Pam

On October 26, 2017October 26, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Pam by Michael Hague – Great American Puzzle Factory – 100 pieces

This puzzle was so interesting! It came in a very small box about 4 inches (10 cm) square, was produced in 1981, and it was still shrink wrapped! 😮

Michael Hague is a well known illustrator famous for his teddy bears. I hadn’t heard of the Michael Hague teddy bears before; they’re adorable, and unlike illustrations of other teddy bears that I’ve seen. In this puzzle, we meet Pam – a well dressed Panda bear from what I can see.

Being only 100 pieces it didn’t take long for mom and me to put this little puzzle together. The pieces were extremely loose, as you can see by some of the gaps in between pieces; we had to be very careful while assembling it because brushing the edge with your arm or hand would upset many pieces.

The image itself was a bit challenging with all of the fence in the background, it definitely wasn’t a super easy puzzle for kids – this one took a little bit more brain power. Still we had fun, and it was very cool to open a puzzle that had been sealed for 36 years!

Endangered Sea Otter

On October 25, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

I’ve come across several double-sided puzzles lately, and I find them very interesting to assemble. For this puzzle having 2 images to assemble was great, one was MUCH easier than the other. If you’re wanting a bit of a challenge you could assemble the sea otter picture; if you’re not in the mood for that, the image on the back is quite colorful and much easier. Mom and I assembled this one together, and we chose to assemble it with the back side up. 🙂

These puzzles are educational, I love that! On the front is the image of the endangered species, and the back shows information about where they are found in the world and how they became endangered. Very cool. There are six in the series: sea otter, koala, giant panda, asian elephant, hawksbill sea turtle, and the rain forest.

The pieces were thinner than a premium puzzle, but quite sturdy and fit together very well. The fit didn’t feel overly tight when you were assembling, but you could pick up the entire puzzle without any pieces coming out. This was very nice, because when we got down to just the pieces of the ocean we were able to flip it over and use the sea otter image to help us finish it more easily.

We enjoyed this puzzle very much and would be happy to find any of the others in the series to assemble. None of the pieces were missing, perhaps partly because they come in a large, resealable envelope with information about the puzzle series. Also very cool! You can tell these puzzles are older from the information on the envelope, no website! (also, it says 1991 🙂 )

They’re no longer being produced, but I’ve seen them on Amazon and eBay, and we got ours at the thrift store. If you find one, go for it! We had a good time assembling it. 👍

Barnyard Dreams

On October 24, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Another in the Childhood Dreams Collection, and I absolutely love them! The images are nostalgic and sweet, and they make for excellent puzzling.

This one really reminds me of my youth. We lived out in “the boonies” and my dad had a John Deere tractor that he absolutely loved. He would use it to split wood, mow the lawn, drive the kids around the property teaching us how to drive it, and pull city people out of the ditch. (They had no idea how to drive on the back roads in winter!) This puzzle brings back fond memories for me. *sigh*

Mom and I worked on this puzzle together, although I think she did much more of the work than I did. We started it together, but it wasn’t complete when I left so she finished it by herself. Great job mom!

Besides the finish being a little too shiny, the quality of these puzzles has been very good. They fit together very well and are a good thickness, and you can see that the image reproduction is beautiful – very crisp and detailed. We have several of these Childhood Dreams puzzles yet to do, and I’m looking forward to every single one of them.

If these are your kind of puzzle images, I highly recommend them. They’re wonderful to work on, and they make me smile. 🙂 🙂

Prima Ballerina

On October 22, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This was the first puzzle I assembled after my attempt at Winter Aspen. Even though there was a piece missing it was still very nice for me. The feel of the regular sized pieces, the way they fit together, and the fact that the image was so much less difficult made this an excellent assembly. 🙂

Ravensburger puzzles have such great quality that it’s always nice to work with them; but even more so after working with a puzzle that was difficult for me in any way. When I’ve done a puzzle that was dark, or difficult, or one that just felt tedious I always try to make sure I do a Ravensburger next. It always makes me feel better, and gets me back in my “puzzle groove”.

After failing to complete Winter Aspen I wasn’t feeling like the Supreme Puzzle Goddess that I am, so I needed a Ravensburger fix to lift my spirits. This puzzle was healing balm on my wounded ego, and made me feel so much better! 😊

It didn’t matter that it’s not an image I would normally choose, it didn’t matter that the colors were muted instead of bright, and it didn’t even matter that a piece was missing. What mattered was that I enjoyed this puzzle; it didn’t feel like work or a chore, it was relaxing, fun, and helped me get my mojo back!

This puzzle would be great to frame for the little ballerina in your life, or someone who just loves to dance – it’s so pretty!

Troll Hair Puzzle

On October 21, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles1 Comment

This was a weird little puzzle. I like the shaped edge, but I’m stumped regarding the reason that one of the trolls has hair. I suppose it could be to make the puzzle more attractive to young children, but in my opinion it obscures the shape of the piece and it isn’t easy to fit into the puzzle. I’m probably just being a cranky old lady, right? You kids get off my lawn!! 👵

Otherwise this is a cute kid’s puzzle that only took a few minutes to assemble. I haven’t seen the movie, so I don’t know who is who in this image, but I think they’re cute. The pieces are moderately thick and sturdy and fit together very well. There are a few spots where the tabs are sticking up a bit from the puzzle, but I think that’s due to it being a thrift store puzzle that’s been loved rather than from the manufacturing.

I’m enjoying all these kid’s puzzles even if it only takes a few minutes to assemble. It’s interesting to me the broad range of quality that kids puzzles have, not to mention so many manufacturers! I’m always intrigued when we find a new manufacturer and I love to check out their quality.

This was a well-made, cute, simple puzzle….that needs a hairbrush! 😉