Coastal Cove

On December 7, 2018December 8, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles8 Comments

This was a thrift store find that mom purchased mainly because it was only 69 cents. Normally she wouldn’t get a image like this – it’s not our usual “pile of pieces” (cup of tea). But it was a small piece count, we always love to try out new brands, and you absolutely can’t beat that price!

Shutterfly will make just about any custom gift with your photos – cards, mousepads, mugs, puzzles, etc. To be honest, in my head I was thinking that the quality couldn’t possibly be very good. I’m happy to report that based on this puzzle I was quite wrong. 🙂

The pieces were pleasantly thick and felt good in your hand, they had the almost waxy feel of a Gibsons or Jumbo puzzle; there were a variety of piece shapes, but the majority were ballerinas (2 prong/2 hole). The image reproduction is hard to gauge, since the image shown is quite bland color-wise, but there didn’t seem to be any blurry or fuzzy sections. My only issue was the slightly loose fit, though it wasn’t too bad.

I normally don’t comment on puzzle boxes unless they’re unusual or very good quality – I was very impressed with the quality of the box! It was extremely sturdy and felt even nicer than the boxes of some “premium” puzzle brands. Overall I was impressed by the quality of both the box and the puzzle inside.

The picture was quite boring (just my opinion), though perhaps the place held a special significance to whomever the puzzle was made for; it’s just not my idea of an interesting puzzle image. But to each their own, right?

*update*

One of my readers requested a picture of the box. I really couldn’t figure out a way to show why I was impressed with it’s quality other than to show the texture of it in the view of the side. My assumption was that box quality wouldn’t be high on their list, but I was pleasantly surprised!

Coastal Cove box 2

Coastal Cove box

Cottages

On December 6, 2018December 5, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

I’ve run out of things to say about these mini shaped puzzles. They’re adorably cute and lots of fun!

I’m not sure what my expectations were with these cottages, but for some reason I can’t explain I wasn’t as entertained by these puzzles as much as I’d hoped. The quality is the same as the previous puzzles, but there was just something missing for me. Still, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy them, because I absolutely did.

Cottages 1

I couldn’t seem to pick any of the cottages as my favorites, so I decided to take close-up pictures of all of them. 😁

Cottages 2

Don’t they all look like lovely places to visit over the summer?

Cottages 3

Although they weren’t as entertaining as I’d hoped, they were still fun – and terribly cute!

Snowman Trio

On December 4, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

This assembly was a special request by my youngest son. It is 3 weeks until Christmas, and he’s very much in the holiday spirit. He’s gotten himself a Santa hat and he’s ready to go! He said that this was the puzzle I should assemble next, and so I did. I admit that I am absolutely NOT in the spirit at the moment, but I guess I’ll fake it till I make it. Ho Ho Ho-hum.

There’s not much I can say anymore about these little wooden puzzles, it’s all a repeat of things said before; they’re excellent quality and wonderful to work with. It’s a “One Coffee Puzzle” as my friend from Russia calls them. Small enough to sit down with a cup of coffee and finish them both about the same time – a lovely little respite in this hurry up and get going world.

Snowman Trio whimsies

I love Santa’s face, I think he just met the m & m’s! 😉

Sugar Magnolia

On December 3, 2018December 2, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles7 Comments

Well, here it is, the post that tens of readers have been waiting for – my completed birthday puzzle! It is without a doubt the most beautiful and entertaining puzzle I’ve ever assembled – absolutely fantastic!

Sugar Magnolia whimsies

These are almost all of the whimsies, they’re so beautiful! Laser cutting makes it easier to cut such wonderfully interesting and detailed whimsies; it’s always so much fun to go through all the pieces and find them.

I started with the red flowers, then moved on to the orange-ish colors. It was very slow going because of my surgery and the recovery, but I can honestly say I enjoyed every single piece.

Once I got the bottom done, it was easier to work upwards and figure out what the edges looked like. The artwork by Phil Lewis is so stunning, and it makes for a fabulous puzzle image!

There are so many beautiful areas of this puzzle, it was difficult to choose what close-ups to photograph. I truly had the best time with this one, I’m so thankful hubby picked this one for my present. ❤ He has good taste. (Well of course he does, he picked an awesome wife!)

There’s so much stuff you can’t see until it’s completely assembled and you flip it over. I definitely didn’t find all those skeleton pieces when I first sorted the puzzle, and that gorgeous flower in the center of the puzzle isn’t visible until it’s complete. So pretty!

There aren’t enough adjectives to tell you how happy this puzzle made me, and how much I enjoyed it. It was the best!

Desserts in Progress

On December 2, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

I started making desserts yesterday – though not the kind I can eat unfortunately. 😉 I was sent this colorful, gorgeous puzzle to review and spent some time on Saturday getting it started. The colors are so bright and fun, it’s going to be an entertaining assembly – I love it already!

It got started in bed, as is usual these days. I sorted and began assembling small sections on trays in bed. Everything you see that isn’t an edge was completed on trays, and when I was feeling a little more rested in the evening I was able to assemble the edge on the board in the puzzle room. Almost all of it connected to the edges.

It’s not much, but that’s what was completed yesterday. I’m still in bed recovering from another 8 hours in the car for a doctor’s visit this week, though this trip took almost 14 hours because we had car trouble. It was a horrible trip, with more upsetting news from the doctor, a significant chunk of time spent sitting and waiting for repairs, and way too much time in the car.

Thankfully we’re living in the age of cell phones, so neither of us little gray haired ladies had to walk anywhere or get into a stranger’s car to drive to a phone to call for help. There’s always something to be thankful for, right?