Brian’s Worst Nightmare

On December 13, 2021December 12, 2021 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles8 Comments

Brian’s Worst Nightmare – MicroPuzzles – 150 pieces

This one was done in about 3 days, which is pretty fast for one of our bathroom puzzles. Hubby said it was because he doesn’t care for cats and wanted to finish it quickly. I wasn’t fooled though, it was finished fast because it’s a cartoon puzzle with bright colors on a white background and it was relatively easy – and he enjoyed it more than he’s willing to admit.

You may be wondering about the title – Brian’s Worst Nightmare – it’s a great title! To tell you why I’ll have to tell you a little bit about MicroPuzzles. It’s a small company run by a husband and wife team in Anaheim, California. One of their “employees” is Brian in shipping – and he’s their adorable dog! Here’s what their website says…

Part unpaid intern, part scapegoat, part family pet – he has been a two time (non consecutive) Employee of the Month in June 2018 (and again in February 2021). Brian (whose real name is Presto) is a 13 year old senior rescue with a sunny disposition and a bad habit of handing out discount codes. He’s the oldest and least productive member of the staff…. but we love him anyway.

So, this puzzle full of cats is Brian’s Worst Nightmare. It made me laugh out loud when I saw the title for the first time, and it makes me smile now when I think about it. Although, since this puzzle came in a box with many puzzles and the name of the artwork isn’t on their tube’s label, I had to go to their website to find the official title.

As for the assembly, it wasn’t quite as easy as hubby thought. He put together the entire border, and started working on the inside completely on his own in the middle of the night. When I started working on it, the realization came quickly that the border wasn’t quite correct and had to spend some time trying to figure out where he went wrong. The images of the cats are repeated, so he got a little mixed up and had things switched around – but it was put to right with not too much trouble. I almost wish I’d been able to do a little more of it, because honestly he did the majority, but I love that he was so engaged with it and almost couldn’t stop working on it.

It’s such a cute puzzle, with an even cuter title – and even though it was full of cats hubby had a great time putting it together. And so did I. 😸

*On a side note, the owners of MicroPuzzles (and the company itself) own one of the oldest examples of jigsaw puzzles in existence – a John Spilsbury in it’s original box with label! It’s from 1767, and is in excellent condition. A 250 year old puzzle, wouldn’t you love to see that up close? You can see pictures of this amazing puzzle here.

For those of you who don’t know, John Spilsbury is credited as the inventor of the jigsaw puzzle, which he originally named “dissected maps”. As a young man he was apprenticed to the Royal Geographer to King George III, and he came up with the idea of mounting maps to thin pieces of wood and cutting them along borders as an educational tool to teach children geography.

It’s almost impossible to say who made the very first puzzle; in the early 18th century people were creating jigsaw puzzles by painting images on wood and then cutting them apart. John Spilsbury was the first one to “commercialize” them by making his dissected maps and selling them, so he became known as their inventor.

Checking it Twice

On December 12, 2021December 11, 2021 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

Checking it Twice by Terry Good – Wentworth – 25 pieces

Another beautiful micro puzzle from Wentworth, this is one of their “Cracker Puzzles” that come in an organza bag inside a Christmas cracker shaped box. Perfect for stocking stuffers, or just a fun treat for yourself!

The quality of these Wentworth puzzles is excellent, I’ve never had a problem with any of their products as far as I can remember. The only time I’ve ever contacted customer service was when I didn’t know what the shape of one of their whimsies was. (It was a symbol for the London Tube *their subway system*) They were very nice in responding to my odd request and got back to me right away. 👍

Wentworth micro puzzles are a godsend when I’m feeling awful and in bed; I can still work on a puzzle and take my mind off of things. All I need is a small cookie sheet lined with paper and I can puzzle while in bed. Because they’re so helpful to me when I can’t sit in front of my puzzle table I’m always happy to order myself a bunch of their small puzzles once a year; I try to get every single one whose image speaks to me. I’m totally worth it!

The artwork by Terry Good is so beautiful, and it would make a fantastic puzzle of any size – all the way up to 1000 pieces. There’s so much detail, and even though the colors seem slightly muted they’re still bright enough to make a captivating image.

Look at these cute whimsies; the detail Wentworth etches into them make them even more special. Most whimsy pieces are just the outline of an image or figure, but they go the extra mile and give them detail – love them!

Review: Stained Glass Tree

On December 9, 2021December 8, 2021 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Puzzle reviews3 Comments

Stained Glass Tree by Jen Cameron – MicroPuzzles – 150 pieces

Hubby liked the image on Stained Glass Tree much better than the first MicroPuzzle we assembled with the donuts, and to be honest so did I. There was nothing wrong with 2037 Calories, but this one was just so lovely! The colors of this one are so beautiful and the finished puzzle makes me want to frame it and have it sitting on a table somewhere in the house. Love it!

These little MicroPuzzles have quite good quality for such little pieces, and I’ve been very impressed with them. What I love most is that when you’ve chosen the correct piece you know immediately, it slips right into place; that’s pretty helpful for these aging eyes with such small pieces. Once you get the edge together the fit can be loose – until more pieces are added – otherwise the fit is good. Piece thickness is very good for such small puzzles, and the image reproduction is stellar. Click the link above if you’d like to see their catalog of puzzles available, they’re constantly adding new images. I’m currently OBSESSED with their puzzles and absolutely love them!

There is only one piece shape, what I call ballerinas (2 prong/2 hole), but I don’t mind that with these little puzzles. What would normally be very or slightly annoying in a larger puzzle doesn’t bother me at all with these little ones. Probably because there is enough variety within the one shape, you don’t accidentally put a piece anywhere and think you’ve got it right. (Well, I don’t. Hubby did once with some edge pieces, but I came in later and could see it right away and fixed it.)

My one issue is that the artist credit isn’t available on every puzzle. I’m a big believer in giving artists their props here on the blog – their artwork is the reason we all have so many fantastic puzzle images to choose from. The title of each puzzle isn’t shown on the tubes they come in, but my suggestion is to at least give credit on the website. Then you’d be able to see which artist created the image, and I’d be able to put that information here when I post about the puzzles we’ve completed – to give them credit for their beautiful work.

*The artist is credited for this puzzle, but many of the images on their puzzles do not have the artist listed on their website.*

Mom must have whispered in my ear this morning as I’m typing this up, reminding me that you cannot tell the size of the puzzle unless you have something next to it for comparison. She was always telling me when I did a very large or very small puzzle that I needed to show the actual size by putting something next to it for a reference…..

It makes a difference when you can see just how small they truly are. There’s something about working with the small pieces that is so satisfying for me – although I’m not sure I am able to articulate exactly why that is. Whatever the reason, I’m captivated by these little puzzles and having the best time putting them together.

MicroPuzzles are very nice quality mini puzzles, and I’m extremely glad I found them. If you think you’d like to give them a try, I definitely recommend them. We’re giving them two test tubes way up! 🧪🧪

Details:

Title: Stained Glass Tree
Artist: Jen Cameron
Brand: MicroPuzzles
Piece count: 150 pieces
Size: Approx. 4 x 6 in. (10 x 15 cm)
Purchased: New

Quality:

Board: Very good
Cutting: Very good
Image: Excellent
Box: Test tube
Fit: Good, somewhat loose
Puzzle Dust: None
Piece cut: Grid cut
Piece shapes: No variety, one shape (ballerina)
Finish: Matte finish, lays flat

Overall Rating: Very good, recommended

The Seven Chakras – Day 7

On December 6, 2021December 6, 2021 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles6 Comments

The Seven Chakras by Phil Lewis – Liberty Puzzles – approx. 94/661 pieces

This is the 7th chakra, Sahasrara, and it is the crown chakra. It was the second of these puzzles that I assembled – because of that fantastic color, it jumped right out at me. Absolutely gorgeous!

Today’s word is dazzling, this image is truly dazzling – the colors are perfection. Phil Lewis is an artist from Boulder, Colorado, where Liberty Puzzles is located. What a fantastic marriage of artist and puzzle maker! Another of his images is one of my favorite puzzles, Sugar Magnolia. (One of these days I should make a list of my top 10 or 20 puzzles ever assembled, that would be an interesting exercise, wouldn’t it?)

Dazzling! I love the images with deeper colors, because it’s more difficult to see the piece shapes in the finished puzzle unless you flip it over. I find that I prefer darker images in wooden puzzles because it’s harder to see the piece shapes, then it seems more like artwork than a puzzle – at least from the front. But even when the pieces are very evident, it’s the enjoyment of the assembly that matters most to me. And these seven little puzzles have given me so much joy!

For all of these puzzles the piece shapes are almost invisible, so I wanted you to see the amazing shapes and cutting by flipping them over. It’s always so interesting to see intricately cut wooden puzzles from the back don’t you think?

We have the final three yoga poses, what looks like the sun, and our chakra symbol inside. The lotus was the easiest multipiece whimsy for me to assemble, good thing it’s one of the first ones I did. I’m not sure I would have gotten that lion put together if it had been first – it was much more difficult! (And we all know what happened with the eagle 😳)

I had the best time putting all of these puzzles together, and am so thankful for my sweet, sweet husband who gave me this beautiful gift.

You may come off like a tough guy to rest of the world, but you’re the most thoughtful and kind man I know, and you would do anything to make me happy. I love you to puzzle pieces! 💖🧩

The Seven Chakras – Day 6

On December 5, 2021October 8, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles4 Comments

The Seven Chakras by Phil Lewis – Liberty Puzzles – approx. 94/661 pieces

I mean, what is there left to say? Today’s word from the thesaurus is striking; this is a striking image, and the puzzle that goes along with it is complex and amazing.

This is the 6th chakra, Ajna, and it is the third eye chakra.

These puzzles are wonderful to work with – compelling even – and the quality is amazing. They’re more expensive than some, but in my mind they’re worth every penny. I know they’re not for everyone, and they’re not in everyone’s budget. But I don’t feel bad about asking for this for my birthday, it makes me happy. Once a year on my birthday or for Christmas isn’t too much to ask for a little bit of joy. 😊

I must confess that although it looks like there are pieces that will make an eagle, I wasn’t able to figure it out. I got the bottom half of it assembled, but couldn’t get the entire thing constructed. There is definitely an eagle there somehow, I just couldn’t figure out the whole thing. I’m blaming pain and exhaustion and my doped up brain; being on painkillers 24/7 seems to have whittled away at my intelligence.

To be honest I felt a little defeated by it. It was a bad day. But I’m not giving up!

I may pull out this puzzle (I’ve stored each one separately wrapped up in tissue paper) and give it a go on a day where I’m feeling like all cylinders are firing. If I figure it out I’ll post it, I promise. And if after several tries it still isn’t coming together – I can always email Liberty to see if they can give me some help. 🦅