CircleK

Bricks N Pieces are currently out of the Sand Green Masonry bricks, so I purchased them from Bricklink for around .40 cents a piece. I have a feeling that is a little less than double of what they will go for on BnP when they are back in stock. I expect BnP will probably have them for around .22 cents a piece. The Modified 1x2's are closer to the $3.00 mark per piece for new on Bricklink. So, it's a substantial difference. You also don't need a full 56 of them (just like you don't need a full 56 of the Modifieds). I think I counted somewhere around 7 to 8 bricks where a standard 1x2 would suffice since the decoration is not visible. In the case with the masonry bricks, you wouldn't want to use them where you need a flat 1x2 surface since they have a horizontal ridge on the reverse side.

I recently tried an experiment of replacing the Sand Green Modified 1x2's with the new masonry profile brick on the Green Grocer. Here is a link to the Flikr album: https://www.flickr.c...57650704148036/ My thoughts: I'm a HUGE fan of the masonry profile brick. I think that is why I like the new Detective's Office so much even though I'm admittedly not much of a Modular guy. That being said... I'm not sure how I feel about them on the grocer. My biggest issue is that it has a run of 1x1s on the left hand side. The smooth finish of the 1x1s sticks out like a sore thumb and kind of breaks 'masonry' effect. It it wasn't for that I think I would love it. The two runs on the sides of the bay look great though. While building it I kept thinking that it may look better to leave the modified 1x2s on the Grocery side, but replace the ones on the bay side with masonry of a different color. What do you think?

The sand green groves are getting $$$. I've been watching them on and off for the past few weeks, although I'm only paying attention to US sellers with new bricks. There is a seller who keeps restocking them at $1.29 ea. After that they jump to a whooping $1.75+!!! Unfortunately, I had to pay out the nose when I did my GG bc it seemed like everyone was out of stock at the time I was shopping for them. A week or so after my orders came in some other sellers got some of the more rare parts in at better prices (including the grooves). That was a painful thing to witness. If I would have waited a week or two before placing my orders I would have easily saved over $50.

The Grocer is my favorite of them all. I love the sand green (although I agree that it also looks great in sand blue) and the charming Victorian nature of the building. I wasn't even really into Modulars buildings when I Bricklinked the first one b/c I thought it was such a great looking model and I wanted to try my hand at a sourcing project. I started going through a mini dark age earlier this year though and sold my Grocer and Fire Brigade. I regretted that move almost instantly. I regretted it much more while bricklinking the 2nd one though. Things were A LOT more expensive this time around. Bricklink is literally wiped out right now - I was able to get a handful of of the sand green w/ groove for $1.25 ea. and had to pay a whopping $1.75 ea. for the rest!!! It murdered my budget, but I wasn't sure if it was best to wait and see if a few stores replenished at a lower price or just grab them now out of fear of paying even more later. So I bit the bullet and paid the $1.75 price as much as I hated to b/c I wouldn't want to build it without them. I can sub the awning and the train windows without much regret - but in my world the Green Grocer must be Sand Green and the grooved 1x2s are essential. I just couldn't compromise there. I will say this though: I have seen a Grocer built with the the regular Sand Green 1x2's (No Groove) and it doesn't detract from the aesthetic nearly as bad as you might think. I thought it looked pretty nice actually. If anyone is on the fence about paying out the nose for the groove bricks then that may be an option for you. It's a much cheaper way to keep the "Green" in your Grocer.

Just placed my last bricklink order for a Green Grocer. Now I just have to wait for all the shipments to come in This is actually the 2nd time I have bricklinked the Grocer. I went through this exact same process a little over a year ago. Man, what a difference one year can make... I was actually shocked to see how much more expensive (and scarce) some of the rare parts have become. I don't even want to discuss what I paid for the 1x2 Sand Greens with Groove - Ouch! The limited availability of certain parts also resulted in a few more orders than last time and I had to turn to eBay for one of the minifigures. My last Green Grocer was built to spec with the exception of the Sand Green 1x8s (I used 1x4s instead). I made a few more substitutions this time however based on the suggestions found in this thread: Replaced the blue awning bows with dark red (I think this actually looks much better and I like that it will now be a different color than the one on the Pet Shop). Replaced the train windows with the regular 1 x 2 x 3 with pain (This is another improvement imo) Replaced the sand green hinge with light grey since it doesn't matter visually anyways. And of course - the dreaded sand green 1x8s. I used the suggestions on this thread and went with a combo of 1x2(25), 1x6(25), and 1x4(50) If happen across a decent deal on the blue bows or train windows someday then I will probably get them just so I can keep my model as true to the original as possible, but I'm also ok with the substitutions made and think it will actually look better in the end.

Wasn't there a PJ cameo in DoS? I thought I saw him eating a carrot outside of the Prancing Pony at the very beginning of the film. If so then there's your video game exclusive. A fat P Jackson figure complete with carrot accessory.

^ they were. They are sold out of it and MEA currently.

I'm wondering if there will be a summer release for either theme. If LotR is done then I could see it being another year (just prior to the last movie release) before we see any more middle earth inspired sets unless it is a D2C Hobbit.

I'm only grabbing a few of these. Abe, Barista, Panda, and Shakespeare are must haves. Does "Where are my pants guy" look like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective to anybody else??? Alllllrigggghty then.

I was hoping to get a few pics up for you guys as my order was supposed to have been delivered yesterday. It didn't make it though. It didn't make it today either. So, I'm sure you can imagine my frustration here. I agree though - those of us who ordered in the first round should have received them by now. I'm really surprised no pics have went up yet. I don't think any have hit the bay yet either which is even more strange..

The new sets were at my local meijer this morning as well. They were having a BOGO on all their LotR & Hobbit sets so I decided to try my luck - no dice... They refused the discount on the new items.

I got that same good news today!!! I'm excited since it is really the first time I have bought Lego anything without seeing it first, so it will be a total surprise unless pics go up before my shipment arrives. I know its doubtful, but it would be awesome if one of the printed shields from LTC is included.

I managed to nab three of them (limit was four), although I wouldn't be shocked if the order gets canceled. I hate paying the TRU shipping on a poly order, but I have very little luck when it comes to finding them in the wild and my nearest TRU is 45 minutes away.

Not sure how well it would fit into the village, but I have been patiently waiting for Santa's Workshop. I would prefer that it was done in the same doll house style as the Haunted House, but realize that would probably throw the scale off compared to the other buildings. For now, the WV Cottage *is* Santa's house in my display. A Winter Village Butcher would be cool too. It would need a large window with a Christmas goose on display.

Loving the fact that the Battle Mech actually has a weapon this time. The recolor is great too.