Vintage Lego Video Series Video #17 - All Terrain Vehicle

Lego: The Calendar 2014 review

Hellego! With the New Year coming up, it is good to find a new calendar for the next full year. Lego has released their own Lego calendar with high quality Lego scenes. It's a great calendar and you will understand why in the following video. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas all my fellow builders! I hope you got the presents you wanted! If you got Lego, what sets did you get? Leave a comment!

Lego MOC - Nativity Scene, The Barn Where Jesus was Born

Hellego! Since it is Christmas time, I wanted to make a Christmas creation. Instead of making your classic Santa Clause, Christmas tree, etc, I decided to make what actually started the Christmas tradition. The birth of Jesus Christ!

Jesus was born in a manger in a barn with his two parents, Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem. He was born in a manger because there was no more room in the Inn. The shepherds were told by an angel that a savior was born. They went to the barn and saw Jesus. They placed their sheep along with the other animals like cows and horses around Jesus to keep him warm. Three wise men were alerted by a star that Jesus, the new king was born. They followed the star and brought with them Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh to give as gifts to Jesus.

To me, as a Christian, I think it is important to know why we celebrate Christmas. I think that my MOC that represents the classic Nativity Scene that we put close to the Christmas tree represents this event really well. I made sure I represented all the characters that were there. I also made sure that every aspect was accurate and in proportion. I have to say that it was not easy to make the roof.

Here are some pictures and a video showing you in detail how I made it.

Full view of my creation.

Mary and Joseph around the manger that their newborn child is in.

 

Side view of the barn. You can see a big stack of hay. As I will explain in my video, there are different colors on the wall because it is made with different materials.

Back view of the barn. You can see how I made the wall so that it lets the roof slant.

Side view of the barn. You can see the roof vary well from this angle. You can observe that it is made of wood and hay.

A good view inside the barn. You can see the manger with baby Jesus, a pile of hay and a sheep.

Another inside view.

Here is the video!

New 2014 Lego Super Heroes sets Thoughts

Hellego! I am finally on my Christmas vacation! I wanted to make a video expressing my thoughts on the upcoming Lego Super Heroes sets. There are some good and bad points about this wave of sets and I want to express what I think. You can leave a comment saying what you think of these new sets!

Slowing Down on Lego...

Hellego! These past few weeks have been hectic for me. I have school work, I have a music show coming up, and it’s hard to find time to enjoy Lego. It's hard to find time to do everything I want to. I think this is something a lot of TFOLs and AFOLs can relate to.

Some of you may know I am working on a project with my Lego. I also like to put up at least one post, preferably two on my blog per weekend which I like doing and I have a lot of vintage Lego to build which I also enjoy doing very much. So I am very occupied with my Lego world these days.

I realized how long it has been since I just sat down to build. Just build for fun and let my imagination go. No planning, rush or project, just pure building. It must have been at least two or three months I haven't done it. Basically, pretty much since I went back to school after my summer vacations. I am sure that a lot of you who are active in the Lego community whether it's a blog, YouTube or Flickr. It's easy to forget to do what Lego was originally meant for. Relaxing and just letting your imagination go.

While I was building, it felt really good and I felt a sense of relief. It's much different building for pleasure than to build for a project, stop motion, big MOC, etc. It's a different feeling. You start with no particular goal in mind. You pick up the first piece and you just go from there. It reminds me a bit of the song Lego made called This One Brick. You can check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCyPgzyepp0

I am planning much more now to just stop and build. Building for fun and letting my imagination go. I had no idea at first what I was going to build. I ended up building a space ship and it turned out pretty nice!

I am pretty sure that some of you Lego fans out there could relate to this situation and I thought it would be good to share my thoughts on this topic. Think about it: how long has it been since you just sat down to build without planning anything and just letting your imagination go? Leave a comment!

How To Build a Lego Pickup Truck

What I Consider to be Vintage Lego

Hellego! In the Lego community, there are many debates on how old a Lego set should be until it is considered vintage/retro. I will be sharing my opinion on what I consider to be vintage Lego!

In my opinion, vintage Lego is any Lego created before the year 2000. Lego build for example in 2002, would only be about 11 years old. Also, around those years, Lego started to change a lot the way they designed sets. So in my opinion, any Lego set that was made in the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's. 90's, basically any Lego made in the 20th century to me is vintage. This means that the first ever Lego Star Wars sets to me are vintage.

When talking about vintage Lego, we have to remember that the actual Lego brick has existed for 64 years. So vintage Lego will not be as old as for example a lamp considered vintage. A vintage lamp might have been made in the 1940's. This would make the lamp over 70 years old. The Lego brick was not done being perfected until 1958. This means that Lego sets started in the 60's. So vintage Lego will certainly not be as old as say a vintage lamp, couch, etc.

As I have already said before, I find that vintage Lego sets have a very particular design that I love. It's simple, but has a great look and playability features. It is hard for me to describe what I mean, but this style of build stopped towards the end of the 90's and at the start of the new millennium.

Some people consider Lego made after the year 2000 is considered vintage, depending certain aspects. Everybody has their own opinion, but I think that is not old enough because that means the set has about 10 years of age (depending the year)

In the end, I really think any Lego made before the 21st century is vintage. What do you consider vintage Lego? Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Lego Video Game review: LegoLand

Hellego fellow video game players! Today I am going to show you one of my all-time favourite Lego video games. It's called LegoLand!

The main object of the game is to design, build and manage your very own LegoLand park. There is a very good story line in this game with unique characters and great cut scenes. As you progress through the game, the levels get harder and longer to do. Although you get well rewarded for completing each of them. There is also Free Play Mode where you can simply build your own park without following the story. This game was released in 1999 and still works on the most recent technology. It's a great game for all ages!

Vintage Lego Video Series Video #16 - Rocket Sled

Hellego! Here is the first set from the big box of vintage Lego that I got that I show you! An awesome 1981 set: Rocket Sled! It comes with 1 Minifigure and a couple of accessories. Enjoy the video!

The Revenge of the Werewolf - A Lego Stop Motion

The Werewolf wants to get all the Moonstones to make the sun disappear. Will the Monster Fighters, Frank Rock and Major Quinton Steele manage to stop him? Find out in my latest Stop Motion!

Lego Bricktober 2013 - Make N' Take event October 26th, 2013

Hellego! Today was the Bricktober Make N' Take event and it was great! The Model we got to build for free this year was the Superman "S" symbol!

This year was great! There was a Lego representative like last year making sure everything was going well. I got to chat with her which was cool. This year, there was not a choice of build like last year (click here to see last year's post), but Lego sure did make a great model to build! In case some of you didn't know, mosaic is a type of build and this is what it was. We built the Superman crest all with 1x1 pieces so you can imagine that it took some time to build. What was cool is that to hold all the pieces together, you get a 16x16 plate under it. Don't forget, at the Make N' Take event, you get to bring the model home for free! Here are some pictures of the table where we would build it.

As you can see, in the boxes, there were all the bricks that you would pick out of to build the model.

Here is the table where we would all build.

 

 The final product, all wrapped up by the Lego representative with the instructions inside.

So as you can see, it was a lot of fun. I made a small review of the model for you guys. Check it out!

Lego Stop Motion - Gun Shooting

Hellego! In my stop motion videos (that you can check out here), I have never used a gun, tried to put effects synchronized with the gun, etc. Except for my stop motion, The Pirate's Shark Adventure, where the Pirate shoots one bullet. It was really simple. So I wanted to give a more advanced approach to it.

 

1. The first sequence is only the pictures I took with nothing added. Not much to say here. Time: 0:19
2. Now the second sequence though, I added the gun effects at the end of it. I used simply Paint to add some white and yellow combined. I personally think it came out pretty well. Time: 0:31
3. Next thing I added was sound effects. The walking effect you have most likely already heard in my previous stop motions. But the machine gun effect was the first time I used it. I must say it fit pretty well with the effect I added to the end of my gun. Time: 0:45
4. After, I added a bit of suspense music. I have nothing to say about that since it was nothing really special. All it did was give it more of an action feel. Time: 0:58
5. Finally, I decided to try and modify the colours. Sometimes, in action movies with guns, the lighting is a bit dark and there a bit of blue in the air. I don't know if you can kind of grasp what I am trying to describe, but all I was trying to do was give it more of an action movie lighting style. I find it did not turn out as good as I would have liked. Time: 1:12

I hope you found this interesting. I was doing these tests and I wanted to document it a bit to you guys. It could maby help you with future stop motions. Please leave a comment telling me which sequence you preferred and how you found it in general. Don't forget to share this post and follow my blog. Have a good day!

Vintage Lego Video Series Video #15 - Huge Vintage Lego Haul

Hellego! I am really excited because I just got a huge box filled with vintage Lego! It was such a surprise! I made a video explaining everything. Check it out!

Lego Mindstorms EV3 Thoughts

Hellego! As you probably know, about a month ago, Lego released their brand new Mindstorms robots technology: EV3.

Image downloaded from http://www.lego.com/en-us/mindstorms/downloads/fun-stuff/ev3rstorm/

During that period of time after it came out, I have been spending a lot of time researching it, watching reviews, exploring the site, etc. After doing all that I thought it would be a good idea to share you my thoughts and impressions on the Lego Mindstorms EV3.

First off, let me just say that I love it! The design is great and you can tell they have upgraded their technology a whole lot! Right when you start there are five different robots you can build and program with instructions which I think is great. The only thing about this that disappoints me after seeing reviews, it gives you the instruction booklet for only one robot. The rest you have to download from the Mindstorms website which can be a hassle. I think for the price you pay for this set they could have at least included instruction manuals for all five robots.

All the different technological elements that come with EV3 are awesome! You can go so far into the programming feature it's incredible. There is a colour sensor, touch sensor, etc. Plus, with all the technic bricks you get (over 550), you have endless possibilities with this set! So whether you just know the basics in technology or you are a really advance programmer, anyone will love this! Although I do personally suggest that only older kids get it like 10+. That is the suggested age on the box and I highly recommend people follow it as it is not a set for younger kids.

Lego's Mindstorm website is also very cool! There is a whole community dedicated to Mindstorms, great stuff to download and I wanted to mention that they have a really cool online game. It's really well made and I recommend you go check it out. I've almost beaten the game.

I am a Lego club member so I get the Lego club magazine. In the issue of September and October 2013, there was a small Mindstorms booklet included which I thought was really cool. It gives you more in depth info about the whole EV3 technology.

Now the only reason I sadly probably will not be getting it soon is because of the price. It costs a total of 400$ which is a lot. Now don't get me wrong, this set is far from over priced. It's a great price for all the pieces you get and all the technology in it. But even if it's a good price, no matter what, 400$ is 400$ and it's still a lot of money.

I hope you guys enjoyed my thoughts about the new Lego Mindstorms EV3 robots! Please leave a comment and tell me YOUR thoughts about the EV3 robots. Don't forget to follow my blog if you are not already and please share this post. Have a great day and keep on building!

Lego Minecraft Micro How To Build - Villager

Hellego! Today I will be starting a new type of videos in my How To Build series. First off, here is a short video that will introduce you to this "mini series".



The main purpose of this post is to show you how to build a Minecraft Villager in Lego micro form. The way I built it is in a way so that you can build it by using the extra pieces of the original Lego Minecraft Micro World set.

Minecraft Villager

The Lego Minecraft Micro Villager that I will show you how to build!

So here is the video that will show you how to build this great Micro Mob. Enjoy!

The Lego Bricktober Event Is Back!

Hellego! I am very happy to announce that the Bricktober event is back!

Here is the official announcement in the Lego Club Magazine.

For some reason, I always love October. It's fall, the leaves change colour, you go pick apples, you take walks in the forest and there is also always a lot going on in the Lego world. It just seems to be a very Lego related month. Plus, there is Halloween. This annual Lego event started in 2009 and has been going on ever since. This is a Lego event exclusive to Toys R Us. To celebrate Bricktober this year, Lego is offering two different activities.

1. Minifigure Trade-In This event will be going on all day, Saturday, October 19th. Go to Toys R Us with any minifigure of your collection and look for a Lego worker with Lego minifigures. Go up to him and ask to trade with any of the minifigures he has. How cool is that?
2. Make N' Take Yes it's back! They had this event last year which I absolutely loved! The Make N' Take event consists of building a model and keeping it. Go to your local Toys R Us Saturday, October 26th from 11:00am to 1:00 pm and go build an exclusive model! This year is the Superman S-Shield. You build the model there, and you get to take it home with you for free! You can go check out the "report" I did about last year's Make N' Take event here: http://cdlegoblog.blogspot.ca/2012/10/lego-make-and-take-event-october-27-2012.html.

I am really excited for Bricktober this year as it is always a very fun annual event. A few years ago, each week in October you got an exclusive vintage minifigure. You can go check mine out here: http://cdlegoblog.blogspot.ca/2011/12/bricktober-fire-chief.html.  My favourite event this year would have to be the Make N' Take. I just think it's so cool that you get to build your model there and get to keep it. It's free Lego and plus the models are always cool. Check out the model I built last year: http://cdlegoblog.blogspot.ca/2012/11/lego-dracula-model-from-make-and-take.html 

The whole ambiance of the Lego fans there is always great. Last year, there was even a choice of three different models you could build! I don't really go to the Minifigure Trade-In because to be honest, I just like my minifigures to much to trade them. Although I do know some people that go and love it.

I will probably be going to the Make N' Take event and like last year, I will be documenting it. Are you going to be going to any of the events? If yes which ones? Leave a comment!

My Stop Motion Awards

Hellego! Do you remember when I talked about the stop motion project that was going on at my school last year? Here are the posts you should check out if you don't remember:

1. http://cdlegoblog.blogspot.ca/2013/03/funny-school-project-today.html
2. http://cdlegoblog.blogspot.ca/2013/05/update-on-school-project.html 

So the last post I did about this was in May. After that, if you remember, I had to stop doing posts because of all the big final exams in June. Because of that, I kind of forgot to do one last update about it.

In the last weeks of my school year, there is always an evening where they give awards to students for different things during the school year. It could be because your marks went up a lot in a specific subject, preformed well, etc. I got a few awards like that. But during that evening, they also gave out awards for certain projects. So since our stop motion was the best one, me and my team got a couple of awards for it!

To start off, I got a trophy

The green shape is the logo of my school. I think it's really cool especially with the plate at the front. It says the name of the project, the subject and my program. I find it looks very nice!

I also got a medal

As you can see at the front is says the year (2013) and at the back it says the same thing as the plate on the trophy, but with my name in the center and it is engraved in the medal.

I thought it would be cool to show you guys. How many people in the Lego community can say they have stop motion awards? Not many. I am really happy because it makes my hard work pay off and it shows me that I really am good at making stop motions.

Again I am sorry for the huge gap since the last post about this but it was during the time when I couldn't do posts because of the exams and then summer came and I just totally forgot to show you guys. Anyway, I would like to know if any of you have had the opportunity to have a project at school related to Lego! Leave a comment and have a great day!

Lego Minifigures Series 11 - Barbarian review

Brick news: TogetherFarm gardening blocks

Hellego! There is a new idea in the brick world by TogetherFarm. It's to be able to build your own gardens, with building blocks!

They are not your regular size building blocks, but they are made so that you can make your garden to be any shape and size you want. TogetherFarm is an organization that helps encourage people to grow their own produce whether you are in the city or in the country. The idea came when they were thinking of a way people could have a garden, even if they didn't have a big backyard, or only had a balcony. With TogetherFarm's blocks, you can build your own garden any where you want. If you live in a condo, only have a balcony and want to have your own garden, these are perfect. You can build all around the area you want to garden and then fill it up with your dirt.

Right now, the project has a kickstarter. You can go check out more information about TogetherFarm blocks and help them out by visiting: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/togetherfarm/turning-plastic-into-produce-togetherfarm-blocks

I encourage you to help fund this project since it is something we have never seen before and is a great idea. I'm sure lot's of people could use these special gardening blocks!

The total bricks I got from the Pick A Brick wall

Hellego! A couple weeks ago, I made a post about my trip to the Lego store at Sherway Gardens mall. Well, after a long time taken organizing, searching names of certain bricks and counting, I finally have the full list of bricks I got. Now remember, all the bricks were in two small Pick A Brick cups.

All the bricks organized by type and colour

3 1x6 white panels

2 4x6 yellow plates

3 4x6 black plates

10 2x2  light grey 45degree slope

7 dark grey crates

10 1x8 red tiles

6 2x4 orange bricks

4 1x4 orange bricks

10 2x3 purple plates

4 2x4 brown bricks

6 1x4 brown bricks

10 2x4 brown plates

8 white flowerheads

8 red flowerheads

2 yellow flowers

2 red flowers

15 green stalks

5 2x4 green bricks

6 2x3 green bricks

19 1x2 brown plates

15 1x4 brown tiles

5 2x4 beige bricks

15 1x4 beige plates

43 2x2 dark beige tiles

18 2x2 yellow tiles

5 2x2 green bricks

5 2x1 green 45 degree slope

2 2x4 light green bricks

15 1x1 dark green bricks

2 1x4 yellow plates

5 2x4 black bricks

5 2x4 black 45 degree slope

17 1x2 black grille bricks

36 1x1 clear green plates

4 1x2 light green plates

5 2x4 light blue bricks

3 2x2 light blue bricks

9 2x4 light grey bricks

4 2x4 light grey 45 degree slope

4 2x6 light grey bricks

6 1x2 light grey plate with braced handle

12 black 4-brick-high basic antenna

3 black technic hook connectors

2 1x4 blue plates

6 red seats

44 1x1 orange cylinder plates

33 1x1 orange clear cheese slopes

53 1x1 red clear tiles

5 1x2 dark grey vertical shaft

7 grey and black mini antenna

7 control panel tiles

1 1x1 dark grey tile

By reading this, you may have noticed that I got more smaller pieces that bigger ones. I did this because they take up less space and that way, I could get more pieces for my money. I also took more bricks that I don't have or hardly have any of in my collection. There are some bricks that a picked that I would like to talk about.

First off, the 2x2 dark beige tiles. I took a lot of this piece (43) because I didn't have any. When I looked at MOCs on Flickr, I noticed that a lot of people use this brick and it makes the model look so much better. I knew that it was a must have brick. Since it was not too big of a piece, I took a lot of it especially since I would need a lot to make a floor out of it.

I also took the same piece but in yellow since they had it. I took less though (18).

Next, another brick I had almost none of was the 1x2 black grille bricks. I took 17 of this brick and again, I saw in creations on Flickr that some people used this brick for a lot of things. Example, to add a design in a wall. It's just a really nice brick that I don't have much of.

Now I am really happy to have taken a good amount (15) of green stalks. I had none and I have been wanting some so bad. I would see in battle/Star Wars creations this piece used and I found it look great in a creation that goes on outside. I also picked up some flowerheads to put on it.

I also took bricks that came in colours that I didn't have and were harder to get.

As you probable noticed, I took a lot of the smaller pieces. I already had a few, but not a lot. So I took huge amount, especially since they took up practically no space in the Pick A Brick buckets.

I picked up 7 of this control panel piece. I already had other types of control panels but none like this one. It can be really useful for creations so I took a few.

I also picked out 7 grey and black mini antennas. I already had this piece but I need more of it since it's useful for vehicles, space ships, etc.

The last piece I would like to highlight is these crates. I only had a couple and they can be great to add detail in or outside a building. So I picked up 7.

At the end, when I was done filling up my two buckets, I was amazed by how many bricks I was able to put in. I took two small buckets instead of one large one because two small, one top of another, comes out as the same height as the large. Also, I noticed at the bottom of the large bucket, the sides start to go inwards so you have less space to put pieces, so it was just better to take two. Plus, since I had two, it meant I had two buckets to keep and it can help me organize my pieces.

I was also happy to have two because since I don't have a Lego store where I live, it's impossible for me to have any without going far away. I would have to say that this Lego store is probably the closest and it's about an 8h drive from my house.

So those are all the bricks I got. You can always click the pictures to enlarge them and see the pieces layed out better. I wanted to make a post to show you guys the bricks I picked out and explain why. Feel free to comment your thoughts and happy building!

Taking down my Chicken Restaurant MOC

Hellego! As you probably know, at the start of July, I made a Chicken Restaurant inspired by the Chicken Suit Guy minifigure I got. But in the end, it was time to take it down.

Now I never really like to break down my models like that because I would like to keep them. But like many other Lego builders out there, I can't keep buying bricks to replace the ones that are being used for another MOC and depending how big the build is, it can take up a lot of space. This MOC used a big amount of white pieces and it took up a lot of space, so in the end, I had no choice to take it down. Plus, I had finally done the stop motion I was planning to make with it.

One thing that I like about having a blog like this is being able to show other people in the Lego community that share the same passion as me the creations I made. To do that, I take lot's of pictures and write about it (and sometimes make a video). So at the same time, it helps me keep a memory of that creation. If ever I wanted to make it again, I could always look back at the posts I made for it to remind me of the design and how exactly I had built it at the time.

Now here is a picture I took once I was done taking it down. All the bricks you see are only the bricks that made the structure of the model. So all the inside, outside and vehicle detailing is not included.

Now isn't that a lot of white bricks? So as you see, even though it's a bit "heartbreaking" to have to take down a MOC, I do get back a huge amount of bricks for future MOCs.

I felt like making a post on this subject because I know that there are a lot of other builders out there that are in the same situation and just hate taking down their models. Now there are some lucky ones out there that can afford to keep their models as long as they want. But for most of us, it just isn't the case.

So do you feel the same way when taking down your models? Leave a comment!

Meeting sok117, a fantastic Lego builder!

Hellego! On my trip to Toronto this summer, one of my friends that lives there is friends with sok117 from Flickr! So he brought me to meet him and see his creations!

Right when I step in the house he greets me and I look in the living room. I see the huge Super Star Destroyer in the process of building! He also had a few other models in display. I knew right away I was going to see big stuff.

Once I saw all this he brought me down into his basement where most of his building goes on. There, I was able to see all his amazing models that he posted on his Flickr, and some he had never decided to post!

He first showed me his Avengers Helicarrier. It's even bigger than what is looks like on Flickr and it's really heavy!

He is the one in the blue shirt. My little sister is trying to hold it. It's about three times larger than her! All the detail on it was amazing!

A feature I found really cool was a section he added for Captain America's motorcycle. You can see the little droid hands that hold it in place.

He even added Loki's prison.

Here is the Avenger's meeting table.

He also showed me a lot of his Batman creations like his Batwing. He used a technique to make the wings that I would not have thought of doing. If you look closely, you can see the bricks are stacked sideways and then stuck onto the middle section. I found it was very cool because I had never seen that technique before.

Here is his Tumbler

The Batboat

The Batmobile

He also made some Star Wars creations like the Millenium Falcon!

Don't get me wrong, this is really his own creations that he started from scratch, not Lego's design. I find it really cool how the whole top can open up to see the inside as you can see in the picture.

He also made a fantastic model of the X-Wing!

As you can see, he again used the side brick technique for the wings just like the Batwing. I find it gives it a much nicer and smoother design.

One last model I would like to show you is a Helicopter he made!

The two rotor blade sections are made so that you can have to modes: flight mode and landing mode. In this picture, it is in flight mode. To put it in landing mode, you have to put the rotor blades facing up.

As you can see by all these amazing models, he is a very talented builder. I asked him a few questions about certain things. He organizes his bricks by colour, and believe it or not, he hardly ever goes to the Pick A Brick. He gets almost all his bricks from sets he already has. If you want to see a picture of his building space, you can check out a picture he posted on his Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/61655501@N07/7015606467/. When I went it was not messy like in the picture. If you read the description, at the time he was doing a big clean up and organizing all his pieces.

He also said that he is a bit disappointed because right now, it is really hard for him to find time to build. He is going to start University this year and he also has a job. But he says he does have some projects in mind but I won't reveal them in case he didn't want me to ;).

So, what do you think? I personally think he is an awesome builder and his creations are amazing. If you have any questions about the visit just ask in the comment section and I will answer them if I can. Don't forget to go check out his Flickr and follow it! http://www.flickr.com/photos/61655501@N07/