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Posts Tagged ‘puzzles’

Solving the puzzle(s) of Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway

Posted in commodification, tagged , , , on Saturday 21 January 2023| 1 Comment »

There seems to be an endless supply of jigsaw puzzles that include a connection to Virginia Woolf.

Well, the supply is probably not endless. But every time I think I have exhausted all avenues in my Woolf puzzle search, a new puzzle appears.

This go-round, I found two. And both connect to Woolf’s 1925 novel Mrs. Dalloway.

Mrs. Dalloway 1

I discovered the first thanks to a Facebook post by Ben Hagen, president of the International Virginia Woolf Society.

It featured a panoramic puzzle from the New York Puzzle Company that measures  39″ x 13″ and depicts an imaginary street scene populated by characters from the novel. The cost of the 1,000-piece “Mrs. Dalloway” is $25.99 on Amazon. But you can buy it for $16.50 on the puzzle company’s website.

Mrs. Dalloway 2

The second “Mrs. Dalloway” is a lithograph and looks much more difficult to complete, as it is made up of words — the words of the novel.

The only image is the profile of a woman’s face superimposed over the text. It comes in two versions: 500 pieces and 1,000 pieces and a variety of colors. The cost of each is $39.

However if puzzling is not your gig, you can purchase the same image — words and all — as a tote, a T-shirt, a blanket, a scarf, a pillow, and more from Litographs.

More Woolf puzzles

For more on Woolf puzzles, visit these posts:

  • “Doing jigsaw puzzles with Virginia Woolf,” which Includes

    “Jane Austen’s Book Club” puzzle by eeBoo

  • “A puzzling question: Why is Woolf depicted as a blue-eyed blonde?,” which includes a link to eeBoo’s “Jane Austen’s Book Club” puzzle.
  • “Two more to add to your stash of Virginia Woolf puzzles, which includes
    • A take-off on the iconic 2008 Barack Obama “Hope” poster featuring Woolf. However, it is no longer available. I was able to obtain the puzzle before it went off-market and completed it this week. It is pictured below.
    • Edward Gorey Book Covers.  It includes the cover of From Beowulf to Virginia Woolf by Robert Manson Myers. It has 1,000 pieces, 20″ x 27″ and is priced at $22.95.
  • “Two more for your Virginia Woolf puzzle stash,” which includes:
    • The Re-marks Famous Authors Postage Stamp Collage Puzzle. 1,000 pieces, 26 5/8″ L x 19 1/4″. $17.99. Features a full-color portrait of Woolf as a stamp.
    • Essential Book Covers Puzzle. 1,000 pieces, 27.5″L x 19.7″. $25.99. Features the Vanessa Bell cover of To the Lighthouse. The puzzle is described as including the covers of the “50 Best Classic Books.”

      A Woolf puzzle no longer available that mimics the look and theme of the iconic Barack Obama poster from his 2008 presidential campaign.

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Two more to add to your stash of Virginia Woolf puzzles

Posted in commodification, pandemic, Woolf sightings, tagged , on Thursday 17 November 2022| 1 Comment »

Today I have two more Virginia Woolf puzzles for you — just in time for the holidays. This news may be welcomed by members of the VWoolf Listserv, as one recent discussion thread focused on Woolf puzzles.

But first some background on my search.

Woolf puzzling background

In the spring of 2020, when many of us found our outings and activities limited due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I wrote about two jigsaw puzzles that included Virginia Woolf or her novels and another that featured her.

By September, I had discovered a 1,000-piece eeBoo puzzle titled “Jane Austen’s Book Club” that included Woolf. She, along with Austen, Mary Shelley, George Eliot, and Zora Neale Huston, are pictured sipping tea, alongside some of their famous titles. I wrote about that, too.

Today I share my two new puzzle discoveries.

From HOPE to WOOLF

The first, a take-off on the iconic 2008 Barack Obama “Hope” poster, depicts Woolf in the same way Obama was shown, but with her last name, “Woolf,” replacing the word “Hope.” It comes in two sizes.

11/19/22 Note: The above two puzzles are no longer available.

Among Edward Gorey covers

The second features Edward Gorey book covers, including From Beowulf to Virginia Woolf by Robert Manson Myers. It is 1,000 pieces, measures 20″ x 27″ and is priced at $22.95.

 

This puzzle features Edward Gorey book cover illustrations. The one related to Woolf is at the far right in the third row from the top.

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A puzzling question: Why is Woolf depicted as a blue-eyed blonde?

Posted in coronavirus, Virginia Woolf, Woolf as Commodity, tagged , , , , , on Thursday 24 September 2020| 4 Comments »

What color were Virginia Woolf’s eyes? That has turned out to be a puzzling question that has me still searching for the answer, while begging forgiveness for the pun.

“Jane Austen’s Book Club” puzzle by eeBoo, which depicts Woolf (front, far right, as a blue-eyed blonde)

The question occurred to me after completing a 1,000-piece eeBoo puzzle titled “Jane Austen’s Book Club.” Woolf, along with Austen, Mary Shelley, George Eliot, and Zora Neale Huston, are pictured sipping tea, alongside some of their famous titles.

Wasn’t she a brown-eyed brunette?

The puzzle was fun to put together and I was happy to add it to my collection of Woolf puzzles. I am even planning to frame it. But it left me wondering why artist Jennifer Orkin Lewis pictured Woolf as a blue-eyed blonde.

All of the paintings and photos I have seen of Woolf depict her with dark hair. And although her father, Leslie Stephen, is said to have had steely blue eyes, I have never seen her described that way.

In the famous color photos of Woolf by Gisele Freund, taken in her Tavistock Square home in London just before World War II broke out in 1939, Woolf’s eyes appear to be brown. It was the last portrait taken of Woolf and the only one in color. I have also seen Woolf’s eyes described as grey, although that source does not seem reliable. But never blue.

So I have emailed the artist to ask for some insight into her color choices. I’ll let you know what I hear.

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