A spirited journey through the world of collectible artisan puzzles
Pairing craft cocktails with crafty puzzles
On the Record
Franz Rudolph Wurlitzer was a German immigrant to the United States who started a music company in 1853 based out of Cincinnati, Ohio.
Party Pooper
Whilemina the Wombat is an adorable marsupial made from rare Queensland Walnut, an indigenous Australian wood which is no longer commercially available. Produced in 2008, the puzzle combines elements of a high-level interlocking burr type puzzle with hidden mechanism sequential discovery tools.
Matters of the Heart
They say you never forget your first love, and it’s likely true with puzzle boxes too. I’d argue that with a Mowen’s puzzle box, on the other hand, you might try not to forget, but try as you might, you’ll get lost every time – and probably love every moment all over again.
Rival Arrival
Lex Luther, Dr. Doom, Magneto, Joker – arch enemies are easy to identify in hero centric fiction, and always seem to be the evil characters. I’m particularly fond of Moriarty, if we’re picking favorites.
You’ve Got Mail
There’s something thrilling about receiving mail. Perhaps the excitement of getting a physical letter from someone wears off as we get older, likely tempered by all the bills and junk mail, but even now in my jaded days it’s still nice when that happens. And if getting a special letter is a nice surprise, well I don’t need to tell you what it’s like to receive an eagerly awaited puzzle box.
Coastal Living
There was a time, once upon a time in the not too distant past, when becoming a metagrobolotegestolomixologist was merely a speculative thought experiment meant as clever wordplay.
Critic’s Pick
If mechanical puzzles came with a soundtrack, this one would elicit fine chords of acoustic guitar to placate you every time you picked it up, soothing your frustration in failing to solve its secrets. And if you found yourself with a selection of well made, compact, clever, multistep, elegant and entertaining sequential discovery puzzles to choose from this year, you would surely heed the call of this one, to Pick Me.
Making Waves
In ancient Greek lore, the Titan Cronus was overthrown by his children, the gods Zeus, Hades and Poseidon, who divided the skies, the seas and the underworld amongst themselves.
Feeling Frosty
It’s been really cold here in Houston over the past week or two, and any time the temperature gets below freezing the city goes into crisis mode. We can’t handle the cold!