Ravensburger Crazy Cats Vintage No.7 – Knit one, Purrl one 500pc Jigsaw Puzzle

Posted on April 8, 2019 by Fiona Martin

We love a good jigsaw puzzle as it’s something all of the family can join in with and something we dip in and out of over a few days as we please. The Ravensburger Crazy Cats Vintage No.7 – Knit one, Purrl one 500pc Jigsaw Puzzle is the perfect one for our cat loving family and is full of fun cats, mice and quirky features making it an interesting and fun puzzle to do.

As usual we tend to start of finding the edge pieces, something my children love looking for and with the various coloured balls of wool lying around, it aids finding where the pieces need to go.

With lots of vintage signs on the wall it helped to locate where the pieces go, but with the quirky cabinets, coloured balls of wall and numerous cats eyes, it took a little bit of working out which pieces went where!

Alongside myself was my 8 and 11yr old who both love it when they find a piece that fits and between us all we soon completed the puzzle.

We love this puzzle and really enjoyed doing it. Being 500 pieces it isn’t overly challenging and is something we can do over a few days. Great for when at home to get away from screen time and good for rainy days. Ravensburger puzzles are always a pleasure to do and the Crazy Cats are just one in the vintage series of puzzles. I love the vintage designs and can’t wait to try out some others!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions. We are not paid for reviews although we do receive the product to try out and enable us to write the review.

Ravensburger The Curious Cupboard No. 6 1000 Piece Puzzle

Posted on November 27, 2018 by Fiona Martin

Ravensburger The Curious Cupboard is a series of puzzles with different cupboard contents from kitchen, inventors, gardeners and much more. No. 6 in the series is The Collectors Cupboard and I couldn’t wait to give it a try. Being a 1000 piece puzzle it is the perfect challenge and one that I know my mum when she pops round and the kids love to come and help with.

This puzzle features a large shelving unit filled with more than you can ever imagine. I thought when I started this that I could see a few cats, a few clocks, a few bottles etc, but it’s not until you get into it that you realise that there are so many cats and so many circular shaped things, be it clocks, cogs, buttons, the list goes on.

There are hats, perfume bottles, stamps and so much more. These pictures really don’t do it justice but I can honestly say this has been one of the most enjoyable puzzles I have ever done! My mum contributed along with my daughter and we loved working together as three generations finding the pieces. It is really addictive and so fun to do – you really can’t work out where a piece goes straightaway as there are so many options for it. The backgrounds to each shelving area vary too, from floral, to chinese style and more, which obviously help in putting the pieces together but at the same time confuse you as there is so much variety across the puzzle.

Being addictive we soon finished it and again I have to say I’ve absolutely loved doing this puzzle, it was an absolute pleasure and one I can’t wait to do again in the future. Puzzles in the Ravensburger The Curious Cupboard series are clearly fun to do and I’d love to try others in the range. The detail is fascinating and gets your mind ticking more than you think trying to work out where the pieces go amongst the picture.

If you love puzzles or just want to give on a try then I’d highly recommend checking out the Ravensburger The Curious Cupboard series, one I’ve really enjoyed and also one I think would make a lovely gift for anyone that enjoys a good jigsaw!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Ravensburger The Country Station 100pc Jigsaw Puzzle & Giveaway

Posted on September 4, 2018 by Fiona Martin

Ravensburger The Country Station 100pc Jigsaw Puzzle has extra large pieces to enable fiddle free and easy puzzling. With the puzzle pieces being around double the size of standard pieces, they are easier to find and quicker to complete along with being able to see more detail on each piece.

The Country Station is no.2 in the popular Day in the Country puzzle line and shows a nostalgic image of a station scene. There is lots of detail and colour from the people and the skyline making the puzzle a joy to do and simple to find the correct location for the pieces. With the pieces being larger than normal it’s easier to identify where they should go and we couldn’t wait to get started. My 10yr old daughter decided she wanted to give it a go and sat down one afternoon and completed it. She found it enjoyable to do and it looked good when finished.

Below you can see the finished Ravensburger puzzle of The Country Station which measures 49 x 36 cm when completed. With a linen finish to the top it helps to avoid glare and the pieces are a sturdy premium cardboard. Lastly I’m pleased to offer one of my readers a chance to win a copy for themselves – it’s simple to enter, just scroll down and fill out the Gleam form below!

Ravensburger The Country Station puzzle

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Incredibles 2 Puzzles from Jumbo Games – Review & Giveaway

Posted on August 5, 2018 by Fiona Martin

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Incredibles 2 has landed on the big screen and is a fun family film featuring the Elastigirl, Mr Incredible, Jack-Jack, Violet and Dash as they go about their normal day to day life before coming together again to save the day. Jumbo Games have come up with these fun, great quality puzzles for children of various ages to do. I love that they have both a 100 piece one aimed at children 5+ and a 200 piece one for 7+.

My little boy age 7 was eager to give them a try so we got our puzzle mats out and he started with the 100 piece. He loved the chunky pieces, and before long he completed it entirely on his own. He then moved onto the 200 piece which did prove a little more tricky. I know he is able so always make him do the puzzles on his own, but hint and point out areas that would be easy to start with. He always starts with the edges and I helped him find them but he put them all together.

He then move onto the the eyes and faces of the Incredibles 2 characters as these are the prominent areas and the pieces were easy to pick out and he could identify where they went on the board.

By the end of the day both puzzles were completed and I had one very proud little boy! These Incredibles 2 puzzles are great fun and come in lovely bright colours to keep kids interested. Featuring the characters from the film, they are instantly recognisable and kids love to see images they associate with.

To celebrate the release of the film, I have both of these Jumbo Games Incredibles 2 puzzles to give away to one lucky reader. If you want to enter just fill in the Gleam form below:

Incredibles 2

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Incredibles 2 100 Piece Puzzle from Ravensburger

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Fiona Martin

Incredibles 2 is due out in cinema’s on 13th July 2018 and brings us the fun loving family of superheroes who love to fight crime and beat the villains. With baby Jack-Jack’s emerging superhero powers it’ll be fun to see how he gets on in this adventure helping the others. To celebrate the release, Ravensburger have produced this fun new 100 piece puzzle aimed at 6 years plus.

My boy aged 7 was excited when he saw this and couldn’t wait to get started. I know he is able to do this unaided and despite him asking for help initially, I just verbally guided him and let him put all the pieces in place. He started with the edges and soon got to grips with finding pieces and before long was flying along at his own pace.

The finished Incredibles 2 puzzle is a really good size and looks great on the floor or table. The individual pieces are also well sized and great for little hands. The size of the pieces also allows for more recognition of what area of the puzzle it may belong too, e.g. the writing across the bottom was easy to spot on pieces and one of the first edges my boy completed.

As you can see my boy was thrilled to complete the puzzle and felt proud that he had achieved it all by himself. I love watching them do simple things like puzzles as it gets their brain working and takes them away from technology for a while.

On the other hand, don’t forget to head to the big screen from 13th July onwards to catch the new Incredibles 2 film and see the adventures of this superhero family in action!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Union Jack Sneaker 3D Puzzle from Ravensburger

Posted on April 25, 2018 by Fiona Martin

Union Jack Sneaker 3D Puzzle from Ravensburger is a fantastic creation that doubles up as a pen pot once built. The 108 piece puzzle is made from plastic pieces and also has a few plastic templates to help hold the shoe in place.

As soon as I showed the 10yr old, she was straight onto building this. The style and theme appealed to her and she loved the idea she could keep it on her desk afterward full of her pens and pencils.

The pieces slotted together with ease and she was able to assemble this without any assistance. In fact it didn’t take long at all, I left her to it whilst I did some housework, came back to take some photos and she was just putting the final pieces in.

We are really impressed with the look of this and it stands really well and sturdily. We’ve had admiring comments from those that have visited too. As with other Ravensburger products we have tried, the standard is great and it looks good. I really love the fact that it is useable too. My boy tried some other puzzles from Ravensburger previously that have turned into useful storage items to so if you know any minion fans, then check out these 3D Minion puzzles too.

Back to the Union Jack sneaker puzzle and I’ll finish off by saying that we love it and would recommend it to anyone that loves their puzzles, loves the Union Jack image and loves a sneaker (my girl lives in them!).

This is a puzzle that can if you want to take apart and build again but for us, it’s found a new home on my daughters desk and is now crammed full of her favourite pens!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Alvin & the Chipmunks 100 Piece Ravensburger Puzzle

Posted on March 29, 2018 by Fiona Martin

Alvin & the Chipmunks 100 piece puzzle by Ravensburger is a great size for young children and depending on their age its one they can do by themselves. My 7yr old is a massive Alvin fan and I set the task of him completing this by himself as I knew he was able and I think puzzles are a great stimulation for the brain and take children away from screen time.

Eager to start, I encouraged my boy to look for corners and edge pieces first, but you know what children are like. He found bits of the drum right in the middle so decided to start there, but he was happy and completing on his own so I let him get on with it. I checked on his progress every so often and encouraged him to keep him motivated. He was actually really excited doing it and I had a full running commentary about Alvin and his friends and how they play in the band in the tv show……..

Before long the puzzle was complete!

Once he had finished we admired the finished puzzle. At approximately 49x36cm its really good size and is brightly coloured to aid completion but also looks eye catching for the child to enjoy. Alvin & The Chipmunks is well loved here and this puzzle was a hit too. He thoroughly enjoyed doing it, loved the sense of achievement of finishing it by himself and it was a great way to spend an hour or two when at home.

We love Ravensburger puzzles, they never fail to disappoint being of good quality with easy to fit pieces. They have a wide choice of pictures and designs to choose from so if you are looking for a new challenge then check them out – kids love them!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

What If? Escape to the Seaside – Puzzle by Ravensburger

Posted on May 1, 2017 by Fiona Martin

The What If? puzzles by Ravensburger come with a twist in that the picture on the front of the box isn’t all that it seems. With ‘Escape to the Seaside’, No. 17 in the series, it may look like an idyllic holiday home but the puzzle inside isn’t quiet as perfect as it let’s you think. It’s then up to you to work out what’s going on and piece the bits together accordingly. What a great way to get the family around the table by competing to find the next piece in a jigsaw puzzle and it gets us glued every time, the addiction in finding a piece that fits, the one to work out where each section goes right up until you get to put the final piece in place.

The popular WHAT IF? puzzle series is created by West Midlands based artist Geoff Tristram and consists of high quality 1000 piece cardboard jigsaw puzzles. A good size once complete they are 70 x 50cm. Being a twist on a traditional puzzle they are recommended for ages 12+.

The scene is set:

Henry Knightsbridge has always dreamt of Finding a little hideaway by the sea. He thinks he has found the ideal place in pen draw in, Cornwall. He can’t believe the estate agents (fleasum and bowlte) accepted his offer – it was such a bargain! but what if Henry has been swept away by the beauty of the location? and what if the view from Seaview cottage wasn’t quite what Henry expected? the picture on the puzzle box shows Henry, Chloe, Tarquin and tabatha’s arrival at Seaview cottage, whilst the puzzle actually shows their introduction to life by the seaside.

I really enjoyed starting this off by finding all of the edge pieces, they went together quite easily even though I wasn’t sure what colours were on each side to start with. It got a lot trickier trying to complete the inside as even if you are able to piece together certain parts, you don’t know where to lay them on the puzzle so after making lots of different sections I then had to drag them around the puzzle trying to find out what part of the scene they fitted into. I really enjoyed doing this puzzle and it kept me busy over a couple of days in the evenings.

Here are some small glimpses of the finished puzzle and the full picture is underneath, so stop scrolling now if you don’t want to see the finished design.

With a bit of help from some family that visited, we were all really excited to see the puzzle come together and see what the finished picture looked like. It was definitely fun to do, unlike any other puzzle I’ve tried and a challenge that I’d like to try again in the future!

Below is our finished puzzle:

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

Ravensburger 1000 piece Puzzle – Munich

Posted on September 18, 2016 by Fiona Martin

The Munich jigsaw puzzle from Ravensburger consists of 1000 pieces and features lots of wonderful architecture from Munich’s Marienplatz. The town hall makes a prominent appearance with it’s neo-gothic appearance dating back from the 19th century.

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I’ve always loved completing puzzles, something I probably inherited from my mum as she does too, but with two young children it can sometimes be challenging to squeeze in the time to do an adult jigsaw. With a family holiday planned a few weeks ago, I new this would be something we would enjoy doing in the evenings when the children had gone to bed.

I started the jigsaw one evening and it wasn’t long before my mum joined in and we managed to get the outline finished. The next day we dipped in and out of puzzle, it certainly became addictive and everytime we walked past, couldn’t resist trying to find another piece.

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The following evening we became gripped with the puzzle and sat up until 2.15am finishing it! Everyone else was surprised when they came down in the morning to see that it was done, but we just couldn’t resist adding more pieces.

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Jigsaw’s can be addictive and this Ravensburger Munich puzzle certainly captured our attention with the various architectural features on the buildings to look out for and the peaceful sunset in the sky above.

The Ravensburger puzzles click together so nicely making them a pleasure to do, so if you are looking for something to do in your leisure time then why not try one of these?

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions and we received the product in order to write an honest review.

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Barbie in Princess Power Book & Jigsaw Giveaway x3

Posted on March 27, 2015 by Fiona Martin

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Barbie in Princess Power is the latest guise of Barbie and one that has been hugely successful with my daughter. Princess Kara acquires a magical power after being kissed by a butterfly that gives her the power to turn into a superhero allowing her to prevent disasters and save the day!

The Barbie in Princess Power Jigsaw and Book set from Autumn Publishing is perfect for young Barbie fans to read about the adventures of Princess Kara using her superhero powers to save the town.

The book is written in comic book style, with full colour pages and lots of illustrations to help guide you through the story. Miss M who is 7 and and able reader, enjoying reading this herself especially at bedtime.

A 60 piece jigsaw is included in the set which is an exceptionally high quality puzzle, the best I have ever seen. The pieces are incredibly glossy and strong and Miss M couldn’t wait to get started.

The jigsaw is a brightly coloured image of Barbies Kara and Corinne in their superhero costumes flying through the sky. Miss M thoroughly enjoyed completing this and did it herself. On the back is a equally glossy black and white picture which is designed to be coloured in and wiped clean so you can keep redoing it in any colours of your choice. Miss M just enjoyed the challenge of doing the puzzle of the picture on the back.