Rest and engage in self-care by assembling jigsaw puzzles.
Recently, we realized while we’ve ceaselessly recommended that you all take periodic breaks from activism, we haven’t made specific recommendations on how to do that.
So here’s another story for those who would like suggestions for ways to chill out.
Hi! Sarah Jane here. I’m owning this one because I am the raging puzzle fan at OTYCD.
I was into puzzles way before the pandemic hit, but I had liked them years ago and floated away from them because I didn’t like the image choices on offer. There were too many illustrations that radiated nostalgia for a time that never was–glurge-sodden scenes of penny candy stores, 1950s diners with roller-skating bellhops serving fintastic 1950s Cadillacs, that sort of thing.
That style of puzzle image hasn’t gone away, let me be dead clear about that. [Not gonna link to examples, because I don’t wanna stomp on other peoples’ tastes.] But nowadays, there are many more jigsaw puzzles graced with images that are nearly 100 percent glurge-free.
I’ll link to several below. I hope at least one of them will convince you to give jigsaw puzzles a try.
I’ve chosen mostly puzzles that are 500 pieces or 1,000 pieces. Some selections are sold out as of February 2021 [the pandemic sparked a truly epic run on jigsaw puzzles]. I’ve tried to avoid those that have been discontinued. When known, I name the artist who created the image.
The puzzles I’ve done personally will appear at the top of the list, followed by puzzles I haven’t done, but whose manufacturers I know and like. Stuff that looks good but which I haven’t done appear toward the tail.
Votes for Women, Eeboo, 500 pieces, art by Monica Garwood:
Liberty Rainbow, Eeboo, 1000 pieces, art by Naomi Devil:
The Nineteenth Amendment, Cobble Hill, 1000 pieces [scroll down to see; as of February 2021, it was awaiting a restock]:
https://shopusa.cobblehillpuzzles.com/1000-piece-s/1909.htm
Herstory Museum, Galison, 1000 pieces [as of February 2021, it was awaiting a restock]:
Angela, Eeboo, 1000 pieces, art by Matt Small:
Climate Action, Eeboo, 500 pieces, art by Petra Braun:
Find Your Voice, Eeboo, 1000 pieces, art by Aurelia Durand:
At the Strand, New York Puzzle Company, 1000 pieces, art by Jenny Kroik, who created it for the November 13, 2017 cover of The New Yorker:
Solar Eclipse, New York Puzzle Company, 1000 pieces, art by Jenny Mottar, NASA Science Art Director:
Your World, New York Puzzle Company, 1000 pieces, art by Philip Cheaney, commissioned by National Public Radio:
The Dirty Spoon Cafe, Pomegranate, 1000 pieces, based on an image by Winfred Rembert:
https://www.pomegranate.com/aa1096.html
Mary McCleod Bethune Mural, Pomegranate, 1000 pieces, based on an image by Charles White:
https://www.seriouspuzzles.com/white-mary-mcleod-bethune-1000pc-jigsaw-puzzle-by-pomegranate/
Black Belt, Pomegranate, 1000 pieces, based on an image by Archibald Motley:
https://www.pomegranate.com/aa1059.html
Harriet Tubman, Pomegranate, 500 pieces, based on an image by William H. Johnson:
https://www.pomegranate.com/aa1078.html
A few more tips:
You might want to purchase a set of puzzle piece sorting trays and a mat that will let you roll up and store an unfinished puzzle.
Pets–cats and dogs–are notorious for eating puzzle pieces.
If putting a puzzle together stops being fun, quit.
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