Working on puzzles requires concentration, problem-solving strategies, and creative thinking. It requires time and frustration management while bouncing back and forth between shape and color cognition and memory retention.
I chose to offer 500-piece puzzles for a variety of reasons, including the 18-in x 24-in resulting size, my experience these images are on the challenging side, along with their cost. It is estimated that a 500-piece puzzle will take somewhere between 4 and 6 hours to complete. Given that my images provide a more challenging exercise, I’m thinking these take more toward the 6-hour timeframe, but that “aha and OMG” factor, when you place that last piece in its location…well, I’m hoping you find that priceless.
When I was a kid, maybe 12, my parents bought a jigsaw puzzle for all four of us, two parents and two sisters, to work on. We cleared the coffee table and began solving the puzzle.
It was on a weekend early evening, I’m sure. One by one, the other three family members departed the table. Perhaps, one went to the powder room and decided not to come back, perhaps my mom went to wash the dinner dishes and decided not to come back…I don’t really remember. And, I don’t remember the number of pieces, I don’t remember the subject matter.
I remember I couldn’t stop solving the puzzle. Long after everyone had gone to bed, I was still at it ’til the wee hours of the next day. I continued until it was done. The other three were quite shocked at my progress and devotion, frankly, as was I. Praise rained down on me for the day. I was a kid who liked solving puzzles.
By the way, not all the images are offered in a Jigsaw Puzzle version. Let me know if you find an image for which you want a Jigsaw Puzzle and we’ll make it happen.