Joyce Puzzles
What's your name?
Joyce
Where are you from?
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA currently. I’ve also lived in Los Angeles, California; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Princeton, New Jersey; and Brooklyn, New York.
When did you start puzzling?
Since I was a kid and throughout my life, I’ve always loved all kinds of solvables – jigsaw puzzles, crosswords, brain teasers, riddles, escape rooms, IKEA furniture assembly (yes, really!), etc. I rediscovered my love of puzzling and got back into it heavily in 2022. Puzzles have really evolved in the past few years and there are so many more designs that appeal to me!
What is your favorite piece count and why?
1000 pieces is my sweet spot of enough challenge and time combined with the satisfaction of finishing it relatively quickly. I do sometimes need a quick fix and do plenty of 500 piece puzzles too. I have to REALLY love the image if I’m going to do a larger piece count. I can’t even do larger than 2000 in my current space.
What is your favorite type of art?
I instantly gravitate towards happy-making art: bright, colorful, modern, abstract, graphic, whimsical. But I also like a lot of vintage art. The cute + creepy/eerie combo is always a winner, and generally things that are weird and unusual. And I love things that make me do a double take and/or make me laugh.
What makes you keep puzzling and how often do you puzzle?
I do something related to puzzling almost every day, whether it’s actually assembling puzzles, hunting for them at thrift stores, making replacement pieces, or taking photos or video. I puzzle because it gets me into flow state, helps me cope through chronic health issues, and reduces my screen time. What has surprised me is that something that is typically a solo activity has helped with my social anxiety. I find puzzle people easy to talk to, which is not something I’ve often been able to say, and I’ve connected with some awesome people locally and on Instagram. It’s also sparked my creativity, coming up with ideas for videos and such. I’m having so much fun!
What is your go to drink/snack when you puzzle?
Protect the puzzle! That means just water in a secure bottle, and only snacks I can quickly pop in my mouth and won’t get on my fingers. That’s the power of puzzles, because otherwise I am BIG on snacks. Like, the polar bear in the Soonness Arctic Life puzzle that’s laying down and is surrounded by like, 4 different snacks at once? That’s me.
Tell us a little bit about your other joys.
The other Joyce lives in Australia and has been applying for a lot of jobs lately. Oh, other JOYS. I love voice acting, filmmaking, crafting, learning languages, paddleboarding, hiking, rock climbing, board games, DOGS, interspecies friendships, cake, movies, travel, comedy, making people laugh, creativity.