There seems to be quite a bit of crossover between the puzzling community and avid readers. While scrolling through Puzzlegram, I often see folks’ stories about books – especially audiobooks. For the most part, I’ve always been a reader myself, but during the worst days of the pandemic, when the daily news was so bleak, I found it difficult somehow to escape into a book. 

It’s taken until this year for me to get back to my pre-pandemic reading levels, but I’m taking the opportunity this month to celebrate National Book Lovers Day – August 9th – by tackling two particularly bookish puzzles that caught my eye as being super-fun crossovers between these two hobbies that have so enriched my life…CONTINUE READING

To all my feline-lover friends out there, Happy International Cat Day!!! This holiday is meant to spread awareness to the over 500 million feral cats worldwide. As a proud cat mom of two orange boys, I have to say, I approve of this unofficial holiday, and it gave me a great excuse to look into new cat puzzles. I have done so many cat puzzles over the years and probably get gifted one every holiday…CONTINUE READING

Over the years I’ve noticed something of a pattern to my puzzle solving. Most of the time when I’m looking for a puzzle, I’ll check my stash and choose one totally at random. I’m not picky about the brand, the artist, the subject of the picture, or the number of pieces it has (usually the more the better). But is it really random? I’ve always thought it was, but in looking through the photos of those I’ve solved I noticed some interesting patterns...CONTINUE READING

In the Puzzle World, a mini puzzle generally refers to a puzzle with 100 pieces or less. However, there are some who say that any puzzle with 300 pieces or less qualifies as a mini puzzle. We will thus apply the #1 Rule of Puzzling which is “Puzzling is Meant to Be Fun!” So if a mini puzzle is 300 pieces or less AND you’re having fun, then 300 piece puzzles can officially be considered a mini puzzle!

Mini puzzles have many aliases. They can be referred to as “Snack Sized”, “Snackers”, “Puzzle in a Tube”, “Fun Size”, “On the Go”, and “MiniPix” puzzles.

Here are some examples of mini puzzles…CONTINUE READING

As with many puzzlers, I get excited when purchasing a new puzzle. When I started my Youtube channel, I had a nicely manageable collection of about 20 puzzles. However, my collection quickly grew, and my to-do pile is well over 100 puzzles. The thought of redoing a puzzle seems wild to me at times. With so many fun images, new brands, and various styles to explore, it is hard to justify doing a puzzle again after it has already been completed. However, several in my collection stand out, and I have done them several times or plan on redoing them again. Here are some common things I see among these prized puzzles that I want to keep in mind when purchasing puzzles in the future. Maybe this is something that may help you when deciding to purchase your next puzzle.…CONTINUE READING

The night sky is full of mysteries and wonder, and stunning images from space crafts and observatories—including the new James Webb Telescope—have only fueled our imaginations. I’ve always enjoyed seeing these images and hearing stories, real or imagined, of people traveling beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. I was even one of 12,000 people to apply to be an astronaut in 2021! But since that didn’t pan out, I decided to take a tour of the universe through puzzles...CONTINUE READING

Have you ever noticed the date on the calendar emoji? Yeah … me neither! Turns out, the date on the calendar emoji is July 17th, and that is the official date of World Emoji Day!  According to WorldEmojiDay.com, July 17th is the date that iCal was first announced at MacWorld in 2002 and in 2014, the founder of Emojipedia created World Emoji Day based on that event. Emojipedia oversees World Emoji Day and is the source of official emoji definitions, emoji changes, and is the first to announce new emojis. This year is the tenth annual global celebration of World Emoji Day! Use the hashtag #WorldEmojiDay to join in the celebration…CONTINUE READING

Hello there! I’ve been seeing those little neighborhood libraries around my neighborhood and thinking how much better they’d be if they had puzzles in them. Naturally, in spite of lacking any real skills, knowledge, or power tools, I thought, “I can do that!” and I set out to make one for my yard. Believe me, if I can do it, so can you!…CONTINUE READING

I love art! I especially love seeing art in person. There is something truly amazing about standing in front of a masterpiece that has been admired for centuries and still holds people’s hearts and minds. 

So, now take that treasure and put it on a board and cut it into 1000 or more pieces. Is it the same? It definitely doesn’t have the same ‘awe’ effect as the original, but it does offer something else. CONTINUE READING