Awe-Inspiring

Courtesy Home Insurance Building by gordangrguric

Home Insurance Building, Chicago, Illinois- (BTT) Words barely have the power to describe the awe that I felt when I saw this MOC. Sure, many have successfully built skyscrapers before (DecoJim), but even those haven't made my jaw drop as it did on this one. The way all of the windows are in different states of shading, jut as in real life, the stonework, and even the fantastic colouring are all things to gawk at. Another amazing point is that it breaks up into 60 (!) modules, for easy transport, of course! Above all of that, since the building was demolished years ago, all he had to go off of were some black and white pictures on the Internet. Talk about a Herculean feat!

Also, this is the beginning to a great week of programming, starting tomorrow, and continuing until next Sunday, or indefinitely!

Centrum Excentrum

Courtesy Vasby Centrum by Skrytsson

Stockholm, Sweden- (BTT) If all malls in Sweden look like this, I'm just going to pick up and move tonight. Actually, this is a model of a mall's front, built for a display by AwesomeProject. The building itself is great, but it's only the beginning of the model. The brickwork, wastebasket, signage, curved window, and glass skylight all scream "Mall", while still being interesting and visually appealing. If only their prices were as amazing as this building!

Swede Shoppe

Courtesy Lego H&M by L. G. Orlando

Miami, Florida- (BTT) Shopping in Lego City has never been so trendy! With the building of a H&M store right around the corner from the Pet Shop and Cafe Corner, the minifigs can be sure to stay in fashion, while funneling their money into the Swedish economy! This great building by L. G. Orlando brings to the table all of the things that a proper clothing store should have: mannequins in the window, a useless second floor, impossibly thin and tan models photographed and put on banners and boards visible from the street, and a happy customer. The crenelation at the top shows that they have some good taste!

Modular Building Blues

Courtesy Lego MOC: Blue Boardwalk by RedCoKid

Azure Drive- (BTT) Here we have what looks to be a lonely suburban modular house. But, one shouldn't always judge a book by its cover. Over here, Flickr user Red Co. Kid has built an entire city block of modular buildings in various shades of blue! From a blue rendition of the Cafe corner, to this great suburban home, it's all there! The buildings feature details such as stoplights, play sets, full interiors, a garage, Olivia's workshop, and even a microscale rendition of the very town that it exists in!

I Can See for Miles and Miles...



Courtesy Terraced Street Corner by Dakar A

London, England- (BTT) Glasses are a really great invention, without them we would all be moles, with no sense of vision, feeling around our blurry surroundings with only our nose as a guide! While minifigures have had glasses since the first variation from the classic smile, they've never had somewhere to get them, until now! The Brick Glasses Shop is the #1 destination for minifigs of all sizes when less than 20/20 sight is not an option. With 3 fully furbished floors, including, but not limited to, a bathroom, kitchenette, and dumpster, this building is chock full of detail. And it's partner doesn't look bad either!

Full disclosure, this is my own MOC, but it absolutely destroyed my collection of tan bricks, to the point that I had to use two trips to a Pick-A-Brick wall to get the necessary parts. It's also the main reason why I've been posting somewhat infrequently lately, so I promise more juicy Modulars to come your way soon!

Orange Crush

Courtesy Modular Orange Bank by Myko

Bayveiw Boulevard- (BTT) Colour can make or break a building. If it has too much grey, it will be easy to mistake as a communist parking garage. But, on the other side, if there's too much colour, then it will look like your building belongs in candy land. This building by Christer Nyberg (Myko) is a great study in colour- the top has bright orange, but it is subtly offset with greys and dark orange. The street also has a lot of personality, with the smug bench sitter and the anxious banker. Just make sure you don't get too distracted by the building and miss your bus!

Ivy Lane Pub Crawl

Courtesy Arthur's Pub by Ace Copeland

Heritage Boulevard- (BTT) Irish pubs seem to be a popular theme in modular buildings these days. That makes it much harder to have yours stand out. Luckily, this one has what it takes. The upstairs balcony, the cast-iron fence around the tree out front, and the Irish flag adorning the side all make this to be an eye-pleasing building. The beautiful signage is a work of art in its own, with the excellent shamrock logo and hand-drawn nameplate. After all, when stopping down to the pub for a few tall ones, who doesn't want to be wowed by the facade?

Modern Architecture

Courtesy Vee Building by Brickapolis

Indianapolis, Indiana- (BTT) Apartments aren't always blocky, boring, and repetitive. Sometimes, they're freestanding and unique. This fine building falls right into that category. From the "Vee" rooftop, to the glass-encapsulated bottom floor, this has all the traits of a modern city building. Apparently, it's not new enough to escape the touch of modern street art, or as the rest of us know it, graffiti. The large brick built street helps to draw the eye to the building, then it steadily progresses up to the skylight at the top, ending in a pleasing overall view.

Best rates in town!

Courtesy MOC7 by The LostLostBoy

Financial district- (BTT) These days, banks will do just about anything to draw in customers. Silly slogans, memorable pitch lines, rebrandings. But sometimes, a bank is there. And has been since the last great war, or at least as long as you can remember. This beautiful Art Deco style bank is no exception. From the friendly patrons out front, to the not-so-friendly felon out back, it's crammed full of great detail. Just be careful that your significant other doesn't splurge the money from your loan on some jewelry upstairs.

Welcome! Come in, be seated!

Courtesy Overdale Townhouse by Dakar A

Bonjour!

Hello! I'm not really French, but it's a great way to break the ice! I'm Duncan,and along with Jonathan and Chris, I am the newest author on Brick Town Talk. Some of you may know me from Eurobricks or Flickr as Dakar A. I'm also proud to be a TFOL, or Teen Fan of Lego, for those unfamiliar with the jargon. That means less income to buy parts and pieces from Bricklink, but I try my hardest to best use what I have.

I'm a Town builder by heart, since the first set I remember getting is a Town firetruck. I had my own sort of strange dark ages, where I followed kid hobbies besides Lego, only really getting back in with the Creator Street Speeder and the Green Grocer. And as the story goes, I now have a tiny city taking up a few square feet of my bedroom! Outside of Lego, I play the French Horn, enjoy Ska music,am a Life Scout (5 merit badges away from Eagle!), and am enrolled in the Cambridge AICE program.

I hope to be posting the best the Internet has to offer in Lego buildings on here, as often as possible. Which means more MOCs for you! I'm glad to be an author, and promise not to make anymore posts all about me!

CourtesyCigarette boat by Dakar A

Moderne Masterpiece

Courtesy Big Apple Diner by Nathan

Midtown West, Manhattan - (BTT) Celebrating 70 years of feeding hungry New Yorkers, the Big Apple Diner is still the greasy spoon of choice for the neighborhood's working class. The beautiful Streamline Moderne exterior only gets better as each decade rolls by.

Abundance of Dark Orange

Courtesy cheops from Brickshelf

A testimonial to why Dark Orange is such an awesome color, and yet, why is it seemingly impossible to obtain in large quantities (LUGs are an exception)? Take this as a hint, LEGO. People want this color, and it can do wonders for a model.

It's far too expensive on Bricklink and Pick a Brick does not even offer it. I understand  that it might be a bit more expensive to produce such a color (especially just for adults), but wouldn't it be more applicable to everyday models (sand/dirt, buildings, roads, terrain, etc.) compared to say, Bright Blue or Bright Yellowish Green?

So what do you as builders think?  Leave a comment or thought if you wish.