Ji Ga Zo Puzzle

On June 28, 2017February 1, 2022 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles11 Comments

Is that not the coolest thing? Mom found the most awesome puzzle/program at the thrift store and I can’t stop playing with it! It’s called Ji Ga Zo Puzzle and it’s so freaking cool! That’s my handsome little guy up there, and this is my mom’s little one…

Zorro – Ji Ga Zo – 300 pieces!

Ji Ga Zo comes with a program disc and 300 puzzle pieces shaded in sepia tones on one side and in bright colors on the other. Both sides of each piece have the same small image on them. Once you install the disc on your computer you load any picture into the program and it turns your picture into a map that you can print out. It looks like this..

You assemble your puzzle according to the icon map, taking care that the images are oriented properly and you have a mosaic puzzle of your image! It is so much fun; mom and I have done puzzles of our dogs, all 3 of my kids, and a few others. It’s hard to stop playing with it. You think, “Ooh I have the coolest picture – let’s try another one!”

Some pictures don’t work as well as others, there has to be enough contrast in the photo. So choose a good picture, print out your map (or work from your screen if you don’t have a printer), assemble according to the icons and you have an awesome puzzle! Best part is you can use the same 300 pieces over and over again to make puzzles of whatever you want!

A word of warning though, the instructions tell you to assemble the puzzle with the shaded side up – follow the instructions! We decided that it would be easier to assemble it colored side up and so we did. Doesn’t work, it flips the orientation around and you end up with a puzzle that looks nothing like your picture.

I show the picture we used to make the puzzle because it’s just striking how close you can come with only sepia tones in a mosaic puzzle. When you see the image up close it doesn’t look like what it’s supposed to. You need distance to get the best effect with a mosaic puzzle; back up a few feet and you’ll be amazed! Works great on people pictures too….

Best $1.99 spent at the thrift store ever! Actually, she spent $1.99 twice because there were 2 of them, unopened! I checked around and they are for sale from different retailers all over the web. We have had a blast making puzzles of everyone, and I think it’s the coolest idea ever! I even saw a Japanese version of it on Amazon that has 520 pieces and color. 😮

This Ji Ga Zo Puzzle makes me very happy, I have had so much fun with it! It can seem a little tedious at times trying to find the right piece but it goes pretty fast and like most games it’s more fun if you’re playing it with someone. I did a few at home by myself and it was fun and awesome to see the finished image, but it wasn’t quite as much fun as when mom and I worked on it together. What a great concept and what fun for puzzle fans! 🙂

**EDIT**

If you’re having problems loading the software onto your computer, click here for the solution we’ve come up with.

Root Beer Break at the Butterfield’s

On June 19, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles1 Comment

This isn’t the typical Wysocki artwork in that there is only one building, but it’s still beautiful and has his wonderfully straight and symmetrical style in the beach house itself.

This was one of the few 300 piece Buffalo puzzles that I’ve assembled, and I love them. They fit together so nicely and the pieces are large enough for younger hands to work with or older eyes to see better. They are extremely sturdy as well, and there are a nice variety of piece shapes. They do not contain any zig zag pieces that a 1000 or 2000 piece Buffalo puzzle usually has, but still a good variety. Buffalo also includes a poster with all their puzzles which is nice, especially when working on the puzzle with more than one person so you don’t have to share the box for reference.

This puzzle was a lovely afternoon distraction for me when I was having a stressful day and needed a break from the world. I was able to sit for a bit and concentrate only on which piece went next. I wasn’t able to sit long enough to complete the entire puzzle at once, but it was completed in one day. 🙂

There are so many reasons that puzzling is an excellent activity – good for hand/eye coordination, memory, stress relief, spatial awareness, pattern recognition, fun, and too many more reasons to name. Buffalo has so many wonderful Wysocki images to choose from and many others as well, there’s something for everyone. The quality is excellent and the images are lovely – there’s no reason not to pick one up!

Snow White

On June 17, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

The colors on this puzzle are gorgeous! The image reproduction is crisp and clean and the colors are bright and beautiful. I saved this one for last because Snow White was the first section of Memorable Disney Moments that I did, so it seemed fitting for the last day of Disney week on the blog.

The pieces for the 300 piece puzzles in this box were actually bigger than the ones for the 150 piece puzzles. Odd, it’s usually the other way around, the more pieces the smaller they are. This puzzle measures approximately 11 x 16, still a bit small for a 300 piece puzzle but a good size.

The pieces fit together a little more snugly for this puzzle than the previous ones from this box, which was nice. It makes for a better tactile experience, at least I think so anyway. It didn’t take long to assemble either, and I was very impressed with the image reproduction, it was just beautiful! This was the best puzzle in the box, in my opinion, with the best quality of them all. It’s interesting that they were all from the same manufacturer but had such variation in quality, especially between the sizes.

Today is the day we complete the final assembly of the world’s largest puzzle! It’s going to be a long exhausting day for me, so I will post pictures and info about it tomorrow. Wish me luck – it’s so exciting! 😎

Finding Nemo

On June 14, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Next puzzle for Disney week, unfortunately this one is missing 3 pieces. Still, it was a fun assembly and a bit of a challenge too!

Mega Puzzles are thin compared to the more premium brands like Ravensburger, Jumbo, or Pomegranate; but it doesn’t always have to be about only working with premium puzzles. Sometimes a cool thrift store find with thin pieces but a great image is just what I’m looking for; sometimes I just want to work a fun puzzle with an image that I really enjoy regardless of the quality of the pieces.

Mega Puzzles does have a nice variety of piece shapes and the pieces fit together quite well as you can see, but they were thin. This image was a little challenging with all the ocean dwellers everywhere and a lot of water, but still fun! The image reproduction was nice and there was no image lift even when a piece was placed incorrectly.

This movie wasn’t one of the movies included in the Disney Memorable Moments puzzle, but I do have good memories of watching it with my kids. Disney movies were a big part of my childhood; I enjoyed sharing those same movies with my kids and experiencing the newer movies with them as well. My husband still quote the seagulls from Nemo and says “Mine?” over and over when he wants to make me laugh – it usually works. 🙂

Family Farm

On May 15, 2017May 18, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This is a very cute puzzle that was definitely worth the 59 cents paid for it! 🙂

I’m enjoying the smaller piece count puzzles; it feels like an accomplishment to finish a puzzle the same day you start it. Little victories, right? If it makes me happy, then that’s what matters.

Bits and pieces, not my favorite brand, but this puzzle quality was pretty good. It seems hit or miss with this company, at least for me; and we only buy this brand from thrift stores where we can check out the pieces prior to purchase. This one was not a problem at all, and quite fun! Mom and I finished it in no time. 🙂

Very random cut as you can see, which made us pay attention – some of those pieces were HUGE! It’s a very cute image and I would definitely do other puzzles by the same artist – Mary Thompson. It reminds me of the area where I grew up – farms and cows and tractors – oh my!

The large piece puzzles make it seem easy sometimes and I think it adds fun – though that’s only my opinion. I love getting wrapped up in a big puzzle that takes a while, but it’s also enjoyable to sit down with a friend or loved one and put together a puzzle that doesn’t seem too difficult. They’re both great in their own way which is why puzzling is great for young and old; any age group or any difficulty. Bring it on!