Puzzle #48 - SunsOut - Spools and Bolts - 300 pieces

Puzzle #48

This was just a 300 piece puzzle but I enjoyed it greatly.  This image was one I had been wanting to do.  I could have gotten it in a 1000 piece (and might have had I ordered it more recently) but this was one of the first puzzles I ordered back when I was still doing primarily 300 piece puzzles.  As it turns out, 300 was a lovely way to enjoy the image in just an hour or so.  Fun puzzle.  Sturdy pieces, but some were a bit bent.  No big deal, though.

Finished on July 23, 2022

Puzzle #48 - SunsOut - Spools and Bolts - 300 pieces by Chris Bigelow

Puzzle #44 - Bits & Pieces - Back in the Harness - 300 pieces

Puzzle #44

I just like this image.  Don't ever want a 1000 piece Bits & Pieces puzzle, but a 300 is fine from them.  Very relaxing to put together.  Makes me think of Uncle Harold and his famous horse pulling team.  And makes me think of Daddy with Dick and Bob.  The harness really is beautiful.  So are the  horses.  The whole package in this puzzle is lovely and heartwarming.  Part of why I enjoy 300 piece puzzles here and there.  Some of the best images are found on the smaller puzzles.  

Finished July 16, 2022

Puzzle #44 - Bits & Pieces - Back in the Harness - 300 pieces by John Sloane

Puzzle #37 - MasterPieces - Memory Lane EZ Grip - Barnyard Beauties - 300 pieces

Puzzle #37

This was my palate cleanser after struggling to finish up the last one (White Mountain Beach Vacation).  Did exactly what I wanted it to do... gave me a pleasant and easy puzzle to solve to get me back on track.  Going to start Puzzle #38 tonight!  :)   Puzzles are for enjoyment... which means solving puzzles of all sizes and difficulty levels.  The image on this one is lovely.  That wagon reminds me of the old black wagon we had when I was a kid.  Daddy let it sit in the front yard for one entire summer.  A bunch of us neighbor kids loved to sit and play in that wagon - and eat those little boxes of animal crackers.   :)   Great trip down memory lane.  Like the box says...

Finished on June 2, 2022

Puzzle #37 - MasterPieces - Memory Lane EZ Grip - Barnyard Beauties - 300 pieces 

Puzzle #30 - Sunsout - Lake Landscape - 300 pieces

 Puzzle #30

Needed a true palate cleanser after that previous puzzle.  This helped.  It was not too simplistic due to the weirdly shaped pieces.  I am getting a tiny bit more used to those - they do make the 300 piece puzzles more of a challenge and I guess at this point that is a positive.  The picture was nice and the image was clear.  Sturdy pieces.  Good overall quality.  Nicely and quickly completed.  This was the first puzzle I have done by Sunsout.  Have been wondering about their quality.  It is good.  Still would like a poster, though.  (edited to add that this is my 2nd Sunsout... the Yellowstone one from awhile ago was also Sunsout)

Finished on April 5, 2022

Puzzle #30 - Sunsout -  Lake Landscape - 300 pieces -  Rafael Trujillo

Puzzle #23 - Spilsbury - The Creole Queen - 300 pieces

Puzzle #23

Even though this is a 300 piece puzzle, it was as difficult as a 500 piece regular puzzle because of the bizarre cutting and shapes of pieces, and the fact it is pretty much all the same colors in this puzzle.

Did not finish last night, but was working to finish this morning.  Even at this late point I still did not have the whole frame completed.  Spilsbury puzzle shapes drive me nuts.  They work against my brain!

It is a pretty puzzle when completed.  That is why I wanted to work it.  Glad to have a 300 piece puzzle that wasn't so simple.  But have not really changed my mind on Spilsbury or Bits & Pieces puzzles... not the greatest fan of them.  Will get the ones completed I have bought and that will be the end of it.

Finished on March 13, 2022

Puzzle #23 - Spilsbury - The Creole Queen - 300 pieces - by Joshua Ben King

Puzzle #20 - Masterpieces - Memory Lane Bridge of Hope - 300 pieces

Yup, this was a super simple puzzle.  Kind of a palate cleanser after that last one.  I am realizing that I have grown so much since I started doing these, however, and this was no challenge whatsoever.  It was enjoyable, but not as enjoyable as the easy ones were at the beginning.  However, quality of the puzzle is top notch.  Large poster, thick pieces that fit together well, nicely printed images.  And I really do like the oversized pieces - so much easier to see and hold.  (boy I must be old)  MasterPieces makes great puzzles!!

Finished on March 6, 2022

Puzzle #20 - Master Pieces Memory Lane - Bridge of Hope - 300 pieces - Alan Giana

Puzzle #15 - Sunsout - Gathering at Yellowstone - 300 pieces

This was a very nice 300 piece puzzle.  Sturdy pieces with good color and definition.  Nice picture that was pleasant to solve.  Simple and easy and quick.  I am quickly moving beyond 300 piece puzzles (already have, really) but don't want to diss them.  They got me started in puzzling and are a lovely distraction.  A good mindless mindfulness exercise.  :)  Seeing this one is from Sunsout company.

Finished on February 16, 2022

Puzzle #15 Sunsout - Gathering at Yellowstone by Gerald Newton - 300 pieces

 

Puzzle #10 - Bits & Pieces - London City View - 300 pieces

This was another one of those 300 piece Bits & Pieces puzzles that I really disliked before.  I tried this because I really liked the picture and wanted a smaller puzzle to do quickly.  Figured it would be tough and frustrating because of all those stupid and weirdly shaped pieces, but it wasn't!  Main difference between this one and the other one was the quality of the image.  You could actually look at the puzzle pieces and determine what it looked like - what it might be!  Big difference!  So, while those weird shaped pieces aren't my favorite, maybe all those puzzles aren't lost.  If the image is good, the puzzles can be okay.  Will try more in the future and not just give them all away.  (just wish it had a listing of what all the places in the picture are - to know names and locations.)  Note - some of the pieces, the picture part was lifting away from the piece... not many, but some.  :(

Finished on January 29, 2022

Puzzle #10 - Bits & Pieces London City View - 300 pieces - by Joseph Burgess

Puzzle #7 - CraZArt - Lady of the River - 300 pieces

Still in quarantine and working my way through that online order of puzzles... this one was sweet and easy.  Bright, colorful and fun.  But I was beginning to realize I wanted more challenge than 300 piece puzzles (for the most part).  

Finished on January 24, 2022

Puzzle #7 - CraZArt - Lady of the River - 300 pieces  (Mark Frost)

Puzzle #5 - Buffalo Games - Charles Wysocki The Three Sisters - 300 pieces

This was a balm to cover the frustration of that last one!  ha!  Simple, easy, sweet picture.  The images on the pieces actually looked like the puzzle was supposed to.  And I did love the larger poster included, too - especially since the box was small.  I now know this is offered in 1000 pieces, as well.  I think I would enjoy putting that one together, too.  This really was a lovely and relaxing puzzle.  Pretty sure I would enjoy hanging out with these 'three sisters'.  :) 

Finished on January 20, 2022  (yes, we were still in covid quarantine...)

Puzzle #5 - Buffalo Games puzzle - Charles Wysocki - The Three Sisters - 300 pieces.

Puzzle #4 - Bits & Pieces - A Visit to the General Store - 300 pieces

 By this time I had placed some online orders to feed my growing enthusiasm... :) They had arrived and I felt like a kid in a candy shop - or at the very least a kid with a brand new package of 64 crayons!  What to do first???  I chose this puzzle from Bits & Pieces and was soon feeling totally undermined.  I did NOT like the wonky shaped pieces.  This is when I realized my brain does not work 'sideways'.  (This puzzling experience truly has shown me many things about how I think... so very interesting.)  

Soooo, the Bits & Pieces 'random cut' is not for me... made zero sense to my logical brain.  I also felt the picture was so vaguely printed that nothing really looked clear or like it was supposed to.  However, I wasn't going to let it beat me!  I managed to finish it.  Looking back, this is so interesting that I struggled so much with a 300 piece puzzle.  I wonder if it would still be a struggle for me now or if I have strengthened my puzzling muscles enough that it would be easier today... hmmm....

Finished on January 20, 2022

Puzzle #4 - Bits & Pieces A Visit to the General Store by Ruane Manning - 300 pieces.  Love the picture - didn't care for the puzzle. 

Puzzle #3 - FX Schmid - A Day for a Brougham Ride - 300 pieces

More attic shopping... came up with this one next.  (Thankful for those slight hoarding tendencies I have??)  ha!  Still in covid quarantine...

This puzzle wasn't as enjoyable as the first two primarily because the colors weren't very distinct and so it was harder to put together.  Even after placing some of the pieces I couldn't tell by looking at that piece that it truly 'belonged' there.  But by this point I was 'old hat' at puzzling and decided to just take it in stride.   ;)   ha! 

Finished on January 18, 2022

Puzzle #3 - FX Schmid - A Day for a Brougham Ride - 300 pieces.  I did like the larger pieces. 

Puzzle #2 - MB Puzzles - Charles Wysocki Americana - Traveling Cowboy - 300 pieces

Again, I went 'shopping' in my attic and found another old puzzle up there.  Good thing as we were still in covid quarantine.  :) 

This time I found Charles Wysocki's Traveling Cowboy.  I really liked this one.  Easy but with a bit of challenge - nice pieces to work with.  Getting the hang of this puzzling thing!  

Finished on January 17, 2022

Puzzle #2 -  MB Puzzles - Charles Wysocki Americana - Traveling Cowboy EZ Grasp - 300 pieces

My very first puzzle!

This is the puzzle that got me started.  Marvin was sick with covid and we were cooped up in the cold, early days of January, 2022.  I decided to finally get on the bandwagon (albeit a couple of years later than the rest of the world!) and put together a jigsaw puzzle.  But being quarantined meant I had to go 'shopping' for a puzzle in my own house.  Lo and behold, I found a couple stashed up in the attic.  I lugged them down and decided to put them together.  I realized that I was going to love putting together jigsaw puzzles!  What a wonderful discovery!  I jokingly said that jigsaw puzzles are what I WANTED coloring to be last year.  (I decided to color as a stress reliever a year ago but found the whole process of coloring to be far too stressful!  ha!)  Putting together jigsaw puzzles provided me with mindful mindlessness... what a gift!  Truly, these puzzles have been a great stress reliever and I am fully hooked. 

Puzzle #1 - Charles Wysocki Americana - Catchin' Bugs.   300 piece EZ grasp - MB Puzzles 

Finished on January 16, 2022