This is my very first income report for by Lego Blog and YouTube Channel.
First of all I want to thank all 10 of my new YouTube Subscribers, and everyone that visited my website in the last 30 days.
Starting a profitable Lego affiliate site isn’t easy. I don’t expect to be in the black for at least a year, maybe more To that end, and so that I don’t go into debt spending I began to drive Uber. Yes, I could just put all the sets on a new zero payments for 6 months credit card, but since I don’t know exactly when this site will begin to make money I decided it was better to use some of my spare time making some extra money doing ridesharing.
One thing I learned is that it is very hard to be FIRST with quality Set Reviews.
There are multiple things that make it hard to be first. You have to know what sets are coming out. You have to know where to get the sets (which store will have them in stock). Then you have to quickly assemble the set AND film it at the same time. Then you have to edit, and upload a quality review all within 24 hours. But that’s not the end. Throughout the month you need to promote the video (and blog post) on social media to drive traffic to the sites.
There are several great YouTube LEGO channels who seem to have a great system for doing all of the above. I know with time and experience, I will be there, too.
LEGO Blog Costs for December 2018
Set Costs:
Overall I purchased the 3 new sets that came out spending $409.33
Website Costs – starting my website was $9.95 for the domain name and $119.40 for a year of hosting.
Other Costs – there were no other costs at this time.
Overall I spent $538.68 to get this site up and running.
YouTube Income Report for December 2018
After starting my channel from zero videos and zero subscribers, I was able to publish 3 videos. Only 3 sets were released last month, so that was all I did. I spent a lot of time learning how to film, edit, keyword, and publish videos on YouTube. I still have a lot of work to do to get them to they style that I want.
I got 10 subscribers in this first month. If you are one of those 10, THANK YOU!
I also learned that I need to get more professional gear to achieve the look and style that I want.
Of course I can’t start to monetize my channel until I get 10,000 views. As of right now I’m only at 740, so I still have a ways to go.
Thankfully, I just picked up 5 new Spider-Man LEGO sets, and will review those and that should help me get more subscribers and viewers.
Lego Blog Report for December 2018
One of the biggest challenges for starting the blog was learning what LEGO sets are coming soon!
Another issue is that new sets aren’t always on the sites where I have affiliate codes (like Amazon) so I have to go back and check for links and change them as I go.
So I didn’t make any money yet, but I am increasing my subscribers, clicks, and views, and expect to be bringing in some income in the next month or two, and making a profit by the end of the year!
The other day I did a quick google search for a list of all the new sets that include the Plants from Plants elements.
If you haven’t heard, LEGO® has made a public commitment to change from petroleum based plastics to plant based materials by 2030. I know it seems like 2030 is a long time in the future, but in reality it is only 12 years away. Where will you be in 12 years?
Currently only trees, leaves, and other botanical objects are made from this new plant based plastic. Sugarcane, yes the stuff sugar comes from is the base, and it is identical in composition to all other LEGO® bricks previously made.
That means there is no way to tell the difference between the old trees and the new trees.
Right now, only two sets have the Plants from Plants elements.
The first set was released in the late summer of 2018 as a promotional set with a purchase at LEGO® stores. I picked up a few, and I am unable to tell the difference between old and new trees bushes, and plants.
Set 40320 – Plants from Plants came with:
16 Green 30176 Bamboo Leaves 3X3
4 Lime green 2423 Limb Element, Small
3 Green 6064 Bush
2 Green 2435 Spruce Tree, Small
4 Green 6148 Palmleaf, Small
Vestas Wind Turbine Plants from Plants
The second set to feature the LEGO® Plants from Plants is 10268, the new VESTAS Wind Turbine. Moving towards green energy and sustainability, it was an obvious choice for this set to have the new eco friendly parts.
The wind turbine came with 2 large trees, 1 small tree, 2 bushes, and 5 flower stalks. I’m not sure the flower stalks are made from the new plant based plastics, but I am guessing they are. The item number is 6135278 which is the same for all other flower bases. When I compare it with the item number for a tree (347128) from the same set, I get similar results. It looks like there won’t be an easy way to differentiate the old vs new.
Until then, we will have to look for the Plants from Plants logo.
Personally, I’m very excited for this change. Our world has limited resources, and I want to make this a better place for future generations. How about you?
For several weeks, this set, LEGO set 75952, Newt’s Case Magical Creatures, sat in my to be built pile. I didn’t know how cool this set was until I actually saw the movie. Once I did, I know I had to build the creatures. That’s how it started.
This set comes with 4 minifigures, 3 brick built creatures, and a cleverly designed case to hold them all together. I don’t want to give away too much about the movie, or the different creatures. Let me give a little back story, that should help clear some things up, and explain more about this set without giving away any spoilers.
This set is based on the 2nd movie in the Fantastic Beasts storyline. It comes about 60 years before the Harry Potter books we all know and love. This movie, “The Crimes of Grindlewald” has a bad guy – Grindlewald, who isn’t part of this set. Of course there is a “good guy” too – and that is Newt Scamander.
Newt is an amazing wizard. Not only does he know lots of different spells, but he really has a soft spot for animals. Not just any animals, but special magical creatures. He takes them in, so they won’t be hunted or hurt. He befriends them and they trust him. Of course they are still wild, and cause some mischief, but I’ll save that story so you will have a great experience watching the movie.
Anyway, I had this set just sitting on my shelf with a bunch of other sets that I figured I’d get around to building some day, or selling after they were retired and increased in value.
But then after I saw the movie, I knew these builds would be perfect for Instagram Photos. Be sure to check out my IG page for more.
Here’s a YouTube video of my build.
Building Bag 1
In the first bag, there are 2 minifigs, and 2 flying creatures. Newt Scamander with his Niffler, and Tina Goldstein holding a white teapot.
Lego Tina GoldsteinLego Newt Scamander
The first creature to be built is an Occamy. It’s egg shells are made of silver, and it has the ability to grow (or shrink) into the space available to it. That means if it is in a big room, it is a HUGE creature, or it can shrink to fit inside a teapot.
Lego Occamy
The other Creature in bag 1 is the Thunderbird. It has 3 sets of wings – that can, according to legend flap strong enough to create a storm.
Lego Thunderbird
Building Bag 2
There are about the same number of pieces in bag 2 as in bag 1. There are also 2 minifigures in this bag – Queenie Goldstein, and Jacob Kowalski, plus an Erumpment.
Lego Queenie GoldsteinLego Jacob Kowalski
An Erumpmet is a cross between an elephant and a rhino – but has a magical power where it can inject lava (or something like that) into trees and other such things.
Lego Erumpment
On a side note, I got to meet Alison Sudol, the actress who plays Queenie at LeakyCon in Dallas this last summer. I gave her one of the new (at the time) minifigs of her character, and got her signature in return.
Building Bag 3
Bag three begins to build Newt’s magical suitcase.
When I used to play Dungeons & Dragons so many years ago, one of the first possessions I received, and my most treasured one was a bag of holding. It was a small bag, big enough for my hand to fit into, but could hold whatever I put into it.
Newt’s suitcase is exactly like that, but more. When he opens his suitcase, a whole different world is inside. It’s basically his own personal zoo, with different environments suited for each creature he has rescued.
Building bag three of this LEGO set hints at that zoo. It is also similar to the recently published LEGO Pop-Up Book, however instead of using the SNOT technique it is more of a traditional plate build.
There is a cool little house built into one side and the roof opens to show what’s inside.
Building Bag 4
Bag 4 finishes off Newt Scamander’s case. There are basically four parts: The house, left and right sides, and the top. Tons of great details built in. Each section is hinged, and the entire case folds closed for transport.
Inside it is minifigure scale, but unfortunately it’s not big enought for all the figs and creatures to fit inside (that would be super cool).
Overall, this became my second favorite set from the new release of the Lego Harry Potter Incredible Beasts sets. My favorite, of course is the Hogwart’s Express, but only because I LOVE LEGO trains.
When I can’t build LEGO, I turn to YouTube to watch others build LEGO.
I watch everything from set reviews, to MOCS, to trains, to organization, and everything in between.
This page has my 30+ favorite LEGO Youtubers, and i think I have it set up so that it imports the most recent videos from each of the creators and builders
In alphabetical Order:
Video count and subscriber numbers are from the time of the blog post.
AFOL man
27,960 subscribers
915 Videos
Emory (the AFOL Man) started “messing around” with LEGO when his kiddo was little, and ever since then it has stuck. He has had several dark ages, but always comes back either to run his Bricklink store, or build his city or sets and review them.
Alex Nunes
291 Videos
43,281 subscribers
Alex has been collecting Lego for over 30 years and has an impressive 330 square foot city he updates and shares videos of regularly.
Alexander studios
521,974 subscribers
26 Videos
With over half a million subscribers and only a handful of videos, Alexander Studios has truly cracked the code on what people want to watch on YouTube. His bowling video has over 32 MILLION views, so chances are you’ve probably seen it at some point.
Almighty Arjen is trains
123,427 subscribers
83 Videos
If you like LEGO Trains, this is the channel for you! At one level he uses an Arduino to control his trains, and other videos feature spectacular LEGO train crashes.
Artifex creation
633,660 subscribers
1668 Videos
A self proclaimed family friendly channel that’s all about LEGO. They have perfected the timelapse or stop motion building of Lego Sets.
Beyond the brick
392,552 subscribers
1773 Videos
Beyond The brick is a different kind of LEGO YouTube channel. The go around and interview builders, visit LEGO shows and talk with MOC makers, and even show behind the scenes things for LEGO itself.
Brick Bros UK
84,655 subscribers
1628 Videos
Tom and his Brother Drew run this channel, They are truly expert builders, as they created the TRON set which became a real LEGO set after 10,000 fans voted for it. They show off MOCS, have free tutorials, and share the latest LEGO news, too.
Brick toy co
39 Videos
2,725 subscribers
A pretty new channel, they do reviews, speed builds and share MOCs. They have a good video production level, so I’m excited to see what they end up doing!
Bricks on the dollar
1825 Videos
4,900 subscribers
Clutch has a huge Bricklink store, and never holds back on his videos. More of a how to collect, find deals, Hauls, and live with LEGO instead of builds, or reviews.
Bricktsar
3168 videos
49,904 subscribers
BrickTsar is a true AFOL. He’s got quite a collection of bricks he talks about and shows off. Again more of a behind the scenes, or living with Lego, over reviews or MOCS. One of my favorites.
Brickvault
1237 Videos
445,082 subscribers
This channel is run by a few different people and they have news, reviews, MOCS and speed builds.
Easily one of the best stop motion animation Lego Channels, the Brotherhood Workshop combines LEGO, popular movies or pop culture, and humor to create new and entertaining content.
Custom Bricks & Models by Ren
12,109 subscribers
447 Videos
A fairly new channel with great MOC instructions and alternative builds.
Down Under Bricks
647 Videos
22,784 subscribers
Everything from MOCs to reviews. Hauls to comparisons.
ellieV toys
610 Videos
865,948 subscribers
Lots of Toy reviews in addition to LEGO. You can hear the enthusiasm in her voice. One of the few YouTube reviewers who focuses on the Friends series and Disney Princess series.
Forest fire 101
112 Videos
1,028,446 subscribers
Another one of the few LEGO YouTubers with over a million subscribers. Focusing on animation, this channel isn’t always appropriate for younger viewers.
Jangbricks
4022 Videos
1,090,711 subscribers
Proclaimed by many as the best, Jang does reviews, and has an incredible LEGO city with mostly custom buildings. Lots of Trains, which are my favorite, too. Be sure to check out his organization videos, as they are simply amazing.
Just2good
2372 Videos
357,667 subscribers
Another one of the popular channels, this channel focuses on hauls, reviews of older and newer sets, and MOCs.
Keep on bricking
500 Videos
10,445 subscribers
This channel is all about custom MOCs, and building better LEGO creations!
Lionbricks
319 videos
17,267 subscribers
LionBricks is a TFOL (teenage Fan of Lego) who does city updates, MOCs, Reviews, Hauls, and Time Lapse builds of sets.
Michael Hickox
138 Videos
1,269,223 subscribers
Here is another one of those million plus Youtube LEGO stop motion channels. With great story lines, high level production, and clever short videos, Michael has found the secret to YouTube LEGO success.
Rebel Builder
294 Videos
14,477 subscribers
If you love Star Wars LEGO, this is the channel for you. Not only does he review LEGO sets, but he has some great MOCs and a moon base that can’t be missed.
Ru brick
29 Videos
5,376 subscribers
This husband and wife team does updates of their LEGO city, and goes into amazing descriptions of their strategy and building techniques.
Sariel has 2 channels, but this is the bigger of them. Here he does Technics MOCs and updates, and lots of power functions and electronics updates with LEGO.
Solid Brix
496 Videos
257,889 subscribers
Stop Motion Animations, News, Reviews, and an incredible Star Wars MOC that can’t be missed.
The brick Lab
189 Videos
3,997 subscribers
More MOCs and Mods with an emphasis on custom city buildings. I especially like his minifig scale furniture tutorials.
The brick show shop
268 Videos
The Brick Show used to be one of the largest YouTube channels out there until they violated the 3-strike rule. Now they are rebuilding their brand on their store channel where you can find MOCs and Lego Reviews.
Zazi nombies
592 Videos
1,384,042 subscribers
MOCs (mostly weapons from video games) are the specialty of this channel with over a Million Subscribers.
Earlier this week, My wife got me tickets to see the new Harry Potter Fantastic Beasts movie “The Crimes of Grindlewald” a few days before it’s general release.
Suddenly all the new LEGO Harry Potter sets began to make sense.
About half of the new Harry Potter Lego sets were based on the Classic Harry potter scenes – Quiddich, the Hogwarts Express, and the two builds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizzardry.
But two sets are based on new characters in the Fantastic Beasts Series, Newt’s Case of Magical Creatures and this set – LEGO Set 75951 Grindlewald’s Escape.
With 2 minifigs, a Thestral, and a black Carriage there aren’t a lot of pieces, but the minifigs are exclusive, as is the magical horse.
The first minifig is Gellert Grindelwald. He was a very hard to get minifig in the blind bag series, and here he is a bit different (and better if you ask me). The other is Seraphina Picquery, who has a one of a kind purple wand. There are also some blue trans fireballs that can be launched directly from a minifigures hands which are pretty cool, and pretty easy to loose.
Originally introduced in “The Order of the Phoenix” Thestrals are invisible horses that are classified as dangerous, but can be tamed. Also they can only be seen by people who have witnessed death. They are only currently available in this set.
The Technics attachment for the front two wheels.
The final, and biggest build is the carriage. Black (of course) with a removable top and opening doors, there is room for a minifig inside on a red seat, and another in front in a brown chair. The front two wheels are attached using some Technics Bricks and that allows them to turn side to side, as well as rotate.
Overall I like this set a lot- I did quite a few shots with it on my Instagram account when the movie was released, and I think I’ll leave it together and find a spot for it in Brick Land.
I’ve just learned that there will be 19 new sets on December 26, 2018 from the upcoming LEGO Movie 2.
As I look through the list I see a few “must have” sets including UltraKitty, Benny’s Space Squad, and Metal Beards Heavy Motor Bike. Which ones are your favorites?
70835 $119.99 Rex’s Rexplorer!
70828 $79.99 Pop-Up Party Bus!
70831 $69.99 Emmet’s Dream House/Rescue Rocket!
70830 $69.99 Sweet Mayhem’s Systar Starship!
70834 $59.99 MetalBeard’s Heavy Metal Motor Trike!
70829 $49.99 Escape Star and Heart in Emmet and Lucy’s awesome buggy!
70820 $49.99 LEGO® Movie Maker
70825 $39.99 Queen Watevra’s Build Whatever Box!
70826 $29.99 Rex’s Rex-treme Offroader!
70827 $29.99 Ultrakatty & Warrior Lucy!
70832 $29.99 Emmet’s Builder Box!
70833 $29.99 Lucy’s Builder Box!
10895 $29.99 Emmet and Lucy’s Visitors from the DUPLO® Planet
70836 $19.99 Battle-Ready Batman™ and MetalBeard
70821 $19.99 Emmet and Benny’s ‘Build and Fix’ Workshop!
70824 $19.99 Introducing Queen Watevra Wa’Nabi
70823 $14.99 Emmet’s Thricycle!
70841 $9.99 Benny’s Space Squad
70822 $9.99 Unikitty’s Sweetest Friends EVER!
New Star Wars Sets Being Released in December
According to the Lego website, there is only one set being released December 2018.
With over 1000 pieces, and an initial price of $129.99 this new Star Wars Lego set includes 5, minifigures, an Advanced Tie Fighter, and has lots of playable features.
LEGO OVERWATCH Sets Coming soon
A few weeks ago was Blizzcon, where one of the most talked about events was the release of the LEGO Overwatch Sets.
Based on the popular videogame with the same name, this is the first time LEGO group has collaborated with such a theme. Typically they work with movies (like Star Wars) or superheroes (Like Marvel). But based on the amount of on line chatter and hype, I have a feeling this is going to be a very popular and collectible series of sets.
Right now, the six sets are available for pre-order on the Lego store website. Totaling 274.94 to pre order all of them, I’d suggest clicking the button now to lock in your order before they run out of stock.
According to the website, ordering now will guarantee shipping by Jan 1, 2019.
75970 Tracer vs. Widowmaker. (129 pieces) $14.99
75971 Hanzo vs. Genji. (197 pieces) $19.99
75972 Dorado Showdown. (419 pieces) $29.99
75973 D.Va & Reinhardt. (455 pieces) $39.99
75974 Bastion. (602 pieces) $49.99
75975 Watchpoint: Gibraltar. (730 pieces) $89.99
I have been able to find the set names and set numbers. There are photos out there too but as you know I only publish my own pictures on this site.
LEGO Spider Man Sets Coming Soon
Also on good authority, I understand there will be five new LEGO Spider-Man sets released most likely in December 2018. Walmart was reported to be the store that would be getting the sets, but we will have to see as it is too early to tell right now.
76114 $39.99 Spider-Man’s Spider Crawler
76113 $19.99 Spider-Man Bike Rescue
76115 $49.99 Spider Mech vs. Venon
76113 $9.99 Spider-Man Car Chase
76134 $29.99 Spider-Man: Doc Ock Diamond Heist
If you know of any other LEGO sets being released this month, please let us know in the comments below. Include your Instagram name, and I’ll be sure to give you a shout out and follow
Over the years I’ve come up with a method to sort and store LEGO bricks that allow me to find the exact piece I need in just a matter of seconds. Getting to this point took a lot of work. The storage method I use takes up a lot of space. If you are interested in the best lego storage solutions, read on!
It’s a few days after Halloween and I just got back from my local LEGO store. I was there early for the release of the new LEGO IDEAS Pop-up Book. and let me say, this set is a lot cooler than I thought it would be.
Have you ever wondered: How much does it cost to start and run a LEGO blog? Can I make money from having a LEGO review site? Do people actually make money from a LEGO website?
I have too! I’ve always wondered if it is possible to fund a LEGO hobby using a website, social media, and affiliate links. So that’s what these series of posts are about. A behind the scenes look at what it costs to collect and review LEGO sets.
This is the first of many monthly income reports. I’m not selling any products, starting by using Amazon.com links and other affiliate programs to generate income.
Website Launch Date: Mid October 2018
October 2018 Expenses:
Domain Registration $9.95
1 year of hosting $119.40
October 2018 Income:
$0 – Just started, and don’t have any traffic or affiliate income yet.
If you decide to buy a LEGO set, I hope you will use one of the links from this website. It won’t cost you anything extra, and I’ll get a little commission if you do. So Thank YOU.
How to Start a LEGO blog
I don’t know if you have ever started a website before. I have, and it’s pretty simple.
Basically there are two ways to go – free websites, and custom hosting.
I’m not going to get into the free websites at this point because they won’t allow me to do what I want to with this site, which is have affiliate links.
Instead, I want to talk with you how I bought a domain name, set up a hosting plan and installed a WordPress site in about 15 minutes, and for less than $10 a month.
When you get a custom website you have to pay for two things – the domain name, and the hosting.
It works like this – the domain name is the address – or URL. In my case it is “theBrickLand.com”.
I paid $9.95 for one year of registering this name. I know there are better deals out there, but to keep things simple I registered the name from Dreamhost, which is the same place I have my website hosted. By doing this I don’t have to change any settings, or keep track of different websites.
This is also a one time charge (per year). I can register for multiple years, which I might do if this site is successful. But for now I just want to test this for 1 year.
The next thing I had to pay for was the hosting. Basically this is paying for some computer space that is ALWAYS connected to the internet, and able to store all the pictures, files, bandwith, and process the website stuff, so that when you visit my site, you get my site.
In my case, Dreamhost charges me $119.40 per year for bandwith, hosting, and all the things needed to run a website. That comes out to 9.95 per month. Less than $10. If you click here and sign up with Dreamhost they will give you some discounts – check out that page to see what plans and specials they have running right now.
My website is running a standard version of WordPress, the most popular blogging and website platform in the world. I have a free template, and a few free plugins (like the table generator on the MY SETS page).
There are a few other things you need to start a website, but I’m not counting them because I didn’t buy them new for this project, and I already had them:Computer, Camera, and of course all the LEGO sets I’ve collected over the years.
I’m also not paying for any promotion. No advertising, no buying followers, nothing!
Also all the photos and pictures on this site are my own. Usually taken with my iPhone.
I have an Instagram account where I post pics and stories of my city everyday, and I’m in the process of starting a YouTube channel as well
My goal is to collect one copy of every new set released in month. You can see the sets released for each month on my LEGO Release Dates page, where I research and list all the coming soon sets. Just so you know, I am not being paid by any companies to do this. I don’t get any free sets, promos, or have access to insider information.
I simply use the same websites and social media sites that everybody can see to identify and gather information.
Eventually, my goal is to have a thriving LEGO city with trains, MOCs, and sets. I hope you will join me on my journey!
Right now, the only two sets I know being released in Nov 2018 are the Ideas pop up book and the re-release of a Wind Turbine.
With over 800 pieces, the Ideas Pop up Book is the first ever brick made book with a pop up scene of Jack and the Beanstalk and/or Little Red Riding Hood. 4 new minifigures will be included in this set.
The wind turbine is a collaboration with Vestas, the largest producer of sustainable energy, is based on a previous set 7747. This new set however is reportedly going to contain some more of the ‘Plants from Plants’, as well as some Power Functions modules. And it will be over a meter tall according to reports.
LEGO Sets Coming soon
On a separate note, if you are looking for the LEGO Overwatch sets being released in collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment, all I have heard is they will be released sometime in 2019. Personally I’m surprised they aren’t being dropped before the holidays in 2018.
I have been able to find the set names and set numbers. There are photos out there too but as you know I only publish my own pictures on this site.
edited to add – these are the set names, piece counts, and set numbers as released by LEGO group at Blizzcon. There is also a LEGO Overwatch page on their website, and a coming soon page on LEGO Shop saying that pre-orders will ship on January 1 2019
https://shop.lego.com/en-US/Overwatch-Sets?CMP=SOC-OverwatchThemeReveal
75970 Tracer vs. Widowmaker. (129 pieces)
75971 Hanzo vs. Genji. (197 pieces)
75972 Dorado Showdown. (419 pieces)
75973 D.Va & Reinhardt. (455 pieces)
75974 Bastion. (602 pieces)
75975 Watchpoint: Gibraltar. (730 pieces)
If you know of any other LEGO sets being released this month, please let us know in the comments below. Include your Instagram name, and I’ll be sure to give you a shout out and follow
DISCLOSURE: We may earn a commission when you use one of our coupons/links to make a purchase. Dismiss
Until then, we will have to look for the Plants from Plants logo.
