nanoblock Kumamon Review

Difficulty: Level 2

Time to Complete: 30 Minutes

Item Code: NBH_074

Kumamon is a mascot created by the government of Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. He was first created in 2010 for a campaign called Kumamoto Surprise to draw tourists to the region after the Kyushu Shinkansen line opened. Kumamon subsequently became nationally popular, and in late 2011, was voted top in a nationwide survey of mascots, collectively known as Yuru-kyara, garnering over 280,000 votes. More info from Wikipedia.

This Kumamon nanoblock set is only available in Japan, and I bought it when I was in Tokyo recently. They are sold in most places that sells nanoblock, like Bic Camera, Yodobashi, Loft, etc. The box does not mention the number of bricks included in this set, but you can see from the photo below that it does in fact come with quite a lot of bricks.

Some of the more interesting bricks in this set

It took me about half an hour to build this. I really like the design of this nanoblock Kumamon. It's really cute. Also, I really like the way it's designed. There is a certain beauty to it.

You can see photos of the finished build below.

The extra bricks included in this set

For custom builders, this set is also cool because it comes with a lot of the black and yellow angled-bricks.

nanoblock Studio Apartment Review

Difficulty: Level 2
Time to Complete: 45 Minutes
No of Blocks: 380+
Item Code: NBI_003

In this review, I will be taking a look at the Studio Apartment nanoblock set. It is one of three in the new series featuring types of houses.  This set was released by Kawada recently and it is the first to introduce nanoids. They are tiny little nano-people, as you can see in the photo below. 

There are over 380 blocks included in this set and a large piece of instruction sheet. Most of the bricks are the tiny variety. 

Some of the more interesting brick types in this set

Following are some photos of the build process and the finished built. It took around 45 minutes to complete it. It was fairly easy to build, it just take a while as there are many small bricks to assemble. 

The extra bricks included with this set

What's cool about this set is that the roof can be easily lifted off to reveal the interiors of the apartment. The sliding door can be moved and the front door swings open too! There are also various details in the apartment like a giant TV, sofa, kitchen, etc. 

This set retails at RM79.90 in Malaysia. I still have a few left so if anyone is interested, just click here.

nanoblock Mecha n-Alpha Using Nanoid

I was thinking up ideas on what to do with the new nanoids and this is the first thing that came to mind ^^ ... Hehe ... An exoskeleton partly inspired by the Alien movie ... I call it Mecha n-Alpha ... 

Exploring nanoblock in Tokyo With Chris

In the video below, I will bring you to all the popular places selling nanoblock around Tokyo, like Bic Camera, Yodobashi, etc. You can see for yourself, the range of nanoblock sets available at these stores =)

Chris Is Back From Tokyo

Hi everyone! I'm baccckkkkkk =) ... Hehehee ... I have lots of videos and photos of places selling nanoblock in Japan, will take some time to edit them and post it up soon. In the mean time, here's me at the official nanoblock store at the Tokyo Skytree ^^ ... and I saw something familiar on the screen in the shop.

Chris is Going to Tokyo

Good news! I will be going to Tokyo in mid October for a week ... and I will try to shoot a show (like a travel programme), taking you to all the places that sells nanoblock in Japan ^^ ... Hehe ... 

My Designs Stolen

Christopher Tan has never released any of his designs as commercially available products. All products using his designs that you currently see being sold commercially are blatant theft of his designs. 

Something has been bugging me lately. There seems to be a sudden surge in the number of companies and small businesses stealing my designs and commercialising them. Here is a look at just some of the many China companies that stolen my designs:

As if that wasn't bad enough, quite a few small businesses have also gotten in on the action. They buy loose bricks from China and pack it themselves.

Sold in Thailand

Sold in Hong Kong

What you see above are just a few examples, there are actually a lot more out there! This is just utterly ridiculous. Everyone seems to be profiting from my designs, except me! 

Yes, I know, the first thing many of you would tell me is that I should copyright my designs. Well, they are in fact copyrighted. Malaysia is a signatory to the Berne Convention, so all artistic works are automatically copyrighted. That isn't really the issue here. Trying to take legal action against these people however will require a lot of money and what little money you can recover from them even if you win just makes this a futile effort. 

And yes, some of you said maybe I should not release the build instructions for my designs in order to stop these pirates. Well, truth is, reverse engineering a design from photos is actually quite easy. It probably takes me only 20-30% longer to build something without instructions, and I know many members of my nanoBuilders group are also capable of doing it. So, yeah, if a pirate really wants to steal a design, they don't need the instructions. 

The hard part is coming out with the design. Once the design is out, reverse engineering the instruction is simple. Take a painter for example, like Leonardo da Vinci. Coming out with an iconic masterpiece like the Mona Lisa is the hard part. After that, anyone with decent painting skills can look at his painting and create a copy, but it doesn't mean that they can create an original masterpiece that will also be just as iconic as the Mona Lisa. 

On streets in Shanghai

It's quite an ironic situation to be in. My designs are now sold everywhere around the world. I know it's selling like hot cakes in night markets in China, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, etc. and you will find it online on eBay, Amazon, Taobao, etc. And yet, most of these people have no idea they are my designs.

Please realise that when you buy these stolen designs, you are encouraging these China companies to continue stealing my work, and they are hurting me as an artist. 

I guess I should look on the positive side and be happy that my designs are bringing joy to lots of people out there and that my designs are being stolen because it is worth stealing. But once it a while ... it still bugs the crap out of me >.<

Scenes from My Singapore Exhibition

My exhibition in Kinokuniya Main Store @ Ngee Ann City is now running until Oct 23, please do go check it out if you're in Singapore =D ... Here are some photos from the exhibition ...

There was also a gathering with nanoblock fans in Singapore. We had a wonderful turnout and it was great fun meeting everyone =D ... Thanks guys! ^^

Thanks to Kinokuniya Singapore and Lancashire Marketing for sponsoring and supporting the exhibition.

Chris's nanoblock Exhibition in Singapore

You asked for it! ... You've seen my nanoblock creations on my blog, now come and see the real thing at my exhibition in Singapore! =)  ... Click here for more info.

nanoblock Singa

Here's nanoblock Singa, the Courtesy Lion ... Singaporeans will probably recognise him =) .. Hehehee ... 

nanoblock Dogbert

Any Dilbert fans here? =D ... Here's nanoblock Dogbert! ^^

nanoblock Sheldon Cooper from Big Bang Theory

Any fans of The Big Bang Theory here? =D ... I can't wait for the new season to start on Sept 22 ^^

nanoblock PreOrder: Oct 2014 Release

There's a bunch of new nanoblock sets coming soon in October. I have started a pre-order event for this, so if you want them, click here to pre-order now. 20% discount for orders of RM250 or more. Ships Worldwide!