Since 2010, fans of Kawada Co. Ltd.'s mini-sized Japanese building block toy nanoblocks have competed for the honor of winning a prize in the Nanoblock Award. For those who are unfamiliar with Nanoblocks, as their name implies, they are tiny, about 1/4 the size of a Lego block. Moreover, whereas Lego blocks are typically sold in cardboard boxes, Nanoblocks, due to their diminutive size, are also sold in plastic bags for simple projects under 200 pieces. Kawada also makes a larger sized building block toy line called Nanoblock+ for younger ages.

This year's award winners have just been announced, and their creations are definitely worth a look:

2017 Awardees

1. Under 200 pieces division

Tatsujin

(According to the website, this is "an honorary title accredited by Kawada Co., Ltd., conferred on nanoblock builders who have high skills in assembling nanoblocks, with an outstanding sense of creating ideas and glorious history of receiving awards in nanoblock creative work contests.")

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "Umbrella"
• Creator: seibu_lina0505(yama)

General

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "Stuffed with sweet red bean paste! Steaming hot Taiyaki cake"
• Creator: nomuzox

2. "No limit" division

Tatsujin

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "Red King Crab"
• Creator: Lupinas

General

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "Kraken, King of the Sea"
• Creator: Blockman

3. nanoblock+ division

Tatsujin

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "Ikebana"
• Creator: Kura

General

• Grand Prize:
• Title: "White guitar and amp"
• Creator: Boss P

For the full list of nanoblock Award winners, please visit their website.

Kawada Co. Ltd. likes to reward their previous awardees by turning their creations into products. From December, the following kits based on past award-winning creations will go on sale: (You can review their entire catalog here)