If you've seen the English Bay Barge custom Lego kit that we're selling, you might have wondered "Who the heck created that?"
His name is Alex Saar. He's a maker based in Vancouver and is the founder of Heritage Bricks (HB).
Formally launching HB during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, the idea to take Lego bricks and make custom creations to sell was spurred from all the inquiries he received after creating a custom one-off model of Vancouver's Little Mountain Gallery.
"I wanted to continue combining my love for Lego and Vancouver together into new micro builds of all the places I missed getting to see," while in isolation, Saar tells Vancouver Is Awesome.
He has since created and sold custom kits made out of Lego parts for local staples such as the Vancouver Special, the Rio Theatre, A&B Sound, and more.
A former "Brick Specialist" at the Lego store in Oakridge Centre, Saar brought a balance of Lego "geek knowledge" (as he calls it) and comfortably conversing with parents, while also entertaining kids.
When the English Bay Barge wrecked on the shores of Sunset Beach, Saar found great entertainment in it himself. He was struck by "the hilarity of the memes that spun out from it," and was inspired by them to recreate it in brick form.
Striking a serious tone, Saar says that "It was such a scary and uncertain time for a lot of people when the flooding [in the Fraser Valley] was at its peak and I feel the barge helped take the edge off a bit with the sheer absurdity of it getting stuck and sticking around all this time later."
What's next for the master Lego builder? His list of Vancouver things to build out of Lego is "overflowing," but Harbour Centre might be the next design out of the hopper.
For now, you still have a week left to pre-order the English Bay Barge custom Lego set.
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SET INCLUDES
• Heritage Bricks: Barge Chillin' Building Kit
• 16 page, full-colour instruction booklet
• Constructed with 85 Genuine LEGO® parts
• Kits are designed and packaged in Vancouver, BC
• Weight (Boxed) 152g
• Assembled Dimensions: 2.5x3.8x1.6 Inches
• Box dimensions: 6x6x2 inches
This is not a LEGO product. Contents are re-packaged LEGO elements. LEGO is a trademark of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor, authorize, or endorse this product. The LEGO Group is not liable for any loss, injury, or damage arising from the use or misuse of this product.
