Tag: Collage

Review: Golf Around the World

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviewsLeave a comment
This post is sponsored by Puzzle Warehouse.
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Golf Around the World – Eurographics – 1000 pieces

Collages really make me happy, and Golf Around the World was no different. I don’t even like golf! I enjoy the 4 hours or so I get to myself when my husband goes golfing, but golf just isn’t for me unless it’s in puzzle form. ⛳

Eurographics puzzles are good quality, and they have an excellent catalog of puzzles to choose from. They’ve got many beautiful collages, along with a great number of educational puzzles for both children and adults; I love the informational puzzles! From fine art to cartoons, there are plenty of interesting puzzles to choose from. Their pieces are thick and sturdy, and fit together well. The pieces of this puzzle were a bit snug, but it wasn’t extreme. The finish is slightly shiny, but otherwise crisp and clear with bright, beautiful colors. Eurographics puzzles have a random cut, which I find interesting, but not everyone enjoys the non-traditional piece shapes. Check out all their puzzles currently available at Puzzle Warehouse by clicking the link above.

This puzzle went together very quickly – collages usually do in my house. It’s hard to walk away, because finishing one small section leads to the next and so on. I loved all the colors in this image, there’s something really beautiful about the vintage posters. The illustrations are detailed and lovely, much more interesting than the posters and ads we have these days in my humble opinion. Collage puzzles are my favorite 🙂 , click to see the pages and pages of fun to assemble collages available at Puzzle Warehouse.

I’m not sure if this puzzle is going to be framed for hubby or not, we’ve already done several puzzles that have been glued and framed; we may be running out of wall space! This puzzle would be an excellent wall hanging for a golf lover, and as a bonus it’s a puzzle that’s a LOT of fun to assemble!

Details:

  • Title:                  Golf Around the World
  • Artist:                Eurographics
  • Brand:               Eurographics
  • Piece count:     1000 pieces
  • Size:                  Approx. 19 x 27 in. (49 x 68 cm)
  • Purchased:      n/a

Quality:

  • Board:               Very good
  • Cutting:             Very good
  • Image:               Excellent
  • Box:                   Average
  • Fit:                     Good, a bit tight
  • Puzzle Dust:     Moderate amount
  • Piece cut:          Random cut
  • Piece shapes:   Good variety
  • Finish:               Slightly shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating:      Very good, recommended

 

I received this product at no cost in order to facilitate this review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are truthful and 100% my own.

Down on the Farm

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments
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Down on the Farm by Charlie Girard – White Mountain – 1000 pieces

I love a collage! I was pretty surprised that mom found this at the thrift store, I believe it’s a relatively recent White Mountain release. It was a fun assembly, as usual – it’s like having a bunch of mini puzzles that fit together. Heavenly!

White Mountain Puzzles are normally good quality, and except for the fit this one was as well. The fit was extremely loose and it was easy to upset pieces accidentally. This isn’t a problem I’ve ever had with a White Mountain puzzle, if anything they can sometimes have a fit that’s a bit too tight. I’ve had a couple with a fit so tight that you can stand the puzzle straight up on it’s edge! Click here to see a picture.

There were plenty of words, which of course made me happy. I love having words to put together! Collages seem to go quickly, because it’s difficult for me to walk away from it. One small section leads to the next and before you know it the entire puzzle is finished and you’ve lost all track of time. These are the best kind of puzzles if you ask me. 🙂

Review: Purses! Purses! Purses!

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews, Thrift Store Puzzles1 Comment
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Purses! Purses! Purses! – Springbok – 2000 pieces

This puzzle image is excellent and it made me want to get to assembling it immediately – the bright colors, fun backgrounds, a collage – yes please!

This was a thrift store purchase, and although the box was slightly banged up and dented, all pieces were present and accounted for. This giant of a puzzle almost filled my entire 4 ft x 3 ft puzzle board. You never can tell in pictures, unless there’s something to give perspective; this is a HUGE puzzle!

This puzzle was loads of fun and even though it took me a few days I loved every bit of it. It was easy to separate out pieces of background colors and patterns and work on a section at a time. I love when I can just grab a bunch of pieces and assemble them without any assistance from the image on the box or a poster. It’s just me and my brain figuring out what goes where; it’s very satisfying for me. The pieces fit together tightly, but not the super tight fit that some Springbok’s have – I didn’t have to smash them together with my thumb (which is a bonus in my book).

If you’re a fan of purses or collages, this puzzle is for you! The bright colors and the interesting purses will keep you entertained – but be forewarned – this beauty requires a very large work space. 🙂

Details:

  • Title:                  Purses! Purses! Purses!
  • Artist:                Allied Products Corp.
  • Brand:               Springbok
  • Piece count:     2000 pieces
  • Size:                  Approx. 34 x 43 in. (86 x 109 cm)
  • Purchased:      Used, thrift store

Quality:

  • Board:               Excellent
  • Cutting:             Very good
  • Image:               Very good
  • Box:                   Good, a little thin for such a large puzzle
  • Fit:                     Tight, not in the extreme like some Springboks
  • Puzzle Dust:     Small amount
  • Piece cut:          Random cut
  • Piece shapes:   Very good variety
  • Finish:               Somewhat shiny finish, lays flat

Overall Rating:      Very good,  recommended

 

Vacation Stamps

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment
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Travel Stamps by Finchley Paper Arts – Ravensburger – 2000 pieces

I picked this puzzle out to work on with family while we were holed up at my house during Hurricane Irma. I’ve had it for some time and I’m not sure why I waited so long – it was really fun! I had help from both my daughter and my mother; 3 generations of awesome women working together.

Usually when I start a 2000 piece puzzle I’m slightly intimidated. It’s so big and there are so many pieces to sort through it almost feels like there’s no good place to start and that it’ll take forever to finish. I realize how odd that sounds coming from someone who has completed the World’s Largest Jigsaw Puzzle, but I never said that I was rational or that I always made sense. Anyway, for some reason this puzzle wasn’t intimidating for me and I knew exactly where I should start. 😎

The assembly was very methodical and soothing for me and I enjoyed each and every piece we put together. We started with the pale border area and then with all the wording. From there it was easy to pull out all the colored frames for each stamp and assemble them one color at a time. We didn’t get it completed before everyone left to go back to their homes, but we got quite a bit accomplished together; I finished it 2 days later.

This was a great puzzle with what seems like 15 small puzzles in the middle of it. That made it easy to find and assemble pieces, especially when several people were working on it. If you’ve got a big enough work space this puzzle would make a great family project!

 

Review: Remember When

On By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews4 Comments
This post is sponsored by Puzzle Warehouse.
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Remember When by Charlie Girard – White Mountain – 1000 pieces

Remember When is another fun collage from White Mountain. How many of these things do you remember? I remember many of them, and most of the rest I have some knowledge of. I was a little old when Cabbage Patch dolls were all the rage, but I do remember signing the birth certificate for my friend’s younger sister. Is that a hideous green AMC Gremlin? Oh my!

White Mountain Puzzles really do have the best catalog of collages around, there’s something for just about everyone. Beer, wine, cereal, neon signs, stamps, etc.; there’s a bunch of entertaining collages to choose from. They don’t just have collages though, they have fine art, educational maps, historical works, and much more. White Mountain puzzles are good quality. The pieces are a good thickness with a nice variety of piece shapes, and they fit together well. Sometimes there can be an issue with image lift if a piece is placed wrong and has to be removed, but it isn’t too much of a problem in my opinion – a touch of super glue and the piece is fine. The image reproduction is very good, with excellent colors. Click the link above to see all the White Mountain puzzles available at Puzzle Warehouse.

There was a moderate amount of puzzle dust in the bag, with a few slightly bent pieces. The pieces were a good thickness and fit together very well. The image reproduction was bright and colorful with no fuzziness. The finished image is larger than the average 1000 piece puzzle at 24 x 30 inches (61 x 76 cm), be sure you have enough work space before you begin. The box is about the average size for a 1000 piece puzzle with the name of the title, artist, manufacturer, and piece count on all 4 sides. 2 sides have a smaller complete image of the puzzle, and 2 sides have a small partial image, making it suitable for shelving either vertically or horizontally.

Part of the reason collages are so much fun for me is that you can pick out the pieces for a small section and assemble it easily, usually without having to look at the box much. One section leads to another and another and it goes quickly and is very entertaining. This puzzle was even more fun because I remembered many of the people and things. There are plenty of words too, which I always enjoy – after the edges I usually begin with the words. For this puzzle, once you’ve assembled all the words you’re already at least 30% done and it’s easy to build off of them to start filling in.

Charlie Girard has become one of my favorite puzzle artists; his collages make me happy and there are so many to choose from. If you’re a fan of collages click here to check out all of Charlie’s puzzles available at Puzzle Warehouse. The first page alone has 4 or 5 puzzles I would love to do!

Remember When brings back memories for me, although I don’t recall seeing any signs instructing hippies to use the back door. 😉 The image is colorful and fun and makes for a great puzzle. It’s no surprise that I’m giving two thumbs up to this collage – definitely recommended! 👍👍

 

I received this product at no cost to facilitate this review, all thoughts and opinions expressed are truthful and 100% my own.