Puzzling over wood
Laser cutter technology has really brought back old style Victorian wooden puzzles in a big way. It has enabled exquisitely precise laser cut pieces that fit perfectly.
I’ve tried a few different brands, Liberty puzzles, Wongo, and Unidragon. None were cheap, they are pretty pricey.
Liberty has more traditional pictures that they use, we got ours as a gift years ago. My hazy memory of it was that the pieces were pretty cool, but that it also took us a while to finish.
Recently I splurged and got a Unidragon puzzle. They are vivid colors, and not a square puzzle. Here’s how vivid they are:
I got the medium size fish. It was really fun and didn’t take long. I think the funnest thing was flipping it over after I was done to see the cuts that made up the puzzle:
After I did the Unidragon fish, I went hunting for cheaper options, and found Wongo on Etsy. I got their elephant one, which took a lot longer to put together.
It was somewhat maddening because the patches on the elephant were close to being mirrored on both sides,so I’d never know if a pice was going to be something on the left side or the right. Also, because of the repetitive patterns, I ended up relying more on puzzle shape than I usually do.
The cheaper Wongo puzzle was also fun to flip over:
The Unidragon one was definitely better quality, but Wongo was much cheaper, so I dunno which I prefer.
Liberty Puzzles seems to be popular right now....it’s COVID-19 induced almost two month wait time is a looong wait, and I’m kinda puzzled out for now (so is my wallet!)
Comments
Post a Comment