Harvest of Gold by Charles Freitag – Sunsout – 500 pieces
This image reminds me of my youth; I grew up in farm country. Tractors and fields remind me of home and a simpler time.
The colors of these machines jumped right out at me; dad always had a John Deere, as did most of the other people in our area. I don’t ever recall seeing a blue tractor! As a puzzler, the bright blue and yellow made for an easy place to start assembly, once they’re done there are plenty of places to work from and holes to fill in. I thought the corn field itself would be a pain, but it wasn’t bad at all. I suppose it’s more about the artwork than I thought!
This was the first panoramic Sunsout puzzle that I’ve assembled, the fit was very nice (not too tight) and it was grid cut rather than random. It doesn’t seem like it from the picture, but this puzzle is 3 feet long. It’s nice every once in a while to have a longer, shorter puzzle; there’s less leaning forward to place pieces and it’s easier on your back and neck. At least that’s how it is for little old lady me. 👵
Ladybugs by Michael Searle – MasterPieces – 100 pieces
Ladybugs is a bright, beautiful puzzle that’s fun to assemble but not too easy. It would be a great challenge for a young one in your life, or even for you if you’re so inclined. 🙂
MasterPieces puzzles can be hit or miss quality sometimes, but for the most part I find them to be quite good. They have a varied catalog of beautiful images and interesting series to choose from, and great prices too. The pieces are a good thickness and fit together very well. There are a nice variety of piece shapes, and the image reproduction is absolutely gorgeous! Click to see all the MasterPieces puzzles currently in stock at Puzzle Warehouse.
I love a good glow in the dark image, but you have to deal with the somewhat grainy feel of the pieces that glow. Whatever they use to add the phosphors (luminescent material) feels like very, very find sand. If you have tactile issues, be warned – glow puzzles may not be for you.
I’m a big supporter of giving children puzzles, they’re excellent for helping develop essential skills every child needs. Problem solving, spatial awareness, fine motor skills, reasoning, sequencing and many other skills are developed when solving jigsaw puzzles – and as an added bonus they’re really fun and great for family bonding! I have wonderful memories of assembling jigsaw puzzles with my grandma, my mom, my husband, and my children. Even in this crazy world of 24/7 information and electronics, having time to sit and talk and work on a puzzle together is a must for me – it’s so much nicer than staring at your phone or the television!
Ladybugs was a fun assembly, but wasn’t as quick as the average 100 piece puzzle. The greenery in the background added to the challenge, and the sheer number of ladybugs kept me on my toes. Having different shapes helped in finding the right pieces, the bright colors helped as well. Even though it was a small piece count I found it to be the right amount of difficulty; it’s definitely recommended.
Check out all the kids puzzles available at Puzzle Warehouse – they’ve got tray puzzles, block puzzles, floor puzzles, and many more to choose from. From 3 pieces all the way up to 1000 or more, there are tons of puzzles for kids or for the kid in you. 😎
So I have to eat my words, this puzzle is from Ceaco and not only was it really good quality, the image is amazing and was fantastic to assemble.
Ceaco isn’t a favorite brand, but they do have an interesting and varied catalog and very reasonable prices. We usually only buy them from the thrift stores and only when it’s an image that really strikes us. I actually bought this one new! Can you believe it? I loved the image so much and was on the hunt for puzzles with smaller piece counts so I decided to give it a try. The quality was quite good and we loved putting it together. So here I am, chomping on my puzzle snobby words. 🍴
The pieces were thicker than many other Ceaco puzzles I’ve assembled, and the fit was excellent. You can barely see the piece shapes in the image above, and that’s only because of the light color in the bottom corner. When it was photographed and ready to be disassembled we were able to lift the entire puzzle and nothing came apart!
The image is amazing and I’ve already found and purchased another one by the same artist; I’m ready to assemble it with mom when she gets home. Get your little old lady butt home soon momma, we’ve got puzzles to do!
I don’t have a lot to say about this puzzle to be honest. It’s not the most exciting image (only my opinion), and wasn’t the most fun to assemble. Sometimes they’re just not your cup of tea, and that’s ok.
I’ve never heard of or seen a Bob’s Your Uncle puzzle before; the quality was good, but nothing overly impressive for me. The pieces were a good thickness and the fit was fair. Photographic puzzles aren’t our usual choice, so the image reproduction is hard to judge – a puzzle that uses an older photo won’t be as crisp and clear as a newer photo taken with more sophisticated equipment. This image seems like an older photograph, so a little fuzziness is to be expected.
They can’t all be exactly what you’re looking for, but no matter – I got to work on this puzzle with mom and that’s the best part. ❤
Ah-Ha to Zig-Zag by Maira Kalman – Mudpuppy – 300 pieces
Ah-Ha to Zig-Zag is a fantastic collage that I had the best time assembling! It’s quite a different image – it’s based on the illustrated book featuring 31 interesting objects from the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. I couldn’t resist it, you know how much I love a collage!
This is my first puzzle from Mudpuppy, and I liked the quality very much. The pieces are a good thickness, and they are made from extremely sturdy board that does not bend or flake easily – no puzzle dust at all! The fit and image reproduction is very good as well, and overall I was impressed with the quality. I do wish that there was more variety in the piece shape, as all the pieces are what I call “ballerinas” (2 prong/2 hole standard puzzle shape). It’s not too much of a problem when you have a colorful interesting image like this one, but can be difficult when the image has large areas of color like the sky or water. Click the link above to see all of their puzzles currently in stock at Puzzle Warehouse.
I’ve been doing a lot of 300 and 500 piece puzzles lately, and have come to enjoy them very much. They’re a great palate cleanser after a larger puzzle, or just fun on their own when you don’t have the time or space for a puzzle of 1000 pieces or more. If you normally only work 1000 piece or larger puzzles, I recommend giving a smaller one a try every once in a while. They’re great fun, and can give you a boost of confidence – I finished that puzzle so fast, I must be becoming a puzzle master! 😎
Collages are my favorite type of puzzle images, it’s like having many mini puzzles to assemble. Even if I only have a few minutes to puzzle I can still find and assemble a small section and feel as though I’ve accomplished something. Click here to see all the interesting collages from many different companies available at Puzzle Warehouse – there are so many to choose from that there’s something for everyone.
This puzzle was a joy from start to finish. The border of the image made the edge pieces easy to find, but it wasn’t too thick which can sometimes make it very challenging to assemble. The blocks of color helped with the sorting as well, and even though it was a relatively easy assembly I was never bored. Mudpuppy puzzles are a little on the pricey side, but the quality is very good and they have many unique images that you won’t find with other companies. And aren’t we worth it? I think we are! 😉
Details:
Title: Ah-Ha to Zig-Zag
Artist: Maira Kalman
Brand: Mudpuppy
Piece count: 300 pieces
Size: Approx. 14 x 18 in. (35 x 45 cm)
Purchased: N/A, sent for review
Quality:
Board: Very good
Cutting: Very good
Image: Excellent
Box: Excellent, hinged metal tin
Fit: Very good
Puzzle Dust: None
Piece cut: Grid cut
Piece shapes: All one shape, 2 prong/2 hole
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.
My Jigsaw Journal 