It’s that time of year! The time when I start replenishing my puzzle hoard as the weather cools down. We are bona fide puzzle fans; when we were in Boulder last summer we even made a stop at Liberty Puzzles to check out their wares in person.
Because of our deep love for puzzles we like to keep a wide variety to choose from during the winter months, which is prime puzzling season around here. Because puzzles make great gifts we also keep some unopened ones on hand so we’re ready should a need arise.
If you’re looking for a little something extra to accompany the gift of a puzzle, consider a puzzle mat. A mat or other large flat surface—my family uses a plain bulletin board—makes it easy to move puzzles-in-progress from a prominent surface like a coffee table to somewhere out of the way. It also helps prevent curious pets from finding a trail of pieces on the floor to steal or chew on, not that Daisy would ever dream of doing such a thing (ahem) but if she did she would munch them straight off the coffee table, theoretically speaking, of course.
This roundup of puzzles is a great way to treat yourself or someone you love. I hope you enjoy perusing them as much as I did!
All puzzles featured here were chosen because we love them. If you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission. More info here.
Holiday puzzles
Galison Winter Lights, 500 Pieces. Love the shiny gold foil accents!
Wentworth Six Geese a-Laying, 250 Piece. Beautiful wooden puzzle capturing one of the Twelve Days of Christmas.
eeBoo Piece and Love Music in Montreal, 1000 Piece. A festive winter scene.
Puzzles of Color Snow Day, 200 Piece. The whole family will have fun putting this one together.
True South Classic Christmas Movies Map, 500 Piece. This puzzle will take you on a trip down memory lane with its map of beloved festive movies.
Bookish puzzles
Ravensburger The Book Palace, 1000 Piece. Love the colors in this cheerful bookshop!
Laurence King The World of Agatha Christie, 1000 Piece. Go on a tour of Christie’s world and characters with this unique puzzle.
PICKFORU National Book Awards, 1000 Piece. A book cover collage puzzle comprised of the National Book Award winners from 1950 to 2021.
Pride and Puzzlement: A Jane Austen 1,000 Piece Puzzle. A whimsical puzzle for Austen fans.
Ravensburger Cozy Retreat, 500 Piece. Cozy indeed!
Plants, flowers, and the outdoors puzzles
eeBoo Piece and Love Still Life with Flowers, 500 Piece. I should do more round puzzles. This is so pretty!
EuroGraphics Garden Tools, 1000 Piece. Springtime goals.
Liberty Puzzles Summer Geraniums. This vibrant wooden puzzle just might help me forget about the chilly weather.
Buffalo Games Simple Succulent, 1000 Piece. So soothing to look at.
White Mountain Puzzles Beach Shells, 550 Piece. You might want to go beach-combing once you’re done.
Destinations puzzles
Cobble Hill Amsterdam Canal 1000 Piece. This makes me think Amsterdam should be on my travel wish list.
EuroGraphics Sunset on The Pacific, 1000 Piece. Beautiful beach scene.
Cavallini Vintage Travel, 1000 Piece. You might want to glue and frame this one once you’re finished.
Cobble Hill Café Des Paris, 500 Piece. Give me a croissant and a seat at that table and I’ll be happy!
Nautilus Doors to the World puzzle, 557 Piece. This gorgeous wooden puzzle makes me want to go places … just as soon as I put the last piece in place!
Animals puzzles
Cobble Hill Home is Where The Dog is, 1000 Piece. Daisy approves.
Charley Harper The Coral Reef, 1000 Piece. Vivid colors bring this oceanic scene to life!
Buffalo Games Cats Collection: Puzzler’s Desk, 750 Piece. Anyone who has a pet will find this all too relatable.
Galison Wendy Gold State Birds, 1000 Piece. A fun way to learn about state birds.
Pomegranate Robert Bissell The Buffalo, 1000 Piece. An unusual title for this magical realism scene of a polar bear swimming underwater.
Bonus: Puzzle Advent Calendars
I recently learned about the existence of puzzle Advent Calendars and want to try one this year! Here are a few fun options.
Bas Bleu Puzzle Advent Calendar: Dogs and Puzzle Advent Calendar: Cats. If these are the right ones for you, you know it!
New York Puzzle Company New Yorker Advent Calendar. I love New Yorker puzzles and this mini collection is darling.
Galison Michael Storrings 12 Days of Christmas Advent Calendar Puzzle and Louise Cunningham Merry and Bright 12 Days of Christmas Advent Calendar Puzzle. Modern classics.
Gibsons Christmas Adventure Puzzle Advent Calendar. Charming shaped puzzles from UK-based Gibsons.
Cieyan Christmas Emporium Puzzle Advent Calendar. This one includes an I Spy feature.
Janet Hill Puzzle Advent Calendar. The sophisticated packaging and presentation are completely gorgeous.
Do you have any recent puzzles you recommend? I’d love to hear about your favorite puzzles in the comments.
P.S. 25 jigsaw puzzles so enticing you might not mind winter weather, 25 delightfully distracting jigsaw puzzles to occupy your mind and boost your mood, plus 20 favorite board games to beat the rainy day (or chilly day) blues.
36 comments
One of the best things about the approaching cold weather is pulling out the puzzle board, brewing a pot of tea, and settling in with a new puzzle… I loved this Gallison puzzle, “Herstory Museum,” which also has the gold foil accents. And bonus, it includes Jane Austen!
https://www.amazon.com/Galison-Herstory-Museum-Puzzle-Pieces/dp/0735365415/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=galison+puzzle+herstory&qid=1665576467&qu=eyJxc2MiOiItMC4wMSIsInFzYSI6IjAuMDAiLCJxc3AiOiIwLjAwIn0%3D&sr=8-2
So what’s so bad about puzzles! I really liked these by Magic puzzles. There is a puzzle in the puzzle and the edges are not the only straight pieces. https://magicpuzzlecompany.com/
I am the only one in my house who likes to do puzzles so the Galison Advent puzzles were perfect for me! The best part was that I could work an entire puzzle on a lap desk and then stack each completed puzzle on top of the other to save space. Wish I could find those tiny puzzles for the rest of the year!
We love the Heye Habitat puzzles. The more you look at them the more silly things you find.
I just picked up this one from my local indie bookstore: https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Puzzle-Shaped-Pieces-Galison/dp/0735374937
It may be tomorrow’s rainy day project while listening to my current audiobook.
I have several of the New York Puzzle Company 100 piece puzzles and I love them! I don’t often take the time to put together a big puzzle but these little ones can be done in 30 minutes or so right at my desk. The perfect brain break!
I loved jigsaw puzzling as a girl, and when my boys were young. I have picked up the hobby again in the last couple years. Cobble Hill is a favourite brand (I have the Cafe de Paris mentioned) as is Ravensburger (I just ordered The Cozy Retreat last week). 500 piece is my size of choice. I also had fun this summer hunting at garage sales.
Last year I purchased the New York Puzzle Company New Yorker Advent Calendar and our family loves it! I just wanted to let everyone know that the New York Puzzle Company released a Harry Potter themed one, too.
I have splurged on Wentworth puzzles! They are works of art. I also really like the Galison puzzles. They often include people of color, which I love. Thank you for these suggestions Anne!
I’ve just finished ‘The World of Jane Austen’ 1000 piece puzzle and really loved finding all the characters from each story and all the houses and settings.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/World-Jane-Austen-Characters-Puzzles/dp/1786279118
Just can’t decide which to get next – Brontes, Sherlock or Agatha Christie?
I did this one and the Shakespeare one. Recently purchased the Charles Fickems. One is fun finding the characters and included is a puzzle poster and a guide to the characters in the puzzle.
I love Galison puzzles – I was introduced to that brand by you. Our 4.5you takes after me and is very into puzzles so I have been looking for puzzles that have a variety of piece sizes so we can work on them together. I bought 2 and one was a hit but the other out had really irregularly shaped pieces and that was a little too hard for him. But I’m planning to buy more for Christmas and to give during Advent (we give something small every couple of days) so we have a bigger inventory of ones to work on together!
My grandkids love doing puzzles with me. A great opportunity to chat and have some fun. My 5 year old grandson loves working at my puzzle table and finding fits on my 1,000 piece puzzles. Perfect for his young brain and my old one. I just have to make sure none get dropped since Chloe thinks they are the best dog treat.😖
We share my two favorite loves: books and puzzles! I can’t resist either. I finally whittled down my “To Be Done” puzzle stash to 166. I have done of the ones here, but still added 4 to my cart.🤪 I did the Galison Michael Storrings with my grandkids last year. I love his artwork!
Oh my gosh 166 TBD puzzles! As in you have them in a puzzle library?? That is amazing 🙂
Just wanted to add-audiobooks and puzzles are the best combination.❤️❤️❤️
I wasn’t a huge fan of puzzles because it seemed like I was only ever exposed to puzzles that were photographs of landscapes – which I would argue are some of the hardest to work! But then at the beginning of COVID we were looking for indoor things to do and a puzzle loving friend convinced me to try this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Galison-Avian-Friends-Piece-Puzzle/dp/0735333416/ref=sr_1_2?crid=95H86CQ4MC7G&keywords=galison+birds+puzzle&qid=1665593642&sprefix=galison+birds+puzzle%2Caps%2C127&sr=8-2
I was hooked and have been an avid puzzler ever since, usually doing 3-4 puzzles over the cold season. I will be picking up that lovely gold foil Galison holiday one Anne has at the top of this list as my Christmas puzzle. I typically do 1000pc but 500pc are fun too. My 4 yo daughter is also into puzzles (to my delight). She mostly sticks to her own right now but will help me sort pieces in my puzzles and help with the edge. I am considering getting the Galison advent calendar so we can do them together as a fun holiday tradition!
This is the puzzle I am currently working on. It is tough but so pretty!
Tea Time 1000 Piece Puzzle with Shaped Pieces from Galison – 27” x 20” Puzzle with 20 Uniquely Shaped Pieces, Colorful Artwork, Thick & Sturdy Pieces, Challenging and Fun Puzzling Activity for Adults https://a.co/cugSNgG
I love Wasgij puzzles: https://galaxypuzzles.com/collections/wasgij-puzzles
It’s jigsaw spelled backwards, and generally the puzzle image you’re making is either what the people in the picture on the box are looking at or a future version of the image on the box. I find the added layer of not knowing what the puzzle will look like very interesting.
I love Wasgij puzzles. They are colorful, have a sense of humor and are excellent quality.
I love doing puzzles. I’m inspired to start one now! I think I could finish in four days. I have the Cavellini Vintage Travel puzzle. I have a couple more of this brand, which I love, including a Christmas one.
Hi I’m a puzzle blogger and I have a great post to add to this list: How to make a DIY Jigsaw Puzzle Advent Calendar!
In my post, I used a specific puzzle but the concept/instructions will work with any holiday themed puzzle!
Here’s the link:
https://hurrayforpuzzlesblog.wordpress.com/2022/10/11/diy-jigsaw-puzzle-advent-calendar-enchanted-christmas-by-ravensburger/
Wow! How inspiring! Thanks for the clear instructions. I’m very tempted to make one!
My sisters and I are total puzzle snobs! We hunt out Charles Wysoki puzzles and love the New England themes to his artwork. We have stacks of them and trade but rarely lend them out because they’re great over and over!!!
The Magic Puzzle Co makes amazing puzzles! Once you finish the puzzle, you shift two parts of it which leaves a HOLE in the middle. Then you open a new envelope of pieces to fill in the hole. The designs are all whimsical and colorful with LOTS of Easter eggs. The quality is top-notch with virtually no puzzle dust! And they’re only $20! https://www.amazon.com/stores/MagicPuzzleCompany/page/5B989B37-48DB-4182-9620-61148AE128FA?ref_=ast_bln
Hi Amanda! This is so intriguing! I’m going to try the Forest Feast puzzle. Thanks for sharing!
Such a fantastic list here! I hadn’t heard of Wentworth before but both my mom & sister are huge Liberty fans so I think I will be placing an order for Christmas gifts! I also love they do smaller wooden puzzles (stocking stuffers!).
Started doing puzzles during the Covid lock down and haven’t stopped. Galison is truly my favorite 500 piece are best for me, otherwise I get bored with it. An afternoon with an audiobook going and a puzzle per bliss.
Laurene, you’ve made me feel better about myself – ha! I have found more than 500 pieces and I got terribly bored and never finish. I also am a fan of Galison puzzles as their themes are fresh and fun, the quality is good, and they – mostly – have a nice design so you aren’t spending days trying to finish a sky where every piece looks the same!
I went down the puzzle rabbit hole! Thanks so much for all of the links, Anne and everyone! It’s like books – you look at one, then scroll down and see others. Three cheers for so many interesting books and puzzles! 🙂
I have quite a few of the Ravensburger Cozy puzzles and love them. I like to imagine myself relaxing and reading in those locations.
I just ordered this very bookish puzzle – books from the 1930’s on a shelf from the Bodleian Library in Oxford. I got the 500 piece one, but it also has a 1,000 piece version that has even more books. There are Christmas cards of these images also that I’ve loved in previous years. This will be my first time with it as a puzzle. Book Depository always ships promptly (I’ve bought books from them) and shipping is free. https://www.bookdepository.com/Adult-Jigsaw-Puzzle-Bodleian-Libraries-Readers-Delight-500-pieces/9781839644337 and the 1,000 piece one is here: https://www.bookdepository.com/Adult-Jigsaw-Puzzle-Bodleian-Library-High-Jinks-Bookshelves-Flame-Tree-Studio/9781786646354?ref=pd_detail_1_sims_b_p2p_1
I love the white mountain puzzles the best! The pieces are larger, thus the puzzle is larger, but easier for handling and solving. As far as I know this is the only brand with the larger pieces, 24 by 30 inch 1000 piece puzzles. Takes a big table but makes satisfaction in completing come easier and quicker. Only thing is I swear the pieces seem thinner than they used to be, but maybe it’s just my imagination. After doing a puzzle twice the pieces appear to get pretty soft. But wonderful the first time.
I enjoyed the “Shakespeare’s Britain” jigsaw puzzle, 1000-pieces.
Thank you for all the puzzle suggestions, Anne and everyone! My 8-year old is now into puzzles, and I just glued his first 1000-piece puzzle, a Harry Potter Quidditch scene, so I can frame it for him. Last year, I gave my husband as an anniversary gift a framed puzzle of the resort where we were married. Here is a fun puzzle with the Thoreau quote, “All good things are wild and free”:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/all-good-things-are-wild-and-free-1000-piece-puzzle-irene-smit/1141762108
This is gorgeous!