Tag: Bits and Pieces

Quilting Bee In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling, Thrift Store Puzzles8 Comments

Quilting Bee by Kay Lamb Shannon – Bits & Pieces – 300 pieces (Large Piece)

This one is coming along, yesterday was a pretty bad pain day for me so I didn’t get far on this puzzle before I stopped and took a nap. Naps are amazing. I love naps. Sorry, I got off track there. Apologies. Anyway, about this puzzle, it shouldn’t take me too long today to finish it up – it’s coming together quite nicely.

I’ve found that many companies whose quality I don’t necessarily care for have very nice large piece puzzles. The bigger pieces for easier handling seem as though they’re thicker and sturdier and they fit together well. These fit into that category and are nice quality puzzles, and I’m very happy with them so far.

After the border all the red pieces were pulled out and I put together all the red clothes and the tractor – didn’t pull barn pieces because they look much more orange, and I’m trying to save the quilt for last as I know it’s going to be fun to do. Next it’ll be grass, animals, a few people and some buildings until we get to the quilt at the end.

On my second visit to the thrift store this year I found two multipacks of Bits & Pieces puzzles; one was a set of four 300 large piece puzzles with images by Kay Lamb Shannon – including this one, the second was a set of four 500 piece puzzles with images by Larry Jones. Bits & Pieces is a company I don’t purchase new, but if there are good images and I can check out the pieces first I will buy them used. These were all good looking puzzles with not too much wear, they had images inside for each puzzle, and they were all bagged separately. Not every thrifted puzzle is that well taken care of, these were a bargain, and now I have several smaller piece count puzzles here to choose from when a larger puzzle isn’t what I want.

Mom and I always carried something sharp in our purses, along with a small roll of tape when we went thrift store shopping. There are a few brands we won’t buy unless we can look at the pieces, and with our tools we could open up a box to look at it’s contents, and tape it back up if we decided not to buy it. I have gotten back into that habit, so I’m always ready to check things out if I need to take a peek inside. 😉

Vintage Halloween

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

Vintage Halloween by Finchley Paper Arts – Bits and Pieces – 500 pieces

My apologies for the cockeyed picture, I have no idea what was wrong with me today when I took it. I normally check to be sure I’ve got a good picture before I disassemble the puzzle, but it seems I was in a hurry and took it apart before making sure. Please forgive the wonky image.

Good quality puzzle, though very shiny. I didn’t care for the triangular piece shapes; my thought was that I’d get used to it as the puzzle went on, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. I was forever being stumped and confused by the way everything connected. I’ve worked puzzles with a wide variety of different and unusual shapes and have enjoyed them all – until this puzzle with it’s oddly shaped triangular pieces. These shapes just aren’t my pile of pieces.

My first Halloween puzzle of the season, and honestly I’m surprised I remembered to get it going to have it ready in the queue. Yay me and my aging, menopausal brain!

These are a few of my favorite sections, although the artwork in each one was beautiful in it’s own way. The time and attention that went into making these images still impresses me. If these are actually vintage (and they look as if they are) there weren’t computers or AI to make these for the artist, they were each painstakingly drawn/painted. *If they’re not actually old and just made to look like it – forget what I just said.

Do I sound like an old person, pining for the ways of yesteryear? Well, it seems I am an old person now, things seemed much simpler even just ten years ago. Sigh.

Happy Halloween season everyone! 🦇👻

Vintage Halloween In Progress…

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling6 Comments

Vintage Halloween by Finchley Paper Arts – Bits and Pieces – 500 pieces

The pieces were sorted yesterday and I starting assembling this morning, and although I love the image it seems as though perhaps it’s going to be a little challenging. The pieces are predominantly almost triangular in shape and my brain doesn’t seem to be grasping the way everything goes together just yet. I’ve had two cups of coffee so far, you’d think the gray cells would be working by now!

The shapes are so different from what I’m used to that even with the obvious border image I missed two edge pieces on my initial sort. That almost never happens. With the way that I sort it’s usually never a problem to get all the edges the first time, and I was surprised to find that two were missing. A quick look through the trays helped me find the two stragglers before the picture was taken, but it reinforced that I’ve got to get my head around the way these pieces go together and get used to the triangular shapes.

I do realize it’s only August, but with the puzzles that have already been put together and are waiting to be posted it is actually time to start putting together Halloween images; by the time they’re up in the queue it’ll be October.

Since Halloween is my favorite holiday, I’m looking forward to going through my puzzles yet to be assembled and finding any spooky images that need to be put together. Hopefully there are more than one or two, but I’m not certain how many there could be. 🦇

Review: Dog Stamps Quilt

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews2 Comments

Dog Stamps
Dog Stamps Quilt by Barbara Behr – Bits and Pieces – 300 pieces

Dog Stamps Quilt – hmmm, a collage with dogs, I wonder if I liked it? It won’t be much of a spoiler for me to tell you I adored it! It had everything going for it before I even opened the box, and luckily once it was opened the quality was just as good as the artwork.

Bits and Pieces is a brand I normally only buy second hand because of some very bad experiences with their puzzles. When I saw this image though, and the fact that it was only 300 pieces, I had to throw caution to the wind and give it a try. And I’m very glad I did! The pieces were very thick, with an excellent variety of shapes that fit together very well. The offset, almost wavy grid cut made for some fascinating piece shapes that sometimes seemed almost geometric, and the interesting way they fit together made for an absorbing and entertaining puzzle.

Dog Stamps 1

These adorable puppies jumped right out at me when I was sorting; first of all, their little faces look like they’re about to get into a lot of mischief, and secondly the background is a beautiful shade of blue that stood out in a sea of brown and tan pieces. Their faces and expressions are just too cute!

Dog Stamps 2

This little guy had such sad, sweet eyes. I had to take a close-up picture of this stamp; it’s just too sweet to pass up, and I think it would make a great puzzle image on it’s own.

Overall I was quite impressed with the quality of this puzzle. I find that many 300 piece puzzles with large pieces have thick chipboard that is quite sturdy, even if the larger piece count puzzles from the same brand aren’t as thick. Bits and Pieces is a brand I don’t usually endorse, but in this piece count I have no reservations in giving this puzzle a thumbs up. It’s great quality and an excellent image, and if the artwork makes you smile it is definitely recommended. Two doggie paws way up! 🐾

Details:

  • Title:                  Dog Stamps Quilt
  • Artist:                Barbara Behr
  • Brand:               Bits and Pieces
  • Piece count:     300 pieces
  • Size:                  Approx. 18 x 24 in. (46 x 61 cm)
  • Purchased:      New

Quality:

  • Board:               Very good
  • Cutting:             Very good
  • Image:               Very good
  • Box:                   Average
  • Fit:                     Very good
  • Puzzle Dust:     Small amount
  • Piece cut:          Offset grid cut
  • Piece shapes:   Very good variety
  • Finish:               Slightly shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating:      Very good, highly recommended

 

Dog Stamps

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzling4 Comments

Dog Stamps sort

It’s been a few days again since I worked on a puzzle, but I’ve finally decided which puzzle is next and have gotten started. It’s a Bits and Pieces collage of dog stamps, and I’m sorting it and will be working on it in bed on my white board.

The puzzle is only 300 pieces, and the pieces themselves are oddly shaped. They’re quite blocky and somewhat geometric, and I’m looking forward to seeing how they fit together. Looking at the pieces, it seems like it’s going to be lots of fun. 🙂

Each stamp has the name of a country on it, so there are plenty of words to make me happy; and every stamp has one or more dogs on it, be still my heart!