TRAC BALL

I have fond memories of my formative years on Mango Street here in Lompoc. It was where I lived when I got my first movie camera, saw Star Wars, played lawn darts and (once those were determined to be the stupidest invention ever) TRAC BALL. These wonders from Wham-O are actually still around and allow you to throw a perfect curve ball despite having zero athletic ability. I will however caution against the attempt to catch a Stretch Armstrong thrown by your brother, it will break it (I speak from experience).

Xenomorph

I've always been a fan of HR Giger's imaginative nightmare the xenomorph. From the first time it scared the begeezus out of me in Alien to that time I previs'd hundreds of them ascending a mayan pyramid (true story). This version by LEGO Will captures it's biomechanical essence perfectly, but what's even more impressive is the photography. Shooting an all black MOC is very difficult, this shot is awesome. White background to clearly define the silhouette, just enough highlights to define the form, but not so much that it's overdone. And according to the EXIF, this was shot with an iPhone 6, making it even more impressive.

You Can Practically Smell The Flux

This is so awesome. I spent many, many hours breadboarding, repairing and designing printed circuit boards way back when, so this latest build from 6kyubi6 for Iron Builder resonates on many levels for me. Brilliant on every level.

Kaneda's Bike

Akira, the landmark animated feature that introduced so many to the wonderful world of anime. And Kaneda's bike, everyone's favorite thing in that movie. There have been many, many versions of this built in LEGO, but few very successfully at Minifig scale. This one by Tiler is perhaps the most successful ever constructed. And now you can build your own because he shared some instructions!

Tis The Season

I was really ready for the holiday season this year. I love listening to the music, spending time with my family, shopping for presents, drinking spiced cider, opening my letters from Cards Against Humanity and generally being jolly. I also truly enjoy all the holiday themed MOCs that pop up. This one from Legonardo Davidy not only spreads some Christmas cheer, but serves double duty as a LUG collaborative build and his latest entry in Iron Builder, pretty nifty.

MICROFLEET

I've kinda got this thing for rag-tag fleets, although this one isn't particularly rag-tag.  In fact ska2d2 has created a pretty cohesive style in spite of the variation in designs.  What I really like are the number of details he's packed into them, details you'd usually see in much larger ships.  I'm just waiting for him to build something with retracting flight pods. 

Singer

This is one of those times I refreshed the Flickr feed and stopped cold saying "whoa". This old time Singer by 6kyubi6 is perfect, just perfect. Yes, as I've revealed before I know how to use a sewing machine. I don't do it much any more, but at least once a year I'm breaking out the machine and stitching away. Mine doesn't look like this, but works in pretty much the exact same way.

Lovers' Embrace

Apparent newcomer Bricks Noir is on a roll, with the third stunning MOC this week. Silhouette mosaics, or Silhousaics, such as this are very difficult, but this builder makes it look effortless and graceful. The contours and construction on this are remarkable, I would love to see it in person.

Christmas Miku

Christmas time is here, and Miku is celebrating by conjuring presents for everyone! Builder MikeVD knows how to spread a little yuletide fun, and his latest MOC has it all, action pose, wonderful color, clever building and of course a huge helping of Christmas cheer.

Root Canal

As a dentist, I see people cringe when I say those words.  But when I saw this creation by Lab Synth, I had a different reaction.  Drawing inspiration from Venice, the scene is comprised of a tight succession of palaces along a canal named for the tree in the small plaza.  The owners are extremely competitive, not only with architectural styles, but construction materials as well.  I recommend the zoom feature to see all the intricate details throughout the build.  It's almost like having the magnifiers dentists use when drilling on teeth. 

The Shard

This iconic building was still under construction when I was living and working in London in 2010, but even in it's half-built unfinished state it was impressive. It was completed in 2012 and while it had somewhat divided the public at first, it has since found it's way into the hearts and minds of Londoners and the world. It's a beautiful building, and this brick version by Rocco Buttliere is just as beautiful. Click through for more pics.

Getting Amp'd

One of the fun things about Iron Builder is the smack talk and MOC inspired MOCs. By that I mean one builder posts something, and the next builder responds to it with their own build. Some of it gets incredibly creative, if not a little sassy. For instance the drummer below is in direct response to this awesome amplifier from Legonardo Davidy.

Phonograph

There seems to be a music theme this morning here at BrickNerd. By total coincidence I was thinking moments ago about the Christmas music I have on vinyl, then this wonderful phonograph by bricks.life.idea pops up. I'll take it as a hint that I need to deck the halls today.

Gimme A Beat

Did I ever mention I'm a drummer? Well, let me clarify that, I'm a drummer in the sense that I have a drum set, and I make noise with it (or used to, it's been mothballed for ages). Of course I've never looked as cool as this cat by 6kyubi6 ready to rock your socks off

Red Five Standing By...

One of the classic problems when scaling down the X-Wing is keeping those iconic quad guns looking proper. This solution with the musketeer sword is pretty brilliant. We've seen countless LEGO versions of this Star Wars ship but this one by Legonardo Davidy just might be my favorite ever.

Pump It Up!

This is one of those classic situations where you might just skip over a MOC because it's so darned good it just looks like a mundane photo of an everyday object. This hand pump by 6kyubi6 may not be any good at inflating anything, but it's sure splendid to look at.

Standard Equipment

You know, I've never given much thought to the "mudflap girl". I grew up seeing her on nearly every 18 wheeler in the country, and since have seen her on hats and shirts and stickers and so on and so on. With a quick google search I discovered she's the product of Bill Zinda, who came up with her to promote his trucking products. And she's been going strong ever since. And now we can enjoy her curvaceous silhouette in bricks thanks to builder bricksnoir.

Batman

This would have made an excellent addition to the Comic Bricks collaboration at Designer-Con (which I didn't get to see, boo hoo). Builder vitreolum has crafted yet another brilliant mosaic MOC, this time it's the dark knight himself, Batman. I don't know about you, but I feel safer at night knowing he's watching over us.

Love

If you find yourself at Ozfest this gesture has a totally different meaning, but if you're familiar with American Sign Language, you know this means love. And what could be a more touching effort to show the woman you love than to build her a sculpture? That's exactly what alanboar did, and the results speak for themselves. Happy anniversary you two.

One Ends, Another Begins

I had the honor and burden of judging the last Iron Builder, in which CMaddisson emerged victorious. But no sooner does one end, than the next epic struggle begins. This round pits Legonardo Davidy against 6kyubi6, and what a round it will be. Both builders have unique and very different styles, and the seed part (the musketeer sword) should prove to be a challenge to both. Let's all sit back and enjoy the action.

Oh, and Spongebob Squarepants has always been a fixture in this house, in fact I hung a Spongebob ornament on the tree yesterday. So I would be amiss if I didn't post this awesome MOC of Gary