Author: Stacey at myjigsawjournal

Holiday Books In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling13 Comments

Holiday Books – Re-marks – 1000 pieces

Another holiday puzzle already on my board, and we’re not even halfway through November! Surprised that I have so many Christmas puzzles here? So am I! Although, thinking about it just now I realized that almost all of them were given to me – they aren’t ones I purchased, because….well, you know.

In fact, of the twenty-one holiday puzzles here at the house left to be assembled, I purchased ONE of them. The set of 12 advent calendar puzzles was a gift from hubby, three are thrift store puzzles mom bought, five (including the one I’m currently working on) were sent to me by my bestest puzzle buddy Penny, and only one of them was actually purchased by me.

When I tell you the title of the Christmas puzzle I bought, you’ll get it. It’s called Ruby the Red Beaked Emu. I just gotta be me! 😁

I’ve already put together three holiday puzzles, and I gotta tell you – I’m sick of them already. Yep. Once I finish this one I’ll be taking a break from them. In fact, there are two 1000 piece Christmas puzzles that perhaps will be put away for next year because I just don’t want to make myself put together puzzles because it’s the right season. I’m supposed to be having fun!

Eighteen of the puzzles are 100 pieces or less, so I’m planning to save those until December; I can assemble them in the morning with a hot cup of coffee and start my days with a completed puzzle. Doesn’t that sound lovely? It does to me.

This collage puzzle I’m working on right now is going pretty quickly, and other than a very loose fit I’m enjoying it. Collages make me happy.

Even if they are holiday themed. 😉

Africa Map

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles10 Comments

Africa Map by Liv Wan – Artifact – 441 pieces

What a fun puzzle! This is a testament to the fact that even though an image may not be what jumps out at you at first when you’re shopping, it can still be a highly entertaining puzzle to assemble – I absolutely loved this one. 💖

Normally I prefer a Victorian cut in a wooden puzzle, or better yet something even more out of the ordinary; this puzzle has “grid cut” shapes, and usually I would pass right on by this one in favor of something more “interesting”. But offer me 50% off and free shipping and I cannot be responsible for what happens. Someone gave me access to my debit card and left me alone and unsupervised – even with my very advanced PADS disorder. Not my fault – not my fault at all! 😇

Look at these fabulous whimsies! All manner of African animals, their beautiful people, even buildings and monuments. Stunning!

It’s a little tricky to find, but just below and to the left of the elephant on the right side of the picture is a street food called Bunny Chow. I was intrigued when this section was put together and did a little research into what it was; it sounds amazing! It’s a mix of spices, meat, chickpeas, and potatoes served in a hollowed out bread bowl – yummmm. As long as it isn’t too spicy I’d be all over that! (My daughter finds my lack of spice tolerance amusing, and when something is too hot for me she says “OMG Mom, you are SOOOOO white!”)

There were so many interesting animals, foods, and natural wonders to see in this image – 100 pictures wouldn’t be enough to show you everything. I adored it once I started assembling, and loved learning about all the regional foods and native animals. Ever heard of a Giant Ghana Snail? I hadn’t. How about Suya? It’s a traditional smoked, spiced meat skewer that’s popular in much of West Africa. (Also, this little picture is a small shout-out to one of my regular readers from Nigeria – hi Tayo!) 😎

I had such a good time putting this one together that it makes me re-think all the puzzles I pass on by when I’m puzzling shopping online. First impressions aren’t always correct.

Hmmm, maybe I need to stop typing and get myself to a puzzle website – tout suite!

Kitt-TNT

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles8 Comments

Kitt-TNT – Cardinal – 300 pieces

When I saw this at the thrift store I thought this image was funny and looked like it might be fun to assemble. I was right. It went together really quickly, but I enjoyed it very much.

The quality of this puzzle was good/fair. The pieces were on the thin side and sometimes the fit was a bit wonky, but it’s a pre-loved puzzle so I can’t say for certain how it was newly purchased. The finish was shiny, which made the darker areas more challenging; but overall the quality was good.

Have you heard of Exploding Kittens? I hadn’t. Apparently it’s a card game, I’d never heard of it before. This puzzle comes with a bonus card to augment your deck, shown below…

I looked it up, and the website says it’s a “kitty powered version of Russian Roulette”. Whatever that means. The box they showed says this is “A card game for people who are into kittens and explosions and laser beams and sometimes goats.” It sounds funny, but I’m not sure it’s for me.

I’m an old fuddy-duddy, and prefer card games like euchre, gin, sevens, canasta, pinochle, etc. But, hey, to each their own, right?

Whether or not I’d enjoy playing the card game doesn’t matter at all, what matters was whether or not I enjoyed this puzzle; and I absolutely did. 💣🐱💣

Christmas Spirit In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling, Thrift Store Puzzles8 Comments

Christmas Spirit by Susan Winget – Ceaco – 577 pieces

Yesterday I got a text from my puzzle pal Penny, that said “Stop the presses! Stacey has a very Christmasy/Santie Claus puzzle on her board??? Am I in the Twilight Zone?” No ma’am, it isn’t the Twilight Zone and you’re not having a stroke, I am working on my Christmas puzzles right now!

I’ve got one going in the bathroom, and this one on my board; and there are a couple of them finished already too! (You can see them on the November page if you don’t believe me – but I really did do them 😎)

This puzzle is a special edition Ceaco puzzle with a red velvet backing and whimsy pieces. Mom got it at the thrift store (she was the thrift store ninja), and it still has the sticker on it – she paid 99 cents for it! Unfortunately even though I just got started it is obvious it won’t be complete…

This lovely piece was in the box. It has obviously been chewed up by a pet; the velvet backing is gone, and the front of the piece looks like this. Sigh. Maybe it’s just me, but I think I’d rather a person just tossed this piece in the trash and didn’t put it in the box to be donated. It would be better to get to the end and realize there’s a missing piece than to find this while you’re laying out pieces and know for sure this puzzle won’t be complete. That’s just my opinion of course, but that’s how I feel.

Anyway, I won’t get much work done on this today as I’m off to deliver a birthday cake to a friend and probably spend a little time visiting. When I get back I’ll most likely be wiped out and spend the rest of the day in bed. So, I’ve got an hour or so this morning to puzzle, and then I’m off.

Happy puzzling today my friends!

Glorious Morning

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles10 Comments

Glorious Morning by Jane Maday – E&L Corp. – 250 pieces

This beautiful image is unfortunately attached to a puzzle of very poor quality – but I enjoyed assembling it anyways. Things don’t always have to be perfect; in fact, if they were things would get boring pretty quickly.

It’s been a while since I’ve done an E&L puzzle, and the quality of this one reminded me why that was. Thin pieces, sloppy fit, and shiny finish – these are puzzles I usually pass right on by. It was a thrift store puzzle given to me by a friend though, which is why I wanted to assemble it.

It was such a small puzzle (14 x 10 inches) that I just put all the pieces on the board. I tried to just put them wherever, but the OCD kicked in and I ended up laying them out neatly in rows – couldn’t help myself! 🤷‍♀️

I started with the four birds and then started filling in the birdhouses and flowers. It wasn’t an easy puzzle, but was still fun. The missing piece was a little disappointing, but it’s par for the course sometimes. Thrift store puzzles come with a bit of risk, but usually the ones I find are complete. When they’re not, it isn’t too much of a problem; the task is to put together all the pieces you have, and I completed my task.

I’ve done quite a few puzzles with artwork by Jane Maday; they’re usually outdoors with birds and flowers and they’re always entertaining to put together. Despite the quality issues it was still fun – in fact I enjoyed it even more than I thought I would. 🐦❤