Hengest and Horsa

On May 15, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

This was the second of the Victory wooden puzzles that hubby bought for me, and it seems as though the ridiculously loose fit is just how they are. I’m not a fan.

I did enjoy the image much more than the previous one, the colors were much nicer to work with. It’s just a preference thing, many people prefer photographic images but I do not.

I didn’t really think anything about it until my mom mentioned it, but I agree with her that it’s a little annoying that the whimsy pieces have nothing whatsoever to do with the image. Having automobiles, a jet, a battleship, and a tank (I think) makes absolutely no sense for a puzzle with a historical image. Hengest and Horsa were legendary brothers who are said to have led the first Anglo-Saxon invasion of Britain in the 5th century. I wasn’t there, but I’m pretty certain they didn’t invade with fighter jets and Ford Fairlanes!

Hengest and Horsa whimsies

All of the drawbacks aside, I enjoyed assembling this puzzle much more than Swiss Market Square. The image was the main factor for me, as the quality was pretty much exactly the same. The colors are gorgeous, and it was fun to figure out the picture as you went along. The two Victory puzzles I have don’t come with an image on the box, and has an explanation why…

“NO GUIDE PICTURE is provided with this Gold Box VICTORY Jig Saw Puzzle. To do so would destroy much of its absorbing interest. The greatest pleasure is derived from not knowing beforehand the subject which the Puzzle will make and then to see the picture gradually form as the pieces are assembled.”

My husband is a sweetheart, and we just celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary. I appreciate his getting these puzzles for me, it’s so sweet! But having assembled a world class puzzle earlier in the year I feel as though I’ve been ruined for any other vintage puzzle. The amazing quality of the Municipal Building puzzle doesn’t seem to have an equal and every other puzzle has fallen far short for me. It makes everything else seem disappointing. Perhaps I just need time.

The recent Artifact puzzle that mom and I assembled wasn’t disappointing, in fact it was great fun for us. Maybe it’s just vintage puzzles I need to stay away from for a while. 😉

Mountain Cabin

On May 13, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

This is the first Wentworth I’ve had that was missing a piece, though to be fair it is most likely my fault and it’s around here somewhere. There are puzzle boxes everywhere, and there’s even a whole bunch of them sitting in the living room at the moment. It’s entirely possible that a box fell on the floor, or someone was looking at the pieces and they didn’t all find their way back into the box. I’m not worried, it’ll show up eventually.

These micro puzzles are a godsend; grownup images, fantastic wooden pieces, and I am able to start and finish the entire thing in one sitting. Nothing wrong with that at all!

The artwork by Dominic Davison is beautiful, but to be honest I’m not sure it would be as enjoyable as a 1000 piece puzzle – at least not for me. Gorgeous scenic vistas are lovely to look at, but not always as lovely to assemble. Of course it’s just personal preference, and there are most likely a bunch of people who would love this as a larger puzzle.

Coffee and Donuts

On May 10, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

Aimee Stewart puzzles are colorful, entertaining, and full of wonderful details – they’re the best! ❤

I’d love to work this same image in a larger piece count; I’ve done many donut puzzles in my time, and they’ve always been lots of fun. This one was as well, but it would be enjoyable in a 500 or 1000 piece too. 🙂

Hummingbird Garden

On May 8, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments

This is a GORGEOUS image, although it was a little tough in certain sections it was quite fun to assemble. It was very odd to work a grid cut Sunsout, there aren’t many of them around that I’ve seen.

This is another secondhand puzzle that my daughter gave to me, and I’m happy to say it was much nicer to put together than the other one. Sunsout isn’t one of my favorite brands, but I’ve worked some really nice puzzles of theirs too. Most of their puzzles that I’ve done have been a random cut, and this was a refreshing change. The pieces were a good thickness, fit together quite well, and the image reproduction was stellar.

Hummingbird Garden 1

As I’m writing up today’s post it’s reminding me of why I love puzzles. Beautiful images cut into little pieces; and I get to bring order to the chaos. A jumbled bunch of pieces with many colors turns into a complete picture using only my brain and hands. And while I’m putting it together it almost a meditative state; all I think about is what shape fits here, and what color goes there. It’s calming, entertaining, and many other words my sleep-deprived brain can’t think of at the moment. Puzzling rocks! 🤘

I Chickened Out

On May 6, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Jigsaw Puzzling2 Comments

Well, it’s no surprise to me that I didn’t even open the box of The Masters puzzle this weekend. I didn’t touch any puzzles at all. 😦

Luckily for me, I got four puzzles today. Two 300 piecers from mom that are secondhand, and two in the mail from Penny, one of my readers and email pen pals. We swapped a couple of puzzles, which didn’t cost much since we both live in the same state. 🙂 All four of them look like lots of fun!

Now I have four different ones to choose from and I am definitely, without a doubt, absolutely, no matter what going to start one of them today. Not only do I miss having the energy to sit and puzzle, I’m almost completely out of finished puzzles for this blog!

I think my readers have quite a few kids puzzles and micro puzzles to look forward to until I get my mojo back. Usually I would apologize for that, but this blog is about the puzzles I do, and I can’t choose them based on what other people like – otherwise my attitude would be worse than it is now. Yikes.