Picnics & Puzzles
The United States has been celebrating National Picnic Day on April 23rd since 1930. Did you know that picnicking and puzzling have something in common? Both can be beneficial to mental health and reduce stress. So I thought I’d spread out my checkered tablecloth under my puzzle board and combine the two to see what puzzling picnic images would do for my well-being.
It wasn’t long before the effects went to work, as my first one had me smiling! One of the reasons National Picnic Day was established was to encourage families to spend time together and this 350-piece Call of the Wild puzzle by Cobble Hill would be the perfect one for them to take on an outing! It’s a family puzzle, meaning there’s a mixture of large and small pieces and on this one the piece size slowly decreased as you moved left to right.
Everyone in the family will also eat up the fun hijinks happening on the image. My mouth watered as I assembled the marshmallows toasting over an open fire. Supposedly burning marshmallows is the best way to enjoy them, as when a marshmallow browns it causes the sugars to caramelize, giving it a more complex flavor. But I am not a fan and would always wage war against an aunt who thought it was fun to grab my stick and set my perfectly, lightly-browned marshmallow on fire! Let me know your favorite way to eat them in the comments below and while you’re there, see if you can guess how many pounds the biggest s’more ever made weighed at the end of the blog!
Call of the Wild puzzle by Cobble Hill
The largest picnic on record is 22,232 people in Lisbon in 2009. Not quite as many people are picnicking in this 1000-piece Camping in the Forest puzzle by Jumbo featuring artwork from Jan Van Haasteren, but it feels like it when you search through the sea of faces on pieces as you build it! Some of the happenings would be a dream for those who dine al fresco, like a fish jumping into a fisherman’s tent and an octopus doing the cleaning up. Others would be a nightmare – no snakes welcome at my picnic!
Camping in the Forest by Jumbo
While picnics have their origins in Medieval hunting feasts, I prefer my animals enjoying a picnic instead of being on the menu! The critters on this 500-piece Woodland Picnic puzzle by Mudpuppy were adorable. Bunnies making healthy and not so healthy choices; a hedgehog taking time to feed a bird; and mice raiding a picnic basket. Fun fact, although picnics get their name from the French for pique-nique, it was the practical English who created the picnic basket.
Unlike the animals in the last puzzle, the ones in this 1000-piece The Family Campsite puzzle by Buffalo Games are a bit more mischievous! This was the first Aimee Stewart puzzle I ever completed. It, like a roaring campfire, sparked my interest in her artwork, in which she uses photo manipulation to create a collage of colors that are a feast for the eyes.
The Family Campsite by Buffalo Games
Two more campers made it on my board for this blog - Happy Camper - Green Mountain Camper and Happy Camper - Lake Camper, both of which are 300 piece puzzles that are a part of a series by Ceaco. These are not only quick snack puzzles to assemble, but they also always seem to feature snacks in the image that would be perfect for picnicking!
Green Mountain Camper by Ceaco
Lake Camper by Ceaco
Lastly, this 1000-piece Picnic Party puzzle by Galison was 39” long - not quite as bad as the longest picnic table laid out by the City of Memphis in 2019, which measured in at 1,336 feet and 2 inches – but make room on your table! The bright colors and patterns and thick pieces were, much like the sandwich featured on the image, just my jam.
Ants at a picnic are no fun, but these cute ants on the puzzle were sweet! Ever notice how once one ant shows up, more move in quickly? That’s because ants lay down their scent as they leave your picnic and return to the nest for the other ants to follow! Another reason to lay a picnic blanket down, as it serves as a barrier.
If you enjoyed these picnic puzzles, there are many more you can put in your basket, with several of my favorites being two 500-piece puzzles, Beach Bound by New York Puzzle Company and Garden Cheers by Lang; one 600-piece puzzle, Dream Picnic by Gibsons and two 1000-piece puzzles, both by Karmin International entitled Patio Lunch and Girl’s Night In “Picnic”.
Don’t have a picnic puzzle to put on your board for the holiday? No worries! If you missed it, you’ll get another chance on June 18th when International Picnic Day is celebrated! In closing, for those of you who tried to guess the answer for the largest s’more ever? It was 342 pounds. That’s a bit s’more than even I could handle!
– Lisa @lisalovespuzzles
Love roasting marshmallows; even alone by my little woods sometimes. A little bit burnt usually is the outcome.
