If you are a regular BrickNerd reader, then it is likely that you are just as “Nerdy About the Bricks” as we are. In fact, I bet that many of you have experienced a “love at first sight” moment within the LEGO hobby at some point.

Cupid by Chris McVeigh (Photoediting by BrickNerd)

Perhaps that moment is the very reason that you came out of your LEGO “Dark Age” and became an actual Adult Fan of LEGO (AFOL). Getting struck by Cupid’s LEGO arrow can happen in many different ways, shapes, and forms:

A LEGO Ultimate Collector Series (USC) set from everyone’s favorite licensed theme (you know the one).
A cute sheep in a LEGO 4+ Juniors set that inspired you to go out and create your own flock.
A cute ride-on elephant for toddlers named Amy that you had to chase down.
A custom minifig that was just too cool for you not to buy on sight.
Someone’s custom MOC that you saw online that you just had to build one for yourself… and ask the builder for “instructions please” … 🙏

So in honor of Valentine’s Day, we thought we would share a few of our own personal “love at first sight” moments for all things LEGO.

“All Aboard!” the Santa Fe Super Chief (and 9V Trains)

Ted Andes: Sometime in 2002, I was flipping through the latest LEGO holiday catalog looking for Christmas presents for my nieces and nephews, and then I saw it; the Santa Fe Super Chief. “Wow, that’s pretty darn cool!”, I thought (or some other words to that effect 😇). I had always wanted one of those expensive LEGO trains/monorails as a kid, and it was then that I finally thought, “Hey! Why not buy a LEGO set for myself!?”… But getting a LEGO train layout started from scratch was still going to be pretty expensive, as I’d need the engine and at least five train cars, all that 9V track, a motor, power converter…and what will the wife think? Hmm… It was probably best for me to save up and wait for next year, or so I thought.

New year. New LEGO holiday catalog. But no Super Chief. “WTH!?!” I went online to find out where it went. “Flippin’ retired? … RETIRED!?!” It was during that desperate search for answers that I came across the LUGNET Trains forum. They had all the answers that I was seeking, and then some (SAVE 9V TRAINS!!!). More importantly, I realized that the Super Chief was based on a fan-designed engine. This was well before the days of LEGO Cuusoo and LEGO Ideas. These folks I found in the train forum were designing and building their own MOCs too... Well, of course they were! “LIGHTBULB!” 💡 So it was LEGO trains, LUGNET, and the AFOL train-building community that brought me out of my nearly 20-year LEGO Dark Age.

I never did get the Super Chief train set or its accompanying cars. Once I uncovered the world of MOC building I found a new love for making my own sci-fi creations… but, as they say, you will always remember your first LEGO crush.

Chasing Amy (redux)

Sue Ann Barber: I can’t really say for sure when this started. I have a casual interest in LEGO animals and have accumulated quite a few over the years. I’m not as hardcore as Teresa, but I like to pick them up when I can. I also have quite an affection for anything Primo-related and love obtaining some of the more obscure bits and pieces LEGO has produced for younger children over the years.

I don’t think I was too bothered about obtaining my own Amy the Elephant until I saw one in person. It was probably on the list of “maybe one day… if I’m lucky”, but it wasn’t something I was actively chasing. I was there at the start of Teresa’s journey into obtaining an Amy and then had the pleasure of seeing it in person just a short time later at The Great Western Brick Show (at Steam). I guess it was then that I knew I had to have one…

(You can read the rest of Sue Ann’s article here to find out if she was successful in her quest.)

A Dance with Dragons - Chinese New Year

Gwyneth Kozbial: I fell in love with the Chinese New Year line the instant I saw Dragon Dance 80102. The movement, the colors, the NPU sculpting! Isn't she beautiful? She stole my heart away… Of course, this set (and Chinese New Year Dinner 80101) was only available in limited markets. It sold out immediately, even at that!

I resigned myself to a love unrequited, until a LUG member shared that he had picked up a few extras on a business trip. One of them had a crushed box, but I could buy it if I wanted. I can look past a book’s cover (or box’s damage), but at the time my LEGO spending was not absurd, and his asking price - only slightly above retail - gave me pause… Oh, the commitment! But I still said, “I do.” That was a wise decision. When it comes to LEGO love, I’m a lucky gal.

Scenes from an Italian Restaurant: A Serenade to Friends

Ann Megacolormix: My heart is given to LEGO Friends Restaurant 41379. It is of the best restaurants to enjoy Italian dishes, and in my opinion one of the best LEGO Friends sets. When I saw it for the first time, I was absolutely fascinated with the color palette and architectural style of this building. The design of the front of the restaurant and the extraordinary construction of the roof gave me such a joy as a builder. You'll find so many interesting details in this set!

The miniature arches and the happy bright colors of the walls create the atmosphere of Italy and bring the feeling of a romantic summer vacation to your heart… and grapes are everywhere! The design of the grapevines on the roof and the grape-shaped sign look so authentic. I'm singing a serenade to the new dish on the LEGO menu - spaghetti with meatballs! (I'm going to take a lunch break...) Happy Valentine's Day to all of you fellow BrickNerds!

Oh, Baby!

Geneva D: The first LEGO baby was born in LEGO City in the year 2016, and I fell instantly in love with the adorable little minifigure. But it was my younger siblings who were gifted the People Pack, so I had some talking to do before I could get one into custody. But I did manage to convince them that they might accidentally scratch the face printing and that it would be much safer for everyone to leave the baby in my care when they weren’t actually playing with it…

Fast forward a few months until June 2017 when I found time to include the baby in a MOC of mine for the first time. I don’t remember what first gave me the idea of putting minifigure size hats on the baby, but it was the Summer Joust’s vignette category that made me decide to start with a knight!

Since then, not only have I saved myself a whole shelf full of Tiny Traiblazers, I’ve also given them to friends and relatives, started a (failed) LEGO Ideas project in the theme, and even built a large(ish) baby-filled diorama that was supposed to debut in Brickworld Chicago 2020. And I’m far from done with the LEGO babies—they’ll always have a special place in my heart!

Nuzzling the Niffler

Inez Vasquez: The Niffler is probably my absolute favorite magical creature ever. A fuzzy platypus that hunts treasure?! Yes, please! I loved it even more when it played a huge role in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and its sequel. I was so pleased that LEGO chose the Niffler as Newt Scamander’s accessory for its Harry Potter CMS (Collectable Minifigure Series).

The first time I saw it, it was love at first sight, and I knew I needed more than one! Luckily I was able to get several from a local reseller. I built a big burrow underneath a tree for them to call home based on the Fantastic Beasts movie. It’s one of my favorite builds to this day.

LEGO Goat? Yes, But Not As You Know It!

Teresa Elsmore: It won’t surprise anyone that my ‘Love at First Sight’ pick is a creature-related one! I first came across the Duplo Mosaics when a seller at the Great Western Brick Show had the Lion (1019-1) one on their stall. I looked into them and found they were part of the Duplo-scale Educational and Dacta offerings from the second half of the 1980s. They are very tactile and the prints are charmingly old-school and remind me of books from my childhood.

Each mosaic came with a 6x12 Duplo baseplate, a paper 1:1 scale template/instruction sheet and 18 2x2 printed Duplo tiles. The Lion one is unusual in that it comes on its own; further releases came in thematic sets of four animals. Set 1078-1 has four domestic animals, including goats. They’re not quite as expensive as minifigure-scale goats, but there aren’t that many for sale. And at £1-2 per tile, they’re not that cheap either!

I’m missing a few tiles from a few of the mosaics, but I was lucky enough to find a large quantity of parts and instructions for them at the much-missed Loplet second-hand store in Billund. I haven’t yet spent the time to track down the remaining pieces, but this is just the nudge I need - off to BrickLink I go!

Sowing the Seeds of Love

Are M. Heiseldal: A while back, I was incredibly lucky and received the 2018 LEGO Inside Tour set as a gift. It depicts, in brick form, one of the first LEGO plastic toys from the 1950s: a grey Ferguson tractor.

It now sits proudly in the “trophy cabinet” in my living room, alongside other rare LEGO-related things I’ve acquired over the years. But ever since, I’ve been looking for an original Ferguson tractor to put next to it! They are, unsurprisingly, very rare, and naturally also very expensive – so even though one turns up on eBay every now and then, the price has always been prohibitively high.

Until, to my utter surprise, I stumbled across one – a grey one, even – on Facebook Marketplace less than a month ago… located in the Danish city of Odense (fairy tale author H.C. Andersen’s birthplace, no less). Normally, that would have thrown a spanner in the works, but incredibly, I was actually in Denmark when I found it, and the next day I would be driving past Odense. I quickly sent a message to the seller, who informed me that it was still available, and I could pick it up the next day.

But best of all was the price. The seller, an elderly gentleman, said he would be open to “reasonable offers” – so I asked him what he would consider to be reasonable. He said he hadn’t been able to find any other examples online for less than DKK 1500, but as this one was nowhere near mint condition, he’d take 800 (about US $120). The big problem with acquiring one of these Fergusons is not just being able to afford it - but simply finding one is almost impossible, so I had no doubts.

I picked the tractor up the day after. It was missing its seat, which is very common with these models – after all, they are 70 years old and made from plastic – but it did have both rear mudguards and a still-working steering assembly. I put some bubble wrap around it and gently transported it home in my carry-on luggage, and now it has found its place on the same shelf as the Inside Tour Ferguson—a prime example of one of those things I so badly wanted, never expected to be able to get my hands on, but unbelievably was fortunate enough to be able to add to my collection.

Ollie the Loveable Dragon

John Cooper: LEGOLAND California opened in the spring of 1999, and the Dragon Coaster quickly became our family’s favorite ride. The roller coaster part is great, but the real treasure is the preceding ride through the castle with all the scenes and LEGO models. Various versions of Ollie the Dragon are located within these scenes.

When the LEGO catalog arrived in my mailbox in 2001, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The 3724 Dragon set was an unmistakable rendition of the LEGOLAND Ollies. I quickly purchased the set and recruited my daughters to help me build Ollie. (I had my daughters write small notes which were placed inside Ollie’s head. The set has been disassembled and reassembled a few times, but the notes always go back into the model.)

Most people (me included) enjoy building models with minifigures. But the Dragon model opened my eyes to the world of larger sculptural building. Despite using large amounts of bricks, sculptures are to this day one of my favorite building styles. Thanks, Ollie for the LEGOLAND memories, and for the building inspiration!

On-Track for a Friendship Forged in LEGO

Keith Reed: While I was still in my LEGO dark ages, I randomly stumbled upon this MOC of Crawler Town. It was just the craziest thing I’d ever seen made out of LEGO—so whimsical and creative. I had no idea who made it and didn’t even know AFOLs or LUGs were a thing.

Years later when I discovered LUGs and joined the Vancouver LEGO Club, I learned that a member by the name of Dave Degobbi was the one who had built Crawler Town. I was soon introduced to him, and Dave and I became good friends. I’ve built many projects with him since, and we even collabed on a Crawler Town layout at BrickCon one year. Talk about small worlds!

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Dave Schefcik: My LEGO love at first sight happened when I became aware of the Winter Village theme. Growing up, my grandmother had a beautiful winter village under her Christmas tree. I remember her using stretched cotton for the snow surrounding lit-up shops and mirrors for the frozen skating ponds. It was magical looking at that village every holiday season, especially for someone who was raised in the non-snowy deserts of Las Vegas.

I first saw the LEGO Winter Village a few years after it began, but I was hooked at first glance. I remember seeing that blue cottage with an igloo and knowing that I had to have it. Little did I know that after building it I would be hooked. I scoured Craigslist and eBay for the wintery sets that came before it (I was blissfully unaware of BrickLink at the time). Every Christmas I would build the village and put it under my tree just like my grandma did… until it got too big and I put it on my coffee table… until that got too big and I put it on my kitchen table… until it… well you get the picture.

Now it measures 20 feet wide and 6 feet deep, built on 48x48 MILS baseplates, and I only ever see it on display at conventions or holiday shows! It may have started as love at first sight but evolved into a labor of love to move and put together. It also grew along with my journey as an AFOL, becoming part of the community and learning along the way. So even though I have fallen for a few other LEGO themes since, my first LEGO love will always be the icy, cold, snowy world of the Winter Village.

We hope you enjoyed this LEGO Valentine (that ended with Christmas!?) from BrickNerd! Happy Valentine’s Day!

What was your LEGO love at first sight? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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