The RED BRICK Road

LEGO fan event in Toronto!

2012-01-09T17:11:00.000-05:00

Coming, this July 14th and 15th!

Brickfete 2012!

OBB Holiday Party!!!

2012-01-09T17:00:00.001-05:00

OBB is happy to announce...
We have a host for our annual Holiday Party, thank you Chris Male and family.
(Please send me an email at JaneyRedBrick@gmail.com if you need his address.)

The party will be a pot luck, so bring something yummy to share!

The party will be on Jan. 29th starting at 3pm. We will discuss brick procurement, we will have a "Secret Santa" gift exchange, and a "Trade a Fig" time. As well as plenty of general LEGO chit chat!

I will bring the entire new "friends" if anyone wants to check them out. Please feel free to bring any new 2012 product lines for "show and tell" or any MOC or project you are working on and would like to share.

Only two weeks left...

2011-06-16T23:55:00.002-04:00

To register for Brickfête... register now to avoid disappointment. And YES, its MY disappointment we are talking about, because I will really miss you if you dont join us.

Check out all the fun we are going to have www.brickfete.com

2 months till Brickfete

2011-05-30T23:24:00.001-04:00

Ladies and Gentlemen... there are only two months left until Brickfete and I am happy to say that the events schedule, rules and guidelines have all been posted. We also have a few vendors and an amazing list of supporters of our event. Please take the time to check out the vendor and sponsor pages to see who is helping us become a reality.

Can wait to see what everyone has built!

Brickfête Update...

2011-05-11T13:54:00.000-04:00

I AM So excited...
Collaborative Builds and Events and Activities
Check them out and consider this your formal invite to join us.

Brickfête

2011-03-10T02:13:00.001-05:00

The baseplates are laid, the studs have been covered and the last brick has been snapped into place.
Only one piece is missing (in this moc): you!

obb is proud to present...
the inaugural Canadian LEGO fan event.

Join us for...

Brickfête
July 28th-31st, 2011
The Assembly Hall Cultural Center
Toronto, Ontario

www.brickfete.com

The Brickfête Team

"A festival run by fans, made by the fans, for the fans."

OMG

2010-07-25T14:27:00.002-04:00

I do not care if the is real, or photo-shopped.... this is awesome.

Taste...

Article...

http://www.ufunk.net/en/publicite/tatouage-sur-lego-pilot-extra-fine/

Coming Spring 2010

2010-02-01T15:44:00.001-05:00

Gearing up for a display...

2010-01-12T19:57:00.002-05:00

My beloved LUG, Ontario Brick Builders will be displaying MOCS, Classic Space, a Train Layout for an entire month.

Jan 17th until Feb 21
St Jacobs Outlet Mall, 2nd Floor.
Right beside Toy Building Zone (the Lego Store)

Will post pics as soon as I get some. Hope you come out and take a look.

Breakfast Television

2009-11-12T17:01:00.002-05:00

Had a very early but fun morning today, as I had the pleasure a few minutes of airtime on Breakfast Television to show a bit of what we can do with bricks.

As you can see, the main presentation, centre stage is the BT Logo.

Added to the Logo, I brought along few of my more “iconic” Mocs, that I felt were either current for this time of year (poppy mosaic, holiday gingerbread, Santa and his reindeer or would show well on camera such as my Mountie (who sure has made the rounds), box of crayons and vase of flowers. I threw in the Flying Spagetti Monster, just to show how organic bricks can be, and rounded out the display with one of my first models, the TTC (hoping to earn some “local” points with that one).

The segment was short, but fun, and I really enjoyed representing our hobby to a wider audience.

You can check out the rest of the pictures in this flickr folder.

I have to thank Chris for getting me to the station on time, and with all my bricks in tact. Driving downtown Toronto is not for me, nor is an early morning, so it was especially nice to have the help. I think Chris was enjoying himself as well, sort of like “going home” for him to be in a studio, uh.... that was.... until we were both roped in to sit in on an earlier segment which was a mock auction. Poor guy.

Pics from the BIG Day...

2009-10-17T11:02:00.001-04:00

Special thanks to deborah and Iain for bringing items to display at the Grand Opening (mentioned the post prior to this one.)

To see the rest of the pics... please check out this flickr folder.

Toy Building Zone

2009-10-15T10:59:00.002-04:00

As many as you know, I work one day a week at the Toy Building Zone (formally Bricks & Blocks) in St Jacobs, at the St Jacobs Outlet Mall.

October 17th is the Toy Buildings Zone's Official Grand (Re-)Opening, come out and check out the festivities.

Everyone is welcome come out and hang with us for the day. There will be giveaways for the kids, Lego models to be seen, contests to win, and just a whole lot of Lego fun! I will be finishing a huge Sponge Bob Mosaic for the store, and both Jenn (The Brick Chick) and I (Janey Red Brick) will be seeing just how high of a round wall the kids can build throughout the day.

Special note to the local AFOLS, I will be displaying items from my personal collection and I invite you to join us as well. We are in the room next door to the store, and I am hoping other AFOLs will join me for the day. Please consider this your formal invitation and let me know if you will be attending, and how much display space you will need.

Hope to see you there.

Bionicle never looked so good...

2009-09-14T21:07:00.003-04:00

Posted by maj.com user ahkmou http://www.majhost.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=186953

May I have the NXT dance...

2009-08-31T19:34:00.002-04:00

Yes, Im sorry, couldnt resist the pun... but WOW, this is very awesome...
Enjoy... http://web.me.com/nextstorm/NeXTSTORM/MagicalDance.html

2009-08-28T00:36:00.003-04:00

Wow, Amazon... are you on drugs?

http://www.amazon.com/LEGO-4498925-LEGO%C2%AE-Creator-Townhouse/dp/B000NOSI0C/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1251433894&sr=1-9

And since I know eventually this link will be dead... Ill show you a screen shot about what has me laughing...

On a personal note....

Wow, I was nearly triple blogged this week... which really has done a number on my flickr stats!

Thanks to both MicroBricks on August 27th and August 23rd, here... http://microbricks.blogspot.com/2009_08_01_archive.html
and on The Brother Brick http://www.brothers-brick.com/2009/08/23/our-micro-town/ which is very exciting for me, since they are my two top favourite Lego blog.

Thanks guys, and gal.

Cheers!

WOW...

2009-08-23T21:13:00.000-04:00

Too awesome to describe... http://wimp.com/createfilm/

Hark I hear the sounds of common sense...

2009-08-19T16:30:00.000-04:00

For years I have occasionally pulled out my soap box and lectured to the general direction of my favourite company for doing a disservice to themselves when it comes to female builders, be it adult or child.

I have stated, I have pleaded, I have done the dance... but I have used long winded science based arguments... or compassionate and impassioned speeches.

Today posted on a frequently viewed site of mine... jezabel.com was this understated vintage Lego ad and wow, I was impressed.

with this copy... "This vintage Lego ad features a young girl wearing plain play clothes and smiling proudly at her Lego creation. No princesses, no pink Legos, no glittery sparkles, just a girl and her toys, having a blast. Beautiful, indeed."

Lego, I beg you on bended knees, please hire this ad man/woman back, and have them design the 2010 "GIRL" themed line.

WHaCKOLUG

2009-08-18T13:18:00.003-04:00

Recently Jenn 'The Brick Chick' and I, (Janey "Red Brick") started a LUG in southwestern Ontario.

Our blog... http://whackolug.blogspot.com/
Our Flickr... http://www.flickr.com/groups/whackalug/
Our facebook group... http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=93768665685&ref=ts
Our Lugnet posts can be found here... http://news.lugnet.com/loc/ca/on/

Come out, and join us... 6pm, 3rd Sunday of the month, Whale and Ale Pub, in Kitchener, On.

Totally awesome concept...

2009-08-18T13:17:00.002-04:00

Check it out on flickr... http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2563/3831663000_e1706016ba.jpg

Eco-Flash

2009-08-13T15:12:00.001-04:00

http://www.play.com/Gadgets/Gadgets/4-/10772161/LEGO-Dynamo-Torch/Product.html#

Cafe Corner Style Fad

2009-07-07T02:12:00.003-04:00

Cafe Corner style modular building, IMO, has become a blessing, and a curse.

Please, keep in mind, the following is just my humble opinion.

When the first in the series came out, I was impressed with Lego's styling... as were many people. It was a real departure from town buildings we had seen Lego delivery to us with for many years and I was just thrilled it wasnt another bloody Police Station.

Then the series grew (and is still growing) ... and I have personally liked (and bought, and built) each in the series... as has nearly everyone (with a love for town/city) and their brothers wives second cousins uncle Bob. Which in some cases raised the bar for some town builders, and in other cases sadly just brought us an onslaught of very badly done companion pieces.

I will admit, I am getting tired of the badly done ones, the ones that fall short on details, or boast horrible colour combinations, not to mention the ones that are such a slight variations from the originals its almost impossible to tell. For me it was starting to get a bit tedious, and my desire to find any other type of building styles was gaining popularity, so much so that I barely even bothered to look at any of this new fad.

Now, after saying all that, I must admit, some AFOLs are making some amazing ones out there... for example... I am blown away by Aliencat * versions so much that I hope you will check them out here.

By far my favourite is....

not only because they made it "their own", but also because it works so well.

All are quite good and worth the look.

Cheese never looked so fine....

2009-07-06T02:07:00.000-04:00

This wagon posted by Monteur is out standing and would enhance any layout.

Tons of "cheese" slopes give this train car definite style.

Wow, what a blast from the past....

2009-07-05T09:49:00.002-04:00

I really enjoyed this little video posted by MlCHAELHlCKOX particularly the Space Invaders part ...

Awesome

2009-07-04T16:41:00.001-04:00

Totally loving this GBC video posted by kitsu5...

The interwebs are so cool....

2009-07-04T16:13:00.002-04:00

So yesterday I uploaded my Pink Planet Retreat on flickr, then posted about it on Lugnet, and Classic Space... and figured that was about it.

I checked out my flickr stats, one of the cool features of taking a pro vrs a free account, and I happen to notice that some of my "referers" are from a place I have never heard of.

http://blogg.aftonbladet.se/legobloggen/2009/07/pink-planet-retreat

I believe this blog is in Swedish, but I am not entirely sure, and although I cant read the words to the post about my stuff, I sure can check out the pictures of other things this blog has posted as well, which I just think is so bloody cool.

So yes, this blog leads me to this folder...
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?m=Kris1234 and frankly I can not decide which work I like the best. Their details are amazing, and so well done... the pictures speak for themselves.... go have a gander.

Well I am back...

2009-07-04T01:49:00.004-04:00

The bricks are out, and I am building again, and wow, I almost forgot how much I love this hobby.

I have moved, and started a new LUG, with Jenn The-Brick-Chick....
Here is the info.

I have joined the masses at Flickr, so now I am actually seeing new mocs once again.
Here is my page, as I migrate my stuff over

And here is a cool moc I just finally saw posted by mm_falcon / Ben Ellermann

For now I leave you with The Pink Planet Retreat...

Come tour the Pink Planet Production Studio Project and Moonbase Retreat

http://www.flickr.com/photos/99179852@N00/sets/72157620746507289/

It is a diverse yet simple sanctuary for the Y-chromosome-enhanced AFOLs. This Planet is not anti-male, its just predominantly pro female and of course, provocatively pink.

Here you will find tons of pink versions of fan created space mythology, credit listed within the photo descriptions.

The comments along the way describe the different features of the Pink Planet Retreat in a humourous way, please don’t have a look if you sent your appreciation of humour out for the day.

This MOC is dedicated to the female builders I love (they know who they are) and to mock typical female stereotypes, and tease some of the well know “Spacers” that are prolific and amazing builders. It was built with the utmost respect for both groups, but truly built with one tongue in my cheek.

It is my hope that this project is taken as a silly/fun/light hearted project it was and not a serious attempt at Moonbase or even “Quality” building of any kind. While you may feel compelled to give me a million ways to improve it, your effort will be lost, since this project was a one off, built around 2-3 years ago (although never posted) and has already been dismantled and sorted due to a shortage of white bricks I needed for my next project.

Cheers, and thanks for looking.

Janey “Pink.... errrr I mean, Red Brick”

Been awhile...

2008-04-05T15:51:00.000-04:00

Been awhile since I have posted some of my favourite Brickshelf finds...

Posted by Johnnytang, check out their creations here. Transformers... there is more than meets the eye, and in this case, I love all the little details, like the wiper blades on the front "windows".

Posted by RebelRock, check out their creations here. Not only is it funny and relevant (well aside from the undead part), I also love how they have added their own design (Cafe Corner standard) seamlessly (aka, some just do not blend as well as this one does) between the Cafe and the Market Street.

Posted by mijasper, check out their creations here. Love the theme, and the microscopes are brilliant, much like his other work.

Old School Nintendo

2008-04-04T04:45:00.004-04:00

Often I like to take a break from "big" projects, and do what I call "one day builds"... which means a MOC that needs to be completed in one sitting. The "joy" of these projects are not only their simplicity but also the fact that you have to make it work with your existing collection, and for me (someone who places way too many Bricklink orders) that means saving money and just enjoying the process of building.

Cluetrain

2008-04-03T20:05:00.003-04:00

So glad Lego caught it... and thanks to all the work behind the scenes that Jake did to get them there. Way to go Community Guy!

This presentation is really worth a watch. (If you are clueless when it comes to the Cluetrain... this article will set a few things straight... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cluetrain_Manifesto).

I love some of the points he makes (been trying to make a few myself over the years) "5% of the audience... but the powerful message they make", and laughed and nodded along with things especially around "secrets" and "NDAs".

"Oops, sorry, cant talk about that"... "$250 spectrometer" ...OMG too funny!

So Jake, 3 guys walk into a bar.... errr I mean BrickFest... the CEO, the Lawyer, and Marketing Manager... (wink!)

Honey, I shrunk the Town Plan...

2008-04-02T20:23:00.003-04:00

Happy Birthday Lego...

For the 50th Birthday (Anniversary) of the "Brick" (1958-2008) Lego released ....
The Town Plan ...

From the S@H website...

Celebrate 50 years of LEGO bricks!

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the modern LEGO brick with this special-edition update of the classic Town Plan set! Completely redesigned with the best of modern bricks, details and design, the all-new Town Plan features a 1950s-style gas station with pumps, carwash and garage, a town hall with a newly-married couple, a movie theater with ticket booth, seats and posters, 2 automobiles, 8 minifigures, rare LEGO colors and elements, and more.

Includes a letter from company owner Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, who appeared as a kid on the original Town Plan box and returns on this one!
Includes 3 gold bricks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the LEGO brick!

I purchased this set recently, and enjoyed building it with a good friend of mine (non-afol). I built the Town Hall and Theatre, and she built the Gas Station over an afternoon of gossip, coffee and building.

Anyhow, the box is cool (at least for an AFOL) because ...
not only is the gas station based on an old set...
but as you can see... Keld STILL loves plaid!!!!

Although the box art did had a bit of an impact on my family. Prior to building it, the glorious box sat upright on the kitchen table so I could enjoy its beauty at a glance. My youngest walked in and said "Woah, OLD GUY on a box of Lego, weird!" and my eldest walked in and said "Hey, dont I know that guy???" (Yes, he does, he met him at a Brick Event in 2004)

In the mean time, I have also been working on my latest Micro Layout, (phase three) for an upcoming show in April.

So without further adieu...

I present... Honey, I shrunk the Town Plan!

More pics can be found here.

I also shrunk .... this most recent impulse set which was pretty small to begin with, but way to big for the new layout. It still needs some work on the front grill.

As well, an Robinson 44 (tour guide Heli) which needs its tail extended and will have its propeller rotating on the display over the cable cars taking is power from the cable car run.

You can find the rest (both old and new) of my micro here.
Note - Many buildings have been rebuilt and tweaked for my most recent layout. I have finally designed a modular system for laying out my micro. A standard which I hope to document in the near future.

Favourite all time sets...

2008-03-31T19:27:00.004-04:00

An email discussion prompted me to list my top 10 favourite sets that Lego has issued....
(in no particular order)

And the last one, while its not really a set, still my favourite thing Lego has issued, Idea Book 6000, LEGOLAND

Now I would love to know, what is your favourite SET?

Few Mocs in the Making...

2008-03-20T07:16:00.003-04:00

I currently have a number of unfinished Lego projects on the go. Sadly most of these were SUPPOSED to be done last November for the Hobby Show but I just ran out of time, and then put them away for the holidays.

Well, Im back at it, and I have a bit of preview of one project.

BETA hand Version 1.2

This project is far from complete, and currently I am not even sure how I will complete it (by low tech or high tech means) but I am happy with my progress. Over the years I have seen many other hand models presented, and some look amazing, and others work amazing, but my goal is to find a middle line somewhere between those two extremes.

Upon completion I will post to Lugnet, but for now, we will just keep it between us, wink.

A Few Great Men... errr I mean... Blogs

2008-03-18T22:12:00.006-04:00

Many Lego blogs have come and gone, and some seem to be able to stand the test of time.
I have updated the blog roll list to reflect the ones I actually read to a select few, most of these are updated regularly.

Recently I was lucky to be recognized for my micro Layout on 2 of my top favourite blogs.
So I encourage you to spend time at both...
Brothers Brick found here and Microbricks found here.

Thanks Dunchaser and Bruce.

Toronto Star Box

2008-03-18T21:47:00.004-04:00

Last fall I was commissioned by the Toronto Star to do a live one day build as part of a promotion (new sales feature they were launching) at a conference hosted by Strategy Magazine at the Sheraton Hotel (downtown Toronto).

More pics here. Back story at Lugnet here.

Micro Train Layout

2008-03-15T21:48:00.003-04:00

This is my micro train layout, with working cable cars, train, windmill and gristmill... featuring many of the Brickfest keepsake models, a few Lego sets and many MOCs all in Micro Scale.

Stills of layout here. Lugnet post here.

Nintendo Characters

2007-12-16T14:24:00.000-05:00

by Alex "Green Brick"

Folder here, posted by a proud mom.

Hobby Show - 2007

2007-10-23T17:26:00.000-04:00

Ladies and Gentlemen...

Its that time of year again...
Time for the OBB to gather at the International Centre and display our Lego Creations.

I am happy to announce we will have a special guest with us this year, but Im not letting that cat out of the bag.

And... as I posted to Lugnet...

I am very pleased to invite YOU to participate in the Hobby Show, this Nov 2nd,
3rd and 4th, located in Toronto at the International Centre on Airport Road
(Dixon Rd).

The OBB, (Ontario Brick Builders - an informal group of Lego builders) will be
displaying once again this year.

Please consider this your formal invitation. Whether you are a seasoned
builder, new to the hobby, or just want to come out and talk some brick talk,
EVERYONE is welcome.

So... if you are an ADULT builder located within driving distance to the
International Centre, please mark your calendar now, and start building whatever
you want to display. No Moc too big, no Moc too small.

This year we are offering up a challenge "Mocs that MOVE!" Of course, we are
willing to display Mocs that just sit there and look pretty.

Looking forward to seeing familiar faces, and hoping to see new faces as well.

For more info on the show .... billed as “North America’s Original Hobby Show
and Canada’s Largest National Trade and Consumer Hobby and Craft Exhibition”
check out the official link here http://thehobbyshow.com/

We have also set our after hours plans (where we will dine and chat into the
night) so if you are interested in just meeting us after the show...

Friday - Zets
Saturday - (our traditional) Lone Star
Sunday - Boston Pizza

All these restaurants are just down the road from the International Centre on
Airport Road.

So if you cant join us for the show, please join us for a late dinner (particularly the Sat. night)

Cheers! Hope to see y'all soon!

Elegant Walker...

2007-10-20T16:48:00.000-04:00

Posted by Chris Magno...

Check out this post here for more info

Geeks gone wild...

2007-09-21T19:16:00.000-04:00

Doob-O-Matic - For more of the funniest videos, click here

More Brickshelf Finds...

2007-09-16T13:07:00.001-04:00

Here is an interesting church...
posted by Barbara "Mc.Bricker"

I found this interesting for a few reasons. First of all, her use of interesting parts for architectural details... such as finger hinges, click hinges and minifig hair pieces as seen here....

As well, she used microscale as forced perspective on either side of the church to represent the buildings in the background. Nice use of technic pin joiners instead of round one by one, so the coloums remain smooth.

Here is an interesting little graveyard posted by "Jonderqind"

What I found really makes this different and interesting is the gate is placed on an angle instead of just surrounding the baseplate.

And, a very cool microscaled project posted by DARKspawn.

Cool Creations...

2007-09-10T11:04:00.000-04:00

posted by steven1980

posted by legowiz23

posted by elex

And now back to posting...

2007-09-08T16:07:00.001-04:00

Well the Brickshelf disaster seems to have taken care of itself (at least for the time being) and things have been restored to some semblance of order.

Sadly I, as well as many others, are now looking for alternate hosting for our pictures, and in an offer I couldn't refuse (I love my hosting company) I decided to no longer rely on free hosting for my pictures and bought my own domain (as I stated last post.)

So most of my stuff (webpage, pics, etc) should be SOON hosted at JaneyRedBrick.com (nothing to see there yet, tho) and I will move from static pages to a CMS which hopefully will motivate me to update more frequently with greater ease. This domain will also be the new host of TeBAG (my online Lego Gallery of various related to the brick art items.)

Anyhow, summer has now ended and the kids are back at school so I find myself with a bit more free time during the day... so its back to posting.

Lets see...

First of all... I recently posted my FSM (you can read the post here)

Second of all...

I thought this vid was cute...

Some assembly required!!!

and thirdly...

if you have a few minutes, check out this amazing build that took the creator 4 years to build, I find it interesting not only for the amazing attention to detail but for the fact that someone from a different country built an American iconic building.

Still looking for more awesome lego creations???
Check out these builds.

Translucent Mosaic at http://www.pictobrick.de/content_en/gallery_system.html
Beautiful Micro at http://news.lugnet.com/announce/moc/?n=4016
Scaled Classic Space at http://news.lugnet.com/space/?n=41172
Detailed Circus and Train at http://www.nelug.org/mediagallery/album.php?aid=302&page=1
and a Cool Transformer http://www.brickfrenzy.com/?m=blackout

And if you arent a total purist... you should check these new Lego scaled farm animals out
(Im just waiting on mine in the mail)
http://www.brickforge.com/

Death of BrickShelf....

2007-07-19T14:47:00.000-04:00

Its been a sad week for adult Lego fans that are involved with the online communities. With the pending demise of Brickshelf, there has been plenty of speculation, none of which I am going to even touch on. I have nothing but words of thanks to anyone that has provided services to any Lego fan that has increased our ability to share our own work, and learn from others.

Of course, that doesnt change that facts, which is, Brickshelf is close to being closed down (end of the month... just enough time to collect pictures that you want to have on your own drive) and sadly many of the pics here as well as on many Lego websites and forums are going to become broken images. Since I do not personally own many of the images I have "featured" here, these links will not be fixed.

There are a number of alternatives, (some existing and some in development), personally I guess I will "play/surf" on Flickr a bit more, as well as MOC pages, but only so I can still remain being an active member of the community by sharing a few of my builds and see what some of my favourite builders are up to.

Added to this news of Brickshelf closing, there is a long history of fan sites disappearing into thin air. Just to mention a few... there was Legofan which never touched on its potential, the on and off fears of Lugnet self imploding, the "loss" of my own forum site recently due to a server crash and technical glitches, and other sites that had pictures or links that I would have liked to be able to access, such as rtl.

I am really thinking about just hosting all my pics on my own site and just leaving it like that, therefore eliminating the need to be dependent on other ppls generosity, or being subject to their whims of support, or lack there of.

My own sites, both Bricks and Blocks and the Tebag has out lived its usefulness. By all standards they are beyond outdated, with too many now defunct picture links, not to mention fairly juvenile looking, and a pita to maintain due to pathetic hmtl skillz on my part. They basically out lived any of its potential (about a day after it was posted) . As well, bmts, the company that hosts it, sucks, even though years ago, they did serve their purpose, time and technology has long surpassed anything they can provide. I would like to get them completely off my billing list. Therefore long story short, its time for a new domain, new host, new pages, etc. Hopefully in the near future I will post a link to all things Janey and ABS.

While I truly appreciate all the work anyone does to provide info (such as links, photos, files, etc) free of charge for the community, you truly get what you pay for. My goal is to be a bit more self reliant and have one place, paid in full, for all my "stuff".

Basically 4 times bitten, 5 times shy, giggle, yeah Im slow!

I am at a bit of a loss of what shall happen to the Tebag, but since community support for that project was limited to the few wonderful ppl that continued to send me work to add to the gallery, it too may have seen its time.

Fav icons Mosaic....

2007-07-19T14:44:00.001-04:00

I find humour everywhere...

2007-06-04T16:53:00.000-04:00

There has been tons of (good) press for Nathan (a "certified" Lego artist) and for that I am happy for him and for the whole hobby.

Nice coverage, here, and here.

Congrats Nathan... nice to see some Lego Sculpture being recognised by the general public in a more "artistic way".

The part that is cracking me up, is this piece...
"Grey"

It's actually one of my favs, and I think it is executed very well. Nathan is quoted saying "This sculpture depicts an individual breaking out of a gray box, much like one may break out of a depression or a challenging situation."

While the "hard-core" Lego fans may find this piece controversial because of the use of so much "grey" (a colour that has caused a bit of angst with in the community) some parts of the general "hard-core" non-Lego fans, are finding just a tad bit more controversy which just makes me giggle.

It doesn't take a degree in "naughty" to figure out what some ppl maybe be thinking, and the web is a wonderful place of depravity. So its no surprise that there has been a subculture of ppl that feel Nathan might have been going for something just a tad bit more sexual. I will let you find those references all on your own.

USS Harry S. Truman

2007-06-04T16:45:00.000-04:00

USS Harry S. Truman by Malle Hawking of Munich Germany.

Learn more about this MOC... here

Circle, circle, dot, dot...

2007-06-04T16:41:00.000-04:00

Blunty Youtube posting...

Pirated scrabble...

2007-04-03T02:52:00.000-04:00

Bet the other guys got the "Z" AND the "Q".

I like to call this...

2007-04-03T02:47:00.000-04:00

Addicted to toys....

Someone programmed their NXT to beat their Wii... uhhh, doesnt that take the fun out of play? wink.

Of course... if you dont own a Wii, you can always build one out of Lego, like BS user "suu"

Not Lego... but "Wow"

2007-02-05T11:19:00.000-05:00

http://www.space-invaders.com/rubikubism.html

Donkey Kong

2007-01-04T13:59:00.000-05:00

http://www.bitflicks.com/2006/10/06/donkey-kong-nes-style/

Blast from the past...

2006-12-31T18:48:00.000-05:00

While searching BS, I found this post by JanK...
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?i=120846

Really cool set imo, because there are tons of alternates that cross themes... you will see castle, town, and space, as well as technical type models. This set is something I wish they would do more of!

Contains Small Parts...

2006-12-31T02:33:00.000-05:00

Posted by... "MrGrayScale"

Death Star

2006-12-30T04:41:00.000-05:00

Im not a fan of many of the Star Wars sets... mostly because I am not really a Star Wars fan (ok, truth be told, I have never seen a Star Wars film, and I plan on keeping it that way!)... but, if I was forced at gun point to pick and build a Star Wars set... this would be the one I would build.

Awww.... Emo Fan/Fig

2006-12-28T00:18:00.000-05:00

Posted by videoeditingmike at YouTube...

Stunning... Advent Calendar

2006-12-27T00:18:00.000-05:00

This is just a small sample of the Advent Calendar that brickshelf user, MisaQa posted this holiday. As a special treat, she redid them all in a white version as well. Beautiful work.

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=217894

Hit the up button to see some of her other work, outstanding stuff.

Season's Greetings

2006-12-24T13:58:00.000-05:00

Joy to the World....

Please note, this globe is not mine... well it is.... now, but I didnt build it.

Happy Holidays and best wishes for a safe and happy new year.

Help me solve this mystery...

2006-12-21T17:45:00.000-05:00

Today was a bit of an "early" Christmas for me. I ended up getting 7 packages of BL orders and the UPS man brought me one of my ebay purchases.

I noted that one of the packages did not have a return address, and when I opened it, there was no note and it wasn't an order. It was a gift.

Anyhow, in a mad rush to get the garbage out (last pick up before the Holidays) I tossed all the packaging before I thought of at least checking the post mark. So now I have this lovely gift and no clue who sent it to me. I would like to thank the person that did send it, so please let me know.

rtl21- Tug of War

2006-12-21T16:40:00.000-05:00

The eBrick Gallery

2006-12-16T23:14:00.000-05:00

Many of you all know about my passion for art and one of my favourite types of builds are of the more artistic endeavours. For the last number of years I have been book-marking and saving Lego pics to my hard drive that are of that nature.

When I spent the last week organising them, I decide to turn them into a Gallery.

So it is my pleasure to announce...

Featuring a few hundred thumbnail photos of work (with links to larger versions, or in some cases links to folders or websites that are relative) and representing over 140 different “Brick Artists”

Often there are amazing pieces of “Brick Art” that seem to get lost in the shuffle because they aren’t theme specific. Art is probably one of the least promoted or exploited themes so I decided to make take this gallery online to celebrate, encourage and support the amazing works of “Brick Art” that is being made.

The galleries have both work of my own, as well as collected photos or links that belong to others. In many cases I was not able to credit the original author. If TeBAG has any photos that are yours, that are not credited to you, please let me know so you can be given credit or if you do not want to be part of the gallery please alert me so I can remove your work.

The galleries feature many different builders and their amazing works. Many of which you have may never have seen (they are not all from flickr or brickself... and some that you might have forgotten about and others yet that are worth another look).

There are five Art Galleries...

Metal Work, Painting, Glass Work, Sculpture, Fig Work.

I also get a huge kick out of seeing how Lego impacts life, so the TeBAG contains a few other “non-Moc” galleries of Lego related art...

Body Art, Advertising, Toying with Life

My favourite Graffiti which was inspired by this Brothers Brick blog post

The whole gallery concept was also inspired by many brickself users that were doing art representations of “Real Masters”, Minifig Museum of Modern Art and the Walker Gallery (all of which are featured on the Fig Works page.)

I hope you enjoy your visit.

The Gingerbread Holiday Home...

2006-12-12T21:47:00.000-05:00

Happy Holidays,

From our house to yours.

Every year my children and I make a Gingerbread house as a holiday tradition.

Sometimes it’s a traditional house covered in candy, sometimes something crafted out of odds & ends or craft supplies.

In fact, we are well known around here for the ones made entirely out of dark, milk and white chocolate.

BUT This year, the house is made of ABS...

The Gingerbread Holiday Home... with sloped brick “icing”, “chocolate” doors/window and “candy-cane” pillars. The roof is shingled in boat stud “Smarties” and the yard is surrounded with tile and tire “licorice all sorts” and 2 by 2 round “gumdrop” fence. The windows are lined with trans yellow “candy” that shines with the help of some Lego lights and a battery box that resides inside the house.

Enjoy all my holiday MOC pics here.

May all your presents have that familiar rattle....
and hopefully this post will find you in good health, and amongst friends or family this holiday season.

Need some more holiday fun???
Has building a small set lost the challenge???

... do what all the "cool" ALES are doing... build the set IN THE BAG...

Here Comes Strong Bad...

2006-12-08T07:56:00.000-05:00

The deleted mail

Huge!

2006-12-04T01:42:00.000-05:00

One HUGE Lego man, made out of cardboard... posted by "Onesimus"

Mmmmm.... Yummy

2006-11-30T03:24:00.000-05:00

Lovely Red ABS... just before it gets melted and molded into my favourite toy.
Business Week Online. Click it, you know you wanna... wink!

Awesome....

2006-11-28T19:33:00.001-05:00

Although maybe just a bit too much American pride for some...

Another cool vid...

Awww...

2006-11-28T04:05:00.000-05:00

Well loved characters....

Im just a little old rain cloud....
Too cute! Winnie the Pooh... posted by "junlego"

Snoopy and Wallace & Grommit... posted by "MisaQa"

Its like no cheese I ever tasted...

Poor Bugs!
Witch Hazel posted by "tremor"

And this "Hey Arnold" set posted by "cre8ivejuan"

As well, as "Count Blockula's" Sesame Street

Click hinges...

2006-11-28T03:37:00.000-05:00

Most AFOLs were never pleased with the TLC's move from finger hinges to click hinges...

But I must say...
this builder sure make an awesome use of a unliked part...

Check out the "side mirrors" on "srezkall" Mustang.

Also some other great parts on that Mustang, such as the new car roof as a hood, the sleek new curve on the trunk and the great little one by one slope on the side doors. Over all a great use of new parts used in interesting ways.

If you click "up" on his folder link, you will see a bunch of other great vehicles.

Cool Finds...

2006-11-28T03:21:00.000-05:00

Thought this was cute... (its very short, but made me giggle)
by "BobBongo"

and this one too...
by "FlipGrashuepfer"

Amusement...

2006-11-23T17:33:00.000-05:00

I am in the process of rebuilding my Lego Fair from over two years ago. Thankfully my brick building knowledge, selection of parts and technical skills have improved a fair (no pun intended) bit since then. The whole goal of this project is to have fairly reliable display of typical working rides, in a very small (relative) footprint at a realistic fig scale (or as close as possible) that wouldnt overwhelm a train display in its size.

So far, work has been slow, but many of the rides are being over hauled, the Carousel has been rebuilt and was displayed last weekend (although is still being tweaked).

Here is a short clip of it at our last layout. As you maybe can see, the new version has 12 horses riding up and down and 4 stationary rides, for the little figs to young or old to manage a big scary horse.

Here is the historical overview of the original...

The "Lego 5 cent Fair" originally was built in a few weeks rush, for the childrens area for a Railfair layout in Ottawa with my Parluggers.

Here is my Brickshelf folder that has some stills of it.
Here is the Lugnet post that describes the fun I had with that layout.

Train Show

2006-11-20T02:15:00.000-05:00

Trains, trains, trains, and more trains!

Hmm, did I mention trains???
On Nov.18 and 19th (my birthday) at the International Centre in Toronto, rtlToronto & OBB impressed the crowds with their most recent train layout. The participants, Dave K, Cameron, John G, Calum T, Jeff VW, Derek R, Jeremy T, and I set up our Lego train display at the annual train show. Sadly, I forgot to get a group shot, although I did take a few pictures of the layouts, link to follow shortly (my USB on my laptop does not work, so I have to wait until I return home.)

As always, it's a total pleasure to see Dave (our organiser) as well as his part of the layout. Dave's layout is a work in progress, as he is developing a mix of old and new. Meaning, that his layout section in many ways, seems to have the most traditional "Lego from our childhood" feel as he drives traditional looking trains of his own design thru tunnels and open track, but also has many new features that make it interesting such as his automated train version of the GBC and an awesome cantilevered bridge.

My layout attached to Dave's via two sections of rail. This year, I presented my version of a quasi 1950's look, featuring my Silver Brick diner, Drive In theatre, parks, working carousel, and a Covered Kissing bridge. Of course, in light of my recent enthusiasm for the growing wind turbines we are seeing popping up all over Ontario, I placed 3 of them on my layout as well.

At the end of my layout, we created a "dogbone" of track, so Dave's trains could ride the rails throughout both of our layouts. Cameron filled this area with his custom cars, and train station.

Originally we had planned on joining up to the other builders via this amazing suspension bridge that John built, but sadly, the height difference in our layouts made this impossible. On a personal note, I would like to thank John for the technical feedback and help he gave to me, on working on a solution for improving my carousel.

Calum, Jeff, Derek, and Jeremy have a multi-layered work in progress design being developed that has nooks and crannies filled with interesting frames of structure and details instead of the more traditional extensive landscaping their last display had. When its completed it should be an amazing display.

I have no clue what Calum's area will contain but currently Jeff's area is beginning to be filled with detailed buildings that draw the viewers eye deep into the middle of the display of the various levels. There is plenty of great detailing and eye candy to be engaged with.

Derek's area currently has this intricate maze of grey pillars and supports, that are artistically done as a place holder until he returns from his sabbatical. He plans to add various, almost "escher-esque" looking buildings as well, Derek added a very cool working Ferris Wheel displayed, and even though I teased him it was too oversized, it was certainly more impressive than my carousel.

Jeremy's module ends out their display, and this is the one I am waiting for to be finished. So far the progress is amazing, he has this complex shaped building that cantilevers off the edge of the table and eventually will be worked into this organic design, I don't want to share any more details, because I believe, once finished minus that annoying tooth piece, this will be a sight to behold.

By far, this section by these four guys is a way more ambitious project than I am ready for, and I look forward to seeing their layout progress.

Special notes, we had a few friendly faces drop in and join us for some time over the weekend. As always, it's a total pleasure to see those AFOLS that we know from our share interest. Also, thanks to Liam, for being so much fun to be with.

Thank you Dave for organising it, and thanks guys!
Its always a pleasure to display my offerings with the stellar contributions of this fine group of builders.

OBB

2006-11-16T00:46:00.000-05:00

The OBB (Ontario Brick Builders) goes "Official"...

http://news.lugnet.com/admin/suggestions/?n=1451

Next steps...
LOGO - calling all participants, we are in need of a LOGO for the OBB.
Anyone have any ideas???

Jobs to do over the next month...
Documenting the history of this group.
Collecting picture links.
Website. FAQ.
Organising side bar at Lugnet.

Planning for the future of the group...
May show?? NMRA???

Hobby Show 2007
- tables, skirting, banner...

Will update with links when we get a bit more down on "paper".

Cheers

Folders not to be missed...

2006-11-12T17:11:00.000-05:00

Posted by "cbolego", the walking dead stroll here... http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=171418

Posted by "Moko" some awesome micro here...
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=120709

Posted by " Jonathanlopes" very detailed streetscapes here
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=164943

and...
Posted by my friend Dave (aka "sparky"), a vid of his beyond cool pneumatic compressor train at Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1gQWdWjTmc

Another cool link...

2006-11-12T17:03:00.000-05:00

Check this out, (from my fellow ParLUGgers)...

Incredible!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpINF5o1JDs

and the blog behind the vid...

http://www.outside-hollywood.com/

Hobby Show

2006-11-12T16:57:00.000-05:00

Wow, another November well under way and another Hobby Show by the OBB(Ontario Brick Builders) under our belts.

This year makes our 4th year in participating, and what an awesome show it was!

Allan Beford photo credit.

See the announcement here... http://news.lugnet.com/loc/ca/?n=2191
See the recap here... http://news.lugnet.com/loc/ca/?n=2209

Allan's pics here ... http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=214415
Dave's vids here ...

My own pic links to follow.

Cute!

2006-11-12T16:41:00.001-05:00

Vote for me on Bix.com!

Even if you dont like Micro builds....

2006-10-07T14:49:00.000-04:00

This one is worth more than a glance.

Builder Jason "GoldenBoy" Allemann, kicks some serious micro ass!

Well..... to be totally honest, he kicked it over a year ago, when he displayed it at BF 05, but apparently he is a serious slacker when it comes to posting about it! (Says the woman that still has not posted her dollhouse that debute months prior to that same event.)

Fellow ParLUGger (member of ParLUGment) has put me to shame, of course, thats mainly because I havent learned the fine art of "polishing" my mocs. Oh well!

Check out his micro builds on his website... http://www.truedimensions.com/lego/customs/5400/index.htm

Apparently he is known for some huge crappy space ships (surely I jest!)... but imo, that just touches the surface of his building expertise. He has some great brickfilms (Under "Movies") as well as one of my all time favourite mocs, Junkbot (Under "Sculpture").

Don't mind the mocking, he can dish it out better than I can, and trust me, he does.

Too COOL!!! ULTIMATE Lego Chaingun

2006-09-25T15:53:00.000-04:00

A friend of mine linked me to this video....

Check this out...

More info here... Sebastian Dick's "mocpages"

Pirates of the Caribbean

2006-09-25T13:18:00.000-04:00

Bit early for Oct... but I couldnt resist posting!

Brickshelf user "kamikazek" has posted a great pirate skull sculpture based on the Pirates of the Caribbean Movie poster. I think the use of tan instead of white really works for this sculpture, the proportions are very nice, and the detail are well executed (pun not intended).

I especially love the jaw line and the teeth. The use of a non-Lego part (the scarf) works, although I would love to see a Lego solution instead. The accoutrements really stand out and make this unique, particularly the used of "pen beads", bling, and my most favourite part.... the "little man" talisman.

Check out the rest of his folder...
he has some great little sculptures and another favourite of mine is "Jack's Studio Home"

Totally Impressive - The Collectivity Project

2006-09-23T11:24:00.000-04:00

Well its been over a month since I last posted. Between BrickFest and building for upcoming events, and re-sorting/organising my collection... I was sort of burnt out.

All that changed today when Hogne B. Pettersen mentioned this story on Lugnet, and I was blown away.

The Collectivity Project.
An installation by Olafur Eliasson.

The Lugnet post that caught my attention...
http://news.lugnet.com/events/?n=1955
News article linked from that post.... http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article1446562.ece
"....on Saturday, when no less than three tons of white Lego blocks were literally dumped on the museum plaza known as Tullinløkka."

Olafur Eliasson
http://www.olafureliasson.net/exhib_proj/ep_12.html
(Which shows a few pics from "The Collectivity Project, 2005, Tirana, Albania")

Flickr pics (the two on this page, as well as a ton more!)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/csant/sets/72157594277250128/

From "csant" blog...
http://my.opera.com/csant/blog/show.dml/455758
"You are invited to build with Lego on the table. Make a model of your dream-museum, or of how you think the future architecture in Oslo should look like. From September 2nd to September 17th, 2006, Oslo is the stage for Olafur Eliasson's most recent installation - he dumped 3 tons of white Lego bricks on the square behind the National Gallery, and everybody is invited to contribute. The result is simply breathtakingly beautiful. After September 17th everything will be dismantled and become part of an upcoming exhibition."
The upcoming exhibition explained ... from this news article... http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/World/20060906/441973.html
"The Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson called for the Lego blocks or Collectivity Project, set to become part of another exhibit, Art in Turbulent Times, which opens in October at the Contemporary Art Museum. The exhibit will include videos of people working with the Legos as well as examples of their constructions."

I am a huge fan of community art projects, even have run a few myself. Even tho I have seen a few done with Lego, this one has to top the list. What an amazing idea, both creatively fascinating, socially enthralling and visually stunning. Some of the work is absolutely gorgeous not even mentioning the fact that the selection of bricks they are working from seems limited to plates and bricks, even without "special" pieces the finished works have outstanding shape and design. I love the feel of the monochromatic colour scheme which makes everything work so well together. I can not say enough good things about this project, except for the fact that I hope there will be more along this idea.

Here are a few more great shots at BS, posted by "aha" http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=204805

"NEW" Advent Calendar

2006-08-17T18:50:00.000-04:00

I was surprised to find that Lego repeated their advent calendar idea from last year... and kept it in the "City" theme. Of course, the theme and feel of the calendar is identical, the parts are a wee bit different, so while it may seem like deja vu, rest assured this is 2006 and not 2005 and this indeed is a brand new set.

Of course, I never would have even realised it, unless my friendly neighbourhood Lego store manager had not pointed that whole fact out to me.

AND of course, being the greedy and impatient soul I am... I bought two and ripped right into it them, instead of waiting to open door number one on the first of Dec.

*Edit*

Shortly after posting this entry... Andrew B left a comment asking for pics. I was just about to do that when I noticed this folder at Brickshelf. Looks like someone (user "UHAUHA") already did a wonderful job of photographing the new advent calendar.

From "Uhauha" pics...

This guy was my favourite fig out of the assortment, due to the fact that his shirt is a new print, at least new for my collection.

This was my favourite "day". The vice is very convincing looking and I look forward to using it in a MOC. This one reminded me of my last years favourite (the drill press) and nicely complements it.

I just love these little tools sets.

Lastly, I think this one qualifies for the worst "day"... what it is, I am not entirely sure... since it followed the cop, I assume is some sort of radar device... I think it's a poor excuse for a town/city creation, and I do think Lego could have managed a bit better on this day.

Oh well, they have 24 days next year to try, try again.

Amazing Fig Scaled furniture ideas....

2006-08-17T17:52:00.000-04:00

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=56938

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=200171

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=199668

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=103753

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=133999

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=83707

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=43111

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=147113

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=151755

Head and ObGyn

2006-08-06T15:33:00.000-04:00

Had a few spare moments so I thought I would get the "ball" rolling on the
Dirty Bricks' 06 contest... and posted my first two entries at JLUG.

Here is the quick link to both...

Joe Gets Some Head

Telling Chat at the ObGyn

Im sure the rest of the contestants will totally out do me. For for now, this is the BEST of the BEST... Wink!

Dirty Bricks '06, all ~THAT~ and a bag of chips!

2006-08-01T11:35:00.000-04:00

Well, the time has come again to have a nice friendly competition...

There are contests that showcase a builder's skill.
There are contests that showcase a builder's creativity.
There are even contests that showcase a builder's sense of humour.
This contest is all that and a bag of chips!!!

Want to win.... well how low can you go???

"Dirty Bricks ‘06" brought to you by a combined effort between
REASONABLY CLEVER and JLUG.

There are two sets of judges!
Two sets of prizes!
And that means double the chance to bring home some swag!

Check it out, cool prizes to be won, and lots of dirty fun to be had!

Bring out yer dead!.... errr I mean, bring out yer dirt!

Big bold and beautiful Brickshelf finds...

2006-07-31T00:04:00.000-04:00

Posted by "torgugick" here.

Posted by "Marwede" here.

Posted by "oppienokki" here.

Hey this isn't Rocklands...

2006-07-28T09:42:00.001-04:00

Posted by "deborah higdon-leblond"... folder here.

A friend of mine made this great MOC regarding the fate of our free time while at BF this year. This "posh" bar is the example of where we might end up, instead of our normal watering hole, Rocklands.

I had seen this MOC in person, just before she had finished of the last bit of detailing. I love the "bling" on the bar and the attention to detail, ....and who can resist a MOC, when they are the "star"????
I must say, I am pretty honoured, and very impressed. Thanks deborah.

Hey wait a minute, are those one by one by two chrome rounds from my diner???

I think I am in love....

2006-07-25T10:00:00.000-04:00

How much is that doggy in the window??? I sure hope that doggys for sale!

OMG he is so cute!!!!

Cosmodog has to be one of the cutest Lego creations I have ever seen....
Posted by "fabianhh1", a 37 year old builder from Hamburg.
Surprisingly low piece count of around 600 for so much "function" (walking, head turning, head lifting and lowering, ears moving and wagging tail). Clean looking construction and just an overall "Cuteness" rating of 5 stars. Well done!

Check out his vid of Cosmo.

Lego Graffiti...

2006-07-23T21:36:00.000-04:00

WOW... while checking out some of my favourite blogs...

The "Brothers Brick" posted this... http://dunechaser.blogspot.com/2006/07/street-art-appreciation-101.html
and all I can say is WOW!

While they state they don't endorse vandalism, and I will agree with that in theory, (just as another posted added) those bits of graffiti fall into a category of street art that I am glad exists.

Colour me impressed and hide the spray paint, 'cause I am feeling the uncontrollable urge to go paint the town red........ brick.

Cool You Tube Lego Related Posts....

2006-07-23T21:08:00.000-04:00

While we are talking Lego vids... and yes, we were talking Lego vids...

Check out a few of my favourite Lego "You Tube" vids.

Posted by "poopster101" - Lego

Posted by "Joe Powney" - Spiderman

Posted by "Rohschinken" - Lego Beer Song
(and before you go looking for those bottles - they are not Lego!)

and Posted by for those of you that havent seen it...
the White Strips vid (posted by "clafm")

I pinch Lego Elements...

2006-07-21T23:32:00.000-04:00

Another one night build....

Yesterday I mentioned to a friend, "Hey I should do that Honda - I PINCH - commercial in Lego." His reply, "Yes you should, it would be funny"... So last night, instead of working... I wanted to have a bit of fun, so I decided to go ahead and make the Element commercial out of Lego.

Mr. Crab and (not so loopy) palm tree would be too easy, quick search of the parts, and 2 out of the 3 needed props were done. The Element itself would need to be built. I do not enjoy building cars.... especially in minifig"ish" scale... so I decided not to worry about it in the least. Grabbed some orange, and black... 4 wheels... two car roof pieces... some trans black for the windscreen and the windows, and decided to call it "done". I guess it turned out looking somewhat like an Element, at least enough to pull off the commercial.

Now, I could have spent all night carefully taking pics and putting it seemlessly together into a smooth production.... but that is really not the point. So I banged off 20-30 pics, threw out a few of them, and using Windows Movie Maker... I finished the "joke". The soundtrack is "tinny" because I couldnt find a version of the sound track that WMM would take, so I played it, and just slammed my speakers up to the mic to make a second rate recording.

Again... the whole point being... this was supposed to be a fun, fast, easy build for a laugh, and not a real serious moc, or production.

Anyhow, here it is... enjoy it ... errr or not...
Oh yeah... "I pinch!!"

Waiting...

2006-07-20T22:46:00.000-04:00

for the lawyers to strike...

http://www.coupland.com/fun/fun03.html

How COOL!

2006-07-16T16:32:00.000-04:00

Posted by "legomandan"... This is his "self portrait" of him and his daughter playing with one of his favourite classic space sets.

Well Dan, I think you did an amazing job, and although I have no idea if it has any likeness to yourself, I really love the way you pulled it off! Nice use of duplo for the back drop, amazing part choices for things such as your ears, and nice proportions through out. I love the way you did the sneakers, as well as the "builds" you both have in front of you. Awesome work!

Sticks and Stones...

2006-07-16T13:01:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer... No figs were beaten into submission for this post.

Often my Lego projects are long, involved and take way too many Bricklink orders to finish. Dont get me wrong, I enjoy those projects immensely!

But sometimes I just want to "play"...
To make simple builds, that only use the parts in my collection, and take only an evening to build. Those are the "rules" to my "one night builds" and very much like a "one night stands" they take little emotional, mental or physical effort, and the result is usually not note worthy (not that this one really is either, giggle). Most often, these "one night builds" quickly end up sorted back into my collection in a relatively short time span. Seldom do they even get photo documented, but this time I could not resist.

It started with last year, between a few JLUG contests here and here (note entry #25) ... and some inspiration that came from BF, where Robin W (at least I believe it was his) had a long chain made of click hinges.

EDIT: (and then edited again for clarity)....
OOPS, my apologies, and a correction, chain credit goes to Michael Harrod, of the self crowned title "The Chain Originator" fame... due to him winning ~Most Intriguing Sculpture~ at BrickFest 2005" - with his "chain link" MOC’s named “Multiplicity: A Study in Using Multiple Copies of a Single Element,” or and I quote "something along those lines."

I thought that was the best use of an element that I rarely find the need for, so I took mine and built some chain, (3 of them to be exact, one in black, one in new grey and one in old grey). The chain seemed a bit lonely... which got me to thinking one night... which is never a good idea.

And this is the result of my "one night builds".

"Friday Night"

Sticks & Stones...
will break my bones.
But Whips & Chains,
~EXCITE~ me!

Black and Grey Chain, Cat of Nine Tails (brown handle),
Flogger (white handle), and Crop ("braided" black handle)

This "collection" is now part of my ...
"Satiated Sculpture Series"
starting with this original one...
"Saturday Night"

Enjoy, I know I did, wink!

ParLUGment BBQ

2006-07-13T23:38:00.000-04:00

I just got home from the annual ParLUGment BBQ...
always nice to see old familiar faces (well some of them anyway) and great to meet some of the new members as well. All my pictures here.

Here is my trip in a nutshell...

On Sunday, I headed to Toronto, (perfect timing like usual, I ended up coming into Toronto in the middle of the celebrations for the World Cup - remind me to never do that again.) I brought a tub of Lego that needed sorted but instead, I hung out with an old friend I don't get to see nearly enough, and stayed the night at my local haunt.

Fairly early (for me) on Monday morning I headed out to the National Capital. (I know, I am a wuss, but driving 9-10 hours straight isn't my idea of a good time). It was pouring out, and I began to have concerns about just how we were going to have a BBQ in torrential rain storms.

Since I hate driving on the 401 anywhere near Toronto, and it was morning rush hour, and the rain made visibility a bit of a joke.... I decided to take an extremely convoluted route to Ottawa which took me directly into the opposite way anyone with a clue would take. My "oh so intelligent choice" probably ended up adding two hours to my trip and was gifted with glorious stop and go traffic and a strange construction route moment. (This crazy dump truck driver decided the pylons set out to direct traffic were just for others and not himself. I quickly applied the brakes as I watched him totally kill 18 innocent pylons as he drove exactly where he wanted to go instead of the "suggested path".)

Anyhow, later that day the rain stopped and the sun was just starting to dry everything up as I arrived at deborah's beautiful home and was given the royal treatment... (this means not only did I get towels, but a big girl bed too!) The tour quickly ended up in her build room... where I got to check out her latest finished project, construction on her new project, as well as the chance to check out her parts, wink!

Since she was already ready for the party, we spent the rest of the day, chatting and hanging out waiting upon the other guests. Jude was the first to arrive, and wow, what a shock, dude, I miss the long hair!!! Shortly after... Paul arrive (seems like ages since I have seen him), since I had forgot to pack my best friend Crown Royal, Paul got suckered... errr I mean, volunteered to take me to the LCBO. By the time we got back many other members had shown up.

Before long the backyard was filled with ALES... and the BBQ was fired up and the Lego talk began... before I knew it, dinner was ready (Paul to the rescue again) and served.

Few moments stick out in my head... for example, I wish I could explain, what it is about Jude that makes me laugh uncontrollably... even when nothing at all is funny, but for some reason, anytime I am near him, my funny bone is extra sensitive, just as I hope his arm was, after I used him as a punching bag.

I was very touched by a little gift that Steve A brought me from Steve B... thank you so much, I miss you too... and I love the fact that not only did you think of me, but it was such a nice gesture.

After dinner ppl swapped, traded, and settled up Lego orders and purchases... and a few of the displayed mocs were admired. (Sadly I brought only one small moc which I left behind by mistake. I am trusting deborah with the job of taking it to Jason so he can actually build it better, than I can take the credit for it, next time its displayed, since I am such a poser!)

Then ~OF COURSE~ (it goes without saying), we did the secret cult handshake and song and dance. (I would love to tell you all about it... but you know, some things are better off left unsaid. Wink. - "Wow, tough room!")

It started to get dark, and the skeeters began to bite, so we headed inside, just before it started to pour. Most of the misc items still left outside were rescued before they were ruined... if I could only say that about the bowl of chips. (Later when Jude kept me company during a smoke break we were greeted by a bowl of chip soup, OMG, some things look soooooo gross wet!) After much more Lego chatting, guest started to leave, and before I knew it, it was Jude, Jason, deborah, and I sitting around to the wee hours of the morning with our hands in bricks and our conversations wandering wherever convos go at odd hours of the morn.

Eventually we got rid of, errr I mean, eventually Jason and Jude went home, and we (well deborah) tidied up, and headed off to bed.

When I finally dragged myself out of bed the next day and managed a shower, deborah and I sat out in the sun, drinking coffee, smoking (well me, not her) and did ton more chatting. Eventually we did some late day shopping, and then headed off to the "ballet" (yes that's an in-joke, and no, I wont explain it!) Apparently there are some important cool buildings and historical sites in Ottawa??? Who knew?

Another late night, of too many giggles, too much gossip, and way too much fun.
Apparently building a Lego set can be too challenging for adult builders!!! The should have a warning on the package or something!

A super late start on Wednesday meant that there was no way in hell I was ever going to make it home before it was dark. So I played the record in reverse, and while I didn't hear any satanic voices telling me "Paul is dead" I did end up back to the same hotel. Tried hooking up with Derek, but he had other plans (he probably just didn't want to get stuck eating dinner with me, nor sorting any of my Lego) so I spent a few hours sorting Lego in my hotel, and sadly my Internet connection didn't work, so I decided that it was just silly to spend the night alone, and cajoled the same friend from the first night to come over and keep me company.

Spent this morning driving around, looking for important things like... chocolate, Lego, and other misc items, and eventually left the city around dinner time and headed home. Picked up a hitchhiker just on my way out, on Airport road, who kept me awake until highway 89, (as he was heading to Collingwood, from Wistler BC, for his fathers funeral.)
Finally got home around 9ish, more tired than I should be, hauling in more Lego in need of sorting, thrilled to see my boys, pleased that I bothered making the trip, and not so happy to have a crap load of work waiting in my inbox. Oh well, life is full of compromises... and sometimes it's more than worth the drive to Acton... errrr Ottawa. In other words, sometimes your "Real Friends" are also your "Lego Friends".
(Oh my god, I must be tired, I think I'm getting sappy!)

Thanks guys for such a fun trip, and special thanks to deborah and Marc who were amazing hosts. Thank you so much for having me!

P.S. Jude, Jason, and deborah.... Can't wait to see you next month and... oh yeah...
(evil laugh)
"MOM!!! DAD!!! Jude is on my side!!!!
He is LOOKING at me...
HE took my gun!!!
He is ~looking~ at me again!
OMG, he is such a DINK!!!!"

(Starts packing all my "girly" accessories now, and no, it wont be an extra red fingernail!!!)

Creepy BrickShelf Finds...

2006-07-08T12:24:00.000-04:00

Well, before I leave... I will leave you with a few random creepy crawling Brickshelf finds....

This cool "8 legs Walker Spider" was posted by "jmonso"... check out his folder.

This cute little creepy spider by "RalphS", his bugs and creatures here.

Awesome use of levers.... posted by "dh34154" here.

And this sleak one by "ravenswolfmk" here.

And finally... this one posted by "cooldude1230"
Very CREEPY!

Spilt Milk...

2006-07-08T11:59:00.000-04:00

Well, not only have other projects (life in general stuff - commissions/work, family summer obligations, friends and my sister's store) taken me away from my Lego ... 2 projects that were well on their way have had a major set back. The large scaled log cabin which was approximately 1/3 complete, and the pink planet moonbase (with 3 floors), met an unfortunate accident, and now both look like a pile of unsorted, (albeit colour coordinated) bricks. Oh well... the rebuild will happen, but for now, while other projects pull at my apron strings (like unassuming little children)... I must continue with my building delay.

There has been one Lego project that has been taking some of my attention, but sadly its not a build or anything I can share with excitement or pictures. That "project" is trying to manage my collection. There seems to come a time, when you get what I call the "wave"... Its when the current box/drawer/container for a certain element, no longer is the right size... When that happens frequently enough, I stop using all these "over flow" bins... and start rethinking the system... then after a purchase or two, the collections sort of moves like a wave into more appropriate sized containers. Its a bit time consuming, but I did have fun with one project.

I have 10 really awesome plano boxes, that I store all my favourite little bits, and use quite frequently. I love these boxes because each little compartment is a sep. container, so you can easily dump, remove, rearrange, etc. but I never really had a great place to store them. I dislike them being stacked on top of each other, because Im not a very tidy person, and when I needed one from the bottom, all the others would get left laying around. So I decided to use my plethora of red bricks for a solution, and built a handy dandy little rack that each box can slide in and out of. Its not pretty, but it does the job real well.

Not to long ago, I finally got the pleasure of seeing another fan's personal collection up close and personal (pictures do not count, since you can't open drawers and peek)... I know to most of you (or at least some of you) this might not be a big deal... but for me, it is a big deal, and I love it. Even tho I have met hundreds of fans by now, I have only had that pleasure of being in a fan's own building area(s) 5 times (J-K-D-C-J) so far and counting. I don't really know why I enjoy it so much... I guess, first of all, I'm nosey, second of all... there is something really cool about seeing how someone else builds, and organises, and manages all these bits and pieces. Especially as I see my collection quickly out grow its home, I am always on the look out for new storage ideas. It's also how funny you can "catch on" to someone else's system regardless how different it may be from your own. I guess it's the familiarity with the parts, but its still a pretty cool phenomenon.

We even had a few minutes to kill, so I helped sort some slopes. Why is it more fun to sort when you are sorting with someone else???

I am looking forward to leaving tomorrow, to head to Toronto, to finish up a bit of unfinished business... and then head on to Ottawa for Monday. My first and true love LUG is having their annual summer BBQ and I cant wait to see familiar faces, and met those that have joined since my last visit and kick back and have a good laugh. Sadly my trip out there last summer did not go according to plan, so I am hoping this trip will less eventful, and way more like "arriving". Wink.

I plan on bringing my Silver Brick Diner (although its not 100% complete... missing 36 black tiles) for "show and tell" and if I can find my camera before I leave, I should be able to post some pics of the bbq. I will be staying for an extra night, and plan on peeking thoroughly at my guest hosts collection. (That will make 6 and counting, YAY!).

d, Thanks for the invite.

Taking a break...

2006-06-22T13:17:00.000-04:00

I am taking a break from building because I have a few other pressing jobs on my plate right now, so updates to my own creations will be a bit slow... I thought I would instead share a few of my most recent favourites posted to brickshelf.

The other night while chatting with deborah she shared this link with me, and while BOTH of us admitted not really being big fans of vehicle mocs... one just could not deny the beauty in this.

Posted by "tmbgrulz"

The lines are beautiful, the detail supurb, and just the right amount of shiney chrome...
Wow, colour me impressed!

Then I found this great little camera, not many pieces, considering some mocs, but very clean and convincing... this makes me want to go make my own.

Posted by "Avro"

Now on the smaller more traditional building side... LOG CABINS

There are few nice little cabin creations that have caught my eye. More than likely because I am working on my own "cottage" but in a much larger scale.

My all time favourite cabin/cottage has to be this one, the building, the landscaping, everything, beautiful, well executed and just lovely to look at. (Was entered in the first ever JLUG contest and won second place.

Posted by "starwarsboy"

Here is a nice one from a larger train layout.

Posted by "mikeslego"

I think this would make a great set... its small enough to be affordable, it uses some interesting building techniques... and it looks like it has good playability. I personally am not a fan of the yellow accents, and much would have preferred them in tan, but otherwise I am pretty impressed with this little cottage.

Posted by "Hippotam"

Whoooo Hooo!!!!

2006-06-20T02:17:00.000-04:00

Today marks the day, I finally got my red brick at Bricklink...

http://www.brickshelf.com/gallery/bccook/Misc/june202006whoohoo.jpg

I know, who cares about fb really???

Well I dont, except that the "red brick" seems like a reward!
Of course, sadly the reality of it is a "reward" for spending too much money on Lego.

Oh well... I might as well enjoy it while I can... apparently you can't take it with you.

Another Lego, not so Lego moment...

2006-06-18T03:37:00.000-04:00

I spent the weekend trying to sort out the pictures on my hard drive... and I came across this one pic of my children from many years ago...

They just happen to be climbing a huge RED Lego brick... in the "Honey I SHRUNK the Kids" themed park of MGM studios, in Walt Disney World, in Orlando Florida.

Funny part for me is this pic was taken way before I ever got back into the hobby of building.

New Floor!

2006-06-17T18:28:00.000-04:00

Okay, I was "forced" to do some math today, and I am not too happy about it...
And my calculations may be off... since math is soooo not my thing.

I had a dream that I decided to tile my house in Lego tiles...
So today, while playing around, I started to think, just what would that cost??

(Yes, I know, its not practical, Lego tiles would yellow, stain, scratch etc. but when has "practical" ever stopped me?)

So this is what I figured out.

4 two by two tiles = approximately one square inch.
Kitchen floor (minus the areas covered by cupboards)
is 12 feet by 14 feet = 168 square feet.
168 square feet = 24,192 square inches
24,192 square inches x 4 tiles = 96, 768 tiles
96, 768 tiles x .05 (average price for BL on white 2 by 2 tiles) = $4838.40

5 grand??? Hmmm, more reasonable than I would have thought.

Now, lets see... total house square footage....

Wink.

Super boring lego blog... aka, ALES should get offline more often

2006-06-15T01:59:00.000-04:00

So I am in a Lego Chat (at Jlug) last night, and things are pretty quiet... which is bad news, since I babble at the best of times, but even worse when I'm bored and things are too quiet. (Im sure Freud would say I am over compensating for something)...

Anyhow, it starts with me posting to Lugnet... Todd Thuma made a post about new sets that aren't available at Shop@Home yet, but available in retail... which sort of hit home
with me, since often it seems like we (in Ontario, and I suppose the rest of Canada) don't get new sets super fast. So since I have been to B&B a few times recently and I was surprised to not only see the new sets, and compelled to buy a number of them.... I decide to share that joy with the Lugnet readers.

For some strange reason I am also compelled to tell them I will build the one new set tomorrow. Im not one to regret anything I say, but sometimes in hindsight, I do feel a bit silly, and this was one of those cases. I am sure that no one in the planet cares about what set I am currently going to build, its pretty anti climatic in the world of AFOLS....

Anyhow, this brings me to the moment when I decided to blog about this tiny insignificant moment in my life.
This is pretty much the convo I had.... (Few things edited out to protect the guilty, commentary in blue)

(WARNING - you may want to skip over this whole long boring bit to the next entry unless you are having troubles sleeping....)

Ross reports the news from recent Lugnet postings...
00:58:14 [RoscoHead] apparently mecha hub has officially opened
I make a joke, based on my last post...
00:59:09 [JaneyRedBrick] yes, and apparently im building a set tomorrow
And then it just gets stupid from there...
00:59:24 [JaneyRedBrick] sometimes i wonder what makes me post my boring news
00:59:25 [RoscoHead] you are????
00:59:37 [JaneyRedBrick] i think its pity for lack of posts at lugnet
01:00:14 [JaneyRedBrick] i have no idea why that set excites me
01:00:17 [JaneyRedBrick] but it does
01:00:21 [JaneyRedBrick] it looks really cool
01:00:34 [JaneyRedBrick] i was like "MUST HAVE" buying bot
It is at this point Ross catches on I'm babbling, but having missed my post, he still has no clue what I'm babbling about...
01:00:41 [RoscoHead] ummm
Then I make my big confession...
01:00:51 [JaneyRedBrick] and i lied, i didnt really use my VISA
Still he is confused...
01:00:52 [RoscoHead] you've lost me
But when you are on a roll, you don't care... you just continue with your lame story...
01:01:27 [JaneyRedBrick] i used cash, but a burning empty hand doesnt sound as good as a burning visa
Finally I clue in he is really clueless...
01:01:31 [JaneyRedBrick] i lost you where?
01:01:50 [RoscoHead] right after "building a set"
Ummm dude, you could have stopped me a long time ago
(like I can be stopped when on a roll)
01:02:08 [JaneyRedBrick] did you read my last lugnet post?
01:02:21 [JaneyRedBrick] maybe that would help explain what im talking about
01:02:48 [RoscoHead] maybe
01:02:53 [RoscoHead] ah there it is
01:04:46 [JaneyRedBrick] do i make sense to you now?
And for a bit of self depreciating humour...
01:04:54 [JaneyRedBrick] nevermind, dont answer that
01:05:05 [JaneyRedBrick] thats just asking for trouble
01:05:13 [RoscoHead] LOL
01:05:23 [RoscoHead] ok
01:06:05 [JaneyRedBrick] sometimes i dont even make sense to myself
Breathe.... and rinse... and repeat...
01:06:19 [JaneyRedBrick] so anyhow....
He fakes interest...
01:06:34 [RoscoHead] yes?
01:06:38 [JaneyRedBrick] my whole point was, that green thing looks so cool to me, and i have no clue why
Convo takes a weird turn...
01:07:04 [RoscoHead] its the advertising
01:07:13 [RoscoHead] seems to be working LOL
I mindlessly continue...
01:07:14 [JaneyRedBrick] although i have been fond of the "creature" line, the lion one a while back, and the one with all the bugs
I sort of catch on to weird turn of convo...
01:07:20 [JaneyRedBrick] advertising???????
01:07:28 [JaneyRedBrick] i never saw an ad for it, silly
Fake argument begins...
01:07:50 [RoscoHead] yes you did
01:07:57 [RoscoHead] the pic on the front of the box
Rebuttal...
01:08:04 [JaneyRedBrick] in fact, its the first time i have been in retail were there is a set that i have never seen online... just sitting there
Conclusion to argument
01:08:13 [JaneyRedBrick] oh, rolls eyes
Moving on...
01:08:24 [JaneyRedBrick] anyhow, it wanted to live at my house
01:08:38 [JaneyRedBrick] so i couldnt make it stay on the shelf
Convo takes another weird turn...
01:08:47 [RoscoHead] maybe it likes cat stew
I avoid weird turn and keep babbling...
01:09:16 [JaneyRedBrick] so i brought it home, and have been caressing it lovingly all week
Fake sympathy...
01:09:35 [RoscoHead] awwww
01:09:40 [JaneyRedBrick] and decided to rip it open tomorrow, and play with its pieces
01:10:02 [RoscoHead] wow, you waited a long time
Conclusion (or so we think)...
01:10:11 [JaneyRedBrick] arent you so glad i shared that little story with you???
01:10:39 [JaneyRedBrick] just say yes
01:10:48 [JaneyRedBrick] and we can end this little play
More fake sincerity....
01:11:09 [RoscoHead] why would i want it to end?
More self-depreciating humour...
01:11:28 [JaneyRedBrick] ummm cause its even more stupid than my normal stupid
Oh the back hand...
01:11:46 [RoscoHead] is it????
Staying in self-depreciating mode... opening oneself for a full frontal attack...
01:12:23 [JaneyRedBrick] ummm, i think so
Oh he takes the high road...
01:12:44 [RoscoHead] i dont
Only to slam with the low road...
01:12:57 [RoscoHead] i think its about the same LOL
Pretends I don't notice the slam...
01:13:06 [JaneyRedBrick] oh well then, i can tell you more
Babbling resumes... (Right about now, you are thinking oh my god, does this ever end??)
01:13:15 [JaneyRedBrick] i wanted both sponge bob sets
(The following comment would seem strange if you had no idea, two other chatters are in the room at the time, they just havent said anything for ages)
01:13:32 [RoscoHead] yeah i'm sure the others arent listening
Continues with my new story....
01:13:38 [JaneyRedBrick] (not the build a bob... since i have already built a bob)
01:13:45 [JaneyRedBrick] but the other two
01:13:54 [JaneyRedBrick] but they only had one of them on the shelf
01:13:59 [JaneyRedBrick] so... i cried like a baby
01:14:07 [JaneyRedBrick] and then the clerk said ...
Then Ross interrupts with crap about HIS country,.. Ummm hello??? we are talking about ME!!!
01:14:10 [RoscoHead] word is spongebob wont be available here retail
I ignore the interruption (geesh, some ppl!!!)
01:14:15 [JaneyRedBrick] "wait, we are expecting more"
Kindly Ross fakes amusement...
01:14:24 [RoscoHead] LOL
01:14:26 [JaneyRedBrick] and i said "but i want it now"
Ross acts incredulous, (like he wouldnt cry if it was a new crane set)
01:14:32 [RoscoHead] you actually cried????
01:14:45 [JaneyRedBrick] and she said "well... i did buy one, and its in the back room"
01:14:54 [JaneyRedBrick] well i "fake" cried, like a baby
01:15:10 [JaneyRedBrick] acting like a toddler throwing a tantrum
01:15:20 [JaneyRedBrick] so she brought me out her copy
01:15:34 [JaneyRedBrick] and sold it to me, saying "i know you come from a few hours away..."
01:15:48 [JaneyRedBrick] "and i can get one the day they get shipped"
Relieved the story is coming to an end...
01:15:53 [RoscoHead] ah
01:15:55 [JaneyRedBrick] so basically....the moral of the story... act like a brat....and get what you want
Slams again...
01:16:13 [RoscoHead] so your reputation preceded you
01:16:16 [JaneyRedBrick] YES, YAY ME!!!
01:16:28 [JaneyRedBrick] yes, well they do know me by name in there.... so its hard to avoid my rep besides, everytime im in there, they make me show other customers my tats.... i feel they owe me
01:17:03 [RoscoHead] i dont think that works at toys r us
01:17:21 [JaneyRedBrick] lol, you should try it, you never know
01:17:47 [JaneyRedBrick] i highly recommend acting like a toddler... its very emotionally freeing
Here is stupid idea...
01:17:59 [JaneyRedBrick] god, i should turn this into a blog
Ego check, isle one...
01:18:06 [JaneyRedBrick] im cracking myself up, i love how funny i am
01:18:12 [RoscoHead] LOL
01:18:23 [JaneyRedBrick] really, the rest of you pale in comparison
01:18:27 [JaneyRedBrick] wink wink

Seriously, I need a new hobby!!!