Another one from the lot of four puzzles. Pretty picture, but I’m a bit annoyed that the girls have to cook and wash up. Oh well, it’s from 1990.
Camping Site, 2019-02-18
Tag: 2019
White Terrier, 2019-02-17
This was part of a lot of four puzzles. I really only wanted two of them, but this turned out to be fun as well!
The puzzle has no brand as such, it just says “Made in China” and “imported by Tiimari” on the box. Tiimari was a Finnish chain of stores that sold hobby supplies, although they didn’t carry many puzzles (they went bankrupt a few years ago). The size is indicated in inches, so Tiimari probably forgot to specify they wanted centimetres instead 🙂
Although the puzzle is grid cut, there are no pieces with two pegs opposite. The large majority of pieces have either no pegs of four pegs, with a few pieces with three pegs or one peg.
I prefer this to the usual two pegs opposite style of cheap puzzles, but maybe just because of the novelty. It’s a change, anyway.
I wasn’t expecting a quality puzzle, but it wasn’t too bad, actually. The pieces are hardly thick but sturdy enough to stay flat, and you have to pay attention in order not to place pieces wrong, but it’s not too bad. A nice little puzzle.
The box had the shape of a book, and the lid doesn’t stay closed very well. In fact, it had opened during transport so that all of the pieces were loose inside the parcel, but, amazingly, all the pieces are still there.
Historia Comica, Opus 2, 2019-02-17
Done! This was the kind of puzzle where the last 500 pieces took the longest to place. I was supposed to do so many things this weekend…
Hours cake
Sheep in the Meadow, 2019-02-14
This is an old Ravensburger puzzle from the late 70s that has obviously been completed many, many times. The pieces are worn, and the colours have faded, but it was still a joy to do because of the fantastic quality. Oh, and there were 11 pieces missing. I got it for 0,50 € in a thrift shop.
Heart-Shaped Women
This is going to sound really strange, but when I got this about 10 years ago (it was a gift), I didn’t think of it as a puzzle, but rather as a piece of art. Perhaps because it was already assembled 🙂 The artist, Kata Kissoczy, has a shop in Prague.
So, I took it apart, and found that four pieces were stuck to the board:
I decided to use a bit of force:
… and found out that they are supposed to be there – yes, that’s glue. Oops! I don’t quite understand why, though. There’s also a hole in the board, presumably to hang the puzzle on a wall, maybe that’s why some pieces need to be glued to the board, to stop everything from falling off?
Anyway, while the pieces don’t really form an image of anything in particular, every single piece is a woman:
There are 41 pieces. While putting it together, the images didn’t help at all, of course, it was all down to shape.
Obviously, I chose to do this now because of Valentine’s Day, although I almost missed it. It’s not such a big deal in Finland (or Germany), and it has only become popular in the last 10 years or so. In Finland, it’s called “friend’s day”, and it’s not marketed exclusively as a romantic event, but also as a day to celebrate friendship. Happy Valentine’s Day, friends everywhere!
Vintage, 2019-02-12
Another quick and easy 500 pieces.
Trefl is another Polish brand, and quite similar to Castorland: the cardboard isn’t as thick as Ravensburger, the pieces are a bit smaller, but the fit is good, and all in all they’re very good value.
Victorian Garden, 2019-02-11
I finally managed to finish the puzzle I was working on – it’s kind of slow when you have a cold and need a rest after placing 5 pieces.
It was a nice puzzle to work on, and the colours were very distinct. Sometimes, with this type of puzzle, everything looks like greenish soup until you’re done 🙂
Pluie de couleurs, 2019-02-08
A nice, easy one. I have a cold, so I’m not up for anything big or complicated right now. Nathan only has the name of the puzzle in French. I think it means “Coloured Rain”, but I’m not certain – sadly, I don’t know much French.
I remember reading somewhere that Nathan is just the name Ravensburger uses in France, but I was sceptical since the finish is quite different, very glossy. When I opened the box I was reminded of this, as it says “Kontrollnummer” on the bag, and that is German (technically, it could also be Swedish, and possibly some other language I don’t know, but definitely not French).
So, I had a look on the box:
It says “Ravensburger under licence NATHAN”! Also the sentence all puzzlers like to see, Fabriqué en Allemagne = Made in Germany.
So, apparently, it’s true. And the cut certainly looks like Ravensburger:
The only difference seems to be that the finish is much glossier. I know a lot of people prefer a more matte finish because of glare, but I don’t think it makes much difference. For me, the light is the important factor with glare, and it’s impossible to avoid completely anyway.
Oh, and this is my 100th post!
Eiffel Tower, 2019-02-01
A Heye cartoon puzzle by Loup, perhaps not as busy as many newer images. Certainly more sky than usual. This was originally released in 1987 (as Paris! Paris!), then re-released in 2010, and mine is from 2015.
I did the tower first, then the edges and the sky last. I only found the last edge piece after I was halfway done, I was convinced I’d lost it.
I love these klutzy birds, very loupy 🙂
The Witches Kitchen, 2019-01-31
UPDATE: There are now further details and spoilers about the series on the dedicated page. There is also an individual spoiler page for this puzzle.
My second puzzle in the Exit series. Since the puzzle is a bit different than the image on the box, I’m not going to show the finished puzzle. There’s a photo on the Jigsaw Wiki if you want to see it.
Again there was a backstory: you’ve eaten the wrong kind of mushroom, you find yourself in the witches kitchen and have to find an antidote.
Next, I completed the puzzle, and it’s a great one. Really enjoyed it! By the way, if you ever do a puzzle in this series, do NOT try to do the edges first. It’s would be almost impossible, and there’s a reason for that, but explaining it would be too much of a spoiler.
After the puzzle is done, you have to find and solve 8 tasks in the puzzle. I found and solved two by myself, and 4 more with just the first two hints (there is help online). Only one I didn’t understand at all. I did a lot better than the first time. The answer is always a number, just like last time. After the 8 tasks, there’s the final solution (you can find it in a closed envelope with the puzzle). The solution didn’t work quite as well as the last time, I think.
Anyway, I loved this puzzle, and apparently, some other people liked it too, because there are three more in the series now (bringing the total up to six), including a vampire’s castle and a submarine. I’ve already ordered all of them, but they are out of stock, so I’m going to have to wait.
Puzzler1909 