Bright Eyes

On December 29, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Here’s an interesting puzzle from the mid 70’s, by a manufacturer that is no longer in business. From what I’ve been able to find, Built Rite puzzles were produced from the 1940’s to 1976. It’s a guess, but this looks like something from the 70’s to me. It’s so fun to try puzzles from companies we’ve never heard of!

The quality of this puzzle was fair, the pieces didn’t fit together well, and the fit was very loose. Not sure if I can blame that on the manufacturer, as this was a pre-loved puzzle from the thrift store. As you can see in the picture the tabs on the pieces aren’t rounded they are more geometric, which was interesting. The pieces themselves were a good thickness with an interesting variety of piece shapes, and the image reproduction was good with some blurriness.

This little girl is so cute I couldn’t wait to assemble it. This is another puzzle mom and I worked on together, and we had a very good time. Although the wallpaper and the little girl’s hair was a little bit of a challenge, and that is some BIG hair! It was a fun assembly; I always enjoy spending time with mom and working puzzles together. And every time I look at this picture I say “She’s so cute!” ❤

Vintage St. Nicholas

On December 25, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles2 Comments

Challenging puzzle, but gorgeous and fun with excellent whimsies! Take a look….

My last Christmas puzzle of the year, I did quite a few for someone who doesn’t really like most Christmas puzzles. I’m posting this before any presents are unwrapped, so we’ll see if any of my family, or even Santa, gifted me puzzles this year. 🎄

My mother decided she absolutely had to take advantage of the black Friday sale at Wentworth and got this puzzle and one other for 35% off! (The other is an art nouveau collage, 750 pieces – SO BEAUTIFUL!) We started this one together at her house, but it was quite the challenge so it wasn’t finished by the time I left; she finished it on her own late into the night.

First thing for us to do when assembling a wooden puzzle is to pull all the whimsy pieces we can find and get a picture of those separately. We are still amazed and delighted at every new shape we find – we’re like little kids on Christmas morning! Next we try to assemble the edge, but they’re so sneaky about the cutting that we have never found all the edge pieces on the first try. Still, it’s fun to give it a shot.

The assembly was quite time consuming, much more so than we’d expected. The piece shapes are mostly like the random cut of a cardboard puzzle, but they are cut in a way that makes the assembly more difficult and more fun. The shapes aren’t fantastical and wild, but it doesn’t matter as much because the working of the puzzle itself is such a pleasure.

I love the look of all the vintage Santa characters, they are all so different, but similar too. So sweet and lovely to look at. I think we’ll assemble this one next year at my house so I get to be the one staying up late into the night! ⏰

Merry Christmas everyone!

Review: Skates

On December 20, 2017December 20, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

IMG_E4027 — Skates by Amy Rosenberg – Bits and Pieces – 500 pieces

This was a fun puzzle that mom and I assembled together. I haven’t seen very many Bits and Pieces puzzles that are grid cut, in my experience they’re usually random cut; it was a nice change.

This was a good quality Bits and Pieces puzzle that was quite a joy to assemble. It was a bit more challenging then we’d assumed, but still fun. The pieces fit together very well and the image itself is cute, and perfect for more than one person to work at a time. Mom started on the left side with the white ice skates and I started on the right with the scarves. We met in the middle to work on the chair and dog. Lots of fun!

Bits and Pieces quality seems hit or miss. Sometimes the fit is way too loose and floppy, and other times it’s just right. I would prefer it if the quality were consistent; that’s why we only buy this brand second hand from the thrift stores. It’s too disappointing when you pay full price for a puzzle that has quality issues.

This is a nice wintry image that has me wishing for cooler weather. It’s supposed to be 82 degrees here today! 🌞

Details:

Title: Skates
Artist: Amy Rosenberg
Brand: Bits and Pieces
Piece count: 500 pieces
Size: Approx. 16 x 20 in. (41 x 51 cm)
Purchased: Used, thrift store

Quality:

Board: Very good
Cutting: Good, some hanging bits of paper
Image: Very good
Box: Average
Fit: Very good
Puzzle Dust: Moderate amount
Piece cut: Grid cut
Piece shapes: Good variety
Finish: Slightly shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating: Very good, recommended

Blind as a Bat

On December 18, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

This is the third puzzle in the Party Animals collection from All Jigsaw Puzzles that I’ve assembled. I was a bit worried about all the snow in this one, thought it might be difficult. It wasn’t of course, it was the perfect amount of challenging, and a lot of fun!

The quality of these puzzles has been very good, but there was a bit of an issue with this one. There were quite a few pieces still connected and many pieces with hanging bits of paper on the back. I must have gotten one from the end of the run. The first two puzzles in this series that I did had no problems at all.

I love these Party Animals by Mike Jupp, they’re so fun and adorable; glad I bought all four. The artwork is incredibly detailed and beautiful and the humor is right up my alley. I’m hoping that my quality issue with this puzzle is just a manufacturing mistake – All Jigsaw Puzzles have so many great looking images that are very tempting! 😉

Review: Paradise Banderoles

On December 13, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviewsLeave a comment

This post is sponsored by Puzzle Warehouse.

Paradise Banderoles by Eva Marie Nitsche – Schmidt – 500 pieces

Paradise Banderoles was the first puzzle I can remember that when I was finished I wanted to take it apart and immediately do it again. It was just a thoroughly enjoyable assembly from start to finish – fabulous!

I believe this is only the 3rd Schmidt Puzzle I’ve completed, and I’m wondering why in the world I haven’t ordered more. The quality of these puzzles is stellar, and it makes the assembly experience even more wonderful. The finish on the pieces feels lovely, and the pieces themselves are extremely thick and sturdy. They fit together satisfyingly, they almost settle into place – I can’t recommend this brand enough!

After I assembled the edge, I had to stop myself from working on the puzzle for a while. The pieces felt so good and fit together so well that I knew if I let myself I wouldn’t get up from the puzzle table until it was finished. I wanted to enjoy the assembly, so I made it last a little while. I started assembling the scalloped lines separating each section, and the entire puzzle just came together. It wasn’t overly challenging, but enjoyable regardless. I was slightly disappointed that there were only 500 pieces – I would have loved to have spent more time with it! Two thumbs way up!! 👍👍

Details: