This blog is for those of you who celebrate Easter or those of you who just think bunnies are just so darn cute that you need to have some in puzzle form. I have to say that when I first thought of writing this blog, I thought, “it’ll be easy-I’ll just choose some bunny or Easter puzzles and that’ll be it”.  Simple. Yeah right!  CONTINUE READING

Hello there! I made it through my first month as a Puzzle Ambassador (uppercased) and it’s going OK. I did a lot of puzzles on my dining room table, some of them one-handed while fending off a cat. I designed a couple of puzzles on my Photoshops. And I did a lot of digging (too much digging?) into the Puzzle Warehouse website, which has yielded some interesting finds. Most notably, if their collection of puzzles is to be taken seriously, I think a hot air balloon invasion is imminent. CONTINUE READING

I distinctly remember the moment when my business partner and best friend and I were browsing in a toy store and saw Ravensburger’s Escape puzzles. We instantly knew we HAD to try these. To provide the backstory for why we were so enamored, one of the things our company, Wildly Different, does is create tabletop escape room experiences. These differ from a traditional escape room in that while players may have to look at a few props set up around the room, most of the items needed to solve clues are on their team tables. CONTINUE READING

Have you ever been on a walk or a hike and suddenly stumbled across something in the natural world that took your breath away? Funny story: A few weeks ago, I was walking up Broadway in the Upper West Side here in New York City and was awestruck to see an owl, as calm as could be, perched on the awning of an apartment building’s front entrance. Here in the bustling city, any time the natural world somehow bursts in through concrete and steel can take you aback. CONTINUE READING

I am an only child. That one statement likely tells you quite a bit about me! Growing up, I lived in a teeny tiny rural town in Minnesota, so I had oodles and oodles of time where I had to entertain myself as a kid. Thank goodness I had a very active imagination! I lost hours running around our backyard pretending to be April O’Neil alongside my imaginary TMNT team, playing lion tamer to the feral kittens in my neighbors backyard, or jumping off of my swing set into imaginary long forgotten eras. CONTINUE READING

Air and water ships, old castles and ruins, steampunk machinery, and plenty of animals for good measure. What’s not to love? These common elements are just some of the reasons why I find myself frequently coming back to puzzles with artwork by Ciro Marchetti. According to my puzzle tracking spreadsheet (yes, I have one of those!), I have put together more than fifteen different puzzles featuring his artwork and have quite a few more in the to-do pile! CONTINUE READING

Lately, it feels like everyone in the puzzling world has started doing wooden puzzles, so of course I wanted to give them a try. With thoughts of Spring and the Easter bunny in my head, I decided that Garden Bunny by Wooden City would be perfect. Wooden City puzzles come packaged in environmentally friendly packaging. The 250 pieces are in a paper bag. No plastic here! There's also a small included reference picture if you need it, but I prefer to puzzle without the picture. CONTINUE READING

I was looking over my shelves of puzzles wondering what I would write about this month. Hmmm… March, not my favourite time of year. End of winter, spring is not here yet, sort of dirty snow drifts or just mud! I need something to brighten the mood. Birds! Birds on a Wire by Cobble Hill is a fun colourful pick me up for a dreary pre-spring day. There’s a lot of interaction happening between this assortment of feathered friends. CONTINUE READING

It’s a tale as old as time… are you team princess or team villain? I grew up in the Disney Renaissance era (per Wikipedia, the years 1989-1999 when Disney animation returned to producing successful animated films). The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, the Lion King, Pocahontas and Mulan are all near and dear to my heart. While the stories are old fashioned (I’m no damsel in distress! I’m an independent woman! CONTINUE READING