Author: Stacey at myjigsawjournal

Africa Map In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling8 Comments

Africa Map by Liv Wan – Artifact – 441 pieces

I’m REALLY enjoying this assembly, though it’s taking much longer than usual for a puzzle with this number of pieces. It doesn’t matter though, the enjoyment is the point – not speed or comparing myself to how long it “should” take.

This image isn’t one I would normally go for, but it was another puzzle I bought for 50% off earlier in the year when Artifact was having a sale. Honestly, I felt like buying just one puzzle for $18, Medicine Teepee, didn’t really warrant the free shipping that was offered. I know, if they offer free shipping I can buy however many or few puzzles I want; truth be told I wanted some cool wooden puzzles and getting only one at half price just wasn’t enough for me. The PADS took over and I make no apologies.

So I bought this one, and even though it isn’t an image I would normally go for, nor the piece shape I prefer in wooden puzzles, I’m loving it. 💕

When I work a wooden puzzle I do not look at the box image, it makes the puzzle last longer. Slowing down and having to pay attention to each shape, each color, each texture makes for more immersive puzzling – for lack of a better word. I become completely engrossed in how things fit together and the time spent puzzling is so relaxing and enjoyable.

If I were more familiar with the geography of Africa I might be quicker at putting this together, as the interior of the continent is crammed full of images from the many countries; food, people, destinations, animals, buildings, etc. Hopefully though, I’m learning and absorbing the geography as I go. (I did know where Madagascar was, so that little island wasn’t difficult to place!)

I’m having a great time puzzling today, how about you?

Choose Joy

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles12 Comments

Choose Joy – MicroPuzzles – 150 pieces

Is this not an adorable image? It’s just too cute! The middle bit went together pretty quickly and easily, but the blue background and the edges themselves were much more difficult than anticipated. Still, challenging puzzles can be highly entertaining – and this one was.

This image is part of the Puzzle Pandas Kindness Collection from MicroPuzzles; you are encouraged to pay it forward and share this puzzle with someone else when you have completed it. Puzzle Pandas was started during the pandemic as a way to show kindness by sharing puzzles in your community. It’s a way to upcycle your puzzles and give someone an unexpected pick me up in the form of a free puzzle. You can check out the Puzzle Pandas website by clicking the link.

Rather than leaving this little test tube somewhere in my community, I’ve decided to give it away here on the blog, where I know whomever receives it will (hopefully) enjoy it. I know these small puzzles aren’t for everyone, but I hope there’s someone among my readership who will enjoy assembling this adorable little puzzle and perhaps pass it along in their community once they’ve completed it to keep the joy going.

So, if this looks like something you might want to assemble, you can enter the drawing by leaving a comment on this post. Each comment will be numbered and the random number generator will pick the winner on October 11, 2023. It doesn’t matter where in the world you live, you can enter the drawing.

Good luck! Happy puzzling my friends!

Vintage Halloween

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

Vintage Halloween by Finchley Paper Arts – Bits and Pieces – 500 pieces

My apologies for the cockeyed picture, I have no idea what was wrong with me today when I took it. I normally check to be sure I’ve got a good picture before I disassemble the puzzle, but it seems I was in a hurry and took it apart before making sure. Please forgive the wonky image.

Good quality puzzle, though very shiny. I didn’t care for the triangular piece shapes; my thought was that I’d get used to it as the puzzle went on, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. I was forever being stumped and confused by the way everything connected. I’ve worked puzzles with a wide variety of different and unusual shapes and have enjoyed them all – until this puzzle with it’s oddly shaped triangular pieces. These shapes just aren’t my pile of pieces.

My first Halloween puzzle of the season, and honestly I’m surprised I remembered to get it going to have it ready in the queue. Yay me and my aging, menopausal brain!

These are a few of my favorite sections, although the artwork in each one was beautiful in it’s own way. The time and attention that went into making these images still impresses me. If these are actually vintage (and they look as if they are) there weren’t computers or AI to make these for the artist, they were each painstakingly drawn/painted. *If they’re not actually old and just made to look like it – forget what I just said.

Do I sound like an old person, pining for the ways of yesteryear? Well, it seems I am an old person now, things seemed much simpler even just ten years ago. Sigh.

Happy Halloween season everyone! 🦇👻

Grin & Bones In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling2 Comments

Grin & Bones – MicroPuzzles – 150 pieces

And here I thought I had all my Halloween puzzles done and ready to publish – NOPE! Saturday I received my monthly subscription box from MicroPuzzles and it had two more spooky holiday puzzles for me. Normally the MicroPuzzles aren’t completed at my big puzzle board, but there are exceptions to every rule.

There are already enough puzzles in the queue for the entire month of October, so now things are going to have to be moved around a bit to make sure these puzzles are published before Halloween. It isn’t too much of a big deal, but usually I post about my puzzles in the order they are completed. But like I said, there are exceptions to every rule. 😉

The first of the two new puzzles is already finished, and this one has just begun. There wasn’t much puzzling done yesterday because I hurt my shoulder just moving around in bed (getting old ain’t for sissies), so I wasn’t at my puzzle board for very long.

I will get this little guy finished today though, it’s too cute to sit here for very long, and at only 150 pieces it won’t be that difficult. Hope you’re having as much fun with your current puzzle as I’m having with mine. To all members of the puzzle posse everywhere – happy puzzling! 🧩

Coronium

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

Coronium by Nadieh Bremer – Artifact – 172 pieces

If you’re thinking that this looks like quite a challenging puzzle to assemble – you would be absolutely correct! It was much more difficult than I gave it credit for; although I did assemble it during the week that an extra medication was added to my regimen that made me feel very dizzy and disoriented, so perhaps it was the meds and not any lack of intelligence on my part that made it seem so hard. 😉

Fantastic image again by Nadieh Bremer, this one almost seems as though it’s a companion puzzle to Nebulium but it really isn’t. The artist seems to enjoy creating images with color gradients and science mixed together – and I’m glad she does! Coronium was the suggested name of a chemical element thought to exist in the late 1800s. It wasn’t a new element, just ionized iron in the atmosphere around the sun. This is her version of the element, should it actually exist. Isn’t it gorgeous?

I’ve got one more of Nadieh’s puzzles here from Artifact and am very much looking forward to putting it together. It’s over 400 pieces though so I’m certain it will definitely put my gray cells to the test.

I didn’t pull any whimsies to photograph separately as most of the pieces seemed to be fantastical and interestingly shaped. I did recognize the symbol for pi, but that was about it. I didn’t go very far in my mathematics classes (Algebra II was as far as I got), so perhaps there are more symbols that I just don’t know. I’m certain someone will let me know if that’s the case.

Absolutely LOVED this one even though at times I felt stupid and thick and that it might be too difficult for me. It wasn’t too much for me, and it was so interesting and different from most of the puzzles that I assemble that I couldn’t help but fall in love with it. The colors, the shape, the pieces and the way they went together all made for a truly amazing assembly. 💙💛💚