Peacocks

Peacocks – MicroPuzzles (Puzzle Packs) – 80 pieces

So MicroPuzzles has come out with a new line, they’re smaller in piece count but the pieces themselves are larger and easier to handle – and they have some beautiful, adorable, cute as a button images to choose from. This is in the beautiful category (just my opinion) and while it’s a stunning image it was more than a little challenging to put together, even for only having 80 pieces.

These little beauties are even better quality than the MicroPuzzles that come in the test tubes; the pieces are thicker and sturdier, the fit is exceptional, the image reproduction is clear and crisp, and the finish is more matte. Overall, I’d say these were excellent quality mini puzzles. The finished puzzle is 5″x7″ (approx. 13 x 18 cm), and is a perfect size for puzzling when you are out and about or have only a small space to work with.

They come in a little plastic pouch that is easy to throw into a bag or suitcase so that you can puzzle anywhere, and the seal is very tight – you won’t have to worry about it coming open and spilling pieces everywhere.

Here you can see the difference in piece size between the newer puzzle pack pieces and the regular MicroPuzzles that come in the tubes. The test tube piece is on the far left next to the much larger piece from the new Puzzle Packs in the middle. They’re both relatively small, but the larger pieces are easier to work with and see the image on; I enjoyed working with them very much.

My youngest picked out this puzzle for me to assemble, and I told him that it was quite the challenge for me. Still, I enjoyed trying out these new puzzle packs and am looking forward to going through the rest of my recent purchases from MicroPuzzles. Oh, and speaking of a puzzle with a great fit…

You guessed it! My signature standing on the edge picture, which fellow puzzle blogger and my puzzle bestie Penny has named The Stacey Stance! This little guy stood up so well that it barely needed to curve around at the bottom. As I’m typing and looking at this picture I can’t seem to keep a smile off of my face, these pictures are so good for my mental health.

Enjoy mini puzzles? You might want to give these new Puzzle Packs from MicroPuzzles a try, this one was lovely! 🦚

Gingerbread Glen* (Advent – Day 11)

Gingerbread Glen* – Aldi – 80 pieces

This adorable little puzzle was quite fun to put together. Pretty much all of them have been very entertaining, good quality puzzles. I’m so glad hubby got this for me, what a sweet guy I have!

Hope you like the title, Gingerbread Glen, I’m actually pretty proud of that one. 😎

There’s only one more day to go and I’m excited to see if we make it through all twelve puzzles with no problems at all, wouldn’t that be something?

Stay tuned!

The Stocking is Stuffed* (Advent – Day 10)

The Stocking is Stuffed* – Aldi – 80 pieces

It’s only 80 pieces, it’ll be a breeze. Nope! This was the most challenging image to assemble so far, I really had to pay close attention; it’s more difficult than you think when you’re working without an image to reference. At least it is for me.

This calendar of puzzles has been really great in the quality department. Aldi is a grocery store not a puzzle company, yet they’ve managed to put out a wonderful quality set of puzzles and I am duly impressed. Well done!

Chilly Treats* (Advent – Day 9)

Chilly Treats* – Aldi – 80 pieces

It looks like the ice cream truck is coming down Lollipop Lane, snow cone anyone? My treat! 🍧

I like this image too, although the border on this one was a bit difficult as well. But at only 80 pieces you can assemble the middle of the image relatively quickly and then fit the edges together later on.

That isn’t how I normally put a puzzle together, but you don’t always have to follow a strict order – sometimes switching things up and doing them differently gives you new perspective. I prefer to put the border together first, but if it’s easier to put those pieces in last then that’s what I’ll do. 😊

Only three days left in this Advent calendar, we’re nearing the end of the holiday puzzles for the year. I’ve been enjoying these little one coffee puzzles in the mornings with some quiet time and a nice cup of hot coffee. I’m actually hoping that next year I can find another good quality calendar of little puzzles to put together in December, it’s been lovely!

Merry Masquerade* (Advent – Day 8)

Merry Masquerade* – Aldi – 80 pieces

Not my favorite of the images, but once I got going with the faces the rest of the puzzle came together relatively easily. It’s a merry masquerade party – according to me.

Today we’ve have the first quality issue with these puzzles, but I believe it was more about how they were packaged than anything else. You cannot see in the finished puzzle, but there is one piece with a tab bent so far that the actual chipboard is broken. It’s still connected to it’s piece by the image/paper on the front of the puzzle, but care had to be taken not to further damage the piece.

When you have a puzzle packaged in a container that isn’t overly large sometimes pieces get crammed into the space available to them and bent pieces like this can occur. In comparison to other problems it definitely isn’t a deal breaker, and this is the first issue I’ve had with these puzzles at all.