I always do at least one big jigsaw puzzle every Christmas season. 2008’s choice was a Ravensburger puzzle called White Christmas. It’s a thousand-piecer and big – 20′ x 27″. I found it at King Arthur’s Court in Oakley while I was looking for a summer puzzle, and bought it as part of my intentional Christmas preparations.
Ravensburger’s are always quality puzzles – thick, really hold together, good color. And they play fair – no sneaky cuts. Always challenging, but not impossible. Makes me happy.
When I looked at it the day after Thanksgiving, I noticed it was definitely a German scene, not an American one. Subtle differences – the reindeer antlers and harness, the look and dress of Santa as he feeds the animals, the way the packages on his sleigh are wrapped, the badger and weasel joining the other animals, the pheasant on the roof covering the hay for the deer, the village and church off in the distance.
Quite coincidentally, I had also bought an Advent calendar from German – also all about Santa feeding the animals. Didn’t realize that til I got it home, either. Interesting choices for my Irish self to make.
This one took longer than almost any other puzzle I’ve ever done. I sorted the pieces, then sorted and sorted again. The animals were fairly easy – but that still left me with over 2/3s of the puzzle to do. But it never felt impossible or boring and tedious. Remained challenging.
It’s still on the table, but will make way for a winter puzzle soon! I may do it again next Christmas – or I may pass it on. An excellent puzzle.