(Written by Geneva – gid617)

When I reviewed the #21325 LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith (see: LEGO Medieval Blacksmith Review), a reader suggested in the comment section that this set might look good turned into a tavern. The idea got me excited, so I gave it a shot! First, let’s start by taking another look at the original Medieval Blacksmith for comparison.

And now – drum roll please! – I present the Crown Inn, which is just up the street from the village blacksmith and within hailing distance of the local mill. The modifications mostly use pieces from the original set, but include a few additions from my own collection.

Several things have changed even on the outside. First of all, the sign is a sticker from the #10193 Medieval Market Village. Next, I made the chimney thinner and took away the forge, turning the lower story into a stable instead. An inn with a stable in the lower story probably would not be the pleasantest place to stay, but it seemed like an effective use of the layout the Blacksmith already had.

Now for the interior! Upstairs I added two small beds. In the next story, I made the chairs a little smaller and the table a little bigger. Downstairs in the stable, I changed the coal into hay, the barrels of cold iron into barrels of water, and threw a low wall down the middle of it (it just didn’t quite look like a stable without being partitioned).

If you’re interested in building the small beds yourself, I put together a short video of instructions for it.

You may recall seeing some modifications I made earlier to the Blacksmith’s (see: LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith Set Modifications), including a revised version of the tree. I kept most of my modifications (like the all-blue roof) but decided to take a second stab at the tree.

This round, dense tree is fairly sturdy, once built, but complicated to build firmly in the first place. It’s basically layers of travis bricks (1×1 bricks with studs on all four sides), stalks, and leaves. I built the core of travis bricks first, then added the stalks, then leaves and apples.

That ends our stay at the Crown Inn, and the innkeeper wishes you a happy journey!

This set was definitely fun to modify! If you’re thinking about buying multiple copies in order to create a medieval village, it’s got a lot of great parts for the purpose. However, I have to think my Inn would look pretty repetitive next to the original Blacksmith, especially with the same blue roof. If you want to try it out for yourself, the set is available at the LEGO Ideas section of the Online LEGO Shop.

What do you think? Do you like the idea of turning the Medieval Blacksmith into another medieval-themed building? Is there anything you would have done differently if you were making it into an Inn?  Did I do a better job on the tree than last time? Looking forward to hearing your comments and questions below!

And you might also like to check out the following related posts:

• LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith Press-Release
• LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith Review
• LEGO Ideas Medieval Blacksmith Set Modifications