We are currently getting ready to move house, which is proving to be every bit as stressful and exhausting as I feared it would be. Worst of all, most of our Lego has been packed away and the time available for brick-building is even more limited than usual . . . .
So last month’s #dailybricklimit challenge — organised by @brickanista and @jorielbuilds — came along at just the right time!
The basic idea is very simple:
I took part in a similar challenge earlier this year and it was an absolute revelation.
Working with such a small number of bricks seems to inspire incredible feats of imagination and creativity.
Here are some of my favourite examples of other people’s designs.
(L-R: 1. Headphones by @steinmanzachary (15) / 2. Death Star by @femmefromtheblock (4) / 3. Among Us by @haeser (1) / 4. The Handmaid’s Tale by @brickprincessbuttercup (6) [made using a Biker Scout from Return of the Jedi mini figure would you believe?!] / 5. The Avengers by @legoitcdad (1-9) / 6. Rupert by @virginia_bricks (28) / 7. Observatory by @steinmanzachary (1) / 8. Snoopy by @haeser (6) / 9. The Mystery Machine by @haeser (9)).
To quote @brickanista, ‘we are hoping that people will see that there is joy and amazing creativity [to be found] just looking at pieces that are already in your collection’.
I love the idea of being able to create something recognisable on such a small scale, and hopefully finding the hidden beauty in something potentially so mundane (he said grandiosely!). There is also a real feeling of joy and sense of satisfaction that comes from working on this scale, not to mention an almost Zen-like inner peace (he said even more grandiosely!).
These are a few of my own favourite pieces from the original January challenge.
This time around we decided to confine ourselves to a nautical theme.
In researching each build, we stumbled upon some fascinating facts about marine life. For example, who knew that there was such a thing as an immortal jellyfish, or that dolphins are born with hair on their faces?! We also discovered that sharks have no bones and never sleep; the collective noun for a group of penguins on land is a ‘waddle’, and Killer Whales are actually dolphins!
When time allowed, we tried to develop some of our ideas into larger builds using a — by now positively luxurious — unlimited number of bricks! Nell built this wonderful seahorse.
And I was particularly proud of this expanded version of my whale mosaic.
I also built some larger 3-dimensional pieces based around my #dailybricklimit designs.
So, all in all, July actually ended up being one of our busiest (and I dare say) most creative months yet, despite the stresses of moving and limited opportunities for building. A big thank you to @brickanista and @jorielbuilds for organising this incredibly enjoyable and stimulating challenge. Can’t wait for the next one!
