Interview with pedro – a custom minifig creation by PEDRO-79™

I had the good luck of getting this interview in with pedro, with running his store, speaking with Hazel and making him own amazing custom minifigs, i don’t know how he finds the time, never the less, heres an interview with the good sir himself –

1. how did you first get in to custom minifigs?

First off i want to thank you for the time you spend searching and sharing my figs and all other great customizers out there, if it wasn’t for you people would not see all the talent out there. I first got into custom minifigs when i seen an article on Hazel’s GOW custom figs, and that opened a whole new world for me, being able to make more than what LEGO offered !

2. where do you get your ideas and inspiration from?

Most of the ideas i have for making custom minifigs just come to me, but i was inspired by Hazel , Will and other vendors who gave us the option to look outside the box, and start a new chapter involving Lego parts and minifigures. i was also inspired by people like JasBrick and Hazel…they were the reason i joined Flickr to take in and share some creativity.

3. You have your own bricklink store, how do you juggle customizing with running your own store and work/real life?

I have my own store on Bricklink called United Armory, and it is not easy working, maintaining my two homes, and taking orders from store. I just wish i had more time, but it is not easy when you have a full time job and do everything else, i am also married and my wife and I are expecting our first child around July of this year, which i am extremely excited about. I became a reseller to bring and make it easier for people in the US and Canada to get Hazel parts, i definitely did not do it for the money, i have a great job and i turn down work on weekends so i can spend quality time with my wife and family, after all money is not everything !

4. You’re very close with hazel being a reseller, what has drawn you to his parts more than other suppliers? what specifically do you like about his stuff?

Hazel and I have become good friends over the past year, i have been a fan of his work for at least 3 years, and i love his work, customs, and his personality. I have even offered him to come stay with me at my house when he decides to come to NY. I am drawn to Hazel’s customs more than other customizers because he has taken Lego to a new level and never stops impressing me!

5. how do you feel the lego collectors series has affect the custom minifig community, do you think its affected your style? do you think its given custom minifigs a greater acceptance and exposure in the wider lego community?

I feel that LEGO made the collector minifigures due to seeing all the wonderful and creative ideas done by customizers like Hazel, Brickarms, Brickforge, etc.. , lets be realistic here, they just want a piece of the action and good for them, i do not believe i have been affected at all by the collector series, but more motivated to do and become even better !

6. are there any customized you feel have particularly inspired you or you look up to? why?

I have been inspired by customizers like Hazel , Brickarms, and Brickforge because they have taken what they love to do and turned it into a business and a way to make money, now there is nothing better than to get paid to do something you love .

7. how do you feel about the use of paints and non-lego parts/non-custom house parts on minifigs, do you think its a positive step for the community? how do you feel about purist minifigs?

I feel that painting and customizing and the use of non- Lego parts is great , creative , and inspiring to others and even Lego themselves, after all i believe that a lot of there ideas and parts are taken from the community , like the collector series minifigures . i think being a purist just does not make any sense because there is evolution in and to everything, you can look around at anything and it has become better with the years, even humans themselves ….its called evolution, its just part of a natural thing.

8. If lego created one set or minifig of your choice what would you choose? why?

If Lego would create a set or minifig of my choice it would have to be ThunderCats ( i believe the Knight KJ also said) because it was my favorite cartoon while i was growing up , and my favorite character of course was Lion-O .

9. Is there a particular minifig that you wish you had created?

There really isn’t any figure that i have thought of creating that i have not created, if something comes to mind i will attempt to make it or customize it !

10. Any shouts out?

I want to give a shout out to my wife Cristina, she is the best wife i can ask for, she is my inspiration and very supportive !

Check out pedros store here.

see pedros store here.

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