Paradise Found by Bill Drysdale – Mega Puzzles – 300 pieces
This was a quick and fun puzzle; not my normal image choice but I’ll give pretty much anything that’s a small piece count a try. 🙂
I don’t normally recommend Mega Puzzles for larger piece count puzzles, but the smaller counts are pretty darn good quality. The board is much thicker than I’ve found their 1000 piece puzzles to be, and there is more variety in piece shape as well. Many companies seem to go the extra mile for their 300 piece puzzles – perhaps because many seniors choose them because of the easier to handle pieces – and most people (erroneously) think that puzzling is mostly for old people.
It isn’t, of course, it’s for everyone – from the very young to the very old we can all benefit from the stress-reduction, peaceful meditative state, and many other wonderful health advantages that puzzling brings.
Norcross Love Affair by Robert West – Sunsout – 550 pieces
There’s something about the simplicity of this image, it made for an excellent puzzle experience!
Luckily this was one of those Sunsout puzzles with a regular fit (not one where you get a blister from having to smash pieces together because the fit is too tight). The image reproduction is excellent, but there was quite a bit of shine on the finish. Overall a very nice quality puzzle – extremely pleasant to put together.
The large amount of sky seemed a little daunting at first, but it wasn’t too bad at all; the clouds, varying shades of blue, and the variety of piece shapes helped to keep it from being monotonous. And I loved the young and old couples….
Perhaps Norcross Love Affair shows the joy and wonder of young love, and also that even when you’re older you can still be madly, romantically in love with each other. The older couple is so adorable! If my husband had hair we might look like them someday – although we’d both probably be wearing something much more comfortable. 😉
As usual, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed assembling this image. Normally when it’s time for a new puzzle I look at the image and open the box to take a look at the pieces. If when I seem them I’m “not feeling it”, the lid goes back on and the search continues until I find one I’m ready to assemble.
Lately though, I’ve been giving myself a pep talk when I open the box. If the image on the box made me open it to see the pieces then I should do it. Most of the time I enjoy them more than I thought I would, so why not just give up the search for the perfect puzzle at the perfect time and just grab one that looks good and go? That’s what I’ve been trying to do anyways – and most of the time, like with this puzzle, they are great fun and I’m happy having assembled it. 😎
Berenstain Bears by Stan & Jan Berenstain – Golden Puzzles – 100 pieces
This puzzle reminds me of when my kids were little – they loved the Berenstain Bears and the books were usually found all over the house. Although the books have been around for more than 50 years, I don’t really remember reading them myself when I was young – although I must have. For me these books make me think of my children and how much all three of them loved reading. ❤
This was a very nice quality puzzle, with an excellent fit and interestingly shaped pieces…
Most of the time with a puzzle aimed toward children the pieces are very standard, but these made for a more interesting assembly – and it was a refreshing change. Sadly there was a missing piece so I wasn’t able to send it along to the school I normally donate to, but it was still fun for me to put together.
Even though I’m technically an adult I love puzzles of all shapes and sizes and have no problem whatsoever putting together small puzzles made for kids; puzzles are always entertaining for me. It makes me think of that wonderful line from Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss – changed a bit for us dissectologists of course – “A puzzle’s a puzzle, no matter how small.”
Farmer’s Market by Tracy Flickinger – Ceaco – 300 pieces
This is an adorable image that I’ve seen before but had never come across. I finally acquired two of the three in the series, and am so looking forward to finding the third – I had as much fun assembling it as I thought I would!
Ceaco puzzles seem to be hit or miss in the quality department. I’ve worked some really nice puzzles of theirs and some absolutely terrible ones. It’s not a brand I will normally buy retail, we usually get them second hand. This particular puzzle was one of those I bought in a lot of 26 from Facebook Marketplace and I couldn’t be happier with my purchase. The quality of this one was good, with an excellent fit and wonderful image.
This was assembled in one sitting, at night when the sandman skipped over my house and I couldn’t sleep at all. I stole off quietly to the puzzle room and before I knew it – bam! – it was done. This was one of those rare puzzles where my expectations of how entertaining the assembly would be was spot on. It was thoroughly enjoyable!
Ceaco puzzles aren’t always up to snuff for me, but this one absolutely was. From the first piece to the last it was a great time. Images that make you happy usually make for wonderful puzzling! 🙂
Our fluffy friend showed a lot of fur yesterday during Mardi Gras; she lost a bit of her memory (see missing edge piece) and ended up with dazed look on her face and a LOT of beads! 😉
Cat puzzles aren’t really my thing, but I had to get this one from the thrift store because it’s just too funny. How can you not smile when you see this image? I love it!
*I bet kitty wasn’t too happy to be dressed up in all of that crap for the picture though.*
My Jigsaw Journal 