Down on the Boardwalk by Charles Fazzino – TCG – 300 pieces
The riotous color in this image was very enjoyable and went quite quickly once it was started. I’ve done a few Charles Fazzino images and they’ve always been interesting and entertaining to put together. Normally artwork with so many things packed tightly together isn’t quite my cup of tea (think Jan van Haasteren), but this one has enough breaks with the ocean and sky that it wasn’t too difficult.
The quality was much better than expected for a TCG puzzle; they are hit and miss in the quality department for me – usually more misses than hits unfortunately. But this puzzle had great reproduction, good cut, and an excellent fit.
Everything was bright and fun with lots of people, places, and things to see. Love the Rainforest Cafe!
The whole puzzle was just all around fun. I’ve never been to Atlantic City, but this boardwalk puzzle makes it look like fun.
Down on the Boardwalk by Charles Fazzino – TCG – 300 pieces
I know, it’s a terrible picture – apologies. I’m working on a time crunch this morning, that’s my excuse. Usually I’m in the puzzle room first thing, but today was an anomaly and I didn’t get in here until about 7:40 this morning. Just enough time to snap a picture of what got assembled yesterday and type up a quick post about it.
It’s been quite a while since there’s been a puzzle image by Charles Fazzino on my board, and I’m not sure why because it’s been quite an entertaining assembly so far. Perhaps where I’ve been shopping there haven’t been many of his images to choose from? Not exactly sure. But this puzzle has good quality; thick pieces, bright reproduction, and a good fit – you could almost forget that there’s only one piece shape. Almost.
On a completely separate note, I’m watching over my grandpuppy Manny today. He’s in terrible pain, but the emergency vet wasn’t able to find what is wrong with him. If you’re of the praying type, send up a quick prayer that at the very least he isn’t in too much pain for now, it’s heartbreaking to hear him cry. 😭
Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas by Charles Fazzino – TCG – 300 pieces
This Vegas puzzle was purchased on one of the last puzzle shopping trips before everything shut down; there were a few 300 piece puzzles with images by Charles Fazzino, and this one jumped right out at me. It’s quite busy and full of detail, and I’m happy to report the quality was excellent.
It was very good quality for a TCG puzzle; nice thick pieces, with excellent fit and image reproduction. There was only one piece shape, which is a bit disappointing, but the image is so detailed that it didn’t make putting it together any less engrossing. The assembly was entertaining, and as someone who’s been to Las Vegas I found it great fun to see the representations of some of the Vegas landmarks and hot spots.
Motel with waterbeds, porno movies, 24 hour drive up weddings, slot machines – where else could you be but Vegas? 😉
And if you want to get out of town you can go see the Hoover Dam, or visit the Chicken Ranch – two VERY different sights to see. If you haven’t heard about The Chicken Ranch, um…. it’s a place where some “ladies of the evening” work.
I have a special place in my heart for Circus Circus. Mom and Dad went to Vegas when I was younger, and she talked about it a lot and told us how much fun it was. She thought it was the best place in Vegas (at least for her), and my memories of her stories still make me smile. 🙂 When I went there about 10 years ago, we stayed across the street at the Riviera, and I couldn’t wait to go to Circus Circus and see what she was talking about. It was a pretty fun place, and they had great buffets too!
My only problem with this puzzle was this bit at the top, where the image was ripped. It’s just an anomaly, one of those things that happens. I’m not mad or wanting my money back; it didn’t make the assembly any less fun, I still had a great time!
Browsing & Butterflies on 5th Avenue by Charles Fazzino – Sure-Lox – 2000 pieces
Browsing & Butterflies on 5th Avenue is part of the new Art Gallery puzzle collection from TCG Toys’ Sure-Lox brand. I was happily surprised at the quality of this puzzle, and enjoyed it much more than anticipated. This is the first puzzle I’ve assembled with artwork by Charles Fazzino, and I loved the 3D Pop Art style – it made for a wonderfully entertaining assembly!
Sure-Lox puzzles haven’t also been on the nice list here at My Jigsaw Journal, but in the past few months I’ve assembled a couple of their puzzles in the newer packaging and was pleasantly surprised by the good quality. The chipboard is thicker, the fit is exceptional, and the image reproduction is excellent. It’s rare that a puzzle company makes significant improvement to their quality, but Sure-Lox seems to have done it. 5th Avenue makes the third Sure-Lox puzzle from the newer line that I’ve assembled, and they have all been very good quality. Well done Sure-Lox!
I was so impressed by the thicker pieces that I decided to compare them to Ravensburger to see how it held up …
The Ravensburger piece is on the top, and you can see that the chipboard of the Sure-Lox puzzle is almost the same thickness. It may not be as well compressed, but all in all I was thoroughly impressed. The pieces feel good in your hand, and the fit is excellent. You can lift and hold up the finished puzzle with no problem at all. I picked mine up and handed it to my son (who wasn’t too keen on being photographed, but oh well)….
Pretty darn nice fit if you ask me. Perhaps it could even be framed without having to use glue – not too shabby! Wonderful quality all around, and I am well and truly impressed by the new Sure-Lox line of puzzles.
The only criticism I have is that there is only one piece shape. With an image like this it isn’t too much of a problem, most of the puzzle is busy and the only large area of color is the sky. Luckily it’s broken up by quite a few butterflies, but there are a few sections where it can be somewhat tedious. But honestly, I was almost done with the assembly by then, and I was so excited to be finishing that I didn’t find it overly tiresome. Many puzzle companies are using just the one piece shape these days, and I find that I’m slowly getting used to it even if my preference is a puzzle with a variety of piece shapes.
The artwork is incredibly detailed and interesting, and the New York cityscape made for a fun assembly. I think I may be a new Charles Fazzino fan, and will definitely be looking for some more puzzles of his art. 🎨
Rockefeller Center
New York Public Library
Overall I was very happy with the quality of this puzzle – the image kept me entertained and smiling, and it’s one that is definitely recommended – instead of thumbs I’m giving it two Lady Liberties with their torches way up! 🗽🗽
Details:
Title: Browsing & Butterflies on 5th Avenue
Artist: Charles Fazzino
Brand: Sure-Lox
Piece count: 2000 pieces
Size: Approx. 39 x 27 in. (99 x 69 cm)
Purchased: N/A, sent for review
Quality:
Board: Very good
Cutting: Very good
Image: Excellent
Box: Good
Fit: Excellent
Puzzle Dust: Moderate amount
Piece cut: Grid cut
Piece shapes: No variety, only one shape
Finish: Slightly shiny finish, lays flat
Overall Rating: Very good, highly recommended
*I’m going to do something I’ve never done before. Since this is the season of giving I’d like to lift someone’s spirits for the holidays; I wanted to give away my very gently used, autographed copy of Browsing & Butterflies on 5th Avenue to one of my readers. Since many of my readers are thrift store shopping puzzlers, I was sure they wouldn’t mind a secondhand puzzle. I when I contacted the company to inform them of my intent to hold a giveaway, they graciously offered to send a brand new autographed puzzle to the winner instead!
If you’d like this puzzle, signed by the artist, please leave a comment on this post to be entered in the giveaway. I will use a random number generator to decide on the winner, and will post the results one week from today – December 16, 2019. Good luck!
I received this product at no cost in order to facilitate this review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are truthful and 100% my own.
And if you want to get out of town you can go see the Hoover Dam, or visit the Chicken Ranch – two VERY different sights to see. If you haven’t heard about The Chicken Ranch, um…. it’s a place where some “ladies of the evening” work.
My Jigsaw Journal 