PUZZLEDDD

 The Puzzleddd shop is closed, for now or for ever, you never know. If you are interested in my puzzles, just send me a message. And no worries, everything is fine, just not enough time in the day.

Long time since my previous release, I needed a (long) break. And expect a (long) break after this release, no worry, I am just way too busy...  Gift Box is a packing puzzle, with an apparent cube inside a gift box (I am so clever with names...). I played with that concept for a while and found several interesting configurations. I wanted to have multiple challenges into one. So I settled on a configuration with which you can assemble 3 different 3x3x3 cubes with the same 7 pieces. You take out 2 pieces out and pack the 5 remaining into the gift box. Each game has a few assemblies outside of the box (2 or 3) and one unique solution inside. There might be rotational shortcuts but so far I did not find any.  I played myself with Game 3, as a blind solve, and found the packing part actually tricky !  Since we don’t like to have isolated pieces hanging out on collectors’ shelves, I designed a square box to fit under the gift box once assembled and contain the 2 extra pi...

  I am happy to release a first small batch of 2 new puzzles ! Pack4u is a packing puzzle I have designed. The goal is to pack the 5 pieces (4 different Us + 1 w) into the 4-shaped box. This packing puzzle is of medium difficulty. It's a typical solve for a packing puzzle, with some nice moves. And the shape with the apparent cube (actually not a cube, a 4x4x2 block) is fun ! Framed Chaos is a puzzle designed by Lucie Pauwels. It's a packing puzzle as well, with some original shape. The goal is to fit the 4 pieces inside the 2 frames, in order to form a 6x6x2 block. See the goal below, as a 3D model to avoid any spoiler. This packing puzzle is of medium difficulty. I like it because of the original goal, it is a fun puzzle as well. Thank you Lucie for the nice design ! These 2 puzzles will be added to the shop. Depending on demand, I will produce more.

I just designed a new packing puzzle, Pack4u !  A box in the shape of a 4 and 5 pieces, including 4 differents u's, it's a packing puzzle for you!   It is of medium complexity, but the solve is nice. You can follow standard method for solving such a packing puzzle, but you have to use your brain for at least a couple of steps with some nice Ah Ha! moment. I blind solved it myseld (I know it cannot be 100% blind as I cannot erase my brain) and found it cool. I should release it in the coming weeks. Colors on the picture are not definitive. I think the box will be dark grey and the pieces orange. Also I have already slightly enhanced the lid. I should release it at the same time as Framed Chaos by Lucie Pauwels!

Yes, I do print puzzles in plastic. I know it can raise questions or even concerns for some people.Let me try to get some answer ! What I hear sometimes is two types of objection. First of all, from serious puzzlers, that wood is much nicer, you could say even more noble, for puzzles than plastic. Yes, indeed I love puzzles in woods ! But I have a few but... Wood is nicer and more expensive as well. The price of high quality wood puzzles can be quite high, and very rightly so. It requires exotic woods and special craftmanship, hence the price. 3D printed puzzles are more affordable, not necessarily cheap but more affordable, and can be of high quality as well. I always pay a lot of attention to the quality of my puzzles, and from the feedback I receive, I believe I can be satisfied. 3D printing puzzles is not an industrial process, where you just push a button and then you have 10 puzzles ready for sale (sorry to disappoint some of you). It requires some craftmanship, sure not th...

I am really happy to announce the release of my new puzzle, Hexabox !   Hexabox is a puzzle box, with coordinated motions and a pinch of sequential discovery.  I like to refer it as the big sister of Drawer Box, one of my very first designs, with some nice additions and improvements.  It requires 25+ moves to remove the 3 drawers and to find the hidden coin with 3 phases in the game. It is a difficult puzzle, with, I hope, some nice Ah Ha ! moments down the road.   The production is just starting. The first 4 copies are already reserved for early birds, but more will come. I will maintain a waiting list and communicate when copies are available.

  For those of you who had been following me, you remember that I started a new design, Hexabox, as a sequel to Drawer Box, and then I stopped, because of too many issues in the design and in the 3D printing process. "Vingt fois sur le métier remettez votre ouvrage" wrote Boileau the poet. So I did (more than 20 times actually...). I reviewed the design, taking into account the constraints of the production process. I work now with a new partner for 3D printing, and we were able to find solutions, with better quality. And I sent a couple of weeks ago, a copy of Hexabox to my favorite tester. Great feedback. A couple of things to fix, to improve the game. Still fine tuning, but I should have 5 copies ready to get assembled soon. Hexabox is sequential discovery puzzle box, with coordinated motions. It takes around 20 steps to get to the goal (find the coin), with 3 phases to follow. Not ready yet for ordering (in December).

 

  After the new shop section and a new logo, I continue the branding improvement with a new domain name: PUZZLEDDD ! You can now access my humble blog directly through puzzleddd.com or www.puzzleddd.com . Short name, easier to remember.  I make puzzles, using 3D printing, hence the (very clever, I know) name !  

I finally added a Shop section to this blog ! I like the idea of maintaining a blog and a shop, with two different purposes, but it is true that it was lacking a proper shop section to facilitate ordering. So here it is ! I hope all works well. Check it out, in the top menu bar. And by the way, I took this opportunity to change the name, and start introducing the new one, PUZZLEDDD, and the new logo!

  I am releasing 2 new puzzles, Espresso and Caffe Latte !  They are both packing & unpacking puzzles, taking advantage of round shapes, which give some nice possibilities of rotation moves.  The goal is to pack all pieces in the cup (8 pieces for Espresso and 7 pieces plus a sugar cube for Caffe Latte), enjoy your drink and unpack ! The disassembling experience is nice as well. They are of moderate difficulty, Espresso being easier (3/6) and Caffe Latte a bit more challenging (4/6). Caffe Latte Espresso A few copies are available for purchasing ( catalog of puzzles ), and more will be produced depending on the demand. 

I just designed a new packing puzzle, Espresso! The goal is to pack all 8 pieces of coffee into the styrofoam cup, and enjoy your coffee ! This puzzle is of medium difficulty, with some nice Ah Ha ! moves. I played with the concept of a round packing puzzle and it opens new possibilities.  It’s an assembly puzzle but don’t forget that you have not really solved a puzzle unless you have solved it twice. The disassembly is enjoyable as well. 

  It took a bit of time but the first batch of packing puzzles is ready for shipping ! I am happy with the result, each puzzle has its own style but they form a nice serie. Skof, designed by Lucie Pauwels Rotabox, designed by Lucie Pauwels PentaStack, designed by Bruno Hemon

  I am going to release soon 3 packing puzzles, 2 that have been designed by Lucie Pauwels and that I have modeled in 3D (thank you Lucie !), and one of my own design. I am quite happy with the result! I was not that familiar with packing puzzles until I recently played with a few and enjoyed the packing experience. Each one of these packing puzzles has its own twist, with similar difficulty, it is a nice set ! Rotabox, designed by Lucie Pauwels Pack all six pieces into the box (2 goals) The solution involves rotation, obviously! Difficulty:4/6 Pentastack, designed by Bruno Pack all six pieces into the box Pentagon shapes can be quite misleading ! Difficulty:5/6 Skof, designed by Lucie Pauwels Pack all seven pieces into the box The inner drawer can move laterally in the box ! Difficulty:5/6 If you are interested, please fill in the waiting list form. It is useful for me to better estimate the quantities and then launch the production.

Following up the idea highlighted in my previous post on partnership , I have started to exchange with Lucie Pauwels. Lucie is a well known puzzle designer who does publish regularly new puzzles on Facebook (a lot compared to me...). Some of her puzzles are getting produced of course, but certainly not all and some remain at the prototype stage. It's certainly a missed opportunity for puzzlers. So, I took on the idea to select one or two of her recent puzzles, of course with her kind permission, and then model and print it in 3D. My first choice is Rota Box, as you can see on the pictures below.   I have added an additional challenge (I just love additional challenges !) with the last configuration: sames pieces, with a hole obviously inside and an extra voxel at the corner of the box. It is a nice packing puzzle. The box with its opening is kind of tricky and certainly limits possibilities. Both configuration have a unique solution, that requires rotation (no, it is not a spoiler ...

 I wanted for some time now to design a new version of Drawer Box , a coordinated motion puzzle box. It's a nice design (at least I have good feedback from puzzlers), but not easy to 3D print and I had decided to discontinue this model. It has generated a bit of frustration for those who wanted a copy, my apologies for that. So, I decided to go for a new version, with a better printability but also with some new twist. I just cannot do the same design twice or change only a small thing here and there, this is no the way I like to work. And then comes Hexabox, the big sister of Drawer Box ! Hexabox is a coordinated motion puzzle box, shaped as an hexagon (I now, clever name...) , with 4 drawers and a sequential discovery ending improved compared to Drawer Box.  It is quite a massive puzzle, because of the 4 drawers. Also, I have designed a new way of coordinating the drawers, quite ingenious I must say, and I hope not too fragile.  This puzzle is actually difficult. I had ...

 The new year is certainly a good time for making improvement and planning ahead ! I have one puzzle design in the making, Hexabox, currently in producton of a first copy before final testing. I have a couple of designs on the drawing board, more or less advanced (more in my head than on paper to be honest...). That's fine, this is the way I want to work (at least as a puzzle maker I am my own boss !), taking the time to do things well. But let's face it, I am not going to have 10 designs on sale at any point of time. The only concern with that is international shipping fees which are always expensive and sometimes too expensive for ordering one single puzzle. I heard that from some of my customers, and I totally understand. Toying with this idea, I thought that I could have some partnership with a few puzzle designers (1 or 2, may be 3 but not more) for some of their puzzle designs and add them to the catalog. I would model, 3D print and get them on sale. Of course, puzzle des...

  Swiss Cheese and Grape is fun and cheesy but also a VERY challenging puzzle. After having solved the bonus games, you might get stuck on the main challenge. I decided to add on this site some hints for Swiss Cheese and Grape puzzle, which is for sure much more difficult than what it looks like. I you have recently acquired this puzzle, you will receive a link to Hint #1, that will lead to Hint #2, etc. The hints are incemental and will lead to the full solution. If you have not received it, just drop me a quick message.

Finally, I just released a new batch of Swiss Cheese and Grape ! That’s a big pile of cheese !!! Produced: x12 (October 2020)

I have designed a gift puzzle box, with a hidden coin. The solution is quite simple but I like the rendering. Akio Kamei, famous puzzle master, had designed a ribbon box, which I have always admired. Unfortunately I was not fortunate enough to acquire it. I certainly do not compare myself with his craftsmanship but I have done my own take. The solution is quite different.