make bow ties and jewelry from LEGO Bricks

But why do people love LEGO bow ties and how do you make them? I'm happy to report that I found many builders wearing brick-built bow ties and interviewed them in detail. There were so many that it took us two posts, so make sure you check out the builders we mentioned in our previous article.

We'd like to introduce you to Joe Glass, Allyson Gail and Grant Fagót about their brick-built LEGO fashion!

Joe Glass minifigure bow ties

Joe Glass is a man of many stone bow ties. Joe is an avid collector of LEGO sets and former employee of the LEGO Store, where his bow-tie journey with brick building began on a snowy day in New York. Joe has an interesting story that is both fun and inspiring.

Joe: "I currently live in Seattle with my 8 year old son. I have been in the toy industry for over 14 years and really enjoy making my own bow ties."

When did you start making stone bow ties?

Joe: "Twelve years ago I was working at the LEGO Brand Retail Store in Rockefeller Center. There had been a snowstorm and that always crazy busy store was very quiet one day. I had the store to myself and that huge wall of bricks. , so that day I made my first bow tie"

What was the inspiration for the first bow tie you made?

Joe: "The inspiration for a bow tie came from the Eleventh Doctor, as he said, "Bow ties are cool." I built my first one as a standard red bow tie. Then I started building the bow ties around certain minifigures, starting with Hulk (the keychain minifigure, not the big fig) and the urge to build came from that. The more licensed minifigures came out, the more I wanted to build a bow tie around it"

Besides bow ties, do you also build MOCs or do you collect anything else?

Joe: “I now have more LEGO sets than I ever could have imagined as a kid. The bow ties are my only MOCs; after that I am an avid collector of various themes such as LEGO Batman, LEGO Jurassic and LEGO Star Wars.”

"I wore my bow ties when I went to Disney land recently. In addition to cast members and guests loving the bow tie I wore, all the characters (Pluto, Mickey, Chip, Dale, each) commented on my bow tie via pantomime !I told Pluto that I liked his collar too and Pluto laughed. I said to Mickey, "Coming from you, that means the world", and he was as shy as ever. It was surreal to see these characters walking around without any dialogue to have their compliments communicated. It was magical."

"It really connects with people on many levels. Either they love the minifigure on the bow tie, or they love the neat look and then realize I'm wearing a bow tie made of bricks. It captures the interest of all ages, from children to grandparents!"

"I don't use any glue or tricks – all bricks. All I need is clutch force! And while I love my Maleficent bow tie because it uses the green flame from the Monster Fighters Ghost Train set. It's the only set with that green flame"

Allyson Gail's Bow Tie Necklace

"Hi! I'm Allyson Gail, aka AllysonGailBricks. I'm a LEGO artist and events manager based in Southern California. I love all things LEGO, musicals, Muppets, and puns! My favorite things to build are MOCs made with stone separators such as birds, hands and office supplies.

I also love making life-size LEGO food, which I keep in my fridge next to my real food, because there are priorities! It makes for a great display with its own lighting and helps keep dog hair away. You just have to be careful at night because things can get a little crunchy!”

I saw that you have a brick-built bow tie necklace from March 2020 on your Instagram account. What a unique and great idea! What made you want to create it?

"I made my first bow tie necklace when I auditioned for LEGO Masters. I knew I wanted to make LEGO jewelry to wear when I came to the show. Around St. Patrick's Day I made another bow tie to go with the theme I decided to post holiday themed MOCs throughout the year. The tradition is to wear green or get pinched during the day, so I made myself another bow tie necklace that was green and matched the theme"

Is the bow tie necklace you made glued at all? I know the power of LEGO is strong, but because the chains were constantly swinging around, did you have to use extra help to make sure you didn't lose any pieces?

Allyson: "I didn't actually glue either chain. I'm not that active, so I wasn't worried about it breaking. If it ever broke, I could just fix it. That's the amazing thing about LEGO!"

Allyson: “I made all of mine and Mel's jewelry for LEGO Masters Season 4. I thought it would be fun to wear my own LEGO jewelry, and Mel wears it so well! My favorite was my stone separator earrings.

Grant Fagot's colorful bow ties

Meet Grant. Grant is a brick-building enthusiast from Oregon who creates stylish pieces with wearable LEGO flair that you sometimes see at conventions. I'm of course talking about the spectacular brick-built LEGO bow tie! He also built some fantastic pride wings and other colorful creations.

"My building style is large or functional. You know you're in my house when the mailbox is LEGO and the bench on the porch is also LEGO. I'm about ten years out of my dark ages now. About four years ago I started to join the AFOL community. I'm glad I found 'my people'.

When AFOLs talk, we often come up with the question, “What was your first set?” My answer is that I just had a box of parts, not a set, just a classic box. I often used the box when playing house with my friends, so we built a house and used Barbies to play in the house and kitchen we built. Then I built a block hat to put on my head or a walking stick to pretend I was in the Charlie Chaplin movie I just saw.

"For me, LEGO has always been a prop in my life. So when I came out of my dark time and discovered that the LEGO store Pick a Brick wall had triangular/wedge plates, it meant only one thing to me. I had the perfect foundation to build a bow tie. I haven't looked back since.

How long have you been building brick-built bow ties?

Grant: "I've always been a bow tie enthusiast. Before making stone ties, I made my own bow ties using a variety of different materials, such as the standard fabric bow ties, wood, cardboard boxes, duct tape, and even sponges. How to Make a Bow Tie From So LEGO was just a matter of time. I've seen a lot of people in the LEGO community wearing bow ties. So I don't think I'm unique in that fashion choice. It's nice to see other LEGO bow tie wearers."

How often do people ask you to make them a bow tie?

Grant: "I'm often asked by my non-builder friends to make bow ties. I explain to them how to do it and offer technical assistance and assistance in sourcing the parts, but I think they're personal: there are so many different styles that can be made, so I will never make one for anyone, but I will provide whatever support and encouragement they want/need. I once had the idea of ​​opening an Etsy shop, but I'm better at it creative side and bad at the business side, so I never went that way"

How did you make your first bow tie? Was it digital or more hands-on?

Grant: "I'm a hands-on person. I sketch something on paper, but when it comes to building, it's trial and error. When I build something, I often have four or five prototypes. When it comes to bow ties, this comes in handy because every prototype is completely different"

Are you making more portable LEGO?

Grant: "I love all forms of LEGO wearables. I've been working on an ongoing building idea: "Can I wear it?" I'll take a LEGO-produced set and see if I can reuse those bricks into something I can wear : a hat, brooch, bow tie, bracelet or other accessory"

"I have a brick-built pink “wig” that I made. I also have a large collection of crowns. I have made glasses (which I cannot wear with my prescription lenses), hats, bracelets and other accessories. I try Still perfecting the page boy hat, wearable high heels and a few other accessories I want from LEGO, but I'm not giving up hope!”

Have you ever worn a LEGO bow tie somewhere in public and gotten an interesting reaction? I ask because I often wear a LEGO T-shirt in our LEGO store and get nice reactions to it.

“I started making LEGO handbags since the fourth season of LEGO Masters US did the handbag challenge, and I had to give it a try. I have now made two handbags with plans for many more.

As for your original question, I've gotten some interesting responses to my bow ties, but over time it becomes something I don't notice anymore. Then someone comes in for a big hug and the bow tie breaks from the buckle and falls to the floor. The person is always so scared and apologetic. I say my favorite thing about LEGO is its ability to fall apart and its ability to be put back together quickly. They giggle and often say, “If only that could happen to everything.””

Do you take apart your bow ties to make new ones? Or do you have a great collection of bow ties to choose from for any occasion?

Grant: "I often keep them together. I started with one drawer in my LEGO room where I keep them. Now I have two drawers because I have so many and can't stop! I have lots of different styles of bow ties to choose from choice, but I often choose my bow tie with the Pride and Trans flag to bring representation and awareness to our communities that need it now."

Bow ties are cool

Between our two items there are six LEGO bow tie builders, so it's clear they're fun to build and wear. More importantly, they are an expression of creativity and a personal MOC for everyone who builds and wears them.

And if you're still on the fence, check out this tutorial from Robert Kaine that I mentioned at the beginning of this article for wearing a stone bow tie on Jeopardy! (He also just built a full tie-in if you want to build even more types of LEGO wearables.)