Soon!

On May 16, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlingLeave a comment

As of yesterday we have a date set, the hall is reserved and I will FINALLY be able to assemble the entire 40,320 piece puzzle! I’m very excited, and even though it’s another month I have to wait I know that the date is coming up and it’s definitely going to be completely assembled. 😎

I had to make sure all the people I wanted to invite were able to come, and that’s why the date is so far away. It seems far away at the moment, but I know in the grand scheme of things it really isn’t. It took a little over 6 months to complete, so waiting another 4 weeks isn’t that much of an inconvenience (it just seems like one!)

I’m so looking forward to seeing the entire puzzle, I have a feeling it will be extremely overwhelming when all the sections are assembled and I can visualize my accomplishment. 😮

So, if you’ve been waiting to see me with the completed puzzle it won’t be too much longer that you have to wait. I promise I will let someone take my picture and I will definitely be posting pictures of the final assembly and the completed puzzle!

The Frozen Difference

On May 12, 2017May 18, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This puzzle is called The Frozen Difference because the image on the box top and the image on the puzzle are different. There are nine small differences between the two, and there is a small poster of the puzzle in the box with the differences circled. How many more times do you think I can use a form of the word different differently?

As you can see by the picture, the pieces are somewhat warped and do not lay flat. I have never seen that in an adult Ravensburger puzzle, however I haven’t done any children’s puzzles from them and can’t say if it is typical or not. I believe from knowing the excellent quality that Ravensburger produces that the issue with this particular puzzle lies in the fact that it was a thrift store purchase and was most likely used plenty and/or perhaps not reboxed or stored properly. (This is Florida after all, and you wouldn’t believe the things that can become warped in the heat. Plastic, cardboard, minds, ideas, etc.)

I will admit that I have not seen Frozen. My kids are adults now and I don’t have to sit through their movies any more. I know the sisters are Anna and Elsa, I know the snowman is Olaf, I know the song Let It Go is burned into the brains of parents with young children, and I know that I’m thankful that I don’t have young children. 😉

The thickness of the pieces, especially compared to other children’s puzzles, is excellent! They feel sturdy in your hand, and the linen finish is top notch as well. There is a nice variety of piece shapes and they fit together well in spite of the slight warping. The quality overall is excellent, and I will always recommend Ravensburger puzzles. They’re top of the line in my book!

Ravensburger has been and continues to be my favorite jigsaw puzzle manufacturer. This puzzle has issues, but I cannot say for certain if it was a manufacturing problem, or just because the puzzle was purchased secondhand and was loved and used a lot.

Ludicrous Lighthouse

On May 10, 2017May 18, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

This lighthouse is so much bigger than I thought it would be! To be honest I never even looked at the size when I ordered it; I just saw Colin Thompson and Ravensburger and ordered it without another thought. It’s over 3 feet tall! 38 inches x 25 3/4 inches. It’s pretty awesome though, no matter how tall it is. 🙂

Excellent Ravensburger quality, fun shaped puzzle, and Colin Thompson’s artwork = a happy, happy puzzler! I’m not a shaped puzzle aficionado, this is technically only the 2nd one I’ve completed, but I enjoyed this one very much. I did like that the sides going up the lighthouse were pretty much straight so I could at least pull out some of the edge pieces and keep to my puzzling routine, even if just a little bit. This puzzle has “specially shaped pieces” as well, which might be called whimsies. There aren’t many of them, but enough to be fun and make for some interestingly shaped pieces that surround them.

There are so many things to discover in this puzzle that it may take several observations to find them all! The usual Colin Thompson humor, worlds within worlds, and plenty of little pink people throughout. This is a puzzle that I’ll definitely be doing again – it was loads of fun!

If you’re a shaped puzzle fan or if you love Colin Thompson’s artwork, this puzzle is an excellent one! Make sure you’ve got a big enough board though, it’s pretty darn tall!

At The Vets

On May 4, 2017May 18, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

I’ve been in a What If and Wasgij mood lately, I keep switching from one to the other. I like the added challenge of not having a picture to work from and I suppose I’ve been wanting to use my brain to prove it’s still there and functioning. 🙂

So for this puzzle, the picture shows what Brett the vet hopes the surgery (they say surgery in Europe instead of office) would look like if he stops making house calls and everyone has to come to the surgery instead. The puzzle is what actually happens when everyone has to come to the surgery/office. It doesn’t turn out to be as calm as Brett had hoped!

This puzzle was really fun for me as I didn’t even use the box for clues. Usually you can tell what certain characters are wearing and where they might be in the image and use those clues to assist in the assembly. I put the box away completely and just started working the puzzle and I must say it was a great time! I didn’t know who was wearing what or where anything was supposed to be so it was all just assembling and paying attention.

I can’t really put into words how much I enjoy taking a few pieces of a certain color and looking how they may fit together and putting them where they’re supposed to be. It’s a sense of pride almost, but also it’s just a good time for me. Again, this is clumsily worded and it doesn’t convey how much I adore doing jigsaw puzzles, but it’s the best I can do for today. Apparently my brain is helping with puzzles today, but not vocabulary. 😉

Let’s Golf

On April 26, 2017May 18, 2023 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw PuzzlesLeave a comment

So I got a big surprise the other day, hubby apparently ordered a couple of puzzles for me to do. They’re for him when they’re done, I’m just supposed to assemble them. Two golf puzzles for his golf room! Of course I’ve taken over some real estate in that room for puzzle assembly so perhaps it’s the golf/puzzle room? Nevertheless, two puzzles arrived that day; this 500 piece Ravensburger and a 1500 piece puzzle by Mandolin. I’ve never heard of Mandolin before. Oooh, interesting!

The first of the two puzzles he got is this adorable collage image. There are even golf valentines in there, how cute is that? This is a large piece puzzle, so it’s impressively sized, and that’s also part of the reason I wanted to do this one first. There’s something about the large pieces that makes me want to work them. The large Ravensburger pieces have the best tactile feel to them, it’s heavenly!

This one didn’t take long at all, especially because hubby helped a little bit. It’s hard for him to stay away from anything golf related. 😐 It was nice to have him help me, he’s been tied up with work and other things for a while and hasn’t assembled a puzzle with me for quite some time. I enjoyed having him help with the assembly, especially since he wants to frame the puzzle for himself.

There were lots of words to assemble, which I love, and lots of golf balls to find and assemble too. The colors are very bright and cheery, but old timey and cute as well. Hubby was even pleased to find some maps or whatever you call them of holes at the “Old Course” in Scotland. There were so many interesting little things to see everywhere that made it so much fun that it went quickly and was super enjoyable!

He wants to frame both puzzles when they’re completed, so I’ll be gluing this one together today. Mom will be so pleased to have something to hunt for at the thrift stores, we need to find a frame. 🙂