Australia

Brand: Hinkler Puzzlebilities
Pieces: 500
Size: 73.6cm x 58.4cm
Product Code:  HB22-FEB16-08

On Thursday (January 26) it was Australia Day- our national celebration day. It's a public holiday usually dedicated to barbecued sausages, lots of drinking, listening to Triple J's Hottest 100, and celebrating what makes Australia great.

In recent years, however, there has been growing controversy over the suitability of the day, particularly for some Indigenous Australians. They, and many others who agree with them, have renamed the day Invasion Day, and are striving to change the date so that they too can celebrate their home country without thinking about the genocide that was involved in Australia's 'discovery'. A date suggestion has been May 8 ('Maaaattttttee') as 'mate' is a well-known Aussie colloquialism. 

Personally, I'm not fussed if they change the date or not, as long as we still have the chance to celebrate this amazing country. Of course, it would be better if more people felt comfortable with the date, but, as usual, there will always be someone who wants to complain...

Okay, enough social commentary...

If you haven't already figured it out from what I have written, there is a reason I have posted up this puzzle- Australia Day! 

This puzzle actually took longer for me to do than I expected. The pieces are huge, yet some of them feature very small text (town names, rivers, etc), in order to fit it all on. If the pieces had been any smaller, the puzzle would have been impossible to do! I also realised through doing this puzzle that my knowledge of Australian geography is not as great as I thought it was. I had to Google search a few town names just to work out which state they were in! That said, this would make a great educational tool for people wanting to learn about Australian geography. The map features topographical information as well as a handy key. It also covers a little bit of neighbouring countries Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. The quality of the pieces isn't terribly great- thin cardboard- but that's to be expected from a relatively low-budget puzzle. 

This is a good, cheap puzzle that has strong educational values. 

A handy key at the bottom of the map provides plenty of information

The puzzle pieces are quite large

Pop Art (Comical Europe)

Brand: Ravensburger
Pieces: 1000
Size: 70cm x 50cm
Product Code:  195046

Here's another bright and fun one! 

When I first saw this Ravensburger puzzle, I couldn't go past the bright pop-art style. The old school illustration of a pretty damsel in distress and her cool-as-a-cucumber blonde 'superhero' is striking and instantly drew my attention. The design, which vaguely mimics the work of iconic pop artist Roy Lichtenstein, is simply made to stand out and draw the eye. 

You may have noticed that I've titled this puzzle as Pop Art (Comical Europe). On the box it is listed as Pop Art but I've also seen it titled as Comical Europe (including on the Ravensburger website). If you're looking to purchase this puzzle, just be aware that it could be listed under either title. I've put the title down as both just for this reason. 

This puzzle uses strong, bold colours and is of the high quality you'd expect from a Ravensburger puzzle. 
I highly recommend it for fans of the pop-art style, graphic novels and bright works of art. 

Harry Potter Horcruxes

Brand: Half Moon Bay
Pieces: 500
Size: 50cm x 35cm
Product Code:  PUZZHP06

I'm a bit of a Harry Potter fan. I've seen all the movies, read all the books, and have to admit that I own a few Harry Potter-themed jigsaw puzzles. 

Having just read the script format book of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, I found myself in a bit of a Harry Potter mood one day. It just so happens that I have several Harry Potter puzzles in my to-do stash so it was simply a matter of picking which one I felt like completing.  

Thus, we have the Harry Potter Horcruxes puzzle on display here.

This puzzle was slightly different from some of the ones I have completed recently, with the most obvious difference being the texture (I guess you would call it) of the pieces.

Unlike most puzzles, the surfaces of these pieces were matte, rather than glossy, which was quite a change. This meant that when it came time to take my usual photo, there was limited glare (which is a good thing- it can be quite tricky to photograph puzzles sometimes!). However, there was a downside to this. Perhaps it was just the quality of the printing, but it meant that the edges of the pieces whitened a little when you pulled apart the pieces, as the colours 'faded' off. This gave a 'used' and 'worn' appearance to the pieces after the puzzle was completed and pulled apart.

Other than that, this puzzle was quite quick to do, with plenty of interesting focal points. Not only do the horcruxes from the series feature in the design, but so do a few other Harry Potter references that fans are sure to notice. 

This was a fun puzzle to do, and greatly added to my Harry Potter-fueled mood.

Buttercup Meadow (Santoro)

Brand: Ravensburger
Pieces: 500
Size: 49cm x 36cm
Product Code:  146864

I'm not sure what the weather's like in your neck of the woods at the moment, but over the last few days, summer has certainly made it's presence felt where I live! We've had several days where the temperature has been over 30 degrees celsius- not something I terribly enjoy, unless there is a pool and cool drinks around to make it bearable! 

Because of the discomfort I've been feeling, I decided to do a puzzle with soft, calming colours (which still holds a summery feel) and couldn't go past the cutely illustrated Buttercup Meadow. Released by Ravensburger and designed by the clever folks at Santoro, this puzzle has a lot of similar colours (in the white and ecru tones of the sheep) which makes it a little bit more challenging than you would expect. There are also varying shades of green and blue throughout the design. 

This image is very cute, of high quality, and is one of a few that Santoro have collaborated with Ravensburger to release. I'll definitely be looking out for any others they may put out.