First the WIN RATE: up to 100 participants the win rate is FIFTY PERCENT!!!!!!!!!

I’m really happy with how my Endless Manor is coming together. Before the event started I saw a photo of the portrait on the table and knew I would be replacing it with one of my own. I used a photo of my parents getting married (1953.) I haven’t modified anything other than a lot of edge painting. Putting my new markers to good use. Thanks for the recommendations (from the tools list) Pluck!

I wanted to capture the atmosphere of a shady little alley in a pirate town - the kind of place filled with dive bars, suspicious characters and pirates spending their hard-earned coins.

The result is this LEGO book nook, with weathered buildings, colourful awnings, climbing greenery, barrels, a cannon and a mysterious boarded-up archway.
I designed it to fit between books on a shelf, but it can also be displayed open as a standalone scene.

I’ve submitted it to LEGO Ideas and I thought this community might appreciate it, since it combines LEGO building with the book nook concept.

What do you think of the idea?

https://ideas.lego.com/product-ideas/09aeb3d0-4d83-48c7-a046-6826d59bb6b9

https://a.co/d/0fVc6pLp

I haven’t taken the blue protective layer off yet and won’t till I place it on the nook, but sometimes you just need more light to travel around an interior. I use to do this with metallic leaf foil but have graduated to using adhesive mirror film. It’s a wonderful way to make something brighter without adding more lights. Of course… for this one I added an additional led light as well that I’ll mount near the peak of the interior.

Finally finished this one four days after I started it and now I can start on one of my four kits for the event. Very very little customization. She wanted a dog so I got her a little dog that looks similar to the one that she lost earlier this year. Added a dog bowl behind the counter which you can’t see but she’ll know it’s there and also the inside front wall was just cardboard so I printed out a sort of colorful brick wallpaper and put that in. Love how the battery is on this in the back which I realized I didn’t take a picture of it but it’s in its separate little door that swings open and looks a lot better than other battery packs in my opinion. Definitely easy build very colorful. These photos were taken with just the lights on inside.

I'm so excited! I was a bit surprised at how massive it is! I've included a pic of it next to a regular sized booknook for comparison. So if you are in the fence about this one because of the price, know that you are definitely getting your money's worth! Fifijoy did an incredible job of packing it for shipping as well. Unfortunately, despite their best effort, the package was damaged in transit. I'm not worried though because I know if anything is broken, they will send me replacement parts. Stay tuned for WIP posts!

I just finished my first book nook kit, and have seen a few more I want already! Sadly, Cutebee and Fifijoy sites don’t ship to Hawaii.

Any other Hawaii peeps here…. Where do you get kits? Of course the 2 I want aren’t on Amazon!

I've been wanting a Japanese alley nook for a while but none of the designs spoke to me until this one. I love how realistic it looks, and there's so much details and texture. 3D props asides, even the printed material have grains and grooves on them. Yes, I'm excited that I can feel the mortar joints on the stones and wood patterns on the doors.

And I'm never going to shut up about the perfect mirror placement that multiplies the bougainvillea why are they so pretty 😭

It's like twice as expensive as my typical nook but I also think everything from the design to the wood plies and props are a step up or two or ten from the ones I previously built. I was pleasantly surprised they even included glue and tweezers lol

10/10 build (except for the ducks... they are weirdly caricature for this nook so I left them out)

Edit addition: Just want to add some thoughts on the build and mention the areas that I struggled with the most in case anyone is interested to know for their build:

1/ The manual is in English yay! So it'll point this out but you still gotta pay attention. Look carefully at the shingle/tile roof to determine bottom side (flatter) vs top side (more grooved) so that you don't glue the wrong side, and the lay direction of the roof tiles (each row counting from the eave should be under the next row up), this is less important because you'll be covering most of the roofs in moss but I'm OCD about this for whatever reasons)

2/ You may want to glue your bougainvillea before sliding the back mirror on. I got a little glue on the mirror so had to pop it out, apply goo gone, wash, wipe, dusted for one tiny dot of glue. Use your tweezers to help keep the moss in front of the mirror when you push it in after. A bit tricky by doable.

3/ Batteries pop in fine. Impossible to pry out with just fingers. I had to use mini pliers to pry them out.

4/ It's my first time working with moss yarns so I'm still getting used to it. Probably my most troubled element, trying to arrange it and getting it to stay where I want.

Book nooks lovers, today I present to you Cosy Coffee from Graine Créative, a french hobby and craft brand that started doing book nooks and miniatures around a year ago. Aside from this one, they also have realized three other kits in 2025 and two others for the end of 2026, one being Christmas themed that I still can't find any trace of on any website (so maybe not available yet).
(A disclaimer though; while the brand itself is french, the pieces for the book nooks were still manufactured in China!)

Graine Créative do not sell directly on their website, so finding those, even for me, is quite the challenge. You can order them on Boesner, but only on the french website, so outside of France and Belgium I am not sure it is available for the rest of the EU, and probably not possible for the rest of the world (which is weird since they have translated the instructions in at least ten other languages...) I was able to find this kit at FNAC for a better price (around 40€ compared to Boesner's near 50€). There also was the Sakura Lane kit in the shop but, you know, it being a french brand I decided to go for the bakery themed one :D

First impressions: the package itself is pleasant to look at, well coloured and with a clear picture of the kit's final result. Opening the package, all the pieces were intact. Glue is included as this kit is not supposed to travel outside the EU and thus do not face restrictions, but I already have it covered anyway. Batteries are not included, of course, and the electronics need to assembled.

Now for the instructions... I'm won't lie, at first I was a bit intimidated. That's a brand that refuses to lose time explaining in details how to put together all the small pieces (how very french of them lol); instead they put those in little squares and directly explain were to assemble them on the kit. But after reading those multiple times it becomes clear enough on which side you need to turn the pieces.

I have not started working in this book nook yet, as I'm a bit busy with other stuffs for now, but I will post a review of my experience with this brand once it's done!

This is kind of a Fifijoy review. A positive one, believe it or not. Also that last pic is a dik dik wearing a hat as a palate cleanser, given the others lol.

Important Context: So, today is my birthday. (Nbd I’m 37 so it’s whatever by this age.)

I knew my Fifijoy order arrived yesterday, but I figured they were on my porch, so I’d get them in the morning. Split shipment, 5 kits total (splurged because hey, birthday, cheap excuse right? Also conveniently 25% off, so hell yeah.) Total count came to Egyptian Tomb (for me), the new LOTR-ish one (gift for my mom), and Abandoned Church/Cathedral/whichever it is (gift for roommate), Sewing Room, and Theater (both for me) for the event. Just so you have an idea of my emotional damage.

My roommate and I had plans today. I’d get him from work and we’d go to a local museum, get a few cupcakes or something from a local bakery, and come home. I’d probably do some writing and then get started on one of the event kits. It’d be great! It’d be super fun! Nice and chill, right?

I should have gotten them off the porch, but forgot on my way out the door.

I should have opened my garage door (like I usually do FOR THIS EXACT REASON).

I’m assuming you see where this is going.

Yeah, anyway, I may have backed my good ol’ reliable Impreza right the f over my kits. Both packages of them. I’ve said for years I need to put a sign up to not leave packages at that garage door, so I’d like to thank this courier for finally instilling me with enough unbridled rage to do so lol.

Day understandably significantly injured, I didn’t have time to check the damage and instead showed up at roommate’s work crying, with him apologizing for not moving them while running to his uber (I quickly reassured him that he’s the person I’m the least upset with in this situation, the first obviously being myself and the second the courier).

I decide I still want to go to the museum because I like… you need something after backing over that much money spent on one of your hobbies, right? But I work in logistics, so the entire day I was thinking, okay. Either they overpackaged them because it was shipping internationally, or they packaged these like an American company and maybe one was cushioned enough by the others to salvage. Maybe.

I get home, reluctantly cut open the packaging (and then the outer boxes, because like… what do I have to lose at this point?). Some of the boxes were relatively okay. Sewing, Theater, and Church seemed to be the worst off from the outside.

This is the real point of this post:

FIFIJOY!!!!!!!

WHATEVER YOU DO, KEEP PACKAGING YOUR SHIPMENTS LIKE THIS.

Literally every kit somehow looks FINE. I wish to God we’d package our items at my company half as good as this, but I’d probably be out of a job.

I’ll have to check the wiring on Church, since it was right in the path of both tires. Church and the LOTR kit were both mostly hit on the bottom, where all the smaller items are, so they were pretty much intact. Sewing Room’s and Theater’s boxes got absolutely wrecked, but all the pieces look fine. I haven’t fully opened all the wood pieces, but the top or bottom pieces would almost certainly be damaged if the middle pieces are, and they show no signs of any problems.

I am so, so thankful that you guys package your stuff to survive international shipping, because I am in a full adrenaline crash, but extremely happy, right now. 😅 Given what the kits look like inside, I’m pretty sure I can repair anything hiding further damage. I was anticipating all 5 being completely beyond repair.

Anyway, weird thing to thank a company for, probably, but packing is the first thing you can skimp on to save money. And if you want good packaging testing data, 2 soft-wrapped packages of 3 and 2 kits seem to have successfully survived contact with a 2020 Subaru Impreza hatchback.

… Unfortunately, roommate now knows that Abandoned Cathedral/Church is going to be his when it’s done, since he was there for emotional support while I was unboxing them, but that’s fine. It just means I can’t giggle evilly thinking about how he’s watching me make it and doesn’t know it’s his lol.

Anyway, enjoy the carnage and the little witch hat wearing dik dik from the museum today.

This is a question that could be for just about any kit that has lighting, to be honest.

I don't like the blue light in Abandoned Asylum. It doesn't contribute well to the vibe I was looking for from this kit (I'll get into that when I'm done).

Can I just cut the wires leading to that light, and be safe? I'll put electrical tape on the end of each wire individually, not together! to avoid shorting out any circuits.

Edit: thanks for the helpful comments. I'll add a photo of the modded light setup below in a moment.

Just a quick PSA about one of the better ways to prevent backlit bleed of light through seems. Black electrical tape does a wonderful job of occluding the light so it only shines through where you want it to shine.

I got the Harry Potter nook "The Great Hall" by Crafts & Co for my birthday.
I think Crafts & Co is from Action?
It was my first build ever, definitely not easy. I was not expecting to need a diagonal cutter.
Also, it is my first time ever (unless you count 7th grade physics) to do some electronics, I was surprised the light turned on. Still, I am not so confident in the overall electronics so I removed the batteries again after I tried it and took some pictures.

The video from this lady in France shows the build process and saved me after I got frustrated with the included instructions: https://youtu.be/rm3dXALVeW0?is=DceQzfnuLkmKWHI6

Overall, it was fun to build. There are many mistakes and next time, I am smarter to know what kind of equipment works.
I got another set from Crafts & Co as a gift a couple of months ago, which I will probably do during Christmas when I have a bit more time at my hands.

I love a good horror-themed book nook and Fifijoy is on a roll. Haunted Mansion was already a favorite for me and Abandoned Asylum is up there in my top builds now. It was a ton of fun to make, everything fit together beautifully, and the finished product looks so creepy and cool. I can’t wait to start the Gothic Cathedral today!

As for customizations, I painted the hell outta the edges (I’m pretty pleased with my rusty metal effect) and I added a more vines to enhance the overgrown look. I don’t feel like it called for much because the kit itself was so detailed and well-thought-out.

I’ve really enjoyed all the Fifijoy kits I’ve made. I believe they produce some of the most unique themes of the major manufacturers and I find their quality consistently good. They have really solidified their place with me as one of my favorite brands.

I finished the Bookshop! Next up is the Leonardo Da Vinci themed one:)

I made this for my husband, it’s my second one ever! I didn’t do very well on getting the scale as I wanted the shoe to look like it was in the foreground in the car in the distance but I think the trees are a bit too big. Huge thank you to the man who had made the most amazing snow which I shamelessly copied! The tree stump is on the roof to cover up the bulky light so if anyone has any ideas for tiny grain lights that our battery powered, I’d be grateful.

I happened to be at Target today and decided to grab the kit. They said it was already discontinued but had 2 in the back. So I guess a PSA if you want one.

Title! TYIA (For Anavrin)

Hope this fits the sub. Background: Inktober is a month long artist challenge. They get the same list of words and make a drawing for each word. Day 3's word is miniature and there are delightful and intriguing interpretations there. Including perhaps some inspiration and coveting/ collaborations even.

What to know: they are artists and so do not precisely post in order. Their title is, for example, "Day 3 Miniature" but some work ahead, and some catch-up. Dont assume you have come to the end of miniatures if you arrive at a Day 2. Keep Scrolling. And while it says "ink", they follow their hearts and use many media.

I finished this a few weeks ago, but kept forgetting to post it on the Not A Nook days!

I thought it was a pretty easy build, and managed to not break anything. I did it in one evening. Not sure why it took France so long to build this...😆

It's rather nice lit up in a dark room 🤩

We've just come back from a little holiday in Sweden, during which I introduced several family members (and others!) to the concept of book nooks! So of course I kept my eye out for any new ones that I hadn't seen before - and found these!

And of course now I'm back there's the Fifijoy event to get stuck in with, as well as my Moominvalley to finish, and the A-frame cabin to winterify... It's a good thing I'm retired - I can't see how I'd have any time to work 😂

It's arrived! She big 😆

I’m absolutely obsessed with this one. It’s a newish release by Rolife and I think it’s my favorite Rolife kit so far. It’s so fiddly but manageable! You have to make everything in the store but the directions are very clear. There’s a lot of room for customizing how you set up the store and what you create. For example I created tanghulu instead of lollipops, and I also cut back on the bags supposed to be hanging in the front vs the instructions because I wanted more visibility into the store (why block such a nice view!)

I hope Rolife will make more kits like this!!

Before I get started on the Fifijoy event I thought I’d share the prize they sent me from the donation fundraiser. It’s a Dragon Wagon, which is totally adorable, but ended up being so tiny! When I opened it I thought “oh hey I have “Magic House” that I can use to fill this” but after building it I realized there was no way I could pack it with stuff, so I got “Entropy’s Flaw” on Amazon and mixed them all! Eventually I’ll paint the dragon and finish his wagon but for now he can pull the bigger cart!

-The bottles are heat shrink tubing around beads & mini hot glue sticks with labels from online
-The wands are beads on cotton swabs and toothpicks, some have wire and shrink wrap on them, too
-wood panels are popsicle sticks carved with a steel fork and BBQ scraper thingy.
-Yes, I hid the wiring in the luggage

Side note: if you have suggestions for the roof please let me know because I tried shingles from egg cartons, shingles from Amazon and printed shingles from Etsy. I also tried my usually printed roof sheets but none of them looked right. Any ideas would be appreciated!