Completed Project - The Red Brick Manor

Here's my latest LEGO project!  I haven't done any significant building in awhile.  When I started this I really had no clear direction.  I knew I wanted to make a house for LEGOGirl to play with, but that's it.  (She's really getting into the whole dollhouse phase.)

This is one of those rare times when everything just seemed to click.  I did a little bit of tearing down/rebuilding here and there, but for the most part, this went smoothly.  Anyway, here it is...

The 1st floor and 2nd floor are both removable, which made it much easier to decorate, and also a little easier for LEGOGirl to play with.  She likes to be able to get at EVERYTHING.

Now for the closeups...

1st Floor Wide Shot - 2nd Floor removed

Living Room

Kitchen

What's behind that door?

Puppy!

Baby's Room

My camera's battery was dying, so unfortunately I didn't get a better shot of the Baby's Room.  The chair in the back turned out well, and there's a dresser back there with a teddy bear and bottle on it.  On the right is a shelf with a train on it.  

Bathroom

Bathroom

Bedroom

I enjoyed constructing the beds.  The mattress part is a stack of 1x4 bricks on their side.

Bedroom

Right Side

Left Side

I debated decorating the house for Christmas.  With the color scheme I think it would look really cute.  If I get around to that, I'll post some more pics.  Thanks for taking a look!

LEGO Holiday Movie - A Visit from St. Nicholas: For Advanced Readers

If you have a few minutes and want to learn some new words while being entertained, check out this new holiday LEGO movie made by LEGODad.  You can also check out his website or subscribe to his minitrue11 channel at YouTube.  Enjoy!

Amazon LEGO Lightning Deals Today

Starting now Amazon has a new LEGO Lightning Deal every hour - today only.  There are 8 different sets that will be sold for reduced prices.  They're all older sets, but it may be worth checking out if you can get them for 40% off or more.

The first set on sale is 4194 Whitecap Bay.  Follow this link to see what's happening now.

Toys R Us Deal - LEGO 4428 City Advent Calendar

I received an email this morning for 20% off select LEGO Super Heroes and City Sets.  The coupon is only good for today, so I rushed out to get the LEGO 4428 City Advent Calendar my son has asked for.  The set is regularly priced at $39.99, with an additional $5.00 off.  The coupon stacks with this, AND my coupon scanned at 25% off instead of 20%!  I got the calendar for $26.24, which is a pretty good deal!  But this deal is ONLY good today!

LEGO Building Challenge #15

It's not quite here yet, be we think it's time to celebrate...

Building Challenge #15 - Fall Fun!

We put up some Fall decorations around the house, and that inspired our latest creations.  LEGOBoy was the first to jump into this theme, with his Ghost Train and Tombstone models.

Ghost Train and Tombstone by LEGOBoy

I love the detail he added to the train.  I wanted to create a tree with fall colors, and that became the centerpiece of my model.

Fall Scene, by LEGOMom

I like how the tree turned out.  I wish we had an actual LEGO rake, however.

I do intend to add some minifigs, and there was a bucket of apples in the scene, but LEGOGirl took it and I forgot about it.  So I guess this one still needs some finishing touches.

LEGO Building Challenge #14

After a much longer than intended hiatus, we are back on the LEGO Challenge bandwagon!  For those who might be new, we post new challenges on Fridays and invite you to play along and post your models as well.  You have until the end of the month to link up an entry (see bottom of post).  All ages are welcome!

Building Challenge #14 - Feeling Friend-ly

This week we are challenging you to build something using LEGO Friends pieces.  You can use just the minifigs, or the funky colored pieces - whatever you like.  If you are still skeptical about the LEGO Friends line, we'd encourage you to give them a try.  They really do grow on you.

As always, we have some inspiration for you.  We recently acquired Olivia's House, which is a great set.  

Olivia's House - LEGO 3315

We decided to expand the neighborhood a bit and build another Friend's House in the same style.  LEGOBoy and LEGOMom collaborated on this venture.  LEGOMom designed the house and the exterior, and LEGOBoy designed all the furnishings.

The house is made out of that newer-colored medium blue, and features a front porch and a roof with skylights.  There's also a door that leads to the rooftop garden area.

The construction is modular, so you can switch around the rooms and roof pieces.  It's also the same size as the rooms in Olivia's House, so we could theoretically mix those in, too.

Front Door Close-up

All the interior furnishings are the work of LEGOBoy.  He put the kitchen and a design studio on the first floor, a bathroom and bedroom on the second floor, and an inventor's workshop and living room in the attic space on the third floor.

Interior View

All those trips to the LEGO Store Pick-a-Brick wall paid off here.  That's where we got all the blue pieces.  LEGOBoy and I both really enjoyed this project.  We found the LEGO Friends' elements very inspiring.  Hopefully you will, too!

Interior Close-up

Interior Close-up

LEGO Friends Alive & Well

Good news, LEGO Friends fans!  The LEGO Group reports that since its launch, the LEGO Friends line has sold twice as well as expected.  I wasn't too sure about this line when it first came out, but I've gotten a few of the sets and we all really like them.  They have lots of unique pieces and the colors are fun.  I think I've even gotten used to the new people, even though it's still a little annoying that their feet don't move.

With the news of Friends Advent Calendars being stopped in production, I was worried that it was a sign of bad things to come.  It appears that isn't the case.

If you'd like to read the press release from LEGO, click here.

Now Available - Tomb of the Fangpyre - Graphic Novel #4

Attention all Ninjago fans!  The latest graphic novel from Papercutz is now available - Tomb of the Fangpyre by Greg Farshtey and Jolyon Yates.  In the beginning of the book are awesome illustrations of the ZX characters and the Fangpyre Tomb.

A report from LEGOBoy:  "The four ninjas are trying to recover the four fragments of the Serpentine Stone which depicts how the Serpentine came to be and how the Great Devourer was created.  There's a cool rattlecopter fight and a fight between Zane and a shark.  One of the pages shows all the Serpentine from all the tribes, except for Pythor."

  

At the end of the book is a teaser for the next graphic novel, Kingdom of the Snakes.

Overall, LEGOBoy would rate this book 5 stars out of 5!  He recommends that all Ninjago fans read this one soon!

LEGO Birthday Cake (#40048)

We recently traveled to our closest LEGO store and picked up a few things, like the new Heroica set Ilrion and a Core Hunter for LEGOBoy.  Right now when you spend $50 or more at a LEGO store or LEGO.com you get a cute birthday cake set to celebrate LEGO's 80th birthday!  We had some VIP rewards to use, too, so we made out pretty well.

But getting back to the cake... it's set #40048 - 24 pieces.  I really like the plate they have it sitting on.

It's a cute little set with some fun pieces in it.  We also got to check out a lot of new LEGO sets while we were at the store.  There wasn't much new in the build-a-mini or pick-a-brick wall, though.

That's all for now!

LEGO Art Exhibition - Part 1

We proudly present the first in a series of posts of LEGO Art created by LEGOBoy.  It was particularly difficult to pose the tiger in Symphony in Orange No. 2.  Which one is your favorite?

Symphony in Orange No. 1

Symphony in Orange No. 2

Symphony in Orange No. 3

Symphony in Orange No. 4

Inspired by...

The London Tower Bridge is a set we don't own yet, and given the cost, we probably won't get it unless we find a deal somewhere.

Nonetheless, it's a cool-looking set, and LEGOBoy used it as the inspiration for a new micro-build.

I really love these little vehicles.  So cute.

LEGO Ninjago #4: Tomb of the Fangpyre

Good news, Ninjago fans!  The fourth Ninjago graphic novel from Papercutz is coming out soon!  It will be available August 21st.

For those of you lucky enough to attend the San Diego Comic Con, the artist for the new book Jolyon Yates will be available Sunday morning and will sign a show exclusive print that is free with purchase - limited to the first 1,000 attendees.

Here's a preview of the promo poster -

How cool is that?  LEGOBoy loves the whole Serpentine storyline and is looking forward to getting this latest edition.  If you haven't checked out the graphic novels yet, we highly recommend them!

New posts arriving soon!

It's been awhile since I've posted any updated info here on the site.  The LEGOFamily and I have been busy with the usual end of the school year and job related happenings, but now that summer vacation is here, we're ready to get back to what's important - LEGOs!  Look for new posts soon!

NEW Items Available

I have listed several new LEGO items for sale, including LEGO stickers and sets of LEGO plates.  This month, with any $5 purchase, you will receive instructions [pdf file] for this model - FREE!

Check it out, either by clicking the "FOR SALE" tab above, or following this link.

New Ninjago Spinner Packs - 9569, 9572

The new Ninjago spinner packs are starting to arrive in stores.  LEGOBoy came home the other day with news that a boy on the playground had NRG Kai.  I was surprised that another LEGOParent had apparently acquired new LEGOs before us!  Sure enough, we found the new stuff, too.

Then just yesterday I found Spitta (9569) and NRG Cole (9572).

I really do like the spinner packs, which is unfortunate because it means that as soon as I see one I grab it. Both of these guys came from the local Target.  *Finally* poor Lasha has a friend.

Review - LEGO Mini Modulars - VIP Exclusive (10230)

As promised, here's a little info about set #10230, the Mini Modulars Exclusive Set.  Each building comes in its own bag, which is kind of cool.  I learned a lot of techniques and new uses for pieces by building these little guys.  The detail is just amazing.

I really think the only way to truly appreciate this set is to build it for yourself.  I also built this just after finishing the Fire Brigade, and it was neat to build the mini of it while the full-size version was still fresh in my mind.

If you are a fan of the Modular Buildings, then this set is a no-brainer.  You need it.  It's inspired me to try and create a mini-mod as cool as these.  So far I've been having a rough time of it, which just gives me an even greater appreciation for the LEGO designers who come up with a set as cool as this.  It's really tough to make intricate buildings on a scale this small.

I will say, however, that I'm about sick of piling 1x1 plates on top of each other.  The darn things bother me if they aren't perfectly lined up with each other, and it's just so easy for them to be slightly twisted out of place.  I'm sure there are a lot of folks who don't have that particular hang-up, and will find this build more enjoyable as a result!

Side note:  My seven-year-old built the Green Grocer, despite the fact that this set is 12+.  You do have to have a good eye for detail, though.  A lot of pieces get thrown down in a single step, and they're all so tiny!

Building Challenge #13

Happy Friday once again!  This week we managed to choose a building challenge theme, and one of us got around to completing a model.  One of us got sidetracked by a microscale building project.  Anyway...

Building Challenge #13 - A Monumental Task

This week we decide to try and recreate a famous monument.  I had trouble trying to decide what to make, and ended up being the one who got sidetracked.  LEGOBoy, however, came up with a great model - the Washington Monument.

Washington Monument, by LEGOBoy

I had to try and darken up the background so you could see the monument part of it in the picture.  We didn't have the piece he wanted for the top of the monument - he wanted a four-sided slope.  I was able to convince him that the cone was a good enough alternative.

I love how he did the flags and the reflecting pool.  He hasn't seen the monument in person yet, and I thought he did a great job.  I suspect he might change a few things up once he does get to see the real thing.

Oh!  I forgot!  We have a first-model-ever to show from LEGOGirl, who is a year-and-a-half old.  It's kind of like a monument or statue.

Monument, by LEGOGirl

I made the underlying structure of it, and walked away.  LEGOGirl added all her Princess & Pooh friends and carried it over to show me.  I think she did a great job!  It's hard for her to get everyone standing so close to each other like that.  So there you have it - LEGOGirl's first model!

Enjoy your weekend - here's hoping it's LEGO-filled and fun!