Holdson Jigsaw

 Holdson has become my least favourite puzzle brand recently, after all the issues I have had with them, I have found the other brands to be a better quality. Will only get them off of marketplace now and not purchase them brand new.

Just not worth it as getting very bored with their designs and actually saw the other week, that they had taken a design that I have already completed by another brand and it had been reimagine, by the artist, to create a new one, but it was only small subtle changes that had been made so knew I had already done that design. 

New Holdson design

Come on, at least come up with new designs!

Are they that desperate for images to use that they have to work with the same artist from another country and recreate, when they could come up with something new.

Jigsaw 24 - Vintage Book Shop

 This past weekend I have not been well.

I have the start of Rheumatoid Arthritis and Fibromyalgia, although they are currently classing it as Palindromic rheumatism. So occasionally I get flare ups where I have pain in my ankles, wrists, knees, hips and neck. The pain comes on for no reason; nothing sets it off and it can last for 6 hours to 3 days. Pain relief and rest is usually the treatment. There is not much I can do when in a flare up, walking is painful, legs sometimes struggle to work, hands don't want to work as no strength in them and my brain just does not cope well.

So, this past weekend I have spent a lot of time sitting and completing jigsaws as it is easy to do and doesn't hurt my wrists so much. It is my first major flare up in the past 4-6 months.

This one was finished within 24 hours of the Lego one as I have had nothing else, I can do during that time.

It was easy to sort into colours, went together easily and apart from being a Holdson and being flimsy and breaking easily every time you caught a piece on your sleeve, it was nice to do. 

Jigsaw 23 - Space Stars

 This was easy, quick and fun to complete.

I do like the Lego jigsaws but there is not much challenge to them because the colours are easy to identify and sort and then they come together very quickly.

So, start to finish took all of about 24 hours.

Jigsaw 22 - Butterfly

 This is one I got from marketplace and thought it might be somewhat easy to complete.

Yeah, well, occasionally, I am totally wrong! This one was tricky, drove me spare and I think I cursed every time I touched it until it was finished. The colours smashed into each other and the pieces were not easy to identify by pattern/colour alone. Several times I searched all available pieces for what I thought it would be only to find it looked slightly different.

Glad I finished it but by far my least favourite one this year.

Now on to one a little simpler

Jigsaw 21 - Sidewalk Fashion

 This one is actually 1500 pieces, and I have enjoyed completing a jigsaw slightly bigger than normal. It did mean I had to get my board out to complete it on as it was too large for the card table I usually use. Whilst 1000 pieces is a good size to complete, a bigger one is always fun, and I wish I could get more of the large sizes to complete. Still trying to work out how to get a slightly bigger board so I can complete 2000 pieces more easily.

I have started looking at measurements to see how to make myself a slightly bigger board, so watch this space.

Where Do They Come From?

Where do I get all my jigsaw puzzles from people often ask me.

For a while then yes, I did buy them myself when I saw them on special or received them from the boys as presents on birthdays and Christmas.

Then I found Facebook Marketplace, and, in my city, there is quite a movement of jigsaws between people. Mostly costing about $10. I only stay in my city and don't travel long distance or pay postage for any. 

Back in April 2024 someone put a post on marketplace about some jigsaws she was selling, she had heaps and I saw many that I wanted. So, I went and visited to buy some. She had been completing jigsaws all through covid, had been storing them in a storage unit and now wanted to get rid of them. She had a wall full, and I mean there had to be nearly 200+ puzzles in her room. I have only seen that amount in a shop, not someone's front room of their house! Lots of Holdson jigsaws come in sets of 4 and she had all four from the collection, so there were many that I wanted.

Well, 25 puzzles later ($210), I left her house. I got most of the ones you have seen me complete this year and last year from her (if Holdson brand) and I have moved them all on since then by selling them back on marketplace for $10 each, so I am pretty much equal on the money front 😎 the odd one hasn't moved but it is a minor loss for all the enjoyment they have brought me and savings of getting them for $5-10 instead of $28-40

This was one picture I took of some I got from her and as you can see, many are of the same design and collection. This pile is only 9 jigsaws so you can imagine, I had jigsaws all over the house, still do if I am honest!

This year, whilst I have still purchased quite a few, always on special and when my local Jigstore has good specials on, or damage box sales (just because the box is dented doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the jigsaw) then a majority have come from marketplace, although a few weeks ago I did actually do a swap with a lady of 3 puzzles. Saved me giving her $10 only to have her give it back to me for one of mine. from now on, I will be putting this on my posts that I am open to swaps.

I would say I have probably spent about $500 on jigsaws throughout the year but when I sell them, I get a little bit of that back, but it is not about making the money back.

So, gifts, purchasing and marketplace is my place of choice, although the odd one does still get loaned from family/friend.

I do also loan them to family and friends and that has started to happen a little bit more, but they always come back to me.

Jigsaw 20 - Bees and Honey

 This one was loaned to me by a colleague and was trickier than I realised it would be. The colour was all the same so made for some harder parts and difficult to sort. Although it was nice to have a challenge for a while.

Recovery is going well, but finding walking hard some days as my abdomen muscles are definitely telling me that they are not happy about being chopped up and then put back together!

Jigsaw 19 - London

 Here we are, equal to my amount completed in 2024.

This one was a good one to complete to achieve number 19, as London holds a special part in my heart and life. Whilst I find the city large and overpowering, as I get older, I am appreciating what the city can offer and have enjoyed exploring it on the odd couple of times I have got back to the UK in the past 10 years. I also have some very special people living close to London and I just associate London with them.

Let's see how many more I can complete in 2025, but being at home on sick leave at present means the number may go up significantly.

2026 will be a challenge to keep up (and expensive)

Jigsaw 18 - Celebrate in Season

 With nothing else to do then you guessed it, jigsaws are helping to pass the time.

The next one completed will equal how many I completed in 2024; think I might surpass that number this year!

Jigsaw 17 - Time

 Has taken me a few days since being home from surgery to actually be able to work on a jigsaw, mainly because it involves leaning forward and that has been difficult when your abdominal muscles are not liking you.

Especially when the surgeon actually found a small umbilical hernia during surgery, so did an extra surgery at the time. That explains the tightness in my mid abdomen and reason things are so tight and painful.

Little bit by little bit I have been able to complete some of the jigsaw, have to do something to pass the time, although sleep has been a good thing in the middle of the day.

So, my first of I am sure, many jigsaws that will be completed over the next few weeks.

Jigsaw Sorting Plans

 I know, I have covered a post on sorting of jigsaw pieces before but I have been researching the different methods that people use.

This has led to me acquiring some small trays and being a little more particular with my sorting. Yes, I am a 'sort the straight edges from the middle piece's person'. Then all the middle pieces just get put back into the box and I sort through as I am completing the jigsaw.

But I have seen others who specifically sort colours into separate piles, along with edge pieces. They ensure that all pieces go back into the box up the right way and some, even have large trays so that nothing goes back into the box, and you can see all pieces at all times!

I do not have enough space to do that method.

I have however, treated myself to a couple of smaller plastic trays (from Temu, where else!) to be able to do a small amount of colour sorting but that is as far as I go for now.

Day 2 - Home Time

 The extra day/night in hospital was by far the best thing to do, and now it is home time.

Whilst it will be good to be in my own surroundings, I know for certain it is not like a hotel there, everything at my fingertips and a mini fridge in the room. This room is exactly like a hotel room; in fact, I think I have stayed in hotel rooms far worse than this hospital room!

Onwards with my recovery

Day 1

 To say the past 24 hours have been rough is a definite understatement. Crap is a better word, I think. It has not been a pleasant journey and consequently, the surgeon has decided that I am not going home today, and I get the joy of staying in for another night, and believe me, I need it.

Reaction to medication, uncontrollable pain, nausea, vomiting, more pain, lots of tears and low blood pressure.

It was lovely when a colleague/friend came to see me and bought me a small gift to keep me smiling. Ok, she did make me walk up and down the corridor (for my own good) to get the blood flowing to my legs and assist with easing my tight muscles.

I told you, nurses make the worst patients!

Surgery

Today is surgery day. Although I had to be nil by mouth and not report to the hospital until 12:30pm, I had nothing else to do in the morning, so rather than waste sick days, I carried on teaching this morning and then walked up the road to the hospital (about a 5-minute walk!) when required. Thus, why I have my laptop with me.

Talk about being a nurse patient and knowing how to push the limits 😎

I am all checked in, room allocated and now I sit and wait.

Been seen by the anaesthetist and the surgeon and just been told of a slight delay. Not much I can do about that.

My nursing was actually in the operating theatre for 20 years, so I totally understand all and everything to do with surgery and running of the department. I have scrubbed for many different specialties and have seen the inside of the body from the top of the head to the top of the big toe. I have helped to fix it, move it, remove it, replace it and generally anything to do with any part of the body, with the exception of cardiac and lungs, I have only scrubbed for one cardiac emergency case in my time, otherwise I have seen the inside of all of the body and it still fascinates me and amazes me at the miracle of what it does for our whole life. Even if it does go wrong occasionally and need bits removed 😇

I have lost count of the number of times I have scrubbed for this operation I am having today - Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy, so I know exactly how and what is going to happen. (Not sure if that is a good or a bad thing 😐)

Jigsaw 16 - Bargain Hunting

 On a roll now, and back into it.

Next one sorted and completed. Frustrating in parts due to some matching of colours but overall fun to complete,

Jigsaw 15 - Craft Fair Barn

 Yes, I know, it has been a while since I did a jigsaw puzzle. June was the last time I completed one and it is now August.

Life just sometimes passes you by and you have not been in the mood or had other things going on, or you have just puzzled yourself out.

For me, well as the previous posts show, I have been dealing with an illness and trying to get on top of what is going on and what that means and what the plan is moving forward. Add in work, it being winter and generally me just sleeping a lot and being exhausted, has led to no jigsaws.

Finally, here we are with my next one. Can't be all bad as this is my 15th jigsaw of the year. That currently leads to about 1 every 3 weeks on average for the year (if this is all I did for 2025 and stopped now) and with the stack I have of ones to be completed, I think my plan to beat the 19 from 2024 is well achievable and I will surpass it with ease.

I actually purchased this one and at the time didn't realise two major flaws....

• it is only 500 pieces, too easy to do
• it is XL pieces

This led to a very easy, very quick, jigsaw that saw me take about 1 whole evening to sort, complete and move on. It was simple and passed an evening very well.

Verdict

 The results are in, the plan is set, and we are all go

Today was the surgeon appointment and he confirmed my findings (😀) my gallbladder is coming out.

Now I just have to wait the 5-6 weeks until surgery time but at least we have a solution, although he did say it was only a 50:50 chance of it fixing the problem! A chance I am prepared to take.

Product in NZ

 As you know, New Zealand is this beautiful little country at the bottom of the world. We have a small population of just under 5 million people. We have a lot of green space, and most people live in the main cities, meaning we have some vast open space that you can wander in and find no one.

Unfortunately, because of our size, we don't manufacture a lot of products and most of what we have, comes from another country. It is not that we haven't made things in the past, just that when production has become too expensive (with obtaining the materials to start with) then they have inevitably moved the production to another country (Australia & Asia) where it can be completed in bulk size which is faster and more cost effective for all. Then, obviously, it is shipped back to NZ for us to buy.

When it comes to variety, then no, NZ does not do this well, but that is due to the lack of population to have sufficient turnover of stock. Inevitably the smaller company just can't make enough sales to stay viable and so they end up closing.

I found this quite difficult when I first moved to NZ in 1998. I was used to the UK and having so much variety to choose from and then suddenly, I was in a country that gave you the choice of A or B. A lot of popular brands do not make it here as there just isn't the population to sustain them, even if they are big brand names in other countries. The cost of getting the products to NZ and then making it a price that we can afford is half the problem, people just aren't prepared to spend heaps on a product that they know is so cheap in another country and astronomically expensive here, due to shipping.

IKEA is one such company. Everyone raves about the simplicity of the company, their flat pack furniture, their cost efficiency. I know, I have been to IKEA and spent many a Sunday afternoon wandering the store like everyone else and having meatballs for lunch, because you just have to. And yes, I always walked away with some odd little gadget that you just had to have!

They are still aiming to open a store here in NZ soon (that soon has been on the cards for the past 5 years!) But, I know, when it does finally arrive, it won't be as cheap as everyone is hoping due to the cost of shipping the products to us in the first place.

So why am I writing about this today?

Jigsaw puzzles, yes, this all has to do with jigsaw puzzles.

We didn't have the variety of product or design. We had one main company Holdson.

Yes, they are a New Zealand brand and yes, they are manufactured here in NZ. As they say, they have been since 1939. They do great puzzles with some reasonable variety. Ok, not so much when they do a series of 4 and the picture becomes boringly the same, but they try, and it gives us something to do. However, they don't do large. They do 1000 pieces well and that is about it, unless you want to go smaller. After a while, 1000 pieces is boring, you want a challenge and something different and that is not them.

Obviously, we do have Ravensburger

They offer size and variety, but man were they expensive and it was difficult to justify the cost of the puzzle. They do great quality pieces too, but when you looked at their catalog of products and then saw what was available here in NZ, then you could only dream that someone, someday would bring more variety down here.

And suddenly, that has happened.

Jigsaws are definitely making a comeback. I think Covid may have had a lot to do with it, people are suddenly all into jigsaw puzzles, they are not for the reclusive person, the older generation who stay home on a Saturday night with no social life. It is almost like this secret little life that people are afraid to admit to as they are scared of what people will think, but they have cupboards filled with variety, colour, size and they are eagerly completing puzzles into the night.

This has also been shown in the variety of puzzle available in New Zealand, the different companies that we can get, the different sizes to tempt us. No longer want 1000 pieces, then fine, how about 2000, 3000 or even 6000. At one point, I did even see the large Ravensburger Disney puzzle in the shop window, a box holding all 40320 pieces (my dream puzzle) although I have also noticed that it is no longer about $600 to obtain, more like half a mortgage!! I think I saw it online for about $2300, yikes, just keep dreaming, just keep dreaming!

Suddenly we have variety of company to choose from & sizes and I for one, am loving it.

Every company makes their jigsaws slightly differently, the pieces fit well or sometimes, not so well. The colours are vibrant, bright and shiny and the cost is reasonable. Suddenly Ravensburger is not out of reach of the average person. We are getting lots of eeBoo, Cobble Hill, Clemontoni, Gibsons and some little brands that are smaller companies and they are selling well and fast.

We have a local party/cake product store here in town that decided to create a small jigsaw section, they sell online too, and they are selling fast and furiously across NZ. Their shipping costs are reasonable and their prices competitive. Luckily for me, they are local so I can order online and pick up close to work, but that also makes it dangerous lol, as checking their sales and seeing something I want gets expensive on the credit card, especially when it is going in the cupboard to join the other 30 waiting to be completed!!

Just 1 pile of many!

So, long live the jigsaw puzzle, the variety, colour and shape. The excitement of completing one, that sense of achievement.

2 years ago, at work, we had a few spare desks and so I set up a green felt and started a jigsaw puzzle on it, it took a few weeks to get completed but it was lovely to see people slowly stop and fit in a piece here and there. It was never distracting but a great mental wellbeing area for someone to take 5 mins away from their desk and focus on something else, whilst they calmed their brain or thoughts, or just needed time out from the difficult moment they had just had in a classroom.

If you haven't completed a jigsaw since you were younger and at school, then maybe consider getting one and giving it a go.

You won't regret it, I promise

Jigsaw 14 - Christmas Baking

 We have just passed the halfway mark of 2025 a couple of weeks ago and I am already on jigsaw 14. At this rate I will definitely crush my number of completions compared to 2024. I did 19 last year.

My jigsaws sit on a card table (wrote about it last January here) and since being back in the family house it is still located in the main family area. No one else in the house seems interested in doing the jigsaws (they did use to help when we would have them on the go at the caravan but not at home?) and so, not that I would mind if they helped, they are easy to access and complete whilst watching tv in the evenings.

So, I don't have to sit in the dining room or another room to complete them and I am sure this assists with getting them completed quicker as you can do a few pieces, or 10, most evenings. Sometimes I set myself the challenge of trying to get at least 10-20 pieces picked from the box and they have to be set on the table/connected in the right place. This definitely helps with getting it moving and finished.

Another Christmas one, as mentioned before, several of them to complete and seeing as it is freezing cold and ark like UK Christmas here in NZ at present, then it feels like it should almost be Christmas time.

Yes, even after 27 years of being in NZ and having Christmas in the sunshine, I still miss the cold and dark and bright lights that my head associates with Christmas. Christmas definitely creeps up on me every year here as there are no dark nights going home after work, seeing all the lights and window displays lit up. There are no carols playing in the shopping centers with the freezing air outside reminding you that it might just snow before or on Christmas.

It is warm and sunny; day light savings has well and truly kicked in, the evenings are light and bright and if you do want to go and see Christmas lights anywhere, well, you have to wait until 9-10pm before it is dark enough!

We always have a Christmas tree with lights, and the lights come on in the house at about 6pm but it is at least 8pm before they start to emulate that gorgeous glow of holiday spirit. My snowman ornaments definitely look out of place in NZ lol, any talk of snow is unheard of at that time of year.

One day, I will go back to England for a holiday to enjoy the lights and darkness of December as we lead into Christmas. Just one small problem.....I do love the heat of summer and not sure I could give it up just to see Christmas lights!

On to the jigsaw that I have just finished. I wish I had more time in December, as the year comes to a stressful close to get baking done to share with friends and work colleagues but alas, it is always so busy that I never get anything completed. Doesn't stop me thinking of what I could make, if I had the day to spend in the kitchen.

All the Time I Can Get

 When your oldest child lives 600 kms away, you don't get to see them much. Therefore, when they do come up, you spend every second with them.

In this case, he was driving his own car back down (he flew up to get said car), about an 8-hour drive and I wanted to make sure he had a good breakfast, so a 7.30am cafe run was ordered and we had a last meal together 💗

We Have a Winner

 Thanks to the power of modern technology, I knew my results of the HIDA scan and what they meant before I saw the surgeon again.

Here in New Zealand, we have medical apps that allow us to link into our GP and see all medications we are taking, all test results, all letters of referral and all appointment notes. We can also message the surgery on the app and book appointments with our named doctor (although good luck with that one since covid, takes about 10 days for an appointment) and request repeat prescriptions without having to go to the surgery.

So of course, when I got the message that a new result had been uploaded then I took a quick look and bingo, found the issue:

I have an inactive gallbladder.

Your gallbladder is an organ that sits underneath your liver and assists the liver with the excretion of bile into the digestive system when you eat. The bile helps to break down fat. You can live without it; your liver and cystic duct just have to learn to divert the bile into the digestive system a slightly different route. Most people have a gallbladder that fills with bile when you eat and then excretes it out as required, usually with an ejection fraction of about 50%.

Mine is at 16%, so a little slow and useless really

Therefore, when I eat, bile is accumulating in the gallbladder as normal and then it is not emptying properly, this leads to a full gallbladder that can then go into spasm or cramp. Thus, the colicky pain I was getting as it was full of bile and not able to empty it all out.

The solution (according to Dr Google, true nurse here!) is a Cholecystectomy, which in simple terms = let's take that gallbladder out.

Guess my appointment with the surgeon in the next few weeks will be to confirm what I have already established, unless the expert has a different solution (I do trust his knowledge) and that will be some future surgery.

HIDA Scan

 Today I got my nuclear medical scan of my gallbladder.

It involved a 90-minute scan, laid on my back the whole time, with no moving (although I could hold my kindle and read) and at the 45-minute mark, I had to eat a Mars bar and drink a glass of milk, all while lying flat on the bed with a scanning machine above my abdomen.

Firstly, I am not a fan of milk. I will have it with breakfast cereal, but I am not that person that will grab a glass of milk with dinner or because I am thirsty. My baby son, well that is a different story. he will gulp it down out of the bottle stood in front of the open fridge!

Secondly, a whole Mars bar! We are not talking about a mini snack size either, we are talking the whole 50g bar, at 9.30am.

I like chocolate but am not a person who will eat a chocolate bar because I find the feeling of just chocolate in my mouth a horrible feeling and texture. So don't ever buy me a bar of chocolate or Easter egg as it will last forever and bug those around me because it is sitting there and torturing them!

I do however, like Twix and things that are a little bit of chocolate, but nowadays, I seem to manage a snack size bar and don't need a large one, plus I would rather have a jelly candy instead.

So, eating this bar was going to be a struggle. But apparently that was the point, to feed my gallbladder a whole heap of fat all in one go (full fat milk as well) and see how it coped. It was amusing having this nice gentleman stand beside me feeding me a bite of chocolate bar and then offering me the straw to drink milk through.

A HIDA scan is apparently a hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid scan, where a radioactive tracer is injected and then you overload the digestive system with fat, and it evaluates the function of the liver, gallbladder and bile ducts by tracking the flow of bile.

Let's see what these results show, if anything, but not holding out much hope!

Doughnuts

 Some days, to get through Friday you need something special.

Today, my car had a mind of its own and drove to the best little doughnut shop in town, at 7am, and I took a large box of treats to share at work.

Whilst my appetite is still not great, I did manage at least half of a doughnut and everyone else appreciated breakfast on this cold winter Friday

Procedure Day

 And just like that, 5 days passed by without incident and here we are.

Well, I have just gone through 24 hours of bowel prep and no eating, well clear liquid only so feeling a little drained but let's get this show moving.

And the immediate results when I came round......?

You guessed it, absolutely nothing!

Although he did mention one more test to me and at this point, I am open to anything, so a nuclear medical scan of my gallbladder is now planned, despite the ultrasound showing no gallstones or enlargement of the gallbladder.

Fingers crossed.

Jigsaw 13 - Gnomes

 I thought this one was cute when I saw it and thought why not, a very different style to my usual ones. It was easy to sort each gnome into its own colour so actually was not difficult to complete. As it was a Cobble Hill design then it did have some fun shaped pieces.

Paper Flower Craft

 I don't get to do this very often, not sure if it is because work is just so busy that by the time I get home, I am too tired, or whether I just haven't had the inclination to want to do this craft.

Since moving back to the family home, life has been difficult. With taking 3 months stress leave last year and then a trip away, a family holiday and the chaos when I did go back to work, because we were still very much short staffed and there was so much to achieve, that I just never got my head engaged to get my craft room (aka oldest son's bedroom after he moved out in May 2024) sorted.

It is slowly now coming together, even though I did get the shelves in situ a few months ago. I still have a lot of work to do to finish unpacking boxes of items and also, I keep changing my mind about where things will live, you know, the usual thing, that you put something somewhere and then a few weeks/months later, you change your mind and rearrange everything!

Sadly, last week my youngest son's girlfriend lost her grandfather suddenly and I wanted to make something for her. So, I looked through the craft items I have got out and put on the shelves and decided to make her a small bunch of flowers. I knew she would appreciate the thought.

They turned out really well and I was really happy with the little bouquet when it was finished. She loved them too and thought it was a lovely gesture.