Vintage Holiday

On April 11, 2020April 11, 2020 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

It was the colors that drew me to this puzzle, they were just too fun and happy to resist. I’m glad to say that I had a great time with this one, and it had just the right level of difficulty. It’s a fun image with fantastic image reproduction – all in all a wonderful puzzle!

Although it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be, it was by no means an easy puzzle. But the challenge was completely absorbing and I loved it. The pieces were thinner than I’m used to, but still quite workable with an exceptional fit. I don’t think I’ve done a Big Ben puzzle with 1000 pieces for quite a long time, and I was pretty happy with the quality.

Vintage Holiday 1

Loved the look of these two magazines, they were one of the first sections that I assembled – old time detective mags, very cool!

Vintage Holiday 2

Here is an article from obviously a very old magazine; it seems to be saying that if your husband cheats that you’re driving him to it because you aren’t meeting his “needs”. Are you friggin kidding me?!? What a load of crap. Most people probably wouldn’t notice it, it’s only 4 pieces out of 1000, but I certainly did.

Vintage Holiday 3

This postcard section was really fun to put together, but I’m not sure I could explain why – it was just truly entertaining. The postcards and sunglasses made for great puzzling. Or perhaps I need to get out more, I’d much rather assemble a beach puzzle than go to an actual beach. Sand everywhere – yick!

With all that’s going on in the world now, going to the beach is most definitely not a good idea; all you can do is dream of going to the beach- or perhaps assemble an entertaining beach themed puzzle! 🙂

Quilting Country In Progress

On March 31, 2020March 30, 2020 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling2 Comments

Quilting Country IP — Quilting Country by Eric Dowdle – MasterPieces – 1000 pieces

When looking for the next puzzle to assemble, I found this little gem hiding in the back row of one of my shelves. It’s a thrift store puzzle that mom bought for us sometime last year. After assembling Quilt Blocks earlier this month, I was so pleased to find another quilt puzzle here ready for me to get going on it.

Most of the time I find that Eric Dowdle’s artwork makes for difficult puzzles, and this one is no different. It’s a bit challenging, but what else do I have to do with my time these days? A difficult assembly keeps me intensely focused on what I’m doing; and with that intense focus comes an almost meditative state where the next piece, a certain shape, or that one color is all I’m thinking about.

Jigsaw puzzles give me a welcome respite from thinking and worrying, which I seem to be doing a lot of these days. Each puzzle waiting to be assembled is hours and hours of down time for my brain – best hobby ever!

Puzzles rock! 🧩🤘

Welcome Home

On March 30, 2020March 30, 2020 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

These adorable puppies were too cute to leave alone, so this puzzle went together in one day. It was a welcome distraction from a stressful situation; and as usual, I stopped thinking about what was troubling me and focused solely on pieces, shapes, and colors.

Re-marks has so many interesting collage puzzles, they’re right up there with White Mountain in my opinion. My last trip to Barnes and Noble netted me about six more of their collages, and I’m trying to ration them out to be certain they last me for a while. 🙂

Welcome Home 1

This is why I’m a dog person, they give us such loyalty and unconditional love. Look at that sweet face waiting to welcome home his human.

Welcome Home 2

I thought I heard my human coming down the street, is she almost here?! I’m so excited!

Welcome Home 3

The look on the face of the corgi is priceless, they look so happy! In summary, all the sweet faces of dogs and interesting doorways made for a happy, colorful, completely absorbing puzzle.

That’s exactly what I’m looking for these days, how about you?

Giveaway Winner!

On March 25, 2020March 25, 2020 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling3 Comments

Drumroll please, the random number generator has spoken and the winner of the Christmas at Hogwarts jigsaw puzzle is…

Lucky entry #5……….Penny. Congratulations!

I’ve sent you an email, and hopefully will be able to get your puzzle out to you very soon. Here’s hoping it’s as much fun as it looks!

Thank you to everyone who entered and commented, I enjoy holding these giveaways very much. Thanks also to everyone who stops by here at My Jigsaw Journal, you are always welcome and appreciated.

Be on the lookout for another giveaway soon. We all need something fun to look forward to! 🧩💝

Review: The Bookshop

On March 24, 2020March 24, 2020 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

This gorgeous puzzle is an Aimee Stewart – I had no idea! I don’t really check who the artist is most of the time before I start working a puzzle; I just knew the image spoke to me, and thought it would be fun, if a bit challenging to assemble. Well, of course it was – it’s an Aimee Stewart! I put together the entire puzzle and didn’t know until I started writing up this post that it was by my favorite artist.

The quality was fantastic, as per usual for a Ravensburger. Just feeling the weight and finish of the pieces makes me smile; I think I could tell a Ravensburger piece from all others at 20 paces. (Well, maybe 2 paces, these eyes are getting older every day). Holding a piece while contemplating it’s placement and rubbing my thumb across the top of it gives me a quiet kind of happiness, it’s like meditation.

This was a little more challenging than your average Aimee Stewart puzzle; the colors are much more muted, and the scene itself was more difficult. The flowers below the sign and the ivy around the edges were the hardest for me. The books everywhere were less difficult than I’d assumed, even though there are so many of them!

The Bookshop 1

This little girl in her pretty purple frock is so sweet, and it’s such a pretty color.

The Bookshop 2

All those books in the window? You can read the titles, and look at the detail! I should have known who the artist was. I can’t believe I didn’t. I’m hanging my head in shame.

I’d seen this image several times before I finally took the plunge and got it for myself, and am I ever glad I did. Have you been thinking of buying this? Go for it, this puzzle is highly recommended. 👍👍

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