Creative Crafthouse Puzzles by Dave Janelle at Smith Galleries

"Stomachion Puzzle" worlds oldest
known puzzle. Invented by
Archemedes (287-212 BC)
536 Solutions

There’s just something about a puzzle that captures our interest. I can remember when our daughters were toddlers they were fascinated by puzzles and would sit and work them over and over. As they grew, their puzzles became more complicated. Now as adults, they still enjoy puzzles. Time and time again we see that adults have not lost their love of jigsaw puzzles, brain teasers and mind bender puzzles. That is why our puzzle counter in the gallery is one of our most popular with men and women alike, but particularly with the men. The star of the show is the work of Dave Janelle at Creative Crafthouse. Dave runs a primarily family

"Calibron 12" invented by
Thomas Edison's son Theodore in 1933.
Object is to get all 12 pieces in the square.
One solution - very challenging.

business and produces one of the largest collections of wood games and puzzles that I have ever seen. Some are old and some are new; some are original and some are reinvented; some are relatively easy and some are indescribably difficult. But all are well constructed and provide lots of mind stretching, thought provoking, and brain teasing fun.

"Shut the Box" ... created in the
14th century. Great game of reasoning
and math to play with children...they
will beat you.

One hundred years ago puzzles were a very common form of entertainment. With the advent of the electronic age many of them have been lost or forgotten. Dave is bringing back a lot of those puzzles that were known to for their power to develop the mind’s ability to think critically, visualize steps to problem solving, and stretch the imagination. Let us not forget that feeling of accomplishment when we finally succeed in solving a particularly difficult puzzle. So thank you Dave for reminding us that we don’t have to have batteries or wi-fi to entertain ourselves and help keep our minds active.

"Rhombus Five" is a great
desk puzzle for executives. Use all five
pieces to make 29 different shapes
inscribed on the wooden box.
Very challenging.

See more puzzles and games by Dave Janelle here.

Smith Galleries is located in the Village at Wexford, Suite J11 (UPSTAIRS), on Hilton Head Island. Gallery hours are 10 - 6 Monday through Saturday. 843-842-2280