Songbirds

On January 17, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

Alas, this is the last of the mini shaped puzzles that I had left, and now they’re all done. They’re beautiful and so entertaining for me to assemble, I’m a little sad that there aren’t any more. 😥

The colored backing makes them easy to sort, each mini puzzle has a different color so you can separate them easily. Or if you’re looking for a little more of a challenge you can ignore the backs and assemble them with no pre-sorting. I absolutely adore these little puzzles! You get that wonderful sense of accomplishment with each figure completed, and it revs me up to get going on the next one.

Puzzling is all about enjoyment and relaxation for me, and assembling these puzzles gives me so much pleasure. I love them❣

**Lafayette Puzzle Factory, I hope these were excellent sellers for you and that you might want to make more of this series. I’ll be waiting outside your virtual doorstep for a new release and will scoop up every one you have to offer!

Sunrise Colorful Country Quilt

On December 16, 2018December 15, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

This title makes me wonder why it isn’t “quilts” – plural. Perhaps because I used to be a secretary and I’m always wanting to make things grammatically correct. 🙂 Title aside, it was a very pretty, highly entertaining puzzle.

The quality was very good; thick pieces with a good variety of shapes that fit together well. The nature of the artwork with brushstrokes and the texture on the canvas made the assembly a little more challenging. I enjoy these premium quality Milton Bradley puzzles with the blue chipboard – they’re very pleasant to work with.

The artist, Cheryl Bartley, makes some colorful and interesting images that make for great puzzles. This is the second puzzle of her artwork that I’ve put together and I loved both of them. There’s something about folk art images that I find charming, they make such lovely puzzles!

I love the dog that’s treed the cat on the left, although it almost looks like a wolf to me; and this was my favorite of the quilts, although I’m not sure I have the vocabulary to explain why.

This puzzle was Goldilocks for me – not too easy and not too difficult – it was just right!

Over the River

On December 11, 2018December 11, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles11 Comments

Over the River is the companion puzzle to one I assembled in February of this year. They come in a book box with two compartments – each holds a puzzle with cork backing, both by the same artist. Like many of the “different” Ceaco puzzles it was very good quality.

🎶Over the River and through the woods, to grandmother’s house we go!🎶

The first one I put together from this box was Simple Pleasures, and it seemed much easier to assemble than this puzzle (although my memory isn’t as reliable as it used to be 👵). There were so many places around the whimsies that didn’t connect at all, and it was a bit frustrating to constantly have to fix pieces that had moved. It can get quite tedious – but sometimes that’s how whimsies go.

With these puzzles it’s sometimes hard to find all the whimsy pieces before you begin; so these are some, but definitely not all of them…

Over the River whimsies

The scalloped edges aren’t as easy to assemble as you’d think, so I began with the words. It took way more brain power than I’d assumed!

Over the River 1

The inset scenes were lovely!

Even though it gave my gray cells a little bit of a workout, it was great fun. And you definitely can’t beat the price – 99 cents for two 500 piece puzzles with cork backing! I absolutely got more than a dollar’s worth of entertainment. ☺

Cottages

On December 6, 2018December 5, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

I’ve run out of things to say about these mini shaped puzzles. They’re adorably cute and lots of fun!

I’m not sure what my expectations were with these cottages, but for some reason I can’t explain I wasn’t as entertained by these puzzles as much as I’d hoped. The quality is the same as the previous puzzles, but there was just something missing for me. Still, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy them, because I absolutely did.

Cottages 1

I couldn’t seem to pick any of the cottages as my favorites, so I decided to take close-up pictures of all of them. 😁

Cottages 2

Don’t they all look like lovely places to visit over the summer?

Cottages 3

Although they weren’t as entertaining as I’d hoped, they were still fun – and terribly cute!

Desserts

On November 23, 2018November 23, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles5 Comments

Some of the colors on these yummy desserts were the brightest and most colorful of all the mini shaped puzzles I’ve done so far, and they were so much fun! This was the last set that we finished during our mini puzzle marathon that had us completing 1500 pieces (3 sets) in one day!

There are only two sets left – mini cottages, and a second set of birds. I’m a little sad that there aren’t any more to look forward to, but I’m so happy I found them and that they brought me so much puzzle happiness. (Lafayette Puzzle Factory – if you’re listening, PLEASE make some more of these fun mini puzzles. Please.)

I put together the chocolate mousse cake, mom did the rainbow cake, and my son assembled the shakes. He couldn’t understand why in the world anyone would put pretzels or cracker jacks on a shake! (Seems weird to me too, but then again salty and sweet is a fantastic combination)

The fact that these were all so many different shapes made them lots of fun, a little challenging, and did I mention they were lots of fun? I loved them!!

Obviously I adore these little puzzle sets, if my count is correct this is the 11th set that I’ve done! Perhaps I’m a teeny bit obsessed. 😎 Of course part of it may be that my son loves working on them too and comes out of his room/cave to sit on my bed, watch tv with me, and work on these puzzles with his old mom. Quality time together with the people that I love makes puzzling even better! 💗