Category: Thrift Store Puzzles

Dinosaur Alphabet

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles4 Comments

Dinosaur Alphabet by Karen Rossi – Ravensburger – 60 pieces

This artwork isn’t my favorite color scheme, it’s slightly washed out and dull – but it was a fun little kids puzzle that went together quickly. As an added bonus I learned the names of a few dinosaurs that I’d never heard of before. I just love learning new things! 😁

It had a loose fit, but has also been a very well-loved puzzle that seems to have been assembled many times. The previous owners seem to have been quite organized too. There was an X written inside the box, and an X on every piece; if piece(s) got loose you would know which puzzle they belong to and which box to put them in – great idea for kids puzzles if you ask me.

The last three letters were dinosaurs I’d never heard of before. I’ve done my share of dinosaur puzzles and I don’t recall ever seeing these names. Very cool!

Many of the words that the letters represented were put into the image in the middle to pull it all together. Overall just a great puzzle for kids; the image, the information, and the quality.

Keepsakes

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles7 Comments

Keepsakes by Judy Koenig – Ceaco – 550 pieces

Eh. Not my favorite type of image, but I had hopes it would be entertaining. It was alright, that’s really all the endorsement I can give it.

The quality of the chipboard was good/fair, and for the most part so was the cutting. The variety of different piece shapes and the fit were good as well. There was a lot of image lift, but this puzzle is over 25 years old and it has been assembled more than a few times from the look of it. Overall, the quality was good/fair.

This was my favorite section – more cartoony and less painterly.

Many of the piece shapes were just a little bit off of what “regular” ones look like. In several places the hole where a prong would go was made up of the joining of two pieces; it made for a more interesting assembly.

I had higher hopes for this image, there was something about it made me want the puzzle even though it’s a Ceaco. My thought process was that because it was a thrift store purchase I wasn’t really giving the brand any of my money, and the picture looked as though it would be entertaining to assemble. It wasn’t as fun as I’d hoped, but I still got my money’s worth – it was only a couple of dollars and I worked on it for a couple of days.

Where else can you get that many hours of entertainment for such little investment?

Songbirds

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles9 Comments

Songbirds by Neiko Ng – Mudpuppy – 500 pieces

This is a cute image, but it really wasn’t as entertaining for me as I’d hoped. There’s nothing wrong with it, really, perhaps my mood wasn’t right. It just seemed like it would be more fun than it actually was. Just my own personal opinion.

The quality was good. In typical Mudpuppy fashion there is only one piece shape – what I call ballerinas – two prong/two hole pieces. Boring. The reproduction is good, but the finish is very shiny; and the backing is that “sharp” white backing that I do not care for. Overall it’s a good quality puzzle, it just wasn’t my pile of pieces.

American Girl – Josefina

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles7 Comments

American Girl – Josefina – Mattel – 150 pieces

This was quite a unique set of puzzles I haven’t seen before; they go along with the American Girl dolls and books. It comes with three puzzles that are 50 pieces each and a frame so that you can display whichever one you’re feeling like showing off at the moment. There’s only one frame to go with all 3 puzzles; you can assemble one puzzle at a time in the tray, place the clear cover over top of it and slide it into the frame.

They were pretty good quality, better than I expected. The pieces are on the thinner side, but are very sturdy, the finish is extremely shiny and hard to work with under artificial lights, but otherwise the reproduction is very nice and there are a good variety of shapes. Overall I was impressed because they were nicer than I thought they would be.

Love the blue dress, and that it looks like there are three generations of women here. 💗

I love the brightness of this one, and the beautiful colors. It was the easiest of the three to assemble.

I love her shawl, and the adorable little goat she’s cradling. So cute!

This is the frame that comes with this set of puzzles. If you had a child who enjoys the American Girl dolls/books/toys this might be a nice set of small puzzles for them. I found two sets of them at the thrift store, maybe you might get lucky and find some too!

The Golden Girls

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles14 Comments

The Golden Girls – Cardinal – 300 pieces

I love the cartoon style of this image, and found this at the thrift store just a few days before the death of the last surviving Golden Girl – Betty White; she was a comedic force to be reckoned with, and a classy lady all around.

This puzzle was unopened, and I was hoping that it would be good quality, but I was sadly disappointed. The pieces were on the thin side and slightly bent out of shape, but it was the extremely loose fit that made it so terrible to work with. Cardinal Puzzles can be hit or miss with their quality, and this was a big miss.

I wish I’d been able to enjoy this puzzle as much as I enjoyed Betty White’s hilarious performance in the silly horror movie Lake Placid – that movie makes me laugh every time I see it, and her potty-mouthed character was awesome!

Sadly, this puzzle didn’t measure up.