Welcome everyone, and join me as we dive into one of the most awesome (and patience-trying) techniques around… LEGO cheese slope mosaics.

You know, those tiny slopes that you always get an extra one of in your set? Technically they are called or “Slope/Roof Tile 30 1 x 1 x 2/3” but AFOLs have come to call them almost ubiquitously “cheese slopes.” Part 54200 has even been printed with… well, cheese thus completing the AFOL cycle of naming things. But how do you use them a bit more unconventionally?

When thinking about the cheese slope mosaic technique there is one name that instantly comes to mind, Katie Walker. There is a reason she earned the nickname “the queen of cheese“ as she’s created some of the coolest patterns out there (let’s face it, she’s done them all). So whenever you’re thinking about building an interior and you want a cool floor, I highly recommend you go through her Flickr feed for inspiration.

But a fair warning, do NOT attempt this technique if you’re in a rush, as you are guaranteed to knock the slopes out of alignment at least a few times… However, if you take a few deep breathes, put on some relaxing music and take the time needed, there are literally no limits to the awesome stuff you can create with cheese slopes.

Starting Small

So what are cheese slope mosaics? Simply put, they are cheese slopes (and sometimes other pieces) that lay or are stacked on their side, held in place by only friction, gravity or some kind of brick-built frame. It can be tedious work, but the payoff can be quite spectacular if you are creating a stained glass window or intricately tiled floor.

But anyway, enough of my rambling, let’s have a look at some of my personal favourites in regards to these patterns. Let’s start off with a few smaller versions. The obvious upside with these, because of the fact that they are small, is that they are pretty easy to incorporate into a build without spending insane amounts of time. These mosaics are made by Katie Walker, who I mentioned before. Well worth your time to see what she can do!

You can see how alternating the orientation of each cheese slope you can achieve a different pattern, since stacking them slope to slope almost results in a solid square (it is actually just a tad larger).

Here you can see other elements being introduced like the 1x1 tile. Here you can also see the brick-built frame constraining the mosaic.

Let’s Get Complex

Moving up a bit in size, we start to get a little more complex of cheese slope mosaics. And while this may be a bit harder to incorporate into a build and a lot more time-consuming, it is a great way to really take your floors (or windows) to another level. Here you can see that wonderful hexagonal geometry of triangles at play.

It may help to look online at existing patterns or draw out what you want your mosaic to look like with hexagonal graph paper. No matter what, building a cheese slope mosiac is a process of trial and error.

So there you have it, some (hopefully) inspiring examples of what’s possible to create using cheese slopes. Now you know the technique, what can we do with them?

MOCs with Mosaics

Let’s round things off by showing a few examples of MOCs using these types of cheese slope mosaics. Some from yours truly, as well as a few from other builders that I really enjoy. Below you’ll see five examples of cheese slope mosaics in floors, walls and windows to really give the MOC some spectacular detail.

A great use of cheese slope mosaic to add detail to the upper balcony by Little John

I bet this floor took some time… (Also by Little John)

Combining different patterns is a great way to make things interesting, on the floor and the window! (Built by some guy in Sweden.)

This took me a while…but I was happy with the end result! Floors and windows plus some awesome lighting.

Stunning work by Dan Harris. The flooring and windows make me shudder at all the time it must have took!

So experiment a bit! Break out your tweezers and that drawer of unsorted cheese and start playing. LEGO cheese slope mosaics can really get you thinking. Hopefully you enjoyed the showcasing of this technique, and I really recommend you try it yourself!

Have you ever built a LEGO cheese slope mosaic? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Do you want to help BrickNerd continue publishing articles like this one? Become a top patron like Charlie Stephens, Marc & Liz Puleo, Paige Mueller, Rob Klingberg from Brickstuff, John & Joshua Hanlon from Beyond the Brick, Megan Lum, and Andy Price to show your support, get early access, exclusive swag and more.