T’s General Store

On April 16, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles14 Comments

This puzzle is called Trump’s General Store on the box, but I didn’t want that title on my blog – I’m sure you understand. I don’t talk politics on this blog, we’re all about jigsaw puzzles and puzzle people here – that’s it. For my purposes I’ve renamed the puzzle, and apparently so has Ceaco; it’s available for purchase now under the name “General Store”.

This was such a fun image to assemble, and it was fascinating how the tiny look-alikes were made for the photograph. A quick look at the image makes you think it’s just the inside of an old general store; but a more detailed inspection reveals that not much is what it seems to be at all.

There are 156 common items that fool the eye in this image: playing cards are ceiling tiles, checkerboards are floor tiles, bathtub stoppers are light fixtures, etc. To be honest I didn’t try to find them all, but it was fun to find things as it was being assembled that I hadn’t seen at first. I’d absolutely love to find more of Joan Steiner’s “Can You Find?” puzzles like this one. ❤ Here are my favorite look-alikes…

Cut crayons are substituted for deli meats, and the front of the deli case is a light switch cover…

T's General Store 1

A razor, paper fasteners and nail clippers as vacuums…

T's General Store 2

Grenade as a fireplace, cinnamon sticks as logs…

T's General Store 3

It’s an average Ceaco puzzle, not terrible but not great either. This puzzle was all about the image and seeing each element close up as you assemble it. I had a great time! Sometimes we find the most interesting puzzles at the thrift stores. 🙂

Courtyard Wash

On April 4, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles5 Comments

Meh. Wasn’t bad, wasn’t great, the flowers atop the wall were the most difficult part. It’s a Ceaco puzzle, so you can never be certain of the quality. It was fair, but perhaps this image is just not my pile of pieces.

I like bright colors, patterns, etc., but this one….just…..nope.

Courtyard Wash 1

Is it just me or are these creepy dolls? They look like they know things they shouldn’t. 😕

Kitten Play

On March 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles11 Comments

Sorry about the wonky picture again, I’m having a tough time lately for some reason, I really should check the pic on my computer before I break the puzzle down; but I’m always so excited to get going on the next puzzle!

Kitten Play 3

I always start with the edges if I can, and luckily with Ceaco puzzles it’s easy to pick them out, there aren’t any fake edge pieces or ones you aren’t sure of.

Kitten Play 4

The pieces for the flowers, blanket, curtains, wall and wicker/baskets were pulled out on the initial sorting. I start with the pieces that “jump out” at me when I’m sorting. Sometimes by looking at the picture you’d think pieces for a certain area would be easy to find and pull, but it’s not always the case. I usually have a rough idea of what areas I’d like to start with, but it sometimes changes when I actually see the pieces.

Kitten Play 5

Being only 550 pieces (and also being relatively good at sorting 😉 ) I was able to assemble the majority of the puzzle from the pieces I sorted at the beginning.

The two portraits are too cute, and this the sweetest kitten face – I think it’s the blue eyes. 🙂

Locally Grown

On March 19, 2019March 19, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles5 Comments

Love this series, especially the haughty look on that man’s face. So entertaining! I’m certainly looking forward to finding and assembling the last one in this series. 🙂

Review: Farmer’s Market

On March 9, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews, Thrift Store Puzzles3 Comments

This is an adorable image that I’ve seen before but had never come across. I finally acquired two of the three in the series, and am so looking forward to finding the third – I had as much fun assembling it as I thought I would!

Ceaco puzzles seem to be hit or miss in the quality department. I’ve worked some really nice puzzles of theirs and some absolutely terrible ones. It’s not a brand I will normally buy retail, we usually get them second hand. This particular puzzle was one of those I bought in a lot of 26 from Facebook Marketplace and I couldn’t be happier with my purchase. The quality of this one was good, with an excellent fit and wonderful image.

This was assembled in one sitting, at night when the sandman skipped over my house and I couldn’t sleep at all. I stole off quietly to the puzzle room and before I knew it – bam! – it was done. This was one of those rare puzzles where my expectations of how entertaining the assembly would be was spot on. It was thoroughly enjoyable!

Ceaco puzzles aren’t always up to snuff for me, but this one absolutely was. From the first piece to the last it was a great time. Images that make you happy usually make for wonderful puzzling! 🙂

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