Life’s a Beach

On January 23, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

IMG_E4145 — Life’s a Beach – Red Farm Studio – 100 pieces

This was not an easy 100 piece puzzle – excellent timing, difficult is good when you’ve got lots of time to kill. New company that I’ve never heard of before, and it was in an interesting box as well with a handle and a flip up top. Very cool. 🙂

Mom went to the thrift store specifically to find smaller puzzles that would work for me on the small bedside table and she found a couple of really good ones. We always love trying out new companies, and there are so many out there!

I assembled this puzzle with mom’s help while she was visiting and we had to focus a little more than normal. The wood grain both made it difficult and also helped in the assembly. It’s really a pretty puzzle, and would look good framed even though it’s small. I’m not someone who frames many puzzles, sometimes I purchase them specifically for framing but normally they get taken apart. Some get sent to mom’s for her to assemble, some are donated to the school my daughter works for, and the others are donated to the local senior center.

The quality of this puzzle was good. They were a good thickness, perhaps only slightly thinner than normal and they fit together very well. The image reproduction was very nice, and the interesting box was an added bonus. A quick search online didn’t come up with many Red Farm Studio puzzles, perhaps they’re not still being produced – I’m not sure, and I’m not sure how to find out either. (My caffeine intake has been limited, so my poor gray cells are struggling to keep up!)

It’s always fun to try new brands and find puzzles with interesting images. Luckily, living in what seems like the thrift store capital of the world makes it relatively easy to find puzzles of all shapes and sizes. We still haven’t started the brand new, unopened 6000 piece Schmidt puzzle she found – for $1.99!

Review: We Are All in this Together

On January 22, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

We Are All in this Together by Sandy Miller – Springbok (Thingies) – 60 pieces

I really loved this little puzzle, it was challenging enough to not be boring, small enough to fit the small bedside table I’ve been working with, and very nice quality.

Mom brought me a few puzzles that I can do here in the hospital so I won’t be bored out of my mind staring at the tv, this one was so interesting we assembled it right away, together. I know, a person doesn’t need assistance with a puzzle this small, but we like doing puzzles together and she came to help keep me entertained. It worked!

I’ve never heard of these Springbok Thingies, what a neat concept! Small, round puzzles in small, round boxes that you can take and assemble anywhere. From what I could find online the Thingies were produced in the late 60’s, all with the designs of Sandy Miller, and were quite popular for several years. The one we purchased has a copyright date of 2013, so it seems they have been reissued, I would love to find more of these! They’re rather like the micro puzzles from Wentworth – excellent quality, small piece count puzzles that you can take with you and assemble almost anywhere.

I love that although they are only 60 pieces and they aren’t childish images, they’re actually a bit more challenging and take a little bit of focus. Mom and I had a great time assembling this one. The finish on the pieces didn’t feel the same as larger piece count Springbok puzzles we’ve assembled, it was almost soft and feels really nice in your hand.

I’m hoping mom finds many more of these, we enjoyed this one very much! 🙂

Details:

Title: We Are All in this Together
Artist: Sandy Miller
Brand: Springbok
Piece count: 60 pieces
Size: Approx. 7′” in diameter (18 cm)
Purchased: Used, thrift store

Quality:

Board: Excellent
Cutting: Excellent
Image: Very good
Box: Small, round, heavy cardboard, very portable
Fit: Very good
Puzzle Dust: Very small amount
Piece cut: Random
Piece shapes: Very good variety
Finish: Matte finish, lays flat

Overall Rating: Very good to excellent, highly recommended

Vegetable Garden

On January 20, 2018January 20, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

I really love the artwork in this puzzle, and as a bonus there are quilts – nice! I’ve been doing 300 piece puzzles a lot these past few weeks, and enjoying them greatly. 🙂

MasterPieces large piece puzzles are excellent quality with extra-thick pieces that fit together very well. I appreciate the quality of these EZ Grip pieces, and love that it makes it easier for both the older and the younger to puzzle. While I’m recovering from my illness I’m finding it quite difficult to sit and puzzle for even a few minutes. 300 piece puzzles can be done on my white board while in bed, and are giving me that injection in the puzzle vein so I don’t go through withdrawal. 💉

A friend of my mother has given us about 10-12 300 piece puzzles to do and then donate – the timing could not have been more perfect! They’re all I seem to be able to do at the moment, and if I didn’t have any puzzles to do I would be even crankier than I already am (I’m kinda whiny and bitchy when I don’t feel well, if you add not being able to puzzle – YIKES). That’s just the truth of it. I make no excuses, I am who I am; those who love me have accepted it already. 🙂

If you’re one of those people who say “I only do 1000 piece puzzles, or more” I get it. I used to say the exact same thing. But in my humble opinion there is enjoyment to be had in puzzles of many sizes. I even enjoy kids puzzles down to 24 pieces; a puzzle is a puzzle. They may go quickly and be over too soon, but if you think about it you may realize that it’s the assembly that makes you happy, and you can enjoy assembling the little ones too. Well, I do anyway.

Maybe if you’re thrift store shopping and find a really interesting looking 300 piece puzzle – give it a try. They’re great when you don’t have a lot of time, when you’re having someone younger or older help you, or just when you want to relax a little more and finish your puzzle more quickly. Give it a shot, you may surprise yourself! 😉

The Color of Love

On January 19, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

For some stupid reason I thought this one was going to be as easy and as fun as Pencil Pushers. I am such an idiot; this was not nearly as fun. I even toyed with giving up on it once or twice. It was much more difficult, and I knew early on there were missing pieces, which always bums me out a little bit. It’s a cool picture, I just went into it with an unrealistic expectation of how it easy and fun it would be.

The quality was MasterPiece’s usual. Good thickness, interesting shapes, good fit. I started with the scribbled heart in the middle, and knew pretty quickly that there were at least 2 missing pieces – little did I know it would turn in to 11 missing pieces! Why on earth would someone donate a puzzle with this many pieces missing? It makes no sense to me. It’s a chance we take when we buy used from the thrift stores, but it’s still a let down when there are this many pieces missing.

There were colors in multiple places, so it wasn’t as easy as Pencil Pushers with just one pencil of each color. It was easy enough to separate out the different colors, but not as easy to assemble them all in their respective places. It took more time than I planned on, but it was still a fun assembly.

Luckily as I was nearing the end my daughter came over for a visit, she helped me finish it, which made it more enjoyable for me. I enjoy my “alone” puzzle time to decompress and relax, but it’s fun to share a puzzle and time spent together too. ❤

Pencil Pushers

On January 18, 2018 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

This apparently looks like a difficult puzzle, when I showed it to someone saying it would be my next puzzle they thought it looked very hard. I didn’t think so, but more than one person told me that. I thought it looked pretty easy actually, and it was!

I really enjoyed this puzzle, it went together pretty quickly and it’s stunningly beautiful. The random cut pieces made it interesting and the colors are bright and fun. The finished image is really lovely. I sent this puzzle to mom’s house for her to assemble, and when she’s done with it I would like to frame it. It’s such a wonderful image, I absolutely love it!

This puzzle was about average Springbok quality, the piece fit was a bit tight, and the backs of the pieces were slightly fuzzy around the edges. They were a good thickness, though, and the image reproduction is stellar. This is one of the instances where the image can overcome most quality shortcomings. There have been a few puzzles where the image was so entertaining to assemble that I didn’t really mind the quality issues that would usually annoy me. This is one of them. 🙂

Great image, fun assembly, most excellent thrift store find!