MILUG member Ian's entry "Voyageur Waterfall" to the LEGO Ideas LEGO House contest has made it to the top 25 for the minifigure category (top 75 overall). There are a couple more days to vote to send his MOC (my own creation) to Denmark to be put on display at The LEGO House!
Voting us open until May 13 and you can vote here.
The MILUG Pride Parade was featured in the Nanaimo News Bulletin today. 11 MILUG members contributed to the collaboration which was a ton of fun to build! You can find the full story here.
Here is an official statement from TLG:
"We are currently reviewing our partnership with Activision Blizzard, given concerns about the progress being made to address continuing allegations regarding workplace culture, especially the treatment of female colleagues and creating a diverse and inclusive environment. While we complete the review, we will pause the release of a LEGO Overwatch 2 product which was due to go on sale on February 1, 2022."
There is a lot of support on the LAN for the position TLG has taken with this. Another positive step towards diversity, equity, and inclusion.
UPDATE: As TLG rolls this out they have shared a table with the minimum order values and various fees. Here is the info for Canada:
$18.00 CAD - Pick-a-Brick (new combined experience) minimum order to avoid handling fees.
$9.00 CAD - service fee for standard brick orders
$4.50 CAD - service fee for bestseller orders
The difference in fees is related to the different warehouses that the Standard and Bestsellers will ship from. Essentially, ordering Standard parts and Bestsellers is like making two orders. The Standard and Bestseller category will be clearly displayed to help people optimize their orders.
If you reach the minimum for each category ($18CAD), there will be no handling fees (there will still be shipping fees if you do not reach the minimum amount for free shipping which is $35CAD). If you order less than $18 for one category (or both), the corresponding fees will be applied.
I have adapted the following examples from the LAN to Canadian dollars:
You order $10 of standard parts = add $9 in handling fees plus shipping fees because you have ordered less than the $18 minimum
You order $20 of standard parts = no handling fees, only shipping fees
You order $40 of standard parts = no handling fees or shipping fees (free shipping over $35)
You order $10 of standard parts and $10 of best seller parts = add $9 of handling fees for the standard parts and $4.50 in handling fees for the bestsellers plus shipping fees
You order $20 of standard parts and $20 of best seller parts = no handling fee or shipping fees because the total amount spent on parts is eligible for free shipping (free shipping over $35)
If you have any questions, please let me know!
I just learned about The Brick Train Awards. There are various categories and winners are chosen for each region, and those winners then move forward to the global competition.
We definitely have some skilled MILUG train builders ( @sema4 @MikeS @Ptrotter ) as well as other skilled builders who may want to try making a train so I thought I would share this. The 2020 awards were just announced so there is definitely time if anyone wants to create or refine an existing train they have for the 2021 awards (looks like the submission window is in June).
The BrickLink Designer Program: 2021 Invitational has been launched!
A selection of LEGO Ideas members and their 10K Club submissions were invited to participate in the pilot program. You can see the 31 projects by the 27 members participating in the program on LEGO Ideas here.
I wanted to give people a lot of notice that our July meetup on Wed July 7, 7pm-9pm will be IN PERSON!
This meetup will take place outdoors with the location to be determined but similar to last summer. You may want to bring a chair or blanket to sit on (we may not be in a parking lot this time so you may not be able to sit on/in your vehicle).
We will likely do a build activity with support sets (these are limited and will be provided to members based on participation points for this year) so you may want to bring a small table or something firm to build on. I will announce the set name/# closer to the date if new folks or members who are not elligible for a free set wish to pick it up locally (or have it in their stash) so they can participate.
I will provide more details closer to the meetup date. As always, appropriate COVID protocols must be followed.
TLG is looking for feedback from AFOLs. This is what they shared on the LAN:
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As an AFOL, we know you are passionate about building - but what else are you passionate about? Do current sets support your interest? How do you connect with the community? How engaged are you with the LEGO Group?
Our department is conducting a new survey on AFOL Passion. The purpose of this survey to answer these questions so we can better understand our AFOL audience and what they love the most. We have done similar surveys in the past but it's time to update our information to stay up-to-date 
The survey is anonymous and open to everyone, everywhere. We estimate it'll take about 15 minutes to answer, and the feedback you give us will help us better understand how to engage with the AFOL community
You can access the survey by clicking this link: AFOL Survey. Right now we have no end date and will close the survey when our response rate reaches a set threshold.
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If you have any questions about the survey, please share them by replying to this post or you can private message me, and I will forward them on to the team responsible and provide their response below.
Thanks everyone!
To take advantage of the weather and that we can all be outside together, the August meetup on Wed Aug 4, 7pm-9pm will be IN PERSON (with an online option)! Anyone 19+ is welcome to attend (membership is not required to attend your first meetup).
There will be a Show & Tell table (fee free to bring a set, MOC or anything LEGO related to share with others) and a LEGO Trivia activity/quiz.
SAFETY:
LOCATION:
IN-PERSON at Beban Park (2300 Bowen Rd, Nanaimo, BC V9T 3K7). We will try to meet on the grass (red circle) near the basketball hoops by the playground. You may want to bring a chair or blanket to sit on. If this area is being used then we will meet in the area across the parking lot (blue circle) and park our vehicles in a circle similar to what was done last year in the photo above. There are bus stops on Bowen Rd (yellow circle) for those who may be travelling by bus.
ONLINE: We will try to provide Google Meet for the business portion of the meeting (7:30pm-8:30pm) for those who are unable to join us in person. A link will be provided on the day of the meetup.
Given the rumours circulating about baseplates retiring and a discussion about sustainable packaging happening on the LAN, TLG has issued this statement:
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Over the next few months you will likely see some products with “retiring soon” branding or perhaps a local retailer reporting that they are no longer able to order certain products. We want to share ahead of time that there is no need to be alarmed about baseplates.
In 2022, baseplates will be changing from their current plastic packaging to more sustainable paper packaging. Besides packaging, there are no additional changes with the LEGO baseplates and you will still be able to get the same colors and sizes in 2022 that you can purchase today. You can expect to see the new packaging around March 1, 2022.
Visit www.LEGO.com to learn more about what the LEGO Group is doing in regards to sustainability and our Planet Promise.
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TLG has requested AFOL participation in a survey about LEGO CON.
The second annual LEGO CON just concluded! Perhaps you even saw some familiar AFOLs. If you missed it, it was recorded and you can choose to watch highlights or the full LEGO CON 2022 on either LEGO.com or the official LEGO YouTube Channel.
While LEGO CON is intended to be a family event, TLG believes there are aspects of the event that are enjoyable to every audience, from children to adults.
"In order to ensure that the AFOL voice is shared back with the LEGO CON team, we have created a survey. Your participation will help us ensure that the AFOL voice is heard and taken into account for future.
You have until June 27th but why wait, TAKE THE SURVEY NOW!"
UPDATE: it has been confirmed on the LAN that price increases will INCLUDE already released sets. If there is something you've been saving up for, you may want to consider picking it up before August. Although not all sets will see an increase, a greater number of adult oriented sets will see a price hike.
For those not on Facebook, you can read an article I wrote about the price increases on True North Bricks here.
TLG will be rebranding their adult line (previously called Creator Expert). Here is the statement from the LAN:
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"From June 1st, 2022, we will be uniting many of our adult focused LEGO
sets under the name LEGO Icons to help our adult consumers easily to find new, immersive builds or models that link to their interests and passions, particularly when shopping or browsing online. The name LEGO Icons will span all of our sets designed for older builders that are not already part of an existing LEGO theme such as LEGO Technic, LEGO Ideas or LEGO Architecture."
@Ptrotter apparently it was gone in minutes and many folks experienced technical glitches yet again. Many Ambassadors have provided feedback of the poor roll-out (again) and the AFOLET is taking it to the VIP team. There is no word yet if this will result in anything but I will let everyone know if I hear anything.
In addition to the Cosmic Carboard set, there is a second promo currently available: Children's Amusement Park.
I just got my LEGO Newsletter and there are some promos coming up!
The Ulysses Space Probe is coming back (it's a VIP reward and not a GWP).
The LEGO Ideas GWP contest winning set is finally here! Cosmic Cardboard Adventures is free with purchases over $200CAD.
BrickCentral is running a contest to celebrate LEGO's 90th anniversary this year. See the details below as copied from the LAN events page (open to the public):
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The LEGO Group's 90th anniversary is just around the corner so let's start celebrating with a tribute to its classic themes 🥳
Pirates! Space! Trains! Castle! Western! Town! Shoot any of LEGO's classic themes using official sets or MOCs from any era for this photo contest and you could win the Boutique Hotel 10297!
Don't worry, your LEGO minifigs and bricks don't need to be vintage!
Modern takes on classic themes like the Medieval Castle 31120 or Pirate Ship 31109 are great models, for example.
(Bonus points if you use classic face though!)
For more about classic themes, check out the LEGO Ideas Fan Vote where fans decided what theme the 90th anniversary set would be based on.
Share this with a LEGO photographer!
THE RULES:
️ New photos only (taken May 1 and after)
️ Must be based on a classic theme and include something brick-built
️ Instagram caption must include "My entry to #bc_classicthemes on @brickcentral"
Entries accepted and encouraged in the contest-submissions channel on our Discord server: https://discord.gg/HwkZFH5
Multiple entries always allowed.
️ CLOSING DATE: May 27
PRIZES:
Grand Prize Winner:
One (1) Boutique Hotel 10297 set or One (1) set of equal or lower value of winner's choosing
Community Vote Winner: One (1) Lunar Research Base 60350 set or One (1) set of equal or lower value of winner's choosing
Important Fine Print:
You must be 18+ to be eligible to win and live in a country that LEGO is able to deliver to
Contest winners must respond within 48 hours of being notified via DM or we reserve the right to select another winner
Prizes are subject to availability per region and we reserve the right to exchange them for another
Our monthly meetup is tonight, Wednesday May the 4th!
Details can be found on our website.
UPDATE: As mentioned at the end of the original post, Build a Mini was part of the planned offering with the new Pick a Brick experience. The Beta for the Build a Mini has now launched in Europe and Asia Pacific. The PaB team will be gathering insights over the next few weeks. They have not provided a timeframe on when we might see the Build a Mini in North America.
