Fascinating Gift

Our friend Nora came for dinner Christmas Eve evening. We exchanged gifts, ate, caught up, and shared lots of love and hugs. It was a really nice evening.

One of the gifts she gave me was called an Intarsia Puzzle Box.

It is handcrafted by ‘Carver Dan,’ Daniel Terrico.  I would have loved this if it didn’t ‘do’ anything at all. It is made from 100% exotic hardwoods with NO paint or stains! Their color comes from the natural wood and hand-rubbed finish.  Isn’t it wonderful?

Each puzzle contains a removable locking pin. You check around the outside of the puzzle box, locate the pin and remove it.

On the bottom right side of the box, you can see where I’ve removed the pin.  Then you slide the ‘face’ off its dovetail style cut to remove it.

You then pick up the ‘lid’ showing the storage area below.

Nice, felt-lined storage area.

The workmanship is first-rate. The pieces fit beautifully and slide apart with no effort. This is such a treasure!

My husband sent me a small puzzle box a hundred or so years ago when I was 14 and he was in the Marines. We wrote every day. The mailman – ignoring rules – put the red flag up on the mailbox at the road when there was a letter to me from my husband. I would watch from the front window in the house, bursting out the door and running down the driveway to get the mail. :0)

One day the box arrived. It was supposed to take 6 or 7 movements in order for you to be able to open the box. No instructions, just the wooden box. I don’t know how long it took me to get the box open, but I finally did – to find a sweet, sparkly rooster pin inside!

THIS beautifully made box brought back wonderful memories of the past, as well as providing great fun on a Christmas Eve with a well-loved friend. TWO gifts in one!