Two weeks ago, the UK’s largest LEGO event and only official AFOL Networking Event landed in Manchester for its eleventh year: Bricktastic 2025! I was all signed up, packed up, and ready to roll to the convention when our beloved cat fell ill, meaning that I stayed behind, leaving my husband to brave the crowds alone. Luckily, many friends were there to greet him—and luckily for BrickNerd readers, they were more than happy to share their experiences from the weekend. There were hundreds of AFOLs to choose from, so let’s hear from a few who had very different experiences at Bricktastic 2025! The First-Timer: Nicole Nicole is one of the most wholesome LEGO content creators you’ll ever come across—and I’m hugely proud of her progress in building both LEGO and confidence. With a bit of gentle encouragement, she started to create her own MOCs and now builds live for her viewers...

Welcome back to “The Conversation Piece,” a BrickNerd series authored by our friends over at the Builder Improvement Initiative (BII), a Discord-based community that helps LEGO builders of all levels get better at their craft through knowledge-sharing and feedback. This will be a place for you to ask all of your trickier questions about creativity and building out of LEGO bricks. Have a question you'd like us to consider for a future article? You can submit it here. Enjoy! Can I Have Too Much LEGO? Anonymous asks: “How does lack of parts impact our building style? What links can be drawn between collection size and the need for original solutions?" The importance of a LEGO collection’s size has always been a point of debate. Some may be quick to quote a familiar green friend from the 80s: “Size matters not!” After all, it is in the mind—not in the expanse of...

Today’s guest article for International Women’s Day comes from Meredith Najewicz, a builder from Atlanta who has built colorful creations from towering New Hashima buildings to epic Elves-inspired landscapes. The Importance of Visibility Every year, especially in these post-COVID and “Adults Welcome” times, the AFOL community seems to keep getting larger and bringing in new fans from all walks of life. Some of the most well-known people in the LEGO social media world are now, in fact, women, such as EllieVToys and Emmasaurus. Progress is always a wonderful thing. However, this International Women’s Day, I asked BrickNerd if I could highlight women in our community who are helping to “make a seat at the AFOL table” for women and others who are new to the community. Now you may be asking “Why is this important?” so I’ll do a quick trip down memory lane to explain. Displaying at my first AFOL/LEGO...

Jan Beyer has handed out his last exclusive minifigure business card as a LEGO employee. In this third and final part of his farewell interview with BrickNerd, we take a look back at how The LEGO Group has changed over the past two decades—and find out what Jan is up to now. (You might want to read the first and second parts before we begin.) Jan Beyer with his minifigure counterpart, the exclusive business card that only very important LEGO employees now get to hand out 21 years. That’s how long Jan Beyer was a LEGO employee. In that time, The LEGO Group went from almost bankrupt to the most valuable toy manufacturer in the world. Some journey! “Yeah, when I started out, there were some really tough years. The company was in the middle of their worst crisis. We got no bonuses and people were fired. We were down to...

In the first part of our chat with Jan Beyer who recently left The LEGO Group, he told us about how he ended up working for the Danish toy manufacturer for 21 years. Now, we’ll talk a bit about what he accomplished there. Jan Beyer receiving BrickNerd’s Nerd Of Note award, from the author of this article, at the 2022 Skærbæk Fan Weekend If you were to compile a list of all the things Jan Beyer did in his years at The LEGO Group and ask people to pick the one they value the most, chances are that one achievement in particular would stand out: Skærbæk Fan Weekend, born as the LEGO Fan Weekend in 2005, which was incidentally the setting for this interview. But how did it come to be? “Well (laughing), it started almost by accident. AFOLs always wanted to do events, and for LEGO, that was interesting because...

A few months ago, after 21 years in the company, long-term AFOL liaison Jan Beyer said goodbye to The LEGO Group. We sat down for a long chat about his journey with LEGO… and found out that he’s not planning on being a stranger in the AFOL community. Jan Beyer, next to a modest Star Wars display, at Skærbæk Fan Weekend—the event he started 20 years ago When we heard Jan was leaving LEGO, we very quickly reached out to ask for a little sit-down interview. He immediately said yes—and what better place would there be for that than the very event which may well be his most treasured legacy in the AFOL community: Skærbæk Fan Weekend… or LEGO Fan Weekend as it was called from the very beginning in 2005. We’ll get back to that story later, though, because our chat started at the very beginning—but not the beginning of...

A new month is upon us which means more competitive building! Are you ready? Here’s the latest bunch of LEGO contests and challenges from all around the AFOL community for March 2025 to help you find some inspiration and motivation to build! There’s nothing quite like a theme or a prompt to take you out of your comfort zone and give you something new to try. Besides, contests are the perfect place to interact with other contestants and judges and get to know your fellow builders. And if you’re like me, a deadline helps make sure you actually finish! We’ve listed them in order of deadline so you can plan your building time to the best advantage. Make sure to check the LEGO activity calendar for local challenges and events near you. Here at BrickNerd, some of our fondest memories, greatest building achievements, coolest trophies, and best friendships came from LEGO...

Imperial March has arrived! Are you ready to rebuild the galaxy where epic stories are told about the Star Wars of old? Jump to hyperspace with us and embrace your inner dark side to build your way into history. We are challenging you to bring to life your most iconic Star Wars creations. Imperial March is your battlefield to showcase epic scenes, legendary ships, and unforgettable characters. This is your excuse to go all in and build something so impressive it would make even Vader nod slightly in approval. Imperial March was coined by Boone Langston in 2021 based on John William’s epic Star Wars score, and now BrickNerd is bringing the contest back complete with epic prizes! Boone will also be a guest judge to help choose who will reign supreme. Three Epic Categories There are three categories, each with some awesome LEGO Star Wars prizes for 1st and 2nd...

LEGO has revealed the Amelia Ticket Booth (5009157) gift with purchase set that will be available when the new LEGO Ideas River Steamboat (21356) is released. The set has 152 pieces and it features a ticket booth along with a small dock. The promotional period will run from April 7-13, while supplies last. This detailed LEGO® Amelia Ticket Booth building toy features a ticket window, tower, jetty and a flag. Decorations include printed elements marked ’TICKET’ and ’AMELIA’ with schedule information. Inside the building is a riverboat museum with a small riverboat model and a microfigure. Fun to build and play with, the 152-piece LEGO Ticket Booth building set is a creative gift for kids aged 10 and up. The post LEGO Amelia Ticket Booth (5009157) GWP Revealed appeared first on The Brick Fan. Original linkOriginal author: Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

LEGO has officially revealed the next LEGO Ideas set that will be coming to stores with the River Steamboat (21356). Releasing on April 7, the set has 4,090 pieces and will retail for $329.99. LEGO Insiders that purchase the set between April 7-13 will get the 152 piece LEGO Amelia Ticket Booth (5009157) as a gift with purchase set. The River Steamboat will have the classic look and includes detailed areas of the ship such as the pilothouse, crew cabin, a bathroom on the texas deck, a music stage, a restaurant, a kitchen, and a museum on the boiler deck. The set will also have a working paddle connected to the steam engine and a rudder activated by the ship’s wheel. Set Sail with the New LEGO® Ideas River Steamboat 1st March 2025: The LEGO Group is thrilled to announce the launch of the LEGO® Ideas River Steamboat set, designed by...