The Maestro Posted November 7, 2016 (edited) Passed down from father to son, carrot farming ran in Colby's blood. When he was a boy he used to eat them every day. Stewed, boiled and even mashed, it didn't matter how ya cooked em, Colby would eat it. When he had inherited his fathers cottage he had been overjoyed. It sat on the edge of the woods beside a small stream. The perfect environment for growing carrots. The house could do with a bit of a fix up, but as long as there were carrots, Colby was happy. So here it is. I would have posted it earlier but as this is my first time editing, it took me a while to get sorted. A couple tips on how to improve my editing would be welcomed. Over all I think I nailed the build, with the rock work being the only thing that annoys me. I love the leans, the Tudor work and stone work. All were inspired by DC and LD. The weather vane (yes, that's a weather vane ) was a nod to Legonardo's moc "house of chaos" which helped me build this, it's meant to be a chicken but I don't have any chickens so I used a brick built one. The trees were fun to try out but the roof was not as rickety as I would have liked it but eh, its OK. I am also going to be putting my saga to the side and focus on some different builds over the next weeks. C&C needed and hope you enjoy. Edited November 22, 2016 by The Maestro Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Architect Posted November 7, 2016 Looks great! The white and lime-greeny / yellow with white is nice and the wood work on the house is very well done. Good job on the roof too Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kai NRG Posted November 7, 2016 Very nice work on that house, the slight angles add a lot! Those trees look pretty neat too and the scarecrow is a nice touch! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henjin_Quilones Posted November 7, 2016 Great work, Maestro! Your builds continue to progress so beautifully. The influences of both LD and DC are evident here, and I think you are beginning to master the style and make it your own. The house, in particular that roof, are splendid, and I love all of the fun angles. The trees, too, are lovely and complement the house. Really I think the only thing I do not like is the grass. I'm not quite sure exactly what bothers me about it or how to improve it, but there is something off, in my opinion, about the grass. The stream running through the grass, with the rocks on the banks, looks good, the bridge looks good, the farmer with his scythe and the scarecrow all look good, but the grass needs something. Maybe smaller plates? Maybe some 1x1 round plates on the path? A bush or shrub? I don't know. What I do know is that everything else is excellent. Good job! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted November 7, 2016 Looking great sir! The cottge itself is indeed very nice, but as you said I'm not totally sold on the rockwork. the excellent landscaping makes up for this tough Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garmadon Posted November 7, 2016 Very nice build, Maestro, you've definitely nailed the leaning Tudor type house here! The stream and trees are neat as well, and the background story is great! The one thing I'd fix up, like Henjin said, would be the grass - it's really far too stud-y compared to the rest of the build. A few green tiles mixed in here and there, and a few green 1x1 plates or rounds scattered about to make the terrain elevation a bit more irregular, would work wonders. Keep it up! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Blufiji Posted November 7, 2016 (edited) Looks good, I see not only DF and LD influence, but also Graham's style with the trees. Classic Avalonian style architecture and colors. My only suggestion would be to blend the green and dark green ground better, to eliminate those hard color boundaries. Edited November 7, 2016 by Blufiji Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slegengr Posted November 8, 2016 Excellent build, Maestro! The stone and half-timbered cottage is perfect with all the angles and interesting techniques! Inspiration from other builders is a perfect reason for the Guilds, and your build is inspiring as were the builds from past builders that likely inspired you! I agree with the sentiment that the grass could be improved, but this build is great nonetheless! Though carrots may be stewed, boiled, or mashed, I seem to be more familiar with this being applied to 'taters or po-ta-toes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
en_zoo Posted November 8, 2016 as I said on Flickr - great job with those angles! I still have to figure out how you do that.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Niku Posted November 9, 2016 It is surely an excellent delivery of a moc combining techniques proven to be effective and eye catching indeed. Your roofs and and house is nice, I really like the trees. Great job. :) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Graham Gidman Posted November 9, 2016 That cottage is a real gem - excellent job! I second the suggestions above in regards to the landscape, and I also think that slopes would have looked better than plates on the back tree's trunk. As to your photos, I'd recommend GIMP and its "Free Select Tool", which allows you to trace out the background. It's a bit time consuming, but pays off in the end. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Legofin2012 Posted November 9, 2016 A magnificent little house, the Tudor style is perfectly executed here. The trees and all the little details are very nice too, the vines going through the wheel and the bridge, but like it has been said before the only thing that could be improved is the layering for the grass, maybe try and use smaller parts like 2x1 plates? But except that the rest is perfect! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soccerkid6 Posted November 9, 2016 Very pretty cottage, LD's and DC's influence is easy to recognize. The little gorge with stream adds a lot interest to the landscape and I also like your trees. A few grass stalks or green friends flowers would help improve the grass sections Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ZlatanXVIGustaf Posted November 9, 2016 I love the worn down look on the house! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
de Gothia Posted November 10, 2016 A great addition to the Avalonian countryside! Can see the influences said by other but I like the mix you have here with LD, DC and yourself! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Maestro Posted November 10, 2016 On 11/7/2016 at 9:06 PM, The Architect said: Looks great! The white and lime-greeny / yellow with white is nice and the wood work on the house is very well done. Good job on the roof too On 11/8/2016 at 0:00 AM, Kai NRG said: Very nice work on that house, the slight angles add a lot! Those trees look pretty neat too and the scarecrow is a nice touch! On 11/9/2016 at 4:17 PM, Niku said: It is surely an excellent delivery of a moc combining techniques proven to be effective and eye catching indeed. Your roofs and and house is nice, I really like the trees. Great job. :) On 11/10/2016 at 8:47 AM, ZlatanXVIGustaf said: I love the worn down look on the house! 2 hours ago, de Gothia said: A great addition to the Avalonian countryside! Can see the influences said by other but I like the mix you have here with LD, DC and yourself! Thanks guys, Even though it was a tough build it was amazing to have on display. On 11/8/2016 at 0:35 AM, Henjin_Quilones said: Great work, Maestro! Your builds continue to progress so beautifully. The influences of both LD and DC are evident here, and I think you are beginning to master the style and make it your own. The house, in particular that roof, are splendid, and I love all of the fun angles. The trees, too, are lovely and complement the house. Really I think the only thing I do not like is the grass. I'm not quite sure exactly what bothers me about it or how to improve it, but there is something off, in my opinion, about the grass. The stream running through the grass, with the rocks on the banks, looks good, the bridge looks good, the farmer with his scythe and the scarecrow all look good, but the grass needs something. Maybe smaller plates? Maybe some 1x1 round plates on the path? A bush or shrub? I don't know. What I do know is that everything else is excellent. Good job! Yep, smaller plates I think would do it. Unfortunately I have a very small supply of small green plates and I will definitely need to bulk order some soon. On 11/8/2016 at 0:57 AM, TitusV said: Looking great sir! The cottge itself is indeed very nice, but as you said I'm not totally sold on the rockwork. the excellent landscaping makes up for this tough Yeah, the rock work was not strong in this moc, I think If I had of used smaller pieces it would have looked better. My next moc will make up for that though... On 11/8/2016 at 2:21 AM, Garmadon said: Very nice build, Maestro, you've definitely nailed the leaning Tudor type house here! The stream and trees are neat as well, and the background story is great! The one thing I'd fix up, like Henjin said, would be the grass - it's really far too stud-y compared to the rest of the build. A few green tiles mixed in here and there, and a few green 1x1 plates or rounds scattered about to make the terrain elevation a bit more irregular, would work wonders. Keep it up! As I said with Henjin, I believe smaller plates are the answer. I guess a a couple of plates could of helped too. On 11/8/2016 at 7:45 AM, Blufiji said: Looks good, I see not only DF and LD influence, but also Graham's style with the trees. Classic Avalonian style architecture and colors. My only suggestion would be to blend the green and dark green ground better, to eliminate those hard color boundaries. Thanks Blufiji, I will try to blend better in my next grassy moc. It would look much better instead of the smaller patches that I used. On 11/9/2016 at 3:43 AM, Slegengr said: Excellent build, Maestro! The stone and half-timbered cottage is perfect with all the angles and interesting techniques! Inspiration from other builders is a perfect reason for the Guilds, and your build is inspiring as were the builds from past builders that likely inspired you! I agree with the sentiment that the grass could be improved, but this build is great nonetheless! Though carrots may be stewed, boiled, or mashed, I seem to be more familiar with this being applied to 'taters or po-ta-toes. pff, taters are for hobbits, carrots are for men On 11/9/2016 at 5:13 PM, Graham Gidman said: That cottage is a real gem - excellent job! I second the suggestions above in regards to the landscape, and I also think that slopes would have looked better than plates on the back tree's trunk. As to your photos, I'd recommend GIMP and its "Free Select Tool", which allows you to trace out the background. It's a bit time consuming, but pays off in the end. I've been using GIMP but I haven't got the hang of it yet so I will try the "free select tool" next time. I unfortunately have a shortage of brown slopes and had to improvise. Your trees were a massive inspiration though. On 11/9/2016 at 7:23 PM, Legofin2012 said: A magnificent little house, the Tudor style is perfectly executed here. The trees and all the little details are very nice too, the vines going through the wheel and the bridge, but like it has been said before the only thing that could be improved is the layering for the grass, maybe try and use smaller parts like 2x1 plates? But except that the rest is perfect! It seems like everyone agrees on one thing, more small green plates are need. Better get onto that brick link order... On 11/10/2016 at 4:52 AM, soccerkid6 said: Very pretty cottage, LD's and DC's influence is easy to recognize. The little gorge with stream adds a lot interest to the landscape and I also like your trees. A few grass stalks or green friends flowers would help improve the grass sections I've been trying to cut back a little with the grass stalks (and not succeeding). I ended up using all of them so that is why there wasn't more. I might try friend flowers next time though. On 11/9/2016 at 8:49 AM, en_zoo said: as I said on Flickr - great job with those angles! I still have to figure out how you do that.. It is a rather simple process once you see how its done. The secret for me is ball joints, the rest is trial and error. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tyndale Posted November 11, 2016 This is a really cool cottage! You really have a great sense of detail. Awesome job! Also do you use Flickr to upload you pictures, and if so how? Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Maestro Posted November 11, 2016 2 hours ago, Tyndale said: This is a really cool cottage! You really have a great sense of detail. Awesome job! Also do you use Flickr to upload you pictures, and if so how? Thanks! To upload images from my flickr to Eurobricks I use the BBC code. To find it you need to the image you want and click on it. Right below the image to your right you will find 4 Icons. click on the arrow which is pointing right. Once you click on that there will be 4 options along the top of the box: share, embed, email and BBC code. Click on the BBC option and the images BBC code should come up. Then it is the simple matter of copying the code and pasting where you want the image and the eurobricks page. It will first appear as text but once you post the page it should be a image. Then edit the post and delete the text and links that appear besides the image. I tried using my phone when I first started on eurobricks but it will not work, you have to use a computer. Hope this was in anyway helpful, it took me a while to get the hang of it too. Can't wait to see your mocs Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Leonardo da Bricki Posted November 12, 2016 Beautiful cottage! IMO, the best part is the trees. They look great. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MassEditor Posted November 16, 2016 Classic Avalonia, looks fantastic! Love the landscaping and house and tree designs. Very clever stuff! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Maestro Posted November 22, 2016 On 11/13/2016 at 7:49 AM, Leonardo da Bricki said: Beautiful cottage! IMO, the best part is the trees. They look great. Thanks Leonardo, the trees were hard to get right but they came out looking great On 11/17/2016 at 11:21 AM, MassEditor said: Classic Avalonia, looks fantastic! Love the landscaping and house and tree designs. Very clever stuff! Thanks MassEditor Although im not sure on the landscaping the house and tree designs are probably my favorite part of the build. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LittleJohn Posted December 2, 2016 Excellent build, Maestro! The stonework is superb, as are the tudor sections Great job with the carrot patch and trees too Share this post Link to post Share on other sites