Humpty Dumpty

On December 10, 2017December 11, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles3 Comments

This gorgeous puzzle was excellent quality and it has the most stunning colors! The pieces are thick and incredibly sturdy and fit together very well. It’s a really well made children’s puzzle from the late 90’s – if you can find one cheaply I would definitely recommend it for a little one in your life.

We don’t come across many Milton Bradley puzzles anymore. I remember when I was young and doing puzzles with my grandma she didn’t have much variety to choose from as far as brands go. Most of the puzzles she assembled (from what my aging brain can remember) were Big Ben puzzles from Milton Bradley. There wasn’t much variety in the images either, most were photographic puzzles of landscapes, cabins, lighthouses, etc. I wonder what she’d think of all the different brands I’ve tried and all the different types of artwork. I’m sad she isn’t here to try out all these wooden puzzles and brands from across the globe, but it also makes me appreciate that I have my mom to share them with. ❤

With the internet and our ability to shop puzzles from around the world we have so many more brands and images available to us now – I take it for granted most of the time, and I really shouldn’t. It’s amazing that I can get online and browse through puzzles from Germany, Japan, England, Australia, Holland, Turkey, France and too many more to name! I can “talk” to other puzzlers from around the world, translate any webpage to English with a click of the mouse, and order puzzles for myself from almost anywhere on the planet – amazing! We are truly blessed to have so much available to us and it barely fazes us anymore; we don’t really stop to think how awesome it is and how wonderfully lucky we are. I try to remember that when I’m feeling whiny.

I’m not sure how a children’s puzzle started me off on this tangent, but oh well. My brain takes me on wild adventures sometimes, and I’m not always able to trace them back to the starting point. Oh yeah – Milton Bradley! Miss you Gram, love you mom. 💗

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! 🙂

Escape from Alcatraz

On December 7, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store PuzzlesLeave a comment

I’d never heard of these Mythic Mazes puzzles, but it was a lot of fun! There are apparently more, including Escape from Merlin’s Dungeon and Escape from the Haunted House. It looks like they’re definitely out of print, so we’ll just have to hope that we are able to find more in the local thrift stores.

MasterPieces quality can sometimes be hit or miss, this one was very interesting. The thickness of the pieces, the fit, and the image reproduction were excellent but there was no variety in the piece shapes. They were all ballerinas. Sigh. It doesn’t make much sense to me, but then again I have no actual knowledge of what goes into manufacturing a jigsaw puzzle. Still, it’s a bit disappointing; the quality was very good otherwise.

You can’t see it well in the picture, but there are plenty of words to assemble, which I love. And even though there’s no variety in the piece shapes the good news was that there were almost no pieces that were just one color. There was plenty of shading and writing so that there weren’t large areas of one color. It made working with just the one piece shape a little more palatable for me.

The bright colors, interesting maps, and the actual information regarding the real life escape from Alcatraz made this puzzle even more fun. I enjoyed it very much, and would love to do the others in the series if we’re able to find them. Thumbs up for the Mythic Mazes! 👍

Down on the Farm

On December 3, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments

I love a collage! I was pretty surprised that mom found this at the thrift store, I believe it’s a relatively recent White Mountain release. It was a fun assembly, as usual – it’s like having a bunch of mini puzzles that fit together. Heavenly!

White Mountain Puzzles are normally good quality, and except for the fit this one was as well. The fit was extremely loose and it was easy to upset pieces accidentally. This isn’t a problem I’ve ever had with a White Mountain puzzle, if anything they can sometimes have a fit that’s a bit too tight. I’ve had a couple with a fit so tight that you can stand the puzzle straight up on it’s edge! Click here to see a picture.

There were plenty of words, which of course made me happy. I love having words to put together! Collages seem to go quickly, because it’s difficult for me to walk away from it. One small section leads to the next and before you know it the entire puzzle is finished and you’ve lost all track of time. These are the best kind of puzzles if you ask me. 🙂

African Splendor

On December 2, 2017 By Stacey at myjigsawjournalIn Jigsaw Puzzles, Thrift Store Puzzles6 Comments

Another beautiful 500 piece Ravensburger, mom and I started this one the day after Thanksgiving but didn’t finish it before I left. Mom completed it that night; isn’t that just like a mother – having to finish things for their children. 😉

The 300 and 500 piece puzzles have become a favorite for mom and I to do together. Unless it’s a remarkable image we usually don’t have enough time to finish a 1000 piece puzzle, so the smaller piece counts are perfect. That leaves plenty of time to chit chat, laugh, and even pull the Spot It game from my purse for a couple of quick hands. (If you saw us play this game you’d be shocked at the little old ladies cussing at each other while laughing hysterically, it’s so much fun!)

This was another puzzle that is easy to work with someone else. Easy enough to pick out one of the animals and work on it without getting in the other person’s way. It’s not an image that mom and I would normally choose, but we’ve found we’re not nearly as picky when the prices are amazing. Tightwads we are, and proud of it! It was a fun assembly but challenging; and absolutely worth the 69 cents we paid for it.

Mom and I work puzzles together every week, and I’m so glad we get that time. I enjoy being able to assemble puzzles with someone, and it’s even better when that someone is mom. 💗 We’re so lucky to have each other!