Introducing Frenchy! by Robin Preiss Glasser – Briarpatch – 100 pieces
A cute little kids puzzle, with the added fun of glitter! I love the Fancy Nancy images, they’re adorable, and remind me of myself. I’m all about being who you are, especially if you don’t fit in – who wants to be just like everyone else? Not me! 🙂
This is the fourth Briarpatch puzzle that I’ve assembled, and they’ve all had differing levels of quality; it makes me wonder why that is. This puzzle had thick enough pieces, but the chipboard used wasn’t very sturdy at all, and the way the pieces fit together was……odd. It wasn’t too tight, it wasn’t spongy, it simply felt very weird. I’m not sure I can properly explain it; you could plainly see that the piece was in the correct place, but it didn’t feel as though it was. Not a good fit, bent and flimsy pieces, and the puzzle didn’t lay flat.
Questionable quality aside though, Fancy Nancy is adorable!
Pennant Race by David Spindel – TDC Puzzles – 1000 pieces
This was quite the interesting puzzle, it’s a TDC Puzzle series called “The Edge”. The box says it’s a jigsaw puzzle with only edge pieces. Every single piece has a straight (or nearly straight) edge, so starting in the normal way isn’t really an option.
Surprisingly I didn’t find it all that difficult to assemble. The bright colors and many different designs made for an entertaining, but not too challenging puzzle. The pieces were a good thickness and fit together really well; I found the quality to be quite good. I was surprised by the fact that the when complete the entire puzzle could be lifted without any of the pieces coming apart. Usually when there are pieces with straight edges that just butt up against each other if you lift or try to move the puzzle it will fall apart. This was designed so that everything connects beautifully – I was impressed!
There were so many words in this puzzle, I had the best time with it! Baseball isn’t really my thing, but collages, bright colors, and having lots of words is definitely right up my alley, or should I say “right up my baseline”?
Only two little buttons for my Detroit Tigers? SHAME! We may not have won the World Series as many times as some other teams, but come on! We couldn’t even have one little pennant shown? 😕 (I don’t really care that much, it’s baseball LOL) The image reproduction was very crisp and clear – some of the pennants had rosters on them, and you can read every name.
If you come across one of these “The Edge” puzzles, consider giving it a try. I enjoyed it very much, and honestly didn’t find it that much more difficult than the average jigsaw – and it was great fun. Batter up! âš¾
Details:
Title:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Pennant Race
Artist:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â David Spindel
Brand:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â TDC Puzzles
Piece count:Â Â Â 1000 pieces
Size:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Approx. 19 x 26 in. (48 x 66 cm)
Purchased:Â Â Â Used, thrift store
Quality:
Board:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Very good
Cutting:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Good
Image:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Excellent
Box:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Square and sturdy
Fit:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Very good
Puzzle Dust:Â Â Â Small amount
Piece cut:Â Â Â Â Â Grid cut
Piece shapes:Â Â Good variety
Finish:Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Slightly shiny finish, lays flat
As the Sun Sets by Howard Robinson – Sunsout – 300 pieces
The posse and I put this together at a family dinner while waiting for the food to be ready. It’s adorably cute, but wasn’t as fun to assemble as we’d hoped; though I’m not sure why that was. Sometimes the interesting, cute, or pretty image isn’t the most entertaining to actually put together. Or maybe we were all just hungry. 😉
Knightingale by Marja-Leena Montonen – Ceaco – 550 pieces
Knightingale was a fun image with beautiful colors and interesting artwork; unfortunately it also had poor quality too. There was a great deal of image lift which robbed me of the joy I get when running my hands over the completed puzzle – there were too many tabs sticking up and I didn’t want my puzzle massage to tear any of them off. Still it was a great find at the thrift store, I got several hours of enjoyable puzzle time for only 69 cents!
The artist may have been inspired by Picasso – or this scene is set somewhere near a leaking nuclear reactor. Fun characters with interesting colors, I’d love to find more puzzles with her artwork – it was even more fun to assemble than I’d hoped. 🙂
Cupcake Heaven by Ruth Black – MasterPieces – 1000 pieces
My first completed 1000 piece puzzle of the year. I chose it because it’s the kind of puzzle image that makes me happy – a collage with bright colors – and I wanted the first puzzle of the year to be awesome and entertaining.
Cupcake Heaven had 7 missing pieces and a devious random cut that had me using more brain power than I’d bargained for. If the puzzle was complete and the fit were less spongy it would definitely be one I’d assemble again. It wasn’t always easy to be sure the pieces were in the correct places because the fit was odd.
Even though it had missing pieces and a wonky fit I still enjoyed myself, which was the aim all along. Everything doesn’t always have to be perfect – life certainly never is! It’s what you do with what you’re given that counts in the end.
My Jigsaw Journal 