Author: Stacey at myjigsawjournal

Tea Bath

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles13 Comments

Tea Bath by Stasia Burrington – Artifact – 210 pieces

This is another of the very cute puzzles brought to my attention by my Deputy Chief Puzzle Enabler – Penny (aka Puzzle Momma). I mean, look how adorable this image is, how in the world I am supposed to be able to resist that?

The answer is that I cannot. I am weak, and easily swayed by a pretty “face” on the top of a puzzle box. 😍

We weren’t sure what some of the whimsy pieces (mostly the people working out) had to do with the image, but Artifact’s website says that the puzzle is full of “me-time” and grooming themed whimsies. I’m sure for many people exercising is a way to make time for yourself, I just didn’t think of that because my only exercise is half a sit-up in the morning when I wake up. 😁

We did notice in the completed puzzle some of the grooming going on though…

You can see in the lower left corner that there are two monkeys in the process of grooming each other, and two cats to their right maybe just having some meow time. 🐒🐈

We’re not sure why, but my brother-in-law puzzled with us on this one; he hadn’t seemed very interested in helping with any of the previous puzzles so we were pleasantly surprised that he wanted to join in. At the beginning all four of us were working together, until my husband got tired and decided he needed some me time with his pillow.

My poor brother-in-law was bamboozled by the border though; he decided early on that the border was his responsibility. The image on the box made it look as though the border was a “normal” one, but it was a little tricky at the top. Let’s just say he was not amused. (My sis and I thought it was hilarious 🤣) He kept saying that there had to be pieces missing, and there weren’t enough edges! I told him sometimes they trick you and it may not be straight all the way around, but he just kept repeating that there weren’t enough pieces. There was a lot of giggling going on, quietly, so we didn’t upset him. It still makes me smile just thinking about it. Poor guy. 😁

Another beautifully made Artifact puzzle, and one that sis fell in love with while we were assembling it. I wasn’t planning on leaving it with her, but she must have said “This puzzle is so much fun!” at least 20 times while we were working on it. She loved the image and the unique pieces, and had such a good time putting it together that I decided pretty quickly it would be in a very loving home and well cared for if it were in her hands.

Hubby took this picture as he was on his way to bed. I’m on the right, and my SIL is in the middle with her hubs on the left. Ain’t we an adorable group of “seniors” working on our jigsaw puzzle?

Beethoven

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

Beethoven (Peanuts) – Ceaco – 100 pieces

This cute little puzzle was at the cabin, and you know I can’t resist a kids puzzle (even if it is a Ceaco). Unfortunately one of the pieces had obviously escaped, and it’s in a pretty obvious place too; poor Snoopy is missing a section of his doghouse. Nevertheless, we had fun putting it together – and hubby helped with this one too!

You can tell by the picture above that this puzzle has been well loved; there are several pieces with the image lifting up from the tabs, and a few places where it doesn’t lay completely flat. But I can’t blame Ceaco for those things, this puzzle has been assembled more than a few times – by children. Kids aren’t always as gentle as we might want them to be with their toys. So, all of that is to say that the quality of this puzzle was actually pretty good, it seems to have held up well to repeated assemblies and disassemblies.

It didn’t take long with three adults working together, but it was still quite enjoyable. Sometimes working on a puzzle made for children makes you feel as if you’re really good at puzzles. Look how fast we got that done, we are FANTASTIC at putting together jigsaw puzzles! 😎

Plus, I spent the weekend explaining to everyone that part of the reason puzzles are so enjoyable is because you get that little hit of dopamine when you find the piece you’re looking for or make a connection. Your brain is sending you chemicals that make you feel good, and who wouldn’t want that? Puzzles are amazing!

We all got our little ego/dopamine boost when we finished this – and then we must have spent 45 minutes to an hour looking through all the other puzzles at the cabin for the missing piece.

Wherever he is, he chose his hiding place very well. 🔎🧩

Bluebells In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling2 Comments

Bluebells – Wentworth (Mini Mindful) – 40 pieces

My son has picked out the next puzzle for me to assemble (a 300 piece called Magical Journey), and I’m putting it off just a bit by having a nice, hot cup of coffee this morning and putting together this Mini Mindful puzzle first.

It shouldn’t take me too long, but it’s nice to work with a well made wooden puzzle, and the Mini Mindful puzzles require a bit of extra concentration so you can clear your mind of all the stresses of your day and just focus on the puzzle.

Discerning Dissectologists know that even a small puzzle can help you de-stress, calm your nerves, bring down your blood pressure, stave off memory loss, quiet anxiety, and even help put your brain into a meditative state similar to dreaming. Now why wouldn’t you want a bit of that every single day?

I know I do. 🧩💚

Buffalo

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

Buffalo by Phil Lewis – Liberty – 148 pieces

Is that not a beautiful and interesting image for a puzzle? My favorite sister-in-law and I put this one together in her cabin in Northern Michigan, and of course we had a marvelous time. A great puzzle – assembled with someone you love spending time with – I couldn’t ask for more! 💟

I bought this specifically for my brother and sister-in-law as a gift for having us up at the cabin and putting up with us for an entire weekend. Sis and I put it together just the two of us, but my hope is that their whole family will enjoy putting it together many, many times while they’re up there vacationing.

There were great outdoorsy whimsy pieces, but we especially loved the fox, the elk, and the moose. Perfect for putting together at the cabin; there aren’t any moose in the lower peninsula that I know of, but still it’s a great puzzle for assembling at a cabin in the woods. The whimsies were all so lovely and made for such great shapes on the pieces around them – absolutely fantastic!

We didn’t notice until the puzzle was finished and I turned it over that the swirly pieces were a snake! Such delightful whimsies in a beautifully made Victorian cut puzzle assembled with loved ones – we had a wonderful time with this puzzle and thoroughly enjoyed every single piece of it. 💖

This was the first time I’ve taken puzzles with me on vacation, and let me tell you it will DEFINITELY be happening again (this week, in fact). Spending time over a puzzle with loved ones; talking about everything, nothing, or just the puzzle itself made for beautiful memories that I will cherish for a very long time.

This was the first puzzle of a great vacation. 😊

Color Garden

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

Color Garden – MicroPuzzles – 150 pieces

This puzzle has an awesome image with blocks of color that I very much enjoyed assembling. This is the companion puzzle to Abstract Love that I posted about previously – there is a line drawing on the back of this one as well for you to color in with the paints provided in the subscription box for that month.

Again, for me, choosing which colors to put where and making certain that I didn’t mess anything up would have been stressful for me – so I chose to only assemble the puzzle.

If you were unsure about whether or not you placed a piece correctly on the front you could also use the line drawing on the back to make sure you had it right; which is handy when assembling the puzzle in a place with less than optimal lighting. 🛀

With my daughter really getting into these mini puzzles and working on them whenever she’s here they’ve been going rather quickly; at this rate I’ll be running out of them before too long – even with my subscription. That’s alright, we can always get more. I love that she wants to help me with them. 💛