The weather here in the PNW has definitely taken a turn for the fall lately. The gray days are outnumbering the sunny, the rainy days have definitely increased and the wind has gotten decidedly blustery. While I'm a huge fan of gray, blustery days (scarves, hot toddys and soups are my jam), the gray mixed... Continue Reading →
My Rating: 9/10 Merry Christmas in July to all my fellow Jigsaw Junkies. It's time to dust off those Christmas puzzles and get busy. Well truth be told I pretty much assemble Christmas puzzles year round , I just can't seem to stop my self, lol. Can you blame me really, with so many beautiful... Continue Reading →
In the past I have bought Ravensburger Christmas puzzles for my family to work on over the holidays and been very pleased with their quality. The pieces are thick and even though they are cut in a standard grid pattern, each piece is unique. While a grid cut is not my first choice I have... Continue Reading →
Publisher: White Mountain (US), published 2017 Title: “Christmas Traditions” by Pinkerton Road & Lena Pigareva, 1000 pieces pieces Finished size: 24" x 30" (1000 pieces) OUR RATING: 9.5/10 It's that time of year, time for a Christmas puzzle glut. I was super excited to get my hands on this brand new Christmas puzzle from White Mountain. Let's take a... Continue Reading →
Publisher: Vermont Christmas Company (US), published 2014 Title: “Santa's List” by Randy Wollenmann, 1000 pieces Finished size: 30" x 24" OUR RATING: 8.75/10 You say it's not even Thanksgiving? Psah! I was in the mood for a Christmas puzzle this week, so why not? I decided to do a Randy Wollenmann from Vermont Christmas Company. I've become... Continue Reading →
"Christmas Chaos" by Francois Ruyer is a fun but moderately challenging Christmas cartoon puzzle. The artwork is beautifully executed with tons of color and detail. The repeating elements of similar-looking elves and gift boxes scattered throughout the image are tricky, but there are some anchoring elements such as the windows, fireplace, toys, and Christmas tree, which help fill in much of the design. I found myself referring to the box lid often to figure out which piece of elf went where. The Piatnik quality is very good with thick, sturdy pieces, a grid cut, a fairly tight fit, and a nice matte finish. If you like a little more challenge, Christmas puzzles, or cartoon puzzles, this is highly recommended.
Publisher: Jumbo (Netherlands), published 2015 Title: “Santa's Factory” by Jan Van Haasteren Studios, Jumbo, 1000 pieces OUR RATING: 9/10 This puzzle comes in a boxed set of two along with "New Year Party". Box Quality: (9/10) You can see the box above. The Jumbo JVH boxes all have a similar blue background, which makes for a nice... Continue Reading →
Publisher: Otter House (UK), published 2015 Title: “Spot the Differences No 2”, 1000 pieces OUR RATING: 9/10 Box Quality: The Otter House boxes are quite thick and sturdy with a nice high res cover. The back of the box is blank white. The sides have the name of the puzzle and image, which is nice for... Continue Reading →
I've been watching Amazon UK for the appearance of the 2015 limited edition Christmas puzzle from Waddington's. It still hasn't appeared there, but a Google search brought this up. Title is "The Christmas Snowman" and it's not for sale yet. What do you think of this year's image? I like it! Jane
I'm starting to see some new puzzles coming out. Watch for our feature on the new House Of Puzzles line-up coming JULY 19 including 12 new 1000 pieces puzzles, 8 new BIG 500, and the 2015 Christmas puzzles. Other Christmas puzzles typically announce in July too. I'll post them as I see them. Here are the new... Continue Reading →
Publisher: Gibsons (UK), ~2010, 1000 pieces Title: “I Love Christmas”, Artist: Mike Jupp OUR RATING: 10/10 I finally tackled this amazing Mike Jupp puzzle. Maybe I am missing Christmas already. 🙂 Box Quality: Gibsons boxes are among the very best in the business, if not the best. They're very thick and sturdy with lovely packaging design. You can... Continue Reading →
Publisher: White Mountain (US), 2011, 1000 pieces Title: “Merry Christmas To All!”, Artist: R.J. McDonald OUR RATING: 8/10 It's Dec 26th and this will be my last Christmas puzzle review for a while. On to new projects! 🙂 I really like multi-scene puzzles. And, of course, Christmas puzzles. So I decided to give this White Mountain puzzle a try.... Continue Reading →
