Holiday Parade

On July 26, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles2 Comments

I didn’t want to like this puzzle, but honestly I had a really good time assembling it. Even though all the pieces were what I call “ballerinas” it was an entertaining puzzle to put together.

This is the 3rd Briarpatch puzzle I’ve assembled, and all 3 had differing levels of quality. I wonder why it is that some companies seem to have no consistency in the quality of their puzzles? Perhaps they have particular manufacturers for various puzzles; I can’t really say. What I will say is that it’s disappointing at times, if I’ve done one of their better quality puzzles and feel confident purchasing another – I end up becoming discouraged by the inconsistency.

The quality of this particular Briarpatch was fair to middlin’ (technical term 🙂 ) The pieces were a good thickness and the fit was excellent – you could pick up the entire puzzle from just the middle and nothing came apart. Unfortunately that’s where the good ends; there was no variety in piece shape at all, the image reproduction was fuzzy in places, and the finished puzzle did not lay flat.

At first glance it doesn’t really look like a Christmas puzzle with Uncle Sam and the giant clown balloons, but once you take a second look there are wreaths everywhere and Santa is in the parade. By the way, why on Earth is Santa sitting on a giant swan atop his sleigh? I find that a little odd. Is that just me?

Not being a fan of Christmas puzzles, and having only fair quality you’d think this would be a puzzle I wouldn’t have enjoyed. I thought I wouldn’t enjoy it either, in fact I didn’t want to enjoy it – it just didn’t look like a fun puzzle to me. Turns out, I had a great time with it in spite of myself. 👍🎄

Interconnection

On July 25, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

This puzzle is the last in a series of 3 by Richard Welker, all the images were so much fun to assemble! I love the look of all of them, and all three made for excellent puzzling. (Sorry about the glare, I usually do a better job with the pictures)

The quality was fair, but how I wish it were better! The board is made of many layers of board, and right out of the box some pieces were split and peeling. Why can’t Ceaco up the quality even just a little bit? They have some fantastic images, but the quality is great on one puzzle and terrible on another. The image reproduction was very good, as was the fit; but the quality of the chipboard used is a major component with puzzles, and it’s hard to ignore when it’s bad. 😦

These images by Richard Welker are eye-catching and interesting, and I bought them knowing the quality might be less than optimal. I’m not sorry I did, the image made up for a lot. There’s one more image by this artist that I’ve found, it’s not in the same series, but it’s been produced by Ceaco/Brainwright….

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I think it looks like fun! Hopefully I’ll run across it one of these days, it’s interesting and calming and full of bright, beautiful colors. 🙂

The Village Tree

On July 24, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

This puzzle has a wonderfully bright color scheme, it was fun to assemble and a pretty finished image. I love these micro puzzles; I can put them in my purse and take them anywhere that I know I’ll be waiting for a while. It’s much more fun to pass the time putting together a puzzle than just sitting and reading old magazines or staring at something on my phone.

I was a little disappointed that the whimsies were a rerun of the whimsies in the Yuletide Puppies micro puzzle that I assembled earlier this month. I also realize that there must be a limited number of whimsy pieces per subject. They probably didn’t think someone would go crazy and buy all of the micro puzzles they’ve got in one shot like I did!

This image would be fun to assemble in larger piece counts too, but it isn’t really my taste. It’s pretty and bright, but the subject matter just doesn’t do it for me. If you like Christmas puzzles, this might be a good one for you. It’s available up to 1500 pieces by Wentworth, and was also produced in a 1000 piece count by White Mountain. There’s also a slightly altered image (with no presents under the tree) from Gibsons in a 500 piece. It really is a beautiful puzzle, I would recommend it from any of these companies.

After putting together 4 of these winter themed micro puzzles in one day I remembered that I still have four more 250 piece Wentworth puzzles yet to assemble. I’m recovering today from another all day car trip to a doctor’s appointment yesterday – perhaps today’s the day to start one of those. 😎

Shoes

On July 23, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

I am absolutely in love with these small, separate, shaped puzzles from Lafayette Puzzle Factory. Assembling them is so much fun! I bought 8 of the series, and there are still more that I’d like to get my hands on.

The quality is about medium-level in my opinion. The chipboard has different colored backing for each mini puzzle, and sometimes the die doesn’t cut all the way through this backing. I enjoy these puzzles so much that it doesn’t really bother me that some pieces need to be separated. They are another example of how I’m willing to overlook certain quality issues if the image or assembly is particularly entertaining.

The pieces are a good thickness, there are an excellent variety of shapes, and the fit is very good. The image reproduction is excellent with bright, beautiful colors. They are truly stunning!

The shoes are beautiful as artwork, but there is NO WAY that I would be able to wear them. Perhaps I could sit down first and then put them on, I would look pretty but wouldn’t have to actually walk anywhere. These are my two favorites; I have nowhere to wear them, and nothing to wear them with, but I just love the look of them….

The whole time I was putting these together I kept thinking they would be a great idea for decorating a teenage girl’s room. Most young girls can’t wait to be older and high heels are definitely part of that – at least they were for me. I would have loved to have had these puzzles on my walls when I was younger.

If you’re interested in these gorgeous shaped shoe puzzles I highly recommend them. I had the best time assembling them – two heels kicked way up! 👠👠

Lots and Lots of Spots

On July 22, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Very cute puzzle, with lots of bright colors to help out with all those spots! If it wasn’t for the terribly tight fit I would have really enjoyed this puzzle. 😐

This was another Springbok with an EXTREMELY tight fit, and it makes the assembly much less entertaining for me. Some people enjoy a fit this tight, but I do not. Every piece needs quite a bit of work and pressure to make sure it’s properly connected. Ugh. The edges curl up and you can pick up the entire puzzle with two fingers. I’ve found that when the fit is this tight you can even stand the puzzle up on it’s bottom edge!

The puppies are so adorable, and the chunks of color on the floor, balls, and stools helped to make sure all those spots didn’t make the assembly too frustrating or tedious. Once all the color was assembled the random cut made it a little easier to find which spot went in which spot. 😁

According to the internet this is a “vintage” Springbok puzzle, so if you’re looking for one you might want to try thrift stores or online shops like ebay. This one had an awfully tight fit, but perhaps they’re not all that way. If the image is one that tickles your fancy, I hope you can find one out there!