Every Boxing Day is the same....every year a Christmas jigsaw from the day before appears and as a family we gather round for some jigging time together. Once again Ravensburger did not disappoint with this beautiful jigsaw. It can often be difficult to come up with new themes for Christmas time, but The Santa Express provided all concerned with something to do. I particularly enjoyed the added detail of one of the gifts being a little Ravensburger jigsaw of a train - nice touch. We even managed to entice a new visiting member of the family to put in a few pieces before the day was done.
Time taken - family time can never be measured!
I have always enjoyed this type of jigsaw and decided to complete this one blind (without the picture). 2 reasons for this...
1. I enjoy the extra challenge of working out where pieces go
2. It is always satisfying when you have that moment when several separate parts come together.
This puzzle was a lot of fun with plenty of small details and lots of fun little characters and moments to enjoy. Bright colours, plenty of variation and an overall theme made for an enjoyable evening.
Time taken: evening
Good clean fun! The picture wasn't very inspiring, but the puzzle was good. There were subtle colour changes to keep me engrossed and the three little babies added a nice feature to an otherwise 'samey' colour scheme. The fit of the jigsaw pieces was good and overall I enjoyed the puzzle.
Time taken: afternoon and evening.
I thought I was going to really enjoy this one because of the distinct sections and clear lines dividing them. However, for some reason I just simply didn't get along with it. I mean, the purple division lines were good fun and quickly created sections to work upon, but then many of the scene colours simply merged into one. That being said, the picture is nice and the quality of the jigsaw was good.
Time taken: approximately 1 day of 'on and off' puzzling.
Oh King...the trials and tribulations you create! The pieces are a classic cut, but they do not fit together with a classic fit. This leads to you putting pieces together, thinking they don't look right and taking them apart again. The puzzle itself was a standard thatched cottage with all the elements I enjoy - sky, thatch and trees/flowers. A good puzzle and a lovely challenge.
Time taken: Afternoon
First appearances can be most deceptive. Cartoon puzzles are normally one of my favourite kinds, but this one proved to be a tricky little monkey. There were a lot of colours, patterns and areas that were similar. That being said, there were nice little details such as the pictures hanging on the wall and the different dresses being worn by the ladies waiting.
Time taken: Afternoon
My goodness, this was a difficult one. Only working with 2 base colours (with some variation for shading) and many of the patterns on the plates being remarkably similar. That said, I really enjoyed the puzzle as I always like one that challenges and frustrates. Not one for the faint hearted though, or for people who find it difficult to leave puzzles unfinished overnight - my final night was a 2am finish!
Time taken: completed over 1 week comprising of several evenings of varying lengths
