This is the 3rd of the mini STEM puzzles (although if I’d done them in order this should have been the second – Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math). My husband and I had a great time assembling them all, and I highly recommend them.
There are only 150 pieces each, and they come in a test tube. The label serves as both a poster showing what the finished puzzle will look like, and it has a quiz on the back relating to the subject… (click on the photos twice to see a larger image)
If you enjoy working with very small pieces, or would just like to give them a try, they are definitely recommended. We had a great time with all 4 puzzles; only 1 more to go!
All the puzzles in this 8-in-1 box of Sweet & Salty foods are nameless, so I’ve been naming them as I finish each review. Obviously, this one is named Macaroons – I know, I’m being less than creative. Perhaps I’ll name the next one something enigmatic and weird; something that has nothing to do with the food shown on the puzzle. That’ll be fun to come up with!
This puzzle was one of the reasons I chose this 8-in-1 box to review. I love the look of it and hoped it would be great fun, thankfully I was right. I love the pastels (even though I usually prefer bright colors), and I finished the puzzle in one day. Usually I have to break it up over several days; but I was enjoying myself so much and was so absorbed in the puzzle that the pain that normally interferes seemed almost muted. It’s an amazing gift when puzzling can do that for me. 🎁
Ceaco puzzles have a great selection of images to choose from, although sometimes I find the quality to be lacking. The quality of these puzzles has been better than I expected, especially from a multipack. The fit is excellent, the images are beautifully reproduced, and the pieces are a good thickness. Sometimes the chipboard is fanning on the backs of the pieces, and there are some that aren’t cut all the way through; overall though, the quality is good. Click the link above to see their puzzles currently in stock at Puzzle Warehouse.
I’ve assembled 3 of the puzzles from this box so far, and I feel confident in recommending them; the quality is better than expected, and for $16.99 for 8 puzzles you just can’t go wrong. The box contains 2 300-piece, 4 500-piece, and 1 each 750 and 1000 piece puzzles – it’s quite a good value and I’m having a wonderful time assembling them!
Macaroons gets 2 cookies way up, and a glass of milk too!🍪🍪🥛
Details:
Title: “Macaroons”
Artist: iStock
Brand: Ceaco
Piece count: 500 pieces
Size: Approx. 14 x 18 in. (36 x 46 cm)
Purchased: N/A, sent for review
Quality:
Board: Good
Cutting: Good
Image: Very good
Box: Average, 8 puzzles in 1 box
Fit: Excellent
Puzzle Dust: Small amount
Piece cut: Grid cut
Piece shapes: Good variety
Finish: Slightly shiny finish, lays flat
Overall Rating: Good, recommended
I received this product at no cost in order to facilitate this review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are truthful and 100% my own.
Not really my favorite, but a nice palate cleanser. Sometimes I just need a quick 300 piecer to feed my addiction while I decide what larger puzzle I’ll be assembling next.
There’s nothing wrong with the puzzle itself; the pieces are ok and fit together well, the image just doesn’t tickle my fancy. Perhaps on another day I’d be more in the mood for this puzzle and would have loved it – when I assembled it, it just wasn’t that day.
It’s a busy image, with lots of cute and not so cute creatures hiding everywhere. The orange octopus was my favorite, and the sunken ship was harder to put together than it looks!
Fairytale Fantasia by Aimee Stewart – Ravensburger – 1000 pieces
And now we’ve come to the end of the oldies but goodies, this is the last of the puzzles from over 2 years ago that I’ve never posted about. It’s been great fun going back and remembering all these puzzles!
It’s odd to me that I can remember specific things about each of the puzzles from back then, but I can’t tell you how old I am without doing math in my head first. What did I have for lunch yesterday? I have no idea, but I can tell you many things about this puzzle I did about 2 1/2 years ago. Weird old lady brain! 👵
This shelf, for me, was the easiest of the Aimee Stewart shelves that I’ve assembled. Glorious Vintage, Fantastic Voyage, World of Books, etc., these were all much more of a challenge in my opinion. I enjoyed them all, but this was the least difficult; Glorious Vintage required the most brain power, all that green had my head spinning!
For Fairytale Fantastia all the books, the beautiful colors, and the whimsical characters made this puzzle a joy to put together, and one of my favorite shelves by this artist. If I’m being honest, pretty much all puzzles by Aimee Stewart are in the favorites category (except for her Neuschwanstein image, Castle Dream. It’s just not my cup of tea/pile of pieces). 😉
And as usual, the quality of this puzzle was as excellent as the artwork. Ravensburger pieces have a wonderful feel in your hands, the “softclick” technology provides a great fit, and the image reproduction is amazingly done. No wonder they’re one of my favorite puzzle brands!
I wish there were more Aimee Stewart puzzles here at the house that I could dive into; but, alas, I’m Stewart-less at the moment. All this reminiscing has me in the mood for her awesome use of colors and whimsy – and looking at her artwork always makes me a little happier than I was before. ☺
Droids was much more fun than I anticipated, I love Buffalo’s smaller piece count puzzles. The fit is excellent, and the pieces are the perfect size (for me). Great puzzle!
I don’t always like the 1000 piece puzzles by Buffalo, sometimes I have to be in just the right mood. I find the piece shapes are all too similar. Not so with their 300 and 500 piece puzzles; I find the pieces to be the perfect Goldilocks size – not too small and not too big. The shapes are less “boxy”, and they offer more variety in the size of the pieces as well. The image reproduction is stellar and the fit is wonderful. Their smaller piece count puzzles are my favorite. Click the link to check out Buffalo Games and see all of their available puzzles, they have some gorgeous images to choose from!
I’m not the world’s biggest Star Wars fan, but looking for some 300 and 500 piece puzzles to keep me entertained I decided I might as well give these droids a try. It didn’t look like a ton of fun, but fortunately looks can be deceiving and it was very entertaining. I had a great time putting it together, even more fun than making the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs! (That seemed kinda Star Wars nerdy – I know – but I have so much useless information and quotes in my brain and I can’t get them out!)
If you or someone you know is a Star Wars fan, I absolutely recommend this puzzle. It’s the right amount of difficulty and the right amount of fun. 🤖
My Jigsaw Journal 