Puzzles Taking Shape
These Galison shaped puzzles are near and dear to my heart as they are some of the puzzles that really piqued my interest when I started ramping up my puzzling early in the pandemic. I have always loved puzzles but would usually only have a few in my possession and would do whatever puzzle someone bought me. So that would include a lot of traditional images.
Now, since joining Puzzle Warehouse’s Puzzle of the Month subscription in 2020, my world has been massively expanded!!! There are so many colorful and modern images, I can’t get enough! Shaped puzzles are an exciting variation, and there are a few artists who have collections from Galison.
My first was Lips, a 750 piece shaped puzzle designed by Jonathan Adler. I own almost all of his puzzles now, but I will always remember Lips. The way it nearly destroyed me!!!! This puzzle is not for the faint of
Around this point, a merciful instagram friend shared with me a very helpful hint. Take a look at the box
The piece shapes are right there on the picture! I was able to complete the lips and the border on my own but I used this technique to fill in the lightest blues. Is this cheating? Maybe. But my honest opinion is, there is no such cheating in puzzling. Some people prefer not to even look at the box image, but this is YOUR puzzle experience, and you should do it the way that satisfies you the most! I don’t think I would rely
It got me this far, and then I did the rest by following the image, rather than the shapes on the box.
For more Jonathan Adler awesomeness check out these puzzles - The Safari Shaped Foil Puzzle or and if the shaped puzzles intimidate you, the standard shaped Shelfie puzzle looks sure to satisfy!
Next, I did this cute 2-in-1, Daily Special. I had as much fun taking pictures of the puzzles as I did completing them. For only 625 pieces, this packs a good punch! The pieces are tiny, so it feels like a mini puzzle but the shapes come out surprisingly large. The “salad of the day” (Donut) was a good excuse to indulge in a sprinkled donut.
The Galison puzzles always hold up great to a “puzzle pick up” and these minis are no exception. And you can’t fully appreciate how big these are until you see them in context!
Then I took my photo shoot to the next level with a “no hands” pick up. The puzzle looks so good, I could eat it…
But, alas, it tastes like cardboard. So onto the next set.
Christian LaCroix has a collection, and I chose Love Who You Want for this month’s blog.
The woman’s sweater is very tricky!! I feel like half the puzzle time was spent on that.
These puzzles are also quite large, and I decided to attempt another “no hands” puzzle pick up… this time with my feet! I’m sure I’m the first person to pick up a puzzle with their feet? And hopefully the last. I don’t think this is a lasting trend!
Foot trick by Alyssa :)
Finally I puzzled Flora Heart by artist Julie Seabrook Ream. I’ve done a few of her galison puzzles before. One of my favorites was Rainbow Seashells. Object gradients are often harder than you expect and at 2000 pieces it definitely kept me busy but it’s very doable! But back to Flora Heart. If you’re into speed puzzling, you can find some comparison times from the Battle of the YouTube puzzlers here on Donnalouise’s instagram page. I had the pleasure of meeting her at the World Jigsaw Puzzle Championships.
Here’s the beautiful finished product!
If you’ve made it to the end, thanks for following along with my silliness! Next on my wish list is Pizza Party by artist duo Paul Fuentes design. Don’t tempt me with another no hands pick up! I could bite right into that puzzle too. And by the same artist, Flower Power. I’ll bet those pink boxing gloves pack a punch! I hope you and your family find some time to puzzle this Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and I’ll be back next month!
Alyssa Z
P.S. The Galison puzzle used for the banner was an Andy Warhol image called Soup Cans.
Andy Warhol Soup Cans Set by Galison
Holy cow! Those puzzles look so much bigger when you hold them up like that! Fantastic blog article.
Wow, those are some big shaped puzzles! So fun when puzzles are life size.
Love it! The photos were great! :-)
