Review: “Inspirations of Spring” by Chuck Pinson, Buffalo Games 8.75/10

Publisher: Buffalo Games (US)

Size: 1000 pieces

Title: “Inspirations of Spring”

Finished size: 26.75″ x 19.75″

OUR RATING: 8.75/10

For more Chuck Pinson puzzles, scroll down to the end of this review.

Box Quality: (9/10)

The Buffalo Games boxes are very sturdy and have nice packaging design. The box is small at 8″ x 8″. The front, which you can see above, has a “Escapes” series logo and the Buffalo Games logo. The name of the puzzle and artist name is shown on the front.

Back:

The back of the box is a generic Buffalo Games back.

Sides:

The sides all have the Escapes logo prominent and large. The puzzle name is shown on two sides. There’s also the Buffalo Games logo, the piece count, and a picture of the image. Since all box sides are the same length, you can easily shelve on a side that you prefer.

Inside:

The box is glued shut on the sides (instead of being shrink wrapped) and the glue has to be cut by inserting a knife down the side. Inside the box the pieces are packed loose (not inside a bag). The puzzle comes with a poster, which is nice since the box lid is relatively small. This poster also has the “answer key” for some objects hidden in the scene.

Overall, I’ve given the box an 9/10. Nice design, eco-friendly, and it comes with a poster.

The Image: 9/10

I discovered Chuck Pinson last year and really like his art style. This was one of my top picks for Spring puzzles, and I was anxious to get my hands on it to work it. The reason, of course, is the image. I love the unusual color palette here, with the purples and vibrant greens. The mountain scene is bursting with spring flowers and blossoming trees, and I love the cozy cabin and peaceful majesty. I want to move right in!

I’ve given the image a 9 score.

(Click on any of the images in this review for a closer look.)

Puzzle Quality: (9/10)

You can see my brand page for Buffalo Games here. This puzzle is fully compatible with the puzzles I reviewed for my brand analysis. The quality is very good. The pieces feel sturdy, the box and contents are undamaged and in great condition, and the artwork reproduction is spot on.

The cut is a standard grid-cut puzzle with a wide variety of piece shapes and even a few ‘zig zag’ sided pieces. I never had a question about whether or not a piece actually fit. The tightness of the fit is average–neither particularly tight nor loose. You can move small groups of pieces around with care, and the final finish looks fairly seamless. Click on the image below to get an enlargement of the piece shapes.

The finish is not too glossy and I didn’t have any issues with overhead glare working this puzzle at night. Overall, puzzle quality scores a high 9 out of 10.

Assembly: (8/10)

My difficulty rating for this puzzle is: Moderate. I did it in four evening sessions.

DAY ONE:

In the first session, I did the puzzle border and then the sky. The sky has the only real blue in the image, so it’s easy to find the blue sky pieces and pink clouds in the sorting trays. The peaks of the mountains are fairly pink too.

Close-up of the sky.

DAY TWO:

On the second day, I focused on the man-made structures in the scene–the cabin and the bridge. There’s a bright swatch of green grass between the bridge and cabin. That’s an easy section too since there aren’t too many pieces of plain green grass.

The cabin is a cute structure with lots of variety between the windows, roof, and stone chimney.

The little bridge has some similar stone work as the chimney and can be assembled at the same time.

The large white daisies in the foreground and bit of foreground path were also done in this session. Both textures are easy to find and are small areas.

DAY THREE & FOUR:

After the above session, the rest of the puzzle is more difficult (moderate). There are lots of pink-to-purple blossoms and also green and brown trees. I filled out the rest of the mountains and the brightest pink and white trees, plus the foreground purple flowers.

The foreground purple flowers have a different look than the purple trees and fill in the foreground nicely.

The bright pink and white trees on the left are the easiest trees.

Filling in all the various trees was the last part of the puzzle to finish. The tree leaves are all random patterns. But fortunately each tree is a slightly different color, so you can work on one small area after another.

Overall, I’ve given assembly an “8” score. It’s not an easy puzzle but it’s not especially hard either. I really enjoyed working with the bright colors and all the spring flowers.

Summary:

“Inspirations of Spring” is a gorgeous spring-themed puzzle by Chuck Pinson. I love Pinson’s art style and the unusual purple and green palette of this image. This is a moderately difficult puzzle with some easier sections (the sky, cabin, path, and foreground flowers) and some moderately difficult areas (mostly the trees). The Buffalo Games quality is very good with grid cut pieces and a nice box that includes a poster. If you’re in the mood for spring flowers, you’ll love this puzzle.