A Ruff Life

On August 23, 2018August 23, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

This puzzle was from a 3 in 1 box set by Bits and Pieces, it was great fun! It’s another puzzle that I completed several years ago; it’s funny how I can specifically recall puzzles from more than 2 years ago, but can’t remember what I had for lunch 2 days ago. 😐

A Ruff Life was the main reason I purchased the set, the other two were nice enough, but this was the puzzle I wanted to assemble most. The bright colors, cute puppies and interesting patterns made for an entertaining but challenging assembly. Challenging is not always a bad thing, many times the complexity draws me in and I find myself completely absorbed in figuring out. Other times the challenge seems overwhelming and tedious, and I’m only interested in finishing it so that I can move on to a more “amusing” puzzle. Fortunately this puzzle was the absorbing type of challenge.

Bits and Pieces quality isn’t always consistent, but the quality of this particular puzzle was very good. The pieces were a good thickness, the random cut meant there were a very good variety of shapes, and the image reproduction was quite good as well. The end result is almost seamless – the fit was excellent.

The lighter browns and darker areas were the most challenging (although there doesn’t seem to be much darkness looking at the completed puzzle). I still remember how much I enjoyed this puzzle; the random cut kept it interesting, the dogs are extremely cute, and the overall image is perfect for puzzling.

A Ruff Life is no longer in print, but if you come across a copy it’s definitely recommended. 👍

Review: More Ice Cream Please

On August 22, 2018August 22, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

More Ice Cream Please – Cobble Hill – 500 pieces

This was quite fun, but very challenging. It’s got a few missing pieces, but them’s the chances you take when you purchase used. It didn’t detract much from my enjoyment of the assembly, and the puzzle was such good quality that I didn’t mind that much. Fun puzzle!

For being a used thrift store puzzle, the quality held up quite well. The pieces still had a great feel and fit together very well. Sometimes you buy a pre-loved puzzle and it’s been beat up by it’s previous owner; this one seems to have been taken care of (if you don’t count the missing pieces). I do love a Cobble Hill puzzle, especially the smaller piece counts – the quality is excellent!

Once the edge was assembled it seemed that there may be a few missing pieces, but you can never be sure with a random cut – sometimes the edges don’t look like edges. Blue ice cream was the first to be assembled, and when those were finished I knew for sure that there were some pieces that seem to have melted away 😉

Mom came over and helped me finish this one up, with her help the pieces seem to fly into place! For me it’s so nice working a puzzle with someone else; there’s the fun of working together on a common goal, good conversation, and just spending time together. In the words of one of my favorite puzzle companies – Sit long. Talk much. Turn off that screen.

It’s more challenging than it looks, but absolutely worth it! Definitely recommended, two sundaes way up! 🍨🍨

Details:

Title: More Ice Cream Please
Artist: Not credited
Brand: Cobble Hill
Piece count: 500 pieces
Size: Approx. 18 x 24 in. (46 x 61 cm)
Purchased: Used, thrift store

Quality:

Board: Very good
Cutting: Very good
Image: Very good
Box: Very good
Fit: Very good
Puzzle Dust: Small amount
Piece cut: Random cut
Piece shapes: Very good variety
Finish: Slightly shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating: Very good, recommended

Taking Pumpkins to Market

On August 21, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments

So I found a total of 20 puzzles that I’d previously assembled and posted pictures of on my completed puzzles pages, but had never written an entire post for. The only conclusion I can come up with is that the pictures are so unbelievably horrid that I was loathe to unleash them on the unsuspecting readers. Well, times being tough and all, I need puzzles to post and so here we are. With the “found” puzzle pictures I have now given myself a 3 week cushion in which to get off my lazy butt and get some serious puzzling done. The pictures are terrible, but a girl gots to do what a girl gots to do! 😇

Another stellar photograph – this time with my husband’s shoes showing up in the background. Yeesh.

Still, this is an exciting puzzle – it was my very first Cobble Hill! I remember being so excited about this puzzle, not only did the pieces look and feel amazing – the box did too! The linen paper they use on both the puzzle and the box gives a great feel in your hand. They do such a good job with quality, especially on their smaller piece count puzzles.

What fascinates me about this puzzle is that it seems quite bright and colorful, but I distinctly remember that all the pieces seemed rather dark with varying shades of brown/black/dark. It was much more of a challenge than it looks, but it was still entertaining and excellent quality.

TV Legends: The Honeymooners

On August 20, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This puzzle was completed more than two years ago, but I’m going back through the ones I’ve done and that are posted on my completed puzzles pages to find new ones to post here. I’ve done complete posts on most of them, but there are some left that I’ve never written about. My lineup of puzzles in the queue to be posted has been almost completely depleted! 😱

As you can see, my photography leaves a lot to be desired. At the time I was taking pictures just to send to mom to show her the finished puzzle; I had no idea that I’d start a puzzle blog and be posting the pictures online! As a result, the picture is cockeyed, and you also get a small view of my bedspread – not my best camera work.

This was a thrift store puzzle, and was pretty fun to assemble. As usual for me I started with the words and the Honeymooners emblem. Ralph Kramden’s outfit was easy enough to find and pull out to assemble, as was the tablecloth and all the flesh. The rest of the assembly was just picking what color or texture to do next and going for it. The floor was the most challenging part to put together – that I definitely remember! This puzzle was entertaining and challenging in a good way, and the quality was pretty good for a Ceaco.

I was planning on posting this yesterday, but was feeling terrible and out of sorts; it just completely slipped my mind. I make it a point to post a puzzle every day, but with the medication I had to take I spent most of the day either sleeping or just resting in bed; there was almost no time spent on the computer at all. My apologies for my tardiness. 😦

Walk Me

On August 18, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

How cute is this little one? I definitely wouldn’t be able to deny him/her a walk. The rug, however – yikes! The background was the most difficult part of the assembly, but overall the entire puzzle was fun to do and highly entertaining.

Bits and Pieces puzzles don’t have the best reputation in my book, but I’ve also worked some great puzzles from them. The quality being hit or miss, we don’t buy this brand new – we only get them from thrift stores. This puzzle was good quality, but not great.

The pieces were a good thickness, with an excellent variety of shapes. The fit was good, if a bit on the loose side. The image reproduction was good as well, although the finish was quite shiny which made for added difficulty when working the darker areas under indoor lighting. There was a fair amount of puzzle dust, even being a thrift store puzzle and having been worked before.

My one major problem with this puzzle was the construction of the edge pieces – not all the pieces connect. You can see in the picture below that you can pull away a whole section because some of the pieces only sit next to each other instead of fitting together.

This is a pet peeve of mine, and a major annoyance; especially when they are edge pieces. Until you get specific pieces inserted into the inside of the puzzle the edges move and it becomes extremely irritating.

Although it doesn’t seem like it, I very much enjoyed this puzzle. Other than the edges, the quality was good and the image is adorable! I started with the leash, and although it didn’t go quickly it was fun to figure it out; the puppy was next and kept me completely enthralled. The rug, however, was quite challenging and was the part that took the most time. Still, the entire puzzle was highly entertaining and so damn cute!