comments! If you are hosting and want to have your building challenge featured in November please reach out on Instagram or comment below.

I’m not sure if the recent social media trend has inspired this entry but it’s already quite popular. And with good reason. Roman architecture remains iconic and easy to recognize. It’s almost surprising LEGO has produced so few sets with a Roman theme. Luckily there are great MOC builders and LEGO Ideas entries to make up for this.

This entry shows a temple on the Forum, a triumphal arch next to it and an aqueduct in the background. The colour scheme is mostly white, gold and dark red as can be expected from a Roman Era build. The build as entered uses 1776 pieces and features 6 minifigures. These consist of a Senator, a woman of nobility, a Centurion, 2 Legionaries and the final figure is used as a statue tributing a former emperror.

The statue is placed within the temple and can easily be accessed with the removable roof.

The creator of this entry has made quite a good display piece celebrating the Romans and their contributions in infrastructure. There’s quite a few important references making this both a good looking build and educational as well.

We would like to wish Krackenator4 the best of luck in gaining the required 10k support. If you like the look of this idea and would like to give your support, please use the links below. Registration is free to LEGO Ideas and only takes a minute, so head over there now and do your part!

Flickr:

https://www.flickr.com/people/194123970@N07/

Official LEGO Ideas page:

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/cd69163d-f68a-4b39-9c6f-3b8159d3c4b2

Building Challenges can be a lot of fun. Not just the creative aspect with building, but also the social interactions with other builders from around the world. November is packed with plenty of building fun so get your bricks out and join any of these!

#HeroVillainhabitats23

#BuildToGive

Nerdvember 2023: Survivor Edition

#LetsBuildMosaics

#pwdhabitat23

Are you planning to join any of these challenges? Or did we miss a fun activity? Let us know in the comments! If you are hosting and want to have your building challenge featured in November please reach out on Instagram or comment below.

Some of these challenges showed some really original interpretations of a habitat with alternative techniques. We’ll discuss a few and hope these great builders might inspire you with future builds.

@brickfambuilds was the first builder I saw doing a small easter egg on the outside of one of the walls. In this example a bird and an apple. It’s a really fun way to add a little detail if it doesn’t really fit within the 8×8 plate.

A trick I really like is reversing habitats in a stack. This way the back of the outside walls faces forward. With openings, doors or windows the suggestion is made you are looking into a building from the outside.

Last year with the 90 years of LEGO celebrations I saw this one by @freezrbuilds. It combines 2 classic LEGO Town sets creating both a delivery truck (set 6624) and post office (set 6689) in the walls. Especially the truck is a very clever and original way to create a habitat wall and this idea just opens up so many posibillities.

Last December @brickhuntress created a series of Harry Potter habitats. I highly recommend checking all of them out! There are so many cool design features to make these habitats look good from all sides, looking like real buildings from Diagon Alley. The base for these habitats is just the usual 8×8. And the extra space that was created for all the architectural features on the outside doesn’t interfere with the possibilities to stack them together with other habitats. Just a really spectacular and clever build.

So @sleepswithlego gave me the idea for the technique in this build, having the back wall collapse and function as a lid to create a pizza box. In fully open position this build still has all the connection studs so it can still be used for stacking like a normal habitat.

The final MOC I’ll highlight is the Captain Hook ship made by @virginia_bricks. One of my favourite builds I’ve ever seen in a habitat challenge. The ship is highly detailed and really something different to regular habitat builds. Of course having a build like this is harder to incorporate on any position in a stack since it’s height might block the view. Even though the focus is on the individual habitats in this blog, the stack is added to show how this is solved. A taller habitat on top is very suitable. It also works really well together with the underwater scenes from the Little Mermaid habitats to create a unique crossover.

In a next part in this series of blogs I will be focussing on cohesive stacks and highlight some different ways of stacking habitats.

Has this blog inspired you to give it a try? Be sure to use hashtag #thebrickposthabitats when you share your build. We’ll try to share as many as we can in a future blog in this series.

How to build a habitat?

Habitats share common dimensions. This makes them suitable for stacking, collaborative projects etc. Some liberties can be taken but the connection points between habitats needs to be considered if a stack is created. 

Step 1:

Start with an 8×8 base. It doesn’t really matter if it’s a solid 8×8 plate or a combination of smaller plates. With the construction of walls, tiling or other building features the base can be strengthened later on. 

Step 2:

Build the left and right walls 4 bricks high. You can also go for 12 plates or other combinations that give the same height. Traditionally, the left wall has a 1-stud overhang. Creating a length of 9 studs on that side. Some variety is possible (right instead of left, no overhang etc). Just be aware that changing this will impact connecting other habitats.

Step 3: 

Starting at row 5 the overhang shifts to the other side. So if you started the overhang on the left side you skip the first stud and build the walls a further 4 bricks in height. On the right side the fifth brick will be one stud longer than the first row. This is how you can connect habitats together on the left and right hand side. 

Step 4:

You can temporarily hide the open stud in the wall with a cheese slope or something similar. This gives a smoother look when a habitat is not connected on that side. Finish the habitat with a 1×1 plate on both ends and a 1×2 plate in the corner. This will give stability when stacking another habitat on top. In between these plates 1×6 tiles (or combining smaller ones) will help easily taking the stack apart without destroying the individual habitats.

Step 5:

Pick a minifigure character and create a fun backstory to build within the habitat. Decorate with some details telling the story of your figure. I usually start with a temporary plain color for the walls and swap this out during the build once I’ve decided what the ‘story’ of the habitat will become. 

Cohesive stack building:

Most of my habitat stacks these days are what is called ‘cohesive stacks’. This means all habitats together will form a bigger build. This has changed my building process somewhat. First I’ll make a rough version with all the needed connections between the 8×8 plates. This means I’ll start building a few habitats simultaneously. Once the basic structure is in place I’ll finish the habitats individually like described in the stacks before. In these pictures there are some examples of my holiday habitats where I wanted the stack to be a Christmas market. And also the recent Pride habitats, where I intended to create the bow of a ship in the middle. 

Instagram challenges:

Like mentioned in the introduction, there often are habitat challenges on Instagram. Especially @brickfambuilds has frequent challenges. She is also a master in creating very creative habitats herself. If you’re curious about habitat building be sure to follow her and you’re always welcome to join the challenges, especially if you’re just starting building habitats. It’s a fun and supportive community so we can only recommend taking a look. 

This was our introduction on the basics of habitats. In the next blog in this series we’ll be taking a look at some builders who looked out of the box and created some unique habitats. In part 3 we’ll be diving into creative habitat stacks and the possibilities explored by some talented builders. A big thank you to Jen @brickfambuilds for her help in creating this blog.

Has this blog inspired you to give it a try? Be sure to use hashtag #thebrickposthabitats when you share your build. We’ll try to share as many as we can in a future blog in this series. 

I did however have time this weekend to take some outdoor photos of the MOC I designed and built earlier in the year. I wanted to produce something to compliment my new found interest in LEGO Trains and a station sprung to mind. With a lack of decent official LEGO stations out there – they are all small and lack-lustre – I thought I’d give it a go.

Signalling the incoming train.

Being British, I’ve enjoyed many camping holidays, down South and Devon in particular. During most of these holidays we’d treat ourselves to an old Steam engine trip, either to the beach or to a medieval castle. In that part of the World we’re blessed with little Railway Stations that look so quaint and idyllic, more importantly full of nostalgia and life. I set myself the task of capturing the look & feel of those small Village platforms.

My initial thought was to build something bigger than I previously have, so I grabbed two green 32×32 baseplates and laid them on the table. I wanted it to be a decent size as the trains I intend to run on the tracks are rather long. It made sense to make the platform at least one carriage long, so the holiday makers (Minifigures) could enter and exit the train with ease and not panic if they’d get a seat of not!

I usually start by sketching a rough outline of where the slightly bigger builds/features will be placed, but I took a different approach to this MOC, I just went for it! Starting with the train tracks themselves, as this would give me an idea as to where to build the station, an more importantly how high. I placed my motorised LEGO Hogwarts Express Train on the freshly laid tracks and worked out I needed to make the platform three bricks, one plate, and one tile high. So just shy of four whole bricks high. 

Height of platform.

With then height set I continued with building the platform and adding spaces for the main ticket hut and newsstand. The very cool looking newsstand is not my MOC, it’s an actual LEGO set that I acquired at a Make & Take event hosted at my local LEGO Store (Southampton).

Black sloped roof.

Having worked out a good size for the ticket hut I began constructing it. I went for Red as the accent colour here, against the white and grey it stands out nicely and again adds to the whole quaint little village scene.

Dark grey archs.

A few Brickowl orders later, I could finish the roof and the dark grey platform supports/archways. I don’t have many slopes in my spares and my go to bits & pieces supplier is Brickowl, I just find it slightly easier to use than Bricklink.

With Red being the aceent colour of choice I began to pull out the bits need, pillars, plates etc.

The pillars are my favourite part of the build, not only do they hold up the overhanging roof, they look great and really add the finishing touch to the whole build.

Mother & Son waiting by the red pillars.

The service window is quite simple, with just a single archway at the top, I didn’t want it to be too big, just like its real life Village station counterpart. There is a Map just left of it where passengers came plan their journey.

Grabbing tickets before the train leaves.

The Newsstand, that I mentioned about, looks right at home on the platform. I was contemplating whether to make it coffee shack, as more stations have them. In the end I stuck with the LEGO newsstand, so train goers could relax and read the news!

Newsstand, pride of place on the platform.

Just under the Newsstand is a small stream, which runs under that side of the platform. Visitors can look down and see running water and fish swimming. This does see the light of day as it trickles out and carries on its journey, maybe to a lake or river. The greeny and wildlife certainly does florish around the water as you can see by the many wild flowers and insects.

Peaceful stream.

But before all of that, you have to get to the station, by wandering up the cobbled path, climbing the stairs, and parking your bike in the rack provided.

Bicycle rack.

Scenic entrance.

Passing the Lanesbury Station sign on the left. I decided to have a custom tile printed with the choosen name and logo as it finished off the whole MOC perfectly. When coming up with a name I thought long and hard over the span of a  few days, my surname is Lane and trying to insert that into place names was tricky. Lanesville, Lanetown, nothing sounded quite right – Then Lanesbury popped into my head, YES! That sounds perfect, it has the quiant and idyllic ring to it that I was after.

Thank you for reading all about my Village Train Station MOC. I hope you have enjoyed seeing the photos and what can be achieved, and more, with LEGO!

I am by no means a master builder, I like to dabble and play around with LEGO to try and build what I imagine. Sometimes it goes well, other times not so much – But isn’t that what LEGO is all about, creating something from nothing and having fun along the way. Play Well!

If you have any comments or questions please use the form below, it would be great to hear from you and to hear what you have to say. Thanks again.

We’ve followed him for a while now and we’re always blown away by how great and funky his builds are. It’s a really novel idea and it works exceptionally well.

Find out what inspires Nate and gets him building, and also the two rules he follows when constructing. Please spare some time and go support Nate via his Instagram account (@brickdistorted) and website(BrickDistorted).

Tell us a bit about yourself – hobbies occupation etc

Wadup! I’m Nate, a dude with a ton of a passion for life and the things I spend my time on. Right now, that includes “distorted” LEGO builds as well as making hip-hop music and writing leadership/self-help articles.

I recently started a new job as an Engineering Manager at Amazon and am still deciding whether I’m going to stay in the Washington DC area or move to Seattle, WA (again). I’ve spent my career as a professional computer nerd, building software for Microsoft and Vistaprint before joining Amazon.

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When and how did you get into LEGO?

Believe it or not, I wasn’t into LEGO as a kid! I did have one Technic set (8842 – Hovercraft / Helicopter) that I kept taking apart and rebuilding so often that I eventually lost the parts needed to finish it. When I tried to do a MOC, I’d quickly get frustrated when I couldn’t get it to look how I wanted and so I never was too interested in it.

My only LEGO set as a kid

It wasn’t until I was an adult in 2010 that the Fallingwater (21005) and Robie House (21010) sets caught my eye, and got me interested in the Architecture Line.  As I started to collect more of the sets, I discovered that I was fascinated with architecture and rediscovered my love of following the LEGO directions which are always so well-written!

Fallingwater – The set that got me back into LEGO

When did you start creating these wonderful, alternative architecture builds?

In 2018, I was nearly finished collecting the entire Architecture series and I ran into 2 problems. I wanted to keep building more LEGO Architecture, and 2 of the sets I didn’t own were extremely expensive: Marina Bay Sands (21021) and Sungnyemun (21016). To explore if they were worth paying all that money for, I downloaded the instructions and attempted to build them using parts from some of my non-Architecture sets. I only had about half the pieces in the right color, so I started using the correct piece but in other colors when I needed to.

I was able to finish both builds almost 100%, but the end result looked pretty strange. Later, I sent a photo to my brother-in-law for a laugh but he thought they looked really cool and encouraged me to keep doing it…and so I did!

My very first “distorted” builds

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I get inspiration from just about anything, so I try to keep my eyes, ears, and mind open for ideas everywhere. If I don’t find any external inspirations, I might ask some of my friends or relatives if they have any cool ideas or I’ll just jump in and start putting something together as randomly as possible and experiment.

I also peruse my LEGO collection fairly often. Just picking up each piece of my collection and inspecting it can lead to a new idea or I’ll notice something that I want to improve upon. I’ve generally found the key to inspiration is maximizing the number of opportunities to be inspired!

After you get an initial idea, what happens next?

I try it out as soon as possible before I lose it! From time to time, I’ll have an idea that’s clear and coherent enough that I can just write it down and remember it later. Normally though, my ideas are just half-baked hunches, and I have to try actually putting things together to turn it into a real idea…otherwise, I’ll probably just forget about it.

This is why I like to have multiple projects happening at once, and I like to keep ongoing projects visible and easily accessible (like how folks leave a jigsaw puzzle out and make progress with it in spits and spurts). This lets me keep mulling over ideas and be able to immediately try something if it pops into my head. One half-baked experiment can end up dictating how the entire project will go!

Are there any techniques in particular that you really like implementing?

“Make it look absurd” – this has become my favorite starting technique. Making it look absurd means building an existing LEGO set using as many random and ridiculous colors as possible, intentionally making the build unrecognizable. The basic rules I follow for this:

1) Never have 2 pieces of the same color touching each other
2) Only use tan, white, gray, or black if I have no other choice or if the piece is not visible

Beyond getting more familiar with how the set is structured, this technique forces me to do things that I wouldn’t do otherwise. Along the way, something new and interesting will jump out to me that I can end up using in the final version. This forces me to experiment in new ways and prevents me from repeating things I’ve done before!

Making the stormtrooper look “absurd” – first draft!

How long does it take from initial idea to finished product?

Projects usually take me 2 to 3 months to complete, depending on how many times I have to order parts. The caveat is that I always do 3 or 4 projects at the same time, and thus I end up with 3 or 4 new builds every 3 months or so. I do projects in batches so that I won’t get stuck spinning my wheels on any one project and so I can be more cost-effective when ordering parts.

What would be your dream architecture set to create/recreate? It could be something LEGO hasn’t done yet!

I would be crazy excited if LEGO released large versions of The Burj El Arab in Dubai, or the former Twin Towers in New York City. A miniature Burj El Arab was included in the Dubai Skyline set, but I want something bigger! I love those 2 buildings for very different reasons, and I bet I’d end up doing at least 2 different versions of each one! Please hook it up LEGO!

What are you currently working on?

I am about halfway through my largest project to date – Sydney Opera House (10234) from the Creator Expert line. It’s a giant, long-term project that’s probably going to take me at least 6 months to finish.

I recently finished my own version of Villa Savoye (21014) and I’m working finishing up my edition of LEGO House (21037) and the Star Wars Stormtrooper Helmet (75276), which is my first distorted build of an official LEGO set outside of Architecture and Creator Expert.

What advice would you give to beginner MOC builders?

Focus on what you like to do the most and keep doing that. You can get good at just about anything if you put in the time, and putting in the time is a lot easier if it’s something you really enjoy!

I’m not good at designing new MOC’s from scratch, and the times I’ve tried I’ve quickly become frustrated, especially when I’d look at the incredible things other people all over the world can make. This turned me off from LEGO a few different times.

The thing that I loved most about LEGO was simply following the directions and assembling the sets. I did this over and over again, experimenting with modifying the colors a bit, and I started to get better at it. Eventually, I found my own way to make something unique and different. I personally don’t think my distorted builds are nearly as impressive as the incredible MOC’s that other people can make completely from scratch, but I love working on my builds constantly, which lets me get better at making things in my own unique, colorful way!

It’s amazing what you can do with trial & error and a little persistence!

Apart from making alternative architecture builds, what other aspects of LEGO do you like, sets, minifigures etc?

Beyond LEGO Architecture and some of the Creator Expert series, I’m a fan of a lot of the LEGO Ideas sets. The whole mechanism for submitting ideas, voting them up, and having LEGO consider them for official sets is so cool! My favorite sets from LEGO Ideas include NASA Apollo Saturn V, Wall-E, Voltron, and Dinosaur Fossils! I’ve also had a blast building the Porsche 911 GTS and Bugatti Chiron Technic Supercars. I’ve heard there may be a Lamborghini coming next, I can’t wait!

I did manage to reconstruct JKBrickwork’s Lego Piranha Plant after spending 18 months watching the YouTube videos and experimenting…it’s definitely my favorite from all my non-distorted builds as well.

We would like to thank Nate for taking the time to chat with us. It has truly been a pleasure and I can’t wait to see what BrickDistorted does next!

Please support him and his creations:
BrickDistorted (brickdistorted website – nearly complete!)
Instagram: @brickdistorted
http://proofofthought.io (website featuring my hip-hop, writing, drone videos, and other creative endeavors!)

I have to admit that he is one of my all-time favourite creators. His current project, in-which he collaborates with Attila Gallik (@thegbrix), entitled STARTRON, is a collection of Classic Space inspired sets and vehicles, which look absolutely gorgeous!

Please spare your time and briefly dive into the World of STARTER SETS, in this exclusive interview. Show your support and follow STARTER SETS on Instagram and YouTube.

Thank you for taking the time to chat with us Miklos. We’ve been following you for a while now on Instagram and really like what you have done, in particular your STARTRON project. We’d like to jump into your World very briefly, if we may, and get an insight into what inspires you, first off….

When and how did you get into LEGO?

In the early 80’s, I got my first LEGO set from my father, it was the space set the ‘All Terrain Vehicle’ (6927). That’s when my LEGO love started as a little kid. My adult LEGO world began when I started building and playing together with my little son. Around this time, I started collecting LEGO Star Wars figures. My son would play with them most of the time by disassembling the figures into the tiniest parts and building new ones out of them. Later, this inspired me to start a new project.

When did you start making custom set ideas?

STARTER SETS became the title of the project that was inspired by my little son. This is a series of conceptual photos whose images, with their pairs of unique, small construction toy figures, refer to serious stories based on violence, humiliation, and oppression.

A short video about the exhibition: https://youtu.be/SgEosZSwIy0

A limited edition, MOC figure was also created for this project, with the fantasy name STARTRON. It is a small, peaceful but curious astronaut figure.

STARTRON action mini figures.

What draws you to the space theme and gives you so much inspiration?

I’ve always been interested in Sci-fi, space travel, and the discovery of unknown worlds. One of my favorite television series was ‘Space: 1999’. During the journey, the characters of the series encounter many alien civilizations and phenomena that humanity has never seen before.

After you get an initial idea, what happens next?

Most of the time, the STARTRON astronaut himself is my source of inspiration. This little classic space-inspired red and white figure is perhaps best suited for light-colored sets. That’s why I mostly build with parts from Futuron kits. I wanted to photograph my figures in such classic scenes. I don’t even consider myself a real MOC designer, more like an artist or a photographer.

On the other hand, the STARTRON space theme also inspired a talented, full-blooded professional LEGO designer.
He’s Attila Gallik (@thegbrix), who designed brilliant vehicles, space ships, and robots for this old-new space world.

Instagram: @thegbrix

The G Brix + Starter Sets: ’STARTRON Space Rover’.

Currently we have 3 already built vehicles: A rover, a small tanker and a small cargo flyer. Other than this we have plans for a bigger starship, a giant mech, like the ones you saw in Pacific Rim and ultimately a space base to tie all the vehicles together. Our goal is to place the figures into a coherent fully detailed space environment. We are also planning various photoshoots for these builds and they will be present on several exhibitions so you can see them in person. Maybe they will be in a small TV role too, but I can’t tell you more on that right now.

The G Brix + Starter Sets: STARTRON Truck, Spaceship and the Robots.

How long does it take from initial idea to finished product?

The STARTRON figure itself took a relatively long time to complete. It took more than four months for the sketches to become a tangible product. A retro-looking photo will take a few days to complete. Design, construction, setup, photography for the small home studio and post-production. I’ve always been a fan of the old set’s product photos, and I wanted to place the little red astronaut in similar situations.

STARTRON astronaut with a Space Patroller.

Are there any techniques in particular that you really like implementing?

LEGO is the source of endless possibilities and creativity. This myriad of options can be a little daunting. Where should I go? How do I get started? Taking out a set of tools and using them to begin building something can help you get started.

On average how many bricks do you use, and what has been your biggest creation to date?

I am more inspired by smaller sets. I prefer sets with less than 300 items.
The largest so far was made up of about 350 parts.

STARTRON astronauts in the Lunar Dart.

STARTRON astronauts squad.

What are you currently working on?

I’m designing a new color variant from the astronaut STARTRON. Perhaps a little more in number than the original red limited edition astronaut, of which 50 were made. Some more exciting joint projects with ‘The G Brix’ are in the works. The STARTRON brand is our common passion.

What advice would you give to beginner MOC builders?

I suggest designing with little things first. A little robot or a mini vehicle, which can provide a sense of success. If you already have a first little set you will definitely want another type, or even a bigger one. Later, take out an existing vintage set, look at the back side of the box (if you don’t have the original box, you can easily find it on the internet using the set number) and try to build an alternative version, what you like best from the items in the set, simply based on the picture. Much can be learned from the original set designer’s thought process and solutions. If you’ve gained the practical knowledge to build things but don’t have enough parts at home, head to the virtual LEGO room. Download the free STUDIO application where you can design with all existing LEGO elements in different shapes and colors!

Studio 2.0: bricklink.com/v2/build/studio.page

STARTRON by Starter Sets

Apart from making MOCs, what other aspects of LEGO do you like, official sets, minifigures etc?

I really like LEGO ’Ideas’ kits. They’re interesting because these kits were inspired and approved by LEGO fans and MOC designers. One of my favorites from this product line is the classic ‘Pirates of barracuda bay’ (21322) as well as ‘Steamboat Willie’ (21317) designed by one of my compatriots Mate Szabo (@szabolego).

We would like to thank Miklos Voros for taking the time to chat with us. It has truly been a pleasure and I can’t wait to see what STARTER SETS does next!

If you’ve been inspired and would like to have your own slice of STARTRON then please feel free to download instructions for the STARTRON ST-01 Robot, courtesy of  @thegbrix and Rebrickable.

STARTRON ST-01 Robot Instructions

STARTRON ST-01 Robot