Review of Enlivenze LLC | FlipStir Puzzles | Statue of Liberty

Oh, we have a fabulous and fun review product to share with you today! We recently had the opportunity to play with one of the award winning FlipStir Puzzles of the Statue of Liberty made by Enlivenze LLC. I have never seen these types of puzzles before so we were excited to try these out! This one is definitely fun for the whole family to get involved in.

What is a FlipStir Puzzle?

Well, they are currently available in 2 levels. The puzzles available in Level 1 are Rainbow Pencils and Tyrannosaurus Rex. Level 2 puzzles include Solar System, Statue of Liberty, and Periodic Table of Elements (Limited Edition). All FlipStir Puzzles can be purchased online for $24.95. They are recommended for ages 7 and up.

Their genius design allows for a no mess puzzle. The pieces come contained in their own durable plastic container and that is where they stay. Inside you have a metal rod with a little claw on the end to help you grab, flip, and turn pieces around to fit in the right place. You simply shake, stir, and solve the puzzle. Your very own no mess, no batteries, completely portable, hours of fun puzzle. The pieces themselves and the container seem pretty durable so far and we have had plenty of instances where we scraped the sides with the puzzle pieces and claw trying to get the pieces in place.

We had a blast taking turns trying to see who could solve our puzzle the fastest. Since we finished up our US History studies last year, this was the perfect end to our learning. We were able to review a few facts about the history of the Statue of Liberty and challenge each other to puzzle races. At first glance, my thoughts were no way I'm going to be able to solve this but I quickly found my groove. It was a lot simpler to solve once I used the box it came in or picture underneath to reference because in the beginning I tried without those resources and it took me a while! You will want to do this again and again once you get it or at least we all did. Who knew success and victory over completed puzzles could be so rewarding?

It was so funny to see everyone's faces as they tried to solve this puzzle!  Frustration, concentration, hilarious fun, light bulb moments - you could see them all in each person's facial expression.  There are really no rules so just let your puzzle skills take over.

Here is a quick time lapse video showing myself completing the puzzle.  It is so much fun!

To find out more on FlipStir Puzzles visit them on Facebook and Twitter. Be sure to check out Enlivenze LLC on Facebook and Twitter too. 

You can also see what my crew mates thought about this and some of the other puzzles available by clicking the banner below.

Review of Puzzleball Globe

Today's review was the perfect summer activity for us. Timberdoodle sent us this 3D PuzzleBall Globe to review.

However, your puzzleball globe doesn't start out that way, of course. It contains 180 puzzle pieces and a display stand. There is no glue required to assemble this puzzle - only willing hands are needed!

The puzzle pieces are made of a sturdy plastic. Each piece is numbered making this puzzle so simple to complete for younger children. We found that the pieces snap into place fairly easily. They have a curve to them which eventually helps to form the finished globe. The only tricky portion is when you reach the top but I would not really call that part difficult at all. It is recommended for ages 8 and up.

Ruler shown in picture is not necessary!  I just think it happened to be laying on the table when they began assembly.  :)

We found this to be the perfect summertime project because it was simple and fun. Not only that though. Now, we have an actual globe that we can use when we start back with our "official" school time! We will be studying lots of countries and cultures so this will be the perfect accessory for our studies. 

This was a totally unique product for us as we have never seen any type of 3D puzzle before. Stephen and Sarah had this project knocked out in no time. They are both well above the age level but found this to be a fun afternoon activity for them both. After they finished, we all were discussing how we should have recorded the process for you to show how simple and easy it was. Well, Sarah asked the next day if she could take the globe apart and redo it so that she could record it for you guys. Now, you know this is a fun project when your children ask to do it again! So, here is her time lapse showing just how simple and fast this project can be to complete.

For older children, you could also try putting the globe together without using the numbers on the back. That will be a great review after we learn each country next year too!

This puzzleball globe is currently selling for $24.99 at Timberdoodle and is also included in their 2016 3rd grade curriculum kit.

**I received a free copy of this product through Timberdoodle in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations.