The second tip is to present your model well. Especially for the thumbnail image. Out of all the images you submit, the main image in the thumbnail will single-handedly decide your projects fate. You’ll most likely be using the thumbnail image for promotion as well, and it’s also what everybody would see when they browse LEGO Ideas. Chose the best possible angle of your model for the thumbnail image, I can spend hours just searching for the best angle, it really is that important. It helps to think about the presentation as early as the building phase so that you can refine the model to be as camera-friendly as possible.

I drew all the decals in Photoshop, using shapes tools and/or by hand. I had to go off of references for them, but for stuff like text and minifigure prints, I had to trace it from whatever images I could find. There turned out to be a lot of decals needed though. As fun a challenge it was, it was for sure a challenge! The Krusty Krab isn’t your typical LEGO house. With a curved roof and arches, netted flags and the works it was all very difficult to recreate! Lots of time was spent on the roof mostly. But I took my time with the model and it came out just how I’d imagined it. A very tough question, with so many to choose from! To narrow it down, it would for sure be one of the modular buildings, or something in a similar vein. The huge advanced models that make for great display pieces have always caught my eye. Maybe even one of the Ninjago City sets? What is your favourite LEGO IdeasProduct Idea(besides your own of course)?Are there any Product Ideas you think have been overlooked? I wish I knew just how difficult it is to build the Krusty Krab. There was a time during the development phase of the project where it got so difficult that I questioned if I was even able to complete the model, much less be of quality standards. Thankfully I didn’t throw in the towel, and I managed to complete the project with a sense of satisfaction. Next time I should really analyse what I plan on building to know what I’m really getting myself into.Do you have plansto submit any otherProduct Ideasin the future?If yes, can you give us a hint what that might be? The build originally had just about 3100 or 3200 pieces, but LEGO Ideas states your submitted builds must be below 3K parts total. So I had to refine it, which was hard to choose what wasn’t needed. The final model has 2999 parts. Have you created any LEGO MOCs (my own creations) that you’re particularly proud of? What is it, why are you proud of it and do you have a photo of it? Hero Factory! Mostly due to nostalgia because it’s a big chunk of my childhood. The theme as a whole is incredibly unique when it came out especially with the new building system, along with the super cool character designs. I don’t think there’ll be anything that can replace Hero Factory. That’s a tough question! I could say a number of licensed themes, including SpongeBob, but I remember every year I’ve always been excited for the new Creator line releases. They’ve always fascinated me, and what’s so inspiring is the multiple instructions to rebuild the set into something new! Very creative!

It took quite a while to build for sure! There was a LOT that went into this project, from all the reference images of the building, all the countless weeks spent refining the model to be its very best, and the renderings were a whole other can of worms to work out. I’m very, very happy with the final product, however! My favourite part are the ship doors on the inside. It has a curved shape, a round window, and also has to be able to open/close. That was something that went through the most trial and error, especially because I had to scale down the interior so many times. One time when they were still too big and shrinking them seemed impossible. If you could talk to yourself before you started on this project, what would you tell him? What do you know now that you wish you knew then? Yes definitely, after the success of this project I’m quite excited to try out another Product Idea. Something a lot riskier and also not based off a license. I’m looking forward to seeing how it goes!LEGO doors and windows only come at different fixed sizes, so I also had to scale every furniture based on them. Coupled with the 3,000 parts limit, it was a real headache. How long was the process of making the project, and what did you have to research as well? What kind of prep, research and design phases did you go through to produce your creation? LEGO sets bring so much joy to me, whether it’s playing around with my sets as a kid, or building fun advanced models today! I truly believe LEGO building is for everyone, and anyone can enjoy LEGO building for any reason. The process took nearly 3 months in total. There wasn’t much prep and research to do aside from getting as many reference images as possible. Since the Krusty Krab already existed and I just had to recreate it as faithfully as possible, I didn’t have to make any major creative decisions which negated the need for planning/sketching and I could just go straight to building. (Admittedly I had trouble figuring out where to start building.) The rest was just one long trial and error phase of building until the model was completed. Then comes designing the decals and rendering, which still took quite some time. What is yourfavouriteLEGO theme (current or past)? Why? And has any theme inspired your building style or preference in anyparticular way?

I was attracted to this platform 3 years ago exclusively for the contests, and still do, but have since opened up to the world of Product Ideas and it’s been amazing looking at what ideas fellow builders have created plus also being able to submit my own idea and being able to support/interact with each other. Not to mention all the other good stuff the platform has in store. Is there a LEGO designer (official LEGO designer or fan designer) who you are inspired by and look up to? Who and why? There are many official LEGO designers I look up to because of their amazing skills, but the one that inspired me the most would be Mike Psiaki. He has designed many of my favorite sets, and the building techniques he uses are always jaw-dropping. I like to use building techniques I’ve learned from the sets he designed when I’m building my own MOCs. The techniques he uses are practical and I learned a lot about LEGO geometry from them. I’ve also got huge respects for fan designers Anthony Wilson, Simon Hundsbichler and Timofey Tkachev. (to name a few) The quality of their work has consistently blown my mind and I really hope to be able to reach their level someday. The first is to have a strong idea and a really good build to support that idea. Take as much time and thought to design and build your model. What makes a great build is very subjective, I normally lean towards aesthetics over function when I build my models, but that would depend on the nature of your project.Do you have plansto submit any otherProduct Ideasin the future?If yes, can you give us a hint of what that might be? I absolutely love listening to music whenever I can, cooking (because I love food), and of course, LEGO! (But I’m aspiring to make it into more than just a hobby.) What special challenges did you face creating the model? What was the most difficult part to recreate? What is it about the platform that attracts you? What tips would yougive to anyone who is thinking about uploading an idea