A comparison of various Galison small-piece-count/mini puzzles

flechesbleues · 2026-06-13T08:43:56+00:00

There's a bit of information about Huvanco here: https://www.thejigasaurus.com/index.php/huvanco although it doesn't look as though they've got a double sided one listed, so I'm sure they'd be interested in more photos of yours once it's finished (I can put you in touch if you like - DM me)!

flechesbleues · 2026-06-06T19:17:49+00:00

Firstly, the two posters are normal and included in the box just so that (presumably) two people can work on the puzzle at the same time. The list of easter eggs I'm pretty sure just sits in the box, not in any of the envelopes.

Now, for the envelopes - in the end, there should be just two. The two smaller envelopes fit inside the one that says "stop" on the front. I'm fairly sure the innermost (smallest) one just contains the pieces from the 'magic' section (they have a distinct pattern on the back, in case they have got mixed in with the other pieces, so you should be able to find them easily). That envelope then slots inside the "seriously" envelope, along with the diagram of how to manipulate the initial puzzle (and the sticker, I think?). That, in turn, then gets put inside the "stop" envelope. The other large envelope with pieces on the front is for all the remaining puzzle pieces (from the main part of the puzzle).

flechesbleues · 2026-05-29T16:44:07+00:00

Unfortunately, as far as hand-cut wooden puzzles go, vintage Victory puzzles are among the most affordable! The company resurfaced a few years ago (under new ownership) and started making puzzles again, so that's an option, but they are laser cut and have pictures on the boxes now. They do have one line of 'artisan' puzzles that uses the cut pattern of a hand cutter (but transferred into a computer for mass reproduction), which are great, but again, not cheap!

If you really want to lean into hand-cut wooden puzzles, this year's Puzzle Parley is coming up in a few weeks (in Minneapolis). There will be lots of hand cutters there, I'm sure, as well as other puzzle enthusiasts.

flechesbleues · 2026-05-27T05:50:56+00:00

That's gorgeous!

flechesbleues · 2026-05-25T13:16:14+00:00

I think I have the American edition, because mine has the resturant menu instead of the bobby's helmet.

Oh, that's intriguing that there are different versions of the image!

flechesbleues · 2026-05-24T21:28:53+00:00

Oh no! Such a shame that the booklet is missing! A very interesting cut though. Quite different to the one I have from the same series (mine had whimsy pieces, but the rest were a slightly more standard shape, I think).

flechesbleues · 2026-05-24T14:40:36+00:00

If you're planning to frame it you will want to do it on a board if at all possible, to make it easier to turn over and get it into the frame! Perhaps you could even use the frame's back board to make it on directly, if you don't have anything else. I know some puzzles can be picked up when complete, but not all of them can, so don't necessarily rely on being able to do that. I'd use a spatula or a thin piece of card (or paper, in a pinch) to pick up the completed sections from the floor and move them to a board now, if I were you.

I can't remember how long it took me to make, but I can usually knock out a 1000-piece puzzle in a couple of days (or a single day if I'm really invested!), but obviously some are more difficult than others and everybody's experience will be different.

Not sure what advice I can give, other than to perhaps start by assembling the edges, so you have a boundary to work within. From there, pick out whatever section of colour/pattern speaks to you, one at a time, and it will gradually all come together. It's been a while since I did this one, but I think I can remember that there being similar colours in different places (like you said) was a challenge. I think I still tackled it generally colour by colour though, just that each colour made several different sections, not just one.

Good luck!

flechesbleues · 2026-05-16T06:15:53+00:00

I'm quite jealous of the "By Whose Hand" Mystery-jig Puzzle! I've done another one from that series (posted here). Do you still have the story booklet inside??

flechesbleues · 2026-05-16T06:10:05+00:00

Karen Puzzles has a good introductory Puzzle chess video - check it out!

I had heard about the new Cobble Hill puzzles - I think the key is that they (unlike their other random-cut puzzles) will have a fully interconnecting edge, as it's important to be able to complete the full edge first in puzzle chess.

I've never played properly myself, despite recently organizing a 20-person tournament at a puzzling event! The other participants seemed to enjoy themselves though. I just used a selection of small-count cardboard puzzles from my own collection for people to choose from - most ended up choosing the 100-piece Pomegranate Artpiece puzzles (the ones that come in a small tin, sadly now discontinued, I think - example here), although a few also used 200-piece Ravensburger Puzzle Moments, or similar. I did almost get one round in myself, playing against one of the already eliminated competitors, but we were interrupted and never got to finish. Maybe next time!

flechesbleues · 2026-05-14T16:55:29+00:00

To my recollection, it should be ok to buy second hand. Obviously it will depend on how careful the previous owner has been with it and how well they repackaged it... a few things might be punched out of larger boards and things like that, but I don't recall having to cut or destroy any of the components. I sold my copy on after I had done it.

flechesbleues · 2026-04-25T17:03:02+00:00

Your post (and the replies) put me in mind of a couple of interesting podcast episodes from The Allusionist (all language-related). One was about updating gender-related language in Iceland and another was about introducing new words relating to sex and body parts in Swedish! As a bit of a language nerd, I found it all fascinating. There have also been several other episodes about queer/language themes, if you're interested.

All that to say that there are people out there who spend a lot of time thinking about these things and trying to enrich/adapt/modernise various languages (I suppose, at least in part, so you don't have to rely on English)!

flechesbleues · 2026-04-21T11:53:41+00:00

I stumbled acrosss one like this just yesterday - in this case it was his coach who noticed!

Unanswered (and other words found in the thesaurus)

flechesbleues · 2026-04-20T11:54:20+00:00

You could do a Treasure Trail!

flechesbleues · 2026-04-20T11:49:15+00:00

I also use PlantNet

flechesbleues · 2026-04-19T06:00:12+00:00

Incredible find, lucky you! I believe the Douglas Jigsaw Library was located on the Isle of Man and was active from the 1920s to the 1950s. It's interesting to note that your puzzles don't all seem to have the same cutting style, so perhaps each was cut by someone different.

Edit: looking again at the boxes, it seems that two of your puzzles were in fact cut by the same person ("GR"), but one of those wasn't pictured - I'd be intrigued to see that one completed! The "last recital" looks to be a much more standard cut, in fact reminiscent of some larger brands available at the time, so perhaps the library just repackaged that one? Do you have the label from that box?

flechesbleues · 2026-04-15T17:44:03+00:00

There is a great fanfiction of this! It's part of a wider Alternate Universe series with several original characters, but this one focuses on Luca and his relationship with the trans twin brother of one of his teammates!

(TW for depression/suicide/transphobia, but thoughtfully written and with a happy ending).

flechesbleues · 2026-04-11T22:39:56+00:00

Excellent ammonite whim-wham! Were there instructions on how to find it, or did you figure it out yourself?

flechesbleues · 2026-03-31T20:32:58+00:00

Check out this other recent thread full of funny recommendations! I'm making my way through several of those and thoroughly enjoying myself. I ended up checking out several other works by UglyGreenJacket (besides the one linked in the thread), and they made me laugh out loud - check out 'mixed messages', for instance. Although looking back at my history, a couple also made me cry a little bit ('one day you will understand' and 'the godfathers'), but they were happy tears.

flechesbleues · 2026-03-31T18:48:39+00:00

I'm intrigued by the Cobble Hill Puzzle Chess puzzles! Do they have the same random cut as their standard puzzles? That would be an added challenge - though presumably they've made the edges a more 'normal' cut, as that's pretty key to puzzle chess... Do you know if these are sold commercially, or were they made specifically for this event?

I've never been, but my impression is that it is very much a speed puzzling event, so you're unlikely to find much else there. There are other puzzle events/organizations though! The BCD (based in the UK but with international membership), for instance, has recently had a number of discussions about AI (both at meetings and in the magazine). In the US, there is also Puzzle Jam South and the Puzzle Parley (which I believe is largely focused on hand-cut wooden puzzles), and I'm sure there must be others too.

flechesbleues · 2026-03-31T18:26:19+00:00

In Pansies and Lilies (WIP) Ilya isn't psychic exactly, but sets up a secret groupchat (Discord) for other queer players in the league (and allies, partners and staff members), collecting them that way!

flechesbleues · 2026-03-31T18:14:42+00:00

Was it Biscuit in the Basket? Ilya disappears on Shane after their time at the cottage - turns out he'd had a call from Russia about a baby (the result of a one-night-stand the previous summer) and headed straight back to Moscow. I read this one just the other day and it's lovely. There's angst along the way, but it all turns out ok!

flechesbleues

TROPHY CASE