Underwater World

On February 21, 2017December 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Ok, it’s a 100 piece puzzle, what on earth am I putting this on the blog for? Cause I want to! Mom got this at the thrift store for a friend’s son, and we put it together to make sure all the pieces were there. So I figured, why not put it on the blog? I did it, and just because it’s only 100 pieces doesn’t mean it can’t be a cool puzzle that’s fun to do!

It was pretty fun, but I had to be careful at the top with the sky. The pieces are only two shapes, and they all pretty much fit together. I was surprised at how much we had to pay attention and how many pieces we had to move when assembling the sky! We had fun though, and put it together pretty quickly.

I’d never heard of Janod before, the quality was exceptional! The pieces are extremely thick and sturdy and they almost feel like wood. They fit together well and I was able to pick the puzzle up by the corner and flip it over without anything falling apart. It’s pricey, about $20 for a 100 piece puzzle – but you never know, you might find one at a thrift store and only pay $2! Or if price is no object, go for it, really great quality. 🙂

Witches’ Wardrobe

On February 20, 2017December 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles4 Comments

This puzzle was so much fun!!!! Started it in the morning with coffee, and had it finished before dinner. 😮 It’s one of those puzzles where one section leads to another and then to another and before you know it the whole thing is done!

My first puzzle from Andrews + Blaine, and I have to say I love the quality. The image and colors are gorgeous, the pieces fit together beautifully and are thick and sturdy. The only drawback for me was that the finish was glossy and caused some glare. The piece shapes were mostly 2 prong 2 hole, but to be honest I loved the image so much and had so much fun with the assembly I really didn’t care about the shapes. It has to do with the overall quality of the puzzle, I think, and how entertaining the image is to assemble. For me, that is. That’s all I can come up with. Sometimes the lack of diversity in piece shape is SO ANNOYING to me, and sometimes it’s “eh who cares? – it was fun!” (I never said I’m sane, or that I always make sense) 😉

This image by Kathy Weller is just adorable! I love everything about it, and it was so much fun to assemble that I was swept away and before I knew it the whole thing was finished. I’m definitely going to look up her artwork and check the Andrews + Blaine website to see if there are more puzzles by her. Definitely recommend this puzzle! Fun, fun, fun!!

Star Spangled

On February 19, 2017December 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

New thrift store puzzle! Ravensburger – my favorite – and this was a large piece puzzle. Still the awesome Ravensburger quality and the finished puzzle was 20 by 27 inches, the same size as an average 1000 piece puzzle – it makes it seem like an even bigger accomplishment!

I had a good time with this puzzle, I did the entire puzzle in bed while I wasn’t feeling well. There’s something about the larger pieces that makes it seem to go so much more quickly. This was not an image I would have chosen if I were buying a puzzle new, but it was quite fun to assemble. It was dark, most of the pieces seemed very dark and when I look at the finished picture I’m surprised at how light sections of the puzzle seem. But it’s a beautiful puzzle and I enjoyed the large pieces more than I expected. Maybe I’ve been working only 1000 piece or larger puzzles for too long, the big pieces are fun too!

Completely worth the $1.99 spent on the puzzle 🙂 Excellent quality, all the pieces were there, nice image and a fun evening assembling it.

September Gold

On February 18, 2017December 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This was another puzzle from a 10 in 1 box. Love quilts and Americana puzzles, so this was one I really wanted to do even though the quality was less than stellar.

Admittedly I don’t know all the ins and out of puzzle manufacturing, but can it be THAT much more difficult to make a die with more than one piece shape? And if it is, wouldn’t it be better to spend a little more time making a puzzle with interesting pieces than to have one with only one boring shape?

Anyway, I very much enjoyed the artwork by Diane Phalen, which is the main reason I completed this puzzle. The quilts and storefront, the flowers and apples, the woods and sky all made for a great image. If only the puzzle itself were as well made as the art. 😐

Fuchsia Faerie

On February 17, 2017December 28, 2019 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

I was looking for something on Amazon, and saw this puzzle in the “you might like” section of the page. Something about it drew me in and I ordered it that day! I’m glad I did. 🙂

I had never even heard of this puzzle company before, so that was interesting to me and I saw that the puzzles were manufactured in the Netherlands which usually means good quality. I was right! The pieces are wonderfully thick and have a linen wrap which feels good in your hands. The fit is excellent which is one of the most important factors for me and the image quality is exceptional. And this is the first puzzle I’ve ever seen where the standard 2 prong 2 hole shape is the shape with the LEAST number of pieces. There were many more pieces of the more interesting shapes and I loved that! It is a grid cut puzzle, not a random cut, but there were more of the other shapes than the standard 2/2 piece.

I enjoyed this assembly very much and finished it quickly for a 1000 piece. It sucked me in and I just had to keep going. The faerie was beautiful, and it was easy to get started by pulling the pieces for her hair, and all the dots along the border, then the sequined bodice, rest of the border, etc. The pieces fit together so well that it was easy to assemble a small section and pick it up to move it into place. This puzzle was awesome from start to finish!

I want more Purrfect puzzles! This could be bad. 😐