Pomegranate “Flower Cycle” by Rosalind Wise

From Nov 2020 thru April 2021, I had the good fortune to have a Key 2nd AD job on a network show with a truly fun and gracious crew.  We were on the CBS Radford lot, and I had an office in the main production office building.  My office was a large room with four desks, to serve my entire department.  But I was the only one there during the course of the shooting day; most of my department was on set from call to wrap and only used the office at wrap.  So I had a generous amount of room.   My job as the information collector for the day's filming plan, known as the callsheet, meant I had find all sources I could.  One of my techniques is to always have a puzzle in the works in my office.  Folks would come in for a few minutes at a time, to find a few pieces as a break, and I would get to talk with them, picking their brain for info on their manpower for the next day.  

There were a few specific key players in my office that liked to puzzle as much as I do - John, the APOC, Michaela, the Office PA, and Bryan, the Base Camp AD.  Between the four of us we finished at least six large scale puzzles over the season.  

This Pomegranate 1000 piece is one of the most colorful puzzles I've ever worked.  The micro detail made it possible for there to be many elements to the design, and made it extremely difficult to solve.  The back of the puzzle box talks about artist Rosalind Wise's work:  "The composition of the painting is based on a large elliptical spiral along which twines a garland of garden flowers and wildflowers.  The earliest of blooms, the snowdrop, appears at the center, around which circle spring and summer blossoms....in the order in which they flower."  This was a fun puzzle to complete because I got it secondhand.  Happily, it was complete.

The finished size of 25x20 inches required a custom frame which was costly.  I ordered the white wood finish from ArtToFrame.Com and waited several weeks for the order to be filled. 

“Poppies in Vase” by Olena Art

 

I picked up this 500 pc puzzle at a Tuesday Morning while on vacation in Nashville.  I thought its beautiful pastels would be easy to place.  I was completely wrong!  The nature of this watercolor image made it very difficult, even at a lower piece count.  I started this one day on vacation.  Managing to get the border and small pieces of the background done, I split them into sections that I laid into the box for transport home.  I then finished this at work with the help of colleagues there as a group project, spread over some time.  It was fun to live with the image for a while, coming back to it only once a week or so.  Each time I approached with fresh eyes a few more pieces made sense.  Still, it would have taken me even longer to complete this on my own.  It was fun to have the help working on it together!

 The brand is one I'd never heard before:  Americanflat.  Despite the brand name, the box was labeled Made in China.  It was reasonably priced at $6-8. 

Though the pieces were not thick or sturdy, they were tight enough to hold together during completion.  I used another piece of cardboard to flip the puzzle over and glued it for framing as artwork to hang in my office at work, a drab blank wall in need of some colorful but cheap art that I won't be too attached to when the job ends in just a few months. 

Liberty Classic Puzzle "Up On the House Top"

 

I've started a new tradition this year, ordering a wooden holiday puzzle from Liberty Puzzles. It'll be a fun event to look forward to, opening up my puzzle at the beginning of December and enjoying a quiet night of Christmas movies, cheese ball and triscuits with eggnog or hot chocolate. 

This one, titled "Up on the House Top," has a simple color scheme depicting the moment Santa lands on the roof.  I love the circular uncommon shape.  At 269 pieces it was easy enough to finish in one couple hour sitting, but not too low of a piece count that it felt simplistic.  The pieces are thick and the edges of the wood burnished by the cut.  The shapes are irregular, with some in "whimsy cuts" of familiar holiday items like the candlestick, snowflake, or wreath. The finished puzzle measures only 12.25 inches by 13.75 inches, so it was easy to work on a board on my lap.

Liberty Puzzles are so in demand right now that in order to purchase directly from the manufacturer I had to go to their website and enter my email address into a "queue" to wait in line for my turn to purchase. It took about a month for my turn to come up.  And purchasers are limited to one single item.  When I've looked on Ebay for this brand secondhand, the puzzles often go for more than the new price from the manufacturer.  I'm sure I can keep this puzzle as an heirloom collector item for many Christmases to come.

 

 

 

       

Johexi Puzzle Mat Roll Up

 

 It's not often that I am given promotional products.  I was approached on Facebook by the company Johexi.  They were looking for feedback on their product, and sent me a free puzzle board in exchange for a review.

I was thrilled to have good mail to look forward to in the middle of a pandemic!  And since I live in a small guest house, I'm always looking for storage solutions.  Being able to roll up and store away a puzzle in progress is a great advantage.  I don't have to guess how quickly I'll be finished with a puzzle before I begin, spreading something out on my kitchen table, and knowing I'm having guests over in x amount of days.   I figured it would be weeks before I received my puzzle mat, but it came in just a few days. 

 

The Johexi Puzzle Mat came in a box just slightly larger than a shoebox.  The mat itself is made of neoprene, and the core that you roll the puzzle up around is made of foam.  The core comes in two pieces, which you stick together using included adhesive velcro.  This is basically the only portion that has to be assembled.  There are straps included to wrap around the rolled up puzzle.  Once rolled and strapped, the puzzle is to be inserted into a carry bag with a strap to go around your shoulder.  I can see how this system would make for easy travel. 

We recently had a heat wave in Southern CA, with temperatures up to 113 degrees.  So I had to wall myself and my pups up in my bedroom to contain the air conditioning from my one window unit.  This went on for three days, and the nights were record setting hot as well.  I needed to distract myself during that weekend so I wouldn't focus on the heat and feel the claustrophobia.  So, I opened up a puzzle I'd gotten in a trade, Pomegranate's "Country Dog Gentleman."  It's a 1000 pc puzzle, and I knew it would fill the time.  But since I was trapped in my bedroom, I had only one surface to work on -- my bed.  

 

The Johexi Mat helped keep puzzle dust off my bed.  Because the mat is made of soft neoprene, I put some foamcore underneath to provide a hard surface.  The puzzle pieces slid smoothly across the neoprene and the black surface made my puzzle pieces stand out, so it was easy to see the piece I was looking for.  The mat was large enough to hold my entire puzzle even while I had many pieces spread out.  

My major complaint with the puzzle mat was sort of my own fault - I was so excited to use it, that I couldn't wait.  I'd only had it about two days before trying it out.  It was so new that the neoprene was off-gassing terribly.  And because I was trapped in the one room, the off-gasses were terrible!  It gave me a pretty bad headache.  I would suggest taking this out of the box as soon as you get it and leaving it somewhere for a few weeks before you begin to use it.

I haven't really tried rolling up a puzzle and taking it somewhere, but as I said, I think it would be easy to pack up a puzzle in progress.  Some reviewers have suggested that the company add a pocket to the travel pouch to hold puzzle pieces or a box.  I think that would be a great idea. 

I am keeping this item to use over and over again.  It retails for around $25 and can be found on Amazon here. 

Pomegranate “Country Dog Gentlemen” by Roy De Forest

 

This Pomegranate is right up my alley - it features a painting by Roy De Forest from 1972 titled "Country Dog Gentlemen."  Knowing the time period of this work, it's not surprising that it contains a hallucination of mushrooms, amoebas, and dogs.  The box mentions De Forest as one of the original "Humorous Figuration" artists of the early 1960s.  He resided in the Bay area and taught at UC Davis from the '60s to the '80s.

 

My house has a new addition - current foster dog Carl, who may stay in our home as part of our family.  He needs a little time to settle in before we decide.  But he's getting along well with my girls and is a great playmate for Callie!  He was pulled from East Valley shelter in mid-August.  And apparently is fine posing for photos.  Meanwhile Claire and I just celebrated her 14th adoption anniversary, which means she is legitimately 15 or 16 years old, as she was fully grown when I adopted her from the Carson shelter in September of 2006.  She was recently diagnosed with kidney disease so every day with her is precious.

I received this puzzle from a local puzzle exchange group.  I couldn't believe it was complete, with no missing pieces!  We had a heat wave in California with temperatures reaching 113 degrees for about three days.  I holed up with the pups in our bedroom to conserve the air conditioning from our small window unit, and did this puzzle on my bed.  I was thankful to have something to focus on to pass the time.  It took me about two days to finish.

The finished puzzle size is 29 x 20 inches.  I'm able to find a poster frame from Wal-Mart for about twenty bucks that should fit this nicely, and so will be able to pass it along to a friend who owns a kennel. 

I love the quality of Pomegranate puzzles, both for their texture, thickness, and fit.  The pieces fit so well that it's easy to move finished sections around.  This puzzle in particular has such a range of bright colors that it was really fun to play with.  There is no copyright on the puzzle itself (though the painting is dated 1972), but looking at the Pomegranate website it seems this one is out of print, so I was lucky to get it secondhand.

Landon is nine!

Happy Birthday, Landon!  Landon is nine years old now and will begin third grade with online instruction due to coronavirus.  He celebrated with a socially distanced birthday party/drive by party in his front yard and had a great time playing with the kids that did attend.  Can't wait to see what the next year holds - hopefully more puzzles!

F.X. Schmid “The Barnstormer” by John Wilson

Since the Coronavirus Pandemic began, Jenny's been kind enough to let me occasionally do laundry at her house to avoid the public laundromat.  I did this 300 piece puzzle today while at Jenny's house.  I timed myself, and it took about two hours. 

This F.X. Schmid puzzle is marketed as a "large format edition" with "easy to handle" pieces.  Finished, it measures 18 x 24 inches.  The artwork is by John Wilson, and copyright 2004.  The box credits "license granted by Wild Wings."  Made in Germany.  

The large pieces and smaller piece count made this a fun mental exercise to complete quickly.  I love the old time country image.  It had lots of details, like the dog chasing after the plane, the slingshot in the boy's back pocket, and a clothesline in the deep background.  A fun vintage puzzle over fifteen years old!

New York Puzzle Company "Life in an Oak" By Justine Lee Hirten and Virginia Greene

The popularity of puzzling has skyrocketed during Coronavirus pandemic quarantine, and I'm seeing the benefits.  I had a friend pass along a stack of puzzles that she had completed.  This puzzle is the first I opened.

The New York Puzzle Company's collaboration with The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has birthed a beautiful line of images.  This 1000pc puzzle Measuring 26 5/8" x 19 1/4" contains so much information!  Titled "Life in an Oak," it illustrates the entire biologic cycle of life within a tree.  The box explains it "reveals the intricate relationships between insects, plants, and animals that live in and around oak trees.  Learn about the mushroom that vaporizes into an inky liquid to spread its spores, the weevils that eat acorns and in turn become food themselves, and the foxes and owls that live in the oak and prey on the mice and voles that feed on acorns."  The puzzle is copyright 2019, and comes with a poster that illustrates the puzzle, but also has insets explaining each of the animals listed in the description.

The quality of the pieces were museum-level, with a tight fit that I'd compare to Pomegranate.  I'll definitely be looking for more from this brand and series.

From the poster:

Great American Puzzle Factory Inc “California” by George Gorycki

When I saw this vintage puzzle on Ebay, I had to have it for my collection of California map puzzles hanging over my kitchen bar area.  It's copyright 1977, only three years after I was born, and made by The Great American Puzzle Factory Inc. from artist George Gorycki.  The Ebay listing showed it new in box, with the shrink wrap still on.  I opened it during a zoom conference call and had it complete in about six hours.  

Though the box looked fine, there is some moisture damage, mostly in one corner.  Because the water damage is on adjacent pieces, I think the puzzle was assembled at some point and put back into the box, then later shrink-wrapped and sold as new.  Whether it was the seller who shrink wrapped it or a past owner, who knows.  But I feel misled about the sale.  There's even one edge piece missing!  Since I completed the puzzle in one sitting, I don't feel there's any chance that I lost the piece.  I think it was not in the box.  Because the puzzle is vintage and I was so in love with the design, I decided to overlook it.

At 550 pc, The box says the finished size is approximately 18" x 24".  The key word is approximately.  I had to shave a half inch from one side of the puzzle when I went to frame it, or spend the money on custom framing after I had already purchased a frame.  Since there was one edge piece missing, I shaved from that side and left it at that. With the overlap from the frame, the missing piece is hardly noticeable.  But the design is no longer centered as it was intended to be.  Still, I love this puzzle and the details that are highlighted in the state!  I'll amend this post with a photo once it's hung in my kitchen. 

Karmin International "The Redecorators" by Linda Picken

This Linda Picken puzzle featuring painting puppies had me fooled - its blue color tones were more difficult to put together than I expected.  I framed these cute labs for a friend who has a dog boarding and training business.  "The Redecorators" is 18" x 24" at 550 pieces.  It's an earth friendly puzzle by Karmin International that is copyright 2011.  I found it at a thrift store.  There is a nice bio of the artist on the box that explains she's been painting for over thirty years and oil paintings of animals, especially dogs, are amongst her favorite subjects.