Christmas Eve Puzzleball

On November 10, 2018November 11, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments

Mom found this Ravensburger puzzle ball at the thrift store – unopened! We assembled it together, and working just by the picture it was harder than you’d think. Christmas puzzles already! 😮

You could work it by the numbers if you prefer, as each piece is numbered with an arrow showing where the next piece goes. We go about half and half; we use the numbers to separate them into groups of 10, then we turn each group over and assemble them using the picture.

It’s a vintage looking image, and very pretty.

I wish I knew the name of the artwork, but all I could find was the artist’s name. It reminds me of an old movie, but I can’t for the life of me remember the name of it!

It came with both the stand it’s sitting on, and a ribbon with which to hang it on a tree; although for some reason there are no instructions on how to assemble it and add the ribbon. We figured it out (you have to put it between the last couple of pieces at the top), but decided we’d rather just let it sit on the stand. 😉

I love these puzzle balls, I’m not even sure I know exactly why. They’re fun for me, end of story!

*Is it terrible of me to hope that this year for Christmas many people get gifts of puzzles that they don’t really want, or puzzles that the family does together only once over the holiday, so that afterwards the thrift stores will be full of puzzles for us to find? It probably is terrible and selfish of me, but……

Review: Oh My, What a Pie!

On November 9, 2018November 9, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews4 Comments

This post is sponsored by Puzzle Warehouse.

This was the most difficult puzzle so far from the Sweet & Salty multipack. It took me at least 10 times longer than a 300 piece normally does. Wow. And I have to say it looks amazingly real – if it were also a scented puzzle I wouldn’t be able to keep my son away from it!

Again, I’m naming these myself as they aren’t named on the box or in the foldout poster enclosed. I started the first few with just plain, boring, descriptive names like Donut and Macaroons. Yawn. Then I decided to punch it up a bit with What, No Chocolate?! and today’s Oh My, What a Pie! I’m hoping to keep finding more fun and interesting names, and perhaps I’ll come up with some enigmatic, bizarre sounding name that has absolutely nothing to do with the picture. 😁

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.

This image was quite difficult, and had me working it completely differently than I normally would. I started off by separating all the pieces by shape, which is something I usually only do near the end of the puzzle or when there are large areas of one color. It doesn’t look as though it would be so challenging, but it really was! So much so that it overwhelmed me and I set it aside for several days and only worked on it a few pieces at a time.

As usual though, the closer you get to the end, the more you get excited to finish and see the entire puzzle completed. It’s not an easy one, but I was so proud when it was done! If you enjoy a challenge, consider the Sweet & Salty multipack by Ceaco, I’m enjoying it very much! 4 down, 4 to go. 👍

Details:

Title: Oh My, What a Pie!
Artist: iStock
Brand: Ceaco
Piece count: 300 pieces
Size: Approx. 14 in. (36 cm)
Purchased: N/A, sent for review

Quality:

Board: Good
Cutting: Good
Image: Very good
Box: Average, 8 puzzles in 1 box
Fit: Very good
Puzzle Dust: Moderate 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.

Hero Worship

On November 8, 2018November 7, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles10 Comments

This is such a fun image, and it made for a great afternoon of puzzling. I love an interesting and different Wysocki, and I also very much enjoy a 300 piece Buffalo puzzle – and this was both. Nice!

I’m recovering from another surgery, so I’ve got a few posts already typed up and they’ve been scheduled to be published every day. Some of them are extremely short and sweet like this one and some are a bit longer; but don’t worry, I’ll be checking in every day when I’m feeling up to it, and will be back and posting lots and lots of words about all my puzzles very soon.😎

I’m Having the Best Time!

On November 7, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling4 Comments

Sugar Magnolia whimsies — Having fun with whimsies!

Well, I was right, hubby did get me the most expensive puzzle from my wishlist as a birthday present. I’m assembling it now and it’s coming together slowly, but slow is ok with me – I’m having the best time!

I tried to be upset with him, but I apparently misplaced my distress when I opened the box. Whoops. It’s called Sugar Magnolia from Liberty Puzzles and it’s GORGEOUS….

large_sugar-magnolia-puzzle-xl

The artwork by Phil Lewis so beautiful and unusual – I love it! Though I don’t think I ever really would have bought it for myself. It’s one of those puzzles I put on my wishlist so I can look at it and sigh wistfully. (You know what I mean, right?) I’m so happy to have it, but I’m also upset with myself for not removing it from the list before I let hubby look at it. It makes no sense, does it? That’s me all over, nonsensical.

Nonsense aside, I am enjoying this puzzle so much! Mom came over to help me get started, and we had the best time spending several minutes just looking at the pieces. Then we poured them out onto a board and, oh my, there were so many! I’ve never had a wooden puzzle with this many pieces, there are almost 900. 😮

The pieces were all laid out, and then I put the box away. That’s part of the reason the assembly is going slowly – we’re not using the image. It makes the wooden puzzle experience last longer and gives me more time to look at and feel the pieces while I contemplate where they should go. I love being in the moment and focused only on the puzzle and it’s pieces. Heavenly!

I spent a bit of silly time setting up the picture above with a few of the whimsies. I have no explanation other than it made me smile. ☺ Adorable, aren’t they?

Review: Hot Air Balloons

On November 6, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews3 Comments

This picture just doesn’t do this puzzle justice, the colors are so bright and beautiful! You know how I love a collage, so imagine my happiness at finding such a colorful, interesting image. 😍

This was my first Hennessy puzzle, I was impressed and enjoyed it very much! The quality was very good, with thick pieces that fit together well, a random cut that kept things interesting, and lovely image reproduction. The colors really are something! In general the quality is very similar to Cobble Hill puzzles; the chipboard used, the cut of the pieces, and the fit are all very much alike.

There were some pieces not completely separated from each other, and the piece shape is quite evident in the finished image – which isn’t great if you want to display the puzzle after assembly. Having only assembled one Hennessy puzzle, I cannot say whether this is typical of this brand or is just because my puzzle was cut with a die that was becoming dull. I always try to err on the side of positivity, so until I work more puzzles from this brand I will say it was most likely a puzzle from the end of a run.

Hot Air Balloons was so entertaining to put together! It’s a bit surprising because I normally stay clear of hot air balloon puzzles. There are so many balloon puzzles, and the images for the most part seem so similar – they’re just not my thing. I’ve done a few, and they were fun to assemble; but when looking at puzzles to purchase I usually skip right over the hot air balloons. This image, however, is very different. And a collage! 💖

These are 3 of my favorites, but honestly, I loved them all! Each background was so different, each balloon was so fun – for me this is a perfect image for puzzling, and it made me very, very happy. Every time I look at it I start singing a song in my head from The 5th Dimension (from the late 1960’s) ….. 🎶Up, up and away in my beautiful, my beautiful balloon🎶

Hot Air Balloons is definitely recommended, I absolutely adored it!

Details: