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.

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

Strolling Down the Lane

Keystone Puzzles, 90 pieces.  Swirly hand-cut pieces--seems like a different cutting style than the other Keystone I have.  Colors either faded or were never bright to begin with, but that was ok.  3/5



White Mosque

Zen Puzzles, 299 pieces.  Laser-cut mostly in strip-cut style, with very detailed themed whimsies.  The colors here are very nice.  3/5




Tuesday, January 30, 2018

Strawberries

Mr. Gogo, 454 pieces.  Very difficult because of the limited color range.  Nice strawberry whimsies!  4/5




Jim Flora, Big Bank Robbery

Artifact, 305 pieces.  Surprisingly hard because of all the different similarly colored figures, and the uneven edges!  4/5



Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Tulip Happiness

TullCrafts, 109 pieces.  Very small pieces, like TurtleTeasers--a nice little hand-cut puzzle from a small Etsy seller.  Good value for hand-cut.  3/5



Joe Vaux, Garden of Earthly Delights

619 pieces, Artifact.  This has three panels with various extensions through the panels; it could be arranged in an infinite loop, I think, but the way I ultimately put it together seemed like it had the most connections, though it doesn't correspond to the Heaven-Earth-Hell division.  Plenty of visual interest, including a puzzle piece theme.  4/5







Thursday, January 11, 2018

Vikram Madan, Forecast Says Rain

Artifact, 370 pieces.  Some tricky bits because of the round-headed figures that could obscure some of their surroundings.  3/5




Plants & Insects

Liberty, 568 pieces. This was hard!  And very good, with lots of squiggly bits.  4/5

Squiggly bits, only some of which fit into caterpillars/butterflies



Monday, January 8, 2018

Eagle Falls

Puzzlemonk, 344 pieces, two layers.  Interesting puzzle--the two layers mildly interact, but it isn't like the picture on top is perfectly integrated into the picture on bottom.  The subtle colors add to the challenge.  4/5





Children Playing on the Beach, Mary Cassatt

Liberty, 442 pieces. Another earlier Liberty with spiky pieces and a number of two-person, one-piece whimsies.  Nice subtle colors.  3/5