About my ratings

Perhaps because of my day job, I'm a tough rater. Everything 3/5 and above I consider worth the time and money. If I purchase on Etsy or a similar platform and the puzzle is as expected, I will give a top rating on the platform because of how seller ratings work, but here "as expected" is probably a 3/5 in most cases.

Friday, June 30, 2017

Decorative Fowl Round a Lake With Ducks and Ducklings by a Reeded Bridge

Jan van Kessel, 308 pieces, Optimago.  Standard Optimago with lots of ducks.  3/5



Tulips by Robert John Thornton

497 pieces, Liberty.  This one has dancers in the bulbs of the tulips, which is cute.  3/5

The border had hidden clouds



Thursday, June 29, 2017

Puzzle for the Great Western Railway Co.

Chad Valley, 400 pieces. Not quite as interesting cutting-wise as the previous Chad Valley puzzle again (more likely, I just got used to the novelty), but it is nice to see a vintage puzzle that has retained its bright colors.  3/5



Lütcshental, Penelope

250 pieces. Penelope's curvy piece shapes override my general lack of interest in landscapes.  3/5



Wednesday, June 28, 2017

The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke, by Richard Dadd

Liberty, 480 pieces.  A little dark, but the whimsies were the seven dwarves and fairies who ended up in a fairy ring.  3/5

fairies, wizards, dwarves

multi-piece dragon

Add caption

fairies in a ring


Peach Rose, TurtleTeasers

260 pieces.  The color gradations made this really challenging.  I also liked the four turtles at the corners.  4/5




Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Tapestries at Blenheim, by Sir Winston Churchill

Liberty, 478 pieces. I'm a huge Churchill fan, but sadly I didn't feel that I learned anything about him or his art by completing the puzzle--sometimes I do see more about how the art works by doing a puzzle.  Great man, but maybe not a great painter.  3/5



Snowy Creek-Mallards, by Maynard Reece

Timber, 500 pieces.  This is my second Timber puzzle and I liked this one a bit better; similar themes, but more fun piecing together the large light areas. 3/5



Thursday, June 22, 2017

Fowey Harbour, Cornwall

Master Craftsman Gold Box, 500 pieces. Very similar to Optimago (did I read they were related, or is it just that Optimago also has a Gold Box line?).  3/5



Long Trail, unknown

About 300 pieces.  Vintage, curvy cutting like Penelope--I liked it a lot, though it's showing its age.  3/5.



Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Metropolitain, by Linnea Pergola

Liberty, 616 pieces.  A lot of interesting stuff going on here, which made it a bit hard to work out where things went, but that's part of the fun.  4/5



Moose, unknown (maybe J.K. Straus)

474 pieces. Feels like a Straus puzzle--tight, pretty good condition piecewise. Sometimes it's hard to tell how much colors have faded over time, but here I think it's pretty clear that a bunch of detail has gone, which leaves the puzzler more reliant on piece shape. That's not a huge problem for me since I like relying on piece shape for sufficiently varied puzzles.  3/5



Monday, June 19, 2017

African Marketplace, Bogart's

584 pieces. A new maker for me--some very delicate protrusions on the whimsies, which were nonetheless in great shape. The cuts lacked the wit of the best Staves, but the difficulty and quality were comparable otherwise.  Really glad to have found them! 7/10

animal whimsies

more animal whimsies--repeating shape



The flamingoes at the bottom are in the puzzle; those on top are the border

one multipiece whimsy, an elephant

The Sacred Egyptian Bean, Dr. Robert J. Thornton

Liberty, 496 pieces.  Another puzzle with big areas of similar colors, and dancers in the petals.  3/5