Less Scrolling, More Time for Puzzling

Back in April, I wrote about the analogue movement and why so many of us seem to be craving hobbies that get us away from our screens. Apparently, I took my own advice a little more seriously than I expected.

Over the past few months, I've noticed I've been using my phone less and less. I started paying attention to just how much of my time it was taking up, not by watching the clock, but by noticing what happened when I made a few changes. I removed all the games from my phone, reduced the number of notifications I get, and set time limits on some of the apps that were very good at making 20 minutes disappear without me even noticing.

Suddenly, I had way more free time. I'm talking HOURS back in my day.

Pro Tip: I've also started setting my phone to black and white in the evening or when I'm supposed to be working. It's amazing how much less interesting it becomes! (it's in the accessibility settings)

More Time for the Things I Actually Enjoy

Not surprisingly, some of that newfound time went straight into puzzles. In the past 60 days, I've completed 77 puzzles!!! Yes. That's more puzzles than there were days.

Now, I will admit, I occasionally get into what I can only describe as a puzzling frenzy. I'll finish one and immediately want to start another. And another. So I'm not going to pretend that everyone who deletes a few apps from their phone is suddenly going to complete 77 puzzles.

Pumpkin Carving by Boardwalk
Artwork: Rachel Binford

But what surprised me wasn't really the number of puzzles I finished. It was everything else I still had time to do. I got back into painting. I've read 8 books! My chores were getting done... mostly. I'm working. I'm doing all the normal things that need to happen in my life.

And somehow I've also had time to do more than a puzzle a day. It made me realize just how much of my free time my phone had quietly been taking up.

A Few Standouts From My Recent Puzzling Frenzy

Considering I've completed 77 puzzles in the past 60 days, I have plenty to choose from! (I could have added at least 30 more but I'd be writing for ages!) I know I sometimes have unique tastes, and some of these may not be your cup of tea. I like trying different images, piece counts, and brands. It is part of my job, after all! But there have definitely been a few standouts that made me slow down, enjoy the process, and remember exactly why puzzling is still my favorite hobby. Here are some of my recent 5-star puzzles.

Crafty Kittens by Cobble Hill (500 Pieces)

First up is Crafty Kittens by Cobble Hill. This was so good I did it twice! There were so many fun areas to work with, like the different baskets, window scene, craft items, and of course, the kitties. The first time I did this one, I was doing some speed puzzling practice, but it was so cute that I wanted to do it again casually. I'm someone who usually doesn't love fur in my puzzle images, but this wasn't too bad and there really isn't a lot of it. It also has some unique piece shapes, which I liked, without being so wild that it made the puzzle tricky. Overall, this was so much fun, and I really love Cobble Hill's 500-piece puzzles.

Hope By Ravensburger (500 Pieces)
Artwork: Antonio Segura Dulk

I've now done three or four puzzles from Dulk's Cherish Your World collection. This collection features endangered animals, and the cut is a bit different from your traditional Ravensburger puzzle, with a few more unique piece shapes. The puzzles are square, and the color in this one was unreal! I loved the gradient red and orange sky, and all of the animals were really enjoyable to puzzle. Another favorite from this collection was Afterglow, which has one of the most beautiful cotton candy sunsets.

Squirrels at School by Cobble Hill (1000 Pieces)
Artist: Nancy Rose

I dragged my feet on this one. It hung out in my collection for well over a year before I finally got to it. I wanted to do a fun puzzle for Back to School, and Squirrels at School was perfect.

Can I just say, WOW! I'm kind of kicking myself for taking so long to finally do it. This image is so cute. All of the puzzles from the Life of Squirrels collection are so fun. When I was talking to one of the brand reps for Cobble Hill, she mentioned that the artist actually photographs real squirrels! Nancy sets up these little scenes on her back porch and waits for the squirrels to come investigate. I also loved that this was a collage, which made the 1000 pieces much more manageable. What a cute concept!

Bookshop by Boardwalk (1000 Pieces)
Artist: James Poai

Here's another one I waited too long to do. I recently picked Bookshop by Boardwalk... well, actually, I was filming a video and it was a random pick from a spin of the wheel. I hadn't realized how much I would love this image. I love to read, so I had so much fun recognizing all of the book titles. I JUST finished Cinder, which I was excited to see, and The Assassin's Blade was another recent read. It ended up becoming a seek-and-find puzzle for me as I tried to see how many of the books I'd read.

It was also a VERY fast puzzle. It took me about 3 1/2 hours to complete, and that was with me getting distracted by all the titles. I think knowing the books helped because I could recognize the genres and roughly where they belonged in the image. I think this would be a very beginner-friendly 1000-piece puzzle.

Classic Book Covers by Gibsons (1000 Pieces)
Artwork: Josie Shenoy

I hadn't done many Gibsons puzzles in the past. However, thanks to Classic Book Covers, Gibsons is now a brand I'm adding to my wishlist. This puzzle was such a joy to do, and I couldn't stop puzzling it! I originally tried to savor it and told myself I'd do just one of the book titles... then I did another. Eventually, I wanted to finish it so badly that I ended up doing a YouTube Live and did just that. It was very quick, and I loved all the little details around the books that made the whole image come together.

Little Feet Big Adventures by GoodWay Puzzles (300 Pieces)
Artwork: Karina Kornuta-Pigozne

How cute is this image!!!!! When I went to Puzzle Palooza, Little Feet Big Adventures by GoodWay was one of the puzzles I picked up. It was the first puzzle I did when I got home... and then I recently did it again.

This adorable puzzle has six little scenes featuring the same mouse. I love each of them, and I really enjoy the piece cut! It's a bit on the wild side, but the pieces are slightly larger, which I think works really well for a 300-piece puzzle. This is definitely one I can see myself pulling out again.

Autumn Old Truck by Trefl (500 Pieces)

This image was my first autumn puzzle of the season. Autumn Old Truck by Trefl was one I thought would be just okay. The Adobe Stock image is pretty standard, and nothing spectacular really jumped out at me. But I think that's actually what made the puzzle feel so cozy.

It had been a while since I'd done a Trefl puzzle, and I'm realizing they've stepped up their game! The fit was so much better than some of the others I've done. I had also previously complained that their boxes were just too large, and space on my puzzle shelves is prime real estate. They've now created square-shaped boxes, similar in size to something like Buffalo Games, which makes them so much easier for me to store. I liked this puzzle way more than I expected.

Voyage en Montgolfiere by Nathan (500 Pieces)

I'm always drawn to hot air balloon puzzles, and Voyage en Montgolfiere by Nathan was perfect. I loved the sky, balloons, and mountains. If you didn't know, Nathan is a Ravensburger brand and uses the same blue board. I do find the finish slightly glossier, but I still really enjoyed it. The blue was so saturated, and every once in a while I love doing a classic landscape-style scene like this.

Big Bend by Boardwalk (500 Pieces)
Artwork: Bruce Martin

Another surprise hit! Big Bend by Boardwalk was one I actually won at a local puzzle competition. The image looked pretty, but I was worried about those mountains and plateaus. That's a lot of brown!

Honestly, this looks harder than it is. I started with the letters, sky, and water. The sky ended up giving me a great outline for the mountains, and I noticed that each mountain had different textures and coloring. That made them much more approachable, and the whole puzzle came together really quickly. I also love the grid cut that Boardwalk has. I know not every puzzle they offer has this type of piece cut, but I really enjoy it.

Let's Roll by Cobble Hill (500 Pieces)

In my last blog, I mentioned that I'd recently purchased Let's Roll by Cobble Hill, and I think I completed it just days after it arrived. I'm a bit of a nerd and love D&D. This image shares my nerdy passion without being a traditional fantasy scene full of dragons and swords. It's just fun and very relatable. I've pretty much said all of those phrases during a campaign!

Even if you aren't a Dungeons & Dragons fan, I think you'd still enjoy this one. I loved puzzling the words, ribbons, and dice. Dave, my hubby, and I did it together. My original plan was to make a recipe from our D&D cookbook and then do the puzzle together, but we couldn't wait. We skipped the meal part and went right to puzzling. We had so much fun doing this one together!

Cooked by Happily (1000 Pieces)
Artwork: Harriet Thomas-Bush

Finally, I needed to share Cooked by Happily, even if it is probably sold out by the time you're reading this. If it is, put it on your wishlist! This was such a fun, beginner-friendly puzzle. It's bright and colorful, the pieces are matte, and the fit is fantastic. I could move completed sections of the books around with ease. I love puzzles with words, and I also have quite the cookbook collection, so this was right up my alley. I finished it in one evening and could easily see myself repeating this one!

Take Back an Evening

You don't need to complete 77 puzzles in 60 days. I might actually recommend not using me as the benchmark here. But if you've been feeling like you never have enough time in your day, it might be worth looking at where some of those little pockets of time are going.

I'm definitely not suggesting that everyone needs to completely disconnect. I still use my phone. I mean, my job does require social media! The difference has been adding a little friction to the things that were taking up more of my time than I wanted them to and removing the apps and games that weren't really adding anything to my day.

I really didn't realize how much of my time had been disappearing into technology. It's been so much fun to disconnect a little and get that time back for other things. Sometimes that's a book. Sometimes it's painting. Sometimes I actually get something productive done. And, unsurprisingly, a lot of the time it's a puzzle.

Need more recommendations? Check the homepage and go to Emilee's Corner! I update this page frequently with more puzzles that have either caught my eye or ones I have done.

Emilee Frost
@thecasualpuzzler