These are the twelve jigsaw puzzles I have completed in the first three months of this year. Mathematically that's an average of one a week. I like doing them for a number of reasons, principally satisfaction and relaxation. Along the way I can admire the work of the artist/photographer, and appreciate the puzzle maker's craft.
Eurographics, a Canadian company despite the name, produce a high quality product with wide ranging subject matter. I have settled on this brand as it seems to me that the difficulty level is higher then elsewhere. The pieces are intricately cut in irregular shapes which I find a refreshing change from the traditional grid pattern and conventional two tab/two hole pieces. 1,000 pieces is the perfect challenge.
For most of us jigsaws are one of our earliest achievements in life yet too soon we leave them behind in the rush to learn everything about everything. Well now that I am old and actually do know everything about everything, I find there is still much satisfaction to be achieved from completing a large and complex puzzle.
Some take a few hours to solve, others several days. The deciding factor is the breadth of the colour palette. I start by out-sorting the edge pieces (Eurographics rather fiendishly hides a number of straight-edged pieces inside the puzzle to confuse the issue), and during that process I divide the remaining pieces into colours and subjects using two 30" x 20" white foam boards, one for the puzzle, one for sorting and sifting. The boards are sturdy yet light and can be lifted and turned with one hand. I like to kneel on a cushion in front of my balcony glass doors for the best natural light and about an hour in I should have the outline complete and a number of heaps of colours. At that point my knees and I are usually ready to take a break.
If there are significant individual elements to the overall picture I build those up on board #2 and slide the completed sections into the outline for rough positioning. Eventually the sections start to connect and the piles on board #2 begin to thin out. By this point I am invariably left with a couple of hundred pieces of dark colours which I separate into shape types, approaching the final push like a military campaign.
Good puzzles aren't cheap. The Eurographics are around $25 each. Occasionally Amazon will drop the price to $15 for a few days but even that's a bit steep. The local Value Village usually has around two hundred puzzles in stock so I often breeze in for a quick browse. Eight of this year's have been V V finds at $1.99. (Only two have been missing a piece.)
The girls are still avid puzzle makers, albeit on a smaller scale, and on Saturday mornings we three are often to be found crouched over our individual white foam boards beavering away!
