A Custom LEGO Word Search Puzzle

Just for fun I created a word search for LEGO fans.
The words in this puzzle may appear forwards, backwards and diagonally and some letters may be used more than once.  I packed more than 25 words into this 24x24 grid.

Watch for a space, castle, Technic and pirate themed puzzle in the future.

There are several ways to play this puzzle:

1.  See how many words you can find without using the word list. There are at least 25 words but how many can you find without looking at the list?

2.  Using the word list, see how many words you can find.

3.  Time yourself on either option.

The puzzle and the word list appear as separate images so you can view or print however you please.

Enjoy!

LEGO Word Puzzle #1 by Ashley Glennon

And for those of you who want to see the word list, it appears below...way below...scroll to see it.  It's a separate image so you can print or view if you wish.

Enjoy and happy holidays!

Ashley

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The word list is just below...scroll to see it...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A LEGO Snowflake

Here's an accurate, six sided snowflake I built from LEGO elements.  The critical pieces are hinge plates which make the center ring and allow for the six sides.  Other pieces include LEGO plates and short technic beams plus a sprinkling of clear plates.

A LEGO, six-sided snowflake built using hinge plates. Ashley Glennon's blog. 2014

Most people don't know this it seems, but naturally occurring snowflakes have six "sides."  Many snowflakes I see built from LEGO bricks have four, five, eight or even more sides.  It's hard to make a six sided snowflake from LEGO bricks as most  of the obvious elements to use for snowflake building are geared for eight attach points.  The actual size of this creation is about six inches across.

Ashley

LEGO Ideas Birds Get a Launch Date and a Price

I really like the 'LEGO Ideas' line of products and am really glad to see an organic model make an appearance.  Looks like set 21301 will launch Jan. 1, 2015 with an MSRP of $44.99.  Notably absent from this set, though, is the colorful Gouldian Finch that was originally prototyped as part of the ideas pitch.  I have not heard the back story on why it got cut but it likely had to do with parts, shapes and colors.

Anyhow, great to see this set coming to life. 

A trivial fact for those of you who like to collect every variation of a set:  the current box design notes 442 pieces whereas LEGO indicates the set will have 580 pieces.  Be on the lookout for a change to happen somewhere.

LEGO Ideas set 21301.  Image courtesy of LEGO.com

Ashley

Top Holiday Gifts For LEGO Fans: 2014

Here are my picks for some of the most popular, useful and interesting LEGO gifts for the 2014 holiday season.

LEGO Sets (priced low to high):

1.    LEGO Series 12 Minifigs, $3.99 each.  The latest series of minifigs makes a great stocking stuffer and most LEGO fans don’t mind receiving duplicates.

2.    LEGO Research Institute set 21110, $19.99. This set has been chosen mostly because of its low cost and rarity.  This set is essentially three vignettes in one, and features a cool dinosaur skeleton.

3.    LEGO Mirkwood Elf Army set 79012, $29.99.
This set complements castle and forest sets and seems to be a nice play value overall with six minifigures and a scary Warg beast.

4.    LEGO Exo Suit set 21109,  $34.99.  This set is my favorite pick of the holiday season and contains two green space figs and 321 useful space pieces.

5.    LEGO Fusion Town, Resort or Battle set, $34.99.  This is all about experiencing a virtual LEGO world on your mobile device.

6.    LEGO Trevi fountain set 21020, $49.99. This architectural set allows you to signal to your office mates that you’re a LEGO fan without coming across as the true space, castle or Star Wars nerd that you really are.

7.    LEGO Benny’s Spaceship, Spaceship, Spaceship set 70816, $99.99.  This set humorously amplifies the glory of days of LEGO space sets and contains just about anything a space fan might want.  Another 2014 favorite.

8.    LEGO MINI Cooper set 10242, $99.99.  This is a nice replica of the iconic Mk VII vehicle in a forest green color scheme. Includes lots of working details.

9.    LEGO Batman, The Tumbler set 76023, $199.99.  This is an essential set for Batman fans and those who want as many black elements as possible.

10. LEGO Technic Remote Control Volvo L350F Wheel Loader set 42030,  $249.99.  This is a technically advanced and realistic set that contains practically one of everything needed to add any sort of motion to any creation.

11. LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 set 31313, $349.99.  This is an excellent set for LEGO fans overall, but an essential set for robotics fans.  This kit contains everything needed to animate and control any LEGO theme.

LEGO related items but not actually LEGO bricks:

12. The LEGO Movie (DVD or Blu-ray).  This is a must have movie for every LEGO fan.

13. Large LEGO Moleskine Limited Edition notebook 5 x 8.25, $15-20.  This popular and handy notebook features LEGO branding and has a baseplate built into the front cover.

14. Steampunk LEGO, Hardcover book,  $18.94 (Nov. 22 release).  This book contains an eclectic range of fun and interesting retro-mechanical creations.  One of my favorite books for the holiday season.

15. Build Your Own LEGO Knight’s Realm: The Big Unofficial LEGO Builder’s Book, Paperback, $21.59 (Nov. 25 release)

16. Incredible LEGO Technic: Cars, Trucks, Robots & More! Paperback, $21.74 (Nov. 22 release).  This book is a must have for Technic fans and one of my three holiday book favorites.

17. The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Idea Book: 181 Simple Machines, Paperback book, $18.56 (Nov. 20 release).  A wordless masterpiece of easy to follow MINDSTORMS ideas.  One of my three holiday book favorites.

18. Beautiful LEGO 2: Dark, Hardcover book, $25.91 (Nov 20 release).  If part two is as good as part one, we’re in for a treat.

19. The Art of the Brick: A Life in LEGO, Hardcover book $24.34 (Nov. 10 release).  This is the much-anticipated book by Nathan Sawaya.

20. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes; various stories (Illustrated using LEGO bricks); $9.95 .  Amazon Editors have chosen this series as one of their Favorite Books of the Year.

21. A subscription to BrickJournal.  BrickJournal is THE magazine for LEGO fans, featuring news, building instructions, lots of great pictures and more.

22. LEGO Gift Cards.  LEGO gift cards are good online and in LEGO retail stores.

Happy Holidays!
Ashley

Top Holiday Gifts for LEGO fans: 2013

As a LEGO enthusiast,  I like to make a list of what I believe are the most compelling and interesting LEGO gifts for the upcoming holiday season.  This year there appears to be an exceptional amount of new sets and books, perhaps marking a LEGO resurgence into mainstream pop-culture.

Below are my picks--along with a few notes-- of the best sets and books to wrap up 2013.

2013 Top Gifts for LEGO Fans

LEGO sets: Listed from highest to lowest priced

1.  MINDSTORMS EV3 31313  $349.99.
You don't have to like robotics for this set to be useful.  Space, train, castle and even micro-scale fans can put the EV3 robot to work on animations that can bring other creations to life.

2.  Ewok™ Village 10236  $249.99
This is a beautiful set, chock full of minifigures and useful tree parts.

3.  The Tower of Orthanc ™ 10237  $199.99

4.  Architecture Studio  21050 $149.99
Although this set consists of white parts only, the included book and creative insights make this a fun addition to town, city, castle or space fans.

5.  LEGO City Town Square  60026  $119.99

6.  Winter Village Market 10235 $99.99

7.  Master Builder Academy sets (Invention or Adventure) Designer 20214 or 20215 $79.99 each
These sets offer a diverse set of parts and some great instructions.

8.  Mini Modulars 10230 $79.99  (1356 pieces)
This is the only set that in the list that is left over from last year, but the sheer volume of parts and detailing capabilities make for an awesome resource for any LEGO fan.

9.  UN Headquarters 21018 $49.99

10.  The DeLorean Time Machine 21103  $34.99

And as a stocking stuffer:  Minifigure series 11 $2.99

LEGO books and a few other things:

1.  Moleskin Limited Edition LEGO notebooks.  These classic notebooks feature an integrated building plate that can be used every day at your home or the office.

2.  Beautiful LEGO book.  An amazing, visual feast of a wide variety of work.

3.  LEGO Minifigure Year by Year: A Visual History book.

4.  Brick City: Global Icons to Make from LEGO book.  One of my favorite, all around LEGO books with both narrative and building instructions.

5.  The LEGO Build It Book, Vol. 2: More Amazing Vehicles.  Prepare to be impressed with the amount of alternate sets the authors created from set 5867.

6.  The LEGO Adventure Book, Vol 2. 

7.  LEGO Space, Building the Future book

8.  The LEGO Adventure Book, Vol 1.  An inspiring, lighthearted look at a wide variety of models.

9.  The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Laboratory.  Among the first to showcase the new EV3 capabilities.
10. LEGO Galaxy: Build Your Own Universe book
11.  Possibly the new, adult LEGO watch line slated to arrive in November.  Too early to tell.

Ashley

Hats off to Liam Payne of One Direction for thanking his fans in Seattle

A few months ago my son and I were near the Seattle Center and heard hundreds of girls squealing with delight near Key Arena.  Upon walking over to inspect what was happening, we stumbled into a brief encounter with Liam Payne of One Direction.  

As we walked up to a security gate, Liam approached, said hello, signed a few things for hysterical fans and took my camera phone for a quick portrait of me, my son and others at the gate.

At the time, I did not know how big of a deal One Direction was.  Now I do and I am quite impressed that Liam took the time to step outside and say hello before the show.

If by rare chance Liam or anyone at Syco or Sony records reads this, I wanted to say a huge thanks to Liam for being an approachable nice guy and for engaging with his fans.  The fact that Liam came out to say hello sent a strong and positive message to all the folks swooning over him.  He certainly earned my respect as a dad and business man, and it was refreshing to see this young superstar acknowledging that people matter most.

Liam Payne of OneDirection plus fans in Seattle, 2013

The Noxious Weed Coloring Book Spotted at WA State Fair

You've gotta love special interest groups and their passion for their cause.  I made an early visit to the newly named Washington State Fair this year (formerly Puyallup Fair), and stumbled upon an agency dedicated to preventing the spread of unsavory weeds.  Amidst their informative display I spotted the gem of gems, "The Noxious Weed Coloring Book."  As expected, there's around 20 pages of black and white line drawings that sound delightful but represent the most heinous plants of the northwest.  Junior and missy are supposed to gaily color their Yellow Star-Thistle or Parrotfeather, but if they see them in real life, nuke em!    Ashley