African Mandala, Herb Schwartz

 Elm, 574 pieces. My first from the new rental club, and has the high quality I expected. Repeating image with bonus color line cutting for challenge; lots of animal whimsies, many of which are pictured in the closeup. 6/10

Arrangement

 Elms, 511 pieces. Nice puzzle that gets tough at the end because of the big chunks of dark brown. Nice grace details in repeated pieces, which I think is an Elms strength. 6/10 Stave scale

a row of flowers

wheelbarrow with birdhouse (and teapots to the side)

ring of butterflies

either the cat or the plant should fall off this table

butterfly

songbird

Gamble

 Elms, 1023 pieces. Huge! Room for a lot of false corners, areas of distinct cutting, and repeated whimsies that have one or two stray versions elsewhere while mostly being in a line, for greater challenge. The dark areas were also a lot of work. Ultimately very satisfying. 7/10 Stave scale

some of the many whimsies, including the repeated floral pattern

wreath

treasure chest

bottom area with traditional-ish stirp cut

rabbit in hat

juggler, I think

masks

card suits

The Blue Gate

 Elm, 640 pieces. Vintage, and the pieces are a little tight, but a solid Elm puzzle with the expected heart-shaped connectors, occasional false edges, and an unusual dropout as the centerpiece. 6/10 Stave scale.

interacting whimsies

the common Elm interacting man/wheelbarrow

surprise dropout

Morning Hatch

 Elm, 230 pieces. Very dark, though as usual in assembly the details emerged after enough focus. Aquatic whimsies, unsurprisingly. 4/5

Mediterranean Illusion

 Elm, 445 pieces. A lot of repeated images with differing sizes and colors made this a lot of fun to do. 7/10 Stave scale.

you can see a number of internal fake edges here

Benson's Chicken Farm

 Elm, 351 pieces. A cheerful, fun Elm with a whimsy theme of "birds sitting on things." 6/10

bird sitting on car

bird sitting on truck

bird sitting on mailbox

Mother's Day

 Elm, 692 pieces. Appropriately, did this with my daughter! Although I liked the other Elm cat puzzle that showed up on eBay a bit better, I didn't win that auction, and this was plenty of fun, with lots of cat whimsies as well as a few extra cats on the edge. 8/10 quality family time

momma cat and kitten

many cats

I love the style of this birdhouse whimsy, where the bird is created by the interaction between cut and color

cat train

walking with cat in apron or basket

grooming

playing

cat and mouse?

pot o'cats

heart cats