Darling Doe

On December 9, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Another puzzle with only ballerinas – good thing this had interesting artwork too or it might not have been completed! The artwork is quite nice, and perfect for puzzling. It was a thrift store purchase, and even though it’s missing 2 pieces we still got our money’s worth.

Mom and I assembled this puzzle together on one of our visit/puzzle days – so much fun! Andrews + Blaine puzzles seem to be hit or miss quality-wise. The pieces were a good thickness and fit together well. But I really don’t care for puzzles with only one shape piece, it’s boring and makes the assembly more difficult. Although if the image is a good one I’ll put up with it; sometimes if the image makes for a fun assembly I barely even notice that all the pieces are the same. Andrews + Blaine have some beautiful images to choose from, I wish all their puzzles had a good variety of shapes as well.

Luckily the image of this puzzle was a good one, and we didn’t have too much trouble with large areas of the same color/pattern. It was definitely better that mom and I worked it together – she’s my favorite puzzle partner and many puzzles I wouldn’t want to do alone I have no problem doing with her. We’re an awesome puzzle posse! 🙂

Song of the Unicorn

On November 19, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles4 Comments

I had this one in my puzzle room for at least a month before I finally decided to do it. When it was time to decide on the next puzzle to be assembled I would sometimes pass it over immediately, and sometimes I would open the box, stare at the pieces, and promptly put it away. Many times I have to be in the right mood to attempt a certain puzzle, and that was definitely true with this one – I think the border kept scaring me off. 😉

Unfortunately this was one of those Springbok puzzles that is EXTREMELY tight fitting. You can see in the picture above that the fit is so tight that the edges of the puzzle are curling upwards. Ugh. I really dislike puzzles that fit this way, it makes me question if I’m placing a piece correctly if I have to shove it into place. We’ve had plenty of Springbok puzzles that don’t fit this way, I wonder what the reason is for the fluctuations in the way they fit together.

I really like the artwork, but unfortunately the name of the artist was nowhere to be found on the box. I tried looking it up online, without success. I usually like to credit the artist, but my sleuthing skills seem to be lacking at the moment. If you know the artist, feel free to let me know in the comments. Thanks!

This is a “vintage” puzzle from approximately 1982. That makes me feel pretty old! I was just starting high school in the early 80’s – am I vintage? Classic? Antique?

Yoshi

On November 18, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

Look at this adorable guy – what a bummer that he seems to have had a nose job, and they took a bit too much off the top! I was really looking forward to assembling this puzzle, it’s so cute and it reminds me of when my kids were little.

Their pieces are a bit thin, but relatively sturdy, and their catalog has some excellent and unique puzzles! They’ve got tv show puzzles from Game of Thrones, Supernatural, Rick and Morty, and the Golden Girls to video games like Super Mario Bros, Fallout, Pokemon, Space Invaders, and The Legend of Zelda. They’ve also got some comic book art from The Walking Dead and Court of the Dead, they’ve got puzzles you won’t see anywhere else.

I enjoyed this assembly and wish Yoshi were all there, he would have looked great on my son’s bedroom door.

Dragon Rider

On October 28, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

What a gorgeous puzzle, and how disappointing that there’s a piece missing! Such beautiful artwork by Lynton Levengood, it is an absolutely stunning puzzle.

Ravensburger kid’s puzzles have the same excellent quality as their adult puzzles, yet another reason they’re my favorite puzzle company. The pieces are always thick and sturdy and feel good in your hand. The image reproduction is excellent and you can see above how well they fit together, it’s almost seamless.

I’m bummed that this one isn’t complete, my little “grandson” would have loved it. Oh well, I suppose it’s better than if I gave him an incomplete puzzle; it’s very frustrating for him when he can’t find a piece. At least I’ve got enough smarts to be sure and check them first. 🙂

Wouldn’t most kids (especially little boys) love to ride a dragon? I would. I need to ride side-saddle though, and the dragon has to promise to spew fire on a few places that have earned my wrath! Oops. Got a little off track there. Apologies. 😇

If you’ve got a little one who loves dragons, I highly recommend this puzzle! (Be sure you find one with all the pieces though)

Prima Ballerina

On October 22, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This was the first puzzle I assembled after my attempt at Winter Aspen. Even though there was a piece missing it was still very nice for me. The feel of the regular sized pieces, the way they fit together, and the fact that the image was so much less difficult made this an excellent assembly. 🙂

Ravensburger puzzles have such great quality that it’s always nice to work with them; but even more so after working with a puzzle that was difficult for me in any way. When I’ve done a puzzle that was dark, or difficult, or one that just felt tedious I always try to make sure I do a Ravensburger next. It always makes me feel better, and gets me back in my “puzzle groove”.

After failing to complete Winter Aspen I wasn’t feeling like the Supreme Puzzle Goddess that I am, so I needed a Ravensburger fix to lift my spirits. This puzzle was healing balm on my wounded ego, and made me feel so much better! 😊

It didn’t matter that it’s not an image I would normally choose, it didn’t matter that the colors were muted instead of bright, and it didn’t even matter that a piece was missing. What mattered was that I enjoyed this puzzle; it didn’t feel like work or a chore, it was relaxing, fun, and helped me get my mojo back!

This puzzle would be great to frame for the little ballerina in your life, or someone who just loves to dance – it’s so pretty!