New In Progress

In Progress

I started a new puzzle this morning – a collage of album covers! This is the first album I put together, and I can already tell it’s going to be a very entertaining assembly. 😉

There’s a lot of dark and indistinct areas, but because it’s a Springbok puzzle with a random cut it might be a little easier than normal to find the pieces I need. It’s a big one, 24 x 30 inches, but having so many small sections to assemble makes it seem much less daunting.

What are you working on this weekend?

Review: Pennant Race

penannt race
Pennant Race by David Spindel – TDC Puzzles – 1000 pieces

This was quite the interesting puzzle, it’s a TDC Puzzle series called “The Edge”. The box says it’s a jigsaw puzzle with only edge pieces. Every single piece has a straight (or nearly straight) edge, so starting in the normal way isn’t really an option.

Surprisingly I didn’t find it all that difficult to assemble. The bright colors and many different designs made for an entertaining, but not too challenging puzzle. The pieces were a good thickness and fit together really well; I found the quality to be quite good. I was surprised by the fact that the when complete the entire puzzle could be lifted without any of the pieces coming apart. Usually when there are pieces with straight edges that just butt up against each other if you lift or try to move the puzzle it will fall apart. This was designed so that everything connects beautifully – I was impressed!

There were so many words in this puzzle, I had the best time with it! Baseball isn’t really my thing, but collages, bright colors, and having lots of words is definitely right up my alley, or should I say “right up my baseline”?

Only two little buttons for my Detroit Tigers? SHAME! We may not have won the World Series as many times as some other teams, but come on! We couldn’t even have one little pennant shown? 😕 (I don’t really care that much, it’s baseball LOL) The image reproduction was very crisp and clear – some of the pennants had rosters on them, and you can read every name.

If you come across one of these “The Edge” puzzles, consider giving it a try. I enjoyed it very much, and honestly didn’t find it that much more difficult than the average jigsaw – and it was great fun. Batter up! ⚾

Details:

  • Title:                  Pennant Race
  • Artist:                David Spindel
  • Brand:               TDC Puzzles
  • Piece count:     1000 pieces
  • Size:                  Approx. 19 x 26 in. (48 x 66 cm)
  • Purchased:      Used, thrift store

Quality:

  • Board:               Very good
  • Cutting:             Good
  • Image:               Excellent
  • Box:                   Square and sturdy
  • Fit:                     Very good
  • Puzzle Dust:     Small amount
  • Piece cut:          Grid cut
  • Piece shapes:   Good variety
  • Finish:               Slightly shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating:      Very good, recommended

 

Mystery Box – Day 21

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One entire edge complete!

Mom and I have finally gotten back to work on the Mystery Puzzle! And although we found and assembled quite a few pieces in the last few days there’s one piece in particular that made us both VERY happy – we found the one we needed to complete the top edge of the puzzle!!

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We only needed one, thin, tiny little piece to complete the top edge. Yay! I can report that the this edge measures almost 30 inches across, but we still have no idea how tall it’s going to be. Since it’s obviously a building, and the color line cutting makes for many straight edges that go on the inside of the puzzle, we aren’t really even attempting to assemble the edges.

We’re finding (or trying to find) significantly interestingly shaped pieces and working outwards. Although you can see from the pictures that many of them are significantly interesting, so it isn’t as easy as we’d hoped. 😉

Most of the work we’ve been doing over the last couple of days is in small chunks of pieces that are on trays and scattered all over the board. I didn’t take pictures of them because I was too excited about sharing the progress of finding that one teeny piece. Still, every piece we find that connects to something is a triumph; and we’re continuing to revel in the fun of the mystery, the crazy wonderful pieces, and the time spent together. 💗😍💗

As the Sun Sets

as the sun sets
As the Sun Sets by Howard Robinson – Sunsout – 300 pieces

The posse and I put this together at a family dinner while waiting for the food to be ready. It’s adorably cute, but wasn’t as fun to assemble as we’d hoped; though I’m not sure why that was. Sometimes the interesting, cute, or pretty image isn’t the most entertaining to actually put together. Or maybe we were all just hungry. 😉

National Puzzle Day 2019

national puzzle day
Happy National Puzzle Day!

Here at My Jigsaw Journal I’m sure you can guess which type of puzzles we love the most, but today isn’t just for jigsaw puzzles, it’s puzzles of all kinds – crosswords, logic, brain teasers, anagrams, word searches, etc. If you like to “puzzle” you are definitely welcome here, but the focus is definitely on jigsaws. 😉

I’ve done puzzles since I was very young, mostly at my grandmother’s side. She always seemed to have a jigsaw puzzle in progress at her house, and she was never impatient with my sisters and me picking up pieces and trying them in every single empty spot (regardless of color or shape). She had the patience of a saint sometimes! This is a photo I shared on this day back in 2017 of the two of us at her house sometime in the mid-1970’s.

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This is my favorite picture of us, although it’s been around 45 years or so since I was that cute!

Nowadays I mostly puzzle alone; but sometimes I’m fortunate enough to get to assemble jigsaws with one or more members of my small “puzzle posse” – Mom, hubby, daughter, and my oldest son. Many times the solitude of puzzling by myself is exactly what I need, but I also enjoy being able to spend time with loved ones around the puzzle board. Being together, working towards a common goal, laughing, teasing, celebrating the small victory of a found piece or connecting two sections – these are worth more to me than any “thing” could ever be. For me, jigsaw puzzles are a family thing. 🙂

I love jigsaw puzzles of all kinds, and I love the calm that puzzling seems to bring me. I started this blog for a giant puzzle project, but have kept it going because I enjoy assembling, talking, and writing about jigsaw puzzles of every shape and size. If you’re new here feel free to stick around and check out the puzzles I’ve put together over the past few years. If you’re a regular reader, thanks for hanging out and talking puzzles with me. I appreciate every single one of you!

Thank to my regular readers for sharing your P.A.D.S. diagnoses too, it helps to know we are not alone. Tell your puzzle friends about this syndrome so they too can be a part of the PADS Posse, and this community of fellow sufferers. We are all here for each other!😂😂

I hope you find time today to turn off those electronic screens and spend some time with whatever kind of puzzle makes you happy. This may surprise you, but I think I’ll spend part of today assembling a jigsaw puzzle or two. Shocking! 😱

Enjoy National Puzzle Day my friends!