Thoughts of an introverted bookworm and avid jigsaw puzzler
Happy Beads is a 500-piece puzzle from Ravensburger, and the artist is Elspeth McLean. McLean is known for her meticulously painted mandala stones and has had several puzzles made featuring these creations. The level of detail is just amazing!
I was pretty intimidated by this puzzle, but it turned out to be a lot easier than I thought it would. Each bead has a different pattern on it, so it was not hard to figure out where each piece went. Super fun!
Hello From Around the World is a 500-piece puzzle from Mudpuppy, and the artist is Lemon Ribbon Studio. Mudpuppy is part of Galison but offers simpler images that are great for kids or beginners. I found this stamp puzzle to be super easy and a lot of fun!
One of the puzzlers I follow on YouTube offered several bundles of traveling puzzles earlier this year, and I eagerly signed up for one. Not all of them filled up, so I got the chance to sign up for a second one, and that’s the one I received last week. Both puzzles in this bundle are from Villager Puzzles, which is a woman-owned Canadian brand that features Canadian women artists.
The first puzzle I did was Cottage Country, which is by Nicolle Lalonde and is 500 pieces. It was fairly easy. I love how the setting sun looks reflected on the water.
The second puzzle was Lupines Meadow by Diana Pinnell. It is 1000 pieces. This one was quite challenging, but it is so lovely.
Now it’s back to Christmas puzzles. 🎄🎅☃️
It’s that time of year when I start doing my holiday puzzles! I collect them throughout the year and save them up to do in December, and this is my first one for the season.
Festive Fun Car is a 500-piece puzzle from WerkShoppe, and the artist is Helen Black. I have only done two or three puzzles from WerkShoppe, but they are definitely one of my favorite brands. The packaging is gorgeous, with a slide out box with a ribbon pull tab, a resealable plastic bag for the pieces, and a nice reference poster. The pieces are medium thick with a smooth finish that feels so good, and they fit together beautifully.
I also love, love the image on this one. It truly is festive and fun, and I really enjoyed all of the great details. The shaped balloons and hearts made of candy canes are my favorite parts, if I have to choose.
This was a great start to my holiday! And I do mean start because, even though we did bring the Christmas decorations out of storage, we haven’t put them up yet.
Have you decorated for Christmas yet?
Rainbow Sunrise is a 500-piece puzzle from Buffalo Games, and the artist is Josie Lewis. This was such a relaxing puzzle to put together, and the rainbow gradient is so beautiful.
I have actually started collecting Josie Lewis puzzles because of how much I love them. I have five so far, three of which I still have left to do. I also started following her on TikTok, where she shares her current art as well as spotlights other artists who are doing interesting work.
Buffalo Games puzzles are very good quality. The pieces have a nice smooth finish to them that is very pleasant to the touch. I wish I liked more of their images, but unfortunately a lot of them are not my preferred style.
Here are the three Lewis puzzles I have on my to do shelf right now:
Harvest Feast is a 500-piece puzzle from Galison, and the artist is Kathryn Selbert. I fell in love with this image when I saw it on Instagram a few weeks ago and starting tracking it on ebay until I found one that had a price I was happy with.
I am so glad I got it. It is such a charming image with all of the adorable woodland creatures sharing a feast together. I especially like the little mouse standing on a ladder so he can reach the table.
The only downside was that the pieces had a weird feel to them. It is hard to describe, but it was almost kind of oily. It was unusual for this brand to be unpleasant, so I’m not sure what happened. I still enjoyed the puzzle, but it was odd.
Marie’s Pumpkin Patch is a 500-piece puzzle from Spin Master Games, and the artist is Fiona Lee. I wasn’t familiar with Fiona Lee, so I looked her up and found some really charming illustrations. This one definitely fits the fall theme.
The quality of this brand is not as good as a lot of the others I have done. The main problem I have with it is the feel of the pieces – they have a flat feel I didn’t like. For lack of a better work, they feel icky. I will probably avoid this brand in the future.
Potting Shed is a 500-piece puzzle from Mulic, and the artist is Chris Bigelow. I took a chance on a random Amazon brand because I liked the image and have been trying to purchase more smaller piece count puzzles.
I usually find the puzzles I am drawn to are 1000 pieces, but with those, I am always too tempted to stay up way past my bedtime trying to finish the puzzle. If I do a 300-piece or 500-piece puzzle, I can easily finish it in an evening and then get to bed at a more reasonable hour.
Seasons is a 500-piece puzzle from Pippi Post, and the artist is Alexa Zurcher, who is the owner/founder of the brand. I have done several of their puzzles and really enjoy them. The illustrations are so appealing and the quality is very good.
This was a fun, easy puzzle that includes a lot of things I like: buildings, seasons, and grid images. I will definitely do more from this brand.
Monster Mansion is a 500-piece puzzle from Mudpuppy, and the artist is Stephanie Birdsong. This is the same artist that did the Welcome to Spookytown puzzle I did last October. I love her quirky style and her fun take on a Halloween-style house crosssection.
It was fun to do an easy Halloween puzzle after the last two that were both 1000 pieces and on the difficult end of the range. I think this will be my last one for this year.
In So Many Words 