Oh! The Places You'll Go: Stave Puzzle Store
I generally don’t consider myself a competitive person. Growing up, I was never the girl who cried after losing a soccer game or tried to sabotage a game of Go Fish so I would end up with the most pairs. I did, however, have a specific habit when it came to completing jigsaw puzzles.
When the puzzle pieces were scattered around before construction began, I would be sure to sneakily grab a puzzle piece and tuck it into my pocket, out of sight. When every puzzle piece was in place except for the last one, I would miraculously produce the final piece and be the one to finish the labor of our efforts. I’m not sure if this qualifies as competitive, but I got a particular thrill from being the one to complete the puzzle.
Today’s column takes us to the Stave Puzzle Store in Wilder. It’s impossible not to feel somewhat nostalgic for the days of family puzzle making while in the store (hence my personal reflection on my interesting puzzle habits as a child). Stave is known for its meticulous craftsmanship and notoriously tricky puzzles. Each puzzle is cut by hand, and at about two minutes per puzzle piece, a 250-piece puzzle can take over seven hours to cut, sand and finish!
Steve Richardson, 68, owns Stave Puzzles and has been making puzzles for over 30 years. The company started out as a two-person shop in the early seventies and now has 25 employees and earns revenues of more than $2.5 million. Stave currently has over 1,500 puzzle prints to choose from, and also specializes in personalized puzzles featuring clients’ names or photos.
Stave puzzles cost anywhere from $125 - $6,000, with limited editions (http://www.stavepuzzles.com/index.php?p=store&cPath=900&page=1) going for as much as $21,000. The company produces traditional puzzles (http://www.stavepuzzles.com/teasers) and “teaser” puzzles (http://www.stavepuzzles.com/teasers) which are designed to stump. These puzzles contain pieces that fit together in multiple ways, but only one is correct. Extra pieces are intentionally included and sometimes spell out messages when placed together. Other tricks include pieces with phony corners and pieces that fit only when flipped over. In Stave catalogues puzzles are given a rating based on trickiness, and a trio of puzzles listed under “Steve’s Torture Chamber” are for experts only. Unlike many other brands of puzzles, Stave never includes images of the completed puzzle on its boxes, a further attempt to ‘puzzle’ those who dare to put one of their creations together.
The Stave store in Vermont is the company’s only physical plant. The store has a large showroom with a wide array of puzzles on display. While even the cheapest Stave puzzle is certainly an investment in itself, you just can’t put a price on the sense of satisfaction that comes from completing a hundred-plus-piece puzzle. As long as you’re the one putting the last piece in, that is.
The Stave Puzzle shop is located at 163 Olcott Drive, Wilder, VT. Hours: Monday – Friday, 8 am – 5 pm. 802-295-5200