Welcome to the Lake House - A Summer Retreat!

 by Elmer Prather, guest blogger

This is the 47th Cobble Hill puzzle I have had the pleasure of putting together. It is a 1000 piece puzzle titled “Welcome To The Lake House” by Greg Giordano. This is the seventh puzzle I have put together by this artist. The other six are Summer Truck, Sheep Field, Blue Truck Farm, Deer Field, Summer Truck on the Farm and Spring Bird House.

Before I spend the time putting a puzzle together, I have to have a connection with it. In other words, I enjoy putting together puzzles that mean something to me, something that I can relate to. The cabin depicted in the puzzle reminded me of the cabin on the lake that one of my friends rented for our hunting and fishing club to use. Over the years I spent a lot of time there sitting on the porch overlooking the lake. Those quiet times were special to me.

Welcome to the Lake House Assembled by Elmer Prather

This puzzle reflects a welcoming scene of a modern cabin that sits on a lake highlighting the good life at the lake. The two dogs, a black Labrador and a yellow Labrador, seem to be waiting in eager anticipation for their master to come and play with them. The late afternoon sun is reflecting its rays across the lake presenting a beautiful sunset.

The owners have made the cabin a relaxing place to read, watch the wildlife and enjoy the lake. The floral arrangements add vibrant colors to the cabin porch. The accessories like snow shoes hanging on the cabin wall and an old kerosene lantern with two black-capped chickadees sitting on either side hanging from one of the support beams blend well with the other interesting objects depicted in the puzzle. The wooden Adirondack chairs on the dock invite you to sit and enjoy all of the beauty surrounding the cabin and the lake. I really enjoyed seeing the puzzle come to life as I was putting it together. Once you start looking at the finished puzzle you will find it difficult to take your eyes off of it. 

Welcome to the Lake House 1000 pc by Greg Giordano 

Thanks to Mr. Prather for another great write up! If you'd like to enjoy Welcome to the Lake House yourself, please visit the link on our website to support a local retailer or online store.

A Magical Puffin Encounter

by Elmer Prather, guest blogger

This is the 46th Cobble Hill puzzle I have had the pleasure of putting together. It is a 500 piece puzzle entitled “Fisherman's Wharf” by Carl Benders. Before I spend the time putting a puzzle together, I have to have a connection with it. In other words, I enjoy putting together puzzles that mean something to me, something to which I can relate.

Fisherman's Wharf 500pc by artist Carl Benders

This puzzle of three beautiful puffins just caught my eye. I have had the pleasure of seeing puffins in the wild. Once, on a cruise to Alaska, I saw a group of four puffins floating on a block of ice beside our ship in Glacier Bay. As they were floating along beside the ship, the Captain was repositioning it in order for the passengers to be able to watch the glaciers calve. As the Captain was moving the ship, the crew provided guests with coffee and hot tea. It was a wonderful experience, drinking coffee while sitting on the deck watching the puffins float away. They did not seem to have a care in the world.

In the puzzle picture below, you can see why the puffins are widely regarded as the cutest birds on earth. I have to agree with that description. With their black and white plumage and large orange beaks, I was not able to take my eyes off them. After they drifted off, I was finally able to watch the glaciers calve. Watching the puffins and seeing the glaciers calve was an amazing sight that I will never forget.

Fisherman's Wharf assembled by Elmer Prather

Since my puffin encounter, I have learned a lot about puffins. They mature in about five years and they mate for life. The female lays one egg each year and both the male and female sit on the egg until it hatches. Both parents feed the baby puffin, sometimes having to fly quite a distance to find small fish to bring back.

Unlike most other birds, puffins do not build nests. They burrow into the ground for about three feet with their beaks and feet. Puffins have a long life span. They usually live for over 20 years. Unlike their cousins, the penguins, puffins can fly. They have been clocked flying over 55 miles per hour.

I really enjoyed putting this puzzle together. As I was finishing putting it together, the puffins seemed to come alive and all three of them appeared to be looking for another passing cruise ship to watch.

Hurry Up! It's Speed Puzzling Time!

We acknowledge up front that for some people, the idea of plowing through a puzzle is the complete opposite view of why one does a puzzle. A lot of people enjoy puzzles because they want to take their time, slow down, and destress. Racing against another puzzler to complete their puzzle faster is not in line with the concept of peaceful puzzling.

However, speed puzzling competitions are a lot of fun and there's even a major event that happens every year in Valladolid, Spain! It's the World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship where individuals, pairs and teams of four compete to be the swiftest at completing the same puzzle image as everyone else. Can you imagine flying to Spain for a tournament of this stature? Wouldn't that be a dream?

Depending on where you live, it could also be expensive. Insert frowny face.

While less dreamy, you could still participate in a speed puzzling competition from the comfort of your own home! We're working with Jonathan, host of SpeedPuzzling.com, to bring Cobble Hill puzzles to the competition table. Origami Animals 500 piece puzzle was used in June 2021 and the winner finished in an impressive 42:19! Congratulations, Sarah! We're happy for all the players and think everyone did a great job with this one!

SpeedPuzzling.com players compete with Cobble Hill Origami Animals 500 piece

Just a side note - you may know the winner, Sarah, as @SarahDoesPuzzles on Instagram.  She, along with @BizzlesPuzzles both started a Puzzle Pals Choice Awards last year where Cobble Hill was humbled to be nominated as Best Puzzle Brand in Traditional cardboard puzzles (we were honoured to lose to Ravensburger). It will be an annual event, so keep your eyes out for their next one. There is so much going on in the world of puzzles, we hope you join in on the fun!

If you're interested in joining a speed puzzling competition, we recommend signing up! In case you're not sure how you'll do, you can always test it out by timing yourself. We recommend starting with a 500 piece or less competition before jumping into a 1000 piece. A great way to get involved is to join the Facebook SpeedPuzzling group! Maybe you'll turn into a competitive puzzler?

Stay tuned for more details by following us on Facebook and Instagram!

Below is the puzzle that everyone enjoyed, Origami Animals.

Origami Animals 500 piece by our Cobble Hill Creations team